Nutrition & Wellness – Biology 50

Governor Signs Menu Labeling Bill and Allowing Healthier Options for Californians

On September 30, 2008 Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill 1420 into law. With this law passing, California will be the first state in the nation to require calories to be posted on menus and menu boards.

The bill was sponsored by the California Center for Public Health Advocacy and the American Cancer Society.

The law written by Senator Alex Padilla requires restaurant chains with 20 or more locations statewide to post calorie information on menus and indoor menu boards for consumers.

Carol Jackson, the California Division Chair of the Board of the American Cancer Society had this to say about the passage of the bill “We are so excited that the Governor signed menu labeling this year. It is a trendsetting bill that will set the standard for the nation by increasing the visibility and importance of healthy eating.”

With the passage of this bills all Californians will soon be benefit from having reliable, accessible nutrition information at the point of sale that will help them make more informed, healthier choices. Making sure that people can make choices about what they are eating when dining out is becoming increasingly important as more people are eating a greater number of their meals outside of the home each week.

SB 1420 was modeled closely on an ordinance implemented in New York City that affects large chain restaurants. Restaurants such as McDonald’s, Burger King, Starbucks, Quizno’s, Applebee’s, Dunkin Donuts, Subway, TGI Friday’s are now posting calorie information on menu boards in New York City.

This bill has been two years in the making. I think this is a great move to improve the health of Californians. Kudos to the Governor for promoting health and nutrition.

Add comment September 30th, 2008

Understanding Metabolism – Video Clips

Here are some video clips that may help in explaining the steps of Metabolism.

Be advised that there is more information presented in these clips than you will be held for in lecture.

Glycolysis

TCA or Kreb’s Cycle

Electron Transport Chain

Another version of the Electron Transport Chain

Add comment September 20th, 2008

Protein Synthesis – Video Clips

Here are some good video clips that I found on Protein Synthesis that help explain the process a bit more.

Part 1 & Part 2 not really discussed in class

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Add comment September 18th, 2008

More About Food Allergies

According to The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, eight foods account for 90% of all food-allergic reactions. The eight foods most likely to cause a food allergic reaction:

Milk
Egg
Peanut
Tree nuts (walnut, cashew, etc.)
Fish
Shellfish
Soy
Wheat

In adults, the foods that most often trigger allergic reactions include

* Fish and shellfish, such as shrimp, lobster and crab
* Peanuts
* Tree nuts, such as walnuts
* Eggs

Problem foods for children are eggs, milk (especially in infants and young children) and peanuts.

Food Allergy

Food allergy is an abnormal response to a food triggered by your body’s immune system. Allergic reactions to food can sometimes cause serious illness and death. Tree nuts and peanuts are the leading causes of deadly allergic reactions called anaphylaxis.

Food Intolerance

Sometimes a reaction to food is not an allergy. It is often a reaction called food intolerance. Food intolerances are may look and feel a bit like a mild food allergy, but these symptoms are not caused by the  immune system.

Sources:
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Food Allergy: What Is Food Allergy?

Medline Plus. Food Allergies.

Add comment September 17th, 2008

“May Contain Traces of Nuts” – FDA to Redefine Ambiguous Labeling

he Food and Drug Administration is finally looking at ways to force food makers to use a standard label system for allergens. They have agreed to host a public hearing in order to decide what the best course of action would be.

At issue is the statement “May Contain Traces of Nuts.” Many believe this statement is too ambiguous to prevent deadly reactions. Instead labels should list what they certainly contain. Clearer labels would be helpful for the 12 million Americans living with food allergies.

Under the current system food companies are required by the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA) to place labels on packaged foods containing most common food allergens, such as milk, eggs, fish, Crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts and soybeans, or any other ingredient that contains protein derived from one of these foods or food groups.

One popular choice would be for the FDA to have a standard number of descriptions that are clear and concise and require manufacturers to cite statistics to correctly define what “trace amount” means like “one part per million.”

According to The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network there are more than 12 million Americans currently living with food allergies. In addition there are around 30,000 emergency room visits every year triggered by allergic reactions.

Joseph Brownstein et. al. September 16, 2008. FDA to Take a Close Look at Food Labels: Critics Say ‘May Contain’ Labels Don’t Do Enough to Protect People With Allergies. ABCNews.com

May contain nuts. September 16, 2008. JusticeNewsFlash.com

Alice Turner September 16, 2008 FDA Pushes Food Industry to Clarify Allergen Labels. eFluxMedia.

1 comment September 16th, 2008

Safe Seafoods to Eat on the West Coast

Seafood Watch from the Monterey Bay Aquarium

Still looking to answer the question about what are safe seafoods to eat, the pocket guide from the Monterey Bay Aquarium will help you figure out the right seafood options for your region. Carry one with you to help you choose ocean-friendly seafood wherever you live or travel.

Choose the guide for your region. The different guides include the National Guide, West Coast Guide, Southwest Guide, Hawaii Guide, Central U.S. Guide, Southeast Guide and Northeast Guide.

Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program has been recognized for its influential role in transforming seafood buying habits across the United States.

The information below comes from the West Coast Guide. For concerns about Mercury levels in fish, look for those fish with * next to the name.

Best Choices are abundant, well-managed and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.

Good Alternatives are an option, but there are concerns with how they’re caught or farmed—or with the health of their habitat due to other human impacts.

Avoid for now as these items are caught or farmed in ways that harm other marine life or the environment.

Key
BC = British Columbia CA = California OR = Oregon WA = Washington

* Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants. Visit www.edf.org/seafood

+ Some or all of this fishery is certified as sustainable to the Marine Stewardship Council standard. Visit www.msc.org

The Seafood Watch Information can also be downloaded to a cell phone. Use your phone to log on to mobile.seafoodwatch.org

Source of Information: Sea Watch, Monterey Bay Aquarium, West Coast Guide.

Add comment September 14th, 2008

Top 10 Eco Best, Eco O.K. and Eco Worst Seafood Choices

The following list of Eco-Best, Eco- and Eco-Worst Seafood choices comes from Environmental Defense Fund Data.

This information will help you make more informed decisions when buying and eating seafood and choose fish that are good for you and the ocean.

Seafood Selector from the Environmental Defense Fund

You can see the full list at their website, their list by fish or download their pocket guide. For more information on contaminants see Contaminants in Fish and Shellfish and their Health Alert for fish and shellfish.

They also offer a downloadable mobile guide [PDF] that can be used when not connected to the Web.

Source:

Environmental Defense Fund Data, Make Smart Choices When Eating Seafood.

Environmental Defense Fund. Contaminants in Fish and Shellfish.

Add comment September 13th, 2008

What are the best and safest seafoods to eat?

The question came up in class about what were the best and safest seafoods to eat considering all of the concerns about mercury and other contaminants in our seafood sources.

When picking seafood one needs to consider:

1. The type of Fish

2. The nutrient benefits of the Fish

3. The potential for contaminants in the Fish

4. The food raising practices of how the fish are farmed.

5. The nutritional needs or status and the size of the person e.g. pregant woman, elderly or child.

American Heart Association’s Original Recommendations about Fish

The American Heart Association recommends that people eat fish at least twice a week. Recent research shows that eating oily fish containing omega-3 fatty acids (for example, salmon, trout, and herring) may help lower your risk of death from coronary artery disease.

Contaminants in Fish and Shell Fish

Despite their valuable qualities, fish can pose considerable health risks when contaminated with substances such as metals (e.g., mercury and lead), industrial chemicals (e.g., PCBs) and pesticides (e.g., DDT and dieldrin).

Many of our oceans, lakes and rivers are now known to be surprisingly tainted with these contaminants. As a result, some fish are sufficiently contaminated that Environmental Defense recommends limited or no consumption.

American Heart Association’s Recommendations about Fish by Stage of Life

The benefits and risks of eating fish vary depending on a person’s stage of life. In addition eating a variety of fish will help minimize any potentially adverse effects due to environmental pollutants.

Children and pregnant women are advised by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to:

• Avoid eating those fish with the potential for the highest level of mercury contamination (e.g., shark, swordfish, king mackerel or tilefish);
• Eat up to 12 ounces (two average meals) per week of a variety of fish and shellfish that are lower in mercury (e.g., canned light tuna, salmon, pollock, catfish);
• Check local advisories about the safety of fish caught by family and friends in local lakes, rivers and coastal areas.

For middle-aged and older men and postmenopausal women, the benefits of fish consumption far outweigh the potential risks when the amount of fish are eaten is within the recommendations established by the FDA and Environmental Protection Agency.

Safe Fish and Seafish

According to the Environment Defense Fund, it is generally safe to eat 4 or more meals per month of the following fish and seafish:

• Anchovies
• Clams
• Crab, king (U.S.)
• Crab
• Snow/tanner
• Crawfish (U.S.)
• Haddock (trawl)
• Herring, Atlantic
• Lobster, American/Maine
• Mackerel, Atlantic
• Mussel, blue
• Oysters (farmed)
• Salmon, wild (Alaska)
• Sardines
• Scallops, bay (farmed)
• Shrimp, pink (Oregon)
• Squid
• Tilapia (Latin America)
• Tilapia (U.S.)
• Trout, rainbow (farmed)

EWG’s Tuna Calculator

Visit the Environmental Working Group’s Tuna Calculator to figure out how much Tuna you could consume in a week.

Sources:

American Heart Association. Fish, Levels of Mercury and Omega-3 Fatty Acids.

Environmental Defense Fund Data, Make Smart Choices When Eating Seafood.

Environmental Defense Fund. Contaminants in Fish and Shellfish.

Environmental Defense Fund. Common Questions About Contaminants in Fish.

Environmental Defense Fund. Health Altert.

Image Source: Filipe Natanael. Fish with Tomilho 1. Royalty Free Use.

Add comment September 12th, 2008

Sprouts Recalled Because of Salmonellosis Outbreak

The Oregon Department of Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a recall of Sprouter’s Northwest brand alfalfa sprouts following an outbreak of salmonella or salmonellosis.

The Oregon Department of Human Services reported that the company voluntarily recalled the product linked to at least 13 salmonellosis cases, nine people in Washington State and four in Oregon.

The alfalfa sprouts were distributed to grocery stores, restaurants and other retail outlets in Oregon and Washington.

More about Salmonellosis

Salmonellosis is an infection with bacteria called Salmonella. Most persons infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days, and most persons recover without treatment. However, in some persons, the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized. In these patients, the Salmonella infection may spread from the intestines to the blood stream, and then to other body sites and can cause death unless the person is treated promptly with antibiotics. The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are more likely to have a severe illness.

How to prevent salmonellosis

• Cook poultry, ground beef, and eggs thoroughly. Do not eat or drink foods containing raw eggs, or raw (unpasteurized) milk.
• If you are served undercooked meat, poultry or eggs in a restaurant, don’t hesitate to send it back to the kitchen for further cooking.
• Wash hands, kitchen work surfaces, and utensils with soap and water immediately after they have been in contact with raw meat or poultry.
• Be particularly careful with foods prepared for infants, the elderly, and the immunocompromised.
• Wash hands with soap after handling reptiles, birds, or baby chicks, and after contact with pet feces.
• Avoid direct or even indirect contact between reptiles (turtles, iguanas, other lizards, snakes) and infants or immunocompromised persons.
• Don’t work with raw poultry or meat, and an infant (e.g., feed, change diaper) at the same time.
• Mother’s milk is the safest food for young infants. Breastfeeding prevents salmonellosis and many other health problems.

Sources:

Associated Press. September 5. 2008.  Salmonellosis outbreak prompts sprout recall. Forbes.

Mike Barber. September 5. 2008.  Salmonella outbreak traced to alfalfa sprouts. Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

CDC. Salmonellosis. Division of Foodborne, Bacterial and Mytotic Diseases.

Image Source: Chris Darling. Green Donut. Creative Commons. Some rights reserved.

Add comment September 7th, 2008

Irradiating Spinach and Iceberg Lettuce to “Zap” Bacteria and Extend Shelf Life

On August 22, 2008, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a final rule that allows the use of irradiation to make fresh iceberg lettuce and fresh spinach safer and last longer without spoiling.

The FDA ruling allows spinach and lettuce sellers to take an extra step, a long-awaited move amid increasing illness outbreaks caused by raw produce.

Irradiation has been shown to kill E. coli, salmonella and listeria and lengthen shelf life, without compromising the safety, texture or nutrient value of raw spinach and iceberg lettuce.

The FDA is reassuring the public that the process will not make food any less appealing or less healthful than non-irradiated varieties.

For More information see the FDA’s website or download a Printer-Friendly PDF File.

Sources:

FDA. Irradiation: A Safe Measure for Safer Iceberg Lettuce and Spinach. Also Image Source.

Associated Press. August 22, 2008. FDA approves irradiating spinach, lettuce to kill germs. LA Times.

Associated Press. August 21, 2008. FDA: Irradiated spinach, lettuce OK to kill germs.

Add comment September 3rd, 2008