News summary

Food labelling preferences

According to the Food Standards Agency the public is in favour of a “traffic light” coding system that is opposed by the food industry. Labelling designed to give consumers a better idea of what they are buying was proposed in the Public Health White Paper this month. Gill Fine, director of consumer choice and dietary health at the FSA, says, “People have told us they want to make healthier food choices and that they would welcome signposting to help them.” The FSA questioned members of the public on five systems: simple “traffic light” coding, multiple “traffic light coding”, labelling solely healthy food and two options which showed information for total fat, sugar and salt content. Martin Paterson, deputy director general of the Food and Drink Federation, however, says, “The food and drink industry is committed to working constructively with the FSA on more informative nutrition labelling for consumers. [?] simplistic schemes which categorise products into good and bad could seriously mislead consumers.”
(BBC News Online)
www.bbc.co.uk

Human milk vs formula in premature babies

Scientists say existing research does not offer conclusive evidence that feeding very low birth weight (VLBW) premature babies human milk can protect them significantly against infection. Researchers at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire say the belief that human milk will help ward of infection in these infants is one of the chief reasons for advocating the practice, but Dr S Andrew Spencer says the difficulties involved in using human milk rather than a formula mean the practice needs to be based on evidence. Dr Spencer and his colleagues conducted a review of “all publications concerned with human milk feeding and infection in VLBW preterm infants.” The studies all contained what the researchers call “serious” flaws, including poor design, inadequate sample size, and failure to account for variables that could influence the outcome.
(Reuters Health Online)
www.reutershealth.com

Diet and alcoholism

It may be that nutrition is the key to success for alcoholics trying to give up drink. Four years after giving up, more than nine out of ten alcoholics have resumed drinking, but Joan Matthews-Larson, a nutritionist and author of the book, “Seven Weeks to Sobriety: The Proven Program to Fight Alcoholism Through Nutrition” works on the principle that alcohol prevents the brain from producing its own mood-boosters, and that diet can help. In particular, high protein foods reduce cravings for starch, including alcohol, while olive oil, butter, yogurt, cheese and omega-3 fatty acids help with neurological repair. Dr Matthews-Larson’s Health Recovery Center is a rehabilitation programme established to focus on correcting the alcoholic brain’s chemical imbalance.
(Ivanhoe Online)
www.ivanhoe.com

Supplements’ effects on cancer risk

US research suggests that taking large quantities of beta-carotene and retinol has long-lasting effects on rates of lung cancer and death in smokers. The effects seem to persist for a matter of years after supplementation is stopped, according to investigators at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. Dr Mark Thornquist and colleagues say there is a 12 per cent increase in lung cancer risk after the supplements are stopped, compared with a 28 per cent increase when they are administered. The increase in the risk death from any cause is 17 percent during supplementation and 8 per cent after, they say. Among women taking the supplements, there is an increase in death rates ranging from 35 to 40 per cent, which Dr Thornquist describes as being “of clinical importance”.
(Reuters Health Online)
www.reutershealth.com

Milk protein “reduces blood pressure”

The results of a small study in the US suggest that a section of a protein derived from milk may reduce blood pressure. A casein peptide called C12 produced benefits in 10 hypertension sufferers, who experienced an average drop of 9 points in systolic pressure and 6 points in diastolic pressure. Study author Dr Raymond Townsend, of the University of Pennsylvania, stresses the fact that the findings cannot be used to make treatment recommendations, but says the results are “intriguing”. Previous studies in rodents and humans suggest that the C12 section of casein may reduce blood pressure as effectively as ACE inhibitors. Dr Townsend points out that simply drinking large amounts of milk would not reproduce the effect, not least because the salt content would have a harmful impact on blood pressure.
(Reuters Health Online)
www.reutershealth.com