Healthy Heart

Two new studies add to the evidence that led the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans to recommend restricting intake of added sugars, nearly half of which in US diets come from sugar-sweetened beverages.

Americans may be getting the message about cutting down on added sugars, a focus of the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans. A new Reuters/Ipsos poll of 1,883 US adults reports that 58% say they tried to limit sugar in their diets in the past 30 days. While there's no previous such poll to compare to, that number does exceed those trying to cut down on calories, sodium, fats, cholesterol or carbohydrates. Another sign: Google Trends…

[IMGCAP(1)] Earlier this year, the federal government released the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs). (See our March Special Report.) As a cardiologist, public-health advocate and nutrition scientist, I see a lot of good in the DGAs. First, the DGAs emphasize healthful eating patterns and foods. This is an advance over past guidelines, which focused more on isolated nutrient targets. Modern nutrition science tells us that, for preventing major diseases like obesity, diabetes, heart disease and cancers, its…

Every five years, your Uncle Sam rounds up the latest scientific evidence about nutrition and serves up advice about what to eat and drink for better health. The resulting Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) - whose eighth edition was released in January - provides basic guidance to the American public about healthy eating patterns and shapes nutrition education programs.

When it comes to planning your meals, it's hard to beat seafood as a nutritional powerhouse. Seafood is rich in protein and other important nutrients. Prepared right - without frying, breading, tubs of butter or caloric sauces - it delivers these nutritional benefits without a lot of calories. Many varieties also contain heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids.

At least part of the proven cardiovascular benefits of eating nuts can be explained by their effects on cholesterol and other blood lipids, according to new Tufts research.

Q. If a major carmaker can blatantly cheat on emissions equipment, how do we know that food producers are not resorting to similar deceptions? Who checks to make sure that products labeled "sugar-free," for example, really contain no sugar?

Mistaken perceptions that healthier foods are also "less filling" might cause consumers to overeat such foods, even when calorie counts are clearly displayed.

Science continues to prove Hippocrates right when he said, "Walking is man's best medicine." If youre beginning to lag on your New Year's resolutions, or that Fitbit you got for Christmas is gathering dust, a trio of recent studies provide incentive to get up off the couch and lace up those walking shoes.

Consuming a Mediterranean-style diet, already linked to benefits for your heart and brain, might also help protect against the leading cause of blindness in older Americans.