Todays Newsbites

Would high-fructose corn syrup by any other name taste as sweet? Tired of what it sees as a bum rap for the sweet-ener, the Corn Refiners Association has petitioned the US Food and Drug Admin-istration (FDA) to allow ingredient labels to list high-fructose corn syrup instead as corn sugar.

I f youre counting on pomegranate juice to reduce your risk of heart disease, prostate cancer or impotence, you might want to think before you sip. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has charged juice-maker Pom Won- derful and top corporate executives with making false and unsubstantiated claims about the drinks health benefts. According to the FTC, the company ignored evidence contradicting health claims for Pom Wonderful, including studies that found the antioxidant-rich juice no more effective than a placebo. In May 2007, for instance, a large com- pany-fnanced study found no differ- ence in arterial plaque buildup between those drinking Pom Wonderful and those sipping a placebo for 18 months. In response, Pom Wonderful executives cited the $34 million the company has spent on pomegranate research and charged the FTC with violating their First Amendment rights.

I f youre not eating as healthfully as the federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans advise, youre hardly alone. Researchers who analyzed data on 16,338 individuals eating habits from 2001-2004 national dietary surveys painted a dire picture of adherence to the healthy-eating guidelines. Nearly everyone in the survey failed to meet recommendations for whole grains, dark green vegetables, orange veg- etables and legumes. A majority fell short on every food group except beans, total grains and, not surprisingly, meat. Meanwhile, 80% of Americans age 71-plus and more than 90% of all other age groups, regardless of gender, indulged too much in discretionary calories-those from saturated fats, added sugars and alcohol. Research- ers concluded, Nearly the entire US population consumes a diet that is not on par with recommendations. These fndings add another piece to the rather disturbing picture that is emerging of a nations diet in crisis. An offcial update to the US dietary guidelines will be issued by years end-though the re- vised recommendations arent expected to be any easier to live up to.

I t may still be legal (if unwise) to driv after a couple of drinks, but if youre 60 or older, you might want to think twice about walking. Even two screw drivers (vodka and orange juice) were enough to signifcantly increase the risk of stumbling and impair motor-re- sponse times in a new Dutch study. Re- searchers tested 13 volunteers, average age 61, on a treadmill with obstacles that suddenly appeared in their path. All but one of the participants showed slower response times after only one drink, and after two drinks the aver- age rate of stumbling into the obstacle almost doubled compared to testing when sober. After two drinks, partici- pants blood-alcohol levels ranged from 0.03% to 0.06%-still below the legal limit for driving. Researchers character ized the subjects obstacle-avoidance reactions at that point as inadequate, late and too small.

Hardly a news cycle goes by with out fresh evidence of the health benefts of vitamin D, and American consumers are taking notice, according to two new surveys. Research by Angus Reed Strategies found that 44% of US adults say vitamin D plays an important role in improving or maintaining health, up from 37% last year. A second poll, of almost 2,000 American adults by the supplements trade group Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), reported a sharp jump in the percentage doing something about vitamin D and their health: 27% said they take vitamin D supplements, compared to 16% in the two previous annual surveys. A CRN spokesman pointed to the ever-grow- ing body of research on vitamin Ds benefts and noted, Given that optimal levels of vitamin D are diffcult to get from diet and adequate sun exposure alone, a vitamin D supplement is the right option for many people. Overall, the CRN survey found that two-thirds of respondents take some sort of dietary supplement, little changed from previ- ous polls.

B eing fat can make you lean in the wallet. Thats the conclusion of an analysis of previous studies of the economic impact of obesity that found women especially suffer fnancially from being obese-$4,879 a year, compared to $2,646 annually in extra costs and lost income for obese men. Besides higher medical bills, George Washington University researchers added in factors such as sick days, lost productivity and wage differences, which were key to the gender difference. Obese women earn less than their skinnier peers, while wages dont differ much per pound for men. Merely being overweight carried a much smaller economic toll than obesity: $524 a year for women and $432 for men. When the dollar value of lost years of life was added to the fgures for obesity, factoring in increased mortality risk with ex- tra pounds, the annual tab for obese women shot up to $8,365 and for men to $6,518.

The omega-3 fatty acids from fsh oil that protect your heart might also be good for your teeth and gums. A new study reports that relatively modest amounts of omega-3s in the diet were associated with signifcant decreases in risk of periodontitis (gum disease). Re- searchers looked at data on more than 9,000 US adults from national nutrition surveys. People consuming the most DHA, one of the principle omega-3 fatty acids found in fsh, were 22% less likely to suffer periodontitis. EPA, the other important fsh-oil omega-3, and linolenic acid, found in vegetable oils, were also associated with lower risk, but not as strongly. Although the study cant prove cause and effect, its possible that omega-3s might suppress the infammatory response that leads to gum disease. Such a dietary therapy, researchers said, might be a less expen- sive and safer method for the prevention and treatment of periodontitis.

With Americans vegetable con- sumption dropping over the past decade, drinking your vegetables could help reach dietary goals. Thats the conclusion of a randomized trial funded in part, not surprisingly, by the makers of V8 vegetable juice. Scientists at the University of California-Davis assigned 90 volunteers to follow the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hyperten- sion (DASH) diet regimen while also consuming 0, 8 or 16 fuid ounces of vegetable juice daily. Despite being told to follow the DASH plan and receiving nutrition education, participants fell short of the goal of four daily servings of vegetables if not counting the juice. Across all groups, non-juice vegetable intake averaged 2.6 servings daily after 6 weeks and 2.3 servings after 12 weeks. But the groups also getting juice were able to close the gap. Researchers also looked at heart-health measures, which generally didnt change; pre- hypertensive participants, however, showed a signifcant decrease in blood pressure with higher vegetable and veg- etable juice intake. While eating whole vegetables remains preferable, research- ers concluded that juice is an effective and acceptable way for healthy adults to close the dietary vegetable gap.

Your best defense this cold and fu season may be in the gym. Re- searchers at Appalachian State Univer- sity report that people who exercise more-as well as those who rate them- selves as highly ft-are less susceptible to upper-respiratory-tract infections. The study followed 1,002 adults over two 12-week periods in the fall and winter. Based on self-reported exer- cise, those who work out at least fve days a week suffered 43% fewer days with respiratory infections than those exercising no more than once a week. The one-third who rated their own ft- ness level the highest experienced 46% fewer sick days than the least-ft group. Even when they did get sick, frequent exercisers and the most ft suffered less- severe symptoms. Scientists suggested that even though the immune system returns to pre-exercise levels within a few hours, each workout may provide protection against pathogens that make the respiratory system vulnerable to infection. Other studies have actually shown that exercise may acutely sup- press immune response; this study may refect the effects of defensive responses over time.

P eople who eat more healthful diets really do spend more money on food. A new study compared the eating and grocery-spending habits of 78,191 women in the Nurses Health Study. Participants were divided into fve groups based on their scores on the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), a system similar to the governments food pyramid. Compared to those with the lowest AHEI scores, the healthiest eaters spent 24% more on groceries-and had lower rates of angina, high blood pressure and type-2 diabetes. But researchers emphasized that your nutritional bang doesnt have to depend on the buck: Although spending more money was associated with a healthier diet, they wrote, large improvements in diet may be achieved without increased spending. The purchase of plant-based foods may offer the best investment for dietary health. (See our August 2010 Special Report for more on afford- able healthy eating.)