Todays Newsbites

S ipping a cup of green tea with a meal may help you feel more full and less likely to go back for seconds. Thats the conclusion of Swedish researchers, who compared the post-meal effects of green tea with plain water. Their study failed, however, to confrm hopes that the antioxidant-rich tea would also moder- ate insulin sensitivity or glucose levels, helping to curb diabetes risk. Research- ers observed study participants for two hours after a meal, quizzing them on satiety and how full they felt. Not only did participants report feeling more full when accompanying the meal with a cup of green tea, they were also less interested in eating another mouthful of the same food. When washing down the meal with plain water, participants were later more of a mind to go for a second helping.

Despite assur- ances from the Corn Refners Association-which recently peti- tioned the FDA to allow high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) to be labeled corn sugar-the public remains wary about the common sweetener, accord- ing to another Mintel report. In a new survey, 35% of consumers said they avoid products containing HFCS and 84% think government should require companies to disclose the quantity of HFCS in products. Todays consum- ers are demanding transparency across the board, commented Krista Faron, lead innovation analyst at Mintel. And when it comes to an ingredi- ent as controversial as high-fructose corn syrup, the majority of Americans clearly want complete information that will help them make informed purchase decisions. By a 45%-35% margin, however, those surveyed op- posed government limits on HFCS use. And 64% of consumers still think the sweetener is OK in modera- tion-an opinion that most experts, pending further research, would prob- ably agree with.

More than seven months after the report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) on the latest scientific evidence about eating right, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 were finally released-in 2011. Federally mandated to be updated every five years, the 112-page seventh edition of the guidelines, from the USDA and Department of Health & Human Services, will be followed by a revised food pyramid to help put the recommendations into action