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Could a serving or two of spinach or lettuce a day help keep diabetes away? Thats the suggestion of a new meta-analysis linking consump-tion of green leafy vegetables with reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. Par-ticipants who ate the most green leafy vegetables-an average of 1.35 servings daily-were 14% less likely to develop diabetes than those consuming the least (an average 0.2 servings daily).

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.

T he start of a new year marks the perfect opportunity to revisit familiar menu routines and jump- start healthy eating patterns. Adding a variety of fruits, vegetables and whole grains to your plate will not only boost overall nutrition in your diet, but also broaden your culinary horizons. Alice H. Lichtenstein, DSc, director of Tufts HNRCA Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory, emphasizes the importance of trying new foods in broadening diet variety: Dont get too caught up in trying to eat more of any one particular fruit or vegetable than another. Instead, work on expanding your palate by in- corporating some foods you dont rou- tinely eat. Were very fortunate today to have such a variety of affordable fruits and vegetables available year-round, so we should take advantage of that.

A n expert committee of the Institute of Medicine (IOM), which sets recommended daily levels for nu- trients, says children and adults under age 71 need 600 IU of vitamin D daily, while older adults need 800 IU. Thats an increase from levels set in 1997, which ranged from 200-600 IU daily, and from the 400 IU used in nutrition labels on food.

Heres more evidence that eating like a Mediterranean might help protect your aging brain: In a new study comparing the eating habits and mental abilities of nearly 3,800 older Chicagoans, those who stuck most closely to a Mediterranean-style diet pattern saw a slower rate of cognitive decline with aging. People who ate most like Mediterraneans had brains that functioned as if they were several years younger

The evidence keeps percolating that coffee might have benefits beyond just helping you wake up in the morning. The latest such finding, from a large Swedish study, links coffee drinking to a reduced risk of stroke in women

Sweden is poised to become the first in the world to phase out the use of the controversial chemical bisphenol A (BPA) in food and beverage can linings, following a European Union ban on BPA in baby bottles

Most of us like fruit-but still dont get enough. Heres how to pick the fiber, potassium, vitamin C, antioxidants and other low-hanging benefits of fruit. With the unveiling of MyPlate choosemyplate.gov, the USDAs replacement for the food pyramid

Conflicting findings confuse consumers. What should you do now? Consumers worried about dietary sodium and who are watching their salt intake might find their blood pressure rising

Women seeking an alternative to hormone-replacement therapy have hoped that soy foods, which contain a plant type of estrogen