Health Archives - Page 72 of 91

WSU study finds no more genetically modified wheat

Credit: Getty ImagesWheat Field — Credit: Getty Images
Wheat Field

August 7, 2013

By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS — Associated Press

PULLMAN, WASH. — A study by Washington State University has found no additional sign of the genetically modified wheat discovered at one Oregon farm this spring.

The tests involved dozens of wheat varieties developed at Washington State, the University of Idaho and Oregon State University, plus varieties from Westbred/Monsanto and Limagrain Cereal Seeds, WSU said this week.

The time-consuming study included checking more than 20,000 individual plots, Washington State University said.

“WSU undertook its own investigation as part of its commitment to serving Northwest farmers,” said James Moyer, director of WSU’s Agricultural Research Center.

The study’s collaboration with the other universities and the commercial seed companies was unprecedented, and reflected the common goal of trying to determine if the genetically modified wheat discovered in Oregon was an isolated case or if the industry had a larger problem, Moyer said.

WSU’s data clearly suggests this was an isolated case, Moyer said.

The tests involved growing seed, spraying infant plants with the herbicide glyphosate and conducting molecular testing. None of the plants showed the glyphosate resistance found in the fields of an as-yet-unnamed Oregon farmer, WSU said.

Last month, the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service also said grain tests and interviews with several hundred farmers found no other instances of herbicide-resistant crops beyond that one Oregon farm.

The modified wheat was discovered in May when field workers at an eastern Oregon farm were clearing acres for the bare offseason and came across a patch of wheat that didn’t belong. The workers sprayed it, but the wheat wouldn’t die, so the farmer sent a sample to Oregon State University to test.

A few weeks later, Oregon State wheat scientists discovered that the wheat was genetically modified. They contacted the USDA, which ran more tests and confirmed the discovery.

Agriculture Department officials have said the modified wheat discovered in the Oregon field is the same strain as a genetically modified wheat that was designed to be herbicide-resistant and was legally tested by seed giant Monsanto a decade ago but never approved.

Most of the corn and soybeans grown in the United States are already modified, or genetically altered to include certain traits, often resistance to herbicides or pesticides. But the country’s wheat crop is not, as many wheat farmers have shown reluctance to use genetically engineered seeds since their product is usually consumed directly. Much of the corn and soybean crop is used as feed.

The USDA has said the wheat would be safe to eat if consumed. But American consumers, like many consumers in Europe and Asia, have shown an increasing interest in avoiding genetically modified foods.

The vast majority of Washington’s wheat is exported.

Lace up your running shoes for Stilly 5K

Source: The Herald

Add this to your weekend list: A light-hearted family footrace through a park by the river.

The Stilly Fun Run 5K Footrace starts at 9 a.m. Saturday at River Meadows Park, 20416 Jordan Road, Arlington. Race check-in and registration is from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m.

Registration is $15 for adults and $10 for children under age 18. Fee includes socks. You can fill out an application, available online, and send it by email or mail in advance.

Families can stick around for the Festival of the River afterwards, which includes a pow-wow, live entertainment and more. Festival parking is $4 before 4 p.m. and $10 after.

For more information, call 360-631-2620, email fperez@stillaguamish.com or visit [URL]www.festivaloftheriver.com;http://www.festivaloftheriver.com[URL].

Pop Goes the Waistline! A Daily Soda Puts Kids On the Obesity Train

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

Obesity among children barely of kindergarten age is on the rise, and researchers have linked their development of the disease to regular consumption of sugary drinks, reported CBS News.

While it’s widely known that childhood obesity has tripled in the past three decades in the U.S.—an estimated 17 percent of kids and adolescents aged 2 to 19 are obese, evidence that drinking sugary beverages daily can lead to obesity in toddlers and younger children has only recently emerged.

“Even though sugar-sweetened beverages are relatively a small percentage of the calories that children take in, that additional amount of calories did contribute to more weight gain over time,” Dr. Mark DeBoer, a pediatrician at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, told Reuters.

The study was published August 5 in Pediatrics. Researchers tracked 9,600 kids between the ages of 2 and 5 years old and their consumption of sugary drinks, including sodas, sports drinks and fruit drinks that were not 100 percent juice. The children’s body mass index (BMI) was measured. Kids in the 95th percentile or greater for their gender and age are considered obese; those in the 85th to 95th percentile are classified as overweight.

There was an obvious correlation between drinking sugary drinks and a higher BMI for children at ages 4 and 5. Five-year-olds who drank sweet beverages were about 1.5 times more likely to be obese than their peers who didn’t.

For kids 2 years of age who also drank sugary beverages, a BMI increase was observed over the following two years, suggesting the gradual weight gain overtime could lead to obesity.

“As a means of protecting against excess weight gain, parents and caregivers should be discouraged from providing their children with [sugar-sweetened beverages] and consuming instead calorie-free beverages and milk,” wrote DeBoer and the researchers. “Such steps may help mitigate a small but important contribution to the current epidemic of childhood obesity.”

The researchers also noted that policy changes should be considered to help curb kids’ consumption of sugary drinks.

Death Tax For Twinkies! Navajo Health Activists Push for Junk Food Tax

Source: Indian Country Today Media Network

A group of Navajo activists advocating for healthy living is not deterred by the tribal council’s decision to reject their proposed Junk Food Tax Act of 2013.

The Diné Community Advocacy Alliance instead plans to partner with private businesses and introduce their bill as a referendum next election, reported the Navajo Times.

The bill aims to increase the tax on “junk food” by 2 percent and eliminate the 5 percent sales tax on fresh fruits and vegetables. The Alliance also wants to ban sales tax on water. Money reaped from the junk food tax would be distributed to chapters with the intent of funding wellness programs.

While delegates largely supported the tax elimination on fresh fruits and vegetables, many criticized the tax on “junk food,” saying it might incite Navajos to purchase groceries in reservation border towns with tax-free food, such as Gallup or Farmington, New Mexico.

Among other concerns, delegates expressed worries the tax may place more stress on disadvantaged families. But those who use Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards or food stamps will not be affected, because sales tax is excluded from eligible items. The Alliance plans to address the federal issue with EBT cards in the future; the cards promote sales of processed foods like chips and soda by reducing their cost.

Last week’s deliberation over the bill left the council divided over the tax increase on junk food but has opened conversation lines about the potential benefits of making purchases of fresh produce more affordable, and taxing and labeling unhealthy foods as “junk,” thus making it less appealing to consumers for monetary and psychological reasons.

Haggen recalls ground beef sold at stores outside Whatcom County

Haggen has recalled some ground beef because of the threat of E. coli, but none of it was sold at stores in Whatcom County.

If you bought beef under the NatureSource label at Haggen or TOP Food stores outside Whatcom County, you might be affected.

Here is the information from Haggen.

Posted by DEBBIE TOWNSEND on August 1, 2013

The Bellingham Herald

BELLINGHAM, Wash. (August 1, 2013) — In an abundance of caution, Haggen, Inc. today announced it is issuing a recall prompted by a nationwide recall from ground beef supplier National Beef Packing Company. National Beef announced the recall of approximately 50,100 pounds of ground beef due to a sample testing positive for E. coli O157:H7. There have been no reported illnesses related to the recall.

Haggen’s recall is isolated to the 97% lean ground beef sold under the NatureSource label produced on July 18, 2013, with a use by/freeze by date of August 7, 2013.

The recalled item was sold in Haggen stores in Snohomish and Oregon City, as well as TOP Food & Drug stores in Olympia, Woodinville and Grays Harbor, Washington.

Haggen has removed the affected product from its stores and initiated its customer recall notification system. The company is asking customers of the affected stores to carefully check their refrigerators and freezers for recalled ground beef. Any opened or unopened products included in this recall should not be consumed and should be returned to their local Haggen or TOP Food & Drug store for a full refund.

Consumers who have questions about the recall may contact Haggen at 1-360-733-8720 or may contact National Beef’s consumer relations toll free at 1-800-449-BEEF.

U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service advises all consumers to safely prepare their raw meat products, including fresh and frozen, and only consume ground beef that has been cooked to a temperature of 160° F. The only way to confirm that ground beef is cooked to a temperature high enough to kill harmful bacteria is to use a food thermometer that measures internal temperature.

New Study Finds Increase in Nonfatal Food-Related Choking Among Children in the U.S.

By Nationwide Children’s Hospital

07/29/2013

Choking is a leading cause of injury among children, especially for children 4 years of age and younger. A new study by researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and colleagues at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examined nonfatal food-related choking among children 14 years of age or younger from 2001 through 2009.

During the nine-year study period, more than 12,000 children were treated each year in U.S. emergency departments for injuries from choking on food, which equals 34 children each day.

According to the study, published in the July online issue of Pediatrics, hard candy caused the most choking episodes (15 percent), followed by other candy (13 percent), meat, other than hot dogs (12 percent), and bones (12 percent). These four food types alone accounted for more than half of all the choking episodes in the study.

The Top Ten Choking Hazard Foods from Babyfoodchart.com

While some of these might be obvious, others may not have occurred to you. The ten foods most likely to cause choking are as follows:

Hot Dogs: Their round shape can easily lodge in a child’s small airway, and they are too heavy to easily cough out. Hot dogs can be served, but should be cut up into small bites by quartering each round slice carefully.
Nuts and seeds: These may seem obvious to some people, but remember that it isn’t just a bowl of nuts that pose the risk. Nuts and seeds can appear in all kinds of baked goods, so keep an eye out for them
Chunks of meat or cheese: Meat should be cooked thoroughly and served in very small bites. Cheese is best sliced thin or even shredded, and never served in cubes.
Whole grapes: The skin can be very hard to break through, especially without teeth. Grapes should be cut into quarters before serving.
Hard, sticky candy: This one isn’t all that surprising to most people, and you might never think of giving your baby hard candy – but make sure well-meaning grandparents and others know the rule as well. As your child gets older, hard candy is still not a good idea – keep candy a rare treat and serve only soft options.
Popcorn: Most parents are surprised by this one; after all, popcorn is a soft, fluffy bite that melts in your mouth. Unpopped and partially popped kernels, however, pose a serious risk.
Chunks of peanut butter: If you have ever gotten peanut butter stuck on the roof of your mouth, you can imagine how this could become a problem. Serve smooth peanut butter in a very thin layer, and try spreading it on warm toast so that it melts.
Raw vegetables: Until your child is able to chew very effectively, don’t offer raw vegetable such as carrots which are hard and can pose a choking hazard. Cook vegetables at least partway before serving.
Chewing gum: You might never offer chewing gum to a baby or young child, but that doesn’t mean they might not get their hands on it. Keep it safely out of reach.

“Other high-risk foods, such as hot dogs, seeds and nuts, were more likely to require hospitalizations,” said Gary Smith, MD, DrPH, director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy. “These foods have high-risk characteristics that make them more likely to block a child’s airway or make them more difficult to chew, which can lead to more serious choking events.”

More than 60 percent of the choking episodes occurred among children 4 years of age and younger. In line with physical and neurological development, the number of choking episodes decreased with increasing age until 7 years of age, after which the number of episodes remained relatively unchanged through age 14. However, the number of choking episodes involving candy increased with increasing age, and by age 4 years, more than half of choking episodes involved candy.

“Although the Consumer Product Safety Commission has well-established surveillance systems in place, as well as legislation and regulations to protect children from nonfood-related choking, no similar monitoring systems, legislation, or regulations currently exist to address food-related choking among children,” added Dr. Smith, also professor of Pediatrics in The Ohio State University College of Medicine. “Implementing improved monitoring of food related choking incidents, placing warning labels on foods that pose a high choking risk, changing the design of foods consumed by children to reduce the risk of choking, and developing public awareness campaigns to educate parents about the danger of food-related choking among children could all help reduce the number of choking episodes in the United States.”

Child caregivers should be aware of food choking prevention recommendations and guidelines. Children younger than 5 years of age should not be given hard candies or gum, and raw fruits and vegetables should be cut into small pieces. Young children should be supervised while eating and should eat sitting down. More choking prevention tips are available at www.nationwidechildrens.org/cirp-choking-prevention.

This is the first study to use a nationally representative sample to examine nonfatal food-related choking among children treated in U.S. emergency departments over a multi-year period. Data for this study were obtained from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System – All Injury Program (NEISS-AIP), which is operated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The NEISS-AIP provides information on consumer product-related and sports- and recreation-related injuries treated in hospital emergency departments across the country.

The Center for Injury Research and Policy (CIRP) of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital works globally to reduce injury-related pediatric death and disabilities. With innovative research at its core, CIRP works to continually improve the scientific understanding of the epidemiology, biomechanics, prevention, acute treatment and rehabilitation of injuries. CIRP serves as a pioneer by translating cutting edge injury research into education, policy, and advances in clinical care. For related injury prevention materials, or to learn more about CIRP, visit www.injurycenter.org.

Source:Nationwide Children’s Hospital

An Indigenous Way of Life Threatened by Oil Sands in Canada

Ian Willms has photographed the effects of oil extraction on First Nations land in Fort McKay and Fort Chipewyan, in northern Alberta, Canada. Mr. Willms, 28, based in Toronto, is a founding member of the Boreal Collectiveand spent several months over the last three years photographing his project “As Long as the Sun Shines.” His interview with James Estrin has been edited and condensed.

By JAMES ESTRIN July 30, 2013

The New York Times

How did this project start?

When I graduated from school in 2008 I was hearing a lot about the oil sands in Canada. So I started doing research, and the more I learned, the more horrified I became.

I read a CBC article about cancer rates in indigenous communities that immediately surrounded the oil sands, and I knew right then that was exactly what I had to do. I searched pretty thoroughly for anybody who had done a proper photo story on the community, and I couldn’t find anything that was particularly in-depth.

What did you find when you got there?

I found a community that was far more developed economically than I had expected. There was a lot of infrastructure, and the homes were more modern than most First Nations communities. That has a lot to do with the proximity to the oil sands and the economic benefit that comes with that.

But the community is still struggling. First Nation reserves are still very dark and damaged places in many ways, and in other ways, they’re incredibly vibrant. So it was not as bleak as I expected it to be. If you didn’t already know that their water was basically coming off of a storm pipe of one of the largest polluting industrial projects in the world, you wouldn’t.

A lot of photographers who photograph native peoples in North America just hit and run. How did you go about capturing a fuller view?

Well, the most important thing is time. And it’s always going to be more time than anyone’s going to be willing to pay you for.

Beyond that, I think it’s a matter of becoming invested in people’s lives, because if you don’t care, they won’t. And if you fake it, people know. People aren’t stupid. If you treat them like they’re stupid, they’re never going to trust you. And so I spent a lot of time there, I made a lot of friends.

There are a lot if white journalists that go into indigenous communities in North America with a preconceived notion of what these people are like and what they need. But in truth this attitude is just a continuation of the abuse of those people.

What the first nations really need is the respect and the confidence of the rest of Canada, to tell their own stories and to manage their own communities. They need to be empowered but they don’t need others to tell them what to do.

I continually show my subjects the work that I do in these communities and ask if I am getting this right.

Tell me more about the oil sands.

There’s an oil reserve that’s located beneath Canada’s boreal forest that’s roughly the size of the state of Florida. It’s rich with oil, but the process of extracting it is incredibly energy intensive, difficult and expensive.

The process involved first clear-cutting the forest and then creating a strip mine. They dig the sandy oil out. It’s like hot asphalt. On a hot day, it’s very gooey and very much like tar.

The environmental toll is dramatic. There was a study by an NGO in Toronto, Environmental Defense, that in 2008 found that about 11 million liters of toxins were leaking into the Athabasca River every single day from several toxic-base water lakes in the oil sands region.

What’s the effect on the people?

It has brought more money into the communities than there was before. With that said, it’s really a small fraction of what they’re actually entitled to. These First Nations get really bad deals from the oil companies in order to leave their lands for oil.

A career in the oil sands may sound good to some people, but really it is the death of their culture because it’s taking the new generation to work toward a completely different way of life. And it’s a way of life that embraces the destruction of their land.

The Canadian Indian Residential School System was a cultural assimilation program that saw aboriginal children taken from their parents and forced to live in these boarding schools. Generations of children were physically and sexually abused in residential schools across Canada. The last federally operated residential school closed in 1996.

There’s a lot of grief, especially among the elders in the community, over the younger generation not taking an interest in hunting and fishing and trapping. And there’s a lot of conflict among the generation in between the youth and the elders — the generation that are in their late 20s to their 50s; the people who work in the oil sands but grew up hunting, fishing and trapping.

They are very conflicted, because they know what they’re doing. They know that they’re taking away their own land. But they do it because there’s no other option for them to make money. There’s no other way for them to feed their families. These communities are no longer able to be self sufficient off the land like they had been for thousands of years.

Read the full article and view photo slideshow here. View Ian Willms work here.

What’s a GMO? And Should Washington Food Labels Warn Us About Them?

BY RACHEL BELLE on July 31, 2013

MYNorthwest.com

Good day, class. Today we’re going to learn about GMOs. Those three little letters have been in the news a lot lately, and most people don’t really know what it means. For example, today in our show prep meeting, I told the guys I was doing a story on GMOs and Ron said:

“What’s the ‘O’ stand for? Genetically Modified…O?”

Organism. Genetically Modified Oganism. It’s also called GE, Genetically Engineered.

This November, Washingtonians will vote on I-522 to decide if foods and seeds containing GMOs should be labeled at grocery and home and garden stores.

Trudy Bialic is director of public affairs for PCC Natural Markets. She wants the labeling. “Essentially all GMOs are either tolerating a pesticide or producing their own pesticide and insecticide. It’s engineered with properties that make the produce its own insecticide. You are eating a registered pesticide.”

GMOs can currently be found in some zucchini and yellow squash and sweet corn, which means they often show up in processed foods that contain corn syrup. But Trudy isn’t taking a stand on whether GMOs are good or bad. She simply wants the products labeled.

“I-522 is really about labeling,” says Trudy. “It’s not about the science. Labeling gives us transparency and it gives us, as shoppers, the ability to decide for ourselves what’s appropriate and best for us to buy and feed our families.”

But not everyone wants the labels. Dana Beiber is the spokesperson for the No on 522 campaign.

“We already have a labeling system that works perfectly,” Dana says. “For folks who want to avoid foods with GE ingredients in them, they can do so by looking for the organic label. So it’s not necessary. The other reason it’s not necessary to put a warning label on these foods is because we’ve been eating them for decades and we have overwhelming scientific research that tells us that the foods are safe.

She says farmers will either have to spend money on a new label, that’s specific to Washington state, or change the ingredients in their product.

“I think it’s consumers who are really gonna end up paying the bill for us,” Dana says. “We can expect our grocery bills to go up by hundreds of dollars per year to pay for this unnecessary labeling system.”

Trudy says 64 countries and a few other states have already passed GMO labeling laws.

“Two-thirds of Washingtonians support labeling of genetically engineered foods. There are only five corporations that are funding the opposition. Five! They’re protecting their profits. Their concern is not the right to know for all Washingtonians. We all should know what’s in our food.”

We already label products with their fat and sodium content, we list all the ingredients, so what’s the harm in alerting consumers to GMOs?

“The fat or the sodium or whether it has eggs or peanuts in it, all that’s placed on every label throughout the country. It’s also on the back of the product. It’s not a warning label on the front of the product. Make no mistake, 522 is a warning label. In fact, the proponents have said they want it to be a skull and crossbones label on the front of a package.”

The spokesperson from Yes on I-522 says they have no intention of using a skull and crossbones, just a simple couple of words.

Class dismissed.

Don’t dismiss versatile kale

By Lisa Abraham, Akron Beacon Journal

Kale is one of the most versatile greens. It can be substituted for spinach in any dish, and pairs well with many foods: pasta, potatoes, sausage and white beans, to name a few. When you spot it at local farmers markets, don’t shy away from this hearty green.

Check out the recipes below for two different ways to prepare kale.

Braised curly kale with garlic and soy sauce

1 pound green curly kale
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh red chili pepper
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
Salt and pepper

Remove any yellowing bits or tough stalks from the kale, then reserve the leaves in cold water. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil and season with salt. Drain the kale, add to the pan, and cook for 6 minutes. Drain again and keep warm.

Heat the olive oil in a skillet, add the chili and garlic, and fry gently for about 3 minutes, until the garlic begins to brown. Immediately put the cooked kale into the pan and stir well. Season lightly with pepper and the soy sauce, and cook for 4 minutes, stirring frequently. Serve warm.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Creamed purple kale with pepper and lemon

11/2 pounds purple kale
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 shallots, finely diced
3/4 cup medium-dry white wine
1 cup heavy cream
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and white pepper

Heat the olive oil in a skillet, add the shallots, and fry gently for 4 to 5 minutes, until they begin to brown. Pour in the wine and allow it to evaporate before adding the cream. Just as the cream starts to bubble, add the cooked kale and squeeze in the lemon juice. Grind in some white pepper and season lightly with salt. Allow the liquid to reduce slightly, then serve.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Recipes adapted from “Eat Your Vegetables” by Arthur Potts Dawson

Roasting ramps up the strawberry flavor

By Rose McAvoy, The Herald

Roasting produce is a terrific way to take the usual flavor and turn the volume way up. Boosting the volume of flavor is among my top tips when it comes to lightening your cooking. We tend to read a lot about roasting vegetables such as potatoes, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts. Roasting fruit can be equally if not even more rewarding. Roasted apples, for instance, with some cinnamon and honey can be a real crowd-pleaser on a crisp fall evening.

Not long ago I got the urge to bake a whole mess of scones featuring fresh strawberries. I’ll share that recipe in my next post. In the meantime we need to get the strawberries de-juiced so they can be mixed into the scone batter. Scones are one of those slightly touchy pastries. The dough needs to be just moist enough to hold together, but too much liquid and you don’t have a scone you have a mess. Fresh off the vine strawberries can bring too much liquid to an otherwise perfect scone batter. You could use home or commercially dehydrated strawberries but I really wanted to keep as much of the peak of season flavor as possible. This brought me to roasting.

In my ears, roasted strawberries sounds fancy and sophisticated. Once I figured out the process I was delighted by their rustic simplicity. The result is a caramelized strawberry flavor minus most of the moisture that is just perfect for folding into a scone, muffin, pancake, or most other pastry.

Give roasting strawberries a try while they are still fresh and affordable, then stay tuned for the scone recipe!

Roasted Strawberries

2 pounds of fresh strawberries – washed & dried, stems removed, cut into 3/4 inch pieces (probably quarters or 1/8th depending on the size of your berries)

1. Lay the berries in a single layer on a parchment or silicone baking mat lined cookie sheet.

2. Bake the berries at 325 degrees for 30-45 minutes. I prefer a lower temperature for a longer time to really concentrate the flavor of the berries.

3. Most of the liquid will leak out of the berries and puddle up around them. (Once the berries have cooled you can peel up the juice and enjoy it as a faux fruit leather.)

4. Scoop the roasted berries into a sealed container and store in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake with them. The chilled roasted strawberries should keep for a couple of days. 2 lbs of fresh berries should leave you with about 1 cup after roasting.