Researchers have found that reducing sugar-sweetened beverage intake among schoolchildren by a minimum of one serving per week can improve their HDL (good) cholesterol. They also note that high consumption of these beverages was linked to a lower intake of fruits and vegetables among the same age group. Senior author Jennifer Sacheck comments, “Importantly, not…

Taste is an important part of what makes food appealing, but opting for nutrient-rich foods is essential to give your body the fuel it needs to perform its best. The American Academy of Family Physicians suggests these nutrient-rich food choices: whole grains, a colorful variety of fruits and vegetables, lean protein such as fish, skinless…

Experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say 90% of school children eat too much salt on a daily basis and one in six kids has hypertension. The CDC recommends the following strategies to help reduce your child’s salt intake: try different herbs and spices in place of salt, use “low sodium”…

High levels of saturated fat in the blood may cause a person to be more prone to inflammation and tissue damage. Investigators examined mice with unusually high levels of saturated fat in their blood to see if they were more prone to tissue damage than mice in a control group. The results led investigators to…

Consuming spicy foods on a regular basis may lower an individual’s risk for premature death from cancer, ischemic heart disease, and respiratory disease. Researchers found that participants who ate spicy foods three to seven days a week were 14% less likely to have died during the seven-year study than participants who ate spicy foods less…

Spinach Extract May Help Curb Hunger. Men with above-average blood pressure may want to consider eating more spinach. A study involving thirty men revealed that consuming a spinach extract containing thylakoids reduced cravings for saltier foods over the following two hours. Co-author Dr. Frank L. Greenway summarizes, “The reduction in hunger and the desire for…

Binge Eating Can Cause a Number of Health Problems. Eating large amounts of food very quickly and having no control over this behavior is known as binge eating. Potential risks of binge eating include depression, increased stress, increased suicidal thoughts, difficulty sleeping, headaches, joint problems, digestive problems, muscle pain, weight gain, and issues with menstruation.…

Meat Intake May Influence a Man’s Fertility. A new study concerning couples undergoing vitro fertilization treatment has found that males who consume a lot of processed meats have lower fertilization rates than men whose diet contains few, if any, processed meats. Researcher Dr. Natan Bar-Chama writes, “Decreasing processed-meat consumption can now be added to the…

Eating Uncommon Foods May Promote a Healthier Lifestyle. A new report finds that adventurous eaters weigh less and appear healthier than more conservative diners. The findings are the result of a survey the showed that women who ate the widest variety of uncommon foods – including seitan, beef tongue, kimchi, rabbit, and polenta – also…

Food Supply Driving Global Obesity Epidemic. Is the global obesity epidemic simply due to the oversupply of processed foods? Researcher Dr. Stefanie Vandevijvere writes “Much of the increase in available calories over the decades has come from ultra-processed food products, which are highly palatable, relatively inexpensive, and widely advertised, making overconsumption of calories very easy.”…