Health & Diet News & Features
To Eat Less When Snacking, Pick the Best Size
- Emulsifiers Make Food Appetizing yet Bring Health Dangers
April 12, 2024 — Emulsifiers don’t necessarily equal junk food. Such substances can be found in many foods that are often considered healthy, such as some low-fat Greek yogurts, trail mix bars, or oat milk.
- Schools Should Drop Lunchables, Consumer Reports Says
April 11, 2024 — Consumer Reports is calling on the U.S. government to remove Lunchables meal kits from school cafeterias that are subsidized by federal funds after testing by the advocacy group found concerning levels of sodium and heavy metals like lead.
- Salt Substitutes Linked to Reduced Risk of Heart Problems
April 9, 2024 — Swapping salt for salt substitute products in food may help protect people from early death and, particularly, from dying of heart problems like heart attack or stroke, according to researchers in Australia.
- Poop Doesn't Lie: What Fecal 'Forensics' Tells Us About Diet
April 8, 2024 — Innovative work from Duke University could change how scientists conduct nutritional research and how clinicians assess their patients' diets.
- Costco Unveils Medical Weight Loss Subscription Program
April 2, 2024 — Costco is entering the growing marketplace for medical weight loss, joining the likes of WeightWatchers and Noom amid booming interest in the new class of drugs known as GLP-1s.
- Strawberries, Spinach Top Annual ‘Dirty Dozen’ Produce List
March 20, 2024 — Government chemical testing of fresh produce showed that up to 95% of some of the most commonly purchased fruit and vegetables in the U.S. had detectable levels of pesticides, a new report claims.
- Mindful Eating Aims to Change Your Relationship With Food
March 1, 2024 — You may be familiar with the basic steps: Slow down, notice what you’re eating, and enjoy your food. But mindful eating can be more nuanced, and if done with intention over time, it can change your relationship with food and benefit your health, experts say.
- Ultra-processed Foods Linked to Health Problems and Early Death
February 29, 2024 — According to the research study, there were direct associations between a higher intake of ultra-processed foods and a greater risk of dying early, deaths from heart disease, common mental disorder outcomes, overweight or obesity, and Type 2 diabetes.
- Tree Nuts and Your Health: What to Know About the Super Snack
February 26, 2024 — As a snack, tree nuts pack a punch with added heart benefit.
- Fuel Your Body With Color: A New Guide to Healthy Eating
February 16, 2024 — Turns out the pot of gold at the end of the (food) rainbow is health.
- A Cousin to the Mediterranean Diet Shows 2 Big Benefits
February 12, 2024 — People who followed the Atlantic diet eating pattern significantly reduced their waistlines and improved their cholesterol levels, a new study shows.
- What Counts as a 'Low-Carb' Diet and Is It Right for You?
February 7, 2024 — Among the scientific community, there remains a real discrepancy about what "low carb" means and who would really benefit from these types of diets.
- Can ‘Soda Taxes’ Improve Our Health?
A new study shows taxes on sugary beverages like soda can lessen consumption and improve public health.
- Happy Weight vs. Healthy Weight: What Does It Mean?
If you’re wondering, "How much should I weigh?" or can’t seem to reach your ideal weight, here's help. You can be healthy and happy by eating well and exercising often, even if you aren’t at your "perfect" weight.
- New Study Reveals Why Fats and Sugars Are Irresistible
January 26, 2024 — If fats and sugars sometimes seem irresistible, you’re not alone. A new study published in Cell Metabolism reveals why.
- How Much Alcohol Is Safe to Drink? 'Not Much' May Be the Answer
January 17, 2024 — When it comes to alcohol consumption, moderation is everything.
- Weight Gain in Children Linked to Drinking Fruit Juice: Study
January 17, 2024 — Limiting the amount of 100% fruit juice that children drink could be a way to help combat childhood obesity, particularly among young children, new research suggests.
- New Technique Reveals True Count of Nanoplastics in Bottled Water
January 9, 2024 — Each liter of water in a plastic bottle may contain more than 100,000 microscopic pieces of plastic, new research shows. The important finding suggests that the amount of plastic consumed by many people simply through drinking a bottle of water is 10 times greater than thought before.
- 2024 Best Diets: Mediterranean Diet Wins – Yes, Again
January 3, 2024 — The Mediterranean diet, with an emphasis on overall diet quality rather than a single food group or nutrient, swept the categories for best diet of 2024.
- Regularly Adding Salt to Food May Lead to Kidney Damage
December 28, 2023 — A study published today found that people who added salt to their food, even just sometimes, faced a higher risk of getting chronic kidney disease.
- Ultra-Processed Food and Your Health: What to Know
December 20, 2023 — Figuring out why ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are linked to more chronic health conditions like heart disease and obesity remains an important puzzle for nutrition experts to figure out. When they do, the worst offenders could be taxed or regulated by the government while other UPFs that people enjoy could be reformulated to make them less of a long-term threat to health.
- Is 'Vegan' a Dirty Word? Study Finds It Turns Some People Off
December 13, 2023 — In a new study, researchers at the University of Southern California set out to learn how vegan labeling influenced consumers, finding that the word may turn some people off from trying vegan products.
- Diversifying Nutrition and Dietetics: Expert Q&A
Food is more than nutrition. It often reflects culture, ethnicity, and even religion. Consulting with an expert from a diverse background can improve health outcomes.
- The Truth About Holiday Weight Gain
In reality, most people don't gain a lot between Thanksgiving and New Year's. But just an extra pound gained every year during the holidays adds up over time.
- ‘Food as Medicine’ Concept Starts to Catch On: What to Know
November 21, 2023 — The “food as medicine” movement says doctors should use food “prescriptions” as medical treatment. There’s now real money behind this approach, and larger investments are expected as research shows that food as medicine can save money. Here’s what to know.
- Watching What You Eat? How to Navigate Meals This Holiday Season
November 20, 2023 — Nutrition and diabetes experts offer tips for dealing with holiday meals this season if you are watching your weight, or are living with diabetes, obesity, or other health conditions.
- Research Supports Healthy Promise of More Plant-Based Eating
November 16, 2023 — The research estimated that replacing a single serving of processed meat each day with whole grains, nuts, or beans was associated with a 23% to 36% lower risk of cardiovascular problems such as stroke and heart attack.
- Mediterranean 'Diet' Is Really a Lifestyle With Benefits
November 13, 2023 — The Mediterranean Diet isn't really a "diet," as the word is commonly used. It's more of a way of life. A delicious way of life.
- Will California's Ban on Red Dye No. 3 Prompt More Action?
October 30, 2023 — Advocates for phasing out Red Dye No. 3 and other harmful additives hope these state-based developments will spur the FDA to finally take similar action and respond to a petition requesting the ban of Red Dye No. 3.
- Watchdog Group Finds ‘Concerning’ Levels of Heavy Metals in Chocolate
October 26, 2023 — Consumer Reports is calling on the makers of dark chocolate products to limit levels of heavy metals, after what the watchdog group called “concerning” test results.
- Depression Linked to Ultra-Processed Foods, Sweeteners
October 20, 2023 — Ultra-processed foods are energy-dense and ready-to-eat food items including things like processed breakfast meats, packaged snacks, and ice cream as well as artificially sweetened drinks.
- Being a Vegetarian Could Be Linked to Genetics
October 5, 2023 — Researchers have discovered a set of genes associated with people who stuck to a vegetarian diet for at least a year.
- How What You Eat Is Linked to Midlife Weight Gain
September 28, 2023 — Eating an extra 100 grams a day of starch from vegetables like corn, green peas, or potatoes was linked to 3.3 pounds more weight gain over 4 years.
- The Facts About Food Cravings
Learn ways to manage your food cravings and why they happen in the first place.
- Not All Fruits Play Well Together in Your Morning Smoothie
September 12, 2023 — Mixing fruits like bananas -- which brown quickly -- with things like berries may limit the nutritional benefit of those berries.
- Before Plant-Based Went Mainstream, There Was ‘Forks Over Knives’
September 11, 2023 — It’s been more than a decade since the documentary “Forks Over Knives” was released, in which people were shown to reverse the signs of heart disease while eating a whole-foods, plant-based diet.
- Maker of ‘One Chip Challenge’ Pulls Product From Shelves
September 8, 2023 — The manufacturer of an extremely spicy tortilla chip marketed as the “One Chip Challenge” is pulling the product from store shelves after a Massachusetts woman said her 14-year-old son died after eating one of the chips.
- Daily Use of Sugary Drinks Raises Risk of Liver Ailments in Postmenopausal Women, Study Says
August 9, 2023 — The study found that women who are beyond menopause who consumed at least one sugar-sweetened beverage daily had an 85% higher risk of developing liver cancer and a 68% higher risk of dying from chronic liver disease.
- Plant-Based Milks Lack Naturally Occurring Nutrients
July 28, 2023 — Most plant-based milks, such as almond or oat milk, have less calcium, vitamin D, and protein than what is found in cow’s milk, a cornerstone beverage for meeting nutritional needs, according to research from the University of Minnesota.
- Olive Oil Is Having a Moment. Is It the Ultimate Superfood?
July 27, 2023 — Olive oil has been tied to lower risks of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, neurological diseases like dementia and Parkinson’s, and early death in general.
- Going Vegetarian May Help Your Heart and Lower Diabetes Risk
July 26, 2023 — In people with heart or other vascular diseases, or who are at risk of them, a new analysis shows that vegetarian diets are linked to lower cholesterol and body weight, and better blood sugar control.
- Going Vegan, Or Just Eating Less Meat, Helps the Environment
July 21, 2023 — The diet with the lowest impact on the environment was found to come from vegans, who eat a plant-based diet and exclude animal products like meat and dairy. Vegans had one-fourth the environmental impact as meat eaters.
- WHO Declares Common Sweetener as Possible Carcinogen
July 14, 2023 — The World Health Organization said this week the artificial sweetener aspartame is a possible carcinogen, meaning it may cause cancer. But the risk only comes with huge amounts of the sweetener.
- Grab the Yogurt: Whole-Fat Dairy OK for a Heart-Healthy Diet
July 11, 2023 — The finding flies in the face of U.S. and other dietary guidelines that recommend restricting whole-fat foods in favor of low-fat products.
- Truth and Myths About B12
Vitamin B12 supplements are hailed as a remedy for everything from weight loss to Alzheimer’s. Do they really help? Learn the truth.
- Don’t Give Caffeine Too Much Credit, Coffee Study Suggests
July 5, 2023 — A new study suggests that coffee may be superior to other caffeine sources when it comes to priming the brain for a productive, action-packed day.
- Intermittent Fasting, Calorie Cutting Bring Equal Weight Loss
June 29, 2023 — Sticking to a tedious calorie-counting diet does just as much for weight loss as eating within a narrow window of time, according to a new study from the University of Illinois, Chicago.
- Making Medicine from ‘Carrot Dust’: The Chefs and Scientists Cooking Up New Ways to Feed Us
The Drexel University Food Lab blends hands-on culinary arts with rigorous research science in an effort to heal a broken food system, one innovative product at a time.
- Don’t Use Sugar Substitutes for Weight Loss: WHO
May 15, 2023 — The World Health Organization now recommends that people trying to lose weight should not use sugar substitutes known as non-sugar sweeteners.