A recent study has claimed that frequent ice cream consumption parallels “the tolerance observed in drug addiction” by reducing “activation in reward-related brain regions (e.g., striatum).” Kyle Burger and Eric Stice, “Frequency ice cream consumption is associated with reduced striatal response to receipt of an ice cream-based milkshake,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, March 2012. Researchers apparently used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) on 151 healthy-weight adolescents to assess their neural responses upon receipt of a milkshake or a tasteless solution. The results evidently indicated that “milkshake receipt robustly activated the striatal regions,” although the fMRIs of youths who indulged in frequent ice cream consumption showed “a reduced response to milkshake receipt in these reward-centered brain regions.” “These findings suggest that intake of energy-dense foods may contribute to down-regulation of reward circuitry, echoing the effects of frequent drug use,” concluded the study authors, who noted “reduced striatal activation” in subjects…
Category Archives Scientific/Technical Items
A recent study has reportedly suggested that some food animals, and chickens in particular, are “likely” reservoirs for the extraintestinal pathogenic E. coli (ExPEC) implicated in community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTIs) among humans. Catherine Racicot Bergeron, et al., “Chicken Reservoirs for Extraintestinal Pathogenic Escherichia coli in Humans, Canada,” Emerging Infectious Diseases, March 2012. According to the study, Canadian researchers compared ExPEC isolates from slaughtered chicken, pork and beef “with the preexisting geographically and temporally matched collection of isolates from humans with UTIs,” in order to determine “whether transmission was human to human through food or whether an animal source was involved.” “In the case of human-to-human transmission through food, E. coli strains from humans would be introduced during the meat preparation process by food handlers. In the case of an animal source, E. coli would derive from the cecal content of the animal itself, and contamination would occur during the slaughtering…
A recent study has reportedly detected inorganic arsenic (Asi) in organic brown rice syrup (OBRS), a prepared foods sweetener sometimes used in lieu of high-fructose corn syrup. Brian P. Jackson, et al., “Arsenic, Organic Foods, and Brown Rice Syrup,” Environmental Health Perspectives, February 2012. Researchers evidently sought to determine “the concentration and speciation of arsenic (As) in commercially available brown rice syrups, and in products containing OBRS including toddler formula, cereal/energy bars, and high energy foods used by endurance athletes.” Their results purportedly indicated that OBRS “can contain high concentrations of Asi and dimethylarsenate (DMA),” raising concerns about products such as organic toddler milk formula that use OBRS as a primary ingredient. Meanwhile, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a February 17, 2012, statement pledging to expand “its surveillance activities” in response to the study’s claims. The agency has also commissioned its own research on arsenic in rice and rice…
German researchers claim that “elevated serum phosphate concentrations have recently been found to be correlated with mortality in patients with chronic renal failure, while high-normal serum phosphate concentrations have been found to be correlated with cardiovascular morbidity in the general population.” Eberhard Ritz, et al., “Phosphate Additives in Food—a Health Risk,” Deutsches Ärzteblatt International, 2012. Noting that naturally occurring phosphate in foods, “including meat, potatoes, bread, and other farinaceous products,” is not completely absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract and thereby poses less concern, the researchers contend that “inorganic phosphate in food additives is effectively absorbed and can measurably elevate the serum phosphate concentration in patients with CKD [chronic kidney disease].” According to the authors, foods with large amounts of added phosphate include processed meats, canned fish, cheeses, baked goods, and cola beverages and other soft drinks. The ingredient is apparently added as a preservative, acidifying agent and buffer, and emulsifying…
A recent study has claimed that bisphenol A (BPA) exposure causes pancreatic cells to secrete increased amounts of insulin, thereby raising questions about the substance’s effect on insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and obesity. Sergi Soriano, “Rapid Insulinotropic Action of Low Doses of Bisphenol-A on Mouse and Human Islets of Langerhans: Role of Estrogen Receptor β,” PLoS One, February 2012. Researchers evidently used pancreatic β-cells, which produce insulin, as well as whole islets of Langerhans from human donors to demonstrate that “environmentally relevant doses of BPA (1 nM) stimulated glucose-induced insulin secretion in human islets, giving a response which is almost twice the insulin release elicited by a stimulatory glucose concentration, 8 mM.” According to media sources, the study pinpoints the mechanism by which BPA is thought to influence insulin production in pancreatic cells. “When you eat something with BPA, it’s like telling your organs that you are eating more…
U.S., Swiss and Norwegian researchers have analyzed an array of consumer products sold in the United States to determine how much titanium dioxide they contained by weight in a first-ever human exposure analysis and concluded that food sources likely account for most of the titanium nanoparticles released into the environment. Alex Weir, et al., “Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles in Food and Personal Care Products,” Environmental Science & Technology, February 8, 2012. Noting that the substance is a common additive, the study showed that foods with the highest content of titanium dioxide (up to 360 mg per serving) are candies, sweets and chewing gum, and that personal care products, such as toothpaste and select sunscreens, can contain up to 10 percent titanium by weight. The research also showed that approximately 36 percent of the particles are nano-sized. The researchers conclude that children have the highest exposures due to their consumption of sweets and…
A recent pooled analysis from 14 prospective cohort studies has reportedly confirmed “a suggestive, modest positive association” between sugar-sweetened carbonated beverage (SSB) consumption and increased pancreatic cancer risk. Jeanine Genkinger, et al., “Coffee, Tea and Sugar-Sweetened Carbonated Soft Drink Intake and Pancreatic Cancer Risk: A Pooled Analysis of 14 Cohort Studies,” Cancer, Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, February 2012. After examining data from 317,827 men and 536,066 women, the study purportedly found that (i) “coffee consumption was not associated with pancreatic cancer risk overall”; (ii) “no statistically significant association was observed between tea intake and pancreatic cancer”; and, (iii) for modest intakes of SSBs, “there was a suggestive and slightly positive association . . . which reached statistical significance in certain subgroups of participants (e.g., nondiabetics, nondrinkers of alcohol).” These results evidently confirmed one Japanese cohort study as well as the Singapore Chinese Health Study covered in Issue 337 of this…
A recent study has allegedly linked diet soft drink consumption with an increased risk of vascular events. Hannah Gardener, et al., “Diet Soft Drink Consumption Is Associated with an Increased Risk of Vascular Events in the Northern Manhattan Study,” Journal of General Internal Medicine, February 2, 2012. Researchers evidently collected data from 2,564 adults in the Northern Manhattan Study for a mean follow-up of 10 years, controlling for a variety of factors such as age, race/ethnicity, smoking, BMI, and physical activity. Compared with those who did not consume diet soft drinks, participants who reported drinking diet soft drinks on a daily basis apparently exhibited “an increased risk of vascular events, and this persisted after controlling further for the metabolic syndrome, peripheral vascular disease, diabetes, cardiac disease, hypertension, and hypercholesterolemia.” The study authors noted, however, that many individuals “may consume diet soft drinks in an effort to reduce calories and sugar…
A meta-analysis of prospective studies has reportedly concluded that “dietary salt intake was directly associated with a risk of gastric cancer…, with progressively increasing risk across consumption levels.” Lanfranco D’Elia, et al., “Habitual Salt Intake and Risk of Gastric Cancer: A Meta-analysis of Prospective Studies,” Clinical Nutrition, January 2012. Researchers apparently conducted a pooled analysis using seven adult-population studies that provided data from 10 cohorts, as well as additional analyses on “the effect of salt-rich foods on the rate of gastric cancer.” The meta-analysis overall involved information from dietary questionnaires completed by 268,718 participants from four countries. According to researchers, their findings indicated “a graded positive association between salt consumption and incidence of gastric cancer,” with “high” and “moderately high” salt intake associated with 68 percent and 41 percent “greater risk of gastric cancer, respectively, compared with ‘low’ salt consumption.” In addition, the meta-analysis purportedly revealed “a statistically significant positive…
A recent study funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and American Heart Association claims that a penny-per-ounce tax on sugar-sweetened beverages would reduce consumption by 15 percent among adults ages 25 to 64 years. Y. Claire Wang, et al., “A Penny-Per Ounce Tax on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Would Cut Health and Cost Burdens of Diabetes,” Health Affairs, January 2012. Researchers apparently used data from the National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (2003-06) to estimate that, between 2010 and 2020, the tax would “prevent 2.4 million diabetes person-years, 95,000 coronary heart events, 8,000 strokes, and 26,000 premature deaths, while avoiding $17 billion in medical costs.” In addition, the scheme would purportedly raise $13 billion in annual tax revenue. In particular, the study notes that the “low price of these beverages, along with their mass marketing, has undoubtedly fueled their widespread overconsumption by both adults and children,” who allegedly drink as much…
