Reusable grocery bags and packages can apparently contain a high level of bacteria, yeast, mold, and coliform that can pose a significant food safety risk because of cross contamination, claims a new microbiological study funded by the Environment and Plastics Industry Council (EPIC). The study, reportedly the first of its kind in North America, looked at whether reusable grocery bags become an active bacterial growth habitat and breeding ground for yeast and mold after persistent use. Richard Summerbell, former chief of Medical Mycology for the Ontario Ministry of Health and research director of an environmental microbiology lab in Toronto called Sporometrics, was commissioned to evaluate the findings of the EPIC study. He claimed that swab testing of a scientifically meaningful sample of both single-use and reusable grocery bags by two independent laboratories found unacceptable levels of bacteria in the reusable bags, with some bags having detectable levels of fecal intestinal…
Category Archives Scientific/Technical Items
A Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) study has reportedly found that “participants who drank for a week from polycarbonate bottles, the popular, hard-plastic drinking bottles and baby bottles, showed a two-thirds increase in their urine of the chemical bisphenol A (BPA).” Jenny L. Carwile, et al., “Use of Polycarbonate Bottles and Urinary Bisphenol A Concentrations,” Environmental Health Perspectives, May 12, 2009. HSPH researchers followed 77 participants who first minimized their BPA exposure for a week, then drank all cold beverages out of plastic polycarbonate bottles for seven days, during which time their “urinary BPA concentrations increased 69 percent.” According to the study authors, their work is the first to show that BPA leached from plastic bottles can result in “a corresponding increase in urinary BPA concentrations in humans.” The study also forbid washing the bottles in dishwashers or putting hot liquids in them, as “heating has been shown to…
UK scientists have shown in new research that the food-poisoning bug Salmonella relies on glucose for its survival, a discovery that could apparently provide a new way to vaccinate against it. Steven D. Bowden, et al, “Glucose and glycolysis are required for the successful infection of macrophages and mice by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium,” Infection and Immunity (April 20, 2009). Institute of Food Research (IFR) scientists claim that their discovery of Salmonella’s weakness for sugar could also lead to vaccine strains to protect against other disease-causing bacteria, including superbugs. “This is the first time that anyone has identified the nutrients that sustain Salmonella while it is infecting a host’s body,” said study co-author Arthur Thompson in a statement from IFR, which called the discovery “a major breakthrough.” The next phase of the research will reportedly test whether mutant strains elicit a protective immune response in mice. See IFR Press Release, May 2009.
A recent study has reportedly found no positive association between dietary acrylamide intake and brain cancer. Janneke G.F. Hogervorst, et al., “Dietary Acrylamide Intake and Brain Cancer Risk,” Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, Vol. 18 (2009). Dutch researchers surveyed the dietary habits of 58,279 men and 62,573 women ages 55 through 69 who were enrolled in the Netherlands Cohort Study on Diet and Cancer. The subjects’ dietary sources of acrylamide, the chemical by-product created by baking, frying and toasting foods at high temperatures, included potato chips, French fries, Dutch spiced cake, coffee, bread, and cookies. After adjusting for possible brain cancer risk factors, researchers concluded that hazard ratios for acrylamide were not significantly increased when dietary intake was analyzed as a categorical variable. These same researchers have also concluded that dietary acrylamide is not linked to an increased risk of lung cancer. Those findings were covered in issue 302 of…
University of Toronto scientists have reportedly identified food-wrapper chemicals known as polyfluoroalkyl phosphoric acid diesters (diPAPs) at “low part-per-billion concentrations” in human blood. Jessica C. D’eon, et al., “Observation of a Commercial Fluorinated Material, the Polyfluoroalkyl Phosphoric Acid Diesters, in Human Sera, Wastewater Treatment Plant Sludge, and Paper Fibers,” Environmental Science & Technology, April 29, 2009. Researchers examined blood samples from both male and female donors ages 19 through 70 with various blood types. They also tested paper fibers and wastewater treatment plant sludge “as a proxy for human use and potential exposure,” concluding that high diPAP concentrations in the environment “suggest diPAP materials may be prevalent in our daily lives.” According to a concurrent news release, rat studies have shown that diPAPs “can be metabolized to PFOA [perfluorooctanoic acid] and other perfluorinated carboxylic acids” after ingestion, raising questions about “their potential toxicity in humans and wildlife.” The publication also noted several…
A project involving more than 300 scientists from 25 countries has reportedly decoded the complete genome of the cow, thus providing “tantalizing clues to explain ‘the essence of bovinity.’” Published in the April 24, 2009, edition of the journal Science, the results have apparently shown that the organization of human chromosomes more closely resembles that of the domestic cow than that of mice or rats. Scientists contributing to the effort have said the new information may enable farmers to improve meat and milk production, bolster disease resistance among herds, and practice more environmentally sound husbandry. The genome also suggested that the cow species has retained a sufficient level of genetic diversity despite centuries of domestication. “And beyond that, the tools that this technology gives us allow us to manage diversity at a whole new level . . . I think the outlook is quite bright,” one study co-author was quoted…
A recent study has reportedly found no positive association between dietary acrylamide intake and lung cancer, concluding that the chemical created by baking, frying and toasting foods at high temperatures may be “involved in human carcinogenesis through pathways other than genotoxicity.” Janneke G. F. Hogervorst, et al., “Lung Cancer Risk in Relation to Dietary Acrylamide Intake,” Journal of the National Cancer Institute, April 28, 2009. Dutch researchers surveyed the dietary habits of 58,279 men and 62,573 women ages 55 through 69 who were enrolled in the Netherlands Cohort Study on Diet and Cancer. The results after 13 years suggested that men who consumed the most potato chips, French fries, Dutch spiced cake, coffee, bread, and cookies did not have a statistically different risk for lung cancer than those who reported eating the least amount of these foods. Moreover, women with the highest acrylamide intake had a decreased risk of lung cancer compared…
A recent study has reportedly linked cognitive decline in some diabetic women to high intakes of saturated and trans fats and low intakes of polyunsaturated fats during midlife. Elizabeth E. Devore, “Dietary Fat Intake and Cognitive Decline in Women With Type 2 Diabetes,” Diabetes Care, April 2009. Harvard Medical School researchers apparently assessed the cognitive functioning of approximately 1,500 women with type 2 diabetes enrolled in the Nurses’ Health Study, finding that those in the highest tertile of trans fat intake scored 0.15 standard units lower on six cognitive function tests when compared to women in the lowest tertile. “This mean difference was comparable with the difference we find in women 7 years apart in age,” stated the authors, who noted a need for “further research to confirm these findings and explore additional strategies for maintaining cognitive health in diabetes – especially in women, who can have a higher lifetime…
Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently published a study identifying perchlorate in 15 brands of powdered infant formula (PIF), which included products made from cow’s milk with lactose; cow’s milk without lactose; soy milk; and synthetic amino acids (elemental). Joshua G. Schier, “Perchlorate Exposure From Infant Formula and Comparisons With the Perchlorate Reference Dose,” Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, March 18, 2009. The study authors purportedly found that some PIF samples exceeded the daily reference dose of 0.7 µg/kg per day set by the Environmental Protection Agency. More than one half of the formulas would exceed the reference dose when reconstituted with drinking water contaminated with 4 µg/l of perchlorate, according to the study. The CDC researchers have reportedly claimed that the two brands with the highest perchlorate levels comprise approximately 87 percent of the powdered milk market in the United States. Scientists…
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have reportedly found that “liquid calorie intake had a stronger impact on weight than solid calorie intake.” Liwei Chen, et al, “Reduction in consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with weight loss: the PREMIER trial,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, April 2009. According to an April 2, 2009, press release, the study focused on 810 adults ages 25 to 79 enrolled in the PREMIER trial, an 18-month, randomized, controlled, behavioral intervention. Using unannounced phone interviews to track dietary habits, researchers found that sugar-sweetened beverage accounted for 37 percent of all liquid calories consumed by participants. The authors apparently speculated that although the body can regulate its intake of solid food, it is unable to similarly manage liquid calories. “Among beverages, sugar-sweetened beverages was the only beverage type significantly associated with weight change at both the 6- and 18-month follow up,” lead…
