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…
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has announced“a national advocacy conference to motivate and strengthen national, state, and local initiatives, both public and private, to reduce sugary-drink consumption in the United States.” Scheduled for June 7-8, 2012, in Washington, D.C., the meeting is apparently designed for “researchers, government officials, state and local legislators, health professionals, low-income and minority advocates, youth activists, consumer groups, faith-based organizations, health insurers, and business leaders” to “strategize to improve public health” and “add momentum to a growing public health movement.”
The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) has released its annual report on the global status of genetically modified (GM) crops, claiming that in 2011 “a record of 16.7 million farmers, up 1.3 million or 8 percent from 2010, grew biotech crops.” According to ISAAA, these gains reflected increased plantings by developing countries, which apparently grew “close to 50 percent” of all global biotech crops, and among “small resource-poor farmers,” who constituted 90 percent or 15 million of those planting GM crops. “Developing countries… for the first time are expected to exceed industrial countries hectarage in 2012,” notes the report. “[T]his is contrary to the prediction of critics who, prior to the commercialization of the technology in 1996, prematurely declared that biotech crops were only for industrial countries and would never be accepted and adopted by developing countries.” Meanwhile, Food & Water Watch (FWW) Europe has issued…
In an article supported, in part, by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, authors Jennifer Harris and Samantha Graff suggest that the findings of psychological research about the subliminal effects of food advertising on young people should be considered when advertisers defend their practices by invoking the First Amendment’s commercial speech doctrine. Harris, who is affiliated with Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy, and Graff, with Public Health Law & Policy in Oakland, California, contend that U.S. Supreme Court First Amendment jurisprudence is premised on the understanding that consumers use the free flow of commercial information to make logical decisions. “The commercial speech doctrine is built on a rational choice theory of behavior,” they claim. But because advertisers often resort to newer forms of advertising using “implicit messages” intended to “covertly” influence behavior and because young people are purportedly unable to resist food advertising or consider the content rationally, the…
A California-based attorney is apparently considering filing a class action lawsuit against Gerber on behalf of consumers purportedly misled by the company’s promotions for its baby food products. According to Ronald Marron, “Gerber claims that NutriProtect™ is ‘Nutrition for Healthy Growth & Natural Immune Support.’ But a close review of the ingredients, in tiny letters on the back, reveals that NutriProtect™ advertising is deceptive, leading parents to believe the Products are healthier and more nutritious than they actually are.” Marron claims that some of the products “contain high amounts of sugar, salt, and high fructose corn syrup.” He also indicates that Gerber is adding substances such as DHA to its products at a price premium, when parents could simply add a few drops of tuna oil to their baby’s food to obtain the same purported health effects. Also cited as a questionable practice is the company’s addition of prebiotics and…
A U.K.-based public interest charity has filed 54 separate complaints with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) contending that the subject companies, including Cadbury and Pringles, are promoting food products high in sugars, fat or salt to children online. Described by the Children’s Food Campaign (CFC) as a “super complaint,” the case reflects the findings of a report the charity released in December 2011 claiming that food advertisers use brand characters, animations, games, competitions, and videos online and through social media to heavily market junk food to children. It calls for the U.K. government to close a loophole allowing ads for products that cannot be aired during children’s programming to be freely promoted online. According to CFC spokesperson Malcolm Clark, youth marketing standards applicable to TV should be matched online. The existing code apparently states, “marketing communications must not condone or encourage poor nutritional habits or an unhealthy lifestyle in children.”…
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has filed a complaint in a New York federal court seeking an order that would require the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to respond to the organization’s request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for documents on “the agency’s proposed deregulation of herbicide-resistant crops.” NRDC v. USDA, No. 12-0795 (S.D.N.Y., filed February 6, 2012). According to the complaint, USDA “is currently considering petitions to deregulate several herbicide-resistant varieties of corn and soybeans, which, if granted, would significantly increase usage of the herbicides to which those genetically modified [GM] crops are resistant.” NRDC apparently submitted a FOIA request to USDA in October 2011, seeking records concerning the proposed agency action, as well as a “fee waiver on the grounds that disclosure of the requested information is in the public interest.” The deadline for a response, according to NRDC, was November 15, but USDA has…
A federal court in California has denied a motion for class certification filed by a plaintiff who alleged that Vital Pharmaceuticals, Inc. misled consumers by claiming their energy drinks, marketed under the brand name Redline®, were safe and effective for enhancing energy and promoting weight loss. Aaronson v. Vital Pharms., Inc., No. 09-1333 (S.D. Cal., decided February 3, 2012). The plaintiff allegedly became shaky and his heart raced when he consumed the product, so he claimed that the company failed to adequately inform consumers about its risks. According to the court, the plaintiff failed to establish typicality, adequacy of representation and predominance. As to typicality, he apparently admitted that he never read the product’s warning labels, thus subjecting him to “unique defenses that are not applicable to the class members who read the labels.” As to adequacy of representation, the court found, “The record confirms that Aaronson and/or his counsel have…
