Health and Nutrition News: August

Every few Fridays, I like to make a collection of news stories that revolve around the field of Food Science, Human Nutrition, Vegetarianism, and other Health News. These are studies or reports that are not only super interesting, but also really work to open my mind and remind me that these fields are constantly evolving and finding new information. Click on the links for more info!

Reported by The Lancet: a study of more than 5 million UK adults shows that a higher body mass index increases the risk of developing 10 of the most common cancers. They included ovarian, breast, cervix, and thyroid.

The University of Bristol has done some preliminary studies and found that tomatoes may reduce the risk of prostate cancer in men. Those who ate ten servings of tomatoes a week showed and average of 18% reduce in prostate cancer.

Adding extra fat to human milk can help premature babies grow more successfully when in the NICU. The study has been done by the Baylor College of Medicine, and examined premature babies fed with the lower-fat and added-fat milk mixtures.  

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has found that 9 and 10 year old kids who are active have more white matter in their brains than their unfit peers. White matter in the brain plays an essential role in successful nerve impulses and activity.

According to new research, losing large amounts of weight won't necessarily make you happy. Those who lost more than 5% of their body fat did not become happier; in fact, many reported being depressed. This is not to say that weight loss when overweight or unhealthy is a bad thing. However, it does mean that weight loss itself is not the answer to everything. In fact, in those who suffer from anorexia, it is the problem. I'm a fan of any study that doesn't fall into the I-lost-weight-and-my-life-is-perfect trope. As a lead author says: "We do not want to discourage anyone from trying to lose weight, which has tremendous physical benefits, but people should not expect weight loss to instantly improve all aspects of life."

However, out of full disclosure: I also read another study this week that talked about how for many girls in 6th and 7th grade, being fit and healthy can help them prevent depression or improve mood. I personally think that this has more to do with endorphins and healthy body image compared to the actual physiological mechanism of losing the weight.

Sodium has been known to be a problem in many diets, particularly in America, and now a new study by Tufts University shows that sodium has contributed to an estimated 1.65 million deaths globally. Watch that sodium! The World Health Organization says to keep sodium at about 2,000mg per day.


These are articles that I find fascinating. If you want to keep up on more news, I suggest going to ScienceDaily, BBC News Health, and EatRight.org. The next news update will be in September.