EWG New Report on Sugar in Children’s Cereals: One Serving Equal To Three Chips Ahoy Cookies

Image courtesy of Melia Robinson/Business Insider.The Environmental Working Group’s newest report, Children’s Cereals: Sugar by the Pound, finds that very little has improved since 2011 – the last time the group did a survey of the cereal industry.

As part of a larger study, the EWG again reviewed a smaller sample of 84 popular children’s cereals that had it originally evaluated in 2011 and found that while a handful of manufacturers lowered the sugar content of their cereals, “the vast majority are still too sweet to be healthy, averaging two teaspoons per serving.”

The new report did a comprehensive analysis of 1,556 cereals, including 181 marketed for children and found that “not one was free of added sugars.” In addition, the group found that, “On average, children’s cereals have more than 40 percent more sugar than adult cereals, and twice as much as oatmeal.”

Also among the concerning issues highlighted by the report were how these cereals were marketed to children, prominent nutritional claims, and the use of unrealistically small portion size measurements on nutritional labels.

The report found that for many cereals, a single serving size exceeded 60 percent of the daily amount of sugar suggested by health agencies and organizations, and “because the serving sizes on cereal labels are unrealistically small, many children eat multiple servings in a single siting.”

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Vitamin D Deficiency Linked With Growth of Uterine Fibroids, Cancers, and Neural Diseases

We all know that vitamin D is added to milk because it helps the body absorb and metabolize calcium for strong healthy bones, but a new study published this year from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has also found some important information specifically for women.

NIH researchers found that, “Women who had sufficient amounts of vitamin D were 32 percent less likely to develop fibroids than women with insufficient vitamin D.”

Fibroids are non-cancerous tumors of the uterus. Fibroids often result in pain and bleeding in premenopausal women and are the leading cause of hysterectomy in the United States, according to the NIH.

Donna Baird, a researcher with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (part of NIH), led the study of 1,036 women, ages 35-49, living in the Washington, D.C. area from 1996 to 1999, which completed questionnaires on sun exposure, as well as received ultrasounds to check for fibroids, and gave blood samples to check vitamin D levels.

The body can make vitamin D when skin is exposed to the sun or get it from food and supplements. The study found that, “Those who reported spending more than one hour outside per day also had a decreased risk of fibroids.”

Baird said that, “It would be wonderful if something as simple and inexpensive as getting some natural sunshine on their skin each day could help women reduce their chances of getting fibroids, but though the findings are consistent with laboratory studies, more studies in women are needed.”

Baird is currently conducting a study in Detroit to see if the findings from the Washington, D.C. study can be replicated.

Besides sunlight, among the best sources of vitamin D come from foods. The NIH finds that:

• Fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel are among the best sources.
• Beef liver, cheese, and egg yolks provide small amounts.
• Mushrooms provide some vitamin D. In some mushrooms that are newly available in stores, the vitamin D content is being boosted by exposing these mushrooms to ultraviolet light.
• Almost all of the U.S. milk supply is fortified with 400 IU vitamin D per quart, but foods made from milk like cheese and ice cream are usually not fortified.
• Vitamin D is also added to many breakfast cereals and to some brands of orange juice, yogurt, margarine, soy beverages. Check the labels.

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New York City Approaching Deadline For Public Comments on Sugary Drinks Ban – July 24, 2012

Image courtesy of USA Today.Everyone probably remembers the big – but short burst – of traditional media coverage of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s proposal to limit sugary drink cup sizes to a maximum of 16 ounces in restaurants, but what you may not know is that this coming Tuesday, July 24, 2012, there will be a public hearing on the ban, and it will also be the last day to give public comments.

The NYC Board of Health will vote on the proposal sometime in September 2012. If the proposal is approved, it will go into effect in March 2013.

While the beverage industry obviously objects, the health care community is singing the praises of the proposal.

Dr. Joseph Vassalotti, chief medical officer of the National Kidney Foundation applauded the proposal in a statement saying, “Currently, there 1.3 million New Yorkers suffering from chronic kidney disease and that number is rising. Recent research shows that consumption of sugary sodas results in obesity.”

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