Food & Diet, features and articles | Educational Science

Apr 30, 2007

The Strange History of Cheese

For many, the mild, slightly nutty flavor of Gruyère is the perfect addition to a steaming bowl of French onion soup or a ham sandwich, but for the medieval peasants who first created it, the flavor was secondary to matters of survival and location. Gruyère resulted from the historic collision...

Apr 30, 2007

Researchers Find Ã¢â‚¬ËœSkim Milk CowsÃ¢â‚¬â„¢

In a few years, skim milk may come straight from the cow, it was reported this week. Skim milk is usually produced by taking all of the fat out of regular milk, but in 2001, researchers found a cow that skipped that step. While screening a herd of cows, they...

Feb 28, 2007

Acids in Popular Sodas Erode Tooth Enamel

Root beer could be the safest soft drink for your teeth, new research suggests, but many other popular diet and sugared sodas are nearly as corrosive to dental enamel as battery acid. Prolonged exposure to soft drinks can lead to significant enamel loss, even though many people consider soft drinks...

Feb 28, 2007

Healthier Pizza Passes Taste Test

CHICAGO—Pizza could be made healthier through a few simple preparation tricks if consumers are willing to eat whole wheat crust, a new study suggests. Preparing and cooking whole-wheat pizza dough certain ways boosted antioxidant levels, scientists found. The researchers served some of their test pizza to reporters here today, and...

Feb 28, 2007

High-Beef Diets in Pregnant Women Could Lower Son's Sperm Count

Pregnant women who consume meat daily could be more likely to have sons with lower sperm counts than mothers on low-beef diets, suggests a new study. While the development of sperm occurs in steps throughout a guy's life from the pre-natal months to adulthood, a critical stage of development occurs...

Dec 31, 2006

Beverage Studies Biased in Favor of Industry, Researchers Say

Drug companies aren't the only spin game in town when it comes to biased health-research claims. Studies funded completely by food and drink companies on the nutritional benefits of soft drinks, milk and various juices are four to eight times more likely than independently funded studies to draw conclusions that...

Nov 30, 2008

5 Tips: How to Keep Your New Year's Resolution

Whatever you resolve to do differently in 2009, vow also to develop a strategy to make it happen. Otherwise, expect failure. So says John O'Neill, director of Addiction Services for The Menninger Clinic in Houston. Whether it's to eat better, exercise more or stop smoking, O'Neill offers this advice: Before...

Oct 31, 2008

5 Surprising Turkey Facts

Some 271 million turkeys will be raised in the United States this year, according to the National Turkey Federation, and a good number of them will be consumed on Thanksgiving, after which many Americans will loll about, overstuffed, sleepy and in many cases intoxicated. This is not what the Pilgrims...

Jul 31, 2008

Small Packages Trick People to Eat More

If you think buying junk food in small packages will help you eat less, look out —marketers know the truth. Two new marketing studies found that some people tend to consume more calories when junk food portions and packages are smaller. For some, it's because they perceive small packages to...

Jun 30, 2008

Outdoor BBQ: A 700,000-year-old Ritual

July Fourth is a celebration of outdoor cooking, as well as our nation's birthday. It's time to brush off the barbecue and throw masses of processed meat on the grill. As we all stand around waiting for the fire to die down so that we can make s'mores, it's also...

Apr 30, 2008

How to BBQ a Healthier Burger

Hankering after a juicy burger? Try an herbal topping and indulge guilt-free. Despite its notable nutrients — creatine, iron, B vitamins — ground beef spurs health fears from many directions. The American Heart Association frets over beef's saturated fat content, the main dietary cause of high cholesterol (which some link...

Mar 31, 2008

Cultural Differences Found in Pee

Pee from more than 4,000 volunteers shows that people from different nations often have spectacularly different metabolisms. The finding could point to new ways to deal with obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and other health problems, researchers said. After guts break down food and drink, chemicals left in their urine...

Oct 31, 2009

Unhealthy Food Ads Pervasive on Kids' Shows

If you think SpongeBob puts junk in your kids' heads, then you need to pay closer attention to the commercials. A new study finds that about one-fifth of commercials kids are likely to see on late-afternoon and Saturday morning television are food-related, and of those, 70 percent advertise fast-food restaurants,...

Aug 31, 2009

Powerful Ideas: Cars Could Run on Watermelons

Editor's Note: This occasional series looks at powerful ideas — some existing, some futuristic — for fueling and electrifying modern life. Watermelon juice could become the newest renewable energy source for vehicles, scientists now suggest. Each year, about 1 out of 5 watermelons are left behind in fields because they...

May 31, 2009

Vinegar Might Fight Fat

Ordinary vinegar used to make salad dressings and pickles just might live up to its age-old reputation in folk medicine as a promoter of health, a new study suggests. Nobody should start guzzling vinegar, but Japanese scientists found new evidence that vinegar can help prevent accumulation of body fat and...