Tag Archives: Foods

Health: Ultra-Processed Foods (UPF) Explained

The Independent (February 21, 2024): Studies show that the average British person consumes more than half of their calories from ultra-processed foods. Their consumption can cause extreme health issues and early deaths, putting a massive strain on health services across the world.

An evaluation of global dietary guidelines highlights the need for clearer warnings on what common foods fall under the ‘UPF’ banner. Some of them may surprise you. Today, Decomplicated examines what exactly defines ultra-processed foods, the impact they have on both society and the environment, and what can you do to minimize your consumption of them.

Health: Foods That Fight Inflammation (Harvard)

Infographic: Sugars & Sweeteners In Foods

Studies: ‘Coffee’ – Machine Learning Review Shows Benefits Of Drinking It

“It may be good for you,” says Dariush Mozaffarian, dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. “I think we can say with good certainty it’s not bad for you.” (Additives are another story.)

After the link appeared between coffee intake and a reduced risk of heart failure in the Framingham data, Kao confirmed the result by using the algorithm to correctly predict the relationship between coffee intake and heart failure in two other respected data sets. Kosorok describes the approach as “thoughtful” and says that it “seems like pretty good evidence.”

Should you drink coffee? If so, how much? These seem like questions that a society able to create vaccines for a new respiratory virus within a year should have no trouble answering. And yet the scientific literature on coffee illustrates a frustration that readers, not to mention plenty of researchers, have with nutrition studies: The conclusions are always changing, and they frequently contradict one another.

Read full article in the New York Times

History Of Food: ‘Where Vegetables Came From’

Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, leaves, roots, and seeds.

Diet Study: The Top 250 U.S. Movies Depict Unhealthy Foods & Drinks (Stanford)

Stanford researchers examined the 250 top-grossing American movies of recent decades and found the on-screen foods and beverages largely failed U.S. government nutrition recommendations and U.K. youth advertising standards.

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Scents & Flavors: ‘Mint – Extracting Its Essence In Washington State’ (Video)

Washington State is the country’s largest producer of mint, the oil of which can be worth thousands of dollars more per barrel than crude oil. Correspondent Conor Knighton visits family farmers, and the processing company Labbeemint, whose extracts of peppermint, spearmint and other varieties are used in everything from candy and gum to toothpaste and mouthwash.

Foods & Dining Video: ‘Smallhold Farms’ Grows Rare & Unique Mushrooms For New York City Eateries

Smallhold is a macrofarm in Brooklyn that has created artificial environments for growing rare and unique mushrooms for local restaurants and grocers. Their goal is to open people’s minds to using mushrooms in more cooking, while creating sustainable farms in multiple cities nationwide. https://www.smallhold.com/