Tufts University Diet & Nutrition Letter articles from November 1996

Tufts University Diet & Nutrition Letter archives from November 1996

An oft-overlooked symptom of menopause.
November 1, 1996... Say "menopause," and most people think of symptoms like hot flashes, mood swings, and vaginal dryness. But as many as 90 percent of women may also experience mouth discomfort, which can have a major impact on how well they eat. According to a...

How canned fruits and vegetables stack up. (nutritional value of canned goods compared with frozen and fresh goods)(Brief Article)
November 1, 1996... Most shoppers think fresh is best when it comes to healthful produce, and 8 out of 10 consumers believe frozen foods pack in more nutrients than canned items. But many canned fruits and vegetables contain as much or more of certain nutrients...

Did you wash your hands, dear? (includes related information on study of hand-washing habits in public restrooms)
November 1, 1996... While 94 percent of adults claim they wash their hands after using a public restroom, only about 68 percent actually do, according to a recent "undercover" observation of handwashing in public restrooms in 5 American cities. The findings are...

Is yogurt the health food it's cracked up to be?
November 1, 1996... Call it culture clash. Dannon, Yoplait, and several other yogurt makers say that because SnackWell's chocolate-flavored yogurt does not contain live cultures, or bacteria, it's not really yogurt. Bacteria that are still kicking, they say, are...

Putting claims of "live and active cultures" to the test. (analysis of yogurts)
November 1, 1996... By law, all yogurts in the United States have to be made with 2 types of bacteria: Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. The bacteria convert the sugar in milk - lactose - to lactic acid, which curdles the milk and gives...

Are weight-loss diets recipes for weight gain? (includes related quiz on diet habits)
November 1, 1996... Researchers have known for decades that the effects of extreme starvation can linger. For example, Canadian prisoners starved by their German captors during World War II went through episodes of binge eating long after they had been released...

Stressed about an ulcer? Take a deep breath.... (the Meretek UBT Breath Test for Helicobacter pylori is approved by the Food and Drug Administration to make detection easier, thus helping to diagnose ulcers)(Brief Article)
November 1, 1996... The Food and Drug Administration has just approved a test that will make it cheaper and easier to pinpoint and treat ulcers. The new diagnostic procedure detects the presence of a corkscrew-shaped bacterium that causes ulcers when it burrows...

Steps men should take to avoid osteoporosis. (includes helpful exercise)
November 1, 1996... Osteoporosis in men "has been under-diagnosed, under-reported, and inadequately researched," says the National Osteoporosis Foundation in a new campaign to help men avoid the bone-shattering disease. Take a look at the statistics: *...