July 14, 2011, New York Times, William Neuman
Are Goldfish crackers junk food?
Under proposed new nutritional guidelines, the federal government says yes, and it does not want food like the crackers advertised to children because they contain too much saturated fat and salt and are made from white flour.
But food makers say the fish-shaped treats, made by Campbell Soup’s Pepperidge Farm division, belong on a list of healthful foods that are fine to market to children.
The seeming tempest in a fishbowl is typical of a growing tug of war as government …

Associated Press, July 9, 2011 (Boston Herald)
Massachusetts health officials are set to approve what could be some of the toughest school nutrition standards in the country.
The Public Health Council is scheduled to meet Wednesday to consider the changes that would apply to all food sold or provided at school a la carte lines, vending machines, school stores, events, and fundraisers during the school day.
Health officials said the regulations will meet or exceed the strongest standards in the nation, and could improve the eating habits of a million Massachusetts public school …

FTC advertising guidelines encourage advertisers to promote healthy foods to kids, as well as limit fat and sugar in order to combat childhood obesity. Food, beverage and advertising industry reps say doing so could mean job loss for many.
[Are job losses more important than the health of our nation? LS]
Los Angeles Times, July 8, 2011
Advertisers and food and beverage industry officials called the governments new guidelines for advertising directed toward children a “reckless” maneuver in light of todays fragile economy.After Congress asked the Federal Trade Commission, along with three …

July 1, 2011, Reuters, Kerry Grens
Menu labels on cafeteria food — highlighting the good and the bad of various meal options — make no difference in college students’ meal choices, a new study concludes.
The results add to evidence that, despite laws in some cities mandating calorie counts on fast-food menus, nutritional information makes little difference to people when they are eating out.
“Although it is important to inform consumers about the nutritional characteristics of the food offered, providing nutrition information in less healthy food environments such as fast-food restaurants is unlikely …

June 17, 2011, ABC news/Medpage Today, Kristina Fiore
Although high school students report drinking plenty of water, milk, and real fruit juice, they still gulp down more sugar-sweetened beverages than is probably good for them, CDC researchers found.
Nearly three-quarters (72.4 percent) of the teens who responded to a national survey said they drank at least one glass of water a day over the preceding seven days, Nancy Brener of the CDC and colleagues reported in the June 17 issue of Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report.
Among the 11,429 survey respondents, 42 percent …

June 16, 2011, Alexandra Zavis, Los Angeles Times
Fewer than 1 in 5 of the children who relied on free or reduced-price lunches during the 2009-2010 school year in California received subsidized meals last July, according to a new report.
That represents a 15% drop in participation in summer meals programs from the year before at a time when enrollment in other federal nutrition programs is increasing because of the lingering effects of the recession.
The report by California Food Policy Advocates blamed cuts to the state’s education budget, which caused many school …

June 15, 2011, WebMD, Denise Mann
A child’s risk for becoming overweight or obese does not seem to increase when fast food establishments and stores are located near school grounds, a new study finds.
“Unhealthful food choices are ubiquitous and consequently stores selling these food items near schools have no significant effect on student obesity,” researchers led by David E. Harris, PhD, of the University of Southern Maine in Portland say in the July/August 2011 Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.
Researchers compared the weight and height of 552 students from 11 high …

16 June, 2011, USA Today
Landon Lewis, 4, was living in a Minneapolis homeless shelter when he fell ill, first with a fever of 104 degrees, then with a red rash on his forehead.
It took two visits to a doctor to diagnose a disease clinic staff hadn’t seen in years: measles.
The rash spread into his mouth and throat, so swallowing was torture. He began vomiting and developed a cough that nearly choked him. He was rushed to the emergency room and hospitalized for five days.
“Seeing a child in that predicament really hurt,” …

Media-Newswire, June 13, 2011
A study into taste preference suggests children who are thirsty should be encouraged to drink water.
The research by academics at the universities of Bristol and Bangor has shown for the first time that overweight and obese people have a dulled sensitivity to the sweetness of soft drinks but an enhanced subconscious liking of sweet food.
The findings also found that even if people are not overweight, drinking two sugary drinks a day for just four weeks is sufficient to both dull sensitivity to the taste sensation, and …

MailOnline, Jenny Hope, November 26, 2010
Fat children are showing signs of heart disease at the age of 15, researchers warn.
A study has revealed that being overweight throughout adolescence sows the seeds of ill-health for decades to come.
It is the first to investigate the link between body mass index (BMI), waist size and fat mass of pre-teen children and subsequent heart risk factors in late adolescence.
The study looked at how Body Mass Index in children affected future health. Here a child is measured by a doctor (file photo)
The findings show that …