FooD AreNa This is the place where you can find the Food Technocrates. This is the Arena where you can see the major discussion on topics posted by the students of BTech (Food Sc & Tech), Agri Co Hassan. Moreover you can also see the activities and events carried out in our association and which are to be carried out in the future. We upload this blog regularly so b in touch for the latest news on FooD AreNa.
Tuesday, 23 August 2011
Congragulations
Would like to congratulate our honorable DEAN (Agri).Dr.M.A.Shankar to receiving RAANADE award 2011.
Sunday, 31 July 2011
Omega-3 fats !!!!
Omega-3 fats hold the key to curing depression in the elderly
Omega-3 fats are part of our nutritional heritage and are shown to play a crucial role in the prevention and treatment of debilitating conditions such as clinical depression throughout all phases of life and especially in the elderly. Neural cellular walls are largely constructed of Omega-3 fats, specifically the DHA long-chain component that determines how nutrients transport across cell membranes, electrical conductivity and the activity of critical neurotransmitters in cellular communications. Results published in The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging demonstrate that daily supplementation with Omega-3 fats may significantly suppress the symptoms of depression among elderly women.
The study found that depressed women that supplemented with 2.5 grams of Omega-3 fats daily experienced significant reductions in their symptoms. In an important finding, the scientists conducting the study found that the long chain fat was responsible for dramatic improvements in future outlook, self-esteem and quality of life. Researchers commented "This [quality of life] observation has never been achieved before and it appears of great value from the clinical point of view, due to the importance of these aspects in the elderly population."
One of the most common medications prescribed to adults, and especially the elderly, is in the anti-depressant classification. Anti-depressants cause a long list of side effects including blurred vision, weight gain, headache, anxiety and sleep disruption. Many of these effects lead to a lowered quality of life and actually worsen the condition being treated. Multiple studies have determined that Omega-3 supplementation cuts depression ratings by 50%, without the devastating side effects of prescription drugs.
A body of research published in the journal Nature Neuroscience pinpoints the critical nature of Omega-3 fats during maternal nurturing and early childhood development. Due to the rapid decline of these essential fats from the diet over the course of the past century, clinical depression cases have exploded as the balance of Omega-3 to Omega-6 fats far exceeds the optimal 1:1 ratio. Researchers determined that insufficient Omega-3 fats in circulation led to disturbed neuronal communications that play a strategic role in neurotransmissions. The dietary fat imbalance influenced emotional behavior and increased anxiety, and it was the primary cause of depression.
The low fat diet so often prescribed by medical professionals and nutrition experts has caused a critical deficiency of healthy fats necessary for the development of the human brain from infancy to adulthood. In addition to the extensive library of research showing the effectiveness of Omega-3 fats in cardiovascular health and cognition, new evidence documents the need for this essential nutrient through all stages of life to improve self-esteem and to prevent depression. Health-minded people will want to supplement with 2.5 grams of combined EPA/DHA to naturally protect against behavior disorders and depression.
Omega-3 fats are part of our nutritional heritage and are shown to play a crucial role in the prevention and treatment of debilitating conditions such as clinical depression throughout all phases of life and especially in the elderly. Neural cellular walls are largely constructed of Omega-3 fats, specifically the DHA long-chain component that determines how nutrients transport across cell membranes, electrical conductivity and the activity of critical neurotransmitters in cellular communications. Results published in The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging demonstrate that daily supplementation with Omega-3 fats may significantly suppress the symptoms of depression among elderly women.
The study found that depressed women that supplemented with 2.5 grams of Omega-3 fats daily experienced significant reductions in their symptoms. In an important finding, the scientists conducting the study found that the long chain fat was responsible for dramatic improvements in future outlook, self-esteem and quality of life. Researchers commented "This [quality of life] observation has never been achieved before and it appears of great value from the clinical point of view, due to the importance of these aspects in the elderly population."
One of the most common medications prescribed to adults, and especially the elderly, is in the anti-depressant classification. Anti-depressants cause a long list of side effects including blurred vision, weight gain, headache, anxiety and sleep disruption. Many of these effects lead to a lowered quality of life and actually worsen the condition being treated. Multiple studies have determined that Omega-3 supplementation cuts depression ratings by 50%, without the devastating side effects of prescription drugs.
A body of research published in the journal Nature Neuroscience pinpoints the critical nature of Omega-3 fats during maternal nurturing and early childhood development. Due to the rapid decline of these essential fats from the diet over the course of the past century, clinical depression cases have exploded as the balance of Omega-3 to Omega-6 fats far exceeds the optimal 1:1 ratio. Researchers determined that insufficient Omega-3 fats in circulation led to disturbed neuronal communications that play a strategic role in neurotransmissions. The dietary fat imbalance influenced emotional behavior and increased anxiety, and it was the primary cause of depression.
The low fat diet so often prescribed by medical professionals and nutrition experts has caused a critical deficiency of healthy fats necessary for the development of the human brain from infancy to adulthood. In addition to the extensive library of research showing the effectiveness of Omega-3 fats in cardiovascular health and cognition, new evidence documents the need for this essential nutrient through all stages of life to improve self-esteem and to prevent depression. Health-minded people will want to supplement with 2.5 grams of combined EPA/DHA to naturally protect against behavior disorders and depression.
Confusing terms on the label !!!!!
Food manufacturers hide dangerous ingredients in everyday foods by using confusing terms on the label
The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act will take effect in January 2006 and will require food companies to use common names for eight food allergens such as milk, shellfish, eggs, peanuts, fish, wheat, and soy. There has been a lot of press about this Consumer Protection Act, but very little discussion about the other ingredients hidden in foods by food manufacturers that pose a legitimate health risk to all consumers, not just those with specific food allergens.
As a good example of the kind of ingredients that are hidden on food labels, let's take a look at MSG, also called monosodium glutamate. MSG is an excitotoxin -- an ingredient known to cause nerve damage by overexciting nerves. This is exactly how MSG enhances the taste of foods: by overexciting the taste buds on your tongue. While MSG is sometimes listed directly on the label, it is more frequently hidden in other ingredients, such as yeast extract, autolyzed vegetable protein, or hydrolyzed vegetable protein. All three of these ingredients contain monosodium glutamate, and yet they are designed to mislead consumers by avoiding mentioning MSG directly on the label.
Other ingredients may be misleading without necessarily being dangerous. One such ingredient is carmine -- a red coloring frequently used in yogurt, candies, fruit drinks and sweets. Carmine is actually made from the dead, ground-up husks of female red beetles. These beetles, which are typically raised in the Canary Islands, are dried and ground up to create a red paste. This red paste is then exported to the United States and other countries where food is produced. It is added to foods to give them a rose-like color, something similar to a strawberry color. It's listed on the label as "carmine", not as "ground-up red beetles." And while carmine doesn't necessarily pose a health risk to American consumers, it is still an example of dishonest labeling, because people have the right to know when ground-up insects are being used in their foods. There are probably 100 items in your grocery store right now with carmine listed right on the label.
There are other ingredients used on food labels that are, in fact, extremely toxic to the human body, and yet are not listed with appropriate descriptors. One such ingredient is sodium nitrite. Sodium nitrite is added to most packaged meat products found in a grocery store, and even in health food stores. To most people, sodium nitrite simply sounds like a form of salt, but, in fact, this ingredient is extremely carcinogenic. When combined with your saliva and digestive enzymes, sodium nitrite creates cancer-causing compounds known as nitrosamines. These nitrosamines are so toxic to biological systems that they are actually used to give lab rats cancer in laboratory tests. In humans, the consumption of sodium nitrite has been strongly correlated with brain tumors, leukemia, and cancers of the digestive tract. Yet this ingredient carries absolutely no warning on food labels, and in fact, seems to sound like a perfectly safe ingredient, like sodium. As with carmine, you can go to your grocery store and find hundreds, if not thousands, of products using sodium nitrite. Look for it on bacon, ham, pepperoni, and other packaged meat products. In fact, it's almost impossible to find a packaged meat product that isn't made with sodium nitrite. This ingredient is especially prevalent in hot dogs and lunch meats. It has been clinically proven to cause leukemia, brain tumors and other forms of cancer.
By the way, if sodium nitrite is so dangerous, why do food manufacturers use it? Because it adds red color to meat products that would otherwise appear to be a putrid gray color. By making they look red with the help of this color additive sodium nitrite, these meat products look more delicious and fresh, even though they are not. Some of these products have the shelf life of several months, which is far longer than any normal piece of meat would last without looking rather undesirable.
The three ingredients mentioned here are only small examples of the kind of ingredients used by food manufacturers that pose potential harm to consumers and yet are not appropriately described on the food labels. Food labeling is frequently a con game, where the food manufacturer attempts to put ingredients into foods that benefit the manufacturer and yet harm the consumer. Of course, the manufacturer does not want the consumer to be aware that these ingredients are harmful, or that they are even present in the foods, so they rely on confusing names or innocent-sounding names, like "carmine", in order to avoid the chance that consumers might be concerned.
Taken as a whole, this demonstrates the high level of dishonesty and lack of integrity at food manufacturing companies. Many such companies in the business of manufacturing the cheapest, most profitable processed foods that consumers will buy, regardless of how healthy they may be. And as we can see from manufacturing practices today (and examples throughout the history of modern food), food manufacturers will use practically any ingredient they can get away with, including ones that are well-known to cause chronic disease. In modern times, such ingredients include hydrogenated oils and homogenized milk fats, which are found in virtually all cow's milk products.
The bottom line to all this is that the new Act requiring accurate labeling of food allergens is certainly a small step in the right direction for protecting consumers from food manufacturing companies, but it barely scratches the surface of the kind of labeling requirements that need to be enforced in order to prevent consumers from being exposed to other ingredients that promote chronic disease.
The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act will take effect in January 2006 and will require food companies to use common names for eight food allergens such as milk, shellfish, eggs, peanuts, fish, wheat, and soy. There has been a lot of press about this Consumer Protection Act, but very little discussion about the other ingredients hidden in foods by food manufacturers that pose a legitimate health risk to all consumers, not just those with specific food allergens.
As a good example of the kind of ingredients that are hidden on food labels, let's take a look at MSG, also called monosodium glutamate. MSG is an excitotoxin -- an ingredient known to cause nerve damage by overexciting nerves. This is exactly how MSG enhances the taste of foods: by overexciting the taste buds on your tongue. While MSG is sometimes listed directly on the label, it is more frequently hidden in other ingredients, such as yeast extract, autolyzed vegetable protein, or hydrolyzed vegetable protein. All three of these ingredients contain monosodium glutamate, and yet they are designed to mislead consumers by avoiding mentioning MSG directly on the label.
Other ingredients may be misleading without necessarily being dangerous. One such ingredient is carmine -- a red coloring frequently used in yogurt, candies, fruit drinks and sweets. Carmine is actually made from the dead, ground-up husks of female red beetles. These beetles, which are typically raised in the Canary Islands, are dried and ground up to create a red paste. This red paste is then exported to the United States and other countries where food is produced. It is added to foods to give them a rose-like color, something similar to a strawberry color. It's listed on the label as "carmine", not as "ground-up red beetles." And while carmine doesn't necessarily pose a health risk to American consumers, it is still an example of dishonest labeling, because people have the right to know when ground-up insects are being used in their foods. There are probably 100 items in your grocery store right now with carmine listed right on the label.
There are other ingredients used on food labels that are, in fact, extremely toxic to the human body, and yet are not listed with appropriate descriptors. One such ingredient is sodium nitrite. Sodium nitrite is added to most packaged meat products found in a grocery store, and even in health food stores. To most people, sodium nitrite simply sounds like a form of salt, but, in fact, this ingredient is extremely carcinogenic. When combined with your saliva and digestive enzymes, sodium nitrite creates cancer-causing compounds known as nitrosamines. These nitrosamines are so toxic to biological systems that they are actually used to give lab rats cancer in laboratory tests. In humans, the consumption of sodium nitrite has been strongly correlated with brain tumors, leukemia, and cancers of the digestive tract. Yet this ingredient carries absolutely no warning on food labels, and in fact, seems to sound like a perfectly safe ingredient, like sodium. As with carmine, you can go to your grocery store and find hundreds, if not thousands, of products using sodium nitrite. Look for it on bacon, ham, pepperoni, and other packaged meat products. In fact, it's almost impossible to find a packaged meat product that isn't made with sodium nitrite. This ingredient is especially prevalent in hot dogs and lunch meats. It has been clinically proven to cause leukemia, brain tumors and other forms of cancer.
By the way, if sodium nitrite is so dangerous, why do food manufacturers use it? Because it adds red color to meat products that would otherwise appear to be a putrid gray color. By making they look red with the help of this color additive sodium nitrite, these meat products look more delicious and fresh, even though they are not. Some of these products have the shelf life of several months, which is far longer than any normal piece of meat would last without looking rather undesirable.
The three ingredients mentioned here are only small examples of the kind of ingredients used by food manufacturers that pose potential harm to consumers and yet are not appropriately described on the food labels. Food labeling is frequently a con game, where the food manufacturer attempts to put ingredients into foods that benefit the manufacturer and yet harm the consumer. Of course, the manufacturer does not want the consumer to be aware that these ingredients are harmful, or that they are even present in the foods, so they rely on confusing names or innocent-sounding names, like "carmine", in order to avoid the chance that consumers might be concerned.
Taken as a whole, this demonstrates the high level of dishonesty and lack of integrity at food manufacturing companies. Many such companies in the business of manufacturing the cheapest, most profitable processed foods that consumers will buy, regardless of how healthy they may be. And as we can see from manufacturing practices today (and examples throughout the history of modern food), food manufacturers will use practically any ingredient they can get away with, including ones that are well-known to cause chronic disease. In modern times, such ingredients include hydrogenated oils and homogenized milk fats, which are found in virtually all cow's milk products.
The bottom line to all this is that the new Act requiring accurate labeling of food allergens is certainly a small step in the right direction for protecting consumers from food manufacturing companies, but it barely scratches the surface of the kind of labeling requirements that need to be enforced in order to prevent consumers from being exposed to other ingredients that promote chronic disease.
Tuesday, 26 July 2011
Sunday, 24 July 2011
Sunday, 10 July 2011
Fasting ..........
Periodic fasting increases fat burning and reduces the risk of disease
Fasting has been a popular practice among health conscious individuals for centuries. In general, doctors have discouraged the practice of fasting deeming it a dangerous fad among ignorant health seekers. Recent research has proven that regular fasting is not merely a fad, but a health promoting practice. Research conducted at Intermountain Medical Center's Heart Institute identified several health benefits offered through periodic fasting.
Dr. Benjamin Horne stated that 'fasting is not just an indicator for a healthy lifestyle, it is actually the fasting that reduces the risk of disease.' During fasting, the body utilizes fat as a source of fuel instead of glucose. This results in a decrease in fat cells within the body reducing the risks for high cholesterol, insulin resistance, and diabetes according to Dr. Horne. The benefits in the study were seen by merely skipping at least two meals on a regular basis.
Researchers conducted the study on over 200 individuals consisting of patients from the medical center and healthy volunteers. One group eliminated both food and drink for 24 hours while the other group performed a water-only fast. Participants were monitored for the duration of the study to evaluate cardiac risk factors, markers of metabolic risk, and general health assessments. Fasting improved blood glucose levels, reduced body fat, and lowered triglycerides after the fast was completed. Many of the participants were regular fasters, so researchers set out to isolate the benefits of fasting with a follow-up study.
Researchers conducted a second study to ensure the results were not merely the result of a healthier lifestyle among fasters. They selected a group of individuals who did not engage in regular fasting. The participants were evaluated for general health markers and then put on a 24 hour water fast. X-ray scans revealed narrowing of the arteries in around 75 percent of those who didn't fast. In contrast, clogged arteries only affected 63 percent of those in the earlier study who engaged in regular fasting. Researchers began to uncover the health benefits of regular fasting.
Planned, periodic fasting increases human growth hormone that regulates glucose and insulin in the body. Human growth hormone increases the metabolism and burning of fat stores. The increased HGH levels seen during fasting can reduce insulin resistance and diabetes risk. In the study, regular periodic fasting reduced the risk of diabetes in half.
Dr. Horne stated that fasting could prevent the onset of diabetes for those who are at risk and it can improve general overall health. Patients were evaluated in the coronary artery study from 1994 to 2002 and it was found that those who participated in periodic fasting had lower risk of coronary artery disease and diabetes risk. Several doctors with Intermountain Medical Center's Heart Institute are presenting their recent discovery on the physiological benefits from fasting at the American College of Cardiology in New Orleans. Regular, periodic fasting of merely two meals per month can offer significant health benefits and should become a regular part of a health promoting lifestyle.
NEW PACKAGING TECHNOLOGY
Breakthrough Food Technology Process Protects Foods With Thin Film Made From Natural Ingredients; Replaces Plastic Wrap
Every once in a while, new technology emerges in the field of food manufacturing that offers the potential for a real breakthrough in the delivery of fresh, nutritious food products to consumers. Such is the case with a new edible food film that has been developed by researchers from the Oregon State University and its Department of Food Science and Technology. This food protective fiber or film, which looks a lot like plastic wrap, combines two ingredients -- chitosan, a fiber derived from shellfish, and lysozyme, which is essentially egg white protein. By combining these two ingredients in a process that is now being patented, researchers were able to make a thin film food wrap that could cover sandwiches, fruits, vegetables, or even coat foods by dipping the foods in a liquid film.
In other words, you could take fresh strawberries and dip them in a liquid soup made from chitosan and lysozyme, and the strawberry would be coated with a thin plastic wrap, protecting it against microbial infection as well as preserving more of its nutrient content. When it comes time to eat the strawberry, consumers could simply pop the strawberry and the thin-film wrapping in their mouths. The thin-film is perfectly edible and would merely add a little bit of fiber and protein to consumers' diets.
Both of these ingredients are natural anti-microbial compounds, meaning they resist infection from microbes, molds, and fungi. That would potentially enhance the shelf life of foods, which could either serve to deliver more nutritious foods to consumers, or reduce the cost of such foods thanks to reduced spoilage. Furthermore, this thin-film coating can be enhanced with additional vitamins and minerals such as calcium or vitamin E to boost the nutritional value of the food being protected.
This is outstanding technology. It is a fantastic marriage of food technology and health from the natural world. This is a fiber that has been essentially provided by nature. These researchers have cleverly taken ingredients from nature and recombined them in a way that is more compatible with modern food processing, manufacturing, and packaging protocols. There is no doubt in this product would enhance food safety while also boosting its shelf life. This would enable more healthful foods to be delivered to consumers in a more convenient format. Also, it seems that this thin film would be quite inexpensive to manufacture and use, meaning it would add little or no cost to packaged foods.
There's another important reason to favor of this sort of food technology, by the way. That's because the use of plastic packaging poses a health risk to consumers, and if we can move away from plastic packaging (which is manufactured from petroleum products) and move toward a food wrapper that is made from natural edible ingredients such as chitosan and egg protein, then we can reduce some of the health risks associated with the consumption of packaged, processed foods. So it is a tremendous health benefit in terms of avoiding plastic wrap and plastic packaging in the first place.
Because these days, most of the technology about foods has to do with making them more easily marketable or finding new ways to trick consumers into thinking they're eating good-tasting and good-looking foods, when in fact the foods are merely overly processed. But this is an exception to all of that.
The only potential drawback whatsoever from this is that chitosan, which is derived from shellfish, tends to absorb and bind with dietary fats. So if you ate a food item that was wrapped in this new film, some of the chitosan in the film would bind with the oils in the meal you just ate and prevent your body from absorbing them. This could potentially interfere in a very small way with the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamin D and vitamin E. The amount of chitosan used in such a film is so small that this concern does not merit much discussion.
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