ATLANTA - Coca-Cola Co. says it will change packaging on almost all its products to more prominently display some nutritional information as it faces threats of taxes on soda and other attacks related to rising obesity.The information will include calories per serving and will be added to the side of almost all of the soft drink maker’s products.

The company says it hopes the broken-out details will be more convenient for customers who want nutritional details. Bottles and cans will continue to have regular nutritional labels.

Coke says it’s already changed packing on products in Europe and Australia and is in the process of changing them in the U.S. and Mexico. The initiative is to be completed by the end of 2011.

Several studies and articles published this year show that vitamin D plays an important role in the prevention of respiratory infections such as the cold and flu.A study by vitamin D expert Dr. John Cannell published by Cambridge University Press’ Journal of Epidemiology and Infection showed evidence that lower vitamin D blood levels during the winter can account for the increased transmissibility of the influenza virus. Increased levels of vitamin D can help prevent traditional influenza infections by strengthening the immune system.

A 2009 analysis of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III) also suggests a role for vitamin D in innate immunity, including the prevention of respiratory tract infections. For this study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers investigated vitamin D levels and respiratory infections from nearly 19,000 participants. They discovered that those with the lowest vitamin D levels were over 1/3 more likely to report having a recent upper respiratory tract infection than those with higher levels of vitamin D.

Mushrooms are the only fresh fruit or vegetable that naturally contain vitamin D. Monterey Mushroom’s new 100 percent Enriched vitamin D line is the first packaged fresh mushroom to provide at least 100 percent of the recommended daily intake of vitamin D in a single, three-ounce serving through a natural sun ripening process.

The brand’s sun ripening process was developed through a collaborative research program with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) by exposing the mushrooms to ultra violet light. The mushrooms do not include additives, supplements, or chemicals and the vitamin D is stable–maintaining its nutritional value even after cooking or freezing.

Monterey Mushrooms, Inc. was initially established in 1971 as a single farm operation in Royal Oaks, California. Today, this multi- site business is headquartered in Watsonville, California, and has production, sales and administrative offices, internationally. Monterey is the country’s largest and only national marketer of fresh mushrooms, supplying products for sale to supermarkets, foodservice and ingredient manufacture operations, and for preparation of processed, canned, and frozen mushroom products. Visit www.montereymushrooms.com.

SOURCE Monterey Mushrooms, Inc.

Originally published by Monterey Mushrooms, Inc..

(c) 2009 PRNewswire. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.

Not all foods were created equal _ some are so packed with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, essential fatty acids and other beneficial substances that they’ve been deemed “superfoods.” Superfoods have incredible health benefits, packing a powerful nutritional punch that helps protect against cancer and heart disease, lower cholesterol, protect the organs from toxins and improve digestive health. Some nutritionists even say superfoods can help you live longer.Here are 10 superfoods that can supercharge your diet, including fruits, vegetables, dairy, legumes, grains and fish.

_ Acai: This exotic berry from the Amazon has been the subject of intense hype, but there’s a good reason why it’s so trendy. Named by famed nutritionist Dr. Nicholas Perricone as his No. 1 superfood and one of the most powerful foods in the world, acai (ah-sigh-ee) contains a remarkable concentration of antioxidants, amino acids and essential fatty acids. It’s considered one of nature’s best offerings to combat premature aging thanks to its high monounsaturated oleic acid content. Oleic acid helps omega-3 fish oils penetrate cell membranes, making them more supple.

_ Yogurt: It’s alive! Yogurt contains active cultures known as “friendly bacteria” that restore healthy balance in the digestive system. Among the most well-known cultures is Lactobacillus acidophilus, which passes through the stomach and populates the intestines, helping the body fight off infection. One cup contains 50 percent more calcium than the same size serving of milk, and it’s also full of potassium, riboflavin, magnesium and phosphate.

_ Broccoli: This cruciferous vegetable is loaded with vitamin C, folic acid and carotenoids, which are packed with vitamin A and can protect your cells from the damage of free radicals, enhance immune system function and improve reproductive health. Just one serving (1 medium stalk) provides 175 percent of the recommended daily value of vitamin K, which helps build strong bones and plays an important role in blood clotting. Just half a cup of broccoli per day is also said to help prevent a number of cancers, particularly cancers of the lung, colon, rectum and stomach.

_ Lentils: Among the most nutritious legumes, lentils are a great source of cholesterol-lowering fiber and lean protein. They contain lots of iron and B vitamins and are very filling, yet low in calories. Folate and magnesium also contribute to heart heath and improve the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients throughout the body.

_ Sweet potatoes: They’ll satisfy your craving for starches but are far healthier than their white, nutritionally lacking cousins. Carotenoids, vitamin C, potassium and fiber are just a few of the benefits of eating this savory-sweet veggie, which is ranked among the highest vegetables on the nutrition scale. Sweet potatoes can help stabilize blood sugar, making them a great choice for diabetics, and are relatively low in calories.

_ Blueberries: Hidden within the juicy, deep blue-purple flesh of this tasty fruit is cancer-fighting ellagic acid, an antioxidant that has been proven in laboratory research to slow the growth of some cancerous tumors. Blueberry extracts have also been shown to have anti-inflammatory properties and help prevent infectious bacteria from clinging to the walls of the gut, bladder and urethra.

_ Wild salmon: Packed with omega-3 fats, wild salmon can help reduce the risk of sudden-death heart attacks and contains lots of vitamin D and selenium for healthy hair, skin, nails and bones. Wild salmon can be eaten with little fear of mercury or excess contaminants and is more nutritionally rich than farmed salmon. Wild salmon also has a smaller environmental impact. Consume two to four four-ounce servings a week for optimal benefits.

_ Goji berries: They’ve been called the most nutritionally dense food on Earth, and they taste something like salty raisins. Lycium barbarum, commonly known as goji berries, contain more vitamin C than oranges, more beta carotene than carrots and more iron than steak. The dried Himalayan fruit is also a great source of B vitamins and antioxidants and contains 15 amino acids. Goji has been used medicinally in China for centuries to improve blood circulation, strengthen the limbs, improve eyesight, protect the liver, increase libido and boost immune function.

_ Kale: A dark, leafy green in the same vegetable family as broccoli and Brussels sprouts, kale contains high amounts of beta carotene, iron and folate. It’s also a low-calorie, low-carb source of protein that’s packed with fiber, which improves digestive health and helps you feel full. A small cupful of cooked kale provides more than half the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C.

_ Barley: This low-glycemic grain is high in both soluble and insoluble fiber, which help the body metabolize fats and promote a healthy digestive tract, respectively. Eating hulled barley on a regular basis is said to lower blood cholesterol levels, protect against cancer and keep blood-sugar levels stable. Barley is rich in niacin, vitamin E, lignans and phytochemicals that function as antioxidants.

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(c) 2009, Mother Nature Network.

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Jill Garonzik Kelley of Allen is thankful for unlimited minutes on her cellphone. After all, she did rack up 4,500 last month.What the 41-year-old advertising strategist is not as happy about is the pain after a long day of calls.

“If I’m holding the phone on my shoulder and I don’t move it around, it becomes a neck thing,” she says. “And then sometimes I feel it in the middle of my forearm going right up through my wrist and it will hurt for a while.”

The general aches cellphone users such as Kelley describe are sometimes referred to casually as “cellphone elbow.” Less frequently, some might have pain related to excessive texting. Local doctors, while careful to point out that the ailments are not necessarily caused by cellphone use, say they are seeing an increasing number of patients with such pains.

“Cellphone elbow” is associated with people who talk for long periods of time while holding their neck crooked and elbow bent.

There is no accurate gauge of how widespread the problem is, and not every cellphone user is affected the same way. But in extreme cases, the pain can be associated with a condition called cubital tunnel syndrome. Similar to the pain associated with the better-known carpal tunnel syndrome, cubital tunnel syndrome is a compression of the ulnar nerve near the elbow.

Dr. Dennis Stripling, an orthopedist at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas who specializes in hand surgery, says he has seen an increased number of patients with the syndrome. “A significant number” of them complain of pain after holding a phone to their ear with their elbow flexed at more than 90 degrees, he says.

“People who do telephone sales will come in complaining about their left hand if they were holding the phone in their left hand and writing with their right.”

Stripling explained that holding a phone to the ear with the elbow flexed may aggravate cubital tunnel syndrome, but that it does not necessarily cause it. Still, anyone who feels numbness and tingling along the side of the hand where the pinkie and the ring finger are should stop crooking that elbow. And if that doesn’t help, consult a doctor immediately, or risk paralysis and permanent loss or impairment of fine-motor skills.

Dr. John White, an anesthesiologist, pain management specialist and partner at American Pain and Wellness in Plano, says he, too, sees more cellphone-related problems these days, although he does not blame the phones outright.

“With pain, there are usually overlapping issues,” says White, who has been described by his patients as a “pain whisperer” — someone who can spot the sometimes unexpected cause of someone’s chronic pain and find the way to alleviate it.

“Sometimes there is chronic inflammation or an underlying postural issue in which one side is used more than the other. Then when you hold the phone against the shoulder or do repetitive texting, it becomes the straw that breaks the camel’s back.”

The problem with excessive texting is that it requires short little motions that don’t effectively use the muscles, White says.

“You need to allow muscles their full range of movement from contraction to elongation. You need to take the time and put forth the effort periodically to make them happy by allowing them to be all they can be. Take a break, step back and take care of the muscles that are taking care of you.”

Dr. Victoria Knoll, an orthopedic surgeon on the Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano medical staff, believes that the most common condition caused by excessive cellphone use is overuse tendinitis. While the muscle, the tendon and the joint may be affected, the pain and inflammation occur in the tendon. The condition is also common to people who type all day on the computer, she says.

Knoll says she is most concerned when patients report numbness in their fingers, particularly at night or in the morning, or weakness in the hands.

These symptoms could indicate cubital tunnel syndrome or even tumors pushing on the nerves, she says. But if it hurts only while the person is using the cellphone or texting, then it’s probably the less serious condition of overuse tendinitis.

And her solution?

“Quit the activity that aggravates it if you can,” Knoll says. “And if that’s not an option, find a way to change how you do it.”

But younger users can take heart from Stripling’s observation that cellphone pain seems to be a grown-up problem.

“I don’t recall ever seeing any kids with problems associated with this — just adults,” he says. “Kids don’t have as much tendency for stiffness with their more supple joints, and they have smaller digits so they don’t have to compress them as much as adults do to text.”Keys or touch screen?

Are touch screens or screens with keys better for the thumbs? Orthopedist Dennis Stripling says:

“The more important question is how big the screen is and how much room there is to press the buttons. Ultimately it’s about how finely you have to adjust your positioning to reach the keys.”Stop the pain

Local doctors offer these tips for preventing pains associated with cellphone use:

– Use a headset (for cellphone elbow) and a keyboard (for texting).

– Get up and stretch every 30 minutes. Consider working with a hand therapist to learn proper hand stretching techniques or try doing yoga.

– Consider the possibility that unbalanced posture is contributing to the problem.

– Listen to your body. Don’t ignore the pain. If adjustments don’t alleviate distress, seek professional help.

SOURCES: Dr. John White, Dr. Victoria Knoll

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Copyright (c) 2009, The Dallas Morning News

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I’m working on a nutrition-related project and came upon some nice-to-knows about vitamins. Allow me to share:_Vitamins are substances that are “vital” to life. One source says, “Hundreds of foods deliver more than a dozen vitamins that participate in thousands of activities throughout our body.” Wow.

Unlike fat, protein and carbohydrates, vitamins do not contain calories. Neither do they produce energy. They do, however, help to release energy from fat, protein and carbohydrates.

_Vitamins are needed in teeny-tiny amounts. Whereas we measure fat, protein and carbohydrates in grams (1 ounce equals 28 grams), vitamins are required in milligrams (one-thousandth of a gram) or micrograms (one-thousandths of a milligram).

_ Water soluble vitamins such as vitamin C and the B-vitamins are destroyed by exposure to air. (As soon as you cut an orange, it begins to lose vitamin C.) So, eat fruit as close to fresh as possible. And refrigerate most fruit and vegetables in airtight containers.

_Microwave cooking is a good way to cook vegetables because it requires less heat and water exposure that can destroy some vitamins.

_One vitamin that is destroyed by microwave cooking, however, is vitamin B-12. So, best cook your meats and milk products (major sources of vitamin B-12) on the stove or in the oven … not in the microwave, say food science experts.

_Vitamin A is one of those “more is not better” vitamins. Although vital for vision (vitamin A deficiency causes blindness) and maintaining the lining of all our body surfaces (skin on the outside and lining of our intestinal tract and other organs on the inside), excessive vitamin A can weaken bones and cause birth defects if too much is ingested during the early weeks of pregnancy. Best to get vitamin A (or its cousin, beta carotene, which converts to vitamin A in the body) in foods such as milk, cheese, eggs and brightly colored fruits and vegetables.

_ Beta carotene _one of many “carotenoid” substances found in green orange, yellow and red-colored fruits and vegetables that act as powerful antioxidants and disease fighters _ relies on the presence of fat to be effectively absorbed into the body. More beta carotene is absorbed when using a low-fat salad dressing, for example, than when using one that is fat-free.

_Vitamin D is an unusual vitamin because it is not essential that we get it in food or supplements. That’s because vitamin D is primarily made when our skin is exposed to sunlight. (Most folks need to get it both ways, however.)

_If you draw a line across the United States and connect San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Denver, St. Louis, Indianapolis, Washington, D.C., and New York City, the line will be at approximately 40 degrees latitude.

Researchers say that folks who live above (or north) of this imaginary line can just about forget getting any vitamin D synthesis on their skin from the sun for four months every winter (November through February). Because vitamin D does not occur naturally in many foods, a supplement of this nutrient is often a very good idea.

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(Barbara Quinn is a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator at the Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. Email her at bquinn@chomp.org.)

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(c) 2009, The Monterey County Herald (Monterey, Calif.).

Visit the Monterey County Herald’s World Wide Web site at http://www.montereyherald.com/

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© YellowBrix, Inc. Copyright 1997-2009

Lifestyle interventions can prevent weight gain and reduce both high blood pressure and the risk of type 2 diabetes for at least two years.A systematic review by UK researchers found interventions that had a long-term follow-up showed a mean weight loss ranging from 0.5- 11.5kg.

Approaches that worked included a 600kcal/day deficit diet, a low- fat diet, a WeightWatchers diet, a diet with behaviour therapy, and diet with exercise.

Obesity Reviews 2009, 14 Sept early online publication

(c) 2009 Pulse. Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.

Vitamin D deficiency in younger women is associated with increased risk of high blood pressure in mid-life, a U.S. researcher said.Co-investigator Flojaune C. Griffin, a doctoral candidate in epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Public Health in Ann Arbor and colleagues examined women enrolled in the Michigan Bone Health and Metabolism Study.

They analyzed data from 559 Caucasian women living in Tecumseh, Mich., beginning in 1992 when the women were ages 24-44, with an average age of 38 years.

The researchers took blood pressure readings annually throughout the study and measured vitamin D blood levels once in 1993.

The study found premenopausal women who had vitamin D deficiency in 1993 had three times the risk of developing systolic hypertension 15 years later compared to those who had normal levels of vitamin D.

“This study differs from others because we are looking over the course of 15 years, a longer follow-up than many studies,” Griffin said in a statement.”Our results indicate that early vitamin D deficiency may increase the long-term risk of high blood pressure in women at mid-life.”

The findings were presented at the American Heart Association’s 63rd High Blood Pressure Research Conference in Chicago.

A little over two years ago, Erik Gelhar’s life was perfect. Just 23, he had a high-paying job as a merchant mariner that he loved. He had bought his first house. He had just met the woman who would later become his wife.Then the Bellingham resident started to feel “funny.” He couldn’t sleep, he felt anxious, and his chest felt tight.

It’s stress, he told himself. He had recently learned that his grandfather had prostate cancer, one of his friends had died, and another friend had been diagnosed with heart failure. It’s the excitement, he told himself, of buying a house and meeting a new woman.

“I was attributing all of these symptoms to life is crazy,” Gelhar said of that summer in 2007.

It grew crazier for the Bellingham High School graduate.

That August, doctors told him his heart was failing. Months later, he had to quit his job because he could no longer work.

Now Gelhar and those who love him are trying to raise $100,000 for an October medical procedure in Dusseldorf, Germany, in which stem cells from his own body will be used in the hope of stabilizing his heart and delaying a heart transplant for as long as possible.

The news was the latest twist for Gelhar and his wife, Jenn Johansen Gelhar, who had been dating just two weeks before his life took such a drastic turn — and destroyed his well-laid plans.

“It’s frustrating because I grew up trying to do the right thing. I knew what I wanted to do. I went to school and I did it. Two years ago this past summer, I was a different person. I had an identity as a merchant mariner, which I was proud of. I was stable,” Gelhar, 25, said. “It’s a massive loss for me. It’s hard to deal with.”

ENDINGS, NEW HOPE

Gelhar has been diagnosed with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy, which essentially means he has heart failure and doctors don’t know why.

A battery of tests performed by his cardiologist, Dr. Rajesh Bhola, of Peace Arch Cardiology in Bellingham, hasn’t pinpointed a cause. Heart-failure specialists at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., couldn’t find the culprit. Neither could doctors at the University of Washington Medical Center, where Gelhar is being placed on the heart transplant list.

There’s nothing in his family’s history, Gelhar said. “We’re pretty robust people.”

He was, too, until July 2007, when his symptoms started to surface. In addition to not being able to sleep and feelings of tightness in his chest, he was pale and sweaty.

But he was young and reacted the way a young man would. He ignored it, at first.

“Somebody my age, I’ve got this Superman ‘S’ on my chest, I’m invincible,” he said.

Crackling sounds from his lungs and not being able to breathe finally sent him to the doctor some weeks later on Aug. 5. A chest X-ray showed that his heart was swollen and struggling to pump blood.

“It was a shock. What do you mean it’s your heart?” Jenn recalled, after getting a phone call from Gelhar.

Later that evening, Gelhar met Bhola for the first time. There was no small talk when the doctor came in. Bhola simply held Gelhar’s hand, told him that his heart function was at 20 percent and explained that his heart was failing.

Still, because he was young and healthy, the hope was that medication and rest would reduce the swelling in his heart. He thought he could go back to work that September. One month passed, then two. Five, then six. Echocardiograms, one after the other, showed no change.

On Bhola’s suggestion, Gelhar went to the Mayo Clinic that winter. Doctors there suggested a defibrillator, the size of a small cell phone, be inserted into his chest to shock his heart into normal rhythm in case he went into sudden cardiac arrest.

But that meant giving up his dream job as a marine engineer for Polar Tankers, a subsidiary of ConocoPhillips, in which he worked in the engine department and helped maintain the ships’ mechanical systems. He couldn’t be around high-voltage equipment with the defibrillator in his chest.

Saddened, Gelhar yielded.

Then he went on with a life where he can’t work, can’t walk far, can’t lift anything heavy, nevermind run nor ride a bike. He’s on food stamps and is struggling to pay his mortgage now that he’s gone through his savings and the short-term disability he had through his employer. He has sold his motorcycle and his car. He recently liquidated his Roth IRA.

Thankfully, another program provided through his former job allows him to pay $80 a month for health insurance, which will run through another year. But even with medical insurance, medical bills still cost thousands and thousands of dollars.

If his journey has been wrenching, there also has been joy. Jenn has been at his side, sharing his struggle. They married this past July 18 in a perfect ceremony on a beautiful day.

And Gelhar is grateful for the support of family and friends.

Bhola, who has grown close to the couple, called Jenn’s love and commitment remarkable.

“For me, this is a miracle of humanity,” he said.

Gelhar knew his heart was deteriorating further when his body started to retain water days before the wedding ceremony. It was Bhola who recommended he go to Germany for stem-cell therapy.

“This is a young man who has not had a shot at life. I’m supporting him having a shot at life,” Bhola said of the man he described as “intelligent, articulate, who stands out in all the patients I encounter every day.”

The aim of going to the XCell-Center in Dusseldorf is to stabilize and perhaps strengthen his heart.

“The surprising part is how rapidly it’s happening, how quick he’s going downhill,” Jenn, 23, said. “We know he’ll need a transplant eventually. The goal is to put that out as far as we can because it’s not an easy surgery.”

The chance of dying within the first year of a transplant surgery is 15 percent. The chance of surviving a heart transplant for 10 years is just 50 percent.

And even if all goes well, he’ll eventually need another heart 10 to 15 years later.

“It just progressively gets more risky,” Jenn said.

So the young couple, both of whom are attending Whatcom Community College, have pinned their hopes on the medical procedure in Germany. There, doctors will take Gelhar’s own stem cells, which have the ability to evolve into other types of cells, from the bone marrow in his hip, process them to become heart-muscle cells, then inject those cells into his coronary arteries, Bhola explained.

“Then we see how his heart responds,” the doctor added.

Gelhar said he’s glad for the chance to do something, instead of just waiting to get sicker.

“This is the first time in two years where I’ve felt any kind of hope,” he said. “It’s been a rough couple of years.”

The procedure is not offered in the U.S. It could be in a couple of years, Bhola said, but Gelhar can’t wait.

It’s also not covered by his health insurance.

So Gelhar is turning to the community for help — something unfamiliar to him not so long ago.

“I get nervous,” he said. “I don’t like asking for help because I’m so used to being able to do everything myself.”

TO DONATE

An account has been set up for Bellingham resident Erik Gelhar, who is trying to raise $100,000 for a medical procedure in Germany in the hope of stabilizing his heart.

Donations may be made to The Erik Gelhar Donation Fund, Account No. 283726, at Whatcom Educational Credit Union branches. Or send them to the credit union at P.O. Box 9750, Bellingham, WA 98227.

Reach KIE RELYEA atkie.relyea@bellinghamherald.com or call 715-2234.

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Copyright (c) 2009, The Bellingham Herald, Wash.

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NYSE:COP,

U.S. doctors say the untreated plaques causing unexpected heart attacks are not mild lesions as previously thought.The plaques are made up of fat, cholesterol, calcium and other substances found in the blood. The plaques at high risk of causing an adverse cardiovascular event had large plaque burdens and/or small lumen areas — clear space in the vessel.

These areas were invisible to the coronary angiogram but identifiable by intra-vessel ultra sound imaging, the researchers said.

The areas with the highest risk were those showing a necrotic core — area of dead tissue — but without a visible cap of fibrous tissue — a thin cap fibroatheroma.

“As a result of the trial, we are closer to being able to predict — and therefore prevent — sudden, unexpected adverse cardiac events,” Dr. Gregg Stone of Columbia University Hospital and the New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center, the study’s principal investigator, said in a statement

The findings of the multicenter study, which involved 700 acute coronary syndrome patients, were presented at the 21st annual Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics scientific symposium in San Francisco.