Tag: children
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Corporate Watchdog Targets Fast Food Industry
Corporate Accountability International Deputy Director Leslie Samuelrich contends in a recent AlterNet article that fast food companies “spend hundreds of millions of dollars each year marketing a dangerous product to America’s children.” She claims the companies deny putting children at risk and, instead, blame parents for their children’s obesity problems. According to Samuelrich, nonprofits and…
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Federal Court Grants Preliminary Approval to Settlement in Frosted Mini-Wheats® Case
A federal court in California has approved a motion for preliminary approval of a class action settlement in litigation involving allegedly fraudulent claims that Kellogg Co.’s Frosted Mini-Wheats® cereal “was clinically shown to improve children’s attentiveness by nearly 20%.” Dennis v. Kellogg Co., No. 09-1786 (S.D. Cal., decided October 14, 2010). The settlement class consists…
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High Trans Fat Diet Associated with Overweight Infants
A recent study has suggested that mothers who consume diets high in trans fats could double the risk that their babies will have high levels of body fat. Alex Anderson, et al., “Dietary trans fatty acid intake and maternal and infant adiposity,” European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, September 2010. University of Georgia (UGA) researchers studied 95 mothers…
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Prenatal DDE Exposure Allegedly Linked to Accelerated Growth
A recent study reportedly claims that prenatal exposure to the pesticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and its breakdown product dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) is associated with accelerated growth and elevated BMI in infants born to normal-weight mothers. Michelle Mendez, et al., “Prenatal Organochlorine Compound Exposure, Rapid Weight Gain and Overweight in Infancy,” Environmental Health Perspectives, October 2010. Researchers apparently…
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Symposium to Address Effects of Environmental Toxins on Children
The Children’s Environmental Health Institute will conduct its “Sixth Biennial Scientific Symposium” on October 21-22, 2010, in Houston, Texas; the focus this year is “Prenatal & Early Life Exposures: How Environmental Toxins Affect the Course of Childhood.” The symposium will include sessions on “Improving Access to and Consumption of Healthy, Safe, and Affordable Food for…
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Florida Considers Ban on Chocolate Milk, Sugary Drinks in Schools
The Florida Board of Education is reportedly considering a ban on chocolate milk and sugary beverages in the state’s public schools. Board members evidently tabled the issue last spring in anticipation of federal government action, but recently decided to move forward to hear opinions from physicians and researchers on whether such a ban would improve…
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Rudd Center Issues Policy Guide on Obesity
The Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity has released a fall 2010 paper highlighting obesity prevention policies with “the potential for the greatest impact.” The center’s recommendations relate to preschools and schools, consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, marketing to children, weight bias, food deserts, and ongoing surveillance of these efforts. Among other guidelines, the…
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Nonstick Cookware Allegedly Linked to High Cholesterol in Children
A recent study purportedly ties compounds in nonstick cookware and waterproof fabrics to higher cholesterol levels in children. Stephanie Frisbee, et al., “Perfluorooctanoic Acid, Perfluorooctanesulfonate, and Serum Lipids in Children and Adolescents,” Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, September 2010. Researchers from West Virginia University evaluated 12,476 children and teens in the mid-Ohio River Valley to…