Tag: obesity
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Romania Considers Tax on Fast Food
The Romanian government has reportedly proposed a tax on fast foods high in fat, sugar and salt. Backed by the European Public Health Alliance, the health ministry has sought to create the world’s most comprehensive tax scheme that would include, not just sugary foods and beverages, but savory fare as well. Proponents have claimed that…
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Jamie Oliver Debuts New Reality Series in America
British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver recently debuted his first American network TV show titled Food Revolution, a reality series that brings his penchant for school lunch reform and theatrical interventions to cafeterias and homes in Huntington, West Virginia. A health food evangelist, Oliver has drawn both praise and criticism in the United Kingdom for his…
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Study Compares Overeating to Drug Addiction
A recent study has reportedly likened overeating to a drug addiction, concluding that rats given access to high-fat food exhibited a neurochemical dependency similar to the “reward homeostasis induced by cocaine or heroin.” Paul Johnson and Paul Kenny, “Dopamine D2 Receptors in Addiction-Like Reward Dysfunction and Compulsive Eating in Obese Rats,” Nature Neuroscience, March 28,…
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Study Claims Last Supper Food Portions Grew for 1,000 Years
A new study asserts that the food portions depicted in paintings of the Last Supper as chronicled in the New Testament of the Bible linearly increased for 1,000 years. Brian and Craig Wansink, “The largest Last Supper: depictions of food portions and plate size increased over the millennium,” International Journal of Obesity, March 23, 2010.…
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Study Linking HFCS to Obesity Draws Criticism from Health Experts
A recent study involving both short- and long-term animal experiments has purportedly linked high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) to significant weight gain in rats. Miriam Bocarsly, et al., “High-fructose corn syrup causes characteristics of obesity in rats: Increased body weight, body fat and triglyceride levels,” Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior, March 2010. According to a March 23, 2010,…
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IOM Announces Meeting on Food Labeling, Issues Report on Obesity Prevention Workshop
The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has announced an April 9, 2010, open workshop to continue its review of front-of-package (FOP) nutrition rating systems and symbols. As tasked by the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, IOM established a committee to evaluate and report on “the use of symbols, logos, and…
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District Court Orders Pelman Parties to Refile Class Certification Pleadings
The U.S. district court judge now presiding over the obesity-related claims in Pelman v. McDonald’s Corp. has ordered the parties to refile a number of documents previously submitted on motions addressing class certification. Pelman v. McDonald’s Corp., No. 02-7821 (S.D.N.Y., order entered March 24, 2010). Among the documents the court has requested are the defendant’s…
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Claudia Kalb, “Culture of Corpulence,” Newsweek, March 22, 2010
This article invokes public-health campaigns of the past, including measures taken to increase seat belt use and stop drunk driving, to call for “big-think solutions” to the nation’s obesity problems. The author outlines the factors that have led to a tripling of obesity rates among teenagers, such as a decrease in physical activity; ubiquitous high-calorie,…