Author: frivvy89

Once again, CEED faculty and staff are excited to invite promising junior researchers to spend the summer engaged in mentored research. Since 2011 (only missing 2019), we have hosted a range of trainees from disciplines including medicine, psychology, nutrition, behavioral health, counseling, social work, and even journalism to spend June and July with us advancing their skills an gaining hands-on experience conducting impactful research. Each trainee is matched with at minimum two mentors to ensure a range of experiences. Every weekday from 11am-12pm fellows participate in the Summer Fellowship Didactic Program where they are exposed to topics that range from…

In the first four minutes of a recent video for his “Make America Healthy Again” campaign promoting Donald Trump for president, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. presents a seemingly compelling case about how America’s toxin-laden food system harms us and, worse, our children, contributing to chronic and often fatal diseases. He features unhealthy products such as Cap’n Crunch cereal, Cheez-It crackers and Doritos chips.Then, much like other moments in RFK Jr.’s strange political trajectory — which has included peddling conspiracy theories on vaccines and other issues — his “MAHA” campaign plunges into outright falsehoods.While Kennedy is correct that Democrats have often…

Officials in South Africa have urged action after the deaths of five children linked to eating food from local shops. The Gauteng Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Community Safety called on law enforcement to clamp down on the sale of expired food in spaza shops. These sites are also called tuck shops and are informal grocery stores. “The committee is deeply saddened by the tragic deaths of five school children. This tragic incident highlights the urgent need for stricter enforcement of bylaws to prevent the sale of expired and harmful goods, particularly in township areas, where many spaza shops, including…

The Good Housekeeping Institute’s Christmas Taste Test is back for its 25th year! To mark the GHI’s centenary (yes, we turned 100 this year), our experts have tested 44 categories (our biggest undertaking yet) at our state-of-the-art testing facility in west London. Sampling more than 730 festive products from over 97 brands and retailers, our experts have found the very best Christmas food and drink to buy – to make sure this year’s feast is one to remember. Meet the expertsFrom pretty canapés and delicious pigs in blankets, to traditional and flavoured smoked salmon, and fresh and frozen turkeys, we’ve…

Around 1.25 million people in the UK have an eating disorder, with 4.3% of 11- to 16-year-old girls, 20.8% of 17- to 19-year-old girls and 5.1% of boys the same age living with one in 2023. Hospital admissions have increased by 84% in the past five years, according to figures released last year by the Royal College of Psychiatrists and they have the highest mortality rate among all psychiatric disorders.According to Beat, the UK’s eating disorder charity, it takes an average of three-and-a-half years for someone to get treatment after their symptoms first begin. Meanwhile, Bupa has found that 76…

There have been reports questioning whether air fryers are bad for you and if they pose a risk of cancer. While air fryers themselves don’t cause cancer, air frying does produce compounds, called acrylamides, which are “probable” carcinogens (cancer-causing agents). Air fryers are beneficial in that they give you the taste and texture of deep-fried foods but with minimal oil (reducing your risk of heart disease). The small amount of oil also reduces your exposure to acrylamides when compared to cooking in a deep fryer. Because the risk of carcinogens is lower in air frying than deep frying, it’s generally…

The Greater Los Angeles VA held its inaugural Food Security Resource Fair Sept. 10, aiming to connect Veterans with vital resources to combat food insecurity in the Greater Los Angeles area. The event took place at West Los Angeles VA, where VA and community partners gathered to address this pressing issue. Los Angeles ranks as the second most expensive city in the U.S for 2024, according to U.S. News and World Report. The high cost of living presents a significant challenge for Veterans to access nutritious food for themselves and their families. VA statistics indicate that Los Angeles is home…

Australia’s eating disorder peak body and leading experts say a social media ban for under 16s is not enough to curb the scale of harm being done to young people on platforms, with one describing it as a “knee-jerk” policy response.They are instead calling on the government to make changes to the legislation governing platforms and forcing providers to be more transparent about algorithms, including allowing people to reset them, and for the removal of harmful content.The New South Wales premier Chris Minns has already come out in favour of a social media ban for under 16s, saying at the…

More than 1.1 million Australians are estimated to be living with an eating disorder. Around one-third of these people are neurodivergent.So why are neurodivergent people, such as autistic people and those with ADHD, more likely to experience eating disorders than the broader population? And how does this impact their treatment?First, what is neurodivergence?Neurodivergence, or the state of being neurodivergent, is a term for people whose cognitive functioning differs from what society considers “typical”. Many conditions broadly fall under neurodivergence, including (but not limited to): autism attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) dyslexia Tourette’s syndrome. Our understanding of neurodivergence has come a long way. Neurodivergence used to be considered a linear “spectrum” ranging…

Credit: Probios Probios, an Italian manufacturer of organic and gluten-free food products, is launching a venture-capital arm to back start-ups in the better-for-you area. It is setting up Probios Ventures, with the support of its parent company Agreen Capital, to support “real game changers in the health food and nutrition sector”. Florence-based Probios, which dates back to 1978, said the initiative is aimed at supporting start-ups, scale-ups and “all those emerging companies that want to improve the well-being of man and the planet through nutrition”. Companies backed will have to operate in the healthy food, food-tech and wellness sectors. Probios…