Perchlorate contamination of drinking water may pose a greater health risk than previously thought. Scientists at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine have shown that perchlorate - an industrial pollutant linked to thyroid ailments - is actively concentrated in breast milk. [News Source]

New analysis reignites antioxidant efficacy debate (Nutraingredients.com) 12/5/2007 - Positive results for vitamin E and beta-carotene from observational studies are continuing to be cited in the literature despite contradictory evidence from randomised trials, says a new analysis. [News Source]

County boosts plan requiring chain restaurants to post calorie counts. Several supervisors said the county needs to do something to combat obesity, which affects an estimated 25 percent to 30 percent of the county's youth. [News Source]

Poor put on a starvation diet. Diverting agriculture to biofuels means higher prices for food and an even hungrier developing world. [News Source]

Rising food prices threaten world`s poor . Income growth, climate change, high energy prices, globalization, and urbanization are all converging to transform food production, markets, and consumption, according to a new report by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). [News Source]

Scientists identify `switch-off’ gene that converts carbohydrate into fat. Switching off one key gene in the liver can virtually halt the conversion of carbohydrates into body fat, a U.S. study suggests. [News Source]

Is eating processed or red meat linked to a higher risk of cancer? According to a new report from the American Institute for Cancer Research, a nonprofit based in Washington that studies links between diet and cancer. In excessive amounts, "red meat is a convincing cause of colorectal cancer," the group said, although more research needs to be done on the precise mechanisms. [News Source]

Wind can help power Michigan’s energy future. Wind, along with energy efficiency, leads the way in a number of plans in the state Legislature to move Michigan into a smarter energy future that minimizes dirty and dangerous fuel sources, stabilizes and lowers electricity rates and reduces air pollutants like mercury and heat-trapping carbon dioxide. [News Source]

China’s turtles, emblems of a crisis. China contains some of the world’s richest troves of biodiversity, yet the latest major survey of plants and animals reveals a bleak picture that has grown bleaker during the past decade, due to pollution, hunting, and rampant development. [News Source]

Group sounds alarm on infant formula cans. Liquid formula from the nation's top baby formula makers is sold in cans lined with bisphenol-A, or BPA. [News Source]

VItamin C: Will it stop a cold? (The Globe Gazette) It’s that time of year again. Not just for decorated trees, presents, or special songs, but of symphonies — of sniffles. What do sniffles have to do with nutrition? Is there a link between vitamin C and cold prevention? [News Source]

VItamin C: Will it stop a cold? (The Globe Gazette) It’s that time of year again. Not just for decorated trees, presents, or special songs, but of symphonies — of sniffles. What do sniffles have to do with nutrition? Is there a link between vitamin C and cold prevention? [News Source]