Parents give kids vitamins, but don’t always tell doctors: study (Canada.com) Parents often give children multivitamins and other supplements but don’t always share that information with doctors, even though there could be interactions between vitamins and other drugs, a new study says. [News Source]

Light helps keep spinach full of vitamins (AsiaOne) WASHINGTON - Supermarket lights help keep spinach fresh and producing new vitamins, US government researchers reported on Wednesday. The surprising findings should apply to other fresh vegetables and may offer insights into how to keep produce fresher longer, the researchers reported in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. [News Source]

Don’t store vitamins in the bathroom (UPI) WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., March 3 (UPI) -- A U.S. food scientist warns humidity -- storing vitamins in the bathroom or kitchen -- may eliminate the benefits of some vitamins. [News Source]

Vitamin pills may start to lose effects fast if kept in warm rooms (The Scotsman) SOME vitamins and health supplements kept in warm areas such as bathrooms or kitchens could lose their effectiveness in only a week, experts claim. [News Source]

Low Vitamin D Levels Linked to Asthma (WebMD) Many children with asthma have low blood levels of vitamin D -- and the insufficiency seems to place them at risk for more severe disease, a study shows. [News Source]

Calcium and vitamin D may not cut cholesterol (Reuters via Yahoo! News) People looking to improve their heart health by lowering their cholesterol levels won't find help from calcium and vitamin D supplements, according to a new study. [News Source]

Vitamin D lifts mood during cold weather months (EurekAlert!) ( Loyola University Health System ) A daily dose of vitamin D may just be what Chicagoans need to get through the long winter, according to researchers at Loyola University Chicago Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing (MNSON). This nutrient lifts mood during cold weather months when days are short and more time is spent indoors. [News Source]

Stored Vitamins May Become Less Effective (redOrbit) Image Caption: Lisa Mauer, a Purdue associate professor of food science, has shown that subjecting certain products, such as vitamin C, to humidity can chemically change their compositions, eliminating the health benefits associated with those products. (Purdue Agricultural Communication photo/Tom Campbell) [News Source]

Japan’s draft climate bill omits mandatory limit on emissions. Draft legislation for a new Japanese climate bill omits mention of a limit on emissions by industry, a sign Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama’s government may retreat from an earlier promise to start a cap-and-trade system. [News Source]

Cost of food-borne illnesses is deemed much higher than earlier estimates. A new report has found that the health-related costs of food-borne illnesses total $152 billion a year, including medical bills, lost wages and lost productivity. That's more than four times an earlier USDA estimate. [News Source]

Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. to Present at the 2010 Bank of America Merrill Lynch Consumer Conference (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance) Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. today announced that it will be participating in the 2010 Bank of America Merrill Lynch Consumer Conference being held on March 10 â 11, 2010, at The Palace Hotel in New York. Â Mike Archbold, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer, is scheduled to present on Wednesday, March 10, and the presentation will be broadcast live beginning at approximately 8:25 a.m. [News Source]

Calcium and vitamin D prevent fractures (HealthandAge) Vitamin D plays a role in preventing the risk of fractures according to scientific evidence. However, some studies have shown it has no effect, so we need to know more about which dose of vitamin D to use, who can benefit most, and whether it is more effective when used with calcium. [News Source]