Consuming more tea, apples and berries daily may lead to better heart health, according to a team of global nutrition experts. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics issued a dietary recommendation for flavan-3-ols, a group of bioactive compounds that are good for your heart and found in many foods and drinks.

Our diets provide us with the building blocks we need to stay healthy and fight disease. The nutrients in foods and beverages can be tallied up to know if we are getting what our bodies need. Yet what if a nutrient has been overlooked? For instance, friendly microbes in raw and fermented foods have not been measured as part of our diets — until now.

Lactic acid bacteria are essential in creating fermented foods like yogurt, cheese and sauerkraut. Certain strains are also used as probiotics to improve human gut health. 

Researchers at the University of California, Davis, and Rice University have discovered that lactic acid bacteria use a previously unknown energy metabolism, which radically changes the scientific understanding of how these bacteria may thrive in their natural environments. 

We’ve all heard the phrase “You are what you eat,” but can this actually be measured?

Researchers at University of California, Davis, have obtained a $5 million grant to study diet and identify food biomarkers to see how what we eat affects overall health or risk of disease.

This is article is courtesy of UC Davis Global Affairs.

Nearly 150 million children in the world suffer from stunted growth, a condition linked to chronic malnutrition that keeps people from reaching their full physical, mental and social potential.

Evidence shows that animal-sourced foods like meat, poultry, fish, eggs and dairy can help.

Gwen Chodur is the 2020 recipient of the Neal Van Alfen and James MacDonald Graduate Student Award for her research in molecular and nutrigenomic nutrition and her commitment to social justice, food literacy and food security.

“The quality and scientific merit of Gwen’s work is outstanding,” said her major professor, Francene Steinberg, chair of the Department of Nutrition. “She is an exceptionally strong student with good analytical, statistical, critical thinking, writing and organizational skills. She is also a wonderful teacher and mentor who enjoys working with students.”