With pushes from Obama administration, Kentucky schools focused more on health; example: less junk food is available

Lexington Herald-Leader file photo

Sugary drinks, fatty snacks and chocolate candy are becoming harder to buy in Kentucky schools, which are paying more attention to health issues, according to the latest survey by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC's latest biennial School Health Profiles for 2014 found big declines in the availability of junk food since 2014. Here are the specifics:

• Chocolate candy: 7.8 percent in 2016, down from 22.6 percent in 2014
• Salty snacks that are not low in fat: 13.7 percent in 2016, down from 26.1 percent.
• Cookies, crackers or other baked goods that are not low in fat: 12.0 percent in 2016, down from 24.1 percent.
• Soda or fruit drinks that are not 100 percent juice: 15.7 percent in 2016, down from 33.1 percent in 2014.

There was also a big increase last year in the number of Kentucky schools that banned less nutritious foods and beverages from being sold in fundraising, up to 36 percent from 23 percent in 2014, a news release from the state Department of Education said.

Schools are systematically paying more attention to health issues. The survey found that 66 percent have used the CDC’s School Health Index or another self-assessment tool to evaluate them in the areas of physical activity (66 percent in 2016, 56 percent in 2014), nutrition (62 percent in 2016, 53 percent in 2014) and asthma (35 percent in 2016, 21 percent in 2014).

More schools are offering opportunities for students to participate in physical activity before the school day through organized activities or access to facilities or equipment: 29.4 percent in 2016, up from 19.3 percent in 2014.

"Nearly three-fourths of schools have one or more groups such as a school health council, committee or team that offers guidance on the development of policies or coordinates activities on health topics," the release said. "There were such groups in 74.7 percent of schools in 2016, up from 63.8 percent in 2014."

The department and the Kentucky School Nutrition Association attributed the improvements to the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act that Congress passed 2010, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s "Smart Snacks in School" regulation of 2014 and a review of the state education department’s Practical Living Career Studies program.

Janet Tietyen Mullins, a University of Kentucky extension professor of food and nutrition, said the improvements are encouraging, "because they can help Kentucky students reduce their risk of developing diabetes and other chronic diseases," Valarie Honeycutt Spears writes for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Mullins told Spears, “These changes in the school food environment are a positive way to help students choose more nutritious foods. Everyone benefits from an environment where healthy foods are readily available, and the changes could also benefit school staff and guests.”

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/education/article143288254.html#storylink=cpy

Peanut butter can be a healthy choice, but you have to read the labels; gimmicks to improve taste not the best for nutrition

Peanut butter has long been considered a healthy food choice, and for the most part it still is, but with the advent of low-fat brands, flavored peanut butters and companies adding preservatives to lengthen shelf life, not all peanut butters are equally nutritious, Jose Aguayo and Ryan Canavan report for the Environmental Working Group.

Originally, peanut butter was made from one ingredient: ground roasted peanuts. But now, commercial brands have added sugars, salt, hydrogenated oils and other preservatives, and some are less acceptable than others.

For example, "reduced-fat peanut butters are some of the worst offenders," the authors write. To reduce the fat calories, manufacturers will often take out the healthy monosaturated fats but then add sugar and salt to improve the taste.

Most commercial brands also add hydrogenated oils, as well as preservatives like potassium sorbate, to extend peanut butter's shelf life. The authors note that over 80 percent of peanut-butter brands have hydrogenated oils, which introduce "artery-clogging saturated and trans fats to peanut butter's otherwise-healthy fat profile."

"For a healthy heart, the American Heart Association recommends avoiding foods with hydrogenated oils, including peanut butter," the authors write. So, read the labels when choosing a peanut butter to determine which ones have the least salt, sugar, hydrogenated oils and preservatives, remembering that the healthiest peanut butters are made from just ground roasted peanuts and a pinch of salt.

It should also be noted that while peanut butter can be a healthy choice, it is high in calories and should be eaten in moderation. A standard serving of peanut butter is 2 tablespoons, which is about the size of a golf ball. This amount has about 190 calories.

Researchers: Trans fats, not saturated fats, are linked to greater risk of heart disease; but no reason to eat more butter and meat

Researchers at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont., found that trans fats are linked with greater risk of coronary heart disease and death, but saturated fats are not associated with increased risk of heart disease, stroke, death, or Type 2 diabetes. Kentucky ranked sixth in the nation for heart-disease deaths in 2012, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"For years everyone has been advised to cut out fats," said lead author Russell de Souza, an assistant professor in McMaster's Department of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics. "Trans fats have no health benefits and pose a significant risk for heart disease, but the case for saturated fat is less clear." He also noted that the researchers are not recommending an increase in saturated fat intake, because evidence does not show that it would benefit health.

Currently, people are recommended to limit saturated fats to less than 10 percent and trans fats to less than one percent of energy. Saturated fats are found in animal products like butter, cows' milk, meat and egg yolks. Trans fats are mostly produced industrially from plant oils to make margarine, snack foods and packaged baked goods.

De Souza and his colleagues analyzed 50 observation studies examining the association between saturated and/or trans fats and health outcomes in adults. The researchers did not find an association between higher saturated fat consumption and death, coronary heart disease, cardiovascular disease, ischemic stroke or type 2 diabetes. Instead, they found that industrial trans fat consumption was associated with a 34 percent increase in death, a 28 percent increase in risk for CHD mortality and a 21 percent increase in risk for CHD.

"Ours and other studies suggest replacing foods high in these fats, such as high-fat or processed meats and donuts, with vegetables oils, nuts and whole grains," de Souza said.

Boone County Schools strategically implement healthy changes to lunch menu

Boone County Schools began serving healthier food and offering low-fat, low-sodium meals in their lunchrooms before the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act was implemented in 2010, Amy Scalf reports for the Community Press.

"Whole grain is our largest issue," Food Service Director Barbara Kincaid told the weekly paper published by The Cincinnati Enquirer. "We work really hard on that because some students find these products unacceptable. . . . Sometimes we don't point out that items are whole-grain, but they are."

Dr. Randy Poe, superintendent, said nutrition education is important in the school environment: "A healthy child can make healthier choices, which leads to improved academic performance. So, it's beneficial to not only make sure our students are eating healthy but to make sure they understand the importance of eating healthy and how it affects their brain, body functions and growth."

Kincaid said introducing new foods is a little easier with younger students, and "adding unusual vegetables as a garnish can generate interest among students," Scalf reports. "The students get used to seeing them and begin to try them," Kincaid said. "Kids who say they don't like tomatoes may try them if they're offered as a garnish." They have been careful to make a few changes at a time. Boone County school cafeterias no longer serve foods with trans fats and high-fructose corn syrup.

"Nationwide, there's a 15 percent reduction of kids eating school lunches," Kincaid said. "In the past four years, there has been a 7 percent reduction in Boone schools. That's significant, and it's still troublesome to me because those are kids we're not feeding, and I want to feed all of them."

Eating trans fat weakens memory in younger men, study says

Trans fats, the use of which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration limited last month, are associated with reduced memory function in men 45 and younger, says a University of California San Diego School of Medicine study published in the online journal PLOS ONE.

Researchers asked 1,018 men and women to fill out a dietary survey and take a word-recall memory test. Men 45 and younger remembered an average of 86 words, but for each additional gram of trans fats eaten daily, memory dropped by 0.76 words. Compared to the men who didn't consume trans fats, those in the study who consumed the most recalled 12 fewer words.

"Trans fats were mostly strongly linked to worse memory in men during their high-productivity years," said Beatrice A. Golomb, lead author and professor of medicine at UCSD. "Trans fat consumption has previously shown adverse associations to behavior and mood—other pillars of brain function. However, to our knowledge a relation to memory or cognition had not been shown."

Other research has shown that trans fatty acid consumption is linked to negative effects on lipid profile, metabolic function, insulin resistance, inflammation and cardiac and general health. "As I tell patients: While trans fats increase the shelf life of foods, they reduce the shelf life of people," Golomb said.

Trans fat levels in white adults have fallen by more than half since FDA started requiring labeling of the unhealthy food ingredient

After the Food and Drug Administration required food manufacturers to label how much trans fat is in their products, levels of the unhealthy ingredient in the bloodstream dropped by 58 percent. (Associated Press photo by Ed Andrieski)

The numbers come from a study assessing blood levels between 2000 and 2008. FDA required trans-fat labeling in 2003. Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted the decline after analyzing blood drawn for the annual National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a nationally representative sample of about 5,000 people. The drop was seen in white adults; more research is being conducted to see if it also dropped in other ethnic and racial groups.

"The decline, unusually big and abrupt, strongly suggests government regulation was effective in altering a risk factor for heart disease for a broad swatch of the population," reports David Brown for The Washington Post.

Trans fat is typically used for deep-frying and as an ingredient in baked goods. One study determined "if a person increases total calorie intake 2 percent all in the form of trans fat, risk of heart attack rises by about 20 percent," Brown reports.

"Our findings provide information about the effectively of these interventions," said Hubert W. Vester, a CDC chemist who led the analysis. "This reduction is substantial progress that should lower the risk of cardiovascular disease in people." (Read more)