Autumn 2003 • Volume XII, Number 4

Just the Facts

School Lunches Still Underperforming
The U.S. General Accounting Office has again found that the National School Lunch Program falls short of providing children proper nutrients and sufficiently low saturated fat. Of 22 schools reviewed, three-fourths served lunches contained 34 percent fat, not even meeting the 30 percent limit, which is still considered high by health authorities.

Britain Could Be Meatless by 2047
In the UK, 2,000 people per week give meat the cold shoulder. Should the pattern continue, the entire country will be vegetarian by the year 2047, says the Consumer Analysis Group. Currently, 40 percent of Brits avoid eating meat at least once per week, and overall the country has the second largest number of vegetarians (second only to Germany). The study found that a lifelong vegetarian spares 760 chickens, five cows, and time spent visiting the hospital (22 percent less time, to be exact).

n Apple a Day Leaves Change in Your Pocket
Researchers at Northwestern University have found that middle-aged men with the highest intake of fruits and vegetables had the lowest total annual Medicare charges later in life, especially costs related to heart disease. Not surprisingly, their peers who consumed few fruits and veggies drained the most money from Uncle Sam’s account.

Fantastic Voyage
University of London researchers have developed tiny, remote control video capsules that patients can swallow, allowing physicians to view the entire gastrointestinal tract without using a scalpel. Not much bigger than a peanut, the device uses technology much like a television remote control and could someday biopsy and treat conditions as well. One of its own inventors bravely volunteered to be the first human test subject. FDA approval will soon be sought.

Something in the Water
Three chemicals in farm pesticides have been linked to poor sperm quality in rural midwestern men. The weed and insect killers are thought to reach men through the drinking water. Neither water treatment plants nor home filtering devices can remove the pesticides.

MoonRose Feeds the Masses
Vegetarian food sales are expected to grow 125 percent by 2006, and restaurants are doing their part by offering more meat-free, low-fat, and all-around healthy dishes. Now, foodservice giant SYSCO is making it easier with an extensive line of vegan and vegetarian products. Restaurateurs can view the expanded MoonRose line at www.MoonRoseVegetarian.com.

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