Many children spend too little time outdoors and too much time in front of the TV — and a lack of suitable outdoor spaces seems partly to blame, an Australian study suggests. The study, of nearly 1,400 10- to 12-year-olds, found that 37 percent typically spent a half-hour or less being active outside. Few were outdoors for two hours or more on a typical day.
People whose diet includes a lot of red meat are more likely to develop the early stages of an eye condition known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which is the leading cause of vision loss in older adults, according to an Australian study.
Unstructured, creative, and spontaneous physical activities that may be reminiscent of child-like play are beneficial, healthy activity options for adults. Calorie-burning, mind-stimulating play that children often do shouldn’t be left behind as people age. Tossing a Frisbee, dancing and rock climbing are great ways for adults to incorporate play into their exercise routines.
A new study by researchers at the University of British Columbia suggests taking public transit may help you keep fit. The study, published in the Journal of Public Health Policy, finds that people who take public transit are three times more likely than those who don’t to meet the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada’s suggested daily minimum of physical activity.
The Food Standards Agency Board in the UK agreed its advice to Ministers on the Agency’s nutrient profiling (NP) model. The Board agreed that the model was working effectively. In particular it concluded that the protein cap, which prevents foods containing high levels of fat, salt or sugar being classed as ‘healthier’ by the model by virtue of their protein ontent, should be retained.
Coca-Cola in Autralia ran this advert on October 11th 2008.
Coke claimed that it was a “myth” that Coke made children fat or caused their teeth to rot using celebrity endorsements.
And they soon after gave wrong data regarding Cokes content of caffeine.
The powerful Australian Competition and Consumer Commission on Thursday ordered Coke to correct its claims.
Coke agreed to make corrective advertizing. See the corrective advertizing here.
The company for a period of 3 years, will also ensure that it will not make the claims that:
- that consumption of Coca-Cola cannot contribute to weight gain unless that claim can be substantiated;
- that consumption of Coca-Cola cannot contribute to tooth decay or that tooth decay is declining globally, unless the particular claim made can be substantiated;
- that 250ml of the Coca-Cola Product bearing the brand name “Diet Coca-Cola” contains only one half of the amount of caffeine as that contained in a cup of tea, without further qualification, unless that claim can be substantiated.
This case was commented in an editorial of The Lancet. And Watchdog orders Coca-Cola to correct ‘teeth-rotting myth’ advert in The Telegraph and Food industry ‘denying links to health problems’ says The Lancet. And the official ruling from ACCC
Danish Consumer Council reported 8 products to the authorities (Food Administration) for misleading portion sizes. See the products and read the complaints in English. You may also want to make legal complaints in your country. Use these complaints as inspiration.
This 58 page report summarizes state legislation proposed and passed in two broad policy categories (a) Healthy Eating and Physical Activity and (b) Healthy Community Design and Access to Healthy Food. The first category addresses policy approaches aimed primarily at nutrition and physical education in schools. The second category focuses on the built environment: land use, transportation and agriculture options. Enjoy reading.
A new study from Boston has found that rapid weight gain during the first six months of life may place a child at risk for obesity by age 3.
This study sought to integrate perceived and built environmental and individual factors into the Theory of Planned Behavior model to better understand adolescents’ physical activity. Geographical Information Systems (GIS) software was used to measure the physical environment (walkability, access to physical activity facilities). Physical activity was assessed using the ActiGraph accelerometer and the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents. 110 youngsters aged 12 to 17 years from Auckland in New Zealand participated. Social cognitive variables were better predictors of both subjective and objective PA compared to perceived environmental and built environment factors.