Find out how to IMPROVE YOUR DIET by doing our on-line course module on
"Healthy Eating Tips" for $29.95 (as part of 2004 annual subscription). Subscribers also get:
- access to the on-line book "Food Facts" on CD-rom by Professor Wahlqvist
- member discounts for all our on-line healthy eating course modules More.....

HEC short on-line Healthy Eating course ( 5 modules, $195) More ....
The HEC website is the only website currently offering on-line reputable course modules for the general public in nutrition.

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Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition (published by Healthy Eating Club (HEC) press)

This journal is over 15 years old and is recognised as the leading nutrition journal in Asia and the Pacific.
If nutrition issues and research from this region interest you then consider subscribing to the journal.
If you wish to receive a hard copy of the journal, annual subscription is only AU$135 (inc. GST); for on-line access only subscription is AU$120 (inc. GST) - more...

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WHAT'S NEW IN NUTRITION RESEARCH

Meat-based diets devour our water supplies

The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) is investigating global options for feeding growing populations. Their report highlights the following:
1. ground water levels are plummeting and rivers are overstressed
2. currently up to 90% of all managed water is used to grow food
3. Meat-based Western diets put great pressure on the environment; meat eaters consume the equivalent of about 5,000 litres of water a day compared with 1,000-2,000 litres for people on vegetarian diets in developing countries.
It takes 1,790 litres of water to grow 1kg of wheat, 2,380 litres for 1kg rice, 1,390 litres for 1kg corn, compared with 9,680 litres for 1kg of beef and 3,680 litres for 1kg if pork.
4. It will be almost impossible to feed future generations the typical meat-based diet without destroying the environment.
5. The best options for reducing water consumption and improving yields are a combination of hi-tech and traditional water conservation methods; improved crop varieties and drought resistant seeds; better tillage methods; use of urban waste
water for irrigation.
6. Countries with little water may need to save their supplies for domestic or high-value uses by trading in "virtual water"
i.e importing food from countries with ample water.

Governments may have to persuade populations to eat less meat due to greater demands on water supplies.

Read more about Econutrition issues

Bread containing soy grits may reduce risk of prostate cancer development and progression

A study published in the journal Urology by Dr Fabien Dalais and HEC's Professor Mark Wahlqvist in September 2004 showed that a daily diet containing four slices of a bread rich in soy grits favorably influences the PSA level and the free/total PSA ratio in patients with prostate cancer. This work provides some evidence to support epidemiologic studies claiming that male populations who consume high phytoestrogen diets have a reduced risk of prostate cancer development and progression.

Read more about soy

Dark chocolate improves blood vessel function potentially reducing the risk of clots

A recent study reported by Vlachopoulos at the 2004 European Society of Cardiology demonstrated for the first time how chocolate improved the function of blood vessels, allowing them to dilate, which would help prevent the formation of potentially damaging clots. The study showed that eating 100 grams of dark chocolate improved vessel function in 17 healthy young adults for at least three hours.
Dark chocolate contains high levels of an antioxidant called flavonoids. This study sheds new light on how the mechanism might work, by protecting blood vessels from the damaging effects of unstable oxygen compounds called free radicals. Free radicals attack other atoms to stabilise themselves by stealing an electron, and in the process can damage cells. The study did not include milk chocolate, but the same benefits might not be gained from eating milk chocolate. In 2003, scientists reported that dark chocolate increased levels of antioxidants in the blood by nearly 20% where as milk chocolate did not have the same effect. It is thought that milk may interfere with the absorption of antioxidants from the chocolate.

Read more about chocolate

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NUTRITION RESOURCES ON THE WEB
http://www.pca.com.au

Information on peanuts and their nutritional profile.
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