New Food & Nutrition Research Briefs Posted on Web

The Agricultural Research Service has posted the newest edition of the Food & Nutrition Research Briefs on the World Wide Web at

www.ars.usda.gov/is/np/fnrb/

The issue includes short updates on ARS research about human nutrition, new foods and food safety. For example, the Briefs report that:

• A new, packaged mix for making fragrant loaves of healthful, whole-grain rice bread in your home bread-making machine may be on the market within a year.

• By examining the structure, or sequence, of the genes of Campylobacter jejuni and some of its close relatives, ARS scientists are moving closer to finding new, more effective ways to squelch this foodborne pathogen.

• Low-sugar watermelons, with a sprinkling of artificial sweetener, can taste just as refreshing as their higher-sugar counterparts--and still provide an impressive amount of health-imparting lycopene.

• The "Pistachio Blaster," a high-speed sorter that listens for the distinctive sound of a ripened nut as it bounces off a steel plate, helps ensure that only premium, ready-to-eat pistachios make their way from orchards to you.

• Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005, compiled by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services, are available to you on the World Wide Web as a brochure, executive summary, and full report.

• Seniors who took vitamin D supplements fell down 22 percent less than those who didn't use supplements, a study of 1,200 men and women, averaging age 70, has shown.

For further information contact Marcia Wood, Editor, ARS Food & Nutrition Research Briefs, (301) 504-1662