NYC fastfood chains pull calorie info

Sat, 03 Mar 2007 00:20:23 GMT
By DAVID B. CARUSO, Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK - At least three national fast-food chains have made it harder for New Yorkers to learn the calorie content of their hamburgers, fries and subs. Wendy's, White Castle and Quiznos sandwich shops were among a handful of eateries that yanked nutritional information from some restaurants or their Web sites this week in an attempt to avoid having to post the same info on menus in New York.
The move was a reaction to a new regulation that will make the city the first in the country to require eateries to list calorie counts in the most prominent place possible: on their brightly-lit menu boards, right next to the price.

In an attempt to make the rule apply only to big, national fast-food chains, health officials decreed that the regulation would only apply to restaurants that serve standardized portion sizes and were already making calorie information available voluntarily as of March 1.

Restaurants complained, saying the rule would clutter menu boards with health data already available elsewhere, and as the March 1 deadline approached, a few decided to act.

Wendy's International Inc. pulled all information on calories from posters and fliers at its New York eateries. Quiznos and White Castle deactivated the pages on their Web site that offered all types of nutritional information.

"We fully support the intent of this regulation," Wendy's said in a statement on its Web site. "However, since most of our food is made-to-order, there isn't enough room on our existing menu boards to comply with the regulation."

White Castle executives did not return phone calls Friday, but the company's marketing director, Jamie Richardson, told The New York Sun the company removed nutritional posters and brochures from New York restaurants as a temporary defensive measure.

"We wanted to allow ourselves as much flexibility as possible and ultimately work through a solution that is as customer-friendly as possible," Richardson said.

Quiznos said in a statement that its change was also temporary, pending the company's development of a "long-term nutritional information strategy."

"Quiznos recognizes that nutrition is an important topic in our health conscious society and that the recent New York City Board of Health amendments point to a growing trend that we need to address," the company said.

The changes brought a tart response from Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden.

"If some restaurants stop displaying calorie information to avoid making it useful to customers, we should wonder what they're so ashamed of," he said in a statement.

Part of a vigorous city campaign for healthier eating, the calorie-disclosure requirement takes effect July 1. It is expected to affect about 1 in 10 of the city's restaurants. The city Board of Health approved it in December while also banning restaurants from using artificial trans fats.

Some City Council members have complained that the calorie rule goes too far.

Councilman Joel Rivera proposed legislation this week that would require restaurants to put nutritional information on a poster or some other means, but reverse the requirement that it go on menus.

He criticized restaurants for eliminating nutritional data, but said they were only reacting to a "misguided" regulation.

In the meantime, Wendy's said it had replaced its old nutritional information posters with new ones that still provide nutritional information on fats, carbohydrates and sugars, but leave out calorie counts.

New Yorkers who still want the full scoop on Wendy's burgers can check the company's Web site, which still had the info up Friday: 420 calories for a classic single, and a gut-busting 970 for a triple with cheese.

Dengue kills Paraguayan health official

Sat, 03 Mar 2007 00:04:27 GMT
By PEDRO SERVIN, Associated Press Writer
ASUNCION, Paraguay - One of Paraguay's top health officials died Friday of dengue fever, the latest casualty in an epidemic that has infected thousands of people.
Maria Catalina Roa, who oversaw registered nurses in all public hospitals, had been hospitalized two weeks ago after contracting the mosquito-borne illness.

In January and February alone, 15,000 people have been infected, compared to just 1,600 all last year, according to official figures. Ten people have died.

Some doctors say the actual toll is much higher, since many infected Paraguayans do not seek professional treatment. Opposition legislators say the actual number may be as high as 130,000.

Some 500 protesting hospital workers demanded the resignation of Health Minister Oscar Martinez.

"Our leaders are negligent, inept," said Carlos Cubas, one of the demonstrators. "Our comrade Maria Catalina, who fought to preserve the life of hundreds of people, has died today. This is a very sad day."

President Nicanor Duarte declared a two-month national state of emergency and allocated funds to fumigate breeding areas for disease-spreading aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which have flourished in unusually wet weather in central South America.

The government has asked for help from the United States and Argentina to determine what types of dengue are present in the current epidemic.

Four of those to die were among 40 cases of the more severe hemorrhagic form of dengue, which causes a sudden high fever, rash, aches, weakness, restlessness and even internal bleeding. Many others apparently have classic dengue — also called bonebreak fever — which causes fever, intense headaches, and joint and muscle pain.

The disease cannot be transmitted between people.

Dengue fever is common in Latin America. Recent outbreaks have been reported in Peru, Brazil, Mexico and even Easter Island, Chile's possession in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

For Lent parishes lighten up fish fry

Sat, 03 Mar 2007 00:21:17 GMT
By CONNIE MABIN, Associated Press Writer
MACEDONIA, Ohio - For years, Lent meant huge chunks of fried fish on Fridays for George Ehrman, a longtime parishioner at Our Lady of Guadalupe in this northeast Ohio town. But the dinner plate was decidedly lighter for Ehrman at a recent Friday fish fry in the bustling parish hall: grilled salmon packed with omega-3, fiber-rich rice pilaf and green beans.
"I was happy when I found out they were offering this for the first time," said Ehrman, whose health requires him to eat a low-salt, low-fat diet. "It's very tasty, too."

Parishes have long used the Roman Catholic abstention from meat on Fridays during the Lenten season to hold fish fries that bring people together and raise money. Now with more people trying to eat healthier food, many churches are offering lighter fare, including grilled shrimp, baked fish, fresh tuna and crispy, raw vegetables.

There's still plenty of battered cod, haddock and other types of seafood submerged in oil. And there still are servings of potato-stuffed pirogi, macaroni and cheese, french fries or other heavy side dishes on parish menus.

But reduced-fat Lenten menus are popping up across the nation.

Milwaukee's St. Florian Church lists "heart-healthy baked fish" alongside its famous beer-battered fillets. St. Ferdinand's in Florissant, Mo., near St. Louis offers baked cod and blackened Cajun-style fish. In Cincinnati, St. Paul's offers sauteed vegetables and tomato soup.

At St. Irenaeus in Oakmont, Pa., near Pittsburgh, the parish has added baked fish, fresh tuna and a salad bar. Like many restaurants, it stopped using artery-closing trans fats for frying. Volunteers change the deep fryer's oil after each batch and blot each piece of fried fish dry of extra grease.

"We really baby it," said Jeanne Kaus, who has volunteered for 25 years at the fry that draws 500 people a week. "We have a fresh salad bar and we have heart-healthy baked fish."

Does the baked stuff go over well?

"Oh gosh, yeah!" she said. "It just melts in your mouth."

Jananne Finck, who teaches nutrition and wellness at the University of Illinois Extension in Springfield Center, said that even with the healthier Lenten options many Catholics may feel married to tradition and opt for fried fish, particularly if they don't eat many fried foods at home.

That's OK, she said, as long as fried foods are a rare treat, diners skip fatty condiments such as tartar sauce, and portions are small.

"It's telling yourself even if you're served that, even if we grew up with, 'Clean your plate,' it's probably in our best interest to take some of that home," Finck said.

Paula Turocy, chairwoman of the athletic training department at the Duquesne University, a Catholic school in Pittsburgh, said worshippers who choose lighter menus during Lent might unexpectedly find themselves forming healthier habits by Easter.

"If this positive behavior can be maintained for six weeks, these new healthier behaviors can assist them in making a long-term commitment to improved health," she said.

At Our Lady of Guadalupe's fish fry, the Rev. David Trask tempted parishioners with huge slices of chocolate cake on a large silver tray, teasing that it had been cut an hour ago so surely some of the calories had disappeared by now.

Ehrman, who was cleaning his plate of salmon, reluctantly passed.

"It takes willpower," Ehrman said with a smile. "Especially when the pastor is pushing dessert."
___
Our Lady of Guadalupe: http://www.olg.cc/
Lent recipes: http://www.catholicmom.com/lent_recipes.htm

Russian prosecutors probe vaccine trials

Sat, 03 Mar 2007 00:14:28 GMT

MOSCOW - Russian prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation into vaccine trials by British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline PLC that were allegedly conducted on children without parents' permission.
The Prosecutor General's office said in a statement dated Monday and posted on its Web site Friday that investigators began the probe at a hospital in Volgograd, about 550 miles southeast of Moscow, after several children who received the vaccines fell ill and parents raised questions.

More than 100 children between the ages of one and two were given the vaccines during the trails, which have since been halted, the statement said.

Prosecutors said the deputy director of the hospital had been paid $50,000 to participate in the trials and that such tests on minors were illegal in Russia. They also said parents had been told the vaccines were humanitarian aid.

GlaxoSmithKline officials could not be immediately reached for comment, but Michael Crow, the head of GSK's Russian operations, told Dow Jones Newswires that the allegations were unsubstantiated and untrue.

"All of our trials undergo rigorous scrutiny and this study had been fully authorized by all the necessary Russian agencies," he said.

Crow said the tests began in 2005 as part of a wider study of pediatric vaccines on 5,700 children across Europe. Of those, 1,000 were in Russia and 100 participated in the study in Volgograd, he said. The vaccines were Varilrix, which is for chickenpox, Priorix, which is for mumps, measles and rubella and Priorix Tetra, which would treat all four diseases.

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