Birds, like people, can have the flu. Avian influenza or bird flu was first identified over 100 years ago during an outbreak in Italy. Over the years, the disease has appeared from time to time in regions all over the world. Avian influenza spreads easily among wild birds, but it can also infect domesticated birds including chickens, turkeys and ducks. Left untreated, avian influenza can devastate an entire flock of chickens.
Following a workshop held during the First World Congress on Public Health Nutrition, global food information organisations agreed to share their insights into consumer attitudes on nutrition information on food labels and packaging in different parts of the world.
This podcast debate is moderated by Dr. E. Tee Siong, Nutrition Society of Malaysia (Malaysia) and Dr. Jonathan Back, Strategy and Analysis Unit, Health and Consumer Protection Directorate General (DG SANCO), European Commission (Belgium)
People are born liking the sensation of sweetness. At a scientific conference in Brussels in June 2006, Dr. Josephine Wills asked a number of European scientists how people can manage sweetness as part of a healthy diet.
Available for almost 25 years, aspartame is approved for use by the general population in 130 countries around the world. Aspartame is one of the most thoroughly tested food additives in history with a comprehensive battery of studies done in humans and animals, including toxicity and carcinogenicity studies. All demonstrated that aspartame was safe for human consumption. Safety authorities have regularly reviewed new studies and they have always reconfirmed aspartame’s safety. Recently, aspartame has been again the subject of a public controversy after a new study was published linking the sweetener with a raised incidence of some tumours in rats. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) acknowledged to consider the new findings and ordered a review of aspartame’s safety, which confirmed the safety of the product.
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