The main purpose of this book is to introduce black rice to a wider circle of people. Although there have been research on different aspects of black rice, the information is scattered and not easily accessible to laypersons. The book intends to cover all the aspects of black rice from research, history, to its development. As such, the book will be suitable for both rice researchers and non-professionals who want to know more about this unique rice crop. Black rice, also known as forbidden rice, is packed with high level of nutrients and antioxidants. The antioxidants found in black rice is higher than the blueberries (that contain highest amount of anthocyanins). Black rice is black due to anthocyanin content in the outer layer of its kernel. Legend tells that this rice was consumed only by royals in China and it was expected that this rice would increase life span of the king. Consumption of black rice without approval was hanged. Ordinary individuals were not allowed to consume black rice. Thus this rice is also known as forbidden rice and Emperor's rice. Now this black heirloom rice is widely available in different parts of the world. Researchers have found that black rice reduce Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), the free radicals produced in the body which is the cause of many diseases. This rice also reduce diabetes, inflammation, heart attack, allergy and obesity; reduce the growth of cancer, improves digestive system and is panacea of many health problems. Thus this rice is also known as long life rice. Food nutritionists consider black rice as modern super foods. The cultivation method of black rice is similar to general rice cultivation practices. There are many varieties available in black rice which is of different Asian origin but Chinese black rice is the most famous among them. Black rice has a wide range of applications because its bran is used as a natural food colouring dye, and it is also used to prepare noodles, pasta, porridge, wine etc. This rice takes slightly longer time to cook than widely available white rice. In modern era, black rice serve as one of the best food materials available to us to maintain our health with regular physical exercise.

The staggering growth in the numbers of people who believe in New Age spiritualities and paranormal phenomena - combined with America's pervasive mania for diets, food fads, and exotic cure-alls - draws millions each year to answer the siren song of unorthodox nutrition practices. Usually based on supernatural underpinnings or the pronouncements of charismatic gurus, these diet regimes often fly in the face of well-grounded, scientific dietetics. In writing Mystical Diets, author Jack Raso, trained in scientific reasoning and a registered dietitian, offers an accessible yet authoritative tool to assist laypersons and health professionals in making sound decisions regarding the appropriateness (or inappropriateness) of a number of fringe nutritional programs. With Mr. Raso's help, these decisions can now be based not only on standards of scientific validity but the likelihood of subjective benefits as well. Mystical Diets details the history, philosophy, and manifestations of macrobiotics, Natural Hygiene, the Edgar Cayce tradition, Ayurvedic medicine, Anthroposophical medicine, the Gerson Therapy, the Matol movement, and much more. Through the generous use of quotations, proponents of the various alternative-nutrition systems, past and present, are allowed to speak for themselves. And the author's thorough discussion of the most up-to-date research into health and diet helps readers make up their own minds about foods, herbs, vitamins, minerals, and the claims made by proponents of alternative dietetics.

This handbook provides key information on the clinical use of nutraceuticals, an increasingly common practice grounded in an understanding of the pharmacological activities of natural compounds and clinical evidence of efficacy and safety. Each chapter examines the effects of nutraceuticals in different therapeutic contexts, including nutraceuticals active on the digestive system, heart, lipid and glucose metabolism, and immune system. The authors also address relevant concerns such as relative and absolute contraindications, range of tested doses (efficacious and safe), possible side effects and pharmacological interactions, and the scientific level of clinical evidence for each product. Despite the availability of a large number of nutraceuticals on the market, the same compound is often offered by different industries at different dosages and concentrations, with different titration and often with different suggestions of efficacy. Available academic books on nutraceuticals prioritize summarizing information or focus on the pharmacological aspects on cells or animals models rather than on proof in humans. The handbook takes a unique and practical approach intended to assist clinicians, pharmacologists, nutritionists, and dietitians considering prescribing nutraceuticals for therapeutic use. Renowned expert Professor Arrigo Cicero is known internationally for his work in nutraceuticals, and currently serves as President of the Italian Nutraceutical Society.

Nutrition Science, Marketing Nutrition, Health Claims, and Public Policy explains strategies to guide consumers toward making informed food purchases. The book begins with coverage of nutrition science before moving into nutrition marketing, social marketing and responsibility, consumer perception and insight, public health policy and regulation, case studies, and coverage on how to integrate holistic health into mainstream brand marketing. Intended for food and nutrition scientists who work in marketing, manufacturing, packaging, as well as clinical nutritionists, health care policymakers, and graduate and post graduate students in nutrition and business-related studies, this book will be a welcomed resource.

The role of Bioactive Dietary Factors and Plant Extracts in Preventive Dermatology provides current and concise scientific appraisal of the efficacy of foods, nutrients, herbs, and dietary supplements in preventing dermal damage and cancer as well as improving skin health. This important new volume reviews and presents new hypotheses and conclusions on the effects of different bioactive foods and their components derived particularly from vegetables, fruits, and herbs. Primary emphasis is on treatment and prevention of dermal damage focusing on skin cancers with significant health care costs and mortality. Bioactive Dietary Factors and Plant Extracts in Preventive Dermatology brings together expert clinicians and researchers working on the different aspects of supplementation, foods, and plant extracts and nutrition and skin health. Their expertise provides the most current knowledge in the field and will serve as the foundation for advancing future research.

What a journey writing this text has been. The lengthy voyage started well before the idea hatched of authoring a text that contained the word "thermodynamics"! I was informed by my good friend and sometimes colleague Dr. Jose Antonio that by including that word in the title, nutritionists and exercise physiologists might avoid the subject. But almost every step of my expedition was taken on a rather solid foundation of thermodynamics and as such the topic could not possibly be omitted from the title or the text of a book about bioenergetics and energy expenditure. I am not a physicist. In fact I ?rst went to college to become a football coach. That vocational choice began to deteriorate when taking the mandatory anatomy and physiology courses required of all physical education majors. This information was exciting; my interest in physical education began to wane. During sophomore year, I answered an advertisement in the school newspaper requesting research subjects.

Advances in Food and Nutrition Research recognizes the integral relationship between the food and nutritional sciences and brings together outstanding and comprehensive reviews that highlight this relationship. Contributions detail the scientific developments in the broad areas of food science and nutrition are intended to ensure that food scientists in academia and industry as well as professional nutritionists and dieticians are kept informed concerning emerging research and developments in these important disciplines.

Today's international trade regime explicitly rejects cultural perceptions of what is safe to eat, overturning millennia of tradition. The World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) enshrines "science" as the arbiter in resolving disputes involving this vital human need. This mandate, however, is under attack from many quarters. Critics cite environmental and ethical concerns, unpredictably changing technology, taste, food preferences, local culture, adequacy of governmental implementation of WTO standards, and the reliability of scientific opinion. A basic conflict has crystallized: food as culture versus food as commerce. The WTO/SPS approach is increasingly challenged for its balance in favour of economic considerations, and for its visible undermining of unique cultural identities. This book explores the relationship between the SPS Agreement, food traditions, science, and technology. It deliberately confronts those trade experts who refuse to allow other social sciences to influence their economics-based trade theory. The author investigates the local perception of food and food safety from the anthropological and historical points of view, the evolution of food production technologies, and the medicinal, proscriptive (taboo) and security aspects of food that continue to prevail in nearly all cultures today. She succeeds in demonstrating that, no matter how strong the faith in science and economics, it is unwise to flagrantly dismiss the deeply rooted beliefs of billions of people, a huge majority of the world's population. The beef hormones case; the remaining sovereignty related to food safety measures; the increasing significance of "appropriate levels of protection" and "the precautionary principle"; the redefinition of "food hazard" to include production processes as well as food itself; genetically modified seeds and food products; the concept of "risk" in the science-based context of the Codex Alimentarius - these are among the issues and topics covered in depth. The author concludes that, although quick "legal" resolutions of trade disputes about what people should or should not eat might provide a "win" for open trade, support for the entire structure and rationale of the WTO is undermined unless (at the least) some flexibility of interpretation is introduced into the WTO Dispute Resolution System in order to recognize the weight and validity of public opinion.

A definitive review in the field of magnesium research, this book brings together the proceedings of the 11th International Magnesium Symposium in Osaka, Japan from October 22-26, 2006. Written by authorities in the area, the book provides a thorough overview of progress in the area of magnesium research. The author is one of the world's foremost magnesium researchers and reviewers, and the book provides essential reading for researchers in magnesium.

Today, in a world with abundant food, more than 700 million people are chro- cally undernourished. Over the next 20 years, the world's population will probably double. The global food supply would need to double or to triple for the larger population to be fed adequately. Agriculture is closely linked to environmental quality in a variety of ways, and the challenge of our generation is how to feed a growing planet while maintaining the integrity of our ecological life-support system. The responsibility of governments for ensuring food security will grow proportionately with the growth of populations, and governments bear a special responsibility for promoting agricultural inputs. Agriculture in the 21st century, will certainly focus increasingly on adapting modern technologies to local farming systems, needs and environments. Worldwide climatic changes have been raising concerns about potential changes to crop yields and production systems. Such concerns include the ability to acc- modate these uncertain effects in order to ensure an adequate food supply for an increasing population. What can be done concretely to use agriculture to address some of the fundamental issues of today's world? We must recognize that agric- ture is part of the solution and not just a problem. Agricultural development is a key to social stability and equity in many parts of the world. It can help to al- viate the subtle and unspoken fears of modernization and the space of change if innovation is handled transparently.

The purpose of this monograph is to present readers with a comprehensive and cutting edge description of neurochemical effects of diet (beneficial and harmful effects) in normal human brain and to discuss how present day diet promotes pathogenesis of stroke, AD, PD, and depression in a manner that is useful not only to students and teachers but also to researchers, dietitians, nutritionists and physicians. A diet in sufficient amount and appropriate macronutrients is essential for optimal health of human body tissues. In brain, over-nutrition, particularly with high-calorie diet, not only alters cellular homeostasis, but also results in changes in the intensity of signal transduction processes in reward centers of the brain resulting in food addiction. Over-nutrition produces detrimental effects on human health in general and brain health in particular because it chronically increases the systemic and brain inflammation and oxidative stress along with induction of insulin resistance and leptin resistance in the brain as well as visceral organs. Onset of chronic inflammation and oxidative stress not only leads to obesity and heart disease, but also promotes type II diabetes and metabolic syndrome, which are risk factors for both acute neural trauma (stroke) and chronic age-related neurodegenerative and neuropsychological disorders, such as Alzheimer disease (AD), Parkinson disease (PD) and depression.

The Nutrition and Health series of books has an overriding mission to provide health professionals with texts that are considered essential because each includes: (1) a synthe sis of the state of the science, (2) timely, in -depth reviews by the leading researchers in their respective fields, (3) extensive, up-to-date, fully annotated reference lists, (4) a detailed index, (5) relevant tables and figures, (6) identification of paradigm shifts and the consequences, (7) suggestions of areas for future research, and (8) balanced, data driven answers to patient /health professionals questions that are based upon the totality of evidence rather than the findings of any single study. The series volumes are not the outcome of a symposium. Rather, each editor has the potential to examine a chosen area with a broad perspective, both in subject matter as well as in the choice of chapter authors. The international perspective, especially with regard to public health initiatives, is emphasized where appropriate. The editors, whose trainings are both research- and practice-oriented, have the opportunity to develop a primary objective for their book; define the scope and focus, and then invite the leading authorities from around the world to be part oftheir initiative. The authors are encouraged to provide an overview of the field, discuss their own research, and relate the research findings to potential human health consequences."

A Whole Foods Primer describes the special characteristics that consumers should seek when shopping so they can identify the peak of nutritional flavour and value in whole foods. It, also, provides instruction on the best cooking techniques and storage conditions to help minimise nutritional losses and the best methods to preserve fresh foods for future use. Useful tips and suggestions to increase the consumption of whole foods easily and to encourage experimentation with unfamiliar ones are included, as are practical resources for recipes and cookbooks.