Can Processed Food Actually Curb Hunger?

Processed food can be altered with an additive to slow the rate that food leaves the stomach, keeping eaters feeling satisfied longer ("Foods May Soon Be Modified 'To Make You Feel Full for Twice as Long'" - Daily Telegraph (UK), June 3, 2009). The Institute of Food Research and Nottingham University discovered that this satiation of hunger can be achieved with an existing stabilizer, Tween 60. Research subjects said the addition of Tween 60 made them "feel fuller, less hungry and have less appetite" in contrast to another stabilizer that separated water and oil in their stomachs.

Review selected library titles related to food processing and obesity at LSC-CyFair Branch Library. Click the title of a book, select the "Request" button in the listing, and enter your library card number and PIN for each title you want to reserve for pick up at the library. Call the library at 281-290-3219 to check your PIN if you do not remember it. Use these subject words and phrases to find more in the library catalog:

• food habits
• food industry and trade
  
• food marketing
  
• obesity

Stuffed: An Insider's Look at Who's (Really) Making America Fat by Hank Cardello - Ecco Press, 2009
call number: 616.398 Car
"The obesity epidemic in particular, he argues, is connected to food businesses that control 'almost everything the average American eats.' Although the tone ranges from finger-wagging polemic to reformist optimism, the author does sketch out several solutions." - Publishers Weekly review excerpt

The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite by David A. Kessler - Rodale: distributed to the trade by Macmillan, 2009
call number: 613.2 Kes
"Although not everyone succumbs, more people of all ages are being set up for a lifetime of food obsession due to the ever-present availability of foods laden with salt, fat and sugar. A gentle though urgent plea for reform, Kessler's book provides a simple "food rehab" program to fight back against the industry's relentless quest for profits while an entire country of people gain weight and get sick." - Publishers Weekly review excerpt

The Fattening of America: How the Economy Makes Us Fat, If It Matters, and What to Do about It by Eric Finkelstein and Laurie Zuckerman - Wiley, 2008
call number: 362.196 Fin
"Along with health-care writer Zuckerman, researcher Finkelstein delves into how modern technology reduces the cost of producing higher-calorie processed goods, decreases our activity level and puts our health in danger." - Publishers Weekly review excerpt

North Korea's Missile Tests Escalate War of Words

Diplomacy with allies failed to produce a resolution of North Korea's nuclear build up, so the U.S. is looking at defensive tactics against missile testing sanctioned by Pyongyang ("U.S., Allies Prepare for Tougher Response to N. Korea" - Reuters, May 31, 2009). While Japan, China, Russia and South Korea continue to work with the United States for a peaceful agreement with North Korea, the U.N. Security Council called for "strict enforcement of sanctions imposed after the North's first atomic test in October 2006." Meanwhile, North Korea said that they nullified the truce after the Korean War and retaliation against South Korea is possible.

Review selected library titles related to North Korean nuclear power and foreign relations at LSC-CyFair Branch Library. Click the title of a book, select the "Request" button in the listing, and enter your library card number and PIN for each title you want to reserve for pick up at the library. Call the library at 281-290-3219 to check your PIN if you do not remember it. Use these subject words and phrases to find more in the library catalog:

• North Korea foreign relations
  
• North Korea nuclear weapons
• North Korea nuclear nonproliferation

Meltdown: The Inside Story of the North Korean Nuclear Crisis by Mike Chinoy - St. Martin's Press, 2008.
call number: 327.73 Chi
"Fine, insightful diplomatic history of a dire confrontation and a hard-hitting critique of the Bush administration's foreign policy." - Publishers Weekly review excerpt

North & South Korea edited by Louise I. Gerdes - Greenhaven, 2007.
call number: 327.73 Nor
"Explores both sides of issues related to Korea and its relationship with the United States, including the military threat from North Korea." - publisher's summary excerpt

Worst of the Worst: Dealing with Repressive and Rogue Nations - Brookings Institution Press, 2007.
call number: 323.49 Wor (NOTE: p. 89 begins a chapter on North Korea: The Tyranny of Deprivation)
"Identifies and characterizes the most repressive states and singles out which are aggressive" - publisher's summary excerpt

Inside North Korea [videorecording] produced by Pangloss Films for National Geographic Television & Film (distributed by Warner Home Video), 2007.
call number: DVD Nonfiction 951.93 Ins
"A comprehensive look at . . . the tense world of the Demilitarized Zone to the surreal life of the Dear Leader Kim Jong II." - publishers summary excerpt

Swine Flu Researchers Review Historical Pandemics

CNN reports that researchers are reviewing past pandemics to predict the future developments of the H1N1-swine flu virus ("Scientists Dig for Lessons from Past Pandemics" - CNN, April 30, 2009). The primary discovery is that a "more deadly second wave" hits several months after the first onset of a communicable disease outbreak (as seen in 1889, 1918, 1957, and 1968). This situation buys time for development of an H1N1 vaccine. Looking back in time, non-medical interventions such as closing places where people congregate and quarantining affected individuals still definitely slows the spread of disease.

Review selected library titles related to the epidemics at LSC-CyFair Branch Library. Click the title of a book, select the "Request" button in the listing, and enter your library card number and PIN for each title you want to reserve for pick up at the library. Call the library at 281-290-3219 to check your PIN if you do not remember it. Use these subject words and phrases to find more in the library catalog:

• epidemics
• communicable diseases
• emerging infection diseases
• world health
  

Do Infectious Diseases Pose a Threat? edited by Beverly Engel - Greenhaven Press, 2009.
call number: 362.196 Doi
"Includes essays such as 'The United States is prepared for an influenza pandemic' and 'Computers can predict and prevent epidemics'" - table of contents excerpt

Infectious Disease: A Scientific American Reader - University of Chicago Press, 2008.
call number: 362.196 Doi
"With sections devoted to viral infections, infectious disease, the immune system, and global management and treatment issues, Infectious Disease provides general readers and students with an excellent overview of recent research in the field." - publisher's summary excerpt

Pandemics and Global Health by Barry Youngerman - Facts On File, 2008.
call number: 614.49 You
"This indispensable book--which rivals even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's web site in accessibility and breadth--is a practical guide to understanding communicable diseases and their transmission modes." - Library Journal review excerpt

Understanding New, Resurgent, and Resistant Diseases: How Man and Globalization Create and Spread Illness by Kurt Link - Praeger Publishers, 2007.
call number: 362.196 Lin
"Aimed at a general audience, this volume by Link (a retired medical internist) provides a broad overview of the variety of disease threats that threaten the health and lives of people around the world." - publisher's summary excerpt

The Little Book of Pandemics: 50 of the World's Most Virulent Plagues and Infectious Diseases by Dr. Peter Moore - Collins, 2007.
call number: 614.4 Moo
"Includes headline grabbers such as SARS, avian flu, and anthrax, as well as conditions considered relatively mild in Western countries, such as measles and chicken pox. Basic information is provided in two to four pages and illustrated with a map of where the disease is active, . . . and bar graphs indicating how infectious and severe the disease is, its fatality rate, and how dangerous it would be as a bioweapon." - School Library Journal review excerpt