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The risk for dementia dropped by 20%, however, for people who replaced that small daily serving of processed red meat with a daily serving of nuts and legumes.

Processed red meats such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs and deli meats often contain higher levels of sodium, nitrates and saturated fat. Eating higher amounts of these meats has been strongly linked to the development of colon and other cancers, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease and stroke, studies have shown.

“There is much we can do to reduce the risks of dementia, starting with actions that are well known to reduce risks of cardiovascular disease,” said Dr. Walter Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

“There are still aspects of this to understand in more detail,” Willett said in an email. “For example it seems that some foods may be particularly important to include and we would like to understand the specific active ingredients, but we don’t need to wait for all the details to take action.”

The study was observational and can only show an association and not necessarily cause and effect, said Dr. David Katz, a specialist in preventive and lifestyle medicine who was not involved in the study.

“However, the associations are very likely to be causal, because the principal risk factors for Alzheimer’s and cognitive decline are the risk factors for cardiovascular disease, with which processed meat intake is strongly linked,” he said in an email. Katz is the founder of the nonprofit True Health Initiative, a global coalition of experts dedicated to evidence-based lifestyle medicine.

Each additional serving of processed red meat raised risk

An abstract of the study, which is under review for publication, was presented Wednesday at the 2024 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Philadelphia.

Every two to four years for over three decades, researchers captured dietary data from more than 130,000 participants in the Nurses’ Health Study, one of the largest investigations into the risk factors for major chronic diseases in women, and the complimentary Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, which investigated the same risk factors in men.

The men and women were asked how often they ate a serving of processed red meat, which could be two slices of bacon, one hot dog, two small links of sausage or kielbasa, and salami, bologna or other processed meat sandwiches.

The study participants were also asked how often they ate nuts and legumes, such as 1 tablespoon of peanut butter; 1 ounce of peanuts, walnuts or other nuts; an 8-ounce glass of soy milk; a half cup of string beans, lentils, beans, peas or lima beans; or a typical 3-ounce serving of tofu or soy protein.

“Those are anti-inflammatory foods, so you can imagine they have a lot of benefits in addition to reducing the processed meats with toxins, nitrates and sodium which are not good for you,” said Dr. Maria Carrillo, chief science officer of the Alzheimer’s Association, who was not involved in the study.

Boar’s Head expands recall to include 7 million more pounds of deli meats tied to listeria outbreakJONEL ALECCIAJuly 30, 2024 at 6:27 PMThe popular deli meat company…

A new study found dozens of popular chocolates made in the U.S. and Europe contain more heavy metals than the limit set by a California law, according to a report published Wednesday in the peer-reviewed journal Frontiers in Nature.

The 1986 California law, Proposition 65, requires businesses to inform state residents about products containing toxic substances – including heavy metals – that are known to cause cancer, birth defects and reproductive harm.

While the elevated levels of metals in chocolate are concerning, consumers needn’t cut this delicious staple from their diet, said study co-author Leigh Frame, director of integrative medicine and associate professor at George Washington University.

“I’m a chocolate lover myself so you’ll be glad to hear that chocolate isn’t going to kill us,” she said. But like all things, moderation is key.

How heavy metals get into your chocolate

Lead and cadmium are elements found in nature that can affect every tissue in the body by inserting themselves into cellular processes involved in major bodily functions.

Children are especially vulnerable if they ingest heavy metals, particularly in terms of their neurological development. Exposure can damage the brain and nervous system, slow growth and development and trigger learning and behavioral problems.

In Wednesday’s study, researchers from George Washington University studied samples of more than 70 treats over eight years, from 2014 to 2022. They found that 43% of the chocolate products studied exceeded the maximum allowable dose of lead and 35% exceeded the amount for cadmium. Frame declined to name the brands of chocolate used in the research, saying all chocolate is likely affected, regardless of brand.

Heavy metals make their way into chocolate through the cacao bean, said Danielle Fugere, president and chief counsel at As You Sow, a nonprofit that worked with the chocolate industry to produce an investigative report on heavy metals in chocolate in 2022.

Lead in America’s water pipes Lead can alter personalities and pose lifelong risks

The report found cacao trees absorb microscopic amounts of cadmium from the soil through the roots that build up in the cacao beans.

“It’s a naturally occurring metal,” said Ana M. Rule, assistant professor and director of the Exposure Assessment Laboratories at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who was not affiliated with either study. “But just because they’re naturally occurring, doesn’t mean they’re safe.”

Lead contamination can also occur at various stages of chocolate production – during the harvesting, drying and fermenting of cacao beans.

The beans can accumulate lead from the environment on their sticky surfaces as they’re drying on contaminated ground or the side of the road in a place with heavy metals from car pollution. Lead can also be introduced during the manufacturing process, Fugere said.

“We added (heavy metals) to products and now they’re in the soil and pollution,” said Frame, from George Washington University. “As they start to accumulate in the environment, they become a problem.”

What’s the deal with dark and organic chocolate

Heavy metals are more of a glaring problem in some chocolate products than others. For example, samples of dark chocolate contained higher levels of lead and cadmium, according to the GW study.

Experts say dark chocolate uses more concentrated cacao than milk chocolate, which explains why it could have a higher concentration of heavy metals.

The study authors were surprised to find organic products contained higher levels of cadmium and lead than more processed chocolate. Frame suggested this could be because organic chocolate is less processed, which means the concentration of chocolate and heavy metals in it is less diluted.

Lead paint is just the beginning Poisoning danger lurks in your pantry and toys

Another explanation for the difference, Fugere said, is that organic chocolate producers tend to operate in a single area, and single-origin chocolate is likelier to have higher levels of heavy metals than chocolate products in which cacao beans have been harvested from various places around the world.

Single-origin producers who harvest from an environment high in cadmium or lead don’t include beans from other regions in their chocolate to dilute the concentration of heavy metals, she said.

What the chocolate industry can do

Using a mix of cacao beans from different areas of the world is one effective way chocolate producers can reduce the levels of heavy metals in their products, experts said.

As You Sow determined in its 2022 report exporters could stop purchasing beans from regions where cacao is high in heavy metals; farmers could also stop planting new orchards in those regions.

Experts also recommend that cacao farmers increase the soil pH and chocolate makers establish clean practices to prevent lead contamination, which Fugere said includes replacing the equipment manufacturers use to prevent lead from being introduced in the processing stage.

It’s also important at the end stage, to continue testing chocolate products to gauge areas of improvement, Rule, from Johns Hopkins, said.

“Every time we look for metals, we’re finding them,” she said. “It’s good to keep monitoring these consumer products to be able to identify sources and inform (people).”

What you can do as a consumer

Of course, chocolate isn’t all bad. And research has shown it has some health benefits.

Chocolate is rich in flavonoids, which contain anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties. Flavonoids are also associated with heart and brain benefits, reducing high blood pressure and improving cognitive function.

If you want the health benefits from chocolate but hope to reduce your heavy metal exposure, you should limit chocolate consumption to 1 or 2 ounces per day, experts said. That’s the equivalent of about nine Hershey’s Kisses. Frame says she’s been able to curb her chocolate habit by limiting her intake to every other day.

“I’m a big lover of chocolate and the way that I found to moderate intake is to focus on it as a treat,” she said.

Health experts also urge consumers to research other foods that contain high levels of heavy metals to avoid pairing them in a meal with chocolate.

“These days, what we consume is so processed that we lose track of all the places where it can get contaminated,” Rule said. “It’s important to be vigilant.”

Adrianna Rodriguez can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lead, cadmium found in dozens of your favorite chocolate products

A new study found dozens of popular chocolates made in the U.S. and Europe contain more heavy metals than the limit set by a California law, according to a report published Wednesday in the peer-reviewed journal Frontiers in Nature.

The 1986 California law, Proposition 65, requires businesses to inform state residents about products containing toxic substances – including heavy metals – that are known to cause cancer, birth defects and reproductive harm.

While the elevated levels of metals in chocolate are concerning, consumers needn’t cut this delicious staple from their diet, said study co-author Leigh Frame, director of integrative medicine and associate professor at George Washington University.

“I’m a chocolate lover myself so you’ll be glad to hear that chocolate isn’t going to kill us,” she said. But like all things, moderation is key.

How heavy metals get into your chocolate

Lead and cadmium are elements found in nature that can affect every tissue in the body by inserting themselves into cellular processes involved in major bodily functions.

Children are especially vulnerable if they ingest heavy metals, particularly in terms of their neurological development. Exposure can damage the brain and nervous system, slow growth and development and trigger learning and behavioral problems.

In Wednesday’s study, researchers from George Washington University studied samples of more than 70 treats over eight years, from 2014 to 2022. They found that 43% of the chocolate products studied exceeded the maximum allowable dose of lead and 35% exceeded the amount for cadmium. Frame declined to name the brands of chocolate used in the research, saying all chocolate is likely affected, regardless of brand.

Heavy metals make their way into chocolate through the cacao bean, said Danielle Fugere, president and chief counsel at As You Sow, a nonprofit that worked with the chocolate industry to produce an investigative report on heavy metals in chocolate in 2022.

Lead in America’s water pipes Lead can alter personalities and pose lifelong risks

The report found cacao trees absorb microscopic amounts of cadmium from the soil through the roots that build up in the cacao beans.

“It’s a naturally occurring metal,” said Ana M. Rule, assistant professor and director of the Exposure Assessment Laboratories at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who was not affiliated with either study. “But just because they’re naturally occurring, doesn’t mean they’re safe.”

Lead contamination can also occur at various stages of chocolate production – during the harvesting, drying and fermenting of cacao beans.

The beans can accumulate lead from the environment on their sticky surfaces as they’re drying on contaminated ground or the side of the road in a place with heavy metals from car pollution. Lead can also be introduced during the manufacturing process, Fugere said.

“We added (heavy metals) to products and now they’re in the soil and pollution,” said Frame, from George Washington University. “As they start to accumulate in the environment, they become a problem.”

What’s the deal with dark and organic chocolate

Heavy metals are more of a glaring problem in some chocolate products than others. For example, samples of dark chocolate contained higher levels of lead and cadmium, according to the GW study.

Experts say dark chocolate uses more concentrated cacao than milk chocolate, which explains why it could have a higher concentration of heavy metals.

The study authors were surprised to find organic products contained higher levels of cadmium and lead than more processed chocolate. Frame suggested this could be because organic chocolate is less processed, which means the concentration of chocolate and heavy metals in it is less diluted.

Lead paint is just the beginning Poisoning danger lurks in your pantry and toys

Another explanation for the difference, Fugere said, is that organic chocolate producers tend to operate in a single area, and single-origin chocolate is likelier to have higher levels of heavy metals than chocolate products in which cacao beans have been harvested from various places around the world.

Single-origin producers who harvest from an environment high in cadmium or lead don’t include beans from other regions in their chocolate to dilute the concentration of heavy metals, she said.

What the chocolate industry can do

Using a mix of cacao beans from different areas of the world is one effective way chocolate producers can reduce the levels of heavy metals in their products, experts said.

As You Sow determined in its 2022 report exporters could stop purchasing beans from regions where cacao is high in heavy metals; farmers could also stop planting new orchards in those regions.

Experts also recommend that cacao farmers increase the soil pH and chocolate makers establish clean practices to prevent lead contamination, which Fugere said includes replacing the equipment manufacturers use to prevent lead from being introduced in the processing stage.

It’s also important at the end stage, to continue testing chocolate products to gauge areas of improvement, Rule, from Johns Hopkins, said.

“Every time we look for metals, we’re finding them,” she said. “It’s good to keep monitoring these consumer products to be able to identify sources and inform (people).”

What you can do as a consumer

Of course, chocolate isn’t all bad. And research has shown it has some health benefits.

Chocolate is rich in flavonoids, which contain anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and anti-carcinogenic properties. Flavonoids are also associated with heart and brain benefits, reducing high blood pressure and improving cognitive function.

If you want the health benefits from chocolate but hope to reduce your heavy metal exposure, you should limit chocolate consumption to 1 or 2 ounces per day, experts said. That’s the equivalent of about nine Hershey’s Kisses. Frame says she’s been able to curb her chocolate habit by limiting her intake to every other day.

“I’m a big lover of chocolate and the way that I found to moderate intake is to focus on it as a treat,” she said.

Health experts also urge consumers to research other foods that contain high levels of heavy metals to avoid pairing them in a meal with chocolate.

“These days, what we consume is so processed that we lose track of all the places where it can get contaminated,” Rule said. “It’s important to be vigilant.”

Adrianna Rodriguez can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lead, cadmium found in dozens of your favorite chocolate products

A blaze in Benasau in the eastern region of Valencia forced emergency services to remove several hundred villagers from their homes as a precaution when it broke out in nearby hills.

Firefighters said the “fire is evolving favourably” following all-night efforts.

Another one, in the province of Cuenca more inland, has burnt through more than 1,500 hectares of vegetation since Tuesday. Both blazes have been qualified as severe.

Weather service AEMET predicted maximum temperatures of 43-44 degrees Celsius (109.4-111.2°F) in parts of the country on Wednesday, which is expected to be the peak day of a heatwave, while the interior ministry warned of very high or extreme risk of wildfires across Spain.

AEMET said that the Barcelona-Fabra observatory in the northeastern region of Catalonia registered an all-time high temperature of 40 C on Tuesday, beating its previous record of 39.8 C (103.64°F) set in July 1982.

This is the third heatwave in Spain over the last two weeks.

Rising global temperatures due to climate change have also contributed to more frequent wildfires elsewhere – from China to Canada. In Europe, they are also raging in the Balkans region.

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo and Andrei Khalip; editing by Barbara Lewis)

A blaze in Benasau in the eastern region of Valencia forced emergency services to remove several hundred villagers from their homes as a precaution when it broke out in nearby hills.

Firefighters said the “fire is evolving favourably” following all-night efforts.

Another one, in the province of Cuenca more inland, has burnt through more than 1,500 hectares of vegetation since Tuesday. Both blazes have been qualified as severe.

Weather service AEMET predicted maximum temperatures of 43-44 degrees Celsius (109.4-111.2°F) in parts of the country on Wednesday, which is expected to be the peak day of a heatwave, while the interior ministry warned of very high or extreme risk of wildfires across Spain.

AEMET said that the Barcelona-Fabra observatory in the northeastern region of Catalonia registered an all-time high temperature of 40 C on Tuesday, beating its previous record of 39.8 C (103.64°F) set in July 1982.

This is the third heatwave in Spain over the last two weeks.

Rising global temperatures due to climate change have also contributed to more frequent wildfires elsewhere – from China to Canada. In Europe, they are also raging in the Balkans region.

(Reporting by Emma Pinedo and Andrei Khalip; editing by Barbara Lewis)

The death toll has surpassed 150, many of whom drowned, authorities said, adding that the number of casualties was expected to rise after at least two landslides hit the state’s northeastern Wayanad district in the early hours of Tuesday.

Rescue workers are now facing treacherous conditions due to heavy rain, lack of power, destroyed bridges and roads blocked by fallen trees as they try to reach survivors and determine the full scope of the disaster.

“We don’t know if people have been washed away in the river but we are doing our best to rescue people. We are leaving no stone unturned,” A. K. Saseendran, Kerala’s minister for forest and wildlife, told CNN Tuesday.

Emergency responders at the site of the landslides – which was covered in mud and toppled trees – carried away bodies in tarps and helped residents move to safety as rain poured down.

Videos posted to X by India’s National Disaster Response Force also showed rescue workers paddling through muddied water on inflatable boats to try to reach people.

“Helicopters have also been brought there, but the weather is bad,” said Veena George, the state health minister, on Tuesday. “There are many challenges there because there is no electricity.”

Up to 1,000 people have been rescued so far, the Indian Army’s southern command said in a post on X Wednesday.

Janaki, a local resident, told CNN her family was awoken in the middle of the night to a loud noise coming from the river and water flowing through her yard. They took shelter in a neighbor’s home, she said.

Then another landslide hit.

“While everyone was standing in a room in fear, large stones and logs came in there,” Janaki said, sitting in a bed in a local hospital.

“My two daughters and my husband survived. None of the people in the neighboring houses were seen.”

Janaki’s husband, Vasu, said rescue workers arrived around 6 a.m. and brought the family to the hospital. “God saved us,” he said.

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The Polish diving group Baltictech, which routinely scours the Baltic Sea for shipwrecks, found a 19th-century sailing ship just south of Sweden, outside Polish territorial waters, diving team leader Tomasz Stachura said in a report on the Baltictech site.

They almost sailed by, he said. “One of the wrecks on the sonar was barely scratching and looked like a fishing boat,” Stachura said.

Despite having already done one dive that day, divers Marek Cacaj and Pawel Truszynski “showed a lot of determination and said they would do a quick dive,” Stachura said. When the two remained under for almost two hours, “we already knew that there was something very interesting on the bottom,” he said.