Vitamin D deficiency is making headlines again with the recent publication of a study in the journal Pediatrics (online, not yet in print) which analyzed federal data of more than 6,000 children.

A few highlights:

Two stories in today's (5/7/09) Washington Post helped me greet the day positively and reinforce my sense that, step-by-step, we're making strides to improve the health of our children and the prevent childhood obesity.

The 2010 Dietary Guideline committee is at work revising the 2005 Dietary Guidelines which is mandated by Federal law to be done every five years under the direction of either Health and Human Services (HHS) or U.S. Dept of Agriculture (USDA). HHS took the lead in 2005 and this time around the USDA is taking the lead. The work of the committee and staff will conclude with the publication of the revised guidelines in fall of 2010.

There’s no shortage of nutrition advice—that’s for sure! The near daily headlines encouraging you to eat more of this and less of that, to advertisements that promote more dietary supplements to prevent or cure myriad medical conditions are enough to make your head spin and make it a challenge to separate fact from fiction when it comes to nutrition and healthy eating.

On 1/20/09 I had the opportunity to attend the inauguration of President Barack Obama. I am hopeful because I believe there are signs and symptoms that we are moving in positive directions in the areas of making healthier foods more readily available, making it easier to eat healthy and placing at least some focus and energy on preventing chronic diseases. Yes, recognizing once again that healthy eating and health are integrally interwoven!

Yesterday (12/17/08) the U.S. FDA sent a "No Objection Letter" to Merisant's Whole Earth Sweetener company and to Cargill, Inc., responding to their long awaited request to market a highly purified form of Stevia known as Reb A (rebaudioside A). Translated this letter means that FDA has no objection to the conclusion that both companies reached independently using the GRAS self-affirmation process: that Reb A is generally recognized as safe among qualified experts for use in beverages, foods and tabletop sweeteners.

Myfoodadvisor tm (www.diabetes.org/myfoodadvisor.html), just released by the American Diabetes Association (ADA), offers people with diabetes, and those looking to eat healthier, a comprehensive and easy-to-navigate nutrient database with a bundle of tools. At its core, it's a nutrient database for 5,000 commonly eaten basic ingredients, fresh and frozen foods, packaged foods and restaurant foods from a few large chains.