The Washington Post - 20.08.2019

TUESDAY, AUGUST 20 , 2019. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ EE E3

School lunch menus already
have Meatless Mondays and Taco
Tuesdays. Now some may get
Trade Mitigation Thursdays.
This fall, some U.S. school cafete-
rias are expecting shipments of free
food, one little known consequence
of President Trump’s trade dis-
putes. The products are coming
from the Agriculture Department,
which is giving away the $1.2 bil-
lion in foods it’s buying to help
farmers hurt by trade negotiations.
A Maryland district is awaiting
a truckload of canned kidney
beans — one of several “trade miti-
gation” items schools were offered.
“We make our own chili soup, so
we knew we had a use for that,”
said Barbara Harral, a nutrition
official for Montgomery County
Public Schools.
All told, she said the school
system is getting $70,000 worth of
free products for the fall, includ-
ing apples and oranges. Harral,
who has been with the district for
22 years, doesn’t recall the Agri-
culture Department offering trade
mitigation foods before.
The department has long
bought and distributed agricul-
tural products to help farmers,
who can face swings in supply and
demand in any given year. But the
agency is buying even more as a
result of Trump’s trade fight,
which prompted other countries
to take retaliatory actions that
curb imports of American farm
products.
That’s resulting in an unusual
bounty for the groups that get
government foods, showing one
way federal policies influence
what people eat.
According to the Agriculture
Department, most food pur-
chased as part of trade-relief ef-
forts is going to programs that
help the needy. The Los Angeles
Regional Food Bank, for instance,
says it’s getting roughly twice as
much government food as normal,
including rarely donated items

like pistachios. Though they may

struggle to handle the sudden del-

uge, food banks say they’re gener-

ally happy for the bounty.

The Agriculture Department

says schools are only getting a tiny

slice of trade mitigation foods, ac-

counting for a majority of the

$27 million of products ordered

for child nutrition programs. But

at a national convention for school

cafeteria employees this summer,

agency officials said the program

is expected to continue with addi-

tional items.

Already, schools are entitled to

annual allotments of USDA foods

based on how many students they

serve through the national school

lunch program. But cafeteria offi-

cials who operate on tight budgets

said they have always welcomed

the “bonus” foods the agency of-

fered in the past, even if the mar-

ket forces that make the products

available isn’t always clear.

In the last couple of years, the

Agriculture Department said it

hasn’t really offered bonus foods

to schools, instead diverting them

to programs for the needy. That’s

making the trade mitigation items

that much more of a treat for

school food officials.

“The room lights up when ev-

eryone knows we’ve got new items

that are coming,” said Scott Clem-

ents, director of child nutrition at

the Mississippi education depart-

ment, which ordered two truck-

loads of trade mitigation pulled

pork and four loads of kidney

beans.

Still, putting bonus foods to use

can be tricky for schools, which

plan menus far in advance and

have to consider factors like pro-

curement contracts and ware-

house capacities. Such limitations

are probably why schools didn’t

take full advantage of the $100 mil-

lion in trade mitigation foods they

were offered for the fall, according

to the Agriculture Department.

— Associated Press

Someone you know just over-
dosed on opioids.
So what do you do?
If you don’t know, keep reading.
Don’t think it could happen to
you? Think again: During 2017,
nearly 48,000 people died of opi-
oid overdoses.
They didn’t have to. Naloxone, a
drug that reverses overdoses, can
save lives. Also known as Narcan,
it reverses the effects of opioids
such as oxycodone, fentanyl, mor-
phine and heroin. Naloxone pre-
scriptions have risen dramatically
in recent years — the most recent
Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention data shows a 106 per-
cent increase in prescriptions dis-
pensed from 2017 to 2018 — but
the drug is still new to many. That
should change, public health offi-
cials say. In a recent news confer-
ence, CDC officials encouraged
naloxone use. And U.S. Surgeon
General Jerome Adams empha-
sized the overdose reversal drug’s
importance in an advisory last
year.
Overdose symptoms are easy to
spot: pupils that look as small as
pinpoints, loss of consciousness,
slow or shallow breathing. During
an overdose, the body’s drive to
breathe flags, cutting off oxygen to
the brain and threatening brain
injury or death.
Luckily, naloxone is easy to ad-

minister. The American Medical

Association offers a brief, infor-

mative video (bit.ly/naloxone-

howto) on how to give the drug,

which most commonly comes in a

nasal spray or an auto-injector

pen.

In less than three minutes, the

silent video arms you with the

knowledge you need to adminis-

ter naloxone. It’s a skill you may

well need, especially if you know

someone who takes large doses of

prescription opioids, has a

substance-use disorder, uses illicit

substances such as fentanyl or

heroin, or mixes opioids with anti-

-anxiety drugs.

If you know someone in those

categories, you could carry the

overdose-reversal drug just in

case; most states allow people to

buy it without a prescription, and

it can be cheap or even free with

insurance.

Most people who die of opioid

overdoses do so outside of medical

settings, and a handy naloxone

prescription could stand between

life and death. You may never

need to administer naloxone —

but better safe than sorry.

— Erin Blakemore

HEALTH NEWS

Because of Trump’s trade wars, schools are

getting a tasty bonus from USDA: Free food

HEALTH SCAN

OPIOIDS

Naloxone, an overdose-reversing drug, can save

lives. Here’s why you should learn how to use it.

How to administer naloxone

American Medical Association

bit.ly/naloxonehowto

R

ecent research has

linked diets that in-

clude a lot of foods

considered “ultra-pro-

cessed” — such as soft

drinks, instant soups and chicken

nuggets — to an increased risk of

obesity, high blood pressure, irri-

table bowel syndrome and even

cancer. Two studies published in

the BMJ this spring have also

found a link between high con-

sumption of these foods and risk

of both cardiovascular disease

and early death.

Both studies are observational,

which means they can’t directly

prove a cause and effect. But

evidence is growing that ultra-

processed foods can hurt your

health, says Mark Lawrence, pro-

fessor of public health nutrition

at Deakin University in Australia,

who wrote an editorial accompa-

nying both studies.

What the studies found

For both studies, researchers

used a food classification system,

developed by Brazilian scientists,

called NOVA. This system breaks

down foods into four categories:


Unprocessed foods such as

fruits; veggies; legumes; milk;

eggs; meats; poultry; seafood;

fermented milk, like yogurt;

whole grains; natural juice; cof-

fee; and water.


Processed cooking ingredi-

ents, such as salt, sugar, honey,

vegetable oils, butter and lard.


Processed foods, such as con-

densed milk, cheeses, cured ham,

canned fruit, bread, beer and

wine.


Ultra-processed foods — ones

that contain ingredients that you

wouldn’t cook with, such as color-

ings, anti-caking agents and

emulsifiers. “Anything with a long

list of ingredients, including ad-

ditives, is suspect,” Lawrence

says. Examples include packaged

baked goods such as cookies and

croissants, sugary cereals, ready-

to-eat meals that contain food

additives, instant soups, and pro-

cessed meats such as salami and

hot dogs.

In the first study, researchers

had more than 105,000 French

middle-aged adults fill out six

24-hour dietary questionnaires.

They found that for every 10 per-

cent of a respondent’s diet that

was made up of ultra-processed

foods, there was just over a 10

percent increase in rates of heart

disease, cardiovascular disease

and cerebrovascular diseases

such as stroke. The more unpro-

cessed or minimally processed

foods they ate, the lower their

risk.

In the second study, research-

ers had almost 20,000 Spanish

university graduates complete a

136-item dietary questionnaire.

They found that those who con-

sumed more than four servings a

day of ultra-processed foods had a

62 percent greater risk of death

during the study period than

those who ate less than two serv-

ings a day. Each serving of ultra-

processed food raised risk of dy-

ing by 18 percent.

Researchers don’t know exact-

ly why ultra-processed foods may

cause health problems.

“They are often high in saturat-

ed fat, calories, sugar and salt,

and low in key nutrients like

fiber,” says Mathilde Touvier, nu-

tritional epidemiologist with the

Sorbonne Paris Cite Center of

Research in Epidemiology and

Statistics and co-author of the

French study. “But we also think

it’s due to the wide range of

chemicals and additives found in

these, foods, ranging from acryl-

amide, a cancer-causing chemical

created when heating processed

foods, to the bisphenol A found in

a product’s packaging.”

But trying to whittle down

which ingredients are harmful is

pointless, Lawrence says. “Rather

than trying to reformulate these

packaged foods to make them

safer, we should be directing our

efforts to making sure unpro-

cessed or minimally processed

foods are affordable and avail-

able.”

Another problem with ultra-

processed foods is that people

tend to overeat them, and thus

gain weight. A recent study pub-

lished in the journal Cell Metabo-

lism found that subjects who ate

an ultra-processed diet ate about

500 calories more per day than

those whose diet was rich in

whole foods.

“These foods are often filled

with added sugars, salt, refined

carbohydrates and fat,” says Da-

vid Katz, director of the Yale-Grif-

fin Prevention Research Center in

Derby, Conn. “The study itself

found that people who ate ultra-

processed foods tend to eat them

faster and that they had lower

levels of appetite-suppressing

hormones than those who ate

whole foods. As a result, they may

have ended up eating more in

order to feel satisfied.”

How to eat more whole foods

About 60 percent of Ameri-

cans’ total daily calories come

from ultra-processed food, study

researchers say, so there is room

for improvement. “It’s not that

you have to cut them out of your

diet completely — it appears that

health risks start cropping up

once you begin eating more than

two servings a day,” Lawrence

says. “Like everything else in life,

it’s about moderation.”

Here are five easy ways to

reduce your intake.


Read ingredient lists care-

fully. The shorter, the better.

Avoid anything that contains hy-

drogenated oils, artificial flavors

or strange-sounding substances

you don’t recognize that the man-

ufacturer says are put there to

maintain freshness. “All the in-

gredients should look like some-

thing you could make in your own

kitchen,” Katz says. This is true

even if it’s a seemingly healthy

staple such as an energy bar, a

protein shake or even a plant-

based milk drink. These have all

gotten a health halo though they

can be ultra-processed foods, says

Julie Stefanski, a nutritionist in

Morrisville, N.C., and spokes-

woman for the Academy of Nutri-

tion & Dietetics.


Make it yourself. It can be

easier than you think to whip up

your own staple items. “It takes

less than a minute to stir together

a salad dressing with ingredients

you have on hand, such as olive

oil, balsamic vinegar, and herbs

and spices,” Stefanski says. In-

stead of spending money on a

premade protein shake, create

your own with low-fat milk, fro-

zen fruit and a tablespoon of

natural nut butter. Instead of a

sugary fruit-flavored yogurt, opt

for the plain variety and sweeten

it with fruit.



Shop smartly. When you hit

the supermarket, focus on the

perimeter. That’s where most of

the unprocessed fare — think

produce, legumes, nuts, dairy,

meat, and fish — are located.

Don’t shy away from canned or

frozen fruits, veggies, broth or

meats, either. Although these are

considered “processed” foods,

they weren’t associated with any

increased risk of death or disease,

Lawrence says.


Skip creams and sweeteners

in coffee or tea. Most powdered

and flavored liquid creams are

simply dried high-fructose corn

syrup, Stefanski says. Lighten

your drink with a splash of milk

instead.


Plan snacks in advance.

Most of the time, we reach for

processed foods because it’s con-

venient. Carry snacks such as

homemade trail mix or fruit with

nut butter with you, so you can

nosh when hunger hits instead of

attacking the vending machine.

© Copyright 2019, Consumer Reports Inc.

FROM CONSUMER REPORTS

More risks with ultra-processed foods

ISTOCK

Two recent studies add to the growing evidence that ultra-

processed foods — such as soft drinks, instant soups and chicken

nuggets — can hurt your health in serious ways.

Consumer Reports is an

independent, nonprofit organization

that works side by side with

consumers to create a fairer, safer,

and healthier world. CR does not

endorse products or services, and

does not accept advertising. CR has

no financial relationship with

advertisers in this publication. Read

more at ConsumerReports.org.

48

minutes

Teenagers today often do not get enough
sleep, something their developing bodies and
brains require. Early school start times are
thought to be part of the reason. After a
Colorado school district moved its high
school start time from 7:10 a.m. to 8:20 a.m.,
it found that students reported getting an
average of 48 minutes more sleep a night and
they said they felt less sleepy and generally
more engaged in academics. The district also adjusted the middle
school start time — from 8 a.m. to 8:50 a.m. — and researchers found
that middle-schoolers began logging an average of 31 minutes more
sleep each night. The researchers surveyed more than 15,000 Cherry
Creek School District high school and middle school students a year
after the start times were changed and found that fewer students
reported feeling too sleepy to do their homework (down from
46 percent to 35 percent among middle-schoolers and down from
71 percent to 56 percent among high school students), while scores on
a measure of academic engagement improved.
Seattle schools had similar results on sleep times after changing
their start times, and also reported improved attendance and better
grades, according to research published late last year.
Besides the potential positives for academics, longer and better-
quality sleep for teens also has been found to contribute to lower
blood pressure, better cholesterol levels and less likelihood of being
overweight, researchers reported last year in the journal Pediatrics.
Experts generally agree that teens should get eight to 10 hours of sleep
each night. To help achieve that, at least three medical groups — the
American Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics and
American Academy of Sleep Medicine — recommend that middle and
high schools start no earlier than 8:30 a.m.
— Linda Searing

THE BIG NUMBER

BY MORGAN KRAKOW

An Israeli flight attendant died

last week after contracting mea-

sles and falling into a coma,

Israeli health officials confirmed,

the latest incident amid growing

measles outbreaks in countries

around the world.

There were more reported cas-

es of the virus in the first half of

2019 than in any other year since

2006, the World Health Organi-

zation announced last week.

Compared with this time last

year, there have already been

nearly three times as many re-

ported cases of measles. While

many of the measles outbreaks

occurred in places with low vac-

cination rates, the WHO said,

others are occurring in nations

that have high rates, resulting

from “lack of access to quality

healthcare or vaccination ser-

vices, conflict and displacement,

misinformation about vaccines,

or low awareness about the need

to vaccinate.”

“The United States has report-

ed its highest measles case count

in 25 years,” the WHO said.

The woman, a mother of three,

was just the third measles fatali-

ty in Israel in the past 15 years,

according to the Times of Israel:

In 2018, an 18-month-old child

and an 82-year-old woman also

died of the virus.

In a statement to the Jewish

Press, the airline, El Al, said “the

company is bowing its head over

the death of a member of El Al’s

aircrew. The company will con-

tinue to act on the matter in

accordance with the health min-

istry’s guidelines. Once the case

became known, the company act-

ed to vaccinate the company’s

aircrews. The company shares

the deep grief of the family and

will continue to accompany the

family.”

The Post previously reported

that the 43-year-old flight atten-

dant had been flying on an El Al

flight from New York’s John F.

Kennedy International Airport

to Israel in late March and was

later admitted to the hospital

after developing encephalitis, a

complication of the illness in

which the brain swells.

In early April, the Israeli Min-

istry of Health issued a warning

that a flight from JFK into Israel

on March 26 had a measles

patient on board, though it is not

known whether the flight atten-

dant contracted the virus while

on the flight.

“There were no specific re-

ports in Israel of persons who

were on the same flight and

developed measles,” Eyal Basson,

a spokesman for Israel’s Ministry

of Health, said via email.

In April, The Post reported

that the woman had been in a

coma and public-health experts

were unable to speak with her to

verify her vaccine record. They

were able to get in touch with her

mother, who told officials that

her daughter had received the

required vaccines in childhood.

However, at the time, likely in

the 1970s, the vaccine would

have been a single dose, while

Israel now recommends that

children receive one dose at 12

months old and another during

first grade.

The Israeli Ministry of Health

considers people born between

1957 and 1977 as not immune or

“partially immune” to measles

and recommends those traveling

abroad to receive the necessary

doses to protect against the virus.

Both New York City and Israel

have been fighting outbreaks of

the virus amid anti-vaccine cam-

paigns and misinformation.

In Israel, instances of the virus

have continued to show up pri-

marily in the ultra-Orthodox

Jewish communities, the Times

of Israel reported.

The Post’s Lena H. Sun report-

ed this month that New York

health officials were working to

suppress the outbreak:

“New York City’s outbreak be-

gan in October. By this spring,

about 400 of the health depart-

ment’s 6,500 employees were

working on the measles emer-

gency. More than 31,000 doses of

the measles, mumps and rubella

vaccine have been given to indi-

viduals in the heart of the out-

break. Since September, at least

642 cases have been reported.”

According to the WHO, “mea-

sles is almost entirely prevent-

able with two doses of measles

vaccine, a safe and highly effec-

tive vaccine.”

[email protected]

 More at washingtonpost.com/

health

Flight attendant dies of measles in global outbreak

“The United States

has reported its

highest measles case

count in 25 years.”

World Health Organization report

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