Page 15 - HOH

A28 SCIENCE
Thursday 6 February 2020
Changing counts reveal inexact science of calorie labels

NEW YORK (AP) — Almonds up into almond butter,
used to have about 170 nearly all the calories were
calories per serving. Then digested.
researchers said it was real- Notably, the second study
ly more like 130. A little lat- also found raw almonds
er, they said the nuts may had even fewer digestible
have even less. calories than suggested
Calorie counting can be a by the first study. Baer at-
simple way to help main- tributed the discrepancy to
tain a healthy weight — variations in how people di-
don't eat and drink more gest foods and natural dif-
than you burn. And the ferences in almonds them-
calorie labels on food selves.
packaging seem like an im- "It's unlikely you're going to
mutable guide to help you get the exact same num-
track what you eat. ber every time you repeat
But the shifting numbers for the experiment," he said.
almonds show how the fig- The almond studies are
ures printed on nutrition la- among several Baer has
bels may not be as precise co-authored on the digest-
as they seem. In this June 22, 2019 file photo, a shopkeeper weighs California almonds for a customer at a shop ibility of nuts. Another last
Last month, Kind said it in New Delhi, India. year was funded by the
was lowering the calorie Associated Press Global Cashew Council
counts for its snack bars, and found cashews had
even though the ingredi- protein each have 4 calo- David Baer, a co-author of of almonds has about 130 fewer calories than esti-
ents weren't changing. The ries, while a gram of fat has the nut studies at the U.S. digestible calories, rather mated.
company cited studies that around 9. Companies can Department of Agriculture, than the widely used figure Despite his findings, Baer
indicate nuts have fewer also subtract some calories which funded the research of 170. said he thinks the calorie
digestible calories than based on past estimates along with nut producers A few years later, in 2016, counts used for most other
previously believed. of how much of different like the Almond Board of another study by Baer and foods are fairly accurate.
Conducted by govern- foods are not digested. California. colleagues also looked at And even though the U.S.
ment researchers with But based on anecdotal To test the hunch, Baer the effects of food process- Food and Drug Admin-
funding from nut produc- comments, researchers and colleagues gave 18 ing. They found cooking istration lets companies
ers, the studies show the suspected more of the people meals with and and grinding helped break use different methods to
inexact method of deter- nutrients in nuts may be without raw almonds and down cell walls in almonds, determine calorie counts,
mining calorie counts es- expelled in the bathroom instructed them to return freeing more calories for di- the agency says products
tablished more than a cen- than previously estimated. daily with their urine and gestion. Roasted almonds aren't supposed to have
tury ago. The widely used "If they're not digested, stool packed in dry ice. The had slightly more digestible more than 20% more calo-
system says a gram of car- then maybe the calorie contents were analyzed calories than raw almonds. ries than what's stated on
bohydrates and a gram of content is not correct," said to calculate that a serving When the nuts were ground labels.q
Dog sleuths sniff out crop

disease hitting citrus trees

By CHRISTINA LARSON just trained dogs to hunt trained dogs were accu-
WASHINGTON (AP) — Dog new prey: the bacteria that rate 95% of the time in dis-
detectives might be able causes a very damaging tinguishing between newly
to help save ailing citrus crop disease." infected trees and healthy
groves, research published Dog sleuths are also faster, ones.
Monday suggests. cheaper and more accu- "The earlier you detect a
Scientists trained dogs to rate than people collect- disease, the better chance
sniff out a crop disease ing hundreds of leaves for you have at stopping an
In this April 2016 photo provided by the United States Depart- called citrus greening that lab analysis, according to epidemic" by culling in-
ment of Agriculture, detector canine "Bello" works in a citrus or- has hit orange, lemon and the study in the Proceed- fected trees, explained
chard in Texas, searching for citrus greening disease, a bacteria grapefruit orchards in Flor- ings of National Academies Gottwald.
that is spread by a tiny insect that feeds on citrus trees.
Associated Press ida, California and Texas. of Sciences. Citrus green- Matteo Garbelotto, who
The dogs can detect it ing — also called huan- studies plants at the Uni-
weeks to years before it glongbing — is caused by versity of California, Berke-
shows up on tree leaves a bacteria that is spread ley, says the new research
and roots, the researchers by a tiny insect that feeds elevates the study of dog
report. on the leaves and stems of sleuths in orchards from
"This technology is thou- citrus trees. Once a tree is anecdotal to field-tested,
sands of years old – the infected, there's no cure. showing that dogs can de-
dog's nose," said Timothy The disease has also hurt tect an infection well be-
Gottwald, a researcher citrus crops in Central and fore current methods. Gar-
with the U.S. Department South America and Asia. belotto has been involved
of Agriculture and a co- In one experiment in a in similar research but had
author of the study. "We've Texas grapefruit orchard, no role in new study. q