Why dark chocolate is good for your heart

… New research in the FASEB Journal suggests that consumption of dark chocolate lowers the augmentation index, a key vascular health predictor, and reduces adhesion of white blood cells to the vessel wall

It might seem too good to be true, but dark chocolate is good for you and scientists now know why. Dark chocolate helps restore flexibility to arteries while also preventing white blood cells from sticking to the walls of blood vessels. Both arterial stiffness and white blood cell adhesion are known factors that play a significant role in atherosclerosis. 

What's more, the scientists also found that increasing the flavanol content of dark chocolate did not change this effect. This discovery was published in the March 2014 issue of The FASEB Journal.  

"We provide a more complete picture of the impact of chocolate consumption in vascular health and show that increasing flavanol content has no added beneficial effect on vascular health," said Diederik Esser, Ph.D., a researcher involved in the work from the Top Institute Food and Nutrition and Wageningen University, Division of Human Nutrition in Wageningen, The Netherlands. "However, this increased flavanol content clearly affected taste and thereby the motivation to eat these chocolates. So the dark side of chocolate is a healthy one."'

Read the rest of Why dark chocolate is good for your heart

How Cooking Can Change Your Life

…from RSA Shorts—#EverybodyEats so #getsmarter about it. Check out more RSA videos and playlists on other subjects too. Topics include arts, humanities, education, politics, society, science, environment and more, plus webinars, live and replay. I'm particularly partial to the Animates series. Learn more about The RSA and "21st century Enlightenment"

Can you really have your cake and eat it? According to Michael Pollan, you can. In this fun RSA Short, Pollan explains how to eat well by following one simple rule without the need for fad diets or deprivation. 

Michael Pollan is an award-winning food writer whose books include, "Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation", "In Defense of Food" and "The Omnivore's Dilemma,"  Watch Michael Pollan's full talk 'How cooking can change your life' in full at the RSA

▶ RSA Shorts - How Cooking Can Change Your Life - YouTube

A New Mexico Thanksgiving Dinner

 from @NMMagazine, a menu to have you giving thanks for the state’s bounty of singular ingredients


Back when the Pilgrims were still boys and girls in England, Don Juan de Oñate and his band of explorers enjoyed a feast of thanksgiving in 1598, near Las Cruces, as recorded by Gaspar Pérez de Villagrá, a poet who traveled with the expedition. That’s all the excuse we need for a Thanksgiving feast seasoned in New Mexican style. I always look forward to local flourishes that add zest to the traditional bird and trimmings.

Read the rest of Thanksgiving Dinner in New Mexico Magazine

Top 10 food facts on #FoodDay

		Top 10 Food Facts Share your favorite science-based fact to show your support for a healthier food and farm system in honor of Food Day! Share your favorite fact now! ACTION ALERT This Food Day, Share the Facts Today is Food Day! To celebrate, I'm sharing a list of my "Top 10" favorite facts from recent UCS reports, including our brand new report, The Healthy Farmland Diet. The Healthy Farmland Diet is the first economic analysis of its kind to show how increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables would not only be healthier for our bodies, but also healthier for the environment and local economies. This report also demonstrates how modest government investments can remove obstacles standing in the way for consumers and farmers to reach this goal. So tell me: what's your favorite science-based food fact? Use the links below to share it on Twitter to show your support of a healthier food and farm system! You can also share all 10 facts on Facebook or by forwarding this email. 1. Healthy farms=win-win-win for health/well being of people, economies & natural resources we all depend on 2. Sales of locally grown food now total $5 BILLION/year. 3. Modest public investments in ~500 farmers markets/year could create >13K jobs over 5 years 4. Got (organic) milk? #Organic dairies = better for environment, consumer health & regional economies. 5. Shifting policy from supporting junk food to fruits/veg could save $17B in health costs 6. Burger with a side of...pills?  >70% of antibiotics sold in US are used in animal agriculture. 7. Only 2% of US cropland is devoted to fruit/veg. Time for smarter gov't policies. 8. If Americans ate fruit/veg according to @myplate, US production of fruit/veg would increase by 88%. 9. Just 1 more serving of fruits/vegetables could save >30K lives/yr. 10. Scientists have shown that cover crops can reduce nitrogen groundwater pollution by 40-70% As you can see, we've got the facts on our side AND we're making progress because of it. Just last week, we delivered a petition from more than 18,000 UCS supporters to House leadership urging them to proceed with the Farm Bill. They listened, and the Farm Bill process is now moving ahead. Moreover, President Obama listed the Farm Bill as one of his three near-term priorities. With all of this, we've got a lot to be excited about—and a lot of work to do. Join us, and this Food Day, share your favorite fact now for a healthier food and farm system! Sincerely, Ashley Elles National Field Organizer Food & Environment Program Union of Concerned Scientists

College Scholarship Opportunities

…for college students majoring in Horticulture, Plant Science or Journalism, with an interest in garden communications. Here's the link:  http://www.gardenwriters.org/gwa.php?p=gwafoundation/student_scholarships.html