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BERKELEY, Calif. — Clif Bar on Wednesday introduced several new chocolate flavors across its Luna line of nutritional bars for women in time for Valentine’s Day. Luna Bar offers chocolate-dipped coconut and chocolate chunk varieties, while Luna Protein introduces mint chocolate chip and chocolate flavors.

PRINCETON, N.J. — Danish drug maker Novo Nordisk has created an online resource for diabetes patients that educates them about Novo Nordisk drugs and devices, recipes and nutritional values, and allows them to connect with other patients.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Grocer Food City has inked a partnership with the University of Tennessee Medical Center to expand the Healthy Living Kitchen — a move that is expected to result in a significantly greater reach for Healthy Living Kitchen programs and educational efforts at schools, community events and Food City supermarkets throughout the region.

WASHINGTON — The Consumer Healthcare Products Association recently named GlaxoSmithKline veteran Janet Carter-Smith chair of the CHPA Retailer Liaison Steering Committee effective Jan. 1. Carter-Smith is the third chair of this committee, succeeding David Howenstine, VP customer and industry development at Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, whose term ended at the end of the year.

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — Post Foods has announced that as of January 2011, the company’s Fruity and Cocoa Pebbles cereal will have a lower sugar content — 9 g per serving — in an effort to address the rise in nutritional concerns among Americans, the company noted last week.

The rice-based cereal brands also will be certified as gluten free — a relatively unique distinction in the cereal category, according to Post Foods.

ATLANTA — Private equity firm Roark Capital Group last week closed the deal on its acquisition of Atkins Nutritionals, a weight-control and nutrition brand. Atkins' management team, led by CEO Monty Sharma — who invested alongside Roark Capital in the transaction — will remain with the business.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

MIAMI — The American College of Neuropsychopharmacology on Wednesday presented a new analysis of the effects of omega-3 essential fatty acids as potential treatment options for depression.

Two critical omega-3 essential fatty acids available from certain food or nutritional supplements but not manufactured by the body — eicosapentenoic acid and docosahexaenoic — play a role in optimal brain functioning and have antidepressant benefits that have not been fully recognized, the professional society stated during its annual meeting in Miami.

WASHINGTON — The Consumer Healthcare Products Association recently named GlaxoSmithKline veteran Janet Carter-Smith chair of the CHPA Retailer Liaison Steering Committee, effective Jan. 1.

Carter-Smith will be the third chair of this committee, succeeding David Howenstine, VP customer and industry development at Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, whose term ends at the end of the year.

WASHINGTON — The Institute of Medicine on Tuesday issued a report on the dietary reference intake levels for vitamin D and calcium at the behest of both the U.S. and Canadian governments. IOM recommended a slight increase in vitamin D intake, but also suggested that the need for either vitamin D or calcium may be overstated.

PITTSBURGH — GNC on Thursday announced the launch of its GNC Longevity Factors, GNC's first and only complete line of nutritional supplements marketed for aging well. The line features supplements that support health and bioavailability enhancement technology to improve the absorption of a key antioxidant important for healthy cell aging.

Now that more drug stores have moved into the grocery business, consumers are gaining more convenient access to food.

As a result, drug stores, which have always been synonymous with health and wellness, also have a tremendous opportunity to meet the nutrition needs of time-starved shoppers by stocking their shelves with healthier foods.

Food manufacturers, like Kellogg, see an opportunity for retail pharmacies to help reinvent the way groceries are merchandised to shoppers and help consumers make better decisions when buying food.

Should retail pharmacists tell their patients to eat a good breakfast?

A mountain of data showing the health benefits of a good breakfast — one that includes high-fiber foods like cereals and grains — point to an unequivocal answer: absolutely.
Studies have proven that eating breakfast is closely linked to healthy body weights, improved mental alertness and physical performance. Plus, people who skip breakfast don’t make up for the missed nutrients later in the day.