Content about Nutrition

NEW YORK — South Beach Diet today unveiled new additions to its lineup of snacks and smoothies.

South Beach Diet ProteinFit Bars and a South Beach Diet Snack Bar join the snack lineup. South Beach Diet ProteinFit bars come with 16 grams of protein and are available in two flavors — Vanilla Caramel and Honey Peanut — both with a Greek yogurt coating. The new South Beach Diet Chocolate Caramel Nut Snack Bar contains six grams of protein and only 100 calories. South Beach Diet products have no artificial flavors or sweeteners; they are in stores now.

HYATTSVILLE, Md. — Researchers have found that both kids and adults are drinking fewer sugar-sweetened beverages, according to a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

PRINCETON, N.J. — Anglo-Swedish drug maker AstraZeneca will buy Omthera Pharmaceuticals for $323 million, the two companies said Tuesday.

Omthera, based in Princeton, N.J., develops drugs for dyslipidemia, conditions that result in abnormal levels of lipids in the blood. Its lead products include Epanova, an experimental drug for patients with high triglycerides that's based on omega-3 fatty acids; Omthera has finished late-stage clinical trials of the drug and plans to file for Food and Drug Administration approval in mid-2013.

SIOUX FALLS, Iowa — Jolly Time Pop Corn announced this week two new varieties of microwavable popcorn made with the Smart Balance unique blend of oils, according to the company.

NEW YORK — Vitamin C can kill a virulent form of tuberculosis, researchers in New York have found.

The researchers, at Yeshiva University's Albert Einstein College of Medicine, determined that vitamin C was able to kill drug-resistant forms of the bacteria that causes tuberculosis in lab culture, publishing their findings in the online journal Nature Communications. They had been looking into how TB bacteria become resistant to isoniazid, a first-line drug used to treat it.

BOISE, Idaho — Epionce has announced the launch of Intense Defense Anti-Aging + Repair Serum, which it is positioning as the first complete multivitamin for the skin.

The serum is designed to stimulate skin rejuvenation using botanical sources of vitamins A, B, C, D and E without irritation.

CINCINNATI — Kids in child care are not meeting their daily nutritional needs with the snacks they tend to eat, according to a new study.

NEW YORK — The Winning Combination on Wednesday launched a new green-friendly protein powder to be packaged in a 100% compostable, recyclable canister under the brand Bodylogix. According to the company, the line of protein powder offers active, health-conscious men and women a way to take care of their bodies and the environment at the same time. 

FORT WASHINGTON, Pa. — Nutrisystem executives on Wednesday told analysts they were bullish around expanding their weight-loss meal delivery service into mass retail through its partnership with Walmart. Initially beginning with 500 Walmart doors in January, the company recently expanded the offering to 2,000 stores and climbing. 

LEVERKUSEN, Germany — Bayer HealthCare will buy birth-control product maker Conceptus for $1.1 billion, the companies said.

Bayer said its $31-per-share purchase of the Mountain View, Calif.-based company would allow it to expand its selection of contraception products. Conceptus makes Essure, a non-surgical permanent birth-control method, and Bayer said it would allow the company to offer a complete range of short-term, long-term and permanent contraceptive methods for women.

NEW YORK — A study in the May issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association released Tuesday found that vitamin D supplementation may be important for breast-feeding moms. 

NEW YORK — The National Advertising Division last week recommended that Interhealth Nutraceuticals discontinue certain claims for the company’s Zychrome dietary supplements, products that are promoted for the management of insulin levels.

Print and internet claims made by Interhealth for its Zychrome chromium compound, also known as chromium dinicocysteinate, were challenged by Nutrition 21, the manufacturer of a competing product, Chromax, a chromium picolinate product. Interhealth had been making comparison claims against the supplement ingredient in Chromax.