Though for decades some foods have carried the label "organic," consumers never could be sure exactly what the term meant. Action by the Department of Agriculture last week should clarify things.On Oct. 21, USDA implemented regulations governing the production and labeling of organic foods. Until now, bodies from state governments to trade and consumer groups loosely�and independently�regulated organic products, leading to often conflicting standards about which products could rightfully claim to be organic.Under the new guidelines, foods labeled as organic must have been produced without the ...

Although most Mediterranean countries aren't big polluters, the area is a crossroads for pollution-carrying air currents from Europe, Asia, and North America. (p. 261)

The discovery of a new enzyme responsible for creating the tear-inducing chemicals found in onions may herald the arrival of genetically modified tearfree onions. (p. 244)

Iron deficiency, the most common nutritional disorder in the world, is a major problem in many developing countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) currently estimates that a mind-boggling 4 to 5 billion people may suffer from some form of iron deficiency�that's 66 to 88% of the world's population. Up to 2 billion of these people also suffer from anemia, a condition often due to insufficient iron in which blood has too few red blood cells.Now, a new study, which tested iron uptake from recipes including Chinese cabbage, adds to the evidence that iron cooking vessels may be a cheap and eff...

Exposing children to cats or dogs at an early age may make them less prone to allergies later in life. (p. 157)