Free Republic

Washington -- America’s craft brewers already have enough problems. Hard seltzers and cocktails are muscling into beer sales. Millennials and Gen Z don’t drink as much as their elders. Brewpubs still haven’t fully recovered from the shock of COVID-19 five years ago. Now there’s a new threat: President Donald Trump’s tariffs, including levies of 25 per cent on imported steel and aluminum and on goods from Canada and Mexico. “It’s going to cost the industry a substantial amount of money,” said Matt Cole, brewmaster at Ohio-based Fat Head’s Brewery. Trump’ trade war “will be crippling for our industry if this...

The most extensive study on how dietary polyphenol consumption affects the risk of cardiometabolic issues monitored over 6,000 Brazilians for eight years. A study of over 6,000 Brazilians—the largest of its kind—found that a diet rich in polyphenol-rich foods such as grapes, strawberries, açaí, oranges, chocolate, wine, and coffee can reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome by up to 23%. The findings, published in the Journal of Nutrition, highlight the protective effects of polyphenols against cardiometabolic disorders. Metabolic syndrome is a collection of metabolic imbalances and hormonal disruptions that significantly increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Polyphenols, known for their...

A fungus causing powdery mildew in blueberries has spread from the U.S. to continents like Europe and Asia, threatening crops and increasing fungicide dependence. NC State researchers found that blueberry powdery mildew has spread globally in two strains, costing the industry up to $530 million annually. A new tool now helps farmers identify and manage the disease. A new study from North Carolina State University has traced the global spread of a fungus that causes powdery mildew in blueberry plants—a disease that lowers crop yields and increases reliance on fungicides. These findings could help blueberry growers better predict, monitor, and...

A research team has shown the benefits of camu-camu on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This exotic fruit reduces liver fat levels. Over 12 weeks, thirty participants took either camu-camu extract or a placebo at different times in this randomized clinical trial. Participants underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine fat levels in the liver. Scientists observed a 7.43% reduction in liver lipids when study participants took camu-camu extract. With the placebo, they noted an 8.42% increase in liver fat. "That's a significant 15.85% difference," says André Marette. This effect stems from the polyphenols contained in camu-camu and their relationship with...

Indoctrination or Ignorance? 28-Year-Old Woman Learns You Can Eat Fruit From a Tree

NATIONAL FRUIT AT WORK DAY On the first Tuesday in October, National Fruit at Work Day encourages some fruitiness to get you through the day. Not only is fruit tasty, but it's good for you, too. #FruitAtWorkDay It might surprise you what constitutes a fruit, too. For example, an avocado qualifies as a fruit, not a vegetable. Combine this superfood with some peppers and tomatoes (also fruit) and the nutritional bonuses will keep adding up. Another surprising fruit is the eggplant. This purple fruit falls into the berry categories. Bring on the Parmesan. The tomato also falls under the berry...

Distressing bodycam video captured the moment police in Westchester County fatally shot a man accused of stealing fruit – which his father described as a “modern-day lynching.” Three New Rochelle cops — identified as Kari Bird, Gabrielle Chavarry and Detective Steven Conn — confronted Jarrell Garris, 37, at a grocery store on July 3, according to Fox News. “What were you doing in the store? You were eating the food?” one of the two female cops asks Garris as he walks away. Conn tells Garris he is under arrest, but he begins to struggle with the officers as they try...

FUKUSHIMA—— About 2,000 peaches which were ready for picking have been stolen from an orchard in Date, Fukushima Prefecture, police said Friday. According to police and the orchard owner, a man in his 70s, the peaches were stolen sometime between late Wednesday afternoon and 8 a.m. Thursday, Kyodo News reported. The peaches, which were stolen from 30 trees, are valued at about 650,000 yen. They included the highly sought-after Akatsuki variety. Police have stepped up patrols in several prefectures in the past few years following a spate of fruit thefts. Fukushima is the second largest peach-growing prefecture after Yamanashi. August...

New research has found that eating a handful of wild blueberries daily has health benefits, including lowered blood pressure, faster reaction time, and improved memory and brain cognition. The study involved a randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled trial of 61 healthy men and women aged 65 to 80, who drank a beverage made with 26 grams of freeze-dried wild blueberry powder (equivalent to about 178 grams of whole berries). Over twelve weeks, researchers found that volunteers who consumed the berry powder in drinks experienced better memory and an improved accuracy on attention tasks, as well as lower blood pressure. Also during...

Shortages of fruits and vegetables in British supermarkets could last for months, according to a leading farmers’ organisation, amid a poor growing season in Spain in combination with sky-high energy prices. Over the past week, four major British supermarkets, Aldi, Asda, Morrisons, and Tesco, have all resorted to instituting rationing measures for certain products, with shortages of items such as cucumbers, peppers, and tomatoes hitting the shelves.

Following a healthy plant-based diet after a diagnosis of prostate cancer may help prevent the disease from progressing or recurring, a study suggests. Men who ate a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains had a 52% lower risk of cancer progressing and a 53% lower risk of recurrence, compared with men who had the lowest amounts of plants in their diet, the researchers found. A plant-based diet may have these benefits because fruits and vegetables contain antioxidants and anti-inflammatory components, as well as dietary fiber that improve glucose control and reduce inflammation, she explained. Also, this diet reduces...

Urolithin A, a metabolite of ellagitannins in pomegranates, boosts immune cells’ ability to combat tumors by inducing a process known as mitophagy. STORY AT-A-GLANCE Urolithin A (UA) has emerged as a powerhouse player in the fight against cancer, as it may naturally boost tumor-fighting immune cells. UA is a metabolite of ellagitannins in pomegranates that has anti-inflammatory and anticancer effects. UA “recycles and renews mitochondria” by inducing a biological pathway known as mitophagy—the process of cleaning out your mitochondria, allowing them to function at their best. This changes T cells’ genetic program, making them more able to fight tumors. In...

Bananas on Table The scientists believe there are at least three wild ‘mystery ancestors’. Scientists are peeling back ancient layers of banana DNA in order to find the “mystery ancestors” before they go extinct. It is believed that humans domesticated bananas for the first time 7,000 years ago on the island of New Guinea. However, the history of banana domestication is complicated, and the distinction between species and subspecies is often unclear. A new study published in the journal Frontiers in Plant Science reveals that this history is significantly more complicated than previously imagined. The findings show that the genomes...

Cardinal Hollerich appeared to describe homosexuality as a 'fruit of creation' and admitted that there are a disproportionate number of homosexuals in Church institutions.VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) – Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, the relator general of the Synod on Synodality, has called for a “change of cultural paradigm” regarding the Church’s condemnation of homosexual activity and said that there is a “higher” percentage of homosexuals in “Church institutions” than in civil society. Hollerich made his comments in a lengthy interview given to L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican’s daily newspaper. Speaking extensively about the Synod on Synodality, Hollerich first praised Pope Francis for being...

Spain is expected to produce its lowest volume of fruit in the last 40 years due to frost that hit its fruit-production regions in early April1, 2, especially the Ebro Valley – one of Europe’s most important producing areas of sweet fruit. Manel Simon, the general director of the Catalan fruit association – Afrucat, said producers must plan their summer very well in the face of this decrease in production, adding that he hoped Spanish companies would prioritize exporting their production to the closest destinations and that there would be a significant decrease in exports to the third countries.3 Expectations...

ew vaccine mandates for truck drivers are likely to increase the cost of produce. The cost of transporting fruit from California and Arizona to Canada climbed 25% last week, the CEO of Canadawide Fruits, George Pitsikoulis, told Bloomberg on Monday. The Montreal-based executive pointed to a lack of truck drivers who are able to cross the border between the US and Canada due to a vaccine mandate that cuts US trucking capacity in half, according to data from the American Trucking Association. The group estimates that only about 50% to 60% of US truck drivers have been fully vaccinated. Stephen...

Social media posts circulating in Indonesia claim that eating fruit on an empty stomach will "cure cancer". The claim has circulated online in the Southeast Asian nation since at least 2013. It also recently recirculated in French-speaking African countries. But experts told AFP there is no scientific evidence to support the claim. "EATING FRUIT ON AN EMPTY STOMACH," reads this Indonesian-language Facebook post published on November 26, 2021. "Dr STEPHEN MAK treats terminal cancer patients in a unique way. Many of the patients recovered. 'This is my strategy to cure cancer. The success rate is 80 percent,' said Mak." "Cancer...

Dr. Joseph Ladapo, the new Surgeon General and Secretary of the Department of Health for the state of Florida, denounced coronavirus hysteria on Tuesday, alleging it uses fear to rob people of their personal autonomy. [cut] After stepping up to the podium, Ladopo declared that the Sunshine State is “done with fear.” “We’re done with fear. It’s been something that’s been, unfortunately, a centerpiece of health policy in the United States ever since the beginning of the pandemic, and it’s over here — expiration date is done,” he said. In the same speech, Ladopo touted the importance of vaccines while...

Droplets of orange juice can break lateral flow tests and show a positive result .. Viral videos on TikTok have encouraged children across the UK to try the trend.. Schools have warned parents to be 'vigilant' when their children are tested .. Pupils have been using fruit juice to get false positive Covid-19 test results as schools warn parents to be 'vigilant'. When droplets of orange juice or fizzy drinks like coca-cola are placed on a lateral flow test it can produce a positive result because the acidity of the drink destroys the antibody proteins in the test. And although...

Medieval Europeans were fanatical about a strange fruit that could only be eaten rotten. Then it was forgotten altogether. Why did they love it so much? And why did it disappear? The polite, socially acceptable name by which it's currently known is the medlar. But for the best part of 900 years, the fruit was called the "open-arse" – thought to be a reference to the appearance of its own large "calyx" or bottom. And yet, medieval Europe was crazy about this fruit. The fruit are unusual for two reasons. Firstly, they're harvested in December – making them one of...