GI News—March 2010

• Prime your metabolism to burn fat
• Eggs for breakfast help weight loss
• Blood glucose and cancer risk
• Renovate your breakfast with grains, cereals and porridges
• New GI values for breads and juice beverages
  
• Prof Jennie Brand-Miller on why breakfast flakes have a high GI

This month we take a look at breakfast in Food for Thought. We aren’t going to tell you that it’s the most important meal of the day – all your meals are important, or that you should eat like a king. After all, out here in the real world, most of us save the king-size meal for dinnertime. Why breakfast is important is that it breaks the longest time your body goes without incoming food so what you eat affects your blood glucose and insulin levels more than meals and snacks later in the day. We highlight some breakfast studies in News Briefs; dietitian Sue Radd talks about grains, cereals and porridges in Food of the Month, Dr Alan Barclay sets out the criteria for breakfast cereals carrying the Low GI Symbol and in GI Update Prof Jennie Brand-Miller explains why healthy high-fibre cereals like bran flakes actually have a high GI.

Good eating, good health and good reading.

Editor: Philippa Sandall
Web management and design: Alan Barclay, PhD

Food for Thought

Prime your metabolism to burn fat with a low GI breakfast
Breakfast jump-starts your metabolism, helps you concentrate better (no hunger pangs to distract you) and generally gets the day off to a good start. Forget the excuses. It's easy to whip up.

There actually aren’t fixed rules about when to have breakfast. We all have different needs, backgrounds, lifestyles and morning rush hour timetables. Just do it, whether you sit down with the family, grab something as you head out the door, have breakfast in a café, canteen or at your desk, or make your mid-morning break your ‘breakfast’.



Yes, it’s that flexible, it’s just the first eating occasion of the day. However, research shows that eating breakfast first thing in the morning helps stabilise blood glucose levels, which control appetite and energy. The longer you wait, the more insulin resistant you may become. This means that whatever you eat next will require an elevated insulin response, making life harder for your beta cells and probably resulting in an elevated blood glucose reading.

What you eat for breakfast is what really matters. A healthy low GI breakfast can sustain you until lunchtime, prime your metabolism to burn fat and reduce your day-long insulin levels more effectively than any other single dietary change. It’s easy to put together. It just needs some:

• Low GI carbs. Why? They trickle glucose into the blood stream, fill you up, give you energy and can reduce your day-long insulin levels more effectively than any other single dietary change.
• Protein. Why? It’s the feel-fuller-for-longer nutrient, keeping hunger pangs at bay between meals. It also lowers the glycemic load (by replacing some of the carbohydrate).
• Fruit and/or vegetables. Why? A high fruit and veg intake is consistently linked with better health. If you don’t have some for breakfast it will be hard to achieve your daily target (2 serves of fruit and 5 of vegetables is recommended in Australia, for example)

Choose foods from each column and prime your metabolism to burn fat.


Click on the table for a full-sized view

News Briefs

More fat loss bang for your exercise buck with a low GI breakfast
‘If you are trying to shed fat, you may consider eating low GI foods before you exercise,’ suggests Dr Emma Stevenson. Her study published in the Journal of Nutrition found that a low GI breakfast before exercising could help with weight loss because it increases fat oxidation both at rest and during subsequent exercise. ‘A low GI breakfast also had an impact on appetite, with the women feeling fuller for longer after they’d eaten these types of foods,’ said Dr Stevenson.

Eight healthy women ate either a high GI breakfast or a low GI one in test sessions several days apart (each breakfast contained the same number of calories and same proportion of those calories from carbs, fat and protein). Three hours later they did 60 minutes on a treadmill before lunch.



Blood glucose was higher – as expected – after the high GI breakfast than the low GI one, and had returned to normal levels by the time the women began exercising. But plasma free fatty acids (FFA) – which indicate the amount of fat being used as an energy source – began to rise two hours after the low GI breakfast. Exercise led to a rapid increase in FFAs in both groups – but concentrations were higher in the low GI group. After lunch the concentration of FFAs was the same in both groups, but overall fat oxidation was higher in the low GI group than the high GI group.

Eggs for breakfast help weight loss
A study published in the International Journal of Obesity shows that eating two eggs for breakfast, as part of a reduced-calorie diet, helped overweight adults lose more weight and feel more energetic than those who ate a bagel breakfast of equal calories. This study supports previous research, published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition which showed that people who ate eggs for breakfast felt more satisfied and ate fewer calories at the following meal. ‘People have a hard time adhering to diets and our research shows that choosing eggs for breakfast can dramatically improve the success of a weight loss plan,’ said lead researcher Nikhil Dhurandhar, PhD. ‘Apparently, the increased satiety and energy due to eggs helps people better comply with a reduced-calorie diet.’



Is an egg a day OK? It depends ...
‘Eggs are very nutritious. They are a good protein source,’ says dietitian Glenn Cardwell. They also contain omega-3 fats, as well as 11 different vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. The common belief that eggs cause high cholesterol is untrue. ‘This idea was made on the assumption that cholesterol in food became cholesterol in your blood, which we now know to be incorrect. Most health authorities agree that an egg a day will do no harm – provided it’s not soaking in bacon fat,’ says Glenn www.glenncardwell.com

‘However, people with diabetes or those at risk should not consume an egg a day,’ says Dr Alan Barclay. ‘There is evidence that daily egg consumption will significantly increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes and common diabetic complications in people with existing diabetes,’ he said.

Staying up to date with breakfast research
On the Breakfast Research Institute (funded by Quaker and Tropicana) website you can check out published studies relevant to breakfast science. (Links to PubMed abstracts are provided where available.) The News section includes reviews of recently published studies summarizing research objectives, design/methods, results, strengths and limitations. There’s also a commentary on the study.

For example, here’s what they say about the recent Association of Breakfast Skipping with Visceral Fat and Insulin Indices in Overweight Latino Youth study published in Obesity.

[Summary] ‘Breakfast skipping [in overweight Latino adolescents] was related to increased visceral fat independent of age, gender, total fat, total lean tissue, and total energy intake." Even occasional breakfast consumption appeared to result in lower visceral adiposity.’



[Commentary] ‘This is a well-designed and well-executed study on a minority population examining the relationship of breakfast consumption to changes in visceral adiposity. The study adds support to the importance of breakfast in a high risk (adolescent) minority population. It also breaks new ground in a useful area of study, setting up further exploration into breakfast and visceral adiposity in differing populations. The authors also plan future longitudinal studies of the factors examined in this study and studies examining the potential influence of eating patterns and breakfast composition on specific adiposity and insulin dynamics measures in this population. The importance of visceral adiposity and the relationship to chronic disease has already been established, making this a study of great interest in breakfast research literature.’

Blood glucose and cancer risk
People with elevated blood glucose levels have a greater cancer risk than those with glucose levels in the normal range according to the findings of a prospective cohort study published in PLoS Medicine. For every mmol/L increment of glucose, the incident of cancer was 11% greater among women, and 5% among men. The association was more significant in certain forms of cancer, such as in the pancreas, liver, gallbladder, and urinary bladder.


Dr Tanja Stocks

The study, which was headed by Dr Tanja Stocks and colleagues from the University of Umeå, included about 275,000 men and 275 women from Sweden, Norway and Austria. Their blood glucose levels were measured at the beginning of the study and their risk of cancer during the follow up (typically about 10 years later). ‘We still do not know for certain if the effect of high blood glucose directly causes cancer, or whether other factors are behind the association. We believe that a lifestyle that is beneficial for blood glucose control also reduces the risk of cancer,’ says Tanja Stocks.

Because this study made the headlines, it was reviewed by the NHS Choices ‘Behind the Headlines’ team. ‘Overall,’ they say ‘this research provides some evidence that high blood glucose is associated with an increased risk of some types of cancer. However, it did not directly test or suggest that high blood glucose causes these cancers. Although the research did find an association between high blood glucose levels and cancer risk, there are many other lifestyle, medical and genetic factors that may contribute to a person’s likelihood of developing cancer, few of which were considered in this analysis.’ Read more.

New website for type 2: www.theodb.com.au
The ODB is a brand new website for people with type 2 diabetes. It covers all the new drugs and treatments. The man behind it – Jim Montgomery – is a low GI diet success story. He swears his 11 years of an HbA1C of around 5.5-6.0 is due to exercise and Jennie Brand-Miller's Low GI Diet. His belief shows in the weekly updates of the ODB [the Original Diabetes Blog] where there is always a story about the low GI diet. In its first issues, Jim is engaged in an interesting trial of the world’s first, blue-toothed glucometer automatically reporting back to a specially prepared, personal website on Telstra’s BigPond. Check it out HERE.

Renovate your Recipes

Renovate your breakfast with grains, cereals and porridges


Sue Radd

Dietitian Sue Radd’s The Breakfast Book highlights the vital role breakfast plays in our health and wellbeing, and offers deliciously original porridge and muesli recipes from around the world made with unprocessed or minimally processed grains – Baked brown rice porridge with fruits, Buckwheat porridge (a traditional Slovenian recipe), Cinnamon spiced quinoa with dried fruits, African mielimeel porridge, Fig and almond couscous porridge, Warm barley and cherry pudding, Millet with macadamia and currants and Fragrant wheat with figs, prunes and peaches.

‘Natural unprocessed or minimally processed grains are under-utilised as a breakfast food,’ says Sue, ‘because few people know how to cook them. In fact you can buy most grains – rye, triticale, barley, wheat, rye and amaranth – rolled, just like traditional rolled oats. I simply use a variety of rolled grains to make a base for my toasted muesli and then add nuts and seeds and dried fruit.

Another grain I love to use is polenta. I grew up eating polenta for breakfast, not Weet-Bix or corn flakes. Polenta is very common in certain parts of Europe. The smooth, porridge like consistency makes it suitable for the entire family. The bright yellow colour is due to carotenoids present in corn. I find the easiest way to enjoy polenta is with milk, but of course you can also serve it on a dinner plate with garlic-scented sauerkraut, natural yoghurt and cottage cheese!

I also like to make the most of whole wheat kernels, though you probably have to go to a health food shop to buy them. Your entire kitchen will become fragrant with warm earthy aromas when you cook wheat. My favourite dish is a porridge based on the traditional Croatian recipe for ‘zito’, commonly eaten for breakfast or as a snack during the day. You can use other whole grains such as spelt or triticale for this, too. I like this dish kept simple, but if you prefer, add a dollop of yoghurt to serve. This is real comfort food as well as being highly portable – just pop it into a plastic container with a lid to go. You can also make it the night before – it keeps well in the fridge for up to a week. It is super-rich in dietary fibre. Tip, the wheat only takes about 20 minutes to cook if you use a pressure cooker.’

Sue’s fragrant wheat with figs, prunes and peaches

1 cup whole wheat
1/3 cup pecans, coarsely ground
5 dried figs softened in water for 10 mins, chopped
¼ cup pitted prunes, chopped
½ cup dried peaches, chopped
1 tbsp honey

Place the wheat in a saucepan with 5 cups water and cook, covered for about 1 hour or until tender. Drain the wheat through a sieve and place in a large mixing bowl with the other ingredients. Mix well until combined. Serve while the wheat is still warm or enjoy later when cooled. Makes 5 serves.

Per serving
Energy: 1022 kJ/ 243 cals; Protein 8 g; Fat 7 g; Carbohydrate 46g; Fibre 9g

You can buy Sue's Breakfast Book HERE

In the GI News Kitchen

American dietitian and author of Good Carbs, Bad Carbs, Johanna Burani, shares favourite recipes with a low or moderate GI from her Italian kitchen. For more information, check out Johanna's website. The photographs are by Sergio Burani. His food, travel and wine photography website is photosbysergio.com.

Fruit compote with Grand Marnier
Italians eat fruit for dessert. Fresh fruit must be just that – fresh. As the winter season draws to an end, before the spring berries and early fruits like apricots and cherries appear, cooks take their not-so-fresh-anymore apples and pears and slowly stew them, often adding spices and liqueur. Here’s how I do it.
Makes 9 half-cup (approx) servings

3 large cooking apples (Cortland, Jonathan, Macintosh)
2 ripe pears (Bosc)
1½ tbsp Grand Marnier liqueur
1/8 tsp ground cardamom

Wash, core and cut the fruit into bite-size pieces (do not peel). Place them in a large (3-quart) heavy-based saucepan. Cover the pan and cook slowly over low heat for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Uncover the pan, add in the liqueur, increase the heat and cook for another 2–3 minutes to allow the alcohol to evaporate. Remove from heat, add the cardamom and mix thoroughly. Chill before serving. Makes about 9 half cup servings.

Per serving
Energy: 168 kJ/ 40 cals; Protein less than 1g; Fat less than 1g; Carbs 9g; Fibre 2g

Cut back on the food bills and enjoy fresh-tasting, easily prepared, seasonal, satisfying and delicious low or moderate GI meals that don’t compromise on quality and flavour one little bit with Money Saving Meals author Diane Temple. For more recipes check out Diane's Money Saving Meals website.

Tabbouli
Also known as cracked wheat, burghul (GI 48) is made from whole wheat grains that have been hulled and steamed before grinding to crack the grain. The wheat grain remains virtually intact—it is simply cracked – and the wheat germ and bran are retained, which preserves nutrients and lowers the GI. Use it as a breakfast cereal, in tabbouli, or add it to pilafs, vegetable burgers, stuffing, stews, salads and soups.

When I was shopping for burghul in my local Middle Eastern food store, the owner leaned over the counter and said. ‘Don’t use too much, just a small handful if you are making tabbouli.’ She then proceeded to share her recipe with me where the burghul is softened by the juices of the cucumber and tomato. She also told me to use curly parsley not flat-leaf for a better texture, which is great because that’s what so many people have growing in their garden. Serves 6–8



3 tightly packed cups (about 3 bunches) parsley leaves, chopped
1/2 cup mint leaves, chopped
3 medium green onions (shallots/spring onions), white and light green parts sliced
3 large red ripe roma (plum) tomatoes, chopped
2 tbsp burghul
1 large Lebanese cucumber, quartered lengthwise then finely sliced
Juice 1 lemon
2 tbsp olive oil

Place the chopped parsley, mint and green onions in a large bowl and spread the chopped tomatoes over the top in a thickish layer. Sprinkle over the burghul. Top with the finely chopped the cucumber. Drizzle over the lemon juice and oil. Cover and chill until ready to serve, then toss to mix all the ingredients together.

Per serving (analysis based on serving 8)
Energy: 292kJ/ 70 cals; Protein 1. g; Fat 5 g; Carbs 4g Fibre 3g

Busting Food Myths with Nicole Senior

Myth: Gluten-free foods are better for you.


Nicole Senior

Fact: Only people with celiac disease and gluten intolerance are better off eating gluten-free foods – and some gluten-free foods aren’t so healthy.
The range of gluten-free food products has exploded in recent years and now widely available in supermarkets. While this is great news for sufferers of coeliac disease and gluten intolerance, the numbers just don’t add up. Since coeliac disease affects only 1% of the population, either there has been an explosion of gluten intolerance or there are lots of people buying these products who don’t have a diagnosable problem with gluten. It appears that ‘gluten-free’ has become the latest health fad.

Where does this idea come from that gluten is somehow bad for us? Dietitians commonly point the finger at naturopaths and other alternative health practitioners who recommend exclusion of wheat and gluten almost as a matter of course. Then the word-of-mouth message starts to spread. A growing number of consumers believe gluten-free foods are healthier and start to buy gluten-free foods by choice. More products become available to meet demand, the diet becomes easier to follow, more people buy them because they’re there, and the trend takes hold.

It doesn’t make sense that wheat (the most common source of gluten in the diet) would be somehow harmful. Wheat has been cultivated since 9000BC, is grown worldwide, and is the world’s third largest produced grain crop used to make a huge range of staple foods including leavened bread, flat breads, pasta and noodles.

Imagine not being able to eat regular bread, pasta, breakfast cereal, biscuits, crisp bread, cakes, thickened sauces and even beer? Wheat and other gluten-containing grains are almost ubiquitous in our Western-style food culture. The gluten-free diet has a high degree of difficulty, so why would you follow it unless you absolutely had to? In additition, a study published in the British Journal of Nutrition has shown reduced numbers of friendly gut bacteria and reduced immune function in people following a gluten-free diet.

However the real issue is the gluten-free products themselves. Many are highly processed and based on high GI ingredients such as rice and potato and some have lots of added saturated fat and sugar to enhance palatability, especially in the sweet biscuit, bar and cake category. Few products are based on wholegrain versions of gluten-free grains, even though they are healthier.

For those of you with symptoms of coeliac disease such as abdominal pain, diarrhoea, lethargy and iron deficiency, don’t self diagnose and put yourself on a gluten free diet. See your doctor first for a definitive diagnosis through blood test and intestinal biopsy (following a gluten free diet before diagnosis of coeliac disease can actually prevent a correct diagnosis being made).

If your symptoms are not due to coeliac disease, but you suspect food is somehow the cause, see a registered dietitian (an APD in Australia) with experience in food intolerance to identify the real dietary culprits and create a personalised diet for you to manage your symptoms.

If you’d like quality information on heart health and great recipes check out Nicole's website HERE.

Body Work with Glenn Cardwell

‘When should I exercise? I have read that you will burn more fat if you exercise before breakfast.’


Glenn Cardwell

‘The biggest factor for burning body fat is whether you do the activity in the first place. It may be interesting to speculate whether you burn more fat in certain circumstances, but the best I can give you is a general guide.

1. To burn fat you have to be active in the first place.
2. The fitter you are the better your body is at burning fat. To get to a reasonable level of fitness, you need to move your body 3–5 times a week.
3. It doesn’t matter if you walk or jog. You will burn more fat jogging for 30 minutes than walking for 30 minutes. On the other hand, you will burn more fat by walking for 60 minutes than jogging for 30 minutes.
4. The amount of incidental activity during the day will potentially burn more fat than a jog. Getting up from your chair, having a stretch, taking a quick walk around the office, using the stairs etc will probably burn more body fat during the day. So don’t do 30 minutes of exercise then tick the exercise box and plonk your bum on a chair for the rest of the day.
5. Notice how fidgeters tend to be leaner? One study showed that fidgeters burned an extra 40–60 Cals (165–250 kJs) an hour. Regularly have a wriggle in your chair or a fidget while you stand.
6. Weight bearing exercise like walking, aerobics and jogging are better at burning up fat stores than weight supported exercise like swimming or cycling. However it’s better to do something you enjoy than analyse its fat burning potential. Refer back to point 1.’

www.glenncardwell.com

GI Symbol News with Dr Alan Barclay

Dr Alan Barclay

Finding healthy low GI breakfast cereals
Despite all the noise about sugar there’s more to making healthy choices in the breakfast aisle than going for the one with the least amount of sugar on the nutrition info panel. Good choices will:

• Be high in fibre (from wholegrains or dried fruit)
• Be low in added salt (sodium)
• Contain only good fats (e.g. from nuts, seeds and grains ), and
• Be low GI.

Carbs: The carbs in breakfast cereals come from both the sugar and starch. The nutrition info panel tells you how much there is in a typical serving but doesn’t tell you anything about the type or nutritional value of either of them. (Note: If you want to work out the amount of starch in a food, it's the grams of total carbohydrate minus the grams of sugar.)

Not all sugars are the same. The sugars found in Australian ready-to-eat breakfast cereals are typically sucrose or table sugar (GI 65) which is refined and usually added to the product, and fructose (GI 19) and lactose (GI 46) which come naturally with the dried fruit or yoghurt in the product and are a nutritious source of dietary fibre (dried fruit), and/or vitamins and minerals (dried fruit and yoghurt).

Not all starches (or ‘complex carbohydrate’) are the same either. First of all, there are two types of starch in food – amylose is harder to digest than amylopectin and the ratio of one to the other has a powerful effect on a food’s GI. Prof Jennie Brand-Miller explains how that works HERE.

Secondly, less processed grains like steel cut oats or traditional rolled oats are much harder to digest than finely milled re-constituted grains like bran flakes (See Prof Jennie’s comments in GI Update, below). Unfortunately, it is not possible to tell how refined the starch is by reading the food label – even the latest buzz word ‘wholegrain’ does not tell you the full story. So while a ‘wholegrain’ breakfast cereal is a good overall choice (it is higher in fibre, vitamins and minerals), its wholegrain content does not provide you with any real indication of how it will affect your blood glucose.

Fat: Many cereals from corn flakes to porridge oats naturally contain relatively small amounts of fat. However, it’s increasingly popular to add tasty and nutritious nuts and seeds to cereals boosting the amount of fibre and vitamins and minerals. Keep in mind that they are high in total fat, so can add significantly to the product's overall calorie content. However, the fat is predominantly mono- and poly-unsaturated, so it will not adversely affect blood cholesterol levels. Be aware that some mueslis are toasted in added oil or fat, often a highly saturated fat like palm oil. Traditional (untoasted) mueslis are better choices.

Salt: Because most cereals are relatively bland, it is common for food manufacturers to add salt to enhance the flavour – even if they have already added sugar (a little salt enhances sweetness believe it or not). Excessive salt intakes are associated with higher blood pressure, amongst other things, so salt-reduced or no-added salt are the ones to look for if available.

Tips for making good choices: Use our GI Symbol nutrient criteria for breakfast cereals to help you make a healthy choice an easy choice:

• Fat: 5g per 100 g or less, or 5–10g per 100g, provided that saturated fat is not more than 20% of the total fat content (or up to 15g per 100g if the source of saturated fat is grains, seeds or nuts but not coconut)
• Salt: (sodium) 400mg per 100g or less
• Dietary fibre: 3g per 100g or more

Breakfast cereals that carry the GI Symbol in Australia and New Zealand:

• Morning Sun Natural Style Muesli – Fruit Free Nuts and Seeds GI 55
• Morning Sun Natural Style Muesli – Apricot & Almond GI 49
• Morning Sun Natural Style Muesli – Peach & Pecan GI 49
• Naytura Fruit and Nut Muesli GI 48
• Woolworths Select Traditional Rolled Oats GI 57

Beware! Some manufacturers claim on their packs that their breakfast cereal is low GI when consumed with milk. The cut-off for low GI foods (55 or less) is for individual foods (i.e. the cereal itself), not a mixed meal (i.e. cereal and milk). The cut-off for mixed meals and diets is 45 or less.



For more information about the GI Symbol Program
Dr Alan W Barclay, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer
Glycemic Index Foundation (Ltd)
Phone: +61 (0)2 9785 1037
Mob: +61 (0)416 111 046
Fax: +61 (0)2 9785 1037
Email: alan@gisymbol.com
Website: http://www.gisymbol.com/

GI Update

GI Q&A with Prof Jennie Brand-Miller



'I am curious why high-fibre cereals like Bran Flakes that look so healthy, and everyone assumes are healthy, actually have a high GI?'
Bran Flakes and Raisin Bran are fibre-rich breakfast cereals designed to keep you ‘healthy on the inside’ as they say. But they are high GI and digested in a flash because the production process makes the starch very accessible. It’s the same with most ready-to-eat breakfast cereals you’ll find in the supermarket

Why do these cereals have high GI values? Grinding, milling, flaking, popping and puffing grains radically changes ‘nature’s architecture’ and makes it easier for water to be absorbed and digestive enzymes to attack the food. This is why many foods (including bread) made from fine flours tend to have a high GI value. The larger the particle size, the lower the GI value.

One of the most significant alterations to our food supply came with the introduction, in the mid-19th century, of steel-roller mills. Not only did they make it easier to remove the fibre from cereal grains, but also the particle size of the flour became smaller than ever before. Prior to the 19th century, stone grinding produced quite coarse flours that resulted in slower rates of digestion and absorption.

When starch is consumed in ‘nature’s packaging’ – whole intact grains that have been softened just by soaking and cooking – the food will often have a low GI. For example, cooked pearl barley’s GI value is 25. But not ALWAYS. For example, some barleys have more naturally-occurring viscous beta-glucans (a form of fibre) that creates greater viscosity in the small intestine and physically slows down the digestive processes. It’s hard to know which varieties of barley are low GI unless they have been previously tested. Brown rice often has a surprisingly high GI too. This is because the insoluble fibre around brown rice is not viscous and it’s micro-thin. It’s easy for enzymes to attack the starch in rice because the milling operation has resulted in thousands of minute channels that allow water to hydrate the grain and gelatinise the starch during cooking. Greater gelatinisation of starch means higher GI.



Prof Barry Popkin on the evolution of cornflakes
‘Dr John Harvey Kellogg (1852–1943) was a Seventh-day Adventist who opened a well-known hospital called the Battle Creek Sanitarium. Actually, it was more like a health resort than a hospital. At Battle Creek, for example, Kellogg taught about food preparation, had his clients engage in breathing exercises and marching to promote digestion, and he gave his guests daily enemas and had them consume yogurt afterward … John Kellogg’s first great discovery was cornflakes, the result of experimentation in the 1890s. The sanitarium kitchen’s cooked wheat was exposed to air for a day or more. Then, when running it through rollers, separate flakes were discharged and cereal flakes were born. The breakfast staple became an instant hit at the sanitarium and beyond, as guests would write after their visits to request supplies of their food.

Somewhere along the line this dream changed. The realities of selling cereal globally transformed Kellogg’s into a company that produced a large array of products with refined carbohydrates, added sugars and fats. The original cereals were made only with whole wheat and contained a small number of calories and plenty of fiber. But that was then – at less than 100 calories per serving – and this, at 120–400 calories per serving, is now. The virtuous company that made truly healthy products is a dim memory. Even so, Kellogg’s Post, and other ready-to-eat cereals are a lot healthier than most breakfast alternatives such as bacon, sausages and fried eggs.’
– The World is Fat

And a tip from Michael Pollan …
‘Don’t eat breakfast cereals that change the color of the milk.’
– Food Rules, An eater’s manual

New GI values from North America: low GI juice beverages
Sweetened with organic blue agave nectar, the new Lo-Gly juice beverages provide 140 calories (588 kJ) per 1 cup (8 fl oz/240ml) serving. Each flavour is certified kosher and the beverages were GI tested in North America at Glycemic Index Laboratories in Toronto. They are available in the US and Canada.

• Pomegranate (contains 49% juice) – GI 28 (total carbs per 1 cup/240ml serve: 35g)
• Acai-Blue (contains 57% juice) – GI 31 (total carbs per 1 cup/240ml serve: 34g)
• Pomegranate Mojito (contains 51% juice) – GI 24 (total carbs per 1 cup/240ml serve: 35g)
• Mango Mojito (contains 56% juice) – GI 32 (total carbs per 1 cup/240ml serve: 31g)

For more information contact Lo-Gly marketing manager Don Necochea: don@Lo-Gly.com

New GI values from Fiona Atkinson: Bakers Delight Chia Bread and Rolls
Bakers Delight have combined with The Chia Company to bring two new moderate GI bread products packed with nutritious chia seeds to the market in Australia and New Zealand.

• Chia White Block Loaf GI 63 – 1 slice has 17g available carbohydrate
• Chia White Round Roll GI 63– 1 roll has 31g available carbohydrate

You might like to know that all the volunteers commented that they liked the bread. That is a bit of an unusual/unexpected response because usually they aren't that keen to eat 3 or 4 slices of plain bread, but they did mention it was nice.

Dietitian Catherine Saxelby looked at chia seeds in GI News back in August 2009 and reported that: ‘Like all seeds, chia seeds are high in fat especially the good fats. At around 30% fat, they’re lower than sesame seeds (50%) or nuts but make up for this with an extraordinarily high level of omega-3 – unusual in the plant world. They have 18% ALA which is around the same as flaxseeds (linseeds) at 22%, making they are one of the richest sources of the plant form of omega-3 called ALA. They are also big on fibre. In fact, at 37% they are an outstanding source of fibre, in particular soluble fibre. And they contain 15% protein – as much as from wheat – plus a variety of vitamins, minerals and trace elements including folate, phosphorus, iron, manganese, copper and potassium. Like almonds and sesame seeds, they have a surprisingly high content of calcium, usually found in dairy foods, but how well this is absorbed is debatable.’

GI testing by an accredited laboratory
North America
Dr Alexandra Jenkins
Glycemic Index Laboratories
36 Lombard Street, Suite 100
Toronto, Ontario M5C 2X3 Canada
Phone +1 416 861 0506
Email info@gilabs.com
Web www.gilabs.com/

Australia
Fiona Atkinson



Research Manager, Sydney University Glycemic Index Research Service (SUGiRS)
Human Nutrition Unit, School of Molecular and Microbial Biosciences
Sydney University
NSW 2006 Australia
Phone + 61 2 9351 6018
Fax: + 61 2 9351 6022
Email sugirs@mmb.usyd.edu.au
Web www.glycemicindex.com

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Spanish Prime Minister calls for the abolition of the death penalty worldwide by 2015

United Nations, New York, 24 February 2010 - (Translation below) SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Prime Minister, Spain:

It is unfortunate that there are still numerous places today where the death penalty is still applied and we need to work hard to step up our efforts for its universal abolition.

SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Prime Minister, Spain:
My friends we have 5 years to achieve our goal -- to stop executions around the world: If we work together it is a goal within our reach.

Addressing the World Congress Against the Death Penalty meeting in Geneva today, the Prime Minister of Spain, whose country currently holds the presidency of the European Union, said it was unfortunate that today numerous countries still continue to apply the death penalty.

The two-day congress, organized by the French NGO Ensemble together with the Swiss government, and the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, aimed to persuade more countries to sign up to a United Nations (UN) moratorium on the death penalty.

Referring to the death penalty as state sanctioned murder, Bianca Jagger, goodwill ambassador for the Council of Europe said she was shocked at the continued application of the death penalty in the United States (US), saying only when the US got its own house in order can it claim to stand for freedom and justice.

The Norwegian Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gry Larsen, said the world was at a turning point with an ever growing shift towards abolition. 138 countries have outlawed the death penalty but it still exists in 58 countries, including the US and Japan.

The death penalty exists in 35 of the 51 states in the US said Elizabeth Zitrin, US representative of the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty. Case by case defense lawyers had tried their best to defy the death penalty but that a universal moratorium was needed.

The World Congress Against the Death Penalty is a triennial opportunity to bring together abolitionist groups and strengthen the international dimension of the fight against the death penalty.

Source: United Nations, Feb. 24, 2010

Bali 9, boat people, thorny issues for SBY-Rudd talks

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (left) will meet Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd next month to talk on wide bilateral relations, including thorny issues, such as Australians on death row and stranded boat people.

However Jakarta and Canberra both say their relations are fine.

"Indonesia and Australia have been experiencing intensive convergence in terms of their national interests, which now also include climate change and terrorism issues, and their participation in global economic reform as mutual members of the G20..." Dino told a press conference at the Presidential Office.

However, news reports also indicate that Australian diplomats in Jakarta have told Indonesian officials that the possible execution of three Australians, members of the Bali Nine group, for drug smuggling in Denpasar, would be very sensitive for Australia's government in an election year.

Australian acting Foreign Minister Simon Crean denied any link between discussing the possible executions and the upcoming election.

Rudd has promised to raise the issue with Yudhoyono when Indonesian court processes are concluded and if the death penalties still stand.

Observers have said that any approach for clemency would be a sensitive issue for both countries, with some Indonesian lawmakers and local media likely to see any such approach as interference in RI affairs.

Source: The Jakarta Post, Feb. 28, 2010

8 hanged in Iran

Iran Human Rights, February 27: Three men were hanged in the prison of Birjand in eastern Iran, reported the daily newspaper Khorasan.

The men, who were not identified by name, were convicted of murdering several security forces during armed clashes close to the eastern borders of Iran.

Iran Human Rights, February 25: Five men were hanged in the prison of Kerman, southeastern Iran, reported the state run Iranian news agency ISNA today.

The men were identified as "Rouhollah Kh.", "Saeed M.", "Shokrollah N." and "Zabihollah Kh." and were all convicted of drug trafficking and keeping arms.

The charges have not been confirmed by independent sources.

Source: Iran Human Rights, Feb. 28, 2010

ARCE Conservation Work at Khonsu Temple – Ed Johnson

ARCE Conservation Work at Khonsu Temple – Ed Johnson

ARCE are doing a number of projects of which the Khonsu temple is only one. The conservation program is in its third year and a response to the dewatering project. This went live in the summer of 2007 and now they are training Egyptian conservators to handle the affects of the drying out of the monuments. All the work is done by the students and they train 25 every year.

Previously conservation work was not documented so nobody had any idea who had done the work, what had been done, what was successful and should be replicated, what should not be used and should be avoided. Students are now trained to analyse, plan and actually do the documentation. It is important to map the damage and they have the advantage of the Chicago House work as a basis. They use the same techniques as the Getty Institute used at the tomb of Nefertari. They are also taught photography, about materials, geology, small object conservation, use of Total stations and movement monitors.

When they came to the Khonsu temple it was a bit of junk yard although in the past it was the entrance to Karnak temple. By making it an attractive place to visit they hope to relieve the pressure on the main axis of the temple. The floor of the temple had been used as a quarry so there were structural issues to resolve. Also inscriptions were hidden under the floor and future scholars would want access so a wooden bridge is used to both protect and cover this area. The ambulatory was filled with stones making it impossible to walk around with ease. These have been removed.

Various techniques and chemicals are used to clean and reveal the poly chrome left on the walls. Brushing down the dirt with soft brushes, cleaning, poulticing and removal of the salts and soot. Infilling holes so birds cannot roost. The area around the temple has been landscaped enabling easy viewing. New irregular paving blocks have been laid mimicking the old ones

Lots of the old conservation and concrete had to be removed as it was attracting salts. Lime mortar is more sympathetic. Heba a naturally occurring material used in traditional construction is used as a poultice to remove salts. Once it dries it can be flaked off taking the slats with it. Several applications are needed. There is still 70-80% humidity in the walls and although the dewatering is good desalination is vital to go alongside it.

The Euergetes gateway has not previously been documented by Chicago House so the damage mapping there has to be done from scratch. Work is in progress there.

Although 20,000 cubic meters (?) of water has been removed from Karnak it is only at Luxor temple East pylon that any movement has been noted. This is giving cause for concern

Live from death row

Mumia Abu-Jamal on the phone with his defense counsel Robert Bryan. from ECPM on Vimeo.

The 180 members of the public who had gathered to view the film Manners of dying had an opportunity to witness a discussion between Mumia Abu-Jamal and his lawyer Robert Bryan.

The film screening organized Tuesday evening at Maison des arts du Grütli by the International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights saw a phone discussion with the famous American death row inmate Mumia Abu-Jamal – 15 minutes live from death row.

“ It was a very moving moment live from death row,” a member of the audience said. “Thanks for the privilege we had to discuss with him,” another person added. The emotion was palpable among the public.

“Mumia doesn’t feel like a symbol of the anti-death penalty campaign,” said Robert Bryan. Today, Barack Obama can make the difference, he continued, referring to a petition to the US president already signed by 17,000 people.

According to Bryan, the death penalty is a privilege reserved for the poor, but it is also a public finance issue. “If it is more expensive to execute somebody than to send them jail for an entire life, why not use this money for education, for instance ?», he asked.

For more information about Mumia Abu jamal, and to sign the international petition, please visit http://www.mumialegal.org/

Source: World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, Feb. 25, 2010

Final Declaration 4th World Congress Against the Death Penalty

We the participants at the 4th World Congress Against the Death Penalty, held in Geneva, Switzerland, from 24 to 26 February 2010 organized by the association Ensemble Contre la Peine de Mort (ECPM), with sponsorship from the Swiss Confederation in partnership with the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty (WCADP),

adopt this declaration after three days of fruitful discussions, exchange of experiences, elaboration of relevant strategies, sharing of testimonies, including the commitment and strong support expressed from states and international institutions:

Noting with satisfaction the implementation of several recommendations made at the end of the 3rd World Congress in Paris in 2007; the increasing number of countries that have ratified the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights from 62 to 72; the resolution for a moratorium on the use of the death penalty passed twice by majority in the United Nations General Assembly with more than 100 hundred votes in favor; new regional coalitions against the death penalty which were created; the number of member organizations of the WCADP significantly increased to 104.

Noting also the urgent need to intensify our efforts in the courts, bar associations, the media, schools and universities, in human rights organizations, parliaments, governments, international and regional organizations to continue to encourage presently underrepresented retentionist countries in the international community, to be transparent in their practice of capital punishment, to reduce the number of crimes punishable by death in their criminal codes, so they can join the community of abolitionist states;

Highlighting the actions and the continued support of the European Union in the fight against the death penalty;

We welcome the initiatives and commitment of Switzerland, beyond the Congress, together with Spain, which aims to implement universal moratorium on executions in 2015, with a view of universal abolition;

We reconfirm that the death penalty may in no circumstances be regarded as an appropriate response to the violence and tensions which permeate through our societies, taking into account the emotional burden they create, particularly in the context of terrorism,

We call, from the host city of international organizations and a symbol of peace:

- The de facto abolitionist states to enact legislation abolishing the death penalty in law;

- The abolitionist states to integrate the issue of universal abolition in their international relations by making it a major focus of their international policy of promoting human rights;

- The international and regional organizations, to support the universal abolition of the death penalty including the adoption of resolutions calling for a moratorium on executions, by supporting educational activities, and increased cooperation with abolitionist NGOs that act locally;

- Abolitionist organizations and actors from retentionist states to unite their strength and determination in creating and developing national and regional coalitions, with the aim to promote locally, the universal abolition of capital punishment.

Geneva,
On February 26, 2010.

Source: World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, Feb. 26, 2010

Students who fail courses

A NZ Herald story headed Students who fail could lose their loans doesn't tell the full story. If students fail half their courses they could lose their loans.Student allowances are chopped if students failed more than half of their courses in the previous year, but there is no requirement to pass courses to keep getting student loans. Perhaps the government wants to introduce some requirements even though some students are enrolled for tertiary education because they can't get a job. They`ll pull out of their course if they get one, though.

Some workers may well take on some papers internally while working. If they get a transfer, they have to pull out.

As for extramural students, many of whom are are not studying full time, the government appears to want to discourage them from studying unless they are an effective full time student.Some may have to enroll (and pay) in January for summer school just to be sure of a place, as if you enroll late or pay your fees late, you may be excluded.

These days, some students who gets offered a good job will pull out of uni. That's what you get when you have many students who are studying because they can't find work, and a government who can't provide the climate to create jobs for these students. These students aren't failures, they simply drop out. The rest graduate, go on the dole, and those that don't subsequently get work wonder when they can apply for jobs at the new "job creation" cycleway.

USA vs. Finland: USA ahead by 4-0 in the first period!

Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: USA vs. Finland: In the 1st semi-finals of Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics Ice Hockey, USA is now ahead by 4-0 in the first period!

This is possibly the sharpest the USA has looked so far, even more so than in the early hours in the Canada game. And now the Americans are back on the power play with 12:58 remaining. Toni Lydman whistled for boarding Brown in the Finnish zone.

Kane walked in, gathered his own rebound and sends a backhander; it was the 4th goal of the match.

That’s 4 U.S. goals in just over 10 minutes against a team with a good defensive rep. That will do it for Miikka Kiprusoff. In comes Niklas Backstrom of the Minnesota Wild.

Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Canada Hockey Celebration is a mess!

Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Canada Hockey Celebration is a mess! Canada women’s hockey team has fetched the Gold medal defeating USA in the final match.

But now it is being said that the Canada Hockey Celebration is a mess. In the meantime, Hockey Canada makes an apology Friday for the women’s hockey team’s on-ice celebration.

The Canadian team has landed into controversy following the partying with alcohol and all created into a mess. Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) spokesman Steve Keogh said the organization didn’t give the drinks or cigars for the nearly hour-long celebration.

As said by the reports, the celebration also has been criticized since 18-year-old forward Marie-Philip Poulin was taking part in the post-game activities. It is illegal for anyone below 19 to drink alcohol in British Columbia (BC).

Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Curling Women's bronze medal game, China vs. Switzerland

Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: The Curling Women's Bronze medal game, China vs. Switzerland is going on right now. The game will come to a decision who would receive the bronze medal in Women's Curling. The gold as well as silver champions for the event will be decided in the Curling Women's Gold medal game and that will begin today at 3:00 PM between Canada and Sweden.

The Chinese team at the Curling Women's Bronze medal game includes Jinli Liu, Yan Zhou, Qingshuang Yue, Yin Liu and Bingyu Wang. In the 5 rounds until now, they’ve scored 3, 0,2,0,1, leading the game 6-4.

The Switzerland Curling team includes Mirjam Ott, Carmen Schaefer, Carmen Keung, Janine Greiner and Irene Schori. Until now, their scores have been 0, 1,0,3,0.

The live coverage of the Chine versus Switzerland Curling Women's Bronze medal game is available on television and many websites which are streaming the match. The game began at 9:00 AM.

Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics: Todd Lodwick comeback, US hero in Vancouver Olympics

The USA team, consisting of Spillane, Todd Lodwick, Billy Demong and Brett Camerota won the 1st ever medal in the final Nordic combined event at Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics and team USA won the silver medal in the final Nordic combined event.

The Nordic Combined saw the Austrian team winning the gold, after finishing the event in 48 minutes and 55.6 seconds. In the meantime, the Germans had to be satisfied with the bronze medal.

In 86 years at the Winter Olympics, this is the 1st time the United States Nordic Combined Ski Team clinched a silver medal. It was the 1st medal for American Nordic Combined athletes. Previous week, Johnny Spillane won the silver medal in the Steamboat Springs event and became the 1st American who won the medal in this event.

The American team of Spillane, Todd Lodwick, Billy Demong and Brett Camerota ended the event in 49 minutes just 5.2 seconds in excess of the gold medalist Austria.

Multiple attacks in kabul killed 18

The Indians are supposed to have contained an army officer working at the Indira Gandhi Children’s Hospital in Kabul & Nawab Khan, a noted tabla player who was there for a cultural programme.

The Taliban declared responsibility for the multiple attacks. 1 of these was a bomb explosion outer an apartment block that housed many Indians, more military men is working at the hospital. In another attack, suicide bombers stormed a guesthouse frequented by Britons & Americans. A 90-minute firefight among security forces & extra insurgents followed. An Italian embassy officer & 2 Afghan policeperson were among the dead.

Zabiullah Mujahid claimed responsiblility for the assaults on behalf of the Taliban spokesman, said 5 insurgents, with 2 suicide bombers, had aimed “where the foreign people are staying”.

Tacoma teacher killed outer at school

A man supposedly lovesick with a 30-year-old special education teacher gunshot & killed the woman outer a Tacoma elementary school teacher this morning, police told. The first shooting happened about 7:30 a.m. at Birney Elementary School.

Witnesses said to police the gunman, who lived in Ellensburg, reached the school nearly 2 hours before the teacher & gunshot her when she & a female colleague after arrived. No children were at the school at shooting.

School has been closed at Birney for today, & school district officials are discussing whether to cancel Monday classes too. Authorities also abandon a day-care center near the site of the second shooting. No one away from the gunman was injured there.

Teen Killed by Driver in Los Angels

LOS ANGELES - Police told a teenage girl has been killed by a hit & run driver in west Los Angeles.

Police spokesperson says the 13- to 15-year-old girl was struck Friday morning by a black Mercedes car at a junction in Brentwood. She was later on marked dead at UCLA Medical Center. The driver seems that stopped after the accident but then left

Police spokesperson said police are looking for information about the driver. Police say extra information will be released afterward.

The LG's new Watch Phone : India

This fashionable phone comes by scratch-proof tempered glass, 3G If you are a watch freak & also come about to be a fan of ultra rare gadgets, this may just interest you. The LG GD910 watch phone appears like a normal watch - but for the truth that it can double up as your mobile phone when required.

The GD910 LG's hottest watch phone has been introduced in India. It is quite slim at just 13.9mm & packs in 3G & Video calling capabilities too. The phone is quite stylish & the front fascia is covered by scratch-proof tempered glass.

It is also having a Bluetooth headset. The LG watch phone can be all yours for Rs. 49,990 which makes it wonderful expensive - even for an ultra sci-fi style gadget like this.

Karun Chandhok set to race in F-1

New Delhi: Karun Chandhok is all set to turn into only the 2nd driver in India's motorsport history to race in Formula 1. The GP2 driver has supposedly signed an agreement with Campos Meta to drive for them for the 2010 season opening next month.

Chandhok will be entering the sport following Narain Karthikeyan contributed in 19 races for Jordan in 2005. The man all set to become India's 2nd driver in Formula 1 is 26 years old & was born in Chennai.

He prepared his racing debut in the year 2000 when he won the Indian National Racing Championship with a record breaking 7 race victories. After a winning season in the Asian Formula Championship during 2001 - Chandhok was rewarded the most promising Asian driver of the year.

It was in 2007 that he goes in the big league & signed up with Durango for the GP2 series, considered the feeder sequence to Formula 1. In 2008 he switched teams & moved to iSport International where he joined Brunno Senna & the 2 are all set to renew that joint venture with Campos Meta this season.

One Water Update

If you haven't already joined the One Water Facebook group, then please do. They need 250,000 followers by the end of February, which is sunday!!, in order to get a donation from a trustee and carry on helping children like those below...

Click here to join!

Click here for further info and for FAQ by Mark Spall of Global Ethics.

David supports One Water and can be seen above with one of their play pumps!

Some of the amazing children from OA Fatima Primary School in Lesotho - their PlayPump was installed last February. They used to walk for miles for water but now, because of their PlayPump, they don't have to anymore. They were able to start a vegetable garden because they had water to irrigate it.

Executions in Iran: Nabi Dadtajik Can’t Afford ‘Blood Money’

Iranian human rights attorney Mohammad Mostafaei’s client, a young Afghan [-Iranian] man named Nabi Dadtajik, was sentenced to death in 2005 for manslaughter. He killed a man (unintentionally) in a fight, most probably over a girl in Dadtajik’s family that he was interested in. Mohammad Mostafaei (pictured) was assigned to the case last year.

When Mostafaei became his lawyer, he tried to gain forgiveness from the victim’s family to spare Dadtajik’s life. Now, the victim’s family have forgiven Dadtajik, under the condition that they receive blood money for the approximate amount of $15,000 USD.

Mostafaei has yet to raise the $15,000. Unfortunately, Dadtajik’s family cannot afford to pay the $15,000. Mostafaei needs to raise this money before Dadtajik’s life is spared.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

At a time when momentum is gathering across the world to abolish capital punishment, the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) currently ranks second for number of executions, after China, and first for per capita executions in the world.

According to the World Coalition against the Death Penalty, Iran executed at least 317 people in 2007, almost twice as many as in 2006 and four times as many as in 2005. In 2008, at least 346 executions were recorded. From January through the end of March 2009, Amnesty International has recorded 120 executions. (1)

These numbers are affirmatively believed to be below reality, since there are no publicly available statistics on executions carried out in the country. (2)

The Iranian legal system distinguishes between punishments considered to be the sole ‘right of Allah’ and those considered to be the ‘right of the people’. An example of the ‘right of people’ is qesas (Qesas is a retributive ‘an eye for an eye’ punishment meted out for a range of offences). (3)

In international law there is no such distinction. A death sentence is a death sentence, whereas in Iranian law, murder is treated as a private dispute between two civil parties, and the state’s role is to facilitate the resolution of the dispute through the judicial process.

In this sense, the death penalty is regarded as being imposed by the state, whereas qesas is imposed by the family of the victim. As a result, sentences of qesas are not open to pardon or amnesty by the Supreme Leader, whereas most other death sentences can be reversed by the Supreme Leader.

Murder by someone with diminished responsibility may be punishable by the payment of diyeh, a form of compensation. (Diyeh, also known as ‘blood money’, is a financial compensation determined by Sharia law and paid to the victim or his/her survivors). (4)


(1) (2) (4) : FHID – Iran/ Death Penalty: A State terror of policy
(3) Amnesty International

Source: Persian2English, Feb. 25, 2010

If you want to provide financial assistance, please contact Mr. Mohammad Mostafaei at: mostafaeilawer@yahoo.com

Death row Briton to launch last-ditch appeal

A British grandmother on death row is to lodge a last-ditch appeal with the US Supreme Court in a bid to save her life.

Linda Carty (left) was convicted in 2002 over the abduction and murder of a 25-year-old woman after a trial which campaigners say was "catastrophically flawed".

A video plea on behalf of the 51-year-old will be submitted to the Supreme Court alongside the appeal from her legal team and an brief from the British Government. If it fails, Carty could be executed within months.

Carty was convicted over the kidnap and murder of Joana Rodriguez, who was seized alongside her four-day-old son by three men on 16 May 2001.

The baby was later found unharmed in a car, but Rodriguez was killed, having suffocated with duct-tape over her mouth and a plastic bag placed around her head.

Prosecutors argued that the men were hired by Carty who, unable to get pregnant herself, intended to "cut the baby out" of the woman and pass it off as her own.

Carty has always maintained that she was framed over the murder by the men who carried out the abduction due to her earlier work as an informant for the Drug Enforcement Agency.

She had been employed by the authorities to befriend suspected drug dealers in a bid to obtain information from them.

Source: YahooNews, Feb. 26, 2010

Iran: Jundullah Leader's Brother Executed

February 24, 2010: Iran executed Jundullah terrorist organisation leader Abdolmalek Rigi's brother Abdulkhamid Rigi for several crimes including murdering several people, including policemen and their families, the source reported.

The death sentence imposed a few months ago had been postponed.

The Jundullah terrorist group, known as the Rigi group, has conducted a series of deadly terrorist acts in eastern Iran.

The group, led by Abdolmalek Rigi, claimed responsibility for an attack that killed over 40 people, including five senior commanders of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchestan.

Source: Day.Az, Feb. 24, 2010

Uganda's gays fight back

Activists to petition government to scrap Anti-Homosexuality Bill and instead decriminalize gay sex.

KAMPALA, Uganda — Even as Uganda’s parliament considers the Anti-Homosexuality Bill — which calls for the death penalty for some gay acts — a group of about 100 Ugandan gays and lesbians held a secret meeting to determine how to stand up for their rights.

The clandestine conference was held in a hotel function room in downtown Kampala last week and was titled “Standing on the side of Love, Re-imagining Valentine’s Day.”

Organized by the Rev. Mark Kiyimba of the Ugandan Unitarian Universalist Church, and financially supported by the Austria Foundation, the meeting was a strategy session to discuss how to respond to the bill. The participants resolved to petition the Ugandan Speaker of Parliament to scrap the bill and to instead move to decriminalize homosexuality.

“Our conference showed that religion does not need to be an enemy to the cause of LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender] concerns,” said Kiyimba, who declares himself a married bi-sexual. “What is at stake here is religious freedom, human rights and minority protections.”

Kiyimba said the conference is “a kick-off or starting point for us, against this bill.” He said in March he will take his petition to various countries, including the U.S., to galvanize international support for Uganda’s gays.

Most of the participants wore bright red T-shirts with a heart showing the “gay pride” rainbow colors in the center.

“This was different from other conferences,” said one gay man attending the meeting, who declined to be named, fearing reprisal. “Gay banners and flags, no pretense, it was very straightforward.”

Two Americans attended the meeting. Gay-rights activist and Episcopal minister Rev. Patricia Ackerman of New York City as well as the Rev. Marlin Lavanhar of the All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church, Tulsa, Okla.

No sooner had the meeting taken place than a newspaper report highlighted how dangerous it was. Kampala's inspector of police, Major General Kale Kayihura, said he was unaware of the gay conference but vowed to arrest participants if he found them, according to a report in the Kampala Daily Monitor.

However, Kayihura also showed that he is not completely on the side of the anti-gay campaigners. Kayihura denied a permit to anti-gay activist the Rev. Martin Ssempa who had planned to hold a “Million Man March” against homosexuality.

Ssempa, chairman of the National Pastors Task Force against Homosexuality, and David Bahati, member of parliament and author of the “Anti-Homosexuality Bill,” are at the forefront of Uganda’s current anti-gay movement.

Ssempa responded by moving his march from Kampala to Jinja — about an hour’s drive from Kampala and famous for containing the source of the Nile River. About 2,000 Ugandans marched against homosexuality there.

In Kampala, instead of a mass march, Ssempa held a “Million Prayers Vigil” at a local church. He said, “this will kick-off 40 days of prayer against homosexuality, to correspond with Lent.”

At the vigil, attended by about 300 Ugandans, including children, Ssempa performed homosexual exorcisms and showed slides of graphic gay porn to drive home his stance against homosexuality.

Bahati also gave a brief address where he admitted that there might be some changes to his bill, but that there would be a vote. After his speech, he was invited to kneel on the floor where several pastors placed their hands upon his head and prayed that Bahati be used to “deliver us from sodomy!”

The anti-gay bill, currently being debated in the legal and parliamentary affairs committee, must pass the speaker of the parliament before going to the Ugandan parliament floor for a vote. Many speculate that a full vote might take place in early March.

Since Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni distanced himself from the bill in January it is not certain whether the bill will pass, be rejected or amended to remove the harsher punishments including the death penalty, according to some political analysts in Kampala.

Source: globalpost.com, Feb. 26, 2010

Death row inmate gets new punishment hearing

Charles Dean Hood, the death row inmate whose case has drawn national attention because of a relationship between the presiding judge and prosecutor at his trial, has been granted a new punishment hearing by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.

The new hearing was not ordered because of the acknowledged relationship, but because the court ruled that the jury was not given proper instructions on how to consider Hood's background when determining his punishment.

Hood's attorneys claimed that Hood didn't deserve death because he suffered from mitigating circumstances, which included learning disabilities and abuse as a child, including being beaten with a pipe, and that these things resulted in his poor "impulse control."

Hood, 40, was convicted in 1990 of murder in the shooting deaths of Ronald Williamson and Tracie Lynn Wallace at Williamson's home in Plano. Hood had lived at the house and worked for Williamson.

Julie Wallace, Wallace's sister, was resigned to the court's decision.

"We gotta do what we gotta do. I want no one to come back and say he didn't get a fair trial," Wallace said.

"It doesn't change the fact that he's guilty. There are others who have had bad upbringings or lifestyles, and they haven't murdered," she said. "This was the path that he chose, and he needs to live with his decision."

Collin County prosecutors said in a statement that they would "begin evaluating the case to determine what punishment to seek," but "it is likely we will again seek the death penalty."

The Texas Defender Service, which represents Hood, also released a statement saying the court's decision "recognized a clear flaw in the punishment phase of Mr. Hood's case."

But the statement added: "It should not distract the courts or the public from the more troubling issue at the center of this case: that the judge and prosecutor admitted under oath that they had a long-term, intimate sexual relationship prior to Mr. Hood's trial and that they intentionally kept this affair hidden for 20 years."

The romance between now-retired Judge Verla Sue Holland and then-District Attorney Tom O'Connell had been rumored for years. But proof was elusive until 2008, when Holland and O'Connell revealed in affidavits that they had a sexual relationship before the trial and a close friendship after the romance ended.

Defense attorneys have tried repeatedly to get the Court of Criminal Appeals to address the issue, but the court has declined on procedural grounds, saying Hood waited too long to raise the issue. Instead the court agreed to re-examine the question of improper jury instructions.

In December, defense attorneys filed a petition in December asking the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether the intimate relationship between the judge and the prosecutor violated Hood's right to due process.

Last week, dozens of legal ethicists and prominent lawyers – including former Gov. Mark White and former FBI director and federal Judge Williams Sessions – asked the court to take the case.

Prosecutors declined to comment on the petition to the Supreme Court. Their response to the court is due next month.

Source: dallasnews.com, Feb. 25, 2010

Lindsey Vonn will race in slalom as scheduled

Lindsey Vonn will race in Friday's Olympic slalom, in spite of her broken right pinkie, the USA Ski Team said Thursday. Team spokesman Doug Haney wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press on Thursday that Lindsay Vonn will vie in the final women's Alpine event of the Vancouver Games.

"She's had way worse than that [injury]. She will be fine," USA team coach Jim Tracy told Reuters on Wednesday.

Also on the USA roster are Sarah Schleper of Vail, Colorado; Hailey Duke of Boise, Idaho; and Megan McJames of Park City, Utah. Julia Mancuso previously opted out of the slalom.

Lindsay Vonn, who lives and trains in Vail, injured her finger in a crash during the first run of the giant slalom Wednesday, and the USA Olympic Committee said afterward that day she hadn't decided whether to race the slalom. Lindsay Vonn won gold in downhill also bronze in super-G at these Olympics.