Think of it as another example of a refined palate. The ability to make speech sounds such as “f” and “v” is due to diet-led changes in humans’ bite, researchers say. The range of speech sounds people can make was generally thought to be fixed since modern humans appeared about 300,000 years ago, but this new study challenges that theory. The findings suggest that sounds such as “f” and “v” — common in many modern languages — are a relatively recent development linked to humans’ eating habits. The teeth of adult humans used to meet in an edge-to-edge bite in order to cope with harder and tougher foods. As softer foods became available, the overbite that had previously disappeared by adulthood remained, with upper teeth slightly in front of lower teeth, the researchers explained. This enabled the emergence of a new class of speech sounds called labiodentals, now used in half of the world’s languages. These sounds are made by touching the lower lip to the upper teeth, as when pronouncing the letter “f.” “In Europe, our data suggests that the use of labiodentals has increased dramatically only in the last couple of millennia, correlated with the rise of food processing technology such as industrial milling,” said study co-first author Steven Moran, a linguist at the University of Zurich in Switzerland. “The influence of biological…  read on >

You’ll find plenty of nutrient-enriched flavored waters on grocery shelves, but are they any better for your diet than a glass of water with a squeeze of lemon? Many drinks promise health benefits, from more energy and better exercise performance to a stronger immune system. The latest fad is alkaline water, with claims that its manipulated pH has health benefits. But none of the claims of enhanced water products have been substantiated with serious research. In fact, Coca-Cola, parent company of Vitaminwater, voluntarily agreed in 2016 to remove claims from its labels to end a lawsuit brought by the Center for Science in the Public Interest seven years earlier. Drilling down into what’s inside the bottle brings up other concerns. Some products contain unnecessary nutrients. For example, most people who perform average amounts of exercise don’t need to replace electrolytes the way athletes do, and don’t need enhanced “sports” waters and other drinks, but there’s no science to support that either. Other products contain excessive amounts of some nutrients. Among 46 drinks tested in one study, most had at least one nutrient in excess of the daily required amount. Yet other than vitamin D, most Americans aren’t lacking in vitamins, and getting an abundance of certain nutrients can pose health risks. Of greater concern, whether you’re limiting calories to lose weight or want to eat…  read on >