A study by researchers at Cornell University suggests that people may try using smaller sized bowls, plates and spoons in order to curb the amount of food eaten. Investigators based their research on previous studies which have shown that teenagers poured 77 percent less juice into narrow and tall glasses compared with short and wide glasses. Similarly, bartenders were found to pour less liquor into "highball" glasses then into tumblers.

Dr. Brian Wansink and colleagues conducted a study of 85 nutrition experts, including faculty, staff, and graduate students, from a large midwestern university, who attended an ice cream social

According to a new study by Venezuelan researchers, two strains of bacteria can prove to be the key to make beans flatulence-free.

The researchers identified two bacteria, Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum, which can be added to beans to minimize the distress caused by them, Marisela Granito of Simon Bolivar University in Caracas, Venezuela and colleagues reported

Fast food restaurants in Oakland, California, are the first in the country required to clean up the trash they create. City lawmakers have approved a measure that forces eateries and other businesses to pay a fee that will be used to hire crews to clean up litter.

Despite protests from business owners, the council approved the measure 6-1, making Oakland the first city in the nation to force eateries, food and liquor stores to chip in to clean up litter, industry officials say. Businesses will be assessed between $230 and $3,815 annually, depending on their size. More than three-quarters of the affected businesses would only pay the minimum fee, which amounts to 63 cents a day

Homeless alcoholics may benefit from a regular dose of liquor, according to the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

"Once we give a 'small amount' of alcohol and stabilize the addiction, we are able to provide health services that lead to a reduction in the unnecessary health services they were getting before," says Dr. Jeff Turnbull, one of the authors of the report

The size and shape of a glass can determine how much alcohol is poured into a glass.

Short, wide glasses tend to be filled with more liquor than tall, narrow glasses