In The Days

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That’s the final, pathetic growth number for 2011.

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Despite the research the British Heart Foundation warned Britons not to “reach for the frying pan”

It is a “myth” that regularly eating fried foods causes heart attacks, researchers have found, as long as you use olive oil or sunflower oil.

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Knowledge Increased

“But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased•Strongs 7235: rabah, raw-baw´; a primitive root; to increase (in whatever respect):—(bring in) abundance (x -antly), + archer (by mistake for 7232), be in authority, bring up, x continue, enlarge, excel, exceeding(-ly), be full of, (be, make) great(-er, -ly, x -ness), grow up, heap, increase, be long, (be, give, have, make, use) many (a time), (any, be, give, give the, have) more (in number), (ask, be, be so, gather, over, take, yield) much (greater, more), (make to) multiply, nourish, plenty(-eous), x process (of time), sore, store, thoroughly, very..”
—Daniel 12:4

They say there is mounting research that it is the type of oil used, and whether or not it has been used before, that really matters.
The latest study, published in the British Medical Journal, found no association between the frequency of fried food consumption in Spain – where olive and sunflower oils are mostly used – and the incidence of serious heart disease.
However, the British Heart Foundation warned Britons not to “reach for the frying pan” yet, pointing out that the Mediterranean diet as a whole was healthier than ours.
Spanish researchers followed more than 40,000 people, two-thirds of whom were women, from the mid 1990s to 2004.
At the outset they asked them how often they ate fried foods, either at home or while out. They then looked to see whether eating fried foods regularly increased the likelihood of falling ill from having coronary heart disease, such as a heart attack or angina requiring surgery.

Dividing participants into four groups, from lowest fried food intake to highest, they found no significant difference in heart disease.
There were 606 incidents linked to heart disease in total, but they were split relatively evenly between the four groups.
The authors concluded: “In a Mediterranean country where olive and sunflower oils are the most commonly used fats for frying, and where large amounts of fried foods are consumed both at and away from home, no association was observed between fried food consumption and the risk of coronary heart disease or death.”
Commenting on the findings in the BMJ, Professor Michael Leitzmann of the University of Regensburg in Germany said two other studies – one from Costa Rica and another by an international team – had also failed to find strong evidence of a link.
He said: “Taken together, the myth that frying food is generally bad for the heart is not supported by available evidence.
“However, this does not mean that frequent meals of fish and chips will have no health consequences.”
Fried food did contain more calories, he said, while it had also been linked to high blood pressure and obesity.
The authors of the Spanish study noted that the findings could only really be extrapolated to other Mediterranean countries with similar diets, whose people tended to fry ‘fresh’ with olive and sunflower oil.
Fried foods from modern American-style takeaways were different, they argued, because these tended to have been cooked in re-used oils, higher in transfats.
In addition, such takeaways tended to contain much more salt, known to increase blood pressure and heart disease risk.
However, more and more people in Britain are now frying with olive oil or sunflower oil. Britain now consumes around 28 million litres of olive oil a year – double that sold a decade ago.
Half British households now use it regularly in some way, although not necessarily for frying, compared to a third 10 years ago.
Victoria Taylor, senior heart health dietitian at the British Heart Foundation, said: “Before we all reach for the frying pan it’s important to remember that this was a study of a Mediterranean diet, rather than British fish and chips.
“Our diet in the UK will differ from Spain, so we cannot say that this result would be the same for us too.
“Participants in this study used unsaturated fats such as olive and sunflower oil to fry their food.
“We currently recommend swapping saturated fats like butter, lard or palm oil for unsaturated fats as a way of keeping your cholesterol down and this study gives further cause to make that switch.
“Regardless of the cooking methods used, consuming foods with high fat content means a high calorie intake. This can lead to weight gain and obesity, which is a risk factor for heart disease.
“A well-balanced diet, with plenty of fruit and veg and only a small amount of high fat foods, is best for a healthy heart.”

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Warren Buffett, whom President Obama likes to cite as a fair-minded billionaire while arguing for higher taxes on the wealthy, stands to benefit from the president’s decision to reject the Keystone XL oil pipeline permit.

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This SDO image (AIA 193) shows an M9-class solar flare erupting on the Sun’s northeastern hemisphere at 03:49 UT on Jan. 23, 2012… just 4 days after a previous strong CME that sparked aurora around the world on the 22nd. More geomagnetic activity is expected for the 24th.
CREDIT: NASA/SDO and the AIA Consortium/Edited by J. Major

A powerful solar eruption is expected to blast a stream of charged particles toward Earth tomorrow (Jan. 24), as the strongest radiation storm since 2005 rages on the sun.

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Iranian Navy boats take part in maneuvers during the “Velayat-90″ navy exercises in the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran (AFP Photo / EBRAHIM NOROOZI)

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A teacher and volunteer from the Muslim Brotherhood revises lessons for free with school pupils before their exams, at a mosque in Alexandria January 20, 2012.
Credit: Reuters/Asmaa Waguih

The Muslim Brotherhood won by far the biggest share of seats allocated to party lists in Egypt’s first freely-elected parliament in decades, final results confirmed, giving it a major role in drafting the country’s new constitution.

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Bombs killed at least 14 prisoners in a Syrian security vehicle on Saturday, and fierce battles erupted between rebels and state forces as the Arab League considered whether to keep monitors in place.

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