We’re working every week to improve the quality and accessibility of America’s food supply, to ensure regulators limit unnecessary health risks to consumers, and helping our kids (and yours) grow up with nutritious food and smart food habits. Here’s our news from this week. 

Food safety, nutrition, and health news you may have missed 

The dairy industry is lobbying to exempt cheese from sodium calculations in school meals. That’s because the USDA has outlined a multi-year proposal that would reduce the overall sodium content of foods served in schools—and with cheese in the top ten sources of excess sodium in children’s diets, that might mean less cheese in school foods. CSPI is urging Congress to ignore Big Dairy’s lobbying and focus on students’ health and wellness. 
Read more: Cheese carve-out for school meals threatens student health

CSPI is pleased to release our report, “Stretching the Dollar: Community-Informed Opportunities to Improve Healthy Food Access through Dollar Stores.” As the fastest-growing food retail sector in the United States with more than 35,000 locations across the country, dollar stores are an important and often overlooked source of food for Americans. Governments and industry have opportunities to leverage dollar stores’ ubiquity and popularity to promote healthy foods. CSPI’s report summarizes the current research, media, and policy landscape and features results from a first-of-its-kind national survey of dollar store utilization and perception. 
Read more: 
Survey: Shoppers want healthier food options at dollar stores

Executive Summary: Stretching the Dollar: Community-Informed Opportunities to Improve Healthy Food Access through Dollar Stores (PDF)

For too long, kids and teenagers have been able to purchase weight-loss and muscle-building supplements. The FDA has repeatedly warned that these supplements are often shown to be ineffective, and worse, many may be laced with dangerous chemicals, such as pharmaceuticals, steroids, and stimulants. This week, New York Governor Kathy Hochul has signed a bill banning the sale of over-the-counter supplements for weight loss or muscle-building to minors in the state. CSPI is a proud community partner of Out of Kids’ Hands, along with American Academy of Pediatrics and New York STRIPED.
Read more at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health: New York State to Ban the Sale of Diet Pills to Children

The U.S. food supply is dominated by products with excessive amounts of added sugars, which are linked to increased risk of dental decay, weight gain, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. It's time for FDA to take action by urging the food and beverage industry to reduce added sugars in their products.
Sign our petition: Tell FDA: Develop sugars reduction targets for our food supply

The new FDA Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods Jim Jones has committed to upholding FDA Commissioner Robert Califf’s bold vision for better protecting American consumers. CSPI supports the Deputy Commissioner Jones’ plans to focus on “preventing foodborne illness, decreasing diet-related chronic disease through improved nutrition, and safeguarding the food supply through the safe use of chemicals and dietary supplements,” as well as further re-organization of the Human Foods Program, and urges the agency to continue to improve transparency and coordination with external stakeholders, state and local officials, and members of Congress.
Read more in CSPI’s Letter to Jim Jones, newly appointed FDA Human Foods Commissioner.

Through personal care products—that’s shampoo, deodorant, makeup, and haircare products—are a $90 billion industry in the US. “A 2004 survey estimated that women use about a dozen personal care products every day, which exposes them to more than 165 unique chemical ingredients,” says Janet Nudelman, director of the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a program of the Breast Cancer Prevention Partners that works to eliminate exposure to toxic chemicals. “And that’s probably an underestimate.” Worse, some ingredients are known hormone disruptors that are linked to cancer—and there are very few regulations in place to prevent bad business practices. Here’s what you should know. 
Read more at NutritionAction: What’s in your deodorant, lotion, makeup, & more?

Getting ready for Halloween? We’ve got you covered. Learn how to ensure a safe and enjoyable night is had by all—especially those trick-or-treaters with food allergies—by participating in the Teal Pumpkin Project. And for food treats, watch out for harmful additives: Red 3 was recently banned in California, but in 1990, the FDA banned it from use in topical drugs and cosmetics. We definitely don’t need it in candy! Find out which common Halloween treats contain Red 3, the carcinogenic synthetic food dye CSPI is urging the FDA to ban from food use. 
Read more at CSPI: 
The Teal Pumpkin Project: Have an allergen-free Halloween
Carcinogenic Red 3 is hiding in these Halloween candies