Flavonoids, found in plant foods, are becoming increasingly recognised for their health benefits(1). A valid, reliable and short dietary assessment tool is necessary to assess flavonoid intake, as current methods are burdensome for researchers and participants. This study aimed to evaluate the validity and reproducibility of a flavonoid food frequency questionnaire (Flav-Q), which was derived from the Kent & Charlton Flavonoid Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ)(2). The Flav-Q contains 23 items and was validated against repeated 24-hour dietary recalls in an Australian adult population (18y+). The Flav-Q was administered at four time-points over 12 months period (n = 80). At each time-point, two 24-hour dietary recall surveys were completed using Intake-24(3). Usual flavonoid intake was assessed by cross-referencing food lists with the Phenol-Explorer database and averaged using the multiple source method (MSM) for participants who had at least 4 recalls. The criterion validity of the Flav-Q at baseline was compared against the usual intake using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Spearman’s correlation coefficient, Bland-Altman plots, and Cohen’s kappa (κ)(4). The reproducibility of the baseline Flav-Q (Flav_Q1) was compared with time points 2, 3, and 4. Mean total flavonoid intake was higher for Flav-Q1 compared to usual intake (443.2 mg/day vs 234.4 mg/day, p < 0.001) and overestimated subclass intake except for flavanones. Moderate to strong correlations were found between Flav-Q1 and usual intake for total flavonoids (r = 0.66, p < 0.001; κ = 0.45, p < 0.001) and subclasses flavan-3-ols (r = 0.72, p < 0.001; κ = 0.53; p < 0.001)), flavonols (r = 0.55, p < 0.001; κ = 0.40, p < 0.001), flavanones (r = 0.49, p < 0.001; κ = 0.30, p = 0.007), and a weaker non-significant correlation for anthocyanin (r = 0.38, p < 0.001; κ = 0.15, p = 0.18) and flavones (r = 0.34, p < 0.001; κ = 20, p = 0.07). Bland-Altman plots showed a large bias and wide limits of agreement (61.64%) for total flavonoid intake. Flav-Q demonstrated high reproducibility across all timepoints (Flav-Q1 vs Flav-Q2 r = 0.82, p < 0.001; κ = 0.70, p < 0.001), Flav-Q1 vs Flav-Q3 (r = 0.68, p < 0.001; κ = 0.47, p < 0.001), Flav-Q1 vs Flav-Q4 (r = 0.63, p < 0.001; κ = 0.47, p < 0.001). Mean percentage differences between repeated timepoints for total flavonoid ranged from 19% to 31%, with Bland-Altman plots showing good levels of agreement. Overall, the Flav-Q tool was reproducible and demonstrated some agreement for assessing the intake of total flavonoid and its subclasses. However, further validation to determine reasons for over-estimation is necessary.

Choline is an essential nutrient required in increased amounts during periods of rapid growth such as pregnancy and early life(1). It is a precursor for acetylcholine synthesis, a key neurotransmitter involved in muscle coordination and memory, and betaine, a major methyl donor. Choline is also a component of phosphatidylcholine, a phospholipid that makes up to 50% of neural tissue, most of which is accrued in late pregnancy and early life. Choline can be synthesised in the liver; however, de novo synthesis is not sufficient to meet needs and exogenous choline must come from diet. Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) has established Adequate Intakes (AI) for choline. During pregnancy and lactation, the AI for choline is set at 440 and 550 mg/d. For young children 0–3 years of age, the AI is set at 125–200 mg/day. We and others have shown that pregnant and lactating Australian women have low choline intakes with few exceeding their AI (1–40%). There are no data on the choline intakes of children under 2 years. In 2021, we published the first ever Australia-wide study on nutrient intakes in children under two years, and, in 2024, updated it to include choline. Using a 24-hour food record with repeats in a subsample of the population (~30%), we estimated usual choline intake distributions and its dietary sources in n = 761 children 6–24 months. Average choline intakes for infants 6–12 months and toddlers 12–24 months were 142 ± 1.9 and 181 ± 1.2 mg/day, respectively. Only one third of infants and one quarter of toddlers exceeded their respective AIs of 125 and 200 mg/day. Breastfeeding rates were high with 78% of infants and 44% of toddlers still receiving breastmilk. In both groups, breastmilk was the leading source of choline contributing 56% and 32% among consumers(2). Animal-source foods (meat, chicken, fish, and eggs) rich in choline and other essential nutrients were consumed by less than one third of children and in small amounts. Given choline’s role in neurodevelopment, the low intakes observed in pregnant and lactating women and young children suggest dietary intakes may need improvement. Moreover, the impact of low choline intake on neurodevelopmental outcomes remains unknown and warrants further investigation.

Nutrition represents a promising strategy for increasing antioxidants in the brain, with potential implications for mitigating illnesses with oxidative stress-related neuropathology(1). Emerging evidence indicates that bioactive compounds, including phenolics and betalains—responsible for the red, yellow, and purple hues in fruits—may decrease oxidative damage(2). Therefore, research into novel plant-based sources of phenolics and betalains with potential antioxidant properties is needed. This study aimed to examine the neuroprotective effects of key fruit extracts and to correlate effects with their phytochemical and antioxidant profile. Dragon fruit (DF), queen garnet plum (QGP) jaboticaba (JB), green apple (GA), blueberry (BlueB), blackberry (BlackB), watermelon (WM), and apricot (AP) extracts were analysed for their phenolic, flavonoid, anthocyanin and betalain concentrations, and antioxidant capacity (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC)). The neuroprotective efficacy of the fruits (10, 25, 50, 100 μg/mL) was then examined in-vitro using H2O2-induced oxidative stress in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma-like cells. Cells were treated with the fruit extracts either prior to H2O2 administration (to examine protective effects), or after the H2O2 stressor (to determine treatment effects), with cell viability examined using MTT assays. Statistical analyses determined differences between fruits and the controls (healthy (untreated) and H2O2 controls) using one-way ANOVAs and post-hoc Tukey comparisons. Correlations were examined using Spearman’s correlation tests. QGP and BlueB were significantly higher in phenolics and anthocyanins (p < 0.01), QGP highest in flavonoids (p < 0.01), and DF was highest in betalains (p < 0.001) and ORAC (p < 0.01), compared to the remaining fruits. Pre-treatment with DF and JB prevented H2O2-induced loss in cell viability, retaining control-like levels (p > 0.05 vs healthy controls). GA pre-treatment also exhibited significant neuroprotective effects (p < 0.01 vs H2O2 alone) but could not restore control levels (p < 0.01 vs healthy controls). The ability of DF, JB and GA to treat existing damage to cell viability induced by H2O2 was then examined; however, the extracts were ineffective as a treatment (p > 0.001 vs H2O2 alone and healthy controls). Interestingly, there were moderate correlations between cell viability and both ORAC (r2 = 0.680, p < 0.001) and betalain concentration (r2 = 0.446, p < 0.05). This study revealed novel sources of bioactive compounds, including characterisation of betalain concentrations, in these fruits. The results demonstrate an ability of DF and JB to prevent oxidative stress in neuronal-like cells, but not treat damage after it has occurred. This finding agrees with the evidence that implementing a healthy diet rich in bioactive compounds, such as betalains and phenolics, may support brain health(1). The data also support a link between increased betalains, antioxidant capacity and neuroprotection; however, further research into the mechanisms underpinning the beneficial protective effects of DF and JB are required.

In 2011, the recently established South Korean broadcasting network Channel-A launched Ije mannareo gamnida (Now on My Way to Meet You), a program whose format brings together a group of a dozen or more female talbukja (North Korean refugees) on a weekly basis. These women interact with host Nam Hui-seok, an additional female co-host (or, in the earlier episodes, two), and a panel composed of four male South Korean entertainers. Episodes typically open in a lighthearted manner, with conversation about daily life in North Korea alongside mild flirtation between the Southern male and Northern female participants, often involving song and dance, but climax with a talbuk seuteori, an emotionally harrowing narrative from one of the border-crossers detailing her exodus from North Korea. Via this framework Ije mannareo gamnida attempts to nurture the integration of North Korean refugees into South Korean society; personalization of their plight occurs in conjunction with reminders of a shared Korean identity maintained despite the regime they have fled, which is depicted as cruel, repressive and backward. The show has proven a minor hit within South Korea and received coverage from local and global media (see, e.g., Kim 2012; Choi 2012; Noce 2012).

Greene's article explores more deeply the health dangers facing people exposed to long-term low dosages of radiation, as is inevitable for those near the Fukushima plant. An English professor, Greene developed interested in the health effects of low-level radiation when she authored a biography of the late epidemiologist Alice Stewart, who pioneered research in that field. Greene contends that the global media is downplaying these dangers, and she presents alternate studies that show that exposure to radiation following the Chernobyl disaster caused many medical problems. These extend beyond cancer; every human body system is harmed. She argues the pro-nuclear media in Japan is reluctant to connect Fukushima to Chernobyl because doing so would dampen enthusiasm for building new nuclear plants. The misinformation will exacerbate the dangers for Fukushima residents who may follow their government's lead and conclude that it is medically safe to stay there. Most at risk are fetuses and children, on whom the effects of radiation are much more severe.

A Korean Nuclear Weapons Free Zone (WFZ) may be a necessary condition to achieving the full denuclearization of Korea. As well as providing benefits to the United States in preventing a major direct and wider proliferation threat from North Korea, and to China, Japan and South Korea in maintaining stability in the Northeast Asian Region, it would also serve to address North Korean security concerns about potential US nuclear strikes. The two Koreas have already negotiated a legal basis for a Korean Nuclear Weapon Free Zone in the form of the 1992 Joint Declaration on the Denuclearization of the Korea Peninsula. This could form the basis of a NWFZ covering the peninsula. Alternatively, the ROK and Japan could create a Japan Korea NWFZ via a bilateral treaty. This article assesses the prospects for the creation of a NWFZ in the present international climate.

It is one of the marvels of our time that the nuclear industry managed to resurrect itself from its ruins at the end of the last century, when it crumbled under its costs, inefficiencies, and mega-accidents. Chernobyl released hundreds of times the radioactivity of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs combined, contaminating more than 40% of Europe and the entire Northern Hemisphere. But along came the nuclear lobby to breathe new life into the industry, passing off as “clean” this energy source that polluted half the globe. The “fresh look at nuclear”一in the words of a New York Times makeover piece (May 13, 2006)—paved the way to a “nuclear Renaissance” in the United States that Fukushima has by no means brought to a halt.