ODS Update

September 2008

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News You Can Use

Proceedings of ODS Conference on Vitamin D Published in AJCN
The proceedings from the September 2007 conference, Vitamin D and Health in the 21st Century: An Update, were published in the August 2008 issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (AJCN). ODS and other cosponsors convened the conference to examine the growing knowledge base of the health effects of vitamin D and to determine future research needs. Full Story

ODS Updates Fact Sheet on Vitamin D
A major update of the ODS Vitamin D fact sheet is available on the ODS Web site. Full Story

NIH-Funded Botanical Research Centers Featured in AJCN
The February 2008 issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (AJCN) highlights research from the NIH Botanical Research Centers Program. Full Story

IOM Report Examines Dietary Supplement Use in Military
Patterns of dietary supplement use by military personnel are reported in a recent publication from the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine, National Academies. Full Story

Bitter Orange Reference Materials Available
Standard Reference Materials (SRMs) are now available for bitter orange, an ingredient found primarily in dietary supplements marketed for weight loss. Full Story

New Funding Opportunities for Research
In the past few months, ODS has signed onto several funding initiatives across NIH and with other agencies through mechanisms such as Requests for Applications (RFAs) and Program Announcements (PAs). Full Story

ODS Programs and Activities

Contract Awarded to Develop Dietary Supplement Label Database
With funding from ODS and the National Library of Medicine (NLM), Abt Associates of Cambridge, MA will conduct a pilot study to determine if it is feasible to develop a Web-based database to catalog the labels of all dietary supplements sold in the United States. Full Story

ODS Hosted 2nd Annual Dietary Supplement Research Practicum
Nearly 120 academic faculty and their advanced students, together with federal government-employed health professionals, spent a week at NIH to get a thorough grounding in issues and concepts about dietary supplements. Full Story

ODS Staff News

Elizabeth A. Yetley, PhD, ODS Senior Nutrition Research Scientist, Retires
Dr. Yetley retired from ODS this summer, ending a 28-year career in the federal government. Full Story

New ODS Staff

Regan Bailey, PhD, RD, LDN, came on board in September 2007 as ODS' first Postdoctoral Research Fellow. Full Story

Patsy M. Brannon, PhD, RD, Professor of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University, joined ODS as a Visiting Professor in April 2007. She is co-coordinator (with Mary Frances Picciano) of the ODS Vitamin D Initiative to establish an NIH-wide evidence-based research agenda for vitamin D. Full Story

John H. Cardellina II, PhD, became a part-time consultant with ODS in January 2008 to participate in activities related to the Analytical Methods and Reference Materials Program. Full Story

Julia B. Freeman, PhD, joined ODS on a half-time basis in March 2008 as Strategic Planning Coordinator to manage and carry out tasks involved in the development of the next ODS Strategic Plan for the years 2010-2014. Full Story

Marguerite Klein, MS, came to ODS in February 2008 as a Health Science Administrator to expand the work of the Analytical Methods and Reference Materials Program. Full Story

Christopher T. Sempos, PhD, joined ODS in July 2008 as a Health Science Administrator to provide expertise in nutritional epidemiology, public health surveillance, and epidemiological methods and biostatistics. Full Story

Recent ODS Staff Publications

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Recent ODS Presentations, Workshops & Exhibits

AARP: Life@50+ National Event and Expo
ODS had an exhibit at this meeting highlighting educational information available on the Web site and in the fact sheets. (September 4-6, 2008: Washington, DC)

6th Annual Covance Food Symposium: Relevant Regulatory and Analytical Challenges for Food and Dietary Supplements
Joseph Betz gave an invited lecture titled Challenges in Biomedical Research on Dietary Supplements: The NIH Perspective. (August 26, 2008: Madison, WI)

11th Annual Army Force Health Protection Conference
Rebecca Costello took part in a panel presenting the findings from a recently published report from the Food and Nutrition Board titled Use of Dietary Supplements by Military Personnel. ODS also had an exhibit at this meeting. (August 12-13, 2008: Albuquerque, NM) Full Story

Nashville Area Health Summit Indian Health Service
Jody Engel gave a presentation on herbs, botanicals, and dietary supplements. (July 16, 2008: Nashville, TN)

Vitamin Methodology Workshop
ODS' Analytical Methods and Reference Materials Program sponsored this public meeting to evaluate the state of analytical methodology for vitamins in dietary supplements and to identify gaps in the analytical science. (July 7-8, 2008: Gaithersburg, MD) Full Story

American Academy of Physician Assistants Annual Conference
ODS showcased the ODS Web site and educational materials geared toward health care professionals at an exhibit at this conference. (May 27-28, 2008: San Antonio, TX)

2008 Experimental Biology Annual Meeting
Mary Frances Picciano and Patsy Brannon cochaired a late-breaking symposium titled Vitamin D and Health in the 21st Century: Research Needs and Tools for Research. ODS also had an exhibit at this meeting. (April 6-8: San Diego, CA) Full Story

Upcoming Events (September - November 2008)

American Academy of Family Physicians Scientific Assembly
September 18-20, 2008: San Diego, CA
Visit the ODS exhibit booth #5420.

AOAC Annual Meeting & Exposition
September 21-23, 2008: Dallas, TX
ODS staff will present several sessions and a poster at this meeting. Visit the ODS exhibit booth #120. Full Story

United States Pharmacopeia's Annual Scientific Meeting
September 25-26, 2008: Kansas City, MO
Joseph Betz will give an invited lecture titled New Approaches to Standard Setting via Performance-based Procedures.

American College of Nutrition 49th Annual Meeting
October 2-5, 2008: Arlington, VA
Several ODS staff will participate in this meeting. Visit the ODS exhibit booth #4. Full Story

2008 Shanghai International Conference on Traditional Chinese Medicine and Natural Medicines
October 10-12, 2008: Shanghai, China
Joseph Betz will give an invited talk titled National Institutes of Health, Dietary Supplement Analytical Methods and Reference Materials Program: Accomplishments and Future Directions.

Indo-US Symposium on Indian Systems of Medicine and Botanicals
October 15-16, 2008: New Delhi, India
Joseph Betz will give an invited talk titled National Institutes of Health, Dietary Supplement Analytical Methods and Reference Materials Program: Accomplishments and Future Directions.

Supply Side West
October 23-24, 2008: Las Vegas, NV
ODS staff will participate in this meeting. Visit the ODS exhibit booth #25097. Full Story

American Dietetic Association Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo
October 25-28, 2008: Chicago, IL
ODS staff will participate in this meeting. Visit the ODS exhibit booth #1342. Full Story

American Institute for Cancer Research Annual Research Conference on Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Cancer
November 6-7, 2008: Washington, DC
ODS staff will participate in this meeting. Full Story

WHO Congress on Traditional Medicine
November 6-9, 2008: Beijing, China
Christine Swanson will give an invited presentation titled The NIH Botanical Research Centers Program. Full Story

American Heart Association Meeting
November 9-11, 2008: New Orleans, LA
Rebecca Costello will moderate a session titled Lifestyle in the Prevention and Management of Peripheral Vascular Diseases: Role of Physical Activity, Diet and Dietary Supplements on Tuesday, November 11, at 5:30 p.m. Visit the ODS exhibit booth #533.

International Society for Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods
November 14-17, 2008: Taichung, Taiwan
Joseph Betz will attend this first annual meeting and present an invited keynote paper titled Dietary Supplements in Health Promotion and Disease Risk Reduction: Challenges, Promises and Regulatory Aspects.

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ODS Update provides information on news, activities, and resources from the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS). ODS is a program office within the Office of the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The mission of ODS is to strengthen knowledge and understanding of dietary supplements by evaluating scientific information, stimulating and supporting research, disseminating research results, and educating the public to foster an enhanced quality of life and health for the U.S. population.

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