AIDS Vaccine Trials, Fruit and Veggie Failures Named "Best, Worst Prevention Idea of the Week"

The surprising results of AIDS vaccine trials in Thailand were named Partnership for Prevention's "Best Prevention Idea of the Week," while the failure by all 50 states to meet fruit and vegetable consumption targets was named “Worst Prevention Idea of the Week.”

The Best/Worst Idea awards are a regular feature of Prevention Matters, the blog of Partnership for Prevention. Each week, Partnership for Prevention's staff will choose the designees based on nominations of items in the previous week's news submitted by members, staff and the public at large. To submit a nomination or for more information, contact Damon Thompson at dthompson@prevent.org.

BEST

Trials of AIDS Vaccine Show Promising Results

http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/2009-09-29-voa2.cfm

The risk of H.I.V. infection was reduced by almost one-third in recent vaccine trials in Thailand. AIDS researchers say they still have much work to do on the vaccine, but the first reports of some success have raised hopes. The vaccine, a combination of two older vaccines, lowered the infection rate by about a third after three years among 16,000 ordinary Thai volunteers. Vaccines need to be at least 50 percent effective, and usually 70 to 80 percent effective, to be useful. Scientists also still need to find out why the vaccine works for some people.

WORST

No States Meeting Objectives for Fruit, Vegetable Consumption

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/54797

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a report on Tuesday saying that none of the states is meeting “national objectives” for consumption of fruits and vegetables. According to the goals laid out in its Healthy People 2010 report, the government wants at least 75 percent of Americans to eat the recommended two or more daily servings of fruit, and it is aiming for at least 50 percent of Americans to eat the recommended three or more servings of vegetables daily. However, CDC surveys indicate that only 33 percent of adults meet the recommendation for fruit consumption and 27 percent get the recommended servings of vegetables. The statistics are even worse for high school students, the CDC report says.