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It is well known that shellfish is rich in zinc, the mineral essential for a host of bodily functions, from muscle-building to a healthy immune response. But did you know you can get your daily dose from a portion of beef steak?
Zinc is found in many foods, including chicken, nuts and legumes. But, despite this, the World Health Organisation estimates that one third of the global population is zinc-deficient.
In the UK this may include children and teenagers eating a poor diet, pregnant women and elderly people. And experts estimate many of us only get half the recommended 15mg a day.
'Lack of zinc is linked to wide-ranging health problems, including impaired immunity and fertility,' says Professor John Beattie, of the University of Aberdeen. 'It may even encourage the development of heart disease.'
So just why is zinc so important and what can you do to optimise your levels of this important mineral?
Studies at Wayne State University, Michigan, show that the mineral is essential for the normal development and function of immune cells. It also plays a critical role in cellular reproduction, growth and development.
Patrick Holford, author of The New Optimum Nutrition Bible, says the mineral is needed to build muscle and it is essential that pregnant women and children get enough. Deficiency in a growing child not only impairs growth, it leads to weak immunity, poor brain development and dry, unhealthy skin.
Zinc acts like an antioxidant, preventing damage to cell membranes and other tissues, say researchers at the University of Florida. It repairs DNA, molecules that house our genetic code, and so helps slow the ageing process.
You can obtain the recommended daily dose of zinc from a single oyster, or a 200g piece of beef steak. A 250g chicken fillet will contain 7.5mg, and 100g of almonds and peanuts has 2mg.
'The richest food sources come from seafood and meat, so vegetarians are most at risk of deficiency,' says Holford.
You can boost zinc levels by cutting down on alcohol and smoking, and by reducing stress levels. Vegetarians should also be aware that cereals contain chemicals called phytates which block zinc absorption. They should eat plenty of nuts, seeds and whole grains, all of which are good plant sources of zinc. Iron supplements also hinder zinc absorption. source: dailymail.com

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Six people were killed in Pakistan on Saturday when Muslim demonstrators set fire to houses in a Christian enclave and fighting broke out, local police said.
Pakistani human rights activists in Lahore protest on Saturday the anti-Christian violence in Gojra village.
Police said Muslims were enraged over an alleged desecration of pages in the Quran at a Christian wedding last Saturday, and held a rally to protest. The Quran is the Muslim sacred text.
The Muslims went to the Christian community in Gojra City, 160 kilometers (100 miles) southwest of Lahore, and burned 40 to 50 houses. Muslims and Christians exchanged gunfire.
Police said efforts to settle the concerns with dialogue so far have failed.
On Thursday, 15 Christian houses in the region were also torched.
Pakistan is predominantly Muslim but has a small Christian community.
Meanwhile, police in Islamabad reported Friday that an al Qaeda member thought to be involved in several attacks was arrested.
Bin Yamin, a senior police official in Islamabad, identified the suspect as Rao Shakir Ali.
Police believe he was involved in strikes on targets such as the Danish Embassy, a rally of Chief Justice Iftikhar Chauhdary, police, and a hotel.
The suspect is a resident of Sargodha, which is 165 kilometers (about 100 miles) northwest of Lahore and has a house in Rawalpindi that has been used to facilitate insurgent acts, police said. source: cnn.com

LONDON, England (CNN) -- The British government should refocus its objectives in Afghanistan and concentrate on one priority: security, a House of Commons committee said in a report released Sunday.
British soldiers patrol in Baba Ji district of Helmand province last month after retaking it from the Taliban.
The report also criticizes the NATO mission in Afghanistan, saying the lack of a unified vision and strategy is jeopardizing the military alliance's reputation.
Britain has moved away from its initial goals of counterterrorism in Afghanistan and has started working on areas it isn't able to handle alone, the Foreign Affairs Select Committee said in the report, which examines security in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Focusing on security is the only way that Britain and its allies will achieve long-term stability in Afghanistan, the report said.
"The U.K. has experienced mission creep from its initial goal of supporting the U.S. in countering international terrorism, far into the realms of counter-insurgency, counter-narcotics, protection of human rights and state building," said committee chairman Mike Gapes. Watch a British soldier speak out against the war »
"It is clear that despite the commendable efforts of the (British Foreign Office) in adopting a broad-ranging, holistic approach to tackling narcotics in Afghanistan, success in that area depends on a range of factors which lie far beyond the control and resource of the U.K. alone."
The committee recommends that the United Nations and the NATO force in Afghanistan, ISAF, join with the Afghan government to take over counter-narcotics operations from Britain.
Security in Afghanistan "will remain precarious for some time to come," but in no way must the international community abandon Afghanistan, the report said. source: cnn.com

ROCKWOOD, Pennsylvania (CNN) -- Four generations of Saylors have worked the family's dairy farm for nearly a century, but for the past three years, the cows have been doing something besides providing milk: They've been helping power the place. Growing up on the sprawling spread 90 minutes from Pittsburgh, 36-year-old farmer Shawn Saylor developed into a self-described science buff.
So it was no surprise that, when faced with rising energy costs, Saylor turned to technology.
He tapped into an abundant and easily accessible energy source: manure from about 600 cows. Watch how cow poo powers the farm »
"It's a pretty simple process. There's not really a lot to it," Saylor said. "Manure comes from the cows, and there's energy left in the manure."
The process is known as anaerobic digestion, and here's how it works:
With the help of a mechanical scraper in the barn, manure drops into a 19,000-gallon tank. The slurry then moves into the digester, which is 16 feet deep and 70 feet in diameter. It's heated there for about 16 days while the bacteria break down the organic matter in order to produce methane gas. That gas is burned in two engine generators to make electricity. See an interactive explaining the process »
Heat created by the generators keeps the digester hot, heats the buildings around the farm and helps provide hot water.
The electricity is used to power this farm and a dozen neighboring homes, Saylor said. And there's still some left over, which he sells back to the grid.
Overall, the poo power helps Saylor's bottom line.
"In savings, there's $200,000 a year, in either extra income from sale of electricity or cost offsets," he said.
"So you're talking about system project costs of over a million dollars to build the system but a payback of five years or less." Source: cnn.com

Michael Phelps wrested back his world 100-meter butterfly record after another titanic showdown with Milorad Cavic at the world swimming championships in Rome on Saturday evening.
Michael Phelps, below, was neck and neck with Serbian rival Milorad Cavic in the closing stages of the race.
Olympic champion Phelps, who saw his Serbian rival beat his leading mark in Friday's semifinals with a time of 50.01 seconds, came home to win in a stunning 49.82.
Cavic, who controversially finished second behind the American in a photo-finish in Beijing last year, also went below the previous best as he was runner-up in 49.95.
It was Phelps' second world record of the meeting, and his fourth gold medal -- despite racing without the revolutionary polyurethane swimsuits that have allowed 39 records to tumble this week.
Cavic, who did wear one of the new-generation suits -- which will not be allowed next year -- finished ahead of Spain's Rafael Munoz (50.41).
Phelps came from seventh to triumph in China as he claimed a record eight gold medals, but this time overhauled Cavic from fourth place at the 50m mark.
"You can tell after my celebration that it satisfied me a little bit," Phelps told reporters. "It doesn't matter about the suit, it's about how you train. source: cnn.com

An illegal immigrant is on the run after smuggling himself into Britain underneath a coach full of Border Agency officers returning from France.
The immigration officers - whose job is to stop illegal immigrants entering the country - were oblivious to the stowaway hiding between the fuel tank and the chassis of the coach bringing them through the Channel Tunnel until they arrived at their depot in Folkestone.
The man then made his break for freedom, to join the estimated 725,000 other illegal immigrants living here.
The coach driver, a contractor who does not work for the government agency, gave chase but failed to catch him.
If he is caught, it could take years to deport him, largely as a result of human-rights laws.
The humiliating incident comes after repeated complaints that Labour has failed to put a stop to the vast numbers of illegal immigrants who pour across the UK's borders every year.
New figures published last week revealed that the number of migrants arrested after hiding in the backs of lorries and vans nearly doubled in the first half of this year - up to 13,715 compared to 7,760 in the same period last year. source: dailymail.com

(CNN) -- The woman who made the 911 call that led to Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates' controversial arrest wasn't present at the so-called beer summit.
Lucia Whalen, who called 911 to report a possible break-in, speaks to reporters Wednesday.
1 of 3 But she got a shot of kindness and a taste of gratitude from Gates himself.
Lucia Whalen received a bouquet of flowers at her office from Gates, according to Whalen's attorney, Wendy Murphy.
"She described them as amazing, and appreciated them very much," Murphy said of the bouquet.
The attorney described the flowers as being a beautiful assortment of what she believed were different colored roses.
There was a note included from Gates, the details of which Murphy would not divulge. She said the note characterized Gates's "expression of gratitude" for Whalen's action.
An officer responding to a report of a possible break-in at Gates' Cambridge, Massachusetts, home arrested the professor on July 16 for disorderly conduct. The charge was later dropped.
The arrest sparked a national debate about race and police relations.
Whalen said an older woman with no cell phone told her that she was worried someone was trying to break into the home, and decided to call 911.
Whalen never referred to black suspects when she called authorities about the suspected break-in. source: cnn.com

By YAHYA BARZANJI, Associated Press Writer Yahya Barzanji, Associated Press Writer – 2 hrs 44 mins ago
SULAIMANIYAH, Iraq – Iran state TV confirmed Saturday that it has detained three Americans who crossed the border from northern Iraq, saying they failed to heed warnings from Iranian guards. Kurdish officials from the self-ruled region in northern Iraq said the three — two men and a woman — were tourists who had mistakenly crossed into Iranian territory Friday while hiking in a mountainous area near the resort town of Ahmed Awaa.

"The Iranians said they have arrested them because they entered their land without legal permission," said Qubad Talabani, the Kurdish regional government's envoy to Washington.

Iran's state owned Arabic-language al-Alam TV station cited a "well-informed source" in the Interior Ministry that the three Americans were detained Friday after crossing into Iran's Kurdistan province.

The report said the Americans were arrested after they did not heed warnings from Iranian border guards.

State Department spokesman Robert Wood said Saturday that Washington had asked the Swiss, who represent U.S. interests in Tehran, "to confirm these reports with Iranian authorities and, if true, to seek consular access" to the detained Americans. source: yahoo.com