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Despite public health progress in cutting calories, as well as salt and fat from fast foods and supermarket products, neighborhood restaurants are still packing big helpings of each into their meals, a trio of studies suggests. Small independent eateries are not required to display nutritional information for consumers - if they did, the researchers report, patrons would routinely see single meals containing nearly a full day's worth of calories and fat plus one and half times the daily recommended intake for salt.   "It's really a disgrace. Every day the newspapers say things about the obesity epidemic… To a large extent, you can trace that to too many calories," said Susan Roberts, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Energy Metabolism Lab and professor of nutrition at Tufts University, in Boston. About two thirds of Americans are considered overweight or obese, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Health. And as American waistlines continue t

Japan's Universal Entertainment Corp booked a charge on Monday against a $25 million payment at the centre of a FBI investigation into possible bribery in the Philippines, saying there was no reason for the payment to have been made. _0"> Universal had previously booked the $25 million as a payment to Rodolfo Soriano, a consultant with ties to the former head of the Philippine gaming regulator, to secure land development rights for its $2-billion casino project on Manila Bay. The company said in its annual earnings statement on Monday that an accounting expert hired to look into the matter had determined there was no need to have made the $25 million payment to Soriano. In March, in response to questions from Reuters, Universal said it had determined that the land development rights had been obtained for free in 2009. As a result, it said there was no basis for the payment to have been made in 2010. The revised accounting marked the second time the company has change

5 View comments Oscar Pistorius and Iwan Thomas have trained together, socialised together and been firm friends for the best part of a decade. And during all that time, says the former British 400metre champion, he has never once seen the Blade Runner with a gun. The image painted in some quarters of Pistorius as a gun enthusiast who regularly frequents shooting ranges as a way of releasing pent-up emotions is not one that chimes with Thomas. Scroll down for more Case for the defence: Oscar Pistorius at his bail hearing 'I've never seen Oscar with a gun, he has never mentioned guns and, apart from thinking it was likely he would own a firearm to protect himself at home, I have no knowledge of any history between Oscar and guns,' Thomas told Inside Sport.     More from Nick Harris...   Nick Harris: Mu

A European Union law up for a vote on Monday will only fully shield taxpayers from bailing out troubled banks if there is a global framework as well, a top UK regulator said on Monday. Bank of England Deputy Governor Paul Tucker said the EU law on bank recovery and resolution would be a milestone towards a global system and help convince markets that governments were no longer willing to rescue "too big to fail" lenders.   Since governments had to shore up banks during the 2007-09 financial crisis, regulators have wanted to stop markets assuming big banks would not be allowed to go out of business. The European Parliament's economic affairs committee holds a first vote in Strasbourg, France at 1830 GMT. It has joint say with EU states on the law that gives regulators powers to impose losses on creditors, replace management and take other steps when a bank gets into trouble. In a speech in the Netherlands, Tucker said there had been "marked convergence" rec

0 shares 5 View comments The reason David Beckham is so comfortable at not earning a single penny from his current spell at Paris Saint-Germain — not from salary, image rights or merchandise money — will be clear when the companies he owns publish their financial accounts.  Inside Sport can reveal the former England captain made more cash in 2012 than in any single year of his extraordinary career, with tens of millions pouring in not only from a string of lucrative endorsements but also from high-profile commercial ambassadorial roles linked to the London Olympics. Gesture: David Beckham donated his salary at Paris Saint-Germain to a local children's charity       More from Nick Harris...   Nick Harris: Murray and Co chase £1.5m as Wimbledon chiefs raise prize money to record £20m 20/04/13

XenoPort Inc said it will stop developing its experimental multiple sclerosis treatment after data from a late-stage trial showed the drug did not improve patients' condition significantly compared with a placebo.   Shares of the company were down 28 percent at $4.85 before the bell. The company said it would shut down all activities related to the drug, arbaclofen placarbil, and planned to provide an update on the impact of the expected savings. The drug did not show statistical significance compared to the placebo on two clinical scales - severity of symptoms and response to treatment, and spasticity. The drug, which was intended to treat spasticity, stiffness and involuntary multiple spasms, was tested on 228 multiple sclerosis patients in the United States. Dosages of 30 mg and 45 mg of the drug administered twice a day were compared to the placebo group. XenoPort said seven patients experienced adverse events, none of which were related to the treatment. The company sp

0 shares 127 View comments An exotic cast including Jose Mourinho’s agent, Pep Guardiola’s brother, Roman Abramovich and David Beckham’s nemesis are working on what could be the major transfer deal of the summer — bringing Liverpool pain as Chelsea gain. Chelsea want to buy one of the world’s most prolific strikers, Radamel Falcao, from Atletico Madrid. The Spanish club lie second in La Liga, just ahead of Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid. Atletico are virtually certain to qualify for next season’s Champions League. The club’s directors are planning to cash in on Colombia international Falcao at peak value and replace him with Liverpool’s Luis Suarez. On the move? Chelsea's swoop for Radamel Facao (left) could see Luis Suarez moving to replace him at Atletico Madrid ‘We won’t be making firm approaches until May but our objectives are absolutely clear,’ says an Atletico source. ‘We’ll be back at the top level in Europe and we’re not going to be shor