Have you been sneezing lately? Join the club! The flu has hit Central Florida.

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Bangalore, India (AHN) – The Indian government slammed U.S. authorities on Sunday for putting electronic monitoring anklets on Indian students suspected of buying student visas.

External affairs minister S. M. Krishna strongly condemned the actions of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and demanded that the electronic monitors be removed from the ankles of the Indian students of Tri-Valley University in Pleasanton, California.

The university, where most of the 1,555 students enrolled are from India, had been closed for allegedly selling student visas.

Krishna also demanded that the U.S. government punish officials responsible for the inhuman act.

The Indian government also sent a protest to the U.S. deputy ambassador in New Delhi.

The Telugu Association of North America reported to the Indian media that the ICE required some Indian students to wear the radio tracker so it could monitor their movements.

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(NaturalNews) Browsing through the food bar section of a local health food store the other day, I found myself extremely disappointed in the selection. Most of the food bars available at retail fall into either the “energy” category (made with excessive sweeteners), or the “protein” category (made with soy protein). Soy protein, as you may know, is usually extracted from GMO soy using hexane , an explosive toxic chemical (http://www.naturalnews.com/026303_soy_protein_hexane.html). Why is soy protein used so frequently in food bars? Because it’s cheap. Dirt cheap. And by using soy protein, bar manufacturers can claim “high protein” on the label. But you’d be hard pressed to find a protein bar in any store that isn’t made with soy protein. Yuck. Needless to say, I didn’t buy any food bars at the health food store. Instead, I went home and opened up some of my own food bars that I’m going to share with you here. These are four amazing food bars (from four different companies) that you may have never even heard of because they aren’t readily available in health food stores (and probably never will be). Boundless Nutrition Oatmega-3 Wellness Bar Rather than using cheap soy protein, the Boundless Nutrition Oatmega-3 Wellness Bar (http://www.boundlessnutrition.com/?page_id=450) uses a high-end whey protein as its protein source. This gives the bar a truly impressive nutritional profile that’s high in protein without using soy derivatives. These bars, which are available in flavors like Dark Chocolate Mint and Dark Chocolate Peanut, contain 300mg of omega-3s, green tea extracts, and other truly natural ingredients. It’s not a bar for vegans, obviously, but for those who like high quality whey protein, this is truly one of the best protein bars I’ve ever found. Check out their ingredients here: http://www.boundlessnutrition.com/?page_id=353 These bars are really delicious, by the way. I’ve interviewed the founder of Boundless Nutrition, a company based in Austin, Texas (yes, Austin!), and plan to be rolling those videos soon on NaturalNews.TV. This is a relatively new company, but they look poised to make a real difference in the protein bar market. The GoodOnYa Bar Here’s a really cool USDA Organic gluten free, non-GMO, soy–free, dairy-free food bar that’s fast becoming popular among vegetarians and vegans: The GoodOnYa Bar (www.TheGoodOnYaBar.com). They’re made with organic cold milled flax, sesame and hemp seeds, along with Celtic sea salt, organic raw honey and other key ingredients depending on the flavor. Even though they’re not 100% raw, these are suitable for raw food vegans in my view. The GoodOnYa Bar is quite delicious. Although it definitely has a “flaxy” kind of taste, the entire blend of various ingredients is really outstanding. I’m really impressed with this bar and this company. They seem to have a deep-rooted dedication to real food . They’re based in Solana Beach, California, and I expect to be seeing more great stuff from this company in the years ahead. Check out their available flavors at http://www.thegoodonyabar.com/organic-nutrition-bars-flavors.html Boku Super Food Bar The Boku Super Food Bar remains my single most favorite superfood bar. I’m on the road quite a lot these days, and I find that I’m always bringing a box of Boku Super Food Bars with me. It has become my essential travel food. This is a gluten free, dairy free, soy free, USDA organic, Kosher and 100% delicious chocolate fudge brownie food bar that was actually created with the help of over 1,000 NaturalNews readers! (http://www.naturalnews.com/030340_Boku_superfood_bar.html) The real highlights of this bar are that it’s not too sweet (very low sweetener use), it uses only plant-based proteins, and it’s based on organic almond butter and the Boku super food blend which is just loaded with plant-based nutrients. Get some at: http://shop.bokusuperfood.com/detail_BOKUBAR__25.html While you’re at it, I strongly recommend the Boku Immune Tonic , by the way, which is just ridiculously good for boosting immune function during the winter flu season. And it tastes great, too, so even kids and teens enjoy taking this immune-boosting liquid: http://shop.bokusuperfood.com/items_25.html This Boku Super Food Bar is truly at the very top of the list of the most innovative and nutritious food bars that have ever been created. And no, it’s not sold by us. It’s sold by the Boku Superfood company who took the initiative and manufactured it for people to enjoy. NaturalNews readers have already bought nearly 100,000 of these bars since the original launch. It’s really popular among those who know their nutrition. See more at www.BokuSuperfood.com Cocochia bars from Living Fuel My other favorite food bar is the CocoChia bar from Living Fuel (www.LivingFuel.com). It’s based on organic coconut and whole chia seeds, then it mixes in raw almond butter, some sugar alcohol sweeteners and various probiotics, among other minor ingredients. It’s positioned as a “sustained energy” food bar because the chia really tend to slow the digestion of fats and carbs. I find this is a really good nutritional profile for anyone trying to avoid spiking their blood sugar. Chia seeds are my favorite plant-based source of omega-3! They taste better than flax, too, in my opinion. Cocochia has been around a few years, but not everybody knows about it because it’s only sold directly through LivingFuel.com. A lot of these high-end nutritional products I’m mentioning here simply don’t have the profit margins to be carried by retail channels. That’s why many of the best nutritional products are often only available directly from their manufacturers. Summary of my top four food bars: Boundless Nutrition Oatmega-3 Wellness Bar (www.BoundlessNutrition.com) The GoodOnYa Bar (www.TheGoodOnYaBar.com) Boku Super Food Bar (www.BokuSuperfood.com) CocoChia Bar (www.LivingFuel.com) There are other high-quality food bars on the market, of course. These are just the top four I’m aware of right now. Later in the spring, I’ll be doing a more comprehensive food bar roundup and asking for samples from more companies that we can list and compare. In the mean time, these four food bars are really outstanding choices. What’s the best bar for you? Best bar for kids? Probably the Boundless Nutrition bar or the Boku Super Food bar. Best bar for vegans? Definitely the GoodOnYa Bar or the Boku bar. Best bar for diabetics? I like the nutritional profile of CocoChia, which doesn’t use any honey or other high-glycemic sweeteners. Best bar for athletes? Both the Boku Food Bar and the Boundless Nutrition bar are higher in protein and great for sustained energy. Enjoy!

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Gene expression signature identified that can accurately assess which patients are at risk of relapse Researchers from McGill University’s Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Research Centre (GCRC), the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI MUHC), the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School have discovered a gene signature that can accurately predict which breast cancer patients are at risk of relapse, thereby sparing those who are not from the burdens associated with unnecessary treatment…

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Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines (AHN) – The University of Santo Tomas in Manila celebrated the 400th anniversary of its founding Friday. The school is the oldest university in Asia and has been recognized by the Vatican as a royal and pontifical university.

Pope Benedict XVI greeted the university on its quadricentennial with a taped video message played during a mass that marked the feast of St. Thomas Aquinas, the patron saint of Catholic schools. The mass was held at the UST Grandstand and Open Ground, where two other popes had celebrated masses.

The university, which counts among its alumni national hero Dr. Jose Rizal and several Philippine presidents and bishops, holds the distinction of being the only educational institution visited three times by two popes – Paul VI in 1970 and John Paul II in 1981 and 1995.

Pope Leo XIII declared UST in 1902 a pontifical university, while Pope Pius XII gave the educational institution the title The Catholic University of the Philippines in 1947.

Aside from the video message, Pope Benedict sent a representative to join UST in its celebration, Polish Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski, the prefect of Vatican’s Sacred Congregation of Catholic Education, who led the concelebrated mass.

The university made a Thursday night countdown at the Quirino Grandstand with a program and fireworks display.

There are several alumni homecomings scheduled throughout the week, with graduates coming home from abroad to attend reunions. UST unveiled on Thursday a 10-meter bronze and glass sculpture to mark its quadricentennial. The sculpture has four figures – a priest, a teacher, and a male and female student.

The university is known for its academic excellence with its medical and nursing graduates topping government board examinations. It is considered one of the top four universities in the country.

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San Ramon Valley, CA, United States (AHN) – The San Ramon Valley fire department has created a new app which notifies residents of cardiac emergencies and also locates Automated External Defibrillators.

The mobile, GPS-based notification system was designed specifically to get people who are trained in performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation to the site of a heart attack faster than first responders.

Dispatchers notify users via text of the emergency incident.

The iPhone app, which is available for free download, is coordinated by the fire department and communicates with over 700 members of the Community Emergency Response Team using the app. Over the last few months an early version include the public with more than 22,000 iPhone users.

However because San Ramon Valley is only 155 square miles, that’s nearly 150 people per square mile who are connected and ready to assist with CPR should the need arise.

Another feature of the app allows users to monitor in real time on the status of each reported incident, and ascertain when a rescuer has reached the scene and when professional emergency services are expected to arrive.

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Over 30 years, a strain of Streptococcus pneumoniae spread across the world and turned over about three quarters of its genome, researchers say.

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Fort Lauderdale, FL, United States (AHN) – Josie Lou Ratley and her attorney have initiated legal action against the Broward County Public Schools. A lawsuit filed on Thursday alleges the district was negligent in their actions leading up to her savage beating by another teen at a school bus stop.

Attorney Sean Domnick’s filing claims because the Deerfield Beach Middle School did not have adequate security the day she was allegedly beaten and did not have more supervision preventing trespassers from entering on to school property contributed to her being beaten within an inch of her life.

Nearly a year after her beating, Ratley is forced to relearn everything she knew before that fateful day, including how to eat, how to recognize colors and people and her ABCs.

Domnick says the lawsuit is twofold, one to protect all county students in the future and to also secure and provide for Ratley’s future.

“This is about taking care of Josie for the rest of her life and that’s something that can be done to help her out, and of course the other thing is that we want to send a message that this is unacceptable, that the school board and the governmental entities, when they are entrusted with the safe-keeping of our children, they need to do a better job, and hopefully they’ll learn the lesson of that through this and we’ll get Josie taken care of,” Domnick said.

Domnick also said that he and the 16-year-old’s family tried to meet with district officials to reach a resolution but the girl’s family said that the district refused. Ratley’s haattorney requested a jury trial.

On March 17, fellow teen Wayne Treacy Ratley allegedly beat and stomped on the head of the then-15-year-old girl while wearing steel toed boots.

According to the Broward County sheriff’s office, Treacy bicycled three miles from his home to the middle school, seeking out Ratley with the promise of violence and physical harm. Ratley reportedly had sent him a text message containing disparaging remarks about his dead brother. Wearing steel-toe boots, Treacy allegedly stomped on her head up to seven times as she lay on the ground.

A 13-year-old teen also has been charged as a principal in the case. According to police reports, she knew Treacy was planning to harm Ratley. Investigators said she went so far as to describe Ratley’s clothing and watched from a short distance as Treacy attacked Ratley.

Despite being hospitalized for months and still undergoing therapy. Ratley is left with permanent injuries is completely disabled.

Her attacker, Treacy, 15, is charged with attempted murder and remains behind bars.

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HCG is the latest diet craze to hit the Internet and now experts at the Food and Drug Administration say not only do over-the-counter HCG products not work, they are fraudulent and illegal.

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A California graduate school instructor believed to have profited from fake military and academic credentials for a decade has been charged with mail fraud.

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