Press Release - Nutritionist Pro Version 2 Released

SAN BRUNO, CALIFORNIA, June 4^th, 2003. First DataBank today announced Release 2.0 of its next-generation nutrition-analysis software, Nutritionist Pro. The release incorporates features a new patient information security tool as an additional option for network users, as well as many other software capabilitiesfeatures and an expanded knowledge base. These new capabilities are designed to meet the needs of today's busy nutrition professionals for faster and more accurate nutrition analysis.

According to Era Prakash, Product Manager, "The new version will comply with the security and privacy requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), with the addition of a User Management security tool." This add-on module allows network administrators to build user profiles that will require logins with passwords. It will further print audit trail reports documenting areas navigated by a user and any changes made to a client's personal health information.

A number of other new features are now available in the 2.0 release of Nutritionist Pro. "The database now contains trans fatty acid (TFA) values," Prakash said, "which are frequently required by nutritionists, due to their effect on cholesterol. They've also received considerable media attention recently."

Another new feature is the addition of Vitamin A Retinol Activity Equivalents (RAE) in the nutrition knowledge base, to account for the different activities of retinol and provitamin A carotenoids. In a related addition, USDA food composition data was updated to the most recent version, the USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 15.

Nutritionist Pro software is based on First DataBank's nutrition knowledge base, which now contains detailed information on over 20,000 foods. David Manin, Director of Marketing, noted that the software "uses advanced technology to create a streamlined knowledge base structure for rapid processing, and presents the user with intuitive Windows®-based screen formats for ease of use. As a result, Nutritionist Pro offers fast, simple access to a rich source of practical nutrition information, which users can easily tailor to their needs."

First DataBank also offers Food Labeling software as a standalone product or as an add-on module to Nutritionist Pro. Food Labeling enables users to create camera-ready Nutrition Facts labels in 17 different formats. In addition, labels may include Nutrient Content Claims, and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP). The labels generated are guaranteed to meet all requirements of the FDA Code of Federal Regulations.

The software, Prakash added, also comes with an electronic tutorial on CD-ROM and a comprehensive electronic User's Guide, to help new users of Nutritionist Pro become familiar with the product's features and functions more easily.