Lakshmi Singh

From Washington, this is NPR News.

A new study finds 71% of tested baby foods are ultra-processed, also known as UPFs.

All contain additives and are high in sugars and salt.

According to the findings published in Nutrients, flavor enhancers, thickeners, emulsifiers, and colors were the most common UPF marker additives present in the products commercially available for infants.

There's mounting research that links additives to disruptions in the health of the gut, inflammation, and illness.

A researcher in Texas says he has found a way to reduce toxins in cotton seeds, which are rich in protein but inedible to most animals.

Michael Marks with Harvest Public Media has details.

U.S.

stocks are mixed this hour.

The Dow is now down 94 points at 50,093.

The S&P is up 5.

NASDAQ is off 13 points.

It's NPR News.

Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

Attorney General Pam Bondi is staunchly defending the Justice Department against accusations that it's flouted due process in President Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration.

Democratic Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee disputing Bondi's conclusions.

Bondi's also defending the DOJ's handling of documents related to investigations of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Critics accuse the department of failing to fully disclose all documents in compliance with the law.

A grand jury in Washington, D.C.

has rejected an effort by federal prosecutors to indict several Democratic members of Congress.