Nutrition

A study by researchers at LUM University has found that eating a lot of ultra-processed foods can speed up biological aging, even if a person’s diet is otherwise healthy. 

The study used data from over 22,000 people in the Moli-sani Study, measuring their biological age with more than 30 blood markers. Unlike actual age, biological age shows how healthy the body really is, including organs and systems, and can differ from one’s chronological age.

"Our data," said Simona Esposito, researcher at the Research Unit of Epidemiology and Prevention and first author of the study, show that a high consumption of ultra-processed foods not only has a negative impact on health in general, but could also accelerate aging itself, suggesting a connection that goes beyond the poor nutritional quality of these foods."

Researchers used food surveys to see how much ultra-processed food participants ate. These foods are made with ingredients not usually used in home cooking (e.g., hydrogenated fats, additives) and include items like packaged snacks, sugary drinks, and even some packaged bread and breakfast cereals.

Findings showed that people who ate a lot of ultra-processed foods aged faster biologically than their actual age. This internal "body clock" can show a body aging faster or slower than calendar years.

Sugar, salt, unhealthy fat

Esposito said that these foods not only harm overall health but could also speed up aging, adding that these foods are rich in sugars, salt, and unhealthy fats, and their intense processing may remove important nutrients and fibers.

They can affect metabolism, gut health, and may even introduce toxins from plastic packaging.

Licia Iacoviello, another senior researcher, suggested that dietary advice should include warnings about ultra-processed foods, as even some nutrient-rich packaged items fall into this category. The goal should be to guide people toward healthier food choices.

"Our data - says Simona Esposito, researcher at the Research Unit of Epidemiology and Prevention and first author of the study - show that a high consumption of ultra-processed foods not only has a negative impact on health in general, but could also accelerate aging itself, suggesting a connection that goes beyond the poor nutritional quality of these foods".

“The mechanisms through which ultra-processed foods can be harmful to human health are not yet entirely clear – explains researcher Marialaura Bonaccio, nutritional epidemiologist at the Research Unit of Epidemiology and Prevention-IRCCS Neuromed – Besides being nutritionally inadequate, being rich in sugars, salt and saturated or trans fats, these foods undergo intense industrial processing that actually alters their food matrix, with the consequent loss of nutrients and fiber. This can have important consequences for a series of physiological functions, including glucose metabolism, and the composition and functionality of the gut microbiota. Also, these products are often wrapped in plastic packaging, thus becoming vehicles of substances toxic to the body”.

“This study - adds Licia Iacoviello, director of the Research Unit of Epidemiology and Prevention at the IRCCS Neuromed and full professor of Hygiene at LUM in Casamassima - prompts us once again to reevaluate the current dietary recommendations, that should also include warnings on limiting the intake of ultra-processed food in our daily diet. Actually, some nutrient-dense packaged foods can be classified as ultra-processed, and this suggest the need of guiding people towards dietary choices that address also the degree of food processing”.

The results were published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The Moli-sani Study

Started in March 2005, it involves about 25,000 citizens living in the Molise region. The aim is to learn about environmental and genetic factors underlying cardiovascular disease, cancer and degenerative pathologies. The Moli-sani Study, now based in the I.R.C.C.S. Neuromed, has transformed an entire Italian region in a large research lab.

The I.R.C.C.S. Neuromed

The Institute for Research, Hospitalization and Health Care (I.R.C.C.S.) Neuromed in Pozzilli (Italy) is a landmark, at Italian and international level, for research and therapy in the field of nervous system diseases. A centre in which doctors, researchers, staff and the patients themselves form an alliance aimed at ensuring the best level of service and cutting-edge treatments, guided by the most advanced scientific developments.

With the start of a  new year, when many people resolve to lose weight, Jenny Craig is tweaking its diet plan. 

Jenny Craig has announced the launch of Jenny Fresh – a meal delivery service that brings fresh meals right to consumers’ homes. Each meal is under 350 calories and includes fresh ingredients, like antibiotic- and hormone-free meat and organic vegetables. 

“Jenny Fresh offers elevated meals with exquisite nutrient-rich ingredients, like wheat berries, tricolor quinoa, Himalayan red rice, lime-roasted sweet potatoes, slow-cooked braised pork, and fresh guacamole,” said Kim Doyle, vice president of nutrition and product development at Jenny Craig. 

Making healthy choices

Jenny Craig will launch the Jenny Fresh delivery meal service by mid-January, and the rollout will include seven entree options: 

• Chicken Chile Verde Bake

• Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry

• Zesty Black Bean Quinoa Bowl

• Deconstructed Chicken Sausage Pizza

• Braised Pork Burrito Bowl

• Chicken Penne Parmesan 

• Chicken and Red Rice Power Bowl 

One week of Jenny Fresh meals will run customers $99. Consumers can also choose to get special health or dietary preferences with their meals, such as protein-heavy options, fiber-heavy options, and gluten-free options. 

The rest of the Jenny Craig meal options will remain separate from the Jenny Fresh deliveries, but those following the weight loss/management program will be able to easily incorporate these new meals. 

For more information on Jenny Craig’s plan and the Jenny Fresh delivery service, click here.

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Bath explored some of the benefits of eating more plant-based food options. Rather than sticking to traditional meat, the team says consumers who adopt a plant-based diet are more likely to improve their health and the environment. 

“Increasingly we’re seeing how plant-based products are able to shift demand away from animal products by appealing to three essential elements consumers want: taste, price, and convenience,” said researcher Dr. Chris Bryant.

“This review demonstrates overwhelming evidence that, as well as being far more sustainable compared to animal products in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, water use, and land use, plant-based product alternatives also have a wide range of health benefits.” 

Benefits of plant-based foods

The researchers analyzed more than 40 earlier studies that looked at the ways plant-based alternatives affect consumers’ health and the environment and compared those results to outcomes from animal-based food products. Ultimately, plant-based foods outperformed animal-based products in every category.

Nutritionally, the researchers found that plant-based foods provide more benefits to consumers’ diets because producers of plant-based foods can actually incorporate more nutrients into their products. Plant-based options were also found to be more effective than animal products at improving muscle mass and losing weight.

The report highlighted that while 40% of animal-based foods were found to be generally unhealthy, just 14% of plant-based products were considered to be the same.

Plant-based options also showed better environmental results. When directly comparing plant-based burgers with beef burgers, the former produced 98% fewer greenhouse gas emissions. The production of plant-based foods is also more sustainable in terms of both land use and water use when compared to animal meat products. 

The researchers say it's important for plant-based products to be made more attractive to consumers in terms of taste, price, and nutrition.

“Despite the incredible advances that plant-based producers have made over recent years, there is still huge potential to improve their taste, texture, and how they cook,” Dr. Bryant said. “There’s also enormous potential to innovate with ingredients and processes to improve their nutritional properties – for example by boosting vitamin content.” 

Following a healthy diet is a large part of maintaining good physical health, but a recent study shows that it can also benefit your mental health. 

Researchers from Aston University recently found that eating more fruit was associated with greater overall mental well-being and reduced feelings of depression. 

"Overall, it's definitely worth trying to get into the habit of reaching for the fruit bowl," said lead author Dr. Nicola-Jayne Tuck. 

More fruit leads to better mental health

The researchers surveyed over 400 adults in the U.K. about their psychological health and their diets, including how often they ate fruits, vegetables, and sweet or savory food snacks. After adjusting for factors like age, general health, and exercise habits, they found that participants who ate fruit more often had lower scores for depression and higher scores for mental well-being. 

In contrast, participants who ate more nutrient-poor savory foods were more likely to experience "everyday mental lapses" and have lower mental well-being.

"Very little is known about how diet may affect mental health and wellbeing, and while we did not directly examine causality here, our findings could suggest that frequently snacking on nutrient-poor savoury foods may increase everyday mental lapses, which in turn reduces psychological health," said Tuck.

The researchers point out that fruits and vegetables contain many important vitamins and minerals. However, how consumers choose to eat them could make a big difference when it comes to getting mental health benefits.

"Both fruit and vegetables are rich in antioxidants, fibre and essential micronutrients which promote optimal brain function, but these nutrients can be lost during cooking. As we are more likely to eat fruit raw, this could potentially explain its stronger influence on our psychological health," Tuck stated.

The full study has been published in the British Journal of Nutrition.

Parents of picky eaters often have to work around their kids' palates to get them the nutrition they need. But findings from a recent study show that catering to their emotional needs might also do the trick. 

Researchers have found that a child's emotions can influence their eating patterns and diets. Specifically, they say negative emotions can be linked to overeating and choosing unhealthy foods.

"We found fried food consumption to be higher on days with more variable emotional patterns than days with consistent low negative mood," said Christine Hotaru Naya from the University of Southern California. "These results align with other studies that have found the negative mood to positively predict children's fatty food intake."

Negative emotions linked to poor eating

The researchers surveyed nearly 200 young children in California through the use of a mobile app. The participants were asked several times a day how they felt emotionally and what foods they consumed.

By the end of the study period, the researchers identified several negative mood patterns that contributed to poor eating. They found that the children experienced at least one of those patterns -- stable low negative mood -- on 90% of the days of the study. 

Breaking it down by the time of day, the team said early in the morning and during the evening were two vulnerable times when negative emotions could influence kids' food choices. 

"Children are more likely to consume unhealthy foods on weekends when meals and snacks are less structured and supervised than on school days," added Naya. 

"More studies are needed for us to understand the relationship between a child's emotions and their food choices, but this is a good start on that path to recognizing how to approach food choices with a person's mood and emotions in mind."

Are you the kind of person who immediately reaches for the salt shaker after getting your meal at a restaurant? If so, you might be taking years off your life.

Findings from a recent study suggest that adding extra salt to your food increases your risk of dying prematurely. Luckily for consumers, the research team found that reducing the amount of salt you consume and eating more fruits and vegetables can benefit your health.

"Even a modest reduction in sodium intake, by adding less or no salt to food at the table, is likely to result in substantial health benefits, especially when it is achieved in the general population," said Lu Qi, a professor at the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.

Salt intake and higher risk of premature death

The researchers came to their conclusions after analyzing data on salt use from over 500,000 people. The team adjusted their results for several factors, including age, sex, race, deprivation, body mass index, physical activity, diet, medical conditions, whether participants smoked, and how often they drank alcohol.

The team found that those who always added salt to their food increased their chances of dying prematurely by 28% when compared to people who never or rarely added salt to their food. 

The study showed that life expectancies for people who always added salt to their food could be reduced by several years by age 50, with women shortening their lives by 1.5 years and men lowering their life expectancies by 2.28 years when compared to those who rarely or never added salt to their food.

Fruits and vegetables help

While consuming more salt was linked to a higher chance of dying prematurely, the researchers found that incorporating more fruits and vegetables into a person's diet could help reduce some of that risk.

"We were not surprised by this finding as fruits and vegetables are major sources of potassium, which has protective effects and is associated with a lower risk of premature death," said Qi.

Going forward, the researchers plan to continue analyzing the link between salt intake and life expectancy. Their study has been published in the European Heart Journal. 

A new study conducted by researchers from Penn State explored the health benefits associated with eating avocados on a regular basis. According to their findings, avocados are can help lower bad cholesterol levels and improve diet quality. 

“Adherence to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans is generally poor in the U.S., and our findings suggest that eating an avocado per day can substantially increase overall diet quality,” said researcher Kristina Petersen. “This is important because we know a higher diet quality is associated with lower risk of several diseases including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and some cancers.” 

Avocados can improve health long-term

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from over 1,000 participants who were either overweight or obese. One group of participants ate an avocado every day for six months; another group limited their avocado intake to two per month and continued eating as they normally would. The team measured their body weight, cholesterol, and fat in the abdomen at the start and end of the study. 

The researchers learned that eating avocados every day was linked with important health improvements. One benefit of eating more avocados was lower cholesterol; LDL cholesterol decreased by 2.5 mg/dL and total cholesterol decreased by 2.9 mg/DL. 

The team found that avocados didn’t play a significant role in the participants’ abdomen fat levels or other cardiometabolic risk factors. However, participants who ate avocados every day had better overall diet quality and didn’t gain weight. 

“While one avocado a day did not lead to clinically significant improvements in abdominal fat and other cardiometabolic risk factors, consuming one avocado a day did not result in body weight gain,” said researcher Joan Sabaté. “This is positive because eating extra calories from avocados doesn’t impact body weight or abdominal fat, and it slightly decreases total and LDL-cholesterol.”

Moving forward, the researchers hope consumers consider the health benefits of incorporating more avocados into their diets. 

“While the avocados did not affect belly fat or weight gain, the study still provides evidence that avocados can be a beneficial addition to a well-balanced diet,” said researcher Penny Kris-Etherton. “Incorporating an avocado a day per day in this study did not cause weight gain and also caused a slight decrease in LDL cholesterol, which are all important findings for better health.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Rutgers University explored how consumers’ eating habits while dieting may affect their food choices long-term. According to their findings, eating more protein while on a diet may prompt consumers to choose healthier options overall. 

“The impact of self-selected dietary protein on diet quality has not been examined before, to our knowledge, like this,” said researcher Anna Ogilvie. “Exploring the connection between protein intake and diet quality is important because diet quality is often suboptimal in the U.S., and higher-protein weight loss diets are popular.” 

Improving diet long-term 

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from over 200 overweight or obese men and women between the ages of 24 and 75 involved in a six-month clinical trial. The participants followed a calorie-deficit diet for the duration of the study, and they recorded everything they ate. The team then assessed the quality of their diets to understand how healthy the participants were eating.

While the researchers recommended that the participants allot 18% of their daily calories to protein, the participants fell into two groups: 18% of calories coming from protein or 20% of calories coming from protein. Though the team found that both groups lost the same amount of weight, eating more protein improved the participants’ diets overall. 

Those who ate more protein were more likely to adopt other healthier eating habits. The study showed that higher-protein eaters reached for sugary foods less often and for green vegetables more often. Additionally, eating more protein helped the participants retain more of their lean muscle mass, as opposed to eating less protein on a regular basis. 

The researchers hope that these findings highlight the benefits associated with eating diets higher in protein, as they can help consumers adopt healthier habits long-term. 

“It’s somewhat remarkable that a self-selected, slightly higher protein intake during dieting is accompanied by higher intake of green vegetables, and reduced intake of refined grains and added sugar,” said researcher Sue Shapses. “But that’s precisely what we found.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the American Society for Nutrition explored some of the risks associated with kids’ eating ultra-processed foods. They learned that kids who eat a lot of ultra-processed foods from a young age were more likely to have poorer physical fitness and cardiovascular health in their teens and beyond. 

“Healthy dietary and exercise behaviors are established at a very young age,” said researcher Jacqueline Vernarelli, Ph.D. “Our findings point to the need to educate families about cost-effective ways to reduce ultra-processed food intake to help decrease the risk for cardiovascular health problems in adulthood.” 

Long-term health risks

The researchers analyzed data from over 1,500 U.S. kids between the ages of three and 15 who were enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey/National Youth Fitness Survey. The kids were interviewed about their typical diets and exercise habits, and they also completed physical tests to gauge their fitness levels.

For kids under the age of five, the researchers measured locomotor development; older kids were measured by their cardiovascular fitness.

The study showed that children who ate more ultra-processed foods were more likely to have poorer physical fitness, regardless of their age. Older kids who had the poorest cardiovascular fitness were more likely to eat an average of nearly 230 more calories per day of ultra-processed foods. Similarly, the younger kids who struggled the most with locomotor development were eating an average of more than 270 calories per day of ultra-processed foods. 

Kids who ate the most ultra-processed foods reported regularly eating things like hotdogs, pizza, candy, packaged snacks, and chicken nuggets, among several others. While there are health risks for adults who follow this kind of diet, this study shows that there are similar risks for younger people. 

Moving forward, the researchers plan to get a better understanding of which types of processed foods kids are most drawn to and what meals tend to include these unhealthier options.

“Though highly-processed convenience foods are easy to throw into a school bag, our research shows the importance of preparing healthy snacks and meals,” said Dr. Vernarelli. “Think of it like saving for retirement: You’re making decisions now that will influence your child’s future.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the American Society for Nutrition assessed how consumers think about their own diets. Ultimately, the majority of people are likely to report that they eat much healthier than they actually do. 

“We found that only a small percentage of U.S. adults can accurately assess the healthfulness of their diet, and interestingly, it’s mostly those who perceive their diet as poor who are able to accurately assess their diet,” said researcher Jessica Thomson. “Additionally, most adults overrate the quality of their diet, sometimes to a substantial degree.” 

Who’s eating healthy?

The researchers analyzed responses from nearly 10,000 adults enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Participants completed questionnaires about what they ate and drank in the last 24-hour period and then ranked how healthy they believed their diets to be. The researchers gave participants four categories to describe their diets: poor, fair, good, very good, or excellent. 

The researchers then used the questionnaires to come up with an overall rating of the participants' actual diets. Ultimately, about 85% of the participants inaccurately assessed their own diets, and 99% of those people scored their diets healthier than they actually were. 

Among participants who rated their diets as fair, good, very good or excellent, they only matched the researchers’ rankings between 1% and 18% of the time. However, those who determined their diets to be poor had much better success, matching the team’s ranking 97% of the time. 

Moving forward, the researchers hope that more work is done to get a better baseline understanding of consumers’ thought processes when choosing and ranking certain foods.  

“It’s difficult for us to say whether U.S. adults lack an accurate understanding of the components of a healthful versus unhealthful diet or whether adults perceive the healthfulness of their diet as they wish it to be – that is, higher in quality than it actually is,” Thomson said. “Until we have a better understanding of what individuals consider when assessing the healthfulness of their diet, it will be difficult to determine what knowledge and skills are necessary to improve self-assessment or perception of one’s diet quality.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from eLife explored some of the heart health benefits consumers can gain by eating eggs. The study showed that having just one egg per day may lower the risk of developing cardiovascular disease. 

“Few studies have looked at the role that plasma cholesterol metabolism plays in the association between egg consumption and the risk of cardiovascular diseases, so we wanted to help address this gap,” said researcher Lang Pan. 

Eggs may benefit good cholesterol

The researchers analyzed data from nearly 5,000 people enrolled in the China Kadoorie Biobank. The participants left blood samples and the researchers analyzed their plasma for 225 metabolites that could be linked to egg consumption. When the study began, over 3,400 participants had cardiovascular disease and nearly 1,400 didn’t. 

Ultimately, the researchers identified a link between egg consumption and heart health. Participants who ate eggs on a regular basis had lower levels of potentially harmful metabolites and higher levels of beneficial metabolites. The opposite was also true; those who didn’t or rarely ate eggs had more metabolites in their blood linked with heart disease. 

The study also showed that eating more eggs was linked with improvements in high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or “good” cholesterol. Participants who regularly ate eggs had higher levels of the apolipoprotein A1 protein, which helps build up HDL levels. It also helps absorb cholesterol from blood vessels and lowers the risk of blockages. 

“Together, our results provide a potential explanation for how eating a moderate amount of eggs can help protect against heart disease,” said researcher Canqing Yu. “More studies are needed to verify the causal role that lipid metabolites play in the association between egg consumption and the risk of cardiovascular disease.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of East Anglia explored how consumers’ diets may affect their memory. According to the findings, eating a cup of cranberries per day may improve memory skills and lower the risk of dementia. 

“Past studies have shown that higher dietary flavonoid intake is associated with slower rates of cognitive decline and dementia,” said researcher Dr. David Vauzour. “And foods rich in anthocyanins and proanthocyanidins, which give berries their red, blue, or purple color, have been found to improve cognition. 

“Cranberries are rich in these micronutrients and have been recognized for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. We wanted to find out more about how cranberries could help reduce age-related neurodegeneration.” 

Health benefits of cranberries

The researchers had 60 adults between the ages of 50 and 80 participate in a 12-week study. Half of the group ate one cup of freeze-dried cranberry powder for each day of the study; the second group ate a placebo. Both before and after the study, the researchers assessed the participants’ cognitive function and collected blood samples to measure their memory skills and cholesterol. 

The researchers observed important health benefits in the participants who ate cranberries every day. The group had significant improvements in visual episodic memory, which allows people to recall visual information they’ve seen. They also had stronger neural function and better blood flow to the brain. The team believes this can be an effective way for older consumers to lower their risk of dementia. 

“We found that participants who consumed the cranberry powder showed significantly improved episodic memory performance in combination with improved circulation of essential nutrients such as oxygen and glucose to the important parts of the brain that support cognition – specifically memory consolidation and retrieval,” Dr. Vauzour said. 

In addition to memory and cognitive benefits, the researchers also learned that eating the cranberry powder was linked with significantly lower levels of LDL cholesterol. The team explained that this improvement in vascular health may be linked with cognitive benefits. 

“Demonstrating in humans that cranberry supplementation can improve cognitive performance and identifying some of the mechanisms responsible is an important step for this research field,” said Dr. Vauzour. “The findings of this study are very encouraging, especially considering that a relatively short 12-week cranberry intervention was able to produce significant improvements in memory and neural function. This established an important foundation for future research in the area of cranberries and neurological health.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the American College of Cardiology explored the heart health benefits associated with time-restricted eating. According to their findings, older breast cancer survivors were likely to have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease when they followed a time-restricted eating plan. 

The researchers analyzed data from 22 people who had received chemotherapy within the last six years. All of the participants were overweight or obese at the start of the study, and the group was comprised of people who were 66 years old, on average. 

The participants followed a time-restricted eating plan for eight weeks. During weekdays and on weekends, they were able to eat anything they wanted between the hours of 12 p.m. and 8 p.m. For the rest of the time, they were limited to liquids, such as tea, black coffee, and water. The researchers used the Framingham Risk Score to analyze the participants’ heart disease risk over the next decade. 

Ultimately, the team learned that limiting food intake in this way was beneficial for long-term heart health outcomes. When the study began, the participants’ risk of cardiovascular disease was nearly 11%. By the end of the eight weeks, that risk had dropped to 8.6%. 

The study showed that nearly 70% of the participants (15 of 22) had a high risk for cardiovascular disease at the start of the trial. However, eight of those 15 participants had dropped to low risk on the Framingham scale by the end of the study. Being in the “low risk” category puts consumers at a nearly 40% lower risk of serious cardiovascular events. 

“This rigorously designed, well-executed single-arm feasibility study generates important hypotheses and questions about the role of time-restricted eating relevant to cancer survivors,” said researcher Dr. Bonnie Ky. “We look forward to seeing research using practical lifestyle interventions continue to evolve and advance to improve the lives of our patients and survivors.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from City University London explored how different social dynamics may affect what consumers eat. According to the findings, being around new groups of people may prompt consumers to make healthier choices out of fear of being judged for unhealthier options. 

“We know that food plays an important role in social life and consumers often make inferences about others’ traits and characteristics based on their food choices,” said researcher Dr. Janina Steinmetz.  

Social pressure may affect food choices

For the study, the researchers conducted several different experiments to understand how social dynamics affected food choices. First, the team explored how people who are part of different groups – racial groups, university students, and workplace employees – were affected by eating with others who are in their groups versus outsiders. 

They learned that in each of the groups, being around newcomers led to healthier food choices. When university students were around students from other schools, they were more likely to choose healthier snacks; however, when in the presence of students from their own school, their snack choices weren’t as healthy. The same was true for participants of specific racial groups and employees at workplaces. 

The researchers explained that the feeling of judgment from people who are considered to be outsiders is what prompts much of this behavior. To avoid feeling judged for eating something unhealthy and to make a good impression in front of new people, consumers are more likely to make healthier choices. 

The team found similar results in another study of nearly 200 college students. The participants were offered either raisins or M&Ms as a snack when in the presence of either unknown students from their school or unknown students from another school. The participants were nearly three times as likely to choose the raisins when around students from a different school versus when they were with other students from their own schools. 

The team hopes these findings are used to help promote healthy eating habits, especially knowing that many consumers want to make a good impression in front of people they don’t know well. 

“Our research shows that we can use this important role of food for consumer welfare if we highlight that healthy food is not only good for consumers, but also helps them to impress others,” Dr. Steinmetz said. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) explored the link between consumers’ diets and antibiotic resistance. According to their findings, eating at least eight to 10 grams of soluble fiber each day may be linked with a lower incidence of antibiotic resistance in the gut. 

“...The results lead directly to the idea that modifying the diet has the potential to be a new weapon in the fight against antimicrobial resistance,” said researcher Danielle Lemay. “And we’re not talking about eating some exotic diet either, but a diverse diet, adequate in fiber, that some Americans already eat.” 

How diet affects antibiotic resistance

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from nearly 300 adults enrolled in the USDA Nutritional Phenotyping Study. The participants completed questionnaires about their typical diets, and the researchers performed metagenome sequencing to understand how the participants’ diets were affecting bacteria diversity in their guts. 

The study showed that the participants’ diets had a direct impact on bacterial diversity. For starters, the study showed that diets higher in fiber and lower in protein were linked with the lowest levels of antimicrobial resistant genes (ARG). This also means that these participants had the greatest bacterial diversity in the gut, which ultimately helps fight off antibiotic resistance. 

However, the team found that the opposite was also true – higher levels of ARG were linked with poorer bacterial diversity in the gut. The study suggests that the best gut health outcomes were associated with diets that were high in soluble fibers, like legumes, grains, seeds, and some fruits and vegetables.

“Surprisingly, the most important predictor of low levels of ARG, even more than fiber, was the diversity of the diet,” Lemay said. “This suggests that we may want to eat from diverse sources of foods that tend to be higher in soluble fiber for maximum benefit.

“Our diets provide food for gut microbes. This all suggests that what we eat might be a solution to reduce antimicrobial resistance by modifying the gut microbiome.” 

Though the team plans to do more work in this area, these findings highlight the ways that diet may play an important role in beating antibiotic resistance. 

“In the end, dietary interventions may be useful in lessening the burden of antimicrobial resistance and might ultimately motivate dietary guidelines that will consider how nutrition could reduce the risk of antibiotic-resistant infections,” Lemay said. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute explored how the timing and quantity of meals can affect consumers’ lifespan. According to the findings, altering two key factors – calorie consumption and meal timing – may improve longevity. 

Researcher Rafael de Cabo said the study “is a very elegant demonstration that even if you are restricting your calories but you are not [eating at the right times], you do not get the full benefits of caloric restriction.” 

How metabolism affects aging and lifespan

The researchers conducted a four-year study on hundreds of mice to better understand the ways that fasting, circadian rhythm, and calories affect longevity. One group of mice was allowed to eat as much as they wanted. The second group of mice had their calories cut back by 30-40% and ate on a time-restricted eating schedule.

The researchers learned that the combination of limiting calories and eating meals on a time-restricted schedule was linked with the greatest lifespan improvements. The mice that simply had their calories reduced over the course of the study lived 10% longer, but those that were fed solely at night and also had their calories cut by 40% were able to live 35% longer. The researchers explained that the mice involved in the study typically live for two years, but these mealtime interventions added an extra nine months to their lifespans. 

The team pointed out that making these changes to how much the mice were eating and when they were eating was not associated with weight loss. Instead, the improvements in lifespan were the greatest benefits linked with these meal-time changes. 

Restricted eating schedules can improve metabolism

Our metabolism becomes less active as we age, and the cells linked to inflammation become more active. The researchers say our goal should be to eat during times when the body is most active while cutting overall calorie intake. This can help improve our metabolism from an aging perspective. 

The team hopes to conduct future research in this area to identify other interventions that can help the metabolism long-term. 

“If we find a drug that can boost your [circadian] clock, we can then test it in the laboratory and see if that extends lifespan,” said researcher Joseph Takahashi. 

While recent studies have shown that exposing kids to healthy cooking shows can help them make healthier choices, a new study explored how virtual cooking classes can also be beneficial to their health. 

Experts found that kids who participate in virtual cooking classes are likely to expand their knowledge of nutrition. 

“Amid parental concerns regarding poor nutrition and lack of cooking skills among youth in Flint, Michigan, a team of local dietitians, chefs, and researchers created Flint Kids Cook (FKC),” the researchers wrote. “A trained chef and registered dietitian co-facilitated interactive lessons designed to increase knowledge and develop skills to prepare healthy meals and snacks at home. FKC demonstrated early success in reaching low-income youth and improving cooking self-efficacy, attitude towards cooking, and quality of life of young participants.” 

Encouraging healthy eating

The FKC classes totaled 7.5 hours of live education over the course of five consecutive weeks, and they covered everything from roasting, knife skills, baking, and the health benefits of specific foods, among several other important topics. To understand the impact this had on kids, the researchers conducted surveys before the classes began and after five weeks.

Ultimately, the researchers learned that these classes were effective for several reasons. One of the most important findings was that the kids felt confident in their ability to pick out, make, and eat healthy foods at the end of the five weeks. They also reported having more confidence when it came to navigating a kitchen.

The researchers found that the benefits of the classes extended beyond just the participating kids -- they were helpful to the whole family.

“One very important part of the class that is happening because of the virtual platform is that families are not participating in the classes together as opposed to children participating in the class individually, apart from their family,” said researcher Amy Saxe-Custack, Ph.D. “We started to see parents becoming much more involved in the education and sitting at the table once the meals were prepared for a family dinner.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Alberta explored how consumers’ salt consumption impacts their heart health. 

According to their findings, limiting salt intake may help reduce symptoms related to heart failure, including fatigue, swelling, coughing, and overall quality of life; however, this diet change was not linked with a lower risk of emergency room visits or mortality risk. 

“We can no longer put a blanket recommendation across all patients and say that limiting sodium intake is going to reduce your chances of either dying or being in the hospital, but I can say comfortably that it could improve people’s overall quality of life,” said researcher Justin Ezekowitz.  

Limiting salt intake

For the study, the researchers followed over 800 patients with heart failure who were receiving care in New Zealand, the United States, Chile, Canada, Mexico, and Colombia. Half of the participants received counseling that guided them through eating less salt, and the other half of the participants carried on with their diets as they normally would. The researchers tracked key health outcomes for patients with heart failure: emergency room visits, hospitalization, and mortality risk.  

Prior to any interventions, the participants consumed an average of 2,217 mg of sodium each day; guidelines recommend that consumers keep their salt intake to 1,500 mg per day. Participants who received guidance on eating more heart-healthy options reduced their salt intake to 1,658 mg of sodium per day after one year of the study. 

The researchers learned that these efforts helped reduce the severity of heart failure-related symptoms. Participants experienced less swelling, fatigue, and coughing while enjoying a better overall quality of life.

However, some of the more important measures of heart failure – ER visits, hospitalizations, and mortality – were not affected by consuming less salt. Four percent of patients eating less sodium and 4% of patients who didn’t change their diets required emergency medical care related to heart failure. Ten percent of patients in the low sodium group were hospitalized for heart failure, compared to 12% of patients who didn’t change their diets. All-cause death affected 6% of the group who ate less salt and 4% of the group with no diet change. 

While the team plans to do more work in this area moving forward, they hope these findings emphasize the benefits associated with reducing salt intake. Though this intervention may not improve major health outcomes, it can help consumers struggling with heart failure on a daily basis. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the American Heart Association (AHA) explored the heart health benefits linked with avocados. Their findings showed that eating two servings of avocados each week may lower consumers’ risk of cardiovascular disease. 

“Our study provides further evidence that the intake of plant-sourced unsaturated fats can improve diet quality and is an important component in cardiovascular disease prevention,” said researcher Lorena S. Pacheco, Ph.D. “These are particularly notable findings since the consumption of avocados has risen steeply in the U.S. in the last 20 years, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.” 

Healthier foods lead to better outcomes

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from nearly 70,000 women in the Nurses’ Health Study and over 41,000 men in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. Participants completed questionnaires on how often they ate certain foods at the beginning of the study and then followed up every four years for 30 years. The researchers then analyzed the correlation between diet choices and long-term heart health. 

The researchers learned that avocados were beneficial for the participants’ cardiovascular health. The study showed that those who ate at least two servings of avocados each week, which is about one avocado, were 16% less likely to develop cardiovascular disease and 21% less likely to develop coronary heart disease. 

The study also showed that consumers who swapped out unhealthy fat options with avocados had better heart health outcomes. For example, choosing avocados over butter, margarine, cheese, or bacon was linked with as high as a 22% lower risk of heart disease. 

The researchers hope health care professionals encourage consumers to make these simple diet changes in an effort to promote better long-term heart health. 

“These findings are significant because a healthy dietary pattern is the cornerstone for cardiovascular health, however, it can be difficult for many Americans to achieve and adhere to healthy eating patterns,” said researcher Cheryl Anderson, Ph.D. 

“Although no one food is the solution to routinely eating a healthy diet, this study is evidence that avocados have possible health benefits. This is promising because it is a food item that is popular, accessible, desirable, and easy to include in meals eaten by many Americans at home and in restaurants.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Copenhagen explored how following a Nordic diet may be beneficial for consumers’ health. 

The team explained that following this diet plan was linked with improvements to cholesterol and blood sugar levels. While consumers may be more likely to lose weight while following the Nordic diet, the researchers say the health benefits aren't solely tied to that outcome.

“It’s surprising because most people believe that positive effects on blood sugar and cholesterol are solely due to weight loss,” said researcher Lars Ove Dragsted. “Here, we have found this not to be the case. Other mechanisms are also at play.” 

Improving health with diet choices

The researchers had 200 participants over the age of 50 with high BMIs involved in the study. Over the course of six months, the participants were divided into two groups: one group ate as they normally would while the second group ate foods consistent with a Nordic diet. This diet focuses primarily on plant-based options, foods that are local to Nordic countries, and complex carbs.

The researchers then analyzed blood and urine samples from the participants to better understand how the diets affected their health outcomes. At the end of the study, the link between the Nordic diet and long-term health benefits was clear. Following this eating plan led to significant health improvements in key areas for the participants. 

“The group that had been on the Nordic diet for six months became significantly healthier, with lower cholesterol levels, lower overall levels of both saturated and unsaturated fat in the blood, and better regulation of glucose, compared to the control group,” said Dragsted. “We kept the group on the Nordic diet weight stable, meaning that we asked them to eat more if they lost weight. Even without weight loss, we could see an improvement in their health.” 

The researchers believe the Nordic diet was so beneficial to the participants’ health because of its fat composition. They explained that participants who followed the diet were eating fewer processed foods and getting their dietary fats from flaxseeds, fish, sunflower oil, and canola oil. 

“By analyzing the blood of participants, we could see that those who benefited most from the dietary change had different fat-soluble substances than the control group,” Dragsted said. “These are substances that appear to be linked to unsaturated fatty acids from oils in the Nordic diet. This is a sign that Nordic dietary fats probably play the most significant role for the health effects seen here, which I hadn’t expected. 

“We can only speculate as to why a change in fat composition benefits our health so greatly.” However, we can confirm that the absence of highly processed food and less saturated fat from animals have a very positive effect on us. So, the fat composition in the Nordic diet, which is higher in omega-3 and omega-6 unsaturated fats, is probably a considerable part of the explanation for the health effects we found from the Nordic diet, even when the weight of participants remains constant.”

Recent studies have revealed how eating less meat may be better for consumers’ health, and now a new study explored how meat consumption may affect cancer risk. According to the findings, eating less meat or cutting it out completely may reduce consumers’ risk of developing cancer. 

“In this large British cohort, being a low meat-eater, fish-eater, or vegetarian was associated with a lower risk of all cancer sites when compared to regular meat eaters,” the researchers wrote. 

Health benefits of eating less meat

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from over 472,000 British adults enrolled in the U.K. Biobank between 2006 and 2010. The participants reported how frequently they consumed meat and fish, and the researchers tracked their health over the course of 11 years. 

The study showed that the less meat the participants ate, the lower their risk was of developing cancer. Compared with those who ate meat five times or less per week, vegetarians and vegans were 14% less likely to be diagnosed with cancer. Those who ate fish were 10% less likely to be diagnosed with cancer. 

The team also looked at how the participants’ diets impacted the risk of specific cancers. The risk of breast cancer was nearly 20% lower in postmenopausal women who had cut out meat entirely. Similarly, men who were vegetarians were 31% less likely to develop prostate cancer. Those who ate fish but not other types of meat were 20% less likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Those who ate meat five times or less each week were 9% less likely to develop colorectal cancer. 

While the team plans to do more work in this area to better understand how diet affects cancer risk, these findings highlight the effect that meat can have on long-term health outcomes. 

A new study conducted by researchers from Penn State explored the factors that go into kids’ eating habits. 

According to their findings, knowing what foods kids don’t like may be more important than knowing what foods they do like. Their work showed that when kids are given a meal, their dislikes are more likely to motivate what they eat than the things they like. 

“For 50 plus years, we’ve known liking and intake are positively correlated, but this often leads to the mistaken assumption that if it tastes better, you will eat more,” said researcher John Hayes. “Reality is a bit more nuanced. In adults, we know that if you really like a food, you may or may not eat it. But if you don’t like it, you’ll rarely or never eat it. These new data show the same pattern is true in young kids.” 

Understanding kids’ food habits

The researchers had 61 kids between the ages of four and six participate in an experiment that tested their eating habits. The children were given trays with seven foods and two drinks – broccoli, cherry tomatoes, chicken nuggets, ketchup, cookies, grapes, chips, milk, and fruit punch. The kids ranked each item on a scale from super bad to super good, and then they consumed as much of the foods and drinks as they wanted. 

The researchers learned that the foods the kids disliked proved to be a stronger indicator of what they ate than the foods they ranked as their favorites. 

“In other words, rather than high-liking driving greater intake, our study data indicate that lower-liking led children to avoid some foods and leave them on the plate,” said researcher Kathleen Keller. “Kids have a limited amount of room in their bellies, so when they are handed a tray, they gravitate toward their favorite thing and typically eat that first, and then make choices about whether to eat other foods.” 

Others’ opinions can influence kids 

While kids have certain foods that they naturally are more inclined to eat, the researchers also explained that they may be swayed by those around them. They believe kids’ perceptions of different foods and drinks, mainly what they hear from their family members and friends, can also influence their opinions. 

“They pick up on what is said around the table about what foods are good, and while that may not actually correspond to kids eating them, they are taking it all in, and that’s affecting their perceptions of foods,” Keller said.

“Milk is a good example of that – for some families, there may be a health halo effect around milk. Kids learn from an early age that drinking milk will give them a strong body, so they may drink milk even if it’s not their favorite beverage.” 

While gaining weight can be a touchy subject for many consumers, a new study conducted by researchers from Anglia Ruskin University explored middle-aged men’s experience with weight gain. 

According to their findings, many middle-aged men view weight gain as an inevitability in their lives. As a consequence, their self-worth and overall moods may take a hit. 

“Obesity is increasing in the U.K. among men despite public health messaging, and one of the factors is that we are becoming increasingly time-poor,” said researcher Dr. Mark Cortnage. “One of the themes in our research was how some men had undertaken successful weight loss initiatives in the past, but had soon put the weight back on because the diets had been incompatible with their lifestyles in the longer term.”

Understanding perceptions of weight gain

For the study, the researchers interviewed eight men between the ages of 35 and 58 who were enrolled in a football-based weight management program, the Alpha Programme (TAP). The participants answered questions about how they felt about their weight gain, what they thought contributed to weight gain, how they felt about their health, and any previous weight loss efforts. 

The researchers learned that weight gain impacted the participants on an emotional level. Many of them felt bad about themselves for gaining weight and had lost a lot of the hope they had about living healthier. 

Many of the men in the study said their job and family responsibilities were primarily responsible for their weight gain, but there was also an overarching theme that gaining weight was inevitable for them. Many of the participants reported accepting weight gain as an expected part of life, primarily because of their lifestyles. However, the researchers also learned that few of the men recognized how their own eating habits impacted their weight gain.  

“There is a tendency to forget how much our lifestyle, in particular family and employment, impact on weight gain,” Dr. Cortnage said. “This weight gain takes place over years and decades, and as such, short-term dietary options fail to influence the deeper behavioral and lifestyle issues.” 

Increasing education on nutrition

While many of the men felt hopeless when it came to weight gain, it was difficult for them to make lasting changes to their eating habits. The goal now for the researchers is to help make nutrition information and education more widely accessible to help consumers make better choices. 

“Although they often mentioned comfort eating, participants also showed poor awareness of other factors that cause weight gain,” said Dr. Cortnage. “Many men would benefit from an education around food, such as food selection, integration of diet, sustainable weight management practices, in order to develop a more complete understanding of the relationships between food and lifestyle.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Bergen explored how consumers’ diets may impact how long they live. According to their findings, swapping a traditional Western diet – which includes processed foods and red meat – for more whole grains and nuts may add 10 years to consumers’ life expectancy. 

“Research until now has shown health benefits associated with separate food groups or specific diet patterns but given limited information on the health impact of other diet changes,” said researcher Lars Fadnes. “Our modeling methodology has bridged this gap.” 

Making long-term healthy choices

The researchers analyzed data from the Global Burden of Diseases study and other previous studies that focused on diet and longevity to better understand the relationship between the two.

The team was primarily interested in seeing how life expectancy changed based on consumers’ intake of things like fruits and vegetables, fish, eggs, red meat, whole grains, processed foods, dairy products, and sugar-sweetened beverages. They created a model, the Food4HealthyLife Calculator, to estimate how diet choices impact longevity. 

The researchers learned that moving away from a traditional Western diet and opting for healthier foods was beneficial for consumers’ life expectancy. The work showed that the positive impacts on longevity were even more significant for younger consumers who switched their diets than older consumers. 

For example, young women who ate healthier improved their life expectancy by nearly 11 years, while young men increased their life expectancy with a healthy diet by 13 years. For consumers over the age of 60, diet changes added nearly nine years onto men’s lives and eight years onto women’s lives, respectively. By the time consumers reached 80, a healthy diet was linked with adding more than three years onto life expectancy. 

The team also narrowed down the foods that were most beneficial in terms of longevity and which were the most detrimental to a longer life. Red meat and processed meat were two of the foods to avoid for life expectancy, while nuts, legumes, and whole grains were all linked with the greatest increases in life expectancy. 

The researchers hope these findings prove to be useful for consumers because their dietary choices can have long-term impacts on their health and wellness.  

“Understanding the relative health potential of different food groups could enable people to make feasible and significant health gains,” the researchers wrote. “The Food4HealthyLife calculator could be a useful tool for clinicians, policymakers, and lay-people to understand the health impact of dietary choices.” 

A new position paper written by experts from the European Society of Cardiology explored some of the health risks associated with natural supplements. According to their findings, supplements geared towards athletes that are designed to boost performance may actually increase the risk for serious heart concerns. 

“Caffeine is a prime example of a natural substance that is considered safe,” said researcher Dr. Paolo Emilio Adami. “While caffeine improves performance, particularly aerobic capacity in endurance athletes, its abuse may lead to fast heart rate (tachycardia), heart rhythm disorders (arrhythmias), high blood pressure, and in some cases sudden cardiac death.” 

Being mindful of supplements 

For the paper, the experts looked into various substances that are marketed to athletes to help them improve their overall athletic performance. While many supplements are marketed to be natural and beneficial for health and wellness, the team found that there may be adverse health effects linked with many of these products. 

“Nutritional supplements are commonly viewed as risk-free substances that may improve performance,” the researchers wrote. “Some nutritional supplements, including various plant and ‘natural’ extracts, may pose a serious health risk and athletes may even risk contravening anti-doping rules.” 

The researchers explained that athletes often combine supplements -- like caffeine, creatine, multivitamins, or other vitamin supplements -- but don't realize that they're putting their health at risk. If athletes take incorrect dosages or mix supplements that can have adverse effects, there is a higher likelihood of heart health concerns. 

Substances like peptides or anabolic steroids have been linked with significant health concerns. The researchers' work showed that peptides are likely to have long-term health risks, while anabolic steroids have been linked with cardiovascular-related deaths. 

“In many cases, sportspeople use a mix or cocktail of substances to improve their performance and the interaction between them can also be extremely dangerous,” Dr. Adami said.

“All doping substances are risky and their use as medications should only be allowed when prescribed by a physician to treat a medical condition, when no therapeutic alternatives are available, and following the Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) requirements. Based on the dose, the duration of use, and the interaction with other substances, the health consequences can vary and in some cases be lethal. From a cardiovascular perspective, they can cause sudden cardiac death and arrhythmias, atherosclerosis and heart attack, high blood pressure, heart failure, and blood clots.”

Use quality products and be careful

Moving forward, the researchers hope athletes seriously consider the supplements they’re taking, including the dosage and how the different products might interact with each other. 

“Athletes should be aware that nutritional supplements and substances are not necessarily safe and should only be used if recommended by professional nutritionists,” Dr. Adami said. “It is fundamental to use products from well-established manufacturers with known and internationally approved good quality standards.” 

A new report is calling into question many previously held beliefs about what’s considered healthy for kids versus adults. A team of researchers has stated that there is no age limit on healthy foods; kids can eat the same healthy foods that their parents are eating. 

“If you think about kids’ food, the archetype of terminology that we widely use to describe the food that we feed our children, it’s really a social norm or societal construct that we’ve perpetuated,” explained researcher Pamela Rothpletz-Puglia. 

Healthy foods are healthy for everyone

The researchers explained that there have been long-standing beliefs across the U.S. that kids’ food is its own category; children between the ages of two and 14 are likely to eat foods that are unique to their age group, whether at home, at a birthday party, or out in a restaurant. The team says this ultimately translates into foods that are more processed, contain more sugar, and are higher in fat. 

For example, when dining out in restaurants, kids’ food is designated to its own separate menu. The researchers say those choices are almost always fried and processed, and they’re designed to be attractive to young kids. 

In their report, the team calls for changes to the way that consumers think about food. Certain food groups shouldn’t be assigned strictly to adults or strictly to children. Instead, adults should be focusing on the nutrient content in all foods and tailoring portion sizes to their children’s ages. 

Strengthening public education on nutrition

Perhaps the biggest takeaway from the report is that children can – and should be – eating the same healthy foods that adults are eating. The researchers are calling on public health officials, food industry professionals, and the media to continue spreading this message to parents. 

The team wants kids' menus to change so that they include healthy options that are appealing across the board. They say if kids are more regularly exposed to healthy foods and they understand the benefits of following a healthy lifestyle, it’s likely to have a long-term impact on society. 

“I think we need to partner with communities, the food industry, and policy makers,” said Rothpletz-Puglia. “We need to partner and create mutually beneficial solutions.” 

Many recent studies have pointed to the heart health benefits of following the Mediterranean diet, and one of the key ingredients involved in this food plan is olive oil. 

Now, researchers from the American College of Cardiology have found that consuming more olive oil – while lowering intake of other fats like butter, mayonnaise, or margarine – may reduce the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. 

“Our findings support current dietary recommendations to increase the intake of olive oil and other unsaturated vegetable oils,” said researcher Marta Guasch-Ferré. “Clinicians should be counseling patients to replace certain fats, such margarine and butter, with olive oil to improve their health. Our study helps to make more specific recommendations that will be easier for patients to understand and hopefully implement into their diets.” 

Olive oil is better for heart health

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from over 90,000 people enrolled in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. The team followed the participants for nearly 30 years, evaluating questionnaires about their diets every four years. The participants recorded everything they ate, including things like salad dressings or baked goods that would contain olive oil or other fats. 

The researchers learned that consuming more olive oil was linked with the greatest health benefits. The study showed that those who consumed the most olive oil had a nearly 30% lower risk of neurodegenerative mortality, a 19% lower risk of heart disease-related mortality, and a 17% lower risk of cancer mortality. 

Choosing olive oil over other fats was linked with better overall health outcomes. Swapping out 10 grams per day of fats like butter and margarine for olive oil was linked with as high as a 34% lower risk of mortality. 

“It’s possible that higher olive oil consumption is a marker of an overall healthier diet and higher socioeconomic status,” Guasch-Ferré said. “However, even after adjusting for these and other social economic status factors, our results remained largely the same. Our study cohort was predominantly a non-Hispanic white population of health professionals, which should minimize potentially confounding socioeconomic factors, but may limit generalizability as this population may be more likely to lead a healthy lifestyle.” 

Moving forward, the researchers believe future studies need to focus on more of the concrete details associated with this relationship between olive oil and long-term heart health. 

“The current study and previous studies have found that consumption of olive oil may have health benefits,” said researcher Susanna C. Larsson Ph.D. “However, several questions remain. Are the associations causal or spurious? Is olive oil consumption protective for certain cardiovascular diseases, such as stroke and atrial fibrillation, only or also for other major diseases and causes of death? What is the amount of olive oil required for a protective effect? More research is needed to address these questions.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Brigham Young University explored how teens’ sleeping patterns may impact their physical health. Their work revealed that teens who aren't getting enough sleep may be more likely to consume 4.5 more pounds of sugar each school year. 

“Shortened sleep increases the risk for teens to eat more carbs and added sugars and drink more sugar-sweetened beverages than when they are getting a healthy amount of sleep,” said researcher Dr. Kara Duraccio. 

Lack of sleep leads to worse food choices

The researchers had over 90 teenagers participate in a two-week study that tracked their sleeping and dietary patterns. For one week, the group slept for six and a half hours each night. During the next week, they slept for nine hours each night. The team recorded the participants’ diets over the course of the study while paying close attention to their calorie intake and the types of foods they were eating. 

Ultimately, the researchers identified a clear link between the teens’ sleeping patterns and their dietary choices. Getting less sleep each night was linked with eating fewer fruits and vegetables and more carbs and sugary foods and drinks – especially late at night. The researchers found that sleeping less didn't cause the teens to eat more; instead, they were more attracted to sugary items. 

“We suspect that tired teens are looking for quick bursts of energy to keep them going until they can go to bed, so they’re seeking out foods that are high in carbs and added sugars,” Duraccio said.

Over 4 more pounds per sugar

Over time, consuming more sugar can have significant effects. The researchers explained that when the teens were on the shortened sleep schedule, they consumed 12 extra grams of sugar per day; over the course of the entire school year, this translates to 4.5 pounds of extra sugar. 

The team hopes these findings highlight the importance of sleep on long-term health and wellness. While it may be difficult for teens to stay on a regimented schedule, doing so can help promote better food choices. 

“It’s human nature to think that when we have a long to-do list, sleep should be the first thing to go or the easiest thing to cut out,” Duraccio said. “We don’t recognize that getting enough sleep helps you accomplish your to-do list better. Sleep health should be incorporated into all prevention and intervention modules for child obesity.” 

Nutritional and ingredient information on food packaging can often be misleading, and experts say it could be putting consumers’ lives in danger. 

Researchers from the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology recently conducted a study that focused on the labeling of sesame in various products. They said direct food labeling is needed to help reduce the incidence of severe allergic reactions. 

“Sesame is the ninth most common childhood food allergy in the U.S., yet many people don’t recognize it on food labels, or it’s missing entirely,” said researcher Dr. Katie Kennedy. “What we discovered in our study was that amongst those who reported events related to accidental ingestion of sesame, many reported they didn’t know that words such as ‘tahini’ meant sesame. Because the word ‘sesame’ is often not used on labels, accidents happen at a greater rate.” 

Food labels impact health outcomes

For the study, the researchers analyzed nearly 400 self-reported sesame-related allergic reactions. Participants answered questions about their experiences with sesame allergies, including the typical treatments, outcomes, and issues they encounter with food labels. 

Overall, nearly 70% of all the allergic reactions resulted in anaphylaxis – a severe and potentially life-threatening type of reaction. More than 36% of participants needed epinephrine, while nearly 50% needed to be hospitalized. 

The researchers found that incorrect or misleading food labeling was the source of the reaction in nearly 70% of cases. Participants reported that a word other than “sesame” was on the label 46% of the time. 

“Some of the reports were due to products declared as containing ‘spices’ or ‘natural flavors’ and required consumers to call the company or manufacturer to clarify the ingredients,” Dr. Kennedy said. 

Based on these findings, the researchers are calling for food labels to be properly identified when they contain sesame. Doing so can help reduce the frequency of consumers experiencing anaphylaxis and ultimately improve overall health outcomes. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of South Australia explored how eating more dairy may come with some health benefits. According to their findings, eating yogurt on a daily basis may help consumers manage high blood pressure. 

“Dairy foods, especially yogurt, may be capable of reducing blood pressure,” said researcher Dr. Alexandra Wade. “This is because dairy foods contain a range of micronutrients, including calcium, magnesium, and potassium, all of which are involved in the regulation of blood pressure. 

“Yogurt is especially interesting because it also contains bacteria that promote the release of proteins, which lowers blood pressure.” 

Benefits of eating more yogurt

The researchers analyzed data from over 900 people enrolled in the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study. Participants answered questions about their typical diets, and the researchers tracked their blood pressure readings over time. 

Ultimately, they learned that eating yogurt daily provided blood pressure benefits. Those who consumed higher quantities of yogurt also had better blood pressure readings over the course of the study. 

“This study showed for people with elevated blood pressure, even small amounts of yogurt were associated with lower blood pressure,” Dr. Wade said. “And for those who consumed yogurt regularly, the results were even stronger, with blood pressure readings nearly seven points lower than those who did not consume yogurt.” 

Moving forward, the researchers hope more work is done to identify potential treatments for those struggling with high blood pressure. 

“High blood pressure is the number one risk factor for cardiovascular disease, so it’s important to find ways to reduce and regulate it,” said Dr. Wade. 

Eating more plant-based foods has been linked with improving consumers’ heart health, and now researchers from the University of Barcelona say it can boost your brain health too. According to their findings, older consumers may lower their risk of cognitive impairment when they’re eating more plant-based foods. 

“A higher intake of fruits, vegetables, and plant-based foods provides polyphenols and other bioactive compounds that could help reduce the risk of cognitive decline due to aging,” said researcher Cristina Andrés-Lacueva. 

The link between diet and cognitive function

The researchers analyzed blood samples from more than 840 participants over the age of 65 enrolled in the Three-City Cohort study. They also looked at results from several different neuropsychological exams to measure cognitive function. 

The researchers identified a link between the participants’ diets and their cognitive function. Their findings showed that certain foods — such as blueberries, pomegranates, green tea, red wine, cocoa, and coffee — had protective benefits against cognitive impairment. Foods that are high in polyphenols, many of which are plant-based, were associated with a lower risk of cognitive decline. 

The team also found that certain metabolites were associated with a higher risk of cognitive impairment, while others lowered the risk of these symptoms. 

“For example, 2-furoglycerine and 3-methylanthine, which are biomarkers of coffee and cocoa consumption, had a protective profile, while saccharin – derived from the consumption of artificial sweeteners – is associated with a damaging role,” said Andrés-Lacueva. 

While eating more plant-based options can certainly benefit consumers’ cognitive health, the researchers hope these findings are also used to develop treatments for older consumers struggling with cognition. 

“The study of the relationship between cognitive impairment, the metabolism of the microbiota, and food and endogenous metabolism is essential to preventive and therapeutic strategies that help to take care of our cognitive health,” said researcher Mercè Pallàs. 

Several studies have found that shift workers tend to have an increased risk of several health concerns, including cancer. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute found that eating meals during the day, rather than in the middle of the night, may lower the risk of poor health outcomes for overnight shift workers. 

The experts say shift workers who eat their meals during the day are less likely to experience spikes in glucose levels, which can contribute to metabolic health risks. 

“This study reinforces the notion that when you eat matters for determining health outcomes such as blood sugar levels, which are relevant for night workers as they typically eat at night while on shift,” said researcher Dr. Sarah L. Chellappa. 

Avoiding nighttime meals can improve metabolic health

For the study, the researchers had 19 participants involved in a two-week night-work experiment that had them follow one of two different meal plans. One group ate their meals during daytime hours and the other group ate late at night. 

The study showed that the participants’ glucose levels varied based on when they ate their meals. Eating meals at night was linked with a 6% average spike in glucose levels, while this didn’t occur for those who ate during the day. The researchers said this is a cause for concern because high glucose levels can increase the risk for diabetes. 

The researchers say altering mealtimes could be helpful to overnight shift workers so that they can reduce these health risks.

“This is a rigorous and highly controlled laboratory study that demonstrates a potential intervention for the adverse metabolic effects associated with shift work, which is a known public health concern,” said researcher Marishka Brown, Ph.D. “We look forward to additional studies that confirm the results and begin to untangle the biological underpinnings of these findings.” 

The health risks associated with eating meat -- especially red and processed meats -- have been well-documented in several studies. Now, researchers from the University of Bonn explored how different diets affect consumers’ health and the environment. 

According to their findings, diets that limit meat consumption were linked with better outcomes for animals, the environment, and consumers’ long-term health. 

Diets impact our health and the environment

The researchers explained that the study was based on the “One Health” perspective, which states that consumers should consider how their diet affects the environment, their health, and animals. The team wanted to look at different diets and see how consumers can best go about making positive, healthy choices. 

“To do this, we took a look at examples of which products are on the food basket of people in North Rhine-Westphalia,” said researcher Juliana Paris. “We then compared this reference diet with three different scenarios: a shift according to the recommendations of the German Nutrition Society (DGE), a shift to the Mediterranean diet with more fish and seafood, and a shift to a vegan diet.” 

For each diet, the researchers relied on extensive databases to understand how the different food and nutrition choices impacted each of the three categories. They looked at levels of greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, risks of cardiovascular disease and cancers, and general animal welfare. 

Limiting meat is beneficial

The researchers learned that all three diets had pros and cons. For example, following the Mediterranean diet is beneficial for consumers’ heart health, but it can also be detrimental to animals. Swapping red and processed meats for more fish options is better for our health, but it comes at the expense of the fish and seafood populations. Vegan diets tend to lack a lot of important nutrients and put a strain on water usage, but plant-based foods are healthier. 

While none of the diets analyzed in this study were perfect in all three categories, the researchers did come to one major conclusion: limiting meat intake led to better overall outcomes. They recommend eating more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains to preserve our long-term health and the environment. 

“Regardless of the choice of animal-based protein sources, the larger the share of plant-based foods -- such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains -- in a diet, the greater the associated human health benefits,” the researchers said. “Moreover, reducing consumption of ready-to-eat meals and highly processed foods is clearly recommended to improve the health of humans, animals, and the environment at the same time.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Duke University Medical Center explored some of the best ways for consumers to deal with the picky eaters in their lives. According to their findings, support and encouragement are likely to produce better outcomes than more forceful, intense measures when it comes to food aversions. 

“It is robust confirmation for what had been out there in the literature and reinforces the concept that children feeling forced or pressured to eat is not helpful,” said researcher Nancy Zucker, Ph.D. 

Approaching picky eaters with support

For the study, the researchers surveyed more than 19,000 people who claimed they were picky eaters. The participants shared their personal experiences with food aversions, including the ways that those closest to them handled their pickiness. The team then used artificial intelligence to better understand how those experiences emotionally impacted the participants.  

“From a technical perspective, this study used an AI application that understands language, not just words and sentences, but concepts of paragraphs, which was imperative here,” said researcher J. Matías Di Martino, Ph.D. “By getting the positive and negative emotions, it enables us to analyze the comprehensive memories of nearly 20,000 people.” 

The biggest takeaway from the study was that when participants felt forced to eat, it wasn’t a positive experience. Conversely, more encouraging and supportive efforts led to better outcomes. 

The study showed that strategies such as asking for help with food preparation, explaining the nutritional benefits of certain foods, and being flexible with meals were associated with more positive emotional responses. The participants also agreed that being asked to eat was a better method than being told they had to eat. 

“It’s not surprising that positive approaches were favored, but it is surprising how overwhelming that position was among this group of adults,” said Dr. Zucker. 

The toll on mental health

The researchers explained that severe food aversions may be linked with the mental health condition known as Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID). This goes beyond just not liking certain foods; consumers struggling with ARFID can feel shame around meal times and general emotional distress when it comes to eating. This can also affect health and nutrition, leading to significant weight loss or a lack of certain nutrients. 

Under these circumstances, the researchers learned that even positive encouragement isn’t always going to lead to better situations with food. While having a positive attitude can help consumers with ARFID, avoiding certain foods is likely to remain a concern throughout adulthood. 

“To our knowledge, there is no published research that identifies effective feeding strategies for those with ARFID,” Dr. Zucker said. “Figuring out the best way to feed a child with severe food avoidance can be exhausting and stressful for parents, so providing guidance is essential to improve the social and emotional eating environment for their children and reduce the distress that both parents and children have at mealtimes.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology explored one way that parents may be able to reduce the risk of egg allergies in their children. According to their findings, introducing eggs during infancy and making them a frequent part of kids’ diets may help lower the risk of developing an allergy. 

“Egg allergy is the second most common food allergy throughout the world,” said researcher Dr. Xiaozhong Wen. “Current evidence suggests that early introduction of egg during infancy, followed by consistent and frequent feedings, seems protective against development of egg allergy. We are still investigating optimal timing of infant egg introduction and frequency of feeding.” 

Minimizing risk of allergy

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 2,200 parents enrolled in the Infant Feeding Practice Study II. Parents answered survey questions about when they first introduced eggs to their babies, how often their children were eating eggs, and any type of allergy development through the first six years of life. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that getting infants to eat eggs before their first birthdays was associated with a lower risk of allergies later in childhood. The team found that infants who ate more eggs early in life had an even lower risk of developing an allergy; the opposite was also true -- kids who developed an allergy at one or six years old weren’t eating eggs as often in their first year of life. 

Of the parents who had their infants eat eggs from a young age, the risk of an allergy was under 1% for both one- and six-year-olds. Just 0.5% of parents reported an egg-related allergy within the first year of life, and that percentage only went up to 0.8% by the time the participants were six years old. 

While the researchers plan to do more work in this area to better understand how food allergies impact kids, they hope these findings highlight some of the benefits associated with an early introduction to eggs. 

​A new study conducted by researchers from the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) explored an interesting factor that may increase older women’s risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Their findings showed that eating alone may be detrimental to older women’s long-term heart health. 

“This study shows that older women who eat alone are more likely to have symptomatic heart disease,” said researcher Dr. Melanie Faubion. “They are more likely to be widowed and to have lower incomes and poorer nutritional intake. These results are not surprising given that lower socioeconomic status and social isolation contribute to lower quality of life, greater rates of depression, and poorer health.” 

How eating habits impact heart health

The researchers had nearly 600 women over the age of 65 report on their typical eating habits, including how many meals per day they usually ate with other people versus how many they ate alone. The team then tracked the women’s health and paid particular attention to cardiovascular disease and nutrition. 

The researchers learned that there were several health risks that popped up when older women ate most of their meals alone. From a heart health standpoint, regularly eating alone was linked with a nearly 2.6 times higher risk of angina among the women in the study. 

The report showed that women were also more likely to struggle with nutrition when they ate alone often. Not only were their typical diets lacking several key nutrients, including potassium, energy, and dietary fiber, but they generally weren’t as knowledgeable about healthy eating habits as those who were sharing most of their meals with family or friends. 

Given the serious long-term implications of these findings and the prevalence of heart disease nationwide, the researchers hope more work is done to make nutritional information more accessible to all consumers. 

“Given that women live longer than men, finding ways for older women who are socially isolated to engage and create meaningful social ties may not only improve their nutrition but also their overall health while simultaneously reducing health care costs,” Dr. Faubion said. 

Several studies have highlighted the health benefits of intermittent fasting -- particularly for those with diabetes. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from the University of South Australia explored how women with gestational diabetes can use the diet to their advantage. 

According to their findings, adopting an intermittent fasting eating regimen may help women with gestational diabetes lose weight and prevent future health risks. They recommend the 5:2 plan, which includes five days of consumers eating normally and two days in which they significantly limit calories. 

“Healthy eating and regular physical activity are recommended to manage gestational diabetes, with continuous energy restriction diets -- or diets that cut calories by 25-30% -- being the most common strategy for weight loss and diabetes prevention,” said researcher Dr. Kristy Gray. “The trouble is, however, that new mums put themselves last -- they’re struggling with fatigue and juggling family responsibilities -- so when it comes to weight loss, many find it hard to stick to a low calorie diet. 

“The 5:2 diet may provide a less overwhelming option,” Dr. Gray said. “As it only cuts calories over two days, some women may find it easier to adopt and adhere to, as opposed to a consistently low-calorie diet requiring constant management.” 

The benefits of intermittent fasting

For the study, the researchers had nearly 70 women follow one of two diets for one year: either the 5:2 diet or a continuous energy-restricted diet of about 1500 calories per day. All of the women had previously been diagnosed with gestational diabetes and struggled with their weight after giving birth. 

The goal of the trial was to determine if intermittent fasting would emerge as another effective weight loss method for women who had gestational diabetes. The researchers learned that restricting calories in this way was equally as effective as the continuous energy-restricted diet. 

“Our research shows that the 5:2 diet is just as effective at achieving weight loss as a continuous energy-restricted diet in women who have had gestational diabetes, which is great, because it provides women with greater choice and control,” said Dr. Gray. 

In addition to weight loss, the researchers learned that following the intermittent fasting diet yielded similar results for the women’s fasting plasma glucose, blood sugar, and fasting serum insulin. Moving forward, they hope pregnant women with gestational diabetes consider these findings after giving birth. 

“Of course, women should seek advice from a health professional before commencing this type of diet, to make sure that it’s suitable for them,” Dr. Gray said. 

While several studies have looked at the health risks associated with the nutritional makeup of fast-food items, few studies have explored other ways that fast food can be harmful to consumers’ health.  

A new study conducted by researchers from George Washington University found that many fast-food items -- like burritos, chicken nuggets, and cheeseburgers -- contain traces of phthalates and plastics. These chemicals can pose significant long-term health risks, including damage to the endocrine system. 

“We found phthalates and other plasticizers are widespread in prepared foods available at U.S. fast food chains, a finding that means many consumers are getting a side of potentially unhealthy chemicals along with their meal,” said researcher Lariah Edwards. “Stronger regulations are needed to help keep these harmful chemicals out of the food supply.” 

Chemicals pose a health risk to consumers

For the study, the researchers tested more than 60 different fast-food items and three different types of reusable gloves for potentially harmful chemicals. They detected phthalates and plasticizers in the large majority of the items tested.

The study showed that items containing meat were the most likely to have the highest levels of these kinds of chemicals, with chicken burritos and cheeseburgers topping the list. On the other hand, cheese pizzas had the lowest levels of these chemicals out of all the foods that were tested. 

Overall, 86% of the foods and all of the gloves tested contained a commonly used plasticizer called DEHT. These chemicals are typically used to keep things soft; however, this becomes problematic because the chemicals can seep into the food and are then digested. 

Two phthalates were found in large percentages of the food items; DnBP was detected in more than 80% of the fast-food products, and DEHP was found in 70% of the foods. These chemicals can pose serious risks to consumers’ reproductive processes and cognitive function. 

Low-income consumers may be more at risk

While more work needs to be done to determine more of the health risks linked with these chemicals, the researchers say making homemade meals is one of the best ways to avoid ingesting phthalates and plasticizers. However, they also worry about how consumers in low-income areas may struggle to get access to more natural food options. 

“Disadvantaged neighborhoods often have plenty of fast food outlets, but limited access to healthier foods like fruits and vegetables,” said researcher Ami Zota. “Additional research needs to be done to find out whether people living in such food deserts are at higher risk of exposure to these harmful chemicals.” 

Eating large quantities of ultra-processed foods has been linked to several health concerns, including heart health issues, chronic infections, and inflammatory bowel disease. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from Ohio State University has found that highly processed foods may also increase the risk for long-term memory concerns. 

However, the team points out that when processed foods are supplemented with DHA -- the omega-3 fatty acid -- it may help to lower the risk of memory decline. 

“These findings indicate that consumption of a processed diet can produce significant and abrupt memory deficits -- and in the aging population, rapid memory decline has a greater likelihood of progressing into neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease,” said researcher Ruth Barrientos. “By being aware of this, maybe we can limit processed foods in our diets and increase consumption of foods that are rich in omega-3 fatty acid DHA to either prevent or slow that progression.” 

How diet impacts memory function

For the study, the researchers had three-month and 24-month old mice divided into three different diet groups. One group ate their typical diet, another group followed a highly processed diet, and a third group followed a processed diet with DHA supplements. The mice followed the diets for four weeks, after which the researchers analyzed their brain scans to see how the diets impacted their memory function. 

The researchers observed that the older mice exhibited the greatest changes to brain and memory function, regardless of which diet they followed. However, the older mice that followed the highly processed diet showed signs of memory loss and had higher inflammatory properties in the hippocampus and amygdala. 

“The amygdala in humans has been implicated in memories associated with emotional -- fear and anxiety-producing -- events,” Barrientos said. “If this region of the brain is dysfunctional, cues that predict danger may be missed and could lead to bad decisions.” 

There were some positive findings though. The researchers learned that the older mice had better brain health outcomes when DHA supplements were mixed into their diets. These mice had fewer inflammatory markers in their brain scans and also showed fewer symptoms associated with memory loss. 

In terms of how consumers can use these findings to their benefit, the researchers recommend prioritizing healthy foods. While the DHA supplements were beneficial, eating an unlimited amount of processed foods isn’t likely to yield the best long-term health outcomes. 

“These are the types of diets that are advertised as being low in fat, but they’re highly processed,” said Barrientos. “They have no fiber and no refined carbohydrates that are also known as low-quality carbohydrates. Folks who are used to looking at nutritional information need to pay attention to the fiber and quality of carbohydrates. This study really shows those things are important.” 

While fruits and vegetables may not be kids’ favorite foods, a new study has suggested some ways that parents can try to get them to eat more of these staples. According to researchers from Penn State, kids are more likely to eat fruits and vegetables when their plates are at least half full with these foods.

“For most foods, kids will eat more when served larger portions, so we wanted to test whether increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables that are served over five days would increase intake,” said researcher Liane Roe. “We also wondered whether substituting produce for other foods would increase intake more than simply adding extra fruits and veggies.” 

Starting healthier habits

The researchers analyzed more than 50 children between the ages of three and five who were enrolled in Pennsylvania child care centers. Over the course of five days, the children were given all of their meals and snacks at different times in the day. In one trial, fruit and vegetable portions increased by 50%; in a second trial, fruits and vegetable amounts increased by 50% while all other foods decreased by equal weights. 

The researchers learned that both of these methods were successful in getting children to eat more fruits and vegetables. However, there were different outcomes for fruits and vegetables between the different strategies. 

When the children were given more produce on their plates, fruit intake went up 33% and vegetable intake went up 24%. On the other hand, when produce was swapped for other types of foods, the kids ate 38% more fruits and 41% more vegetables. 

“When deciding what to feed kids, it’s easy to remember that half of the foods should be fruits and vegetables,” said researcher Barbara Rolls. “If you start seeing that you’re serving too much and have more waste, you could cut back the higher calorie-dense food while adding more produce. Experiment and have some fun trying different fruits and vegetables to see what they like and so you can serve meals with a sensitivity to their personal taste.” 

Getting creative with produce

While it can be a difficult task for many parents to get their kids to consistently eat more fruits and vegetables, the researchers recommend that parents get creative so that they can incorporate more healthy food options.

“Serving fruits and vegetables as a first course or snacks when kids are hungry can boost their intake, as can incorporating them into mixed dishes,” said Rolls. “For example, you can blend some cauliflower or squash into sauce for mac and cheese or add fruit puree into a brownie or cake mix. You don’t decrease the palatability of the dish, but the kids are eating more produce. You should also encourage them to eat the whole veggies on their own, as well as incorporating them into other foods.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from New York University explored trends in consumers’ eating habits over the last 20 years. 

Their findings showed that consumption of ultra-processed foods has increased significantly in the U.S. Because of the health risks associated with this kind of diet, the team worries about how this will affect consumers’ wellness in the future. 

“The overall composition of the average U.S. diet has shifted towards a more processed diet,” said researcher Filippa Juul. “This is concerning, as eating more ultra-processed foods is associated with poor diet quality and higher risk of several chronic diseases. The high and increasing consumption of ultra-processed foods in the 21st century may be a key driver of the obesity epidemic.” 

Trends in eating habits

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from nearly 41,000 people enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2001 through 2018. The participants reported on all of the foods they consumed in a 24-hour period, and the researchers broke down their diets into four food groups based on the level of processing. 

The researchers learned that the percentage of calories that came from ultra-processed foods reached nearly 60% in the final year of the study, compared to 53.5% in the first year of the study. Additionally, calories related to whole foods, like fruits and vegetables, dropped from nearly 33% at the beginning of the study to under 28% by the end of the study. 

“In the current industrial food environment, most of the foods that are marketed to us are in fact industrial formulations that are far removed from whole foods,” Juul said. “Nevertheless, nutritional science tends to focus on the nutrient content of foods and has historically ignored the health implications of industrial food processing.” 

In terms of demographics, the researchers found that college graduates and Hispanic adults ate the most whole foods. Comparatively, older adults went from eating the most whole foods and least amount of processed foods to having the biggest increase of any age group in ultra-processed food consumption in the final year of the study. 

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

The researchers also found that there has been a significant increase in ultra-processed food consumption since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ultimately, these eating habits are a cause for concern because they may increase the risk for long-term health concerns. 

“In the early days of the pandemic, people changed their purchasing behaviors to shop less frequently, and sales of ultra-processed foods such as boxed macaroni and cheese, canned soups, and snack foods increased substantially,” said Juul. “People may have also eaten more packaged ‘comfort foods’ as a way of coping with the uncertainty of the pandemic. We look forward to examining dietary changes during this period as data become available.” 

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a significant burden on parents’ mental health due to all the extra stress. Now, researchers from the University of Houston explored what impact parents’ stress has had on their kids. Their findings showed that pandemic-related stress may have had a negative impact on kids’ eating habits. 

“The stress doesn’t just go away,” said researcher Leslie Frankel. “Many parents are still feeling uneasy and a parent who is overwhelmed and experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety may not pay attention or acknowledge their child’s cues of hunger and fullness.” 

Parents’ job and financial stress affects kids’ eating habits

For the study, the researchers surveyed nearly 120 parents who had children between the ages of two and seven from April 2020, to June 2020. Parents answered questions about their stress levels during the pandemic, what their children’s eating habits were like, what role they played in their kids’ eating habits, and their overall mental health. 

The researchers learned that parents were dealing with two different types of stressors during the pandemic: job and financial security-related stress and family safety-related stress. In either case, these stress levels contributed to the ways parents went about handling meal and snack times with their kids. 

The study showed that many parents resorted to eating habits that they didn’t follow before the pandemic. This could mean that parents were using food as a way to reward their kids, or kids were encouraged to eat -- even at times when they weren’t hungry. The researchers refer to these habits as nonresponsive feeding behaviors. 

The biggest risk associated with nonresponsive feeding behaviors is that it creates a sense of distrust in kids to learn about their appetites. In these cases, kids struggle to really know when they’re full, which can ultimately increase the risk of overeating and obesity. When parents aren’t asking kids questions about how much they’ve eaten, if they’re full, or if they’re hungry, it makes it difficult for kids to understand when they should be eating and when it’s time to stop. 

“These parents do not have the time, energy, or emotional capacity to engage in optimal feeding behaviors, so they resort to maladaptive feed behaviors, such as using food as a reward or pressuring their kids to eat,” said Frankel. “As a result, their children are not able to self-regulate what or how much food they are putting into their bodies, which could have harmful consequences in the long run.” 

Many consumers try to steer clear of processed foods by opting for whole-grain options when trying to make healthier choices. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from Chalmers University of Technology found that rye is better than wheat when it comes to choosing the best grain for weight loss.  

“The results were clear -- the participants who received rye products lost more weight overall, and their levels of body fat decreased compared to those who received wheat products,” said researcher Kia Nøhr Iversen. “As we continue to look for the exact reasons why, our advice is to choose the rye bread instead of the sifted wheat bread.” 

Making healthier choices

The researchers had over 240 overweight men and women, ranging in age from 30 to 70, involved in the study. For 12 weeks, the participants were eating the same quantities of either whole grain rye or refined wheat products. They also received dietary advice from a nutritionist and underwent evaluations twice over the course of the study. 

Ultimately, all of the participants lost weight by the end of the study. However, those who ate rye products lost more weight and more body fat than those who ate the wheat products; weight loss was more than one kilogram higher for the group who ate rye products. 

The researchers believe rye was better for weight loss because products with this type of grain tend to help keep consumers more full. That’s because there are higher levels of fiber in whole grain rye products that help moderate appetite. 

Every person’s body is different

While rye grain was linked to greater weight loss overall, the researchers found that there was a big disparity among the participants in each group when it came to how their bodies reacted to either rye or wheat. They say this could be because of the differences in gut bacteria among all of the participants, but the team plans to do more work to better understand why these disparities exist. 

“Although we saw an overall difference in weight loss between the rye and the wheat group, there was also very large variation within those groups,” said researcher Rikard Landberg. “Increasing our understanding of why different people respond differently to the same foods can pave the way for more specifically tailored diets based on individual needs. We are currently investigating whether certain specific bacteria in the intestine might be the explanation behind why some people lost more weight than others who were also on the rye diet.” 

Several recent studies have pointed to the mental health benefits associated with following a healthy diet. Now, researchers from Penn State found a specific food that could help lower the risk of depression: mushrooms. 

“Mushrooms are the highest dietary source of the amino acid ergothioneine -- an anti-inflammatory which cannot be synthesized by humans,” said researcher Djibril Ba. “Having high levels of this may lower the risk of oxidative stress, which could also reduce the symptoms of depression.” 

The link between diet and mental health

For the first part of the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 24,000 adults enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2005 through 2016. The participants recorded everything they ate for two days and then completed Patient Health Questionnaires to assess their depression risk. 

Ultimately, there was a clear link between participants who regularly ate mushrooms and those who were at the lowest risk of depression; however, eating larger quantities of mushrooms wasn’t associated with significantly better mental health outcomes. 

The team took into account several factors, including overall diet, socio-demographics, medical history, and medications, but the findings still held up: mushrooms were found to have protective mental health benefits. Going forward, the team would like to further investigate what types of mushrooms are associated with the greatest mental health benefits.

“The study adds to the growing list of possible health benefits of eating mushrooms,” said researcher Joshua Muscat. 

Recent studies have found that following a healthy diet with lots of fruits and vegetables can be just as beneficial to consumers’ mental health as their physical health. Now, researchers from the University of East Anglia found that this rings true for children too. Their work showed that kids who eat more fruits and vegetables are more likely to have better mental health outcomes than those with poorer diets. 

“We know that poor mental well-being is a major issue for young people and is likely to have long-term negative consequences,” said researcher Ailsa Welch. “And there is a growing recognition of the importance of mental health well-being in early life -- not least because adolescent mental health problems often persist into adulthood, leading to poor outcomes and achievement. 

“While the links between nutrition and physical health are well understood, until now, not much has been known about whether nutrition plays a part in children’s emotional well-being,” Welch said. “So, we set out to investigate the association between dietary choices and well-being among schoolchildren.” 

Mental health benefits of eating healthy

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from 9,000 kids in 50 primary and secondary schools across the Norfolk area of the U.K. The children were enrolled in the Norfolk Children and Young People’s Health and Well-Being Survey, which assessed their eating habits. The researchers then utilized the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale and the Stirling Children’s Well-Being Scale to assess the kids’ mental health. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that healthier eating habits were associated with better mental health outcomes. This was particularly true for the older children involved in the study; the healthier they ate, the better their mental health was. 

However, many of the children involved in the study struggled to eat the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables per day. About 30% of primary school kids and 25% of secondary school kids achieved that goal each day. 

Not skipping meals is important

The researchers found that another key aspect of improving mental health was eating all three meals every day. Specifically, the study showed that kids who ate breakfast and lunch -- and had full, nutritious meals -- were the most likely to have stronger mental health. 

“Children who ate a traditional breakfast experienced better well-being than those who only had a snack or a drink,” said researcher Dr. Richard Hayhoe. “But secondary school children who drank energy drinks for breakfast had particularly low mental well-being scores, even lower than for those children consuming no breakfast at all.” 

Moving forward, the researchers hope these findings lay the groundwork for policies and guidelines that highlight the importance of following a healthy diet. 

“As a potentially modifiable factor at an individual and societal level, nutrition represents an important public health target for strategies to address childhood mental well-being,” Welch said. “Public health strategies and school policies should be developed to ensure that good quality nutrition is available to all children both before and during school in order to optimize well-being and empower children to fulfill their full potential.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Ohio State University explored how consumers’ sleeping habits may affect their food choices.

According to their findings, getting the recommended seven hours of sleep per night may lead to healthier snacking during the day, while the opposite is also true; getting fewer than seven hours of sleep each night may lead to eating more unhealthy snacks.  

“Not only are we not sleeping when we stay up late, but we’re doing all these obesity-related behaviors: lack of physical activity, increased screen time, food choices that we’re consuming as snacks and not as meals,” said researcher Christopher Taylor. “So it creates this bigger impact of meeting or not meeting sleep recommendations. 

How sleep impacts our health

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from nearly 20,000 adults enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Participants recorded food logs that included both what and when they ate, as well as information on their sleep schedule on weeknights. 

The researchers learned that the participants’ sleep habits had an impact on their snacking habits. While more than 95% of the participants had at least one snack per day, sleeping patterns impacted when snacks were consumed and what kinds of snacks were consumed most often. 

“We know lack of sleep is linked to obesity from a broader scale, but it’s all these little behaviors that are anchored around how that happens,” said Taylor. 

The study showed that participants who struggled to sleep for at least seven hours every night ate more unhealthy snacks throughout the day than those who met sleep guidelines. It’s important to note that more than 50% of the participants reported eating things like chips, cookies, or pretzels. However, participants that weren’t sleeping enough ate more of these types of foods and were also more likely to snack in the morning. 

The researchers’ biggest piece of advice: get to bed earlier — even that means just physically getting into bed sooner to avoid unhealthy snacking. 

“Meeting sleep recommendations helps us meet that specific need for sleep related to our health, but is also tied to not doing the things that can harm health,” Taylor said. “The longer we’re awake, the more opportunities we have to eat. And at night, those calories are coming from snacks and sweets. Every time we make those decisions, we’re introducing calories and items related to increased risk for chronic diseases, and we’re not getting whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. 

“Even if you’re in bed and trying to fall asleep, at least you’re not in the kitchen eating — so if you can get yourself to bed, that’s a starting point,” he said. 

A new paper written by researchers from the American Society for Nutrition explored some of the factors that contribute to consumers developing obesity. 

They explained that overeating isn’t entirely to blame. Instead, we need to think about obesity in terms of a carbohydrate-insulin model (CIM), which means that the foods we eat are just as important as how much of them we’re eating. 

“According to a commonly held view, the obesity pandemic is caused by overconsumption of modern, highly palatable, energy-dense processed foods, exacerbated by a sedentary lifestyle,” the researchers wrote. “However, obesity rates remain at historic highs, despite a persistent focus on eating less and moving more, as guided by the energy balance model (EBM). An alternative paradigm, the carbohydrate-insulin model (CIM), proposes a reversal of causal direction.”

Focusing on quality, not quantity

Nearly 20 experts in the field worked on the paper and drew their evidence from as early as the 1900s. Their primary takeaway was that the types of foods we’re eating are more responsible for the increasing obesity rates than how much we’re eating. 

They explained that recent diet trends have favored highly processed foods and carbohydrates. When these are eaten on a regular basis and in excess, they can have significant impacts on the metabolism. 

These types of foods can alter our body’s natural hormone levels, like insulin, which can then impact how the body stores fat and even how hungry we feel. Processed carbs specifically can trick the body into feeling depleted of energy and slow down the metabolism long term. When these habits occur over long periods of time, they can all lead to obesity. 

Because of this, the researchers suggest thinking more in terms of adopting a quality diet rather than fixating on portion control or burning calories through exercise. While all of these things are important for a healthy lifestyle, focusing on the carbohydrate-insulin model may lead to better long-term results for consumers trying to manage their weight. 

“Reducing consumption of the rapidly digestible carbohydrates that flooded the food supply during the low-fat diet era lessens the underlying drive to store body fat,” said researcher Dr. David Ludwig. “As a result, people may lose weight with less hunger and struggle.”

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign explored the metabolic benefits associated with regularly eating avocados. 

The study showed that eating one avocado per day for 12 weeks was associated with a redistribution of belly fat for women. Avocados helped lower women’s visceral fat levels, which can reduce the likelihood of several diseases, including cardiovascular disease and diabetes. 

“In the abdomen, there are two kinds of fat: fat that accumulates right underneath the skin, called subcutaneous fat, and fat that accumulates deeper in the abdomen, known as visceral fat, that surrounds the internal organs,” said researcher Naiman Khan. “Individuals with a higher proportion of deeper visceral fat tend to be at a higher risk of developing diabetes. So we were interested in determining whether the ratio of subcutaneous to visceral fat changed with avocado consumption.” 

Making healthier choices

The researchers had 105 overweight and obese adults participate in the study. For 12 weeks, one meal a day was provided by the researchers; one group received one avocado a day for the entirety of the study, while the other group ate a similar meal without the avocado. The researchers measured the participants’ glucose tolerance and abdominal fat at the beginning and end of the 12 weeks. 

Avocados proved to be beneficial for the women involved in the study but not the men. The researchers learned that avocados were linked with a redistribution of body fat, which can ultimately reduce the risk of disease. 

Women who ate one avocado every day had lower visceral fat levels and lower ratios of the two kinds of belly fat. The researchers explained that weight loss isn’t necessarily the most important factor because the way the body stores fat can have just as much of an effect on long-term health outcomes. 

“While daily consumption of avocados did not change glucose tolerance, what we learned is that a dietary pattern that includes an avocado every day impacted the way individuals store body fat in a beneficial manner for their health, but the benefits were primarily in females,” said Khan. “It’s important to demonstrate that dietary interventions can modulate fat distribution. Learning that the benefits were only evident in females tells us a little bit about the potential for sex playing a role in dietary intervention responses.” 

Moving forward, the researchers hope to do more work on how avocados and other dietary changes can benefit consumers’ health. 

“By taking our research further, we will be able to gain a clearer picture into which types of people would benefit from incorporating avocados into their diets and deliver valuable data for health care advisers to provide patients with guidance on how to reduce fat storage and the potential dangers of diabetes,” said researcher Richard Mackenzie.  

A new study conducted by the European Society of Cardiology explored a diet change that may benefit consumers’ long-term heart health.  

According to their findings, swapping salt for low-sodium alternatives may be effective at lowering the risk of stroke for those with a history of stroke or high blood pressure. 

“This study provides clear evidence about an intervention that could be taken up very quickly at low cost,” said researcher Bruce Neal. “A recent modeling study done for China projected that 365,000 strokes and 461,000 premature deaths could be avoided each year in China if salt substitute was proved to be effective. We now have shown that it is effective, and these are the benefits for China alone. Salt substitute could be used by billions with even greater benefits.” 

Heart health benefits of low-sodium options

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 20,000 participants enrolled in the Salt Substitute and Stroke Study (SSaSS) from 2014 through 2015. All of the participants were either struggling to maintain healthy blood pressure levels or had experienced a stroke. One group of participants was instructed to use a salt substitute when cooking, and another group carried on with their normal diets as usual. The researchers evaluated the participants' heart health over the course of nearly five years and paid particular attention to cardiovascular events, potassium levels, and mortality rates. 

The study showed that the risks of stroke, cardiovascular events, and death were all lower when the participants used a salt substitute. Replacing full-salt seasoning with the reduced-salt alternative contributed to the greatest heart health and longevity outcomes for the participants. 

“The trial result is particularly exciting because salt substitution is one of the few practical ways of achieving changes in the salt people eat,” Neal said. “Other salt reduction interventions have struggled to achieve large and sustained impact.” 

The researchers are excited about these findings because of the low cost associated with low-salt substitutes. Not only are there health advantages to consuming less salt, but this option would also be realistic for consumers from low-income backgrounds. 

“Importantly, salt substitute is very easy to manufacture and it is not expensive,” said Neal. “A kilo of regular salt, which lasts for months, costs about $1.08 in China. The price for a kilo of salt substitute is $1.62/kg. It is primarily lower-income and more disadvantaged populations that add large amounts of salt during food preparation and cooking. This means that salt substitute has the potential to reduce health inequalities related to cardiovascular disease.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Georgia explored the ways that pecans can improve consumers’ heart health. According to their findings, the tree nut has been associated with better cholesterol levels.  

“This dietary intervention, when put in the context of different intervention studies, was extremely successful,” said researcher Jamie Cooper. “We had some people who actually went from having high cholesterol at the start of the study to no longer being in that category after the invention.” 

Diet change can impact cholesterol levels

For the study, the researchers put 52 adults who were at an increased risk of heart disease into one of three groups for eight weeks: one group didn’t eat pecans, one group swapped 470 calories of one food group for the same caloric value of pecans, and the third group added 470 calories worth of pecans into their existing daily diets. At the end of the eight weeks, the researchers tested the participants’ blood to determine what effect the pecans had on their cholesterol levels. 

The team learned that incorporating pecans into a diet in any way was beneficial for the participants’ cholesterol levels, but those who added the nut into their daily routine instead of just substituting it for other foods had the best health outcomes. The study showed that eating pecans was associated with nearly a 10% reduction in LDL levels and a 5% decrease in overall cholesterol levels. 

“Whether people added them or substituted them, we still saw improvements and pretty similar responses in total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol in particular,” Cooper said. 

Metabolism and body-processing benefits

The researchers credited pecans’ nutrient make-up for their cholesterol-lowering properties. They say pecans, like many fruits and vegetables, have bioactive compounds that allow them to positively influence our metabolisms and promote healthy processes in the body. 

Many consumers struggle to maintain healthy cholesterol levels, and the researchers hope that these findings can work to change that. Incorporating pecans into your diet may be an easy way for consumers to improve their long-term heart health. 

“The addition of the pecan not only produced a greater and more consistent reduction in total cholesterol and LDL compared to many other lifestyle interventions, but may also be a more sustainable approach for long-term health,” said Cooper. “Some research shows that even a 1% reduction in LDL is associated with a small reduction of coronary artery disease risk, so these reductions are definitely clinically meaningful.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Tufts University explored what young people across the country are eating. Unfortunately, they found that children's and teens’ diets consist primarily of ultra-processed foods. 

This is concerning for many reasons, not the least of which is the increase in calories that young people are consuming and the health risks associated with processed foods.  

“Some whole grain breads and dairy foods are ultra-processed, and they’re healthier than other ultra-processed foods,” said researcher Fang Fang Zhang. “Processing can keep food fresher longer, allows for food fortification and enrichment, and enhances consumer convenience. But many ultra-processed foods are less healthy, with more sugar and salt, and less fiber, than unprocessed and minimally-processed foods, and the increase in their consumption by children and teenagers is concerning.” 

The diet breakdown

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from nearly 34,000 people between the ages of two and 19 enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 1999 and 2018. The team interviewed the children about their diets to determine what types of foods they ate the most. 

The researchers learned that the percentage of kids’ total calories that came from ultra-processed foods jumped from 61% in 1999 to 67% in 2018. Additionally, the percentage of calories that came from healthier or less processed foods decreased over the course of the study. In 1999, healthier foods made up nearly 30% of kids’ diets. By 2018, that number dropped to 23.5%. 

The researchers say there were two primary food groups that contributed to the biggest increase in calorie intake: packaged meals and packaged sweets and desserts. If this trend persists, the researchers worry about how children’s health will be impacted long term. 

“Food processing is an often-overlooked dimension in nutrition research,” Zhang said. “We may need to consider that ultra-processing of some foods may be associated with health risks, independent of the poor nutrient profile of ultra-processed foods generally.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University explored the heart health benefits associated with consuming more vitamin K. According to their findings, following a diet rich in vitamin K can reduce the likelihood of developing atherosclerosis-related cardiovascular disease by nearly 35%. 

“Current dietary guidelines for the consumption of vitamin K are generally only based on the amount of vitamin K1 a person should consume to ensure that their blood can coagulate,” said researcher Dr. Nicola Bondonno. “However, there is growing evidence that intakes of vitamin K above the current guidelines can afford further protection against the development of other diseases, such as atherosclerosis.” 

Promoting quality heart health

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 50,000 people enrolled in the Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health Study. They tracked the participants’ diets and heart health outcomes over the course of two decades. 

The researchers learned that participants who ate the highest levels of vitamin K had the best heart health outcomes by the end of the study. The results were broken down between consumption of vitamin K1 and K2, and the study showed that eating more vitamin K1 was linked with the greatest health outcomes. 

The researchers found that consuming a high amount of vitamin K was associated with a 34% lower risk of any heart disease related to atherosclerosis. Specifically, eating more vitamin K1 lowered the risk of heart disease by more than 20%, while eating more vitamin K2 lowered the risk of heart disease by nearly 15%. 

“These findings shed light on the potentially important effect that vitamin K has on the killer disease and reinforces the importance of a healthy diet in preventing it,” said researcher Dr. Jamie Bellinge.  

While the researchers plan to do more work in this area to better understand how vitamin K effectively boosts heart health, they encourage consumers to follow a healthy, balanced diet to achieve optimal health outcomes. For consumers looking to incorporate more vitamin K into their diet, vitamin K1 is found in leafy green vegetables, like kale, brussels sprouts, and spinach. Vitamin K2 is found in dairy products, meat, and other animal products. 

“Although more research is needed to fully understand the process, we believe that vitamin K works by protecting against the calcium build-up in the major arteries of the body leading to vascular calcification,” said Dr. Bondonno. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the American Heart Association explored how older consumers struggling with obesity can improve their health. 

According to their findings, there are two key factors that can improve heart health and lead to weight loss: cutting calorie consumption by 250 calories each day and making aerobic exercise a regular part of their routine.  

“This is the first study to assess the effects of aerobic exercise training with and without reducing calories on aortic stiffness, which was measured via cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) to obtain detailed images of the aorta,” said researcher Tina E. Brinkley, Ph.D. “We sought to determine whether adding caloric restriction for weight loss would lead to greater improvements in vascular health compared to aerobic exercise alone in older adults with obesity.” 

Improving heart health

For the study, the researchers had 160 older adults with inactive lifestyles join one of three different exercise-based intervention groups for 20 weeks. The first group stuck to their regular diet and incorporated moderate exercise, the second group restricted their daily food intake by 250 calories and added in exercise, and the third group cut their calorie intake by 600 calories each day and exercised. The researchers were primarily interested in seeing how these trials impacted the participants’ aortic stiffness, which is a significant indicator of future cardiovascular disease or episodes. 

The study showed that the group with the mild calorie restriction and aerobic exercise had the best heart health and overall health outcomes. The participants in the second group saw a significant amount of weight loss and also improvements to their heart health; this group experienced an 8% decrease in the speed that blood flows through the aorta and a 20% decrease in overall aortic stiffness. 

The researchers were also surprised to learn that the participants in both calorie-restricting groups had similar weight loss totals by the end of the study, but only the participants in the mild calorie restriction group experienced the heart health benefits. 

“These results suggest that combining exercise with modest calorie restriction -- as opposed to more intensive calorie restriction -- likely maximizes the benefits on vascular health, while also optimizing weight loss and improvements in body composition and fat distribution,” said Dr. Brinkley. “The finding that higher-intensity calorie restriction may not be necessary or advised has important implications for weight loss recommendations to improve cardiovascular disease risk in older adults with obesity.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the American Academy of Neurology explored the cognitive benefits associated with consumers’ diet choices. According to their findings, eating foods high in flavonoids, which include a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, may help protect against cognitive decline. 

“There is mounting evidence suggesting flavonoids are powerhouses when it comes to preventing your thinking skills from declining as you get older,” said researcher Dr. Walter Willett. “Our results are exciting because they show that making simple changes to your diet could help prevent cognitive decline.” 

Cognitive benefits of a healthy diet

For the study, the researchers worked with nearly 50,000 women and more than 27,000 men for over two decades. The participants regularly answered questions about their diets and their cognitive abilities, and the researchers compared how rich the participants’ diets were in flavonoids with their cognitive outcomes. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that diets high in flavonoids were linked with the best cognitive outcomes. Participants who ate the most flavonoid-rich foods were 20% less likely to experience cognitive decline when compared to those who ate the lowest quantities of flavonoid-rich foods. 

In terms of quantities, the study showed that consuming 600 milligrams of flavonoids per day was considered to be a high level of consumption. Participants who ate the lowest amounts of flavonoids consumed roughly 150 milligrams per day. 

The researchers also found that eating different foods led to different cognitive outcomes for the participants. Findings showed that consuming anthocyanins and flavones contributed to a 25% and 40% reduced risk of cognitive decline, respectively. Anthocyanins are any purple, red, and blue-hued fruits and vegetables, and flavones are found in any yellow and orange fruits and vegetables. 

Promoting long term brain health

Moving forward, the researchers hope these findings encourage consumers to change up their diets to include more fruits and vegetables. 

“The people in our study who did the best over time ate an average of at least half a serving per day of foods like orange juice, oranges, peppers, celery, grapefruits, grapefruit juice, apples, and pears,” said Dr. Willett.

“While it is possible other phytochemicals are at work here, a colorful diet rich in flavonoids -- and specifically flavones and anthocyanins -- seems to be a good bet for promoting long-term brain health. And it’s never too late to start, because we saw those protective relationships whether people were consuming the flavonoids in their diet 20 years ago, or if they started incorporating them more recently.” 

Eating ultra-processed foods has been associated with several health risks, including poor heart health and an increased likelihood of cancer. Now, a new study is exploring how this type of diet can impact consumers’ gut health. 

According to researchers, eating large quantities of ultra-processed foods may increase consumers’ risk of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). 

“We found that higher intake of ultra-processed foods was associated with an increased risk of IBD,” the researchers wrote. “This was seen for all ultra-processed foods, as well as individual types, including processed meats, soft drinks, refined sweetened foods, and salty foods and snacks.” 

Health risks of processed foods

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 116,000 participants who were enrolled in the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study. They looked closely at the participants’ dietary habits and followed up with them over the course of nearly 10 years to determine how their food choices impacted their health. 

The researchers learned that participants who ate the most ultra-processed foods were at the highest risk of developing IBD, including ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Participants who ate as many as four servings of processed foods each day were nearly 70% more likely to develop IBD, while those who ate five or more servings each day were more than 80% more likely to develop IBD. 

The researchers also looked at the effects of specific food choices on the risk of IBD. They determined that it wasn’t necessarily the food choices that were bad, but the way the foods were prepared. The team doesn’t recommend entirely eliminating things like red meat, dairy products, or certain legumes; however, they say consumers should opt for fresher varieties of these options instead of ultra-processed versions.  

A new study conducted by researchers from Tufts University explored how whole grains can impact consumers’ heart health. 

Their findings showed that middle-aged and older consumers who ate larger amounts of whole grains had better heart health outcomes in key areas, including smaller increases in blood sugar, waist size, and blood pressure. 

“Our findings suggest that eating whole-grain foods as part of a healthy diet delivers health benefits beyond just helping us lose or maintain weight as we age,” said researcher Nicola McKeown. “In fact, these data suggest that people who eat more whole grains are better able to maintain their blood sugar and blood pressure over time. Managing these risk factors as we age may help us to protect against heart disease.” 

Benefits of eating whole grains

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 3,100 participants enrolled in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring Cohort. The team analyzed participants’ diets and heart health outcomes over the course of four-year intervals to determine how whole grains impacted their heart health. 

The study showed that consuming larger quantities of whole grains was associated with better heart health. The opposite was also true -- participants who ate the least amount of whole grains had poorer heart health outcomes. Measures for blood sugar, blood pressure, and waist size followed the same lines. Participants who ate the most whole grains per day had the healthiest levels and those who ate fewer whole grains had less healthy outcomes.

“There are several reasons that whole grains may work to help people maintain waist size and reduce increases in the other risk factors,” said researcher Caleigh Sawicki. “The presence of dietary fiber in whole grains can have a satiating effect, and the magnesium, potassium, and antioxidants may contribute to lowering blood pressure. Soluble fiber in particular may have a beneficial effect on post-meal blood sugar spikes.” 

Comparing whole grains to refined grains

The researchers explained that most consumers are eating refined grains instead of whole grains, and that can have negative consequences on heart health. Whole grains have essential vitamins and antioxidants that are beneficial to the body, whereas refined grains are more sugar-based. The researchers say swapping bleached bread products for whole grain cereals or pastas can have long-term benefits on consumers’ heart health. 

“The average American consumes about five servings of refined grains daily, much more than is recommended, so it’s important to think about ways to replace refined grains with whole grains throughout your day,” McKeown said. 

“For example, you might consider a bowl of whole-grain cereal instead of a white flour bagel for breakfast and replacing refined-grain snacks, entrees, and side dishes with whole-grain options. Small incremental changes in your diet to increase whole-grain intake will make a difference over time.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Penn State discovered a new way for parents to try to get their kids to make healthier choices. According to their findings, putting larger portions of vegetables on kids’ plates could ultimately lead to them eating more of these foods in the long run. 

“The increase we observed is equal to about one third of a serving or 12% of the daily recommended intake for young children,” said researcher Hanim Diktas. “Using this strategy may be useful to parents, caregivers, and teachers who are trying to encourage kids to eat the recommended amount of vegetables throughout the day.” 

Getting kids to eat healthier

The researchers had nearly 70 children between the ages of three and five participate in a food experiment. Over the course of four weeks, the participants were given kid-friendly lunches that had different variations of vegetables: a double serving of plain corn and broccoli, a double serving of corn and broccoli with added seasonings, a regular serving of the vegetables, and a regular serving plus the seasonings. The team then observed what the kids ate at each meal. 

The researchers learned that simply putting more vegetables on kids’ plates led them to eat more vegetables at lunchtime. They were surprised to learn that adding things like salt and butter weren’t necessary for the kids; larger portions, independent of added flavorings, were what contributed to them eating more vegetables.

“We were surprised that the butter and salt weren’t needed to improve intake, but the vegetables we served were corn and broccoli, which may have already been familiar to and well-liked by the kids,” said Diktas. “So for less familiar vegetables, it’s possible some extra flavoring might help to increase intake.” 

While the researchers don’t recommend over-serving kids and contributing to food waste, they do recommend that parents and caregivers try out this method at home. It’s also important for consumers to consider what else they’re serving with vegetables; finding the right balance in a meal is important for kids, and making sure foods are both appealing and healthy can be a tricky process. 

“It’s important to serve your kids a lot of vegetables, but it’s also important to serve them ones they like because they have to compete with the other foods on the plate,” said researcher Barbara Rolls. “Parents can ease into this by gradually exposing kids to new vegetables, cooking them in a way their child enjoys, and experimenting with different flavors and seasonings as you familiarize them.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Aging explored a dietary change that may help consumers who suffer from migraines. According to the team, following a diet that includes more fish oil -- as opposed to vegetable oil -- may help reduce migraines. 

“This research found intriguing evidence that dietary changes have potential for improving a very debilitating chronic pain condition like migraines without the related downside of prescribed medications,” said researcher Dr. Luigi Ferrucci. 

How diets can benefit chronic migraines

For the study, the researchers had nearly 200 adults follow one of three healthy diet plans for 16 weeks. One group ate foods high in fatty fish oils and low in unsaturated fat; a second group followed a diet high in fatty fish oils and high in unsaturated fat; and the third group ate foods high in unsaturated fats and low in fish oils. Over the course of the study, the participants recorded their experience with migraines and how they impacted their quality of life. 

The researchers learned that following a diet that was lower in unsaturated fat and higher in fish oil was associated with better migraine outcomes. Participants in this group experienced fewer headaches, less intense headaches, and the duration of their headaches was also reduced. Overall, migraines and migraine-related symptoms improved by up to 40% with this dietary change. 

Following a daily routine can be difficult for some migraine sufferers because the pain can make it harder to perform job duties, do household chores, or socialize with friends. While the participants only noted a slight improvement to their overall quality of life through the diet change, the researchers hope their findings can help more people better manage their pain on a daily basis.

“Changes in diet could offer some relief for the millions of Americans who suffer from migraine pain,” said researcher Chris Ramsden. “It’s further evidence that the foods we eat can influence pain pathways.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital explored how eating chocolate may have health benefits for postmenopausal women. According to their findings, eating milk chocolate in the morning can help older women burn fat, reduce blood sugar levels, and regulate body weight. 

“Our findings highlight that not only ‘what’ but also ‘when’ we eat can impact physiological mechanisms involved in the regulation of body weight,” said researcher Frank A.J.L. Scheer, Ph.D. 

Benefits of milk chocolate

The researchers had 19 postmenopausal women involved in the study. Over the course of two weeks, the women either ate 100mg of chocolate within one hour of waking up or within one hour of going to sleep. The researchers tracked their health outcomes and compared them with postmenopausal women who didn’t alter their dietary habits. 

Ultimately, eating chocolate at any time of the day didn’t lead to increased weight gain for any of the participants. However, eating the chocolate at different times of the day yielded different health outcomes, though both groups experienced fewer cravings for sweet foods throughout the day and generally felt less hungry. 

The researchers found that nighttime chocolate made the participants more likely to engage in physical activity and was associated with a more consistent sleep routine. On the other hand, eating chocolate in the morning was linked with lower blood sugar levels, greater fat burning, and a smaller waist circumference. 

Though all consumers have different dietary restrictions, these findings highlight that just a small amount of chocolate each day may benefit older women. 

“Our volunteers did not gain weight despite increasing caloric intake,” said researcher Marta Garaulet, Ph.D. “Our results show that chocolate reduced ad libitum energy intake, consistent with the observed reduction in hunger, appetite, and the desire for sweets shown in previous studies.” 

Several studies have analyzed the ways that diet can impact consumers’ risk of heart disease. Researchers previously found that eating refined grains and fried foods can be detrimental to heart health. Now, experts from the American Heart Association say eating a lot of starchy snacks may also increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Instead, they recommend opting for fresher foods throughout the day. 

“People are increasingly concerned about what they eat as well as when they eat,” said researcher Ying Li, Ph.D. “Our team sought to better understand the effects different foods have when consumed at different meals.” 

Timing of fruits and vegetables is key for heart health

For the study, the researchers analyzed over a decade’s worth of data from more than 21,000 participants enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Over the course of the study, the participants reported exactly what they were eating for specific meals and snacks, and the researchers monitored their health outcomes. 

The study showed that eating starchy snacks — which includes foods like pretzels, crackers, or cereals — was linked with the poorest health and mortality outcomes. These snacks led to a 60% higher chance of heart disease-related death, regardless of when they were eaten. 

Conversely, eating vegetable-based meals at dinnertime was associated with the best health outcomes. This led to a 23% lower chance of heart disease-related death. 

The researchers explained that eating certain foods can have a significant impact on consumers’ heart health. For example, having more fruit around lunchtime was associated with a lower risk of heart disease-related death. However, having refined grains or cured meats around that time was linked with poorer heart health outcomes. The study also found that having a fruit-based snack after breakfast or a dairy-based snack after dinner were both positive influences on heart health. 

While diet remains an important component in consumers’ heart health, these findings highlight that the timing of dietary patterns is also a key piece of the puzzle. Moving forward, the researchers recommend that guidelines for healthy diets consider implementing this factor. 

“Our results revealed that the amount and the intake time of various types of foods are equally critical for maintaining optimal health,” said Dr. Li. “Future nutrition guidelines and interventional strategies could integrate optimal consumption times for foods across the day.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from the University of California at Davis explored how consumers’ diets may impact inflammation throughout the body. 

Their findings showed that moving away from a traditional Western diet, which includes a lot of processed foods, and following a more balanced diet can improve joint and skin inflammation. 

“Earlier studies have shown that Western diet, characterized by its high sugar and fat content, can lead to significant skin inflammation and psoriasis flares,” said researcher Sam T. Hwang. “Despite having powerful anti-inflammatory drugs for the skin condition, our study indicates that simple changes in diet may also have significant effects on psoriasis.”  

How diet affects the body’s inflammatory response

For the study, the researchers conducted a diet-based experiment on a group of mice. The team was focused primarily on the IL-23 protein, which is associated with inflammatory properties. In the first part of the study, all of the mice were fed a Western diet for six weeks and then induced with the IL-23 protein. One group of mice was then switched to a healthier diet while another group stayed on the Western diet for another four weeks. 

The researchers learned that switching from a Western diet to a healthier diet led to less skin and joint inflammation in the mice. While the mice that received a more balanced diet after six weeks did initially experience flare-ups with both psoriasis and joint pain, making the switch to healthier food helped alleviate those symptoms over time. 

“There is a clear link between the skin inflammation and changes in the gut microbiome due to food intake,” said Hwang. “The bacterial balance in the gut disrupted shortly after starting a Western diet, and worsened psoriatic skin and joint inflammation.” 

These findings are important because they highlight that there are health concerns associated with eating foods that have high amounts of fat and sugar. The researchers hope that consumers take these findings into consideration and think about how they can make their diets healthier to reduce inflammation. 

“It was quite surprising that a simple diet modification of less sugar and fat may have significant effects on psoriasis,” said researcher Zhenrui Shi. “These findings reveal that patients with psoriatic skin and joint disease should consider changing to a healthier dietary pattern.” 

In the last year of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s been more important than ever for consumers to pay attention to their mental health. Now, researchers from Binghamton University are exploring how mental health can be affected by consumers’ diets. 

Their study looked at the ways healthy foods and unhealthy foods can affect mental health outcomes. They learned that unhealthy diets were harder on women’s mental health than on men’s, though both groups benefited from sticking to healthier foods. 

“We found a general relationship between eating healthy, following healthy dietary practices, exercise, and mental well-being,” said researcher Lina Begdache. “Interestingly, we found that for unhealthy dietary patterns, the level of mental distress was higher in women than men, which confirmed that women are more susceptible to unhealthy eating than men.” 

Physical health can benefit mental health

The researchers created an online questionnaire that was sent out to men and women over the age of 30. They reported on how often they exercised, what their typical diets consisted of, and general information about their mental health. 

The study showed that men and women had different experiences in terms of diet, exercise, and mental health. For both groups, making healthier choices and living a generally healthier lifestyle were associated with better mental health outcomes. However, when looking at unhealthy foods, skipping exercise, and other unhealthy behaviors, women were more hurt by these choices than their male counterparts. 

The findings highlight the importance of all consumers adopting healthy habits. However, they also suggest that women’s mental health may be more sensitive to unhealthy choices. The researchers explained that women should think carefully about when they’re eating, what they’re eating, and what their exercise routine looks like to maintain quality mental health. 

The study found that exercise may even trump healthy eating in terms of optimal mental health, and staying active can have significant benefits for women’s mental health. 

“Fast food, skipping breakfast, caffeine, and high-glycemic (HG) food are all associated with mental distress in mature women,” Begdache said. “Fruits and dark leafy green vegetables (DGLV) are associated with mental well-being. The extra information we learned from this study is that exercise significantly reduced the negative association of HG food and fast food with mental distress.” 

A new study led by researchers from the Queensland University of Technology explored how kids’ sugar intake can take a toll on their physical and mental health. 

Based on results from a trial conducted on mice, long-term consumption of high-sugar diets can increase the risk of obesity and place a heavier burden on the nervous system. This can ultimately impact attention span, hyperactivity, and decision-making. 

“Our study found long-term sugar consumption (a 12-week period with the mice which started the trial at five weeks of age) at a level that significantly boosts weight gain, elicits an abnormal and excessive stimulation of the nervous system in response to novelty,” said researcher Selena Bartlett. “It also alters both episodic and spatial memory. These results are like those reported in attention deficit and hyperactivity disorders.” 

Maintaining healthy sugar levels

The researchers examined mice to see if long-term sugar consumption impacted health and wellness. The study began when the mice were five weeks old; one group consumed an unlimited amount of sugar, and the other group was on a sugar-restricted diet. The researchers also conducted behavioral and memory assessments throughout the study to see if these diets affected mental health.

The team found that the mice that consumed large quantities of sugar gained significantly more weight than the mice on the more restricted diet plan. They found that weight gain began roughly four weeks into the trial, though this may be different when thinking about human children. 

The researchers also learned that sugar was associated with many of the symptoms that are indicative of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). They found that the mice with high-sugar diets had a harder time with impulse control when presented with food and were more likely to struggle with staying still. 

These findings are important because they highlight how kids can be affected by their diets from a young age. The researchers stated that maintaining healthy sugar levels from childhood can help kids stay on the right track as they grow into adolescence and adulthood. 

“It is increasingly considered that unrestricted consumption of high-sugar food and beverages within the Western Diet might be linked to the obesity epidemic,” Bartlett said. “A strong association between attention-deficits/hyperactivity disorders and being overweight and obese have also been revealed.”

Over the last few years, major retailers like Denny’s, Pizza Hut, Subway, and White Castle have rolled out plant-based options for traditionally meat-based products. This came on the heels of reports suggesting that consumers are likely to gain health benefits when they eat more plant-based foods. 

Now, researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst explained that they’re working on ways to make these choices taste better and be healthier for consumers. They explained that the goal is to make more plant-based proteins; however, there are several factors that come into play in the research process, and more work needs to be done. 

“With Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods and other products coming on the market, there’s huge interest in plant-based foods for improved sustainability, health, and ethical reasons,” said researcher David Julian McClements. 

“A lot of academics are starting to work in this area and are not familiar with the complexity of animal products and the physicochemical principles you need in order to assemble plant-based ingredients into these products, each with their own physical, functional, nutritional, and sensory attributes.”

Innovations in plant-based food science

Plant-based food options have gained popularity in recent years, and the researchers say there is interest and demand for eating fewer animal-based products; they cited statistics that show a nearly 30% increase in sales of plant-based items between 2017 and 2019. The goal now is to continue developing healthier products that taste good. 

Despite how well-received meatless options have been, McClements explained that many of these products aren’t as nutrient-dense as they could be. Rather than using plant-based proteins, which is the team’s goal for the future, these products are full of fats and sugars that can negatively impact consumers’ health. 

“Our research has pivoted toward this topic,” said McClements. “There’s a huge amount of innovation and investment in this area, and I get contacted frequently by different startup companies who are trying to make plant-based fish or eggs or cheese, but who often don’t have a background in the science of foods.” 

One of the roadblocks in this area is the nutrient make-up of plant-based foods. While there are benefits to eating plant-based foods, eliminating all animal-based products can leave consumers lacking some vital nutrients, including calcium and vitamin D. 

“We’re trying to make processed foods healthier,” said McClements. “We aim to design them all to have the vitamins and minerals you need and have health-promoting components like dietary fiber and phytochemicals so that they taste good and they’re convenient and they’re cheap and you can easily incorporate them into your life. That’s the goal in the future, but we’re not there yet for most products.” 

McClements and his team have received funding from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the Good Food Institute so that they can continue working on more diverse options of plant-based proteins. 

Consumers’ diet choices can impact their risk of developing diabetes. While foods high in fat and carbs can increase the risk of diabetes, healthier options like dairy products, whole grains, and eggs can all reduce the risk of diabetes. 

Now, a new study conducted by researchers from the Endocrine Society explored how eating more fruits can be beneficial in lowering the risk of diabetes. According to their findings, having two servings of fruit per day can reduce diabetes risk by more than 35%. 

“We found people who consumed around two servings of fruit per day had a 36 percent lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes over the next five years than those who consumed less than half a serving of fruit per day,” said researcher Nicola Bondonno, Ph.D. “We did not see the same pattern for fruit juice. These findings indicate that a healthy diet and lifestyle which includes the consumption of whole fruits is a great strategy to lower your diabetes risk.” 

Healthier foods, lower disease risk

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 7,600 participants enrolled in the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute’s Australian Diabetes, Obesity, and Lifestyle Study. At the start of the study, the participants completed questionnaires that assessed their diets. The researchers then followed up with the group up to 12 years later to determine their diabetes status and measure their fasting insulin levels, fasting plasma glucose, and insulin sensitivity, among other factors. 

By the five-year mark, the researchers determined that those who incorporated fruit into their daily diets were 36% less likely to develop diabetes. However, this did not hold up for those who drank fruit juice; only whole fruits were associated with the protective health benefits. 

The study also revealed that eating more fruit improved the participants’ insulin response. Regularly eating fruit allowed the participants to use less insulin to naturally lower their blood sugar levels, which can have long-term impacts on other key health markers. 

“This is important because high levels of circulating insulin (hyperinsulinemia) can damage blood vessels and are related not only to diabetes, but also to high blood pressure, obesity, and heart disease,” said Dr. Bondonno. 

Caffeine is the go-to way many consumers start their mornings. While it may help fight lingering fatigue, a new study explored how caffeine can impact consumers who struggle with getting enough sleep. 

According to researchers from the University of Michigan, no caffeinated beverage can replace a good night’s sleep. Their work showed that caffeine can help consumers feel more alert, but the body needs regular sleep to perform at its best. 

“Caffeine increases energy, reduces sleepiness, and can even improve mood, but it absolutely does not replace a full night of sleep,” said researcher Kimberly Fenn. “Although people may feel as if they can combat sleep deprivation with caffeine, their performance on higher-level tasks will likely still be impaired. This is one of the reasons why sleep deprivation can be so dangerous.” 

The importance of a good night’s sleep

To understand the effect that caffeine and sleep deprivation can have on consumers, the researchers had 276 people participate in an overnight study. Participants were assigned to either stay awake in the lab all night or sleep at home. The next morning, they were given either a 200mg capsule of caffeine or a placebo pill. Both prior to the sleeping experiment and after the caffeine consumption, participants completed assessments that measured their ability to perform tasks in a given order and also maintain focus and attention. 

The researchers learned that caffeine certainly gave the participants an energy boost, but combining it with poor sleep led to more mistakes when completing assessments. Having caffeine was beneficial when it came to attention-based tasks, but it proved to be ineffective when it came to doing more difficult things, like keeping order in a procedure. 

“Caffeine may improve the ability to stay awake and attend to a task, but it doesn’t do much to prevent the sort of procedural errors that can cause things like medical mistakes and car accidents,” said Fenn. 

The researchers hope that these findings encourage consumers to adopt healthier sleep routines. While caffeine can still be a regular part of consumers’ mornings, these findings highlight that there is no substitute for getting quality, restful sleep each night. 

“If we had found that caffeine reduced procedural errors under conditions of sleep deprivation, this would have broad implications for individuals who must perform high stakes procedures with insufficient sleep, like surgeons, pilots, and police officers,” said Fenn. “Instead, our findings underscore the importance of prioritizing sleep.” 

Recent studies have highlighted the ways that a Western diet -- one that contains large amounts of fats and sugars -- can negatively impact consumers’ health. Now, experts from Washington University School of Medicine have explored the ways that this type of diet can negatively affect gut inflammation. 

According to the researchers, a Western diet may make consumers more susceptible to intestinal infections and increase the likelihood of gut inflammation and inflammatory bowel disease. 

“Inflammatory bowel disease has historically been a problem primarily in Western countries such as the U.S., but it’s becoming more common globally as more and more people adopt Western lifestyles,” said researcher Dr. Ta-Chiant Lu. “Our research showed that long-term consumption of a Western-style diet high in fat and sugar impairs the function of immune cells in the gut in ways that could promote inflammatory bowel disease or increase the risk of intestinal infections.”  

Diet and its impact on gut health

The researchers conducted two studies -- one on humans and one on mice -- to determine what impact diet had on overall gut health. In both instances, the team analyzed Paneth cells, which are immune cells that regulate gut inflammation. Abnormalities in these cells typically indicate inflammatory bowel disease. 

The team enrolled 400 people in one part of the study, some of whom had gut health issues and others who did not. The study revealed that participants with high body mass indices (BMIs), which the researchers attributed to diets high in sugars and fats, were more likely to have markers of inflammatory bowel disease, including unhealthy Paneth cells. 

However, the researchers also analyzed mice and learned that it wasn’t just obesity that contributed to issues with gut health -- it also had to do with what was specifically being eaten. The team analyzed Paneth cells from mice prone to obesity, and the reports came back healthy. It wasn’t until the researchers gave the mice a traditional Western diet that their Paneth cells changed and revealed gut abnormalities. 

After four weeks on this diet, the mice were more prone to intestinal infections and inflammatory bowel disease. Following that experiment, the researchers switched the mice back to a healthier diet and the results changed. Eating less sugary and fat-dense foods improved the mice’s gut health. 

“Obesity wasn’t the problem, per se,” said Dr. Liu. “Eating too much of a healthy diet didn’t affect the Paneth cells. It was the high-fat, high-sugar diet that was the problem.” 

More research needed

The researchers say there are still questions about whether humans can change the course of their gut health by changing their diets. While adopting a healthier lifestyle certainly comes with benefits, more work needs to be done to determine the impact a change in diet can have on overall gut health. 

“This was a short-term experiment, just eight weeks,” said Dr. Liu. “In people, obesity doesn’t occur overnight or even in eight weeks. People have a suboptimal lifestyle for 20, 30 years before they become obese. It’s possible that if you have a Western diet for so long, you cross a point of no return and your Paneth cells don’t recover even if you change your diet. We’d need to do more research before we can say whether this process is reversible in people.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University explored the benefits associated with consistently eating fruits and vegetables. The researchers found that eating 470 grams of fruits and vegetables each day, which is about one pound, was linked with lower stress levels. 

“Vegetables and fruits contain important nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, flavonoids, and carotenoids that can reduce inflammation and oxidative stress, and therefore improve mental well-being,” said researcher Simone Radavelli-Bagatini. “Inflammation and oxidative stress in the body are recognized factors that can lead to increased stress, anxiety, and lower mood.

“We found that people who have higher fruit and veggie intakes are less stressed than those with lower intakes, which suggests diet plays a key role in mental well-being,” she added. 

Improving diet and stress

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from more than 8,600 people enrolled in the Australian Diabetes, Obesity, and Lifestyle (AusDiab) Study. Throughout the study, participants reported on their diets and general stress levels so the researchers could determine what role fruits and vegetables had on long-term stress. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that regularly consuming fruits and vegetables was linked with lower stress levels. Compared to those who ate around a half-pound of fruits and vegetables per day, those who ate a full pound every day reported 10% less stress. 

These findings are important because of the long-term consequences associated with stress disorders. The researchers explained that adding more fruits and vegetables to consumers’ diets could be a good way for them to maintain healthy stress levels.

“Long-term and unmanaged stress can lead to a range of health problems including heart disease, diabetes, depression, and anxiety so we need to find ways to prevent and possibly alleviate mental health problems in the future,” Radavelli-Bagatini. “The study’s findings emphasize that it’s important for people to have a diet rich in fruits and vegetables to potentially minimize stress.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University explored the health benefits associated with eating leafy green vegetables. 

According to their findings, it doesn’t take a ton of these vegetables for consumers to boost their heart health; eating just one cup of leafy greens each day can reduce the risk of heart disease and lower blood pressure. 

“Our results have shown that by simply eating one cup of raw (or half a cup of cooked) nitrate-rich vegetables each day, people may be able to significantly reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease,” said researcher Dr. Catherine Bondonno. “The greatest reduction in risk was for peripheral artery disease (26 percent), a type of heart disease characterized by the narrowing of blood vessels of the legs; however, we also found people had a lower risk of heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure.” 

Being consistent with healthy foods

For the study, the researchers analyzed data from over 53,000 participants enrolled in the Danish Diet, Cancer, and Health Study. Participants have been enrolled in the study for more than two decades and have consistently reported on their diets and medical histories throughout that time. 

The results were clear: consistently consuming leafy greens yielded better heart health outcomes. Participants who ate one cup of raw, nitrate-rich vegetables per day lowered their risk of heart disease by as much as 26%. This healthier diet was also linked with lower systolic blood pressure. 

For consumers who like to get creative with their vegetable consumption, the team found that blending leafy greens into smoothies can yield similar heart health benefits; however, they explained that the juicing process can strip the vegetables of their nutrients. 

It’s important to note that surpassing one cup of raw vegetables or a half cup of cooked vegetables didn’t lead to greater health benefits. Because of this, the researchers don’t recommend that consumers load up on leafy greens or try to add in vitamins or supplements. Instead, to get the most out of your vegetable intake, they say staying within that one-cup range is the most effective option. 

“People don’t need to be taking supplements to boost their nitrate levels because the study showed that one cup of leafy green vegetables each day is enough to reap the benefits for heart disease,” Dr. Bondonno said. “We did not see further benefits in people who ate higher levels of nitrate-rich vegetables.” 

If there was any question that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) would expand its recent additions to school and daycare meals to help children out this summer, there’s not any longer. On Monday, the agency announced a major effort to provide a lifeline to more than 30 million children by expanding Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) benefits at a time when families are struggling to put food on the table during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Only children are eligible for this temporary nutrition benefit -- and only those who are eligible to receive free or reduced-price meals during the school year or are under age six and live in a SNAP household can apply. Families of eligible children typically receive $6.82 per child per weekday, or roughly $375 per child over the summer months. The benefits will be loaded onto an EBT card that can be used to purchase food.

“The expansion of P-EBT benefits over the summer is a first-of-its-kind, game-changing intervention to reduce child hunger in the United States,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “By providing low-income families with a simple benefit over the summer months, USDA is using an evidenced-based solution to drive down hunger and ensure no child has to miss a meal.”

How the program works

Parents of potentially qualified children will likely have some questions about how this program works. ConsumerAffairs took a look into the details to find answers to the more commonly asked questions.

Who’s eligible? All school children who would have received free or reduced-price school meals at school under the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) or School Breakfast Program (SBP) are eligible for P-EBT benefits this summer. This includes:

• School children who received P-EBT benefits during the last month of the 2020-2021 school year. The USDA says children who graduate at the end of the school year are also eligible because the covered summer period is an extension of the school year.

• School children who were eligible for free or reduced-price school meals under the NSLP and SBP in the 2020/2021 school year but did not receive P-EBT benefits in the last month of the school year because they attended school in-person and benefitted from a free or reduced-price meal service at school.

What about children in daycare? Children in daycare are also eligible to receive benefits. The USDA says children falling under the following categories can take advantage of meal assistance: 

• SNAP-enrolled children who received P-EBT child care benefits in the last month of the school year.

• SNAP-enrolled children who would have received P-EBT child care benefits in the last month of the school year but didn’t because their child care facility was not closed or operating at reduced attendance or hours during that month. This also includes children whose residence was in the area of a school that was closed or operating at reduced attendance or hours in that month.

• SNAP-enrolled children who are born before the end of the covered summer period are also eligible for P-EBT benefits for the entire covered summer period.

How long is the covered summer period? The summer period will be a maximum of 90 calendar days. 

How many P-EBT benefit days are in the covered summer period? The number of P-EBT benefit days is not 90 total; it equals the number of weekdays during the covered summer period. In preparing the plan, the USDA reviewed publicly available summer 2021 calendars for the two largest districts in every state and found that the median length of these districts’ summer breaks, excluding weekends, is 55 weekdays.

Are all states included in the program? Yes. 

Is there any flexibility on the amount received? Only for recipients in Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories. Alaskans will receive $10.99 per day, and Hawaiians and certain U.S. territory residents will receive $7.97 per day. 

Consumers who have additional questions should check out the USDA’s complete guide to the program, which is available here.

Many consumers rely on the support of others to stay on track with eating healthy. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital found that food choices made by coworkers may have a lot of influence on consumers’ diets. 

According to their findings, many consumers’ are impacted by their coworkers’ food choices -- both positively and negatively. Whether it’s healthy or unhealthy foods, coworkers are likely to base their workplace food selections on what others are eating. 

“We found that individuals tend to mirror the food choices of others in their social circles, which may explain one way obesity spreads through social networks,” said researcher Douglas Levy, Ph.D. 

Making healthy choices

To understand how coworkers can influence each other’s food habits, the researchers tracked food purchases from over 6,000 employees at Massachusetts General Hospital over the course of two years. By looking at when people bought food, the team could determine which employees were social and what purchases impacted others. The researchers also interviewed 1,000 employees to confirm which groups were friendly and frequently ate together. 

“Two people who make purchases within two minutes of each other, for example, are more likely to know each other than those who make purchases 30 minutes apart,” Dr. Levy said. 

Ultimately, the researchers learned that people who regularly ate together were likely to influence each other’s eating habits. Employees who ate healthy foods were likely to influence their coworkers to also make healthy choices, while the opposite was also true. However, the researchers did find that this association was stronger for healthy foods. 

“People may change their behavior to cement the relationship with someone in their social circle,” Dr. Levy said. 

The team explained that social networks play a larger role in consumers’ food choices than previously established lifestyles. Though many people believe that those with healthy diets may seek out other healthy eaters, this study confirmed that social dynamics play a bigger role in what consumers decide to eat. 

Moving forward, the researchers hope that consumers use these findings to their advantage. Having a support system dedicated to eating healthy can help more people make healthier choices. 

“As we emerge from the pandemic and transition back to in-person work, we have an opportunity to eat together in a more healthful way than we did before,” said researcher Mark C. Pachucki. “If your eating habits shape how your coworkers eat -- even just a little -- then changing your food choices for the better might benefit your coworker.” 

Recent studies have highlighted the health risks associated with eating red meat, including a higher risk of conditions like dementia and breast cancer. 

Now, a new study conducted by researchers from the European Society of Cardiology shows that eating red meat also increases the risk of heart disease. Their work showed that red meat significantly compromises heart function. 

“Previous studies have shown links between greater red meat consumption and risk of heart attacks or dying from heart disease,” said researcher Dr. Zahra Raisi-Estabragh. “For the first time, we examined the relationships between meat consumption and imaging measures of heart health. This may help us to understand the mechanisms underlying the previously observed connections with cardiovascular disease.” 

Prioritizing heart health

To better understand how red meat negatively affects consumers’ heart health, the researchers analyzed data from more than 19,400 participants enrolled in the U.K. Biobank. While the participants recorded their diets over the course of the study, the researchers focused on three primary health factors: blood vessel elasticity, a cardiac MRI, and muscle strength of the heart. 

Participants with the highest red meat intake had the poorest heart health in every category and were more likely to suffer from cardiovascular disease. The researchers found that higher red meat intake was associated with stiffer blood vessels, which can make it harder for the heart to pump blood throughout the body and ultimately increases the risk of disease.

“The findings support prior observations linking red and processed meat consumption with heart disease and provide unique insights into links with heart and vascular structure and function,” said Dr. Raisi-Estabragh. 

To figure out why red meat consumption significantly impacts heart health, the researchers identified several different factors that can come into play. Their work found that conditions like obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol can put a strain on consumers’ hearts when coupled with red meat consumption. The team also found that red and processed meats can affect the body on a deeper physiological level that makes heart disease more likely. 

“There is some evidence that red meat alters the gut microbiome, leading to higher levels of certain metabolites in the blood, which have in turn been linked to greater risk of heart disease,” Dr. Raisi-Estabragh said. 

Moving forward, the researchers hope that consumers take these findings into consideration and make healthier choices that can benefit their heart health down the line. 

“This was an observational study and causation cannot be assumed,” said Dr. Raisi-Estabragh. “But in general, it seems sensible to limit intake of red and processed meat for heart health reasons.” 

Are you always hungry? Researchers from King’s College London looked at why some consumers are always looking for another snack despite eating full meals throughout the day. 

According to their findings, it all comes down to blood sugar. Consumers who experience big dips in their blood sugar after eating are likely to feel hungrier throughout the day; this can often lead to overeating. 

“It has long been suspected that blood sugar levels play an important role in controlling hunger, but the results from previous studies have been inconclusive,” said researcher Dr. Sarah Berry. “We’ve now shown that sugar dips are a better predictor of hunger and subsequent calorie intake than the initial blood sugar peak response after eating, changing how we think about the relationship between blood sugar levels and the food we eat.” 

Monitoring dips in blood sugar

To understand what role blood sugar plays in regulating how often consumers feel hungry, the researchers had over 1,000 participants involved in the study. Over the course of two weeks, participants recorded how often they were hungry and what they were eating; they also wore monitors that tracked their blood sugar, sleep, and activity. Throughout the study, all participants ate the same breakfast but were free to make their own choices for lunch and dinner. 

The researchers learned that dips in blood sugar played the biggest role in making the participants feel hungry more often. Experiencing sharp drops in blood sugar only a few hours after eating breakfast made the participants more likely to snack more between meals. 

Participants with the biggest dips in blood sugar usually experienced them between two and four hours after eating breakfast. This made them eat lunch a half-hour earlier than participants with smaller dips in blood sugar, and they also consumed about 75 more calories between breakfast and lunch. Over the course of the whole day, these large spikes in blood sugar between meals led participants to eat an average of 300 additional calories.

When thinking about what this looks like over the course of a month or a year, the researchers explained that it could contribute to significant weight gain. Big spikes in blood sugar may be responsible for frequent snacking, and it can also impact consumers’ ability to lose weight. 

“Many people struggle to lose weight and keep it off, and just a few hundred extra calories every day can add up to several pounds of weight gain over a year,” said researcher Ana Valdes. “Our discovery that the size of sugar dips after eating has such a big impact on hunger and appetite has great potential for helping people understand and control their weight and long-term health.” 

Look for foods that keep you full

Moving forward, the researchers hope that consumers use these findings to their advantage. Everyone’s metabolism responds differently depending on what they eat each day, and knowing what foods will keep us full the longest is a good way to manage health and cut down on excessive eating. 

“Food is complex and humans are complicated, but our research is finally starting to open up the black box between diet and health,” said researcher Tim Spector. “We’re excited to have been able to turn this cutting-edge science into an at-home nutrition and microbiome test so that everyone has the opportunity to discover their unique responses to food to best support their metabolism and gut health.” 

Everyone is susceptible to a midnight snack every so often. However, a new study conducted by researchers from North Carolina State University found that eating late into the night might impact consumers in unexpected ways the following day. 

According to their findings, consumers who snack late at night could see a dip in their workplace performance. The study showed that late-night eaters are more likely to be distracted the next day and experience more physical symptoms, like headaches and nausea, that impact their ability to perform to their fullest potential. 

“For the first time, we have shown that healthy eating immediately affects our workplace behavior and performance,” said researcher Seonghee “Sophia” Cho. “It is relatively well established that other health-related behaviors, such as sleep and exercise, affect our work. But nobody had looked at the short-term effects of unhealthy eating.” 

When we’re eating matters

For the study, the researchers had nearly 100 full-time employees answer a questionnaire several times per day for 10 workdays. The questions asked about participants’ overall well-being, their food and drink intake, and what they did at work each day. 

The researchers identified a relationship between unhealthy eating and physical and emotional wellness. Those who were eating junk food late at night reported higher levels of guilt and shame, and they were also more likely to experience stomachaches and headaches the next day at work. However, unhealthy eating habits also led participants to behave differently at work; they were less likely to go out of their way to help coworkers and were more likely to avoid workplace tasks after late-night snacking. 

Mental health and emotional wellness also played a role in how the participants responded physically to late-night eating. The study found that those who were emotionally stronger were less likely to feel the physical side effects of eating late at night, which also meant that they were performing better at work. 

“The big takeaway here is that we now know unhealthy eating can have almost immediate effects on workplace performance,” said Cho. “However, we can also say that there is no single ‘healthy’ diet, and healthy eating isn’t just about nutritional content. It may be influenced by an individual’s dietary needs, or even by when and how they’re eating, instead of what they’re eating.” 

Going out to a nice meal can be a great way for consumers to celebrate a special occasion or spend quality time with their family and friends. However, a new study may have some consumers rethinking how often they’re eating food prepared outside of their homes. 

According to experts, eating a lot of take-out -- whether that’s eating in a restaurant or ordering food to-go -- may increase a person’s risk of dying. Instead, they say consumers should make a conscious effort to prepare the majority of their meals at home. 

“This is one of the first studies to quantify the association between eating out and mortality,” said researcher Dr. Wei Bao. “Our findings, in line with previous studies, support that eating out frequently is associated with adverse health consequences and may inform future dietary guidelines to recommend reducing consumption of meals prepared away from the home.” 

Cooking at home can have health benefits

To understand what effect eating take-out food had on mortality, the researchers analyzed 15 years’ worth of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Participants answered questions about their eating habits, and the researchers then followed up by looking at death records linked to a number of different causes. 

The researchers learned that participants who primarily ate take-out food were at an increased risk of death in general, as well as death from heart disease or cancer. Compared to those who ate fewer than one meal per week that was prepared outside the home, those who ate two or more take-out meals per day were nearly 1.5 times more likely to die from any cause and nearly 1.7 times more likely to die from cancer. 

“The take-home message is that frequent consumption of meals prepared away from home may not be a healthy habit,” the researchers wrote. “Instead, people should be encouraged to consider preparing more meals at home.” 

Controlling what is in your meals

According to the researchers, the adverse health effects incurred from eating a lot of take-out food likely stems from the quality of food served at many restaurants. Though a lot of establishments offer healthier options, it’s impossible for consumers to completely control what’s going into their meals when someone else prepares the food.

Moving forward, the team recommends that health care professionals do their part to encourage healthy eating -- both inside and outside the home. 

“It is important to note that the study design for this research examines associations between frequency of eating meals prepared away from home and mortality,” said researcher Linda G. Snetselarr, Ph.D. “While encouraging clients to consider preparing healthy meals at home, registered dietitian nutritionists might also focus on how selections from restaurant menus can be healthy. Tailoring strategies to each client by reviewing menus from restaurants they frequent can help them make healthy food choices.” 

Regularly eating fruits and vegetables can have important physical and mental health benefits for consumers. 

Now, a new study conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University has found that vegetables also play a key role in consumers’ long-term muscle function. According to their findings, green leafy vegetables, which contain large quantities of nitrates, can lead to stronger muscles and improved physical abilities. 

“Our study shows that diets high in nitrate-rich vegetables may bolster your muscle strength independently of any physical activity,” said researcher Dr. Marc Sim. “Nevertheless, to optimise muscle function we propose that a balanced diet rich in green leafy vegetables in combination with regular exercise, including weight training, is ideal.” 

Getting your greens in

For the study, the researchers analyzed results from more than 3,700 participants involved in Melbourne’s Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute AusDiab study. Experts followed the participants’ diets and health outcomes for over a decade and compared how consumption of leafy green vegetables impacted their muscle capacity. 

The researchers learned that participants who ate the most nitrate-rich diets had the best physical outcomes -- particularly when looking at lower body strength. The study showed that consuming higher amounts of leafy green vegetables led to faster walking speeds and greater muscle function overall. 

“We should eat a variety of vegetables every day, with at least one of those servings being leafy greens to gain a range of positive health benefits for the musculoskeletal system and cardiovascular system,” said Dr. Sim. 

These findings are especially important for older consumers who may be more susceptible to falls. The researchers say eating more green vegetables is a good way for seniors to reduce the chances of these accidents happening.

A new study conducted by researchers from the Endocrine Society looked at the benefits associated with starting meals earlier in the day. According to their findings, consumers who begin eating before 8:30 a.m. may lower their risk of developing type 2 diabetes. 

“With a rise in metabolic disorders such as diabetes, we wanted to expand our understanding of nutritional strategies to aid in addressing this growing concern,” said researcher Dr. Marriam Ali. 

Timing matters

To determine what effect the timing of meals had on consumers’ disease risk, the researchers analyzed data from more than 10,500 participants enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). While other studies have looked at the benefits associated with time-restricted eating and intermittent fasting, the researchers evaluated how various eating patterns affected blood sugar and insulin resistance. 

One group of participants ate their meals over the course of a 13-hour period; another group ate within 10 and 13 hours; and a third group ate all three meals within a 10-hour window. The participant groups were then broken down even further depending on what time of the day they started eating.

The researchers learned that the starting time of meals was more important to health outcomes than how long throughout the day the participants were eating. Starting meals before 8:30 a.m. was linked with the greatest health outcomes; participants who started eating earlier in the day had better insulin resistance and blood sugar levels than those who started eating later in the morning.

“We found people who started eating earlier in the day had lower blood sugar levels and less insulin resistance, regardless of whether they restricted their food intake to less than 10 hours a day or their food intake was spread over more than 13 hours daily,” Dr. Ali said. “These findings suggest that timing is more strongly associated with metabolic measures than duration, and support early eating strategies.”

Eating a lot of processed meats has been found to cause several adverse health effects. Now, researchers from the University of Leeds are exploring how unhealthy diet choices can affect consumers’ cognitive functioning. 

Their study showed that eating large quantities of red and processed meats may increase the risk of developing dementia. 

“Worldwide, the prevalence of dementia is increasing and diet as a modifiable factor could play a role,” said researcher Huifeng Zhang. “Our research adds to the growing body of evidence linking processed meat consumption to increased risk of a range of non-transmissible diseases.” 

Cognitive risks of an unhealthy diet

The researchers analyzed data from nearly 500,000 people enrolled in the U.K. Biobank to determine what effect processed meats had on long-term dementia risk. All of the participants were between 40 and 69 years old, and they recorded the frequency with which they consumed red and processed meats, as well as what kind of meat they were eating. 

The study showed that eating red and processed meats in excess were associated with an increased risk of dementia. Participants who ate 25 grams of processed meat each day were nearly 45 percent more likely to develop dementia. 

The researchers learned that several factors impacted the participants’ diet choices. Men were more likely than women to eat more processed meat, as were those who were overweight, smoked, or followed generally unhealthy diets. 

Certain factors increased the participants’ likelihood of developing dementia. For example, men were more likely than women to struggle with cognitive function. Those who didn’t exercise or had a genetic predisposition for the condition were also more likely to develop it.

Moderation is key

While eating processed meat in excess was associated with an increased risk of dementia, some red meats had protective benefits for consumers’ long-term cognitive health. Eating 50 grams of things like veal or pork per day was associated with a 20 percent lower risk of dementia. 

Moving forward, the researchers hope that more work is done in this area because knowing the risk factors can help prevent dementia among more vulnerable populations. 

“Anything we can do to explore potential risk factors for dementia may help us to reduce rates of this debilitating condition,” said researcher Janet Cade. “This analysis is a first step towards understanding whether what we eat could influence that risk.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Edith Cowan University explored the best options for consumers who are prone to experiencing muscle cramps after exercising. 

Their findings revealed that opting for drinks full of electrolytes may be better than plain water when it comes to preventing muscle cramps. The study showed that electrolytes served as a protective barrier against muscle cramps after exercising, while drinking water was found to make muscle cramps more likely. 

“Many people think dehydration causes muscle cramps and will drink pure water while exercising to prevent cramping,” said researcher Ken Nosaka. “We found that people who solely drink plain water before and after exercise could, in fact, be making them more prone to cramps. This is likely because pure water dilutes the electrolyte concentration in our bodies and doesn’t replace what is lost during sweating.”

Choosing the right beverage 

To determine which drink was best at preventing muscle cramps, the researchers had 10 men participate in an exercise-based study. In one trial, the men followed up a 60-minute workout with plain drinking water; in another trial, they drank an electrolyte-based drink after the same workout. 

To see how muscle cramps were affected by the different beverages, the researchers used electrical stimulation to produce a muscle cramp in the participants’ legs. They learned that the group that followed up a workout with plain water was more likely to experience muscle cramps than the group that drank the electrolyte solution. The muscle cramp test showed that the electrolyte group required much more stimulation to produce a muscle cramp than the group that drank the water. 

“This indicates that muscles become more prone to cramp by drinking plain water, but more immune to muscle cramp by drinking the electrolyte water,” Nosaka said. 

Additional benefits of electrolytes

While this study was focused on the benefits of electrolytes associated with exercise-based muscle cramps, the researchers explained that drinking beverages with these nutrients can also have other benefits for consumers’ overall health and wellness. 

“Electrolytes are vital to good health -- they help the body to absorb water more effectively than plain water and replace essential minerals lost through sweat or illness,” Nosaka said. “People should consider drinking oral rehydration fluids instead of plain water during moderate to intense exercise, when it’s very hot, or when you are sick from diarrhea or vomiting.” 

Researchers continue to confirm the benefits that following a healthy diet can have on reducing consumers’ risk of heart disease. Now, a new study conducted by researchers from McMaster University has found that regularly eating fish can benefit consumers’ heart health. 

According to their findings, those who are at the highest risk of heart disease -- including those who have had a heart attack or stroke -- could boost their heart health by eating two servings of fish per week. 

“This is by far the most diverse study of fish intake and health outcomes in the world and the only one with sufficient numbers with representation from high-, middle-, and low-income countries from all inhabited continents of the world,” said researcher Dr. Salim Yusuf. 

Benefits of eating more fish

To better understand the health benefits associated with eating more fish, the researchers analyzed data from four earlier studies that included information on nearly 192,000 participants from five continents. The team looked at the participants’ diets and compared that information with heart health outcomes for those at varying risks of heart disease. 

Ultimately, the researchers found that regularly consuming fish had protective benefits for those at the highest risk of heart disease. For participants that had previously had a heart attack or stroke, these benefits were the highest. Those with a lower risk of heart disease experienced much milder benefits associated with eating more fish, and those with no previous cardiovascular issues had no added heart health benefits from consuming more fish. 

The researchers explained that fish containing higher amounts of omega-3s produced the best health outcomes. These oils have long been associated with improved heart outcomes, and getting those nutrients through fish can be incredibly beneficial for consumers with recurring heart concerns. 

“There is a significant protective benefit of fish consumption in people with cardiovascular disease,” said researcher Andrew Mente. “This study has important implications for guidelines on fish intake globally. It indicates that increasing fish consumption and particularly oily fish in vascular patients may produce a modest cardiovascular benefit.” 

Consistently eating fruits and vegetables has been found to benefit consumers’ physical and mental health. Now, researchers from the American Heart Association are investigating how these staples can affect life expectancy. 

According to their findings, eating the right combination of fruits and vegetables can lead to a longer life. The team found that having three servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit each day was associated with the best health outcomes. 

“While groups like the American Heart Association recommend four to five servings of fruits and vegetables daily, consumers likely get inconsistent messages about what defines optimal daily intake of fruits and vegetables such as the recommended amount, and which foods to include and avoid,” said researcher Dr. Dong. D. Wang. 

Health benefits of fruits and vegetables

The researchers compared information from several different datasets for the study. They looked at data from more than 100,000 participants enrolled in the Health Professionals’ Follow-Up Study and the Nurses’ Health Study, which tracked both diet and health outcomes for more than three decades. They also compared those results with data from 26 earlier studies to determine how fruits and vegetables contributed to overall health and longevity. 

The team learned that eating five servings of fruits and vegetables was associated with the best health outcomes; however, different combinations of these healthier options yielded different results. For instance, breaking up the portions to include two servings of fruits and three of vegetables each day was linked with the best outcomes. 

Consuming five servings of fruits and vegetables in any capacity lowered the participants’ risk of death and disease. The study found that hitting that benchmark each day lowered participants’ risk of death from cancer, heart disease, and respiratory disease. 

“This amount [of fruits and vegetables] likely offers the most benefits in terms of prevention of major chronic disease and is a relatively achievable intake for the general public,” said Dr. Wang. “We also found that not all fruits and vegetables offer the same degree of benefit, even though current dietary recommendations generally treat all types of fruits and vegetables, including starchy vegetables, fruit juices, and potatoes, the same.” 

Leafy greens and citrus fruits are the best

The researchers found that not all fruits and vegetables yielded the same health benefits. Starchy vegetables or sugary fruit juices didn’t produce any of the protective health benefits that came from leafy greens or citrus fruits.

Moving forward, the team hopes that consumers get creative at mealtimes and look for new ways to incorporate more fruits and vegetables into their diets. 

“This research provides strong evidence for the lifelong benefits of eating fruits and vegetables, and suggests a goal amount to consume daily for ideal health,” said researcher Dr. Anne Thorndike. “Fruits and vegetables are naturally packaged sources of nutrients that can be included in most meals and snacks, and they are essential for keeping our hearts and bodies healthy.” 

A new study conducted by researchers from Simon Fraser University is exploring the risks associated with eating large quantities of refined grains, which consist of things like croissants, pastas, cereals, and anything containing bleached white flour.

The team says doing so puts consumers at a higher risk for both cardiovascular disease and premature death. 

“This study reaffirms previous work indicating a healthy diet includes limiting overly processed and refined foods,” said researcher Scott Lear. 

Processed foods harm health 

The researchers came to their conclusions after analyzing data from the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study. This dataset tracked the diets and health outcomes of more than 137,00 participants around the world for nearly two decades.

The study revealed a clear link between refined grain intake and poorer heart health for the participants -- particularly when they exceeded seven servings of these foods each day. The more refined grains the participants ate, the more susceptible they were to heart disease, stroke, and premature death. 

Of those three primary risk factors, strokes posed the biggest risk to consumers’ health. The study showed that participants who ate seven or more servings of refined grains each day were nearly 50 percent more likely to have a stroke. 

Finding better alternatives

The researchers recommend that consumers think about ways that they can incorporate healthier options into their diets each day. Opting for whole grain alternatives can yield better health outcomes. 

Swapping out refined grains for whole grains -- as well as other health foods like fruits and vegetables -- can reduce the risk of heart disease and give consumers lasting health benefits. 

A healthy diet and regular exercise are key ingredients to a healthy lifestyle, and now researchers are exploring both the mental and physical health benefits associated with these habits. 

According to a new study conducted by researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, following an exercise and nutrition regimen can have countless positive benefits for consumers’ physical and cognitive health. 

“Our work motivates the design of novel multimodal interventions that incorporate both aerobic fitness training and nutritional supplementation, and illustrates that their benefits extend beyond improvements in physical fitness to enhance multiple measures of cognitive function,” said researcher Aron Barbey. 

Adopting healthy habits

For this 12-week study, the researchers had 148 active members of the Air Force participate in a rigorous exercise program. While all of the participants followed the same workout routine over the course of the study, half of the group received a nutritional beverage daily and the other half received a placebo drink with no added nutritional benefits. 

At the end of the study, it was clear that just following this exercise program was beneficial for the participants. The researchers observed improvements to both physical and mental health, as participants had lower resting heart rates and lower body fat percentage, as well as better memory and problem-solving abilities. 

“The exercise intervention alone improved strength and endurance, mobility and stability, and participants also saw increases in several measures of cognitive function,” Barbey said. “They had better episodic memory and processed information more efficiently at the end of the 12 weeks. And they did better on tests that required them to solve problems they had never encountered before, an aptitude called fluid intelligence.” 

However, the real benefits came for those who were exercising and consuming the nutritional beverage each day. According to the researchers, the drink was packed with protein, several different vitamins, omega-3s, and a variety of other nutrients, and this combination was what led to even greater mental and physical health benefits for the participants. 

“Those who consumed the nutritional supplement saw all of these improvements and more,” Barbey said. “For example, they were better able to retain new information in their working memory and had quicker responses on tests of fluid intelligence than those taking the placebo.” 

The researchers hope that these findings demonstrate just how beneficial it can be for consumers to adopt healthy habits, as there is great opportunity to improve physical health and strengthen cognitive abilities. 

With parents looking for more creative ways to guide their children to make healthier choices, a recent study conducted by researchers from the University of Leeds found that what kids eat while at school could impact their overall well-being. 

According to the study, the researchers found that kids who are bringing packed lunches to school aren’t necessarily eating the right foods. The majority of kids’ lunches aren’t meeting nutritional requirements, and incorporating more fruits and vegetables is key. 

“The research has found that on some fronts, packed lunches have improved but they are still dominated by sweet and savoury snack food and sugary drinks,” said researcher Dr. Charlotte Evans. “The vast majority provide poor nutritional quality. Addressing that issue over the next 10 years will require a concerted effort. Improving what children eat at school will help reduce the risk of childhood obesity.” 

What’s in kids’ lunch boxes? 

To understand what kids are eating at lunch and how it can be improved to boost their health, the researchers analyzed kids’ lunches at an elementary school in 2006 and then again in 2016. 

One of the biggest takeaways from the study was how few fruits and vegetables kids were eating at lunchtime. Though a U.K.-based study, U.S. guidelines recommend that young people are getting around three to four servings of fruits and vegetables per day.

Moreover, the researchers found that two factors didn’t change at all in kids’ lunchboxes over the course of the 10 year study -- the saturated fat content and the serving size of potato chips, both of which remained high. The study also revealed that many of the items kids ate at lunchtime were high in sugar, though sweet treats were on the decline. 

Making healthier choices

The researchers acknowledged that it can be both time-consuming and costly to prepare kids’ lunches, but it’s important that parents try to have their kids work with them to plan their lunches ahead of time. This can yield healthier lunches, and also ensure that lunch is ready before the morning rush. 

One recent study also found that kids were more likely to make healthier choices after watching cooking shows, as doing so helped keep them engaged in what they’re eating and prompted healthier mealtimes. 

With the start of the new year, many consumers take the time to rededicate themselves to following a health diet. However well-intentioned these plans are, there’s always the temptation to swap a salad for a cheeseburger.

To help combat fattening food cravings, researchers from the University of South Florida recently conducted a study that found that surrounding yourself with the smells of fattening foods for at least two minutes is a great way for consumers to steer clear of the extra calories.

“Ambient scent can be a powerful tool to resist cravings for indulgent foods,” said lead researcher Dipayan Biswas, PhD. “In fact, subtle sensory stimuli like scents can be more effective in influencing children’s and adults’ food choices than restrictive policies.”

Every minute counts

Biswas and his team set out to discover how scent would effectively curb cravings, and they learned that the amount of time consumers are exposed to the smells is what matters most.

The researchers conducted the first part of their experiment in a middle school cafeteria, where they injected scents of either pizza or apples through nebulizers that couldn’t be directly seen. The scents were filtered on alternating days, and the researchers took note of the students’ subsequent purchasing options depending on what scent was in the air.

On days when the apple scent permeated the cafeteria, students were more likely to purchase unhealthy food and drinks, whereas on days when they smelled the pizza, they made healthier lunch choices.

The researchers then replicated the study in a lab setting, switching the scents to filter either cookies or strawberries. After participants were exposed to the smells, they were asked which food they’d prefer: cookies or strawberries.

Similar to their cafeteria test, the smell of the cookies helped participants make healthier choices, and the time they spent surrounded by the smell of the cookies mattered.

When participants had inhaled the cookie smell for two minutes or more, they were more likely to make healthier choices. When they spent less than 30 seconds with the cookie scent, they were more likely to choose the cookie. The researchers believe this works because the scent is tricking the brain into being satisfied by the food without the participants ever having to consume it.

Fighting cravings

Biswas and his team join several other researchers of late who have looked into the best ways for consumers to fight their food cravings.

A study at the end of last year looked at nearly 30 scientific studies to produce a comprehensive list of effective ways to kick cravings.

Researchers found that losing weight can decrease cravings, while frequent exercise can increase cravings. Moreover, cutting out foods from your diet was found to work better than portion control, while certain prescription drugs were also found to help fight cravings.

Additionally, a separate study found that withdrawal from junk food is similar to what addicts experience when they stop using drugs.

For those whose diets consisted primarily of junk food, the symptoms were particularly strong, and many reported feeling fatigued, sad, and irritable. However, if consumers can get past the first five days, the symptoms reportedly decreased.

If you take a vitamin supplement, stop and ask yourself if you really need it. Chances are you don’t.

When the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) hired The Harris Poll to survey consumers, researchers found that more than four out of five people take vitamins or a dietary supplement. However, the organization says just 24 percent of those consumers have a nutritional deficiency.

Dr. Mike Vardshavski, an osteopathic family physician, says most people don’t have a health condition that requires them to take vitamins. Those people, he says, are wasting money and could even be harming their health.

"Numerous investigations show the alleged benefits are unproven and in the worst cases, vitamins and supplements can be harmful," Varshavski said. "In particular, I advise patients that this industry is highly unregulated, so it's important to research manufacturers to ensure their products actually contain the nutritional supplements advertised."

Independent analysis

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has responsibility for regulating supplements, but it uses a different set of rules than used for drug regulation. Dr. Tod Cooperman, founder of an independent testing lab called ConsumerLab, addressed a recent NIH symposium and outlined the results of the latest supplement analysis.

“One out of every five supplements we tested has been found to be of poor quality,” Cooperman said. “Herbals had the highest failure rate at 39 percent. Twenty percent of vitamins and minerals also failed.”

The survey asked consumers how they decided which vitamins or supplements to take. Just over half said they got a recommendation from a doctor, which would seem to be the safest source. Thirty-nine percent said they did their own research and 22 percent said they got advice from a friend or family member.

Be skeptical of gummy vitamins

"Obviously, there is a great need for real education on this topic, even among health care professionals," said Varshavski. "Consumers are also cautioned to avoid trends, such as vaping supplements, until the research is conclusive, and to be skeptical of gummy vitamins—which are basically sugar tablets."

The AOA has called for legislation requiring dietary supplements to undergo pre-market safety and efficacy evaluation by the FDA, just as drugs do. The organization also says the FDA should monitor all products marketed for human consumption, including nutritional supplements.

If you think you really need to take a supplement, Varshavski recommends choosing one that carries a certification or approval from a trusted, independent organization. That won’t guarantee the product will be effective, only that it contains the correct ingredients and in the correct amounts.

Adding calorie counts to menus has been a popular point of discussion recently. While some believe it’s key to pushing consumers to make healthier food choices, others are convinced the act is pointless.

Though researchers have spoken out on both sides of the argument, a group of researchers from Dartmouth College recently found that restaurants that have both pictures of food and calorie counts are more likely to sway consumers’ ordering habits.

“Our findings suggest that calorie-labeling may alter responses in the brain’s reward system when considering food options,” said researcher Andrea Courtney. “Moreover, we believe that nutritional interventions are likely to be more successful if they take into account the motivation of the consumer, including whether or not they diet.”

The brain’s role

The researchers had 42 undergraduates participate in the study, with students looking at nearly 200 images of food both with calorie counts and without.

The group was split almost evenly between those who dieted and those who didn’t, as the researchers believed the two groups would make different food choices. Everyone was shown the same images, and most of them included fast food items.

While hooked up to an fMRI machine, the participants were asked to rate how much they wanted to eat the food on a scale from one to four, and then how likely they’d be to choose the food items in the dining hall on the same scale.

The researchers found that both dieters and non-dieters were affected by the combination of food pictures and calorie counts. After seeing both, the participants were less likely to choose the unhealthy items.  

However, when the calorie counts came off the food pictures, the results were a bit different. Those who dieted regularly were more likely to continue to avoid fattier foods, whereas the non-dieters didn’t have the same response.

The researchers saw these results as positive, as they further prove that consumers who are looking for healthier options will continue to seek them out when calorie counts aren’t available. However, when calorie counts are present, they help guide consumers’ choices.

“In order to motivate people to make healthier food choices, policy changes are needed that incorporate not only nutritional information, including calorie content, but also a public education component, which reinforces the long-term benefits of a healthy diet,” said researcher Kristina Rapuano.

Posting calorie counts

Earlier this year, chain restaurants with at least 20 stores were required to start providing customers with calorie information as part of the Affordable Care Act.

Though experts went back and forth on the pros and cons of this venture, the goal was to have consumers making healthier choices when they eat out.

Later in the year, researchers explored the effects of having calorie counts on menus and found that consumers were more likely to order something with fewer calories when the calorie information was in a prominent place.

“What this paper shows is that a trivially simple intervention could increase the power of calorie information on menus,” said researcher Steven Dallas. “The calorie labeling policy should not necessarily be deemed a failure, and could in fact become a powerful tool in combating the obesity epidemic.”

Diabetes is a widespread disease affecting tens of millions of children and adults in the United States. However, the cost of treating the disease continues to grow exponentially. According to the American Diabetes Association, the total cost of treating diabetes in 2017 rose to $327 billion.

However, there may be hope on the horizon for diabetes patients. Dr. Paul Keckley recently authored a study that could change the game -- and lower costs -- for those affected by diabetes.

Dr. Keckley found that if just 20 percent of the millions of people affected by diabetes could lower their blood glucose levels by one percent, treatment costs would be reduced by $10 billion each year. How could this be accomplished? Keckley points to changes in nutrition and health policies as the main drivers.

“Now is the time to take holistic, comprehensive action that incorporates proven remedies like nutrition therapy to stop the advance of diabetes throughout the American population in its tracks,” said Dr. Keckley. “Despite widespread evidence that proper nutrition can lead to healthier lives and significantly lower healthcare costs, many policymakers and stakeholders continue to advocate for the same tired, inadequate solutions.”

Keys to change

In Keckley’s assessment, there are five major reasons why costs for diabetes treatments continue to rise. They include demographics, confusion about healthy food choices, workplace settings, low policy maker prioritization, and healthcare bias toward medication. He asserts that current approaches treat all patients the same, which is producing less than optimal outcomes.

“This is a public health crisis, and policymakers and public health experts have little to lose and much to gain from abandoning a ‘one-size fits all’ approach” Keckley said. “The future of American public health costs and the Type 2 diabetes sufferers in the U.S. require more creative solutions. Many of these -- like nutrition therapy -- exist. It’s time to make the most of them.”

Nutrition therapy is at the core of Keckley’s initiatives. He believes that patients, policymakers, and healthcare providers need to be educated about how nutrition therapy and proper exercise could improve lives and lower costs. Ensuring that diabetes patients know all the facts, including what health advice to avoid, is imperative to implementing these healthier choices.

For patients that rely on Medicare or other shared payment options, Keckley suggests detailing the positive results of nutrition therapy and carefully explaining how it’s a beneficial option. He says that doing this would allow more people to be exposed to nutrition therapy so that they could learn how to improve their diets and their health.

Overall, Keckley is calling on U.S. Dietary Guidelines to improve their recommendations. He points out that no treatment option is ideal for every patient, and not every diet is ideal for every patient. Rather than push out one standard diet plan, Keckley says that patients should know that there are options available to them, and that should start with the doctors. To do this, he suggests updating screening measures in doctor’s offices and clinics across the country in an effort to bring the most updated quality of care to patients.

“Steps must be taken to contain and reverse the epidemic of Type 2 diabetes,” Keckley said. “Its impact and cost, left unchecked, will undermine the entire healthcare system. More must be done: the status quo is not working.”

MyNicNaxs of Deltona, Fla., is recalling all lots of various dietary supplements that were distributed nationwide.

The products contain active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) Sildenafil, Sibutramine, Diclofenac and/or Phenolphthalein not declared on the label.

The presence of these APIs render the products unapproved drugs for which safety and efficacy have not been established.

The following products, sold from January 2013, to December 2017, though the company website http://www.mynicnaxs.com, are being recalled:

What to do

Customers who purchased the recalled products should not consume them and discontinue use of the products immediately.

Consumers with questions may contact Mike Banner at (407) 791-3597 or Chevonne Torres ate (386) 337-8142, Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 5:00 pm, (ET).

Several studies have suggested that there’s a link between the holiday season and overeating that leads to weight gain. A recent analysis of data found that the last week of November to the first or second week of January is a critical time when many consumers gain weight.

Researchers say that most adults are bound to pack on a few pounds around the holiday, even if they’re seeking to lose weight and are self-monitoring their eating habits. However, some health experts don’t necessarily agree.

In an interview with ConsumerAffairs, nutritionist Allison Bradfield said that it’s important to be careful about which holiday foods you allow yourself to enjoy, since certain staples can lead to unintended weight gain.

She points out that some classic holiday foods can be diet downfalls, but others can be healthy when enjoyed in moderation.

Healthier holiday foods

Bradfield says some of the least healthy holiday foods include creamy dips, casseroles, and pecan pie. But other traditional holiday foods -- such as sweet potatoes, cranberries, pumpkin, and fresh green beans -- can offer health benefits, especially when prepared via simple cooking methods such as roasting, baking, or steaming.

Here are a few healthy foods to seek out at your next holiday gathering:

• Sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes are loaded with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants and have just 113 calories per half-cup. Since they’re naturally sweet when baked, you won’t need to add sugar, butter, or marshmallows. Instead, add a sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg.

• Pumpkin. Pumpkin pie is a better choice than pecan pie (which can have up to 800 calories per slice), says Bradfield. Pumpkin is lower in fat and calories and also provides a good dose of beta-carotene. Another way to cut calories? Avoid the crust.

• White turkey meat. Lower-fat white turkey meat is healthier than dark meat smothered in gravy. Bradfield says the healthiest way to enjoy white turkey meat is without the skin and with just a drizzle of gravy made with defatted pan juices, dry white wine, and low-sodium chicken broth.

• Hot cocoa. Instead of egg nog (which can have up to 500 calories a cup), Bradfield recommends warming up with a cup of low-fat dark chocolate hot cocoa.

• Lower-calorie spirits. Wine spritzers and light beer have fewer calories than mixed, sweetened alcoholic beverages. Since alcohol is a high calorie drink, Bradfield recommends setting a limit on the number of alcoholic beverages you allow yourself to have. Drinking water between beverages can also help prevent overindulgence.

Everything in moderation

To avoid consuming excess calories this holiday season, take a mindful approach when eating. Listening to your body can help you avoid overindulgence.

“I’m all for enjoying fabulous food around the holidays; with that being said, I also want to be mindful and balance my diet with healthy foods,” Bradfield said. “I recommend savoring favorite foods in moderation and forgoing anything that is not amazing.”

“It is important to be mindful while choosing foods to eat. Pay attention to your body (hunger and feelings of fullness), slow down, and stay in the moment. Avoid skipping meals, since that strategy can backfire and cause overindulgence later.”

Amid an endless string of holiday parties and food-filled celebrations, it can be all too easy to veer off course with regard to diet and nutrition. But in order to avoid the post-holiday bulge, it’s important to make sure you don’t overindulge.

The average person puts on about a pound from November to January. While it might not seem like a lot, that extra pound can linger -- sometimes well into the next year.

Research shows some of the weight people tend to gain over the holidays isn’t lost until five months later –and some people don’t shed their winter weight the following year. In the case of the latter, holiday weight gain can continue to accumulate year after year.

To avoid starting the New Year off with weight to lose, nutrition experts recommend making a plan to help yourself avoid extra sweet treats and rich meals around the holidays. Here are a few tips to help you do just that.

Eat before the party

Eat healthy in the hours leading up to the holiday party you plan to attend. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends focusing on lean protein, whole grains, and simply prepared fruits and vegetables.

And make sure you eat enough. Consuming too few calories in hopes that it will give you leeway to indulge later is a bad idea, experts say. Similar to grocery shopping on an empty stomach, showing up to a party hungry can result in going overboard on food.

Count your drinks

It’s no secret that alcoholic beverages are full of calories. If you’re trying to maintain your ideal weight, go easy on alcohol -- especially if you have more than one social gathering to attend per week.

"If you choose to consume alcohol this holiday season, opting for a light beer or a glass of dry wine, which comes in at about 100 to 150 calories, is a far better option and contains less sugar than homemade cider or a seasonal beer, which can often have as many as 200 calories per drink," Courtney McCormick, Corporate Dietitian at Nutrisystem, told ConsumerAffairs.

Keep a tally in your head of how many drinks you have had, or use a calorie-counting app. To pace yourself and stay hydrated, have a glass of water between drinks.

Choose healthy options

If you’re not confident there will be a healthy holiday dish available at the party, bring your own. Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes can be a nice swap for a traditional Mashed Potato dish, McCormick said.

Be sure to load up on healthy food options (like fruits and vegetables that may be set out as appetizers) first, even if that doesn’t leave much room for the main course. Avoid reaching for too many calorie-dense appetizers, like mixed nuts or mini hot dogs.

While eating healthy is the goal, you don’t have to forgo holiday treats altogether. Lindsey Joe, a registered dietitian and nutritionist has one key rule for holiday parties: “eat what you love, leave what you like.” Avoid nibbling on food that doesn’t give you true enjoyment.

Be social

Another way to keep yourself from overeating? Socialize–and do so away from the buffet or appetizer trays to minimize unconscious snacking.

Spending the party socializing can help you avoid the temptation to eat too many diet-sabotaging foods. If you’re still hungry after the party, you can always get a healthy snack or meal at home.

Just about any doctor will tell you that cutting down on sugar is a great first step to losing weight. But a recent study shows that this can be a lot harder for some consumers who enjoy their morning coffee.

Researchers from Cornell University have found that coffee can temporarily alter a person’s taste buds to make foods and drinks taste less sweet. While this isn’t necessarily a debilitating side effect on its own, senior author Robin Dando says that it may also make consumers crave sugar more, which could lead to overeating or consuming unhealthy snacks.

"When you drink caffeinated coffee, it will change how you perceive taste -- for however long that effect lasts. So if you eat food directly after drinking a caffeinated coffee or other caffeinated drinks, you will likely perceive food differently,” Dando said.

Sugar cravings and alertness

To test this effect, the researchers conducted a blind study where participants were either given the equivalent of a strong cup of coffee or decaffeinated coffee, both of which contained sugar. Overall, panelists who were given the caffeinated beverage were more likely to say that their drink was less sweet.

In a second part of the study, participants were once again split into two groups and received either a caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee. After drinking their beverage, the panelists were asked to estimate how much caffeine was in their drink and report on how alert they felt.

The researchers found that all participants reported the same increase in alertness after drinking their beverage, regardless of whether it was caffeinated. The team believes that the trial may have discovered a sort of placebo or conditioning effect tied to the act of drinking coffee.

“Think Pavlov’s dog. The act of drinking coffee – with the aroma and taste – is usually followed by alertness. So the panelists felt alert even if the caffeine was not there,” Dando said. “What seems to be important is the action of drinking that coffee. Just the action of thinking that you’ve done the things that make you feel more awake, makes you feel more awake.”

Whether that finding will have consumers reaching for decaf is more doubtful, but it could be a viable option for consumers who want to avoid sugar cravings.

The full study has been published in the Journal of Food Science.

Eating meals that are high in protein is a great way to provide your body with the means to build and repair muscle, bones, and other important building blocks. However, a new study shows that pairing a sugary drink with a high-protein meal could be harmful.

Researchers from the USDA-Agricultural Research Service Grand Forks Human Nutrition Center have found that consuming sugar-sweetened drinks with high-protein foods negatively affects the body’s energy balance and can lead to it to store more fat.

"We found that about a third of the additional calories provided by the sugar-sweetened drinks were not expended, fat metabolism was reduced, and it took less energy to metabolize the meals. This decreased metabolic efficiency may 'prime' the body to store more fat," said lead author Dr. Shanon Casperson.

Reducing fat-burn

The study analyzed 27 healthy-weight adults over two 24-hour periods who were given protein-laden meals and sugar-sweetened beverages. Participants were given 15% protein meals on their first visit after an overnight fast and 30% protein meals under similar conditions on their second visit. On each visit, one sugar-sweetened beverage was consumed during one meal and one non-sugar-sweetened beverage was consumed during the other.

The researchers found that the sugar-sweetened drinks decreased the fat oxidation process after a meal by 8%, which means that it took longer for the body to start breaking down fat molecules. For the 15% protein meal, that translated to 7.2 grams of potential fat that wasn’t burned. For the 30% protein meal, that figure increased to 12.6 grams.

Additionally, Casperson says that the sugar-sweetened beverages changed participants’ food preferences, causing them to not feel satisfied with their meal and to crave different types of flavors and foods for long periods after eating.

"We were surprised by the impact that the sugar-sweetened drinks had on metabolism when they were paired with higher-protein meals. This combination also increased study subjects' desire to eat savory and salty foods for four hours after eating," she said.

Weight gain and obesity

The results of the study show that consumers who are looking to lose weight should avoid sugar-sweetened drinks, especially if they are consuming more protein to recover after working out.

"Our findings suggest that having a sugar-sweetened drink with a meal impacts both sides of the energy balance equation. On the intake side, the additional energy from the drink did not make people feel more sated. On the expenditure side, the additional calories were not expended and fat oxidation was reduced,” said Casperson. “The results provide further insight into the potential role of sugar-sweetened drinks -- the largest single source of sugar in the American diet -- in weight gain and obesity."

The full study has been published in BMC Nutrition.

If you’re a consumer who struggles with obesity or being overweight, then one of the first suggestions you’re likely to hear is that you should restrict the number of calories you consume each day. However, this can be a major test of willpower for some, and different fad diets have tried to come up with ways that allow consumers to lose weight while letting them eat what they want.

One of the newest strategies is called alternate-day fasting, where consumers are encouraged to eat whatever they want on one day and follow it up with a day of fasting where they only consume up to 25% of their usual calorie intake. This approach has increased in popularity and has even made its way into several diet books, with proponents calling it a superior way to lose weight. But does it work?

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago set out to answer that question and found that the diet might not be all it’s cracked up to be. After conducting a one-year randomized clinical trial, they found that participants who followed an alternate-day fasting diet did not experience any additional weight loss when compared to those who dieted normally.

"The results of this randomized clinical trial demonstrated that alternate-day fasting did not produce superior adherence, weight loss, weight maintenance or improvements in risk indicators for cardiovascular disease compared with daily calorie restriction," the researchers said.

Trouble sticking to the diet

The study included 100 obese participants between the ages of 18 and 64 that were assigned to one of three groups for one year. One group followed an alternate-day fasting diet where participants consumed only 25% of their calorie needs on “fast” days and 125% of calorie needs on “feast” days; one group restricted their calorie intake to 75% of their caloric needs every day; and one group was given no intervention.

At the beginning of the experiment, the researchers expected that those following an alternate-day fasting diet would be able to adhere to their diet more easily, achieve greater weight loss, and reduce their risk for cardiovascular disease. However, the end results showed that these participants had the most trouble following their diet plan.

“Participants in the alternate-day fasting group ate more than prescribed on fast days, and less than prescribed on feast days, while those in the daily calorie restriction group generally met their prescribed energy goals,” the researchers said.

Not “superior”

In addition to not losing any more weight than participants in the calorie restriction group, the researchers found that those in the alternate-day fasting group were more likely to drop out of the study.

“Alternate-day fasting has been promoted as a potentially superior alternative to daily calorie restriction under the assumption that it is easier to restrict calories every other day. However, our data from food records. . . indicate that this assumption is not the case. Rather, it appears as though many participants in the alternate-day fasting group converted their diet into de facto calorie restriction as the trial progressed,” the researchers said.

“Moreover, the dropout rate in the alternate-day fasting group (38%) was higher than that in the daily calorie restriction group (29%) and the control group (26%). It was also shown that more participants in the alternate-day fasting group withdrew owing to dissatisfaction with diet compared with those in the daily calorie restriction group. Taken together, these findings suggest that alternate-day fasting may be less sustainable in the long term, compared with daily calorie restriction, for most obese individuals.”

The researchers point out that some individuals may still prefer alternate-day fasting over more conventional dieting techniques, but their study does put into question whether or not this new technique truly is “superior.”

The full study has been published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

With its array of ice cream flavors and a vast selection of TV dinners, the frozen food section may not seem like the place to go if you’re looking for healthy food options. But not all frozen foods are unhealthy, experts say.

In a new report, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) named five great options in the frozen food aisle. The analysis noted that “while fresh food is typically the best option, consumers don’t need to bypass all options in the frozen aisle.”

Certain frozen foods aren’t only nutritious, they can save consumers money and help reduce household food waste. In fact, studies have found that frozen food generates 47% less food waste compared to shelf-stable and chilled food.

Best frozen foods

Here are five foods to toss in your freezer for a source of key nutrients that can be consumed now or later, and in whatever quantity you choose.

• Organic vegetables. Whole green beans or peas are cheaper to buy frozen and do a stellar job of retaining their nutrients, the EWG explains. Frozen green beans retain more of their vitamin A and C content than other frozen veggies, while frozen peas retain more of their vitamin C content than fresh peas that have been stored for five days.
• Organic fruits. Frozen berries are good to have on hand for smoothies, oatmeal, and a myriad of other dishes. They also have an edge over dehydrated berries because they retain their vitamin content better than berries that have been exposed to high pressure or temperatures.
• Additive-free baby and toddler food. Some stores now carry baby food made from frozen fruits and vegetables. These products contain less added flavors, additives, and fillers since they are often harvested at the peak of the season.
• Sustainable, low-mercury seafood. In addition to being cheaper, frozen seafood is often of higher quality than fresh fish (which can sit on ice for more than a week before reaching the grocery store). To see which fish are high in omega-3 fatty acids and low in mercury, check out EWG’s Seafood Calculator.
• Better burritos. Most burritos in the frozen food aisle are “loaded with additives and are unnecessarily high in sodium,” the EWG notes. But good options do exist. The key to choosing a better-for-you frozen burrito is to look for varieties that highlight beans and environmentally friendly protein, like the Amy's brand.

The expression “eating for two” isn’t meant to imply that pregnant women should eat twice as much. It does, however, support the idea that mamas-to-be should maximize their nutrition during pregnancy.

Eating a healthy diet while pregnant can reduce the risk of pregnancy complications including blood pressure, obesity, preeclampsia, fetal growth restriction, and preterm birth.

But despite the well-known benefits of eating a healthy diet while pregnant, new research shows that many women aren’t making healthy dietary choices leading up to their first pregnancy. This finding was especially true among black, Hispanic, and less-educated women.

Pre-pregnancy diets lacking

A new study, published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, finds that most women do not meet nutrition guidelines shortly before pregnancy.

"Unlike many other pregnancy and birth risk factors, diet is something we can improve,"  said study author Lisa Bodnar of the University of Pittsburgh's School of Public Health.

"While attention should be given to improving nutritional counseling at doctor appointments, overarching societal and policy changes that help women to make healthy dietary choices may be more effective and efficient,” Bodnar suggested.

Study details

For the study, 7,500 pregnant women reported on their eating habits during the three months around conception. The researchers assessed participants’ diets using the Healthy Eating Index-2010, which measures 12 key aspects of diet quality.

Nearly a quarter of the white women surveyed scored in the highest scoring fifth, compared with 14% of Hispanic women and just under 5% of black women. Almost half (44%) of black mothers had a score in the lowest scoring fifth.

Findings from the study showed that the more education pregnant women had, the higher their healthy eating scores. The increase was strongest among white women. At all levels of education, black women had the lowest average scores, the researchers found.

Most women fall short

The team also found that none of the women in any racial or socioeconomic group evaluated achieved the recommendations set forth in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

The women surveyed got most of their energy from empty calories and processed, high-fat, high-sugar sources, the study found.

"Our findings mirror national nutrition and dietary trends. The diet-quality gap among non-pregnant people is thought to be a consequence of many factors, including access to and price of healthy foods, knowledge of a healthy diet, and pressing needs that may take priority over a healthy diet," said Bodnar.

"Future research needs to determine if improving pre-pregnancy diet leads to better pregnancy and birth outcomes. If so, then we need to explore and test ways to improve the diets for everyone, particularly women likely to become pregnant," Bodnar concluded.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans state that consumers should choose a variety of nutrient-dense foods while limiting foods with added sugars, saturated fats, and sodium. To prepare the body for pregnancy, it is suggested that women make an effort to consume more high-quality proteins, fruits and veggies, and folate.

Consumers looking to lose weight may have spent countless hours in a sweltering gym trying to burn away excess fat. But is there an easier way to melt away the pounds that isn’t so labor-intensive and time consuming?

Perhaps not yet, but scientists at the University of Bonn believe that they have a potential answer. Dr. Alexander Pfeifer and his fellow researchers have been researching how to burn away fat for years, and a recent study using mice shows that making changes at the cellular level could make it possible.

The process involves converting unwanted white fat cells into brown slimming cells that consume energy. The difference between the cells is that the latter is packed with much more mitochondria, the so-called “power stations” of the cell. These extra reserves of mitochondria take white fat cells and use them to produce thermal energy, effectively burning them away.

During the study, the researchers converted white fat cells into brown slimming cells in mice and found that the subjects lost a significant amount of weight after the process was completed. Additionally, they found that combining this process with certain active ingredients reduced the number of white fat cells and increased the number of brown slimming cells, which accelerated the fat burning process. This gives some hope that this kind of therapy could be used to combat obesity and obesity-related health conditions, such as joint problems, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases.

Problems to work out

While the findings are encouraging, Pfeifer and his team say that there are some complications that need to be worked out with the process, specifically when used with obese subjects.

Currently, the use of the certain active ingredients kicks fat burning into overdrive, but certain types of fat have proven to be more resistant due to inflammation. Specifically, the researchers noted that subcutaneous fat – the kind found closest to the surface of the skin – was affected normally by the therapy, but deeper-lying abdominal fat was more problematic.

The researchers found that subjects with this deeper-lying fat had much more inflammation than those who didn’t, and that inflammation effectively shuts down and blocks the pathways that the therapy uses to turn white fat cells into brown fat cells. Additionally, the risk of this kind of inflammation is already high because it promotes cardiovascular diseases, which makes the problem twice as bad, the researchers said.

While a concrete solution has not yet materialized, researcher and lead author Abhishek Sanyal believes that halting the abdominal fat’s inflammatory response while simultaneously administering the therapy’s active ingredients could be a good starting point for tests.

The full study has been published in Cell Reports.

Consumers who want to lose weight or just control their blood sugar may often be plagued by decisions on what they should be eating or drinking at any given time. When it comes to certain beverages, the decision becomes even trickier.

Some people believe that indulging in a beverage with artificial sweeteners can help reduce appetite and keep them from overeating at their next meal. Others say that choosing a drink with natural or non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) is better because it cuts down on overall sugar consumption.

So, which option is actually better for you? One study suggests that arguing for one over the other is a moot point in the short-term. Researchers from the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) in Singapore tested four beverages and found that daily energy intake, glucose levels, and insulin levels the blood was the same no matter what. The reason: what calories we avoid by drinking certain beverages is made up by the foods we eat throughout the day.

Energy intake is initially the same

The researchers set out to test four different kinds of beverages for their short-term study: one containing sucrose (sugar), one containing aspartame (an NNS), one made with a plant-derived NNS (Stevia), and one made with monk fruit (Mogroside V).

Thirty healthy male participants were asked to randomly consume one of the four beverages on each day of the trial period, while adhering to a similar daily schedule; each person woke each day and ate a standardized breakfast, drank one test beverage at mid-morning, and ate a lunchtime meal where they were asked to eat until comfortably full and write out a food diary.

After each round, the researchers recorded participants’ blood glucose and insulin levels. Lead author Siew Ling Tey said that the results were “surprising” because the amount of total daily energy intake was the same across all four beverages, meaning that participants consumed the same number of calories regardless of what they drank.

Short-term vs. long-term weight loss

Tey attributes this to participants reducing or increasing meal intake depending on the beverage they consumed earlier. Those that drank the sucrose-sweetened drink tended to reduce the amount of food they ate at lunch, while those who drank an NNS-sweetened beverage tended to eat more at meals.

“The energy ‘saved’ from replacing sugar with non-nutritive sweetener was fully compensated for at subsequent meals in the current study, hence no difference in total daily energy intake was found between the four treatments,” said Tey.

However, the researchers point out that longer-term studies have found that using NNS sweeteners for significant periods of time eventually reduces overall energy intake and body weight. The takeaway, then, may be that quick weight loss is not decided by the type of sweetened beverage we consume, but it should be a consideration when making a long-term diet plan.

The full study has been published in the International Journal of Obesity.

A lot of people go out of their way to eat extra protein. Dieters, in particular, think that eating more protein helps them stave off hunger and prevent the loss of muscle tissue that often comes with weight loss.

But is this really a good idea? In a study of 34 postmenopausal women with obesity, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis found that eating too much protein eliminates an important health benefit of weight loss -- improvement in insulin sensitivity, which is critical to lowering diabetes risk.

"We found that women who lost weight eating a high-protein diet didn't experience any improvements in insulin sensitivity," said principal investigator Bettina Mittendorfer, PhD, a professor of medicine. "However, women who lost weight while eating less protein were significantly more sensitive to insulin at the conclusion of the study. That's important because in many overweight and obese people, insulin does not effectively control blood-sugar levels, and eventually the result is type 2 diabetes."

A good marker

In fact, the researchers say, insulin sensitivity is a good marker of metabolic health, one that typically improves with weight loss. In their study, the women who lost weight while consuming less protein experienced a 25 to 30 percent improvement in their sensitivity to insulin.

Many dieters think that consuming extra protein can help preserve lean tissue -- muscle, in other words -- allowing them to lose fat without losing muscle. But Mittendorfer's findings don't support that belief.

"When you lose weight, about two-thirds of it tends to be fat tissue, and the other third is lean tissue," Mittendorfer said. "The women who ate more protein did tend to lose a little bit less lean tissue, but the total difference was only about a pound. We question whether there's a significant clinical benefit to such a small difference."

While the difference in muscle mass loss was slight, the same wasn't true of metabolism. The women who ate the recommended amount of protein saw big benefits in metabolism, led by a 25 to 30 percent improvement in their insulin sensitivity. That can lower the risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The women on the high-protein diet, meanwhile, did not experience those improvements.

"Very big effects"

"Changing the protein content has very big effects," Mittendorfer said. "It's not that the metabolic benefits of weight loss were diminished -- they were completely abolished in women who consumed high-protein diets, even though they lost the same, substantial amounts of weight as women who ate the diet that was lower in protein."

The study included 34 obese women 50 to 65 years old. Although all were obese, none had diabetes at the time of the study. They were placed in three groups for the 28-week study -- a control group, a group that ate the recommended date allowance of protein, and a third group that ate more protein.

It's still not clear why insulin sensitivity didn't improve in the high-protein group, and Mittendorfer said it's not known whether the same results would occur in men or in women already diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. She plans to continue researching the subject.

The findings became available Oct. 11 in the journal Cell Reports.

There all kinds of diets and weight loss programs, and while some undoubtedly achieve results for some people, it's also clear that the majority of people who start a diet soon give up.

Nutrition author Phoenix Gilman says the main reason diets fail is carbohydrate craving, leading to an overwhelming appetite.

"Millions of people still tragically believe in the low fat myth,” she said. “That alone has perpetuated our obesity epidemic, among numerous other diseases.”

Gilman says the simple answer to losing or controlling weight is learning what is healthy to eat and consuming reasonable portions of it. She says it's also important to understand the role of chemicals produced by the brain.

Gilman works with individual clients to help them lose weight, specializing in women over 40.

"As a woman myself, and one who's 57, this is a major turning point for women who are now looking in the mirror and asking, 'What happened?' Most have devoted their life to husbands, careers and raising children. Their health wasn't often a priority,” she said.

Laundry list of problems

Gilman attributes a laundry list of problems to poor nutrition -- from obesity, diabetes, and addictions, to depression, anxiety, and insomnia. Highly processed foods, she maintains, adjust brain chemicals that often send people running to the refrigerator.

Academic researchers have been onto this for some time. Back in 2007, researchers at UCLA conducted a study that concluded diets lead to temporary weight loss, at best.

"You can initially lose 5% to 10% of your weight on any number of diets, but then the weight comes back," Traci Mann, UCLA associate professor of psychology and lead author of the study, said at the time. "We found that the majority of people regained all the weight, plus more.”

It's true, Mann said, that a small minority of dieters were able to sustain their weight loss. It is also true, she said, that the majority regained all their weight.

Mann went so far as to contend that most dieters would have been better off not even trying to lose weight.

Gilman obviously disagrees, with the caveat that sensible portions of healthy, nutritious food is one diet that can work.

U.S. consumers have many options to pick from when it comes to buying beverages at the grocery store. The number of sodas, juices, and other sugary drinks are almost too many to count, but indulging in them too much can lead to health and weight problems.

However, a new study from Virginia Tech shows that replacing one sugary drink with water can go a long way towards improving someone’s overall health. Even those who drink several 8-ounce servings every day can benefit from this simple transition.

“Regardless of how many servings of sugar-sweetened beverages you consume, replacing even just one serving can be of benefit,” said Kiyah J. Duffey, a Virginia Tech adjunct professor and independent nutrition consultant.

Reduced calorie intake

Duffey and her colleagues tested this theory by analyzing the calorie difference that would occur from replacing an 8-ounce sugary drink with an 8-ounce glass of water. Findings were based on the daily dietary intake of U.S. adults from the 2007-2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys.

With this data, the researchers showed that making this substitution nearly brings daily calories from beverages in line with national standards.

“We found that among U.S. adults who consume one serving of sugar-sweetened beverages per day, replacing that drink with water lowered the percent of calories coming from 17 to 11 percent,” said Duffey. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans says that consumers should get no more than 10% of their daily calories from added sugar.

“Even those who consumed more sugary drinks per day could still benefit from water replacement, dropping the amount of calories coming from beverages to less than 25 percent of their daily caloric intake.”

Dietary changes

The researchers point out that making small changes to drinking habits can affect the types of foods that consumers indulge in as well. The Beverage Guidance Panel and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans – an index created by Duffey and nutrition researcher Brenda Davy in 2015 – shows that people who consume more sugary drinks tend to have diets that consist of more red meat, processed foods, sweets, starch, and refined grains.

People who drink more water, on the other hand, have been shown to have diets that include more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, and poultry. Following this kind of diet has been shown to lead to lowered blood sugar levels and a reduced risk of obesity.

The full study has been published in Nutrients. 

Last month, we reported on a study which showed that overeating leads to even more eating. The premise of the research was that eating too much in one sitting suppresses a hormone that tells your brain that you’re full.

Now, a new study conducted by the University of Georgia, Binghamton University, and Pennsylvania State University have reached similar conclusions. Researchers found that foods that are high in fat disturb neural messages to the brain that allow you to feel full. However, they believe that manipulating microbes in the stomach may reverse the effect.

Stifled communication

The study involved examining the “gut-to-brain” neural pathways in mice, who were sustained on a high-fat diet. The researchers found that regions of the brain responsible for processing feeding behavior became inflamed when high amounts of fat were introduced.

In order to determine the cause, they began examining microbiota in the stomach to see if the diet influenced composition. After finding a connection, lead researcher Dr. Claire de La Serre and her colleagues began injecting mice with low doses of a spectrum antibiotic that was able to reverse the negative effects.

Potential impact

There is potential for the impact of this study to be great. It precisely demonstrates to what extent stomach microbiota are affected by a high-fat diet. Information gleaned from the research could allow the medical community to come up with new therapies and medications that counter trends in overeating and obesity, two major health concerns.

One additional study has already made some progress by showing that eating certain types of foods can benefit microbiota composition in the stomach. Researchers found that eating blueberries, which have high levels of anthocyanin, can help lessen inflammation and lead to more stable blood sugar levels. Additional research into other bioactive foods will almost certainly follow.

Research conducted by De la Serre et al is scheduled to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), which takes place from July 12-16.  

What is the most important aspect of making a successful diet plan? Many people might say that it has to do with avoiding unhealthy foods and substituting them with well-known, healthy options. However, new research shows that this line of thinking may actually lead to failure more often than not.

Instead, researchers from Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business say that consumers should focus on adding healthy foods that they actually enjoy to their diet.

“Our research shows that instead of creating rules to avoid one’s favorite treats, dieters should focus on eating healthy foods that they enjoy. . . Dieters who restrict themselves from consuming foods they love most may be setting themselves up for future failure,” said Dr. Meredith David, assistant professor at Baylor and lead author of a study on the subject.

Approach dieting differently

The study analyzed data on 542 participants who answered questions related to creating a successful diet plan. The focus of the study was to gauge participants’ level of self-control and see how that affected their choices.

When asked about diet rules that they would create, a majority of respondents said that they would add in provisions that restricted or avoided certain foods. This was especially the case amongst individuals who were considered to have low levels of self-control and low levels of success with dieting.

Additionally, low self-control individuals were more likely to think of foods that they really enjoyed when listing unhealthy foods that they should avoid. On the other hand, high self-control individuals were more likely to list foods that they liked, but ones that they could reasonably give up.

Low self-control participants were also most likely to think of foods they didn’t like when trying to create a list of healthy foods that they should eat, like Brussels sprouts. High self-control individuals were more likely to think of healthy foods that they also enjoyed eating, such as fruits like strawberries.

Focus on foods you enjoy

These findings show that consumers who have low self-control may be approaching dieting in the wrong way.

“In coming up with plans to enhance one’s health and well-being, low self-control individuals tend to set themselves up for a harder pathway to success by focusing on avoiding the very goods they find most tempting. . . Our data reveals that individuals who are generally more successful at reaching their goals tend to develop more motivating plans regarding the inclusion of healthy, well-liked items and the exclusion of unhealthy items that are not one’s favorites,” said David.

The researchers believe that more success could be achieved by dieters if they adopt plans that focus more on foods that they enjoy instead of focusing on what they will be missing out on.

“The next time you decide to go on a diet or seek to improve your health by altering your food consumption, opt for strategies that focus on including healthy foods in your diet, and focus specifically on those healthy foods that you really enjoy eating,” said David.

The full study has been published in the journal Psychology & Marketing.

Amid all the fad diets and weight control programs, there is one very simple way to lose weight: eat less.

Easier said than done, however. Over the years, the portion sizes consumers expect – and get – have gotten significantly larger. That might be fine for a portion of steamed broccoli, less fine for a portion of meatloaf.

When you look on a food nutrition label, it will tell you how many servings the product contains. But once on a plate, chances are the serving will look pretty small to some consumers who are accustomed to larger portions. Sticking to the serving size, however, could make it easier to lose or maintain weight.

Prepackaged portions

New research published in the scientific journal Obesity has confirmed what diet product companies have long known – when you package food in small, controllable portions, it is easier to lose weight.

“Participants who were prescribed twice-daily prepackaged meals lost about 8% of their initial weight, compared to participants in the control group – who could select their own diets – who only lost about 6%,” said lead researcher Cheryl Rock, of the University of California San Diego School of Medicine.

The real key, she says, is removing the guesswork involved in planning and preparing low-calorie meals.

It all sounds simple enough, but Martin Binks, a spokesperson for The Obesity Society, says it may be hard for someone who is overweight or obese to put it into practice. He notes that it is important to reduce the body's energy intake for weight loss, but a body accustomed to large amounts of energy will crave it when it's denied. Still, he notes this strategy is a step toward reducing obesity.

Encouraging trend

According to research published in Food Technologists magazine, consumers may be slowly moving away from giant-sized portions. Among the trends uncovered by the research, there was a conscious shift to smaller portion sizes reported by one-third of the consumers in the survey.

Many restaurants, however, still serve up huge portions – more than a human being should eat in a day, in some cases. The reason is competition. Restaurants know consumers can choose to dine out anywhere. They conclude that their chances are better of attracting consumers if they provide a generous spread – and in many cases, they are correct.

Food products that come in prepackaged portions are an easy way to both control portion size and keep track of calories. The downside is these meals often contain large amounts of sodium. A steady diet might expose you to excessive amounts of salt.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) offers a number of tips for controlling portions when cooking from scratch, including using smaller plates and cups and sticking to suggested serving sizes. If you're still hungry, eat more vegetables but skip dessert.

Artificial sweeteners have come a long way over the years, now closely mimicking natural sweeteners but without the calories.

The sweeteners are effective tools to help obese consumers reduce calorie consumption, but researchers at York University's Faculty of Health say that weight management may come at a price.

"Our study shows that individuals with obesity who consume artificial sweeteners, particularly aspartame, may have worse glucose management than those who don't take sugar substitutes," Professor Jennifer Kuk, obesity researcher in the School of Kinesiology and Health Science, said in a release.

Artificial sweeteners lack caloric content because they are not digested by the body. If they can make food taste better without adding calories, it can help consumers manage their weight. But the York University study found that in some cases, bacteria in the stomach may be able to break down the artificial sweetener. When that happens, researchers say there can be negative effects on health.

No adverse effect from saccharin

Kuk said the research team didn't find this adverse effect in people consuming saccharin – an early artificial sweetener – or natural sugars. The findings, however, left them with more questions than answers.

"We will need to do future studies to determine whether any potentially negative health effects of artificial sweeteners outweigh the benefits for obesity reduction," Luk said.

This is hardly the first research to suggest there could be some downside to using food and beverage products containing artificial sweeteners. A 2008 study by psychologists at Purdue University found that compared with rats that ate yogurt sweetened with sugar, rats given yogurt sweetened with zero-calorie saccharin later consumed more calories, gained more weight, put on more body fat, and didn't make up for it by cutting back later.

Later that same year a Duke University study that focused on the artificial sweetener Splenda concluded the product contributes to obesity, destroys beneficial intestinal bacteria, and could even interfere with absorption of prescription drugs.

Pepsi dumps aspartame

Last year Pepsi announced it would remove aspartame from its beverages sold in the U.S., reacting to research that suggests the artificial sweetener – while not imparting calories – might creating sugar cravings among people who consume too much, thus negating the benefits of a no-calorie beverage.

Today, food manufacturers have many options when it comes to new sugar substitutes. The York researchers says more investigation should be carried out to determine if there are any health effects of using these sweeteners.

New nutrition labels unveiled today by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) take aim at sugar in packaged foods, a prime culprit in obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.

“I am thrilled that the FDA has finalized a new and improved Nutrition Facts label that will be on food products nationwide,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “This is going to make a real difference in providing families across the country the information they need to make healthy choices.”

The new labels disclose the amount of added sugar with a corresponding line giving the recommended daily intake.

"Right now, it's impossible for consumers who look at a Nutrition Facts label to know how much of the sugar in foods is added and how that amount fits into a reasonable daily diet," said Michael F. Jacobson, president of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which first petitioned the FDA to put added sugars on Nutrition Facts labels in 1999.

"Besides helping consumers make more informed choices, the new labels should also spur food manufacturers to add less sugar to their products," Jacobson said. 

Key changes

Highlights of the new labels include:

• An updated design to highlight “calories” and “servings,” two important elements in making informed food choices.
• Requirements for serving sizes that more closely reflect the amounts of food that people currently eat. What and how much people eat and drink has changed since the last serving size requirements were published in 1993.
• Declaration of grams and a percent daily value (%DV) for “added sugars” to help consumers know how much sugar has been added to the product.
• “Dual column” labels to indicate both “per serving” and “per package” calorie and nutrition information for certain multi-serving food products that could be consumed in one sitting or multiple sittings.
• For packages that are between one and two servings, such as a 20 ounce soda, the calories and other nutrients will be required to be labeled as one serving because people typically consume it in one sitting.
• “Calories from Fat” will be removed because research shows the type of fat is more important than the amount. “Total Fat,” “Saturated Fat,” and “Trans Fat” will continue to be required.

Most food manufacturers will be required to use the new label by July 26, 2018.

Most restaurant meals are designed to be filling and satisfying. That, after all, is how restaurants fill tables.

For that reason, restaurant meals tend to be high in calories and filled with good-tasting ingredients that might not be all that healthy.

For those trying to eat a healthier diet, choosing a restaurant can be a frustrating process. The healthier choice might not be obvious at first glance.

For example, researchers at the University of South Carolina say the caloric content of fast casual restaurants like Chipotle and Panera Bread is often higher than at fast food outlets like McDonald's and Burger King, even though the latter has a reputation for calorie-laden meals.

200 more calories

Their findings, written up in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, reports an average fast casual meal has 200 more calories than a typical fast food meal. When it comes to menus, the study found more high-calorie options at fast casual establishments than the fast food restaurants.

"We were surprised that there were higher calories at fast casual restaurants, but one of the main takeaways from the paper is that there are a lot of high-calorie options at both kinds of restaurants," said lead researcher Danielle Schoffman.

The South Carolina study reached much the same conclusion as one at Tufts University in January. That study, which focused on fast casual and independent restaurants, found 92% of the 364 measured restaurant meals from both categories had more calories than the recommended number for a single meal.

In a third of the restaurants, at least one meal on the menu packed more calories than a person should consume in a single 24-hour period.

What to do

If you are maintaining a healthy diet at home, is it possible to eat in a restaurant without packing on the pounds? Most nutritionists will tell you that one restaurant meal will not kill a diet, and a treat every once in a while might not be a bad thing.

It becomes a problem when restaurant meals are a staple of your weekly diet. For example, traveling for an extended period will require you to exercise some discretion and self-control.

For starters, choose restaurants that post calorie information on the menu, and use that information when choosing what to order. Some fast casual chains, like Applebees, highlight items on the menu that have fewer calories and less saturated fat.

Also, use common sense when selecting food. Weigh calories against nutritional content. Researcher Brie Turner-McGrievy says that sometimes the higher calorie meal is the better choice if it is more nutritious.

"A burger on a white bun may have fewer calories, but when you're talking about cancer prevention or other chronic diseases, you have to look beyond calories," Turner-McGrievy said. "We don't want the message to be, 'Go eat hamburgers and don't eat guacamole and beans and brown rice.' "

The NBC reality series “The Biggest Loser” has been an inspiration to many obese people. They have watched as contestants embraced a supervised, on-camera lifestyle transition to a healthy diet and exercise.

Even the contestants who didn't win went home happy, with slimmer, lighter bodies. But a team of U.S. researchers wondered what happened next? Did the feel-good story continue, off-camera? In most cases, it did not.

The researchers investigated 16 of the show's contestants, 14 of whom participated in the follow-up study. All but one gained back some of the weight. Four regained everything they lost, and then some.

The study found the 14 participants lost an average of about 128 pounds, regaining about 90 pounds over six years.

Looking for 'why?'

But that wasn't the point of the study – the researchers suspected they might find some regained weight, since that often happens to dieters. The real question they wanted to answer was “why.”

The “why” appears to center on changes to metabolism, which is kind of like your body's miles-per-gallon (MPG) rating. You want your body to have the MPG of a Hummer, not a Prius.

In their study, the researchers determined that the dramatic weight loss altered the body's metabolism, the rate at which it burns calories. As subjects dropped pounds, the body slowed the rate at which it burned calories. They call it metabolic adaptation.

Using before and after data for the contestants, the researchers found their resting metabolic rate (RMR) slowed in the years following the show.

The researchers said their study, supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is probably the longest follow-up investigation of the changes in metabolic adaptation and body composition following weight loss and regain.

Suppressed RMR

“We found that despite substantial weight regain in the six years following participation in 'The Biggest Loser,' RMR remained suppressed at the same average level as at the end of the weight loss competition,” the authors wrote.

They found mean RMR after six years was about 500 calories a day lower than expected, based on the measured body composition changes and the increased age of the subjects. The contestants who lost the most weight, they said, also experienced the greatest slowdown in RMR at that time.

Those most successful in keeping the lost weight off after six years also experienced greater ongoing metabolic slowing.

“Metabolic adaptation persists over time and is likely a proportional, but incomplete, response to contemporaneous efforts to reduce body weight,” the study concludes.

The takeaway

The takeaway, however, is not that obese people should not try to lose weight and adopt a healthier lifestyle, far from it. Rather, it's an acknowledgment of the physical obstacles your body can throw up to maintaining the weight loss.

Despite their weight regain, the contestants were “quite successful” at long-term weight loss compared with other lifestyle interventions, the study found. The researchers also found that those who experienced the biggest metabolic change did not experience the greatest weight regain and those who were most successful in keeping the weight off had pretty much the same metabolic slowdown.

So the lesson, the researchers say, is “long-term weight loss requires vigilant combat against persistent metabolic adaptation that acts to proportionally counter ongoing efforts to reduce body weight.”

It should be noted that participants in “The Biggest Loser” all had close medical monitoring during the show. You should not undertake any sort of significant weight loss effort without consulting a doctor first.  

Losing weight can be a difficult enough challenge as it is, but being able to maintain that weight loss over time can be even more daunting. It is often very difficult for the body to adapt to new lifestyle changes like increased exercise and dieting; however, new research shows that there is a measurable timeframe, after which the body will adjust and accept the changes.

Researchers at the University of Copenhagen conducted a study on obesity and weight loss and found that if a person can lose weight and keep it off for a year, then the body will accept the change.

“This study shows that if an overweight person is able to maintain an initial weight loss – in this case for a year – the body will eventually ‘accept’ this new weight and thus not fight against it, as is otherwise normally the case when you are in a calorie-deficit state,” said Signe Sorensen Torekov, associate professor with the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research.

Adapting to change

But what exactly changes over the course of a year that allows the body to accept its new weight? Researchers concluded that the change is primarily hormonal, specifically with two appetite-inhibiting hormones called GLP-1 and PYY.

Normally, when someone first begins to lose weight, a hormone called ghrelin spikes up and causes hunger; it’s the body’s way of reacting to the changes. GLP-1 and PYY levels are usually pretty low at this point. However, after a year of maintaining this weight loss, researchers found that GLP-1 and PYY levels actually get higher and ghrelin stays at normal levels; this translates to a person not feeling as hungry anymore, which, in turn, makes it easier to keep weight off.

Obese people, in particular, have very low GLP-1 levels, but improvements can be made if they try to adhere to a healthier lifestyle.

“We know that obese people have low levels of the appetite inhibiting hormone GLP-1. The good thing is that now we are able to show you can actually increase the levels of this hormone as well as the appetite inhibiting hormone PYY by weight loss and that the levels are kept high (=increased appetite inhibition) when you maintain your weight loss for a year,” said Eva Winning Iepsen, first author of the study.

Encouraging news

This research comes as good news to consumers who may be struggling to maintain their weight loss. Although it may be difficult for some time, the study shows that there will come a point when things get easier.

“The interesting and uplifting news in this study is that if you are able to maintain your weight loss for a longer period of time, it seems as if you have ‘passed the critical point’, and after this point, it will actually become easier for you to maintain your weight loss than [it] was immediately after the initial weight loss. . . Thus, the body is no longer fighting against you, but actually with you, which is good news for anyone trying to lose weight,” says Torekov.

The full study has been published in the European Journal of Endocrinology. 

Illegal anabolic steroids are not the only way men have tried to get a bodybuilding advantage. Most men are now well aware of the hazards those drugs can carry and avoid them.

Instead, more men are turning to legal over-the-counter bodybuilding supplements and it's these products that health officials are worried about.

Research presented at the American Psychological Association’s annual convention warns that some users rely on these products so much that it should be considered an eating disorder.

Ubiquitous fixture

“These products have become an almost ubiquitous fixture in the pantries of young men across the country and can seemingly be purchased anywhere and everywhere -- from grocery stores to college book stores,” said Richard Achiro, of the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University, Los Angeles, who presented the research.

Achiro says marketing efforts for these product target “underlying insecurities associated with masculinity.” He says they're presented as a solution to fill a void so many young men feel.

The study involved young men who purchased legal performance-enhancing supplements and worked out at a gym at least two times a week. They were questioned about supplement use, self-esteem, body image, eating habits and gender role conflicts.

Concerns

The researchers said they were concerned when they learned more than 40% of the young men in the survey reported that their use of supplements had increased over time and 22% said they replaced regular meals with dietary supplements that are not intended to be meal replacements.

Most alarming, said Achiro, was that 29% expressed concern about their own use of supplements and 8% said their physician had told them to cut back on or stop using supplements due to actual or potential adverse health side effects.

A few of the participants had actually suffered negative health effects. About 3% said they had been hospitalized for kidney or liver problems that were related to the use of supplements.

“The most critical implication for these findings is to put risky/excessive legal supplement use on the map as an issue facing a significant number of men,” said Achiro.

Body issues not limited to women

Achiro says the results make clear that body-conscious issues aren't limited to young women. Why men are also effected isn't exactly clear, but he says evidence suggests it's a combination of factors, including body dissatisfaction and gender role conflicts.

“Body-conscious men who are driven by psychological factors to attain a level of physical or masculine ‘perfection’ are prone to use these supplements and drugs in a manner that is excessive and which was demonstrated in this study to be a variant of disordered eating,” said Achiro. “As legal supplements become increasingly prevalent around the globe, it is all the more important to assess and treat the psychological causes and effects of excessive use of these drugs and supplements.”

The bodybuilding community has not written off all supplements – just some. An essay on Bodybuilding.com warns users to avoid certain products, including ones that contain Vanadyl, which it says mimics insulin and is possibly harmful.

Recent studies show that individuals on the autism spectrum are more likely to suffer from malnutrition. Children who suffer from the disorder are especially at risk, since poor nutrition can often lead to them being either overweight or underweight. Both of these conditions contribute to a poorer quality of life and a reduced lifespan.

An article entitled “Nutritional Status of Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Do We Know Enough?” looks into several studies that have investigated the nutritional needs and status of individuals on the autism spectrum.

Selective eating habits

Although the cause of this malnutrition is not set in stone, researchers believe that it may have to do with habits that are typical for autistic individuals. For example, children who have autism are known to have very selective eating habits. They are often afraid to try new foods that they don’t know, or are hypersensitive to particular ingredients. This limits the amount of food that they can incorporate into their diet.

As a result, many children that fall on the autism spectrum tend to be overweight or obese. Although the dietary restrictions above are certainly a cause, a lack of physical exercise may also contribute to the problem. Autistic children are often restricted in their ability to take part in physical activities due to motor deficits. One study showed that older children with autism are at increased risk of adopting a sedentary lifestyle.

On the other side of the coin, many autistic children tend to be underweight as well. While this is not as common, the cause is more than likely due to similar dietary restrictions and preferences.

Identifying disorders

The authors of the article believe that identifying autism spectrum disorders is the first step in making sure that these children get the help that they need. Research suggests that lower folate, vitamin B-6, and vitamin B-12 levels in children could point to the presence of an autism spectrum disorder. Parents should also be aware of abnormal growth rates in their children, as this is another sign.

By identifying the disorders early on, researchers hope that more intervention strategies can be adopted to make sure that autistic children receive the help they need. This includes adapting foundations for good nutrition and exercise. The authors end their article by stating that we need to ensure that all individuals on the autism spectrum, both old and young, are treated with the same urgency and focus. 

A company called Sale Slash has Oprah Winfrey and other big-name celebrities endorsing it and it uses "fake news" sites and spam emails to lure customers but the Federal Trade Commission says its weight-loss products are unproven and its claims outrageous.

“Sale Slash is a fraud trifecta,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “The company made outlandish weight-loss claims for its diet pills using fake news sites, phony celebrity endorsements, and millions of unwanted spam emails.”

The FTC has obtained a court order temporarily halting the Glendale, California, company's operations.

The court order halts the defendants’ illegal conduct, freezes their assets, and appoints a temporary receiver over the corporate defendants. The Commission ultimately is seeking to recover money from the defendants that would be used to provide refunds to consumers who bought the defendants’ diet pills.

The FTC’s complaint charges that the defendants behind Sale Slash used affiliate marketers to send illegal spam emails and post banner ads online that led consumers to fake news sites designed to appear as if an independent consumer reporter, rather than a paid advertiser, had reviewed and endorsed the products.

The complaint alleges that these fake news sites made false weight-loss claims and used phony celebrity endorsements to promote the defendants’ diet pills.

Since 2012, the defendants allegedly have marketed and sold a variety of products nationwide, including supposed weight-loss supplements such as Premium Green Coffee, Pure Garcinia Cambogia, Premium White Kidney Bean Extract, Pure Forskolin Extract, and Pure Caralluma Fimbriata Extract.

When consumers embrace a particular weight loss program, they may achieve results. But in other instances, try as they might, the pounds can be very slow to come off, if they come off at all.

In the latter case, it might not be a matter of how much a dieter is eating, but what the dieter is eating.

Changing those old eating habits – adding certain foods to the diet and avoiding others – can make it easier to win the battle of the bulge. At least that’s the conclusion of researchers at Tufts University.

At Tufts, the Friedman School Nutrition Science & Policy analyzed 3 previous studies that were based on more than 16 years of follow-up among 120,000 adults. That led researchers there to focus on the glycemic content, or load (GL) of particular foods.

The GL is determined by multiplying a food’s glycemic index, a measure of a food’s ability to create blood glucose, by the carbohydrate content. Foods with a high GL were more likely to make it easier to gain weight and harder to lose it.

Refined grains, starches and sugars

Food with a big GL include refined grains, starches and sugars. Researchers say these high GL foods can boost blood glucose and lead to chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes. Until now, they say, the link to weight gain had not been firmly established.

“There is mounting scientific evidence that diets including less low-quality carbohydrates, such as white breads, potatoes, and sweets, and higher in protein-rich foods may be more efficient for weight loss,” said Jessica Smith, one of the authors. “We wanted to know how that might apply to preventing weight gain in the first place.”

If you are trying, without result, to lose weight you may be interested in the food Smith and her colleagues say you should eat and what you should avoid – or at least keep consumption to a minimum.

Less red meat, more yogurt

The study concluded that increasing the amount of red meat and processed meat are the food items most strongly associated with weight gain.

Conversely, increasing consumption of yogurt, seafood, skinless chicken and nuts are most strongly associated with weight loss. In fact, the more people ate these foods, the more weight they lost.

Interestingly, the researchers found that eating dairy products in general didn’t seem to have much effect one way or the other.

“The fat content of dairy products did not seem to be important for weight gain,” Smith said. “In fact, when people consumed more low-fat dairy products, they actually increased their consumption of carbs, which may promote weight gain. This suggests that people compensate, over years, for the lower calories in low-fat dairy by increasing their carb intake.”

What else is on your plate?

The combination of foods you consume also appears to be important. For example, avoiding foods with a high GL seemed to make fish, nuts and other food associated with weight loss even more effective.

Weight-neutral foods like eggs and cheese appear to contribute to weight gain when combined with high GL food but are associated with weight loss when eaten with low GL food.

The chief take-away from the study seems to be this: not all calories are created equal.

“Our study adds to growing new research that counting calories is not the most effective strategy for long-term weight management and prevention,” said Dariush Mozaffarian, the study’s senior author. “Some foods help prevent weight gain, others make it worse. Most interestingly, the combination of foods seems to make a big difference.”

The Tufts researchers advise those trying to shed a few pounds to not only emphasize specific protein-rich foods like fish, nuts, and yogurt to prevent weight gain, but also focus on avoiding refined grains, starches, and sugars in order to maximize the benefits of these healthful protein-rich foods.

To further help consumers identify foods to eat and avoid, the Harvard Medical School recently published this list of 100 foods and their GL.

If you've been on a weight control plan the last few weeks, good for you. But here's a warning – the holidays are dead ahead.

The problem starts with Thanksgiving Day. That's when the strongest willpower can run off the rails, leading to weight gain over the next few weeks as one party and family dinner follows another.

Kristen Kizer, a registered dietitian at Houston Methodist Hospital, says Thanksgiving can be especially dangerous for a dieter because it's a big, traditional feast. There are so many dishes associated with this traditional meal that it's hard not to load up your plate.

“Remind yourself how it feels to over-eat,” she said. “Remember there will always be leftovers, so you don’t need to overindulge in one sitting.”

Kizer has offered up 10 pieces of advice that can help everyone avoid getting the holidays off to an unhealthy start.

1. Get some exercise

There will be plenty of time in the afternoon and evening for sitting on the couch. Start the day with some exercise, whether its a 5k road race or a brisk walk. Burn some calories before sitting down to dinner.

2. Eat breakfast

You might be tempted to skip breakfast to save room for your Thanksgiving meal. Not a good idea, Kizer says. Eat a satisfying, healthy breakfast so you won't be overly hungry when they start passing around all those tempting delicacies.

3. Pass on the casserole

Every family has a couple of casseroles that are part of Thanksgiving tradition but there are good reasons to pass them on without taking a serving. Yes, you may love the green bean casserole but between the fried onion strings, condensed soup, and canned beans, it lacks nutritional value.

Kizer has a recipe to try instead; fresh steamed green beans with some low-fat cheese sprinkled on top or roasted green beans with a little olive oil and fresh garlic.

4. Nix the sugar

Come on, how sweet do the sweet potatoes have to be? Kizer says the Pilgrims didn't top them off with marshmallows and neither should you. A sweet potato is plenty sweet on its own.

5. Don't get stuffed on stuffing

How about giving the classic Thanksgiving side dish a makeover by adding more vegetables like celery, onions and carrots and eliminating fatty meat like sausage?

6. Add something healthy to the line-up

Tradition is one thing but that doesn't mean you can't branch out. Take advantage of some non-traditional fall foods like Brussels sprouts and butternut squash, or try a roasted starchy vegetable medley with baby red potatoes, carrots, onions and acorn squash.

7. Limit your carbs

For some reason Thanksgiving meals are heavy in carbohydrates. If you have stuffing, do you really need mashed potatoes too?

8. Add healthy desserts

No one is suggesting that you do away with the apple pie but consider a guilt-free dessert or two, providing something sweet but with fewer calories. Get creative with your recipes, using natural applesauce instead of oil or butter in your desserts. Kizer says this simple ingredient swap not only adds moisture and flavor to baked goods, but fiber and nutrients.

9. Alcohol or dessert

If you have a couple of drinks before sitting down to Thanksgiving diner, you've already consumed 200 calories or more before taking a bite. Then at the end of dinner, that slice of pecan pie has ended the meal with no telling how many calories – all empty.

Kizer suggests choosing one or the other. If you choose alcohol, pick a drink with lower calories, such as a wine spritzer instead of creamy holiday drinks that can easily pack 500 calories.

10. Portion control

No doubt all the food looks good but that doesn't mean you have to try it all and fill up every spot on your plate. Hosts can help but cutting back on the amount of food they prepare.

Remember, if you go overboard at Thanksgiving there may be no turning back. The end -of-the-year holidays all seem to involving eating and drinking, putting you back to square 1 in your weight management quest in January.

The experts have been touting the significance of it for years. We are talking about the all important family dinner. It's a time to reconnect and talk about the day. It helps develop a sense of who we are as a family unit. Remember those?

Well, there is a new twist and yet another reason to pick up your fork and spoon or maybe put it down for a bit and listen. Having a family dinner especially during adolescence can help fight obesity. If kids are overweight in their teens they have a likelihood of being overweight as an adult.

There was a long-term study known as Project EAT (Eating and Activity among Teens) it examined weight-related variables among adolescents, including how much they ate, how much physical activity they did and their daily behaviors -- all of these influence weight control. The study is scheduled for publication in the Journal of Pediatrics.

Researchers from the University of Minnesota and Columbia University took a look at the data and what they found was that family meals had all the good stuff -- fruits, vegetables whole grains and calcium. They suggested that having those things in their diet can help teens lessen their chance of obesity as they become adults. Also parents eating healthy is a good role model and sets the tone of "eat this, not that."

10 years later

They followed up after 10 years and of the teens who said that they never ate family meals together, 60% were overweight and 29% were obese.

Researchers concluded that just having one or two family meals a week significantly reduced chances of being overweight or obese.

"It is important to identify modifiable factors in the home environment, such as family meals, that can protect against overweight/obesity through the transition to adulthood," said Minnesota researcher Jerica M. Berge.

You have probably heard the term an "emotional eater." Family meals may help fight that as sitting around the dinner table gives kids a chance to talk and deal with some of the issues they may be facing. The interaction and emotional connection becomes a release.

Some research in 2013 by Cornell University could be the second course for this study as it found that turning the TV off at dinner time while having dinner with the family and not turning it back on until everyone was finished was linked to a lower body mass.

"The positive socialization skills that family dinners tend to encourage possibly hold down the urge or need to overeat, a Cornell researcher said. 
"The ritual of where one eats and how long one eats seems to be the largest driver."

You might want to warm up the meatloaf and add a salad tonight.

You might not think of apples as being hard to digest and they're not. But it turns out that they contain a high percentage of nondigestible compounds that may be helpful in preventing disorders associated with obesity.

Scientists at Washington State University say their study finds that Granny Smith apples are particularly beneficial; they encourage the growth of friendly bacteria in the colon because of their high content of non-digestible compounds, including dietary fiber and polyphenols, and low content of available carbohydrates. 

“We know that, in general, apples are a good source of these nondigestible compounds but there are differences in varieties,” said food scientist Giuliana Noratto, the study’s lead researcher. “Results from this study will help consumers to discriminate between apple varieties that can aid in the fight against obesity.”

Despite being subjected to chewing, stomach acid and digestive enzymes, the nondigestible compounds remain intact when they reach the colon. Once there, they are fermented by bacteria in the colon, which benefits the growth of friendly bacteria in the gut.

The study showed that Granny Smith apples surpass Braeburn, Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, McIntosh and Red Delicious in the amount of nondigestible compounds they contain.

“The nondigestible compounds in the Granny Smith apples actually changed the proportions of fecal bacteria from obese mice to be similar to that of lean mice,” Noratto said.

The discovery could help prevent some of the disorders associated with obesity such as low-grade, chronic inflammation that can lead to diabetes.

The balance of bacterial communities in the colon of obese people is disturbed. This results in microbial byproducts that lead to inflammation and influence metabolic disorders associated with obesity, Noratto said.

“What determines the balance of bacteria in our colon is the food we consume,” she said. Re-establishing a healthy balance of bacteria in the colon stabilizes metabolic processes that influence inflammation and the sensation of feeling satisfied, or satiety.

The study appears in October’s print edition of the journal Food Chemistry.

The diet world has been jolted recently by studies suggesting that eating fat is not such a bad thing after all. It might not lead to heart disease and it might not make you gain weight, researchers have argued.

But it all depends on what kind of fat you consume – and how much. Nutritionists have known for years that some kinds of fats are actually beneficial. Some are harmful.

Writing in the September issue of Food Technology magazine, Linda Milo Ohr makes the case for fatty acids and nutritional oils. They can improve memory function, help manage body weight, and contribute to heart health, eye and brain development, and even improved mood.

She singles out 9 fats that she says can enhance, not harm health.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

Omega-3 fatty acids are associated with improved brain development, memory function, eye health, can reduce chances of dementia and depression. They are also widely well-known for their heart health benefits.

Pinolenic Acid

Pinolenic acid comes from pine nut oil, which in turn comes from a specific Korean pine tree. Ohr says clinical trials have shown that it can help suppress appetite and promote a feeling of fullness.

Conjugated Linoleic Acid

Conjugated linoleic acid also helps with weight management by helping reduce body fat and increase lean body mass. It's found in many meats and dairy products.

Flaxseed Oil

Flaxseed oil is a way to load up on omega-3 fatty acids as well as omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids. They can be good for your heart and help reduce inflammation.

Hemp Oil

Hemp seed oil is another source of omega-6 and omega-3 linolenic essential fatty acids. It's also high in vitamin E.

Fish Oil

Fish oil is valued for its positive effect on cardiovascular, neurological, and cognitive health.

Canola Oil

“A study showed that a canola oil-enriched, low-glycemic-diet improved blood sugar control in type 2 diabetics, especially those with raised systolic blood pressure,” Ohr writes.

Soybean Oil

Extracted from the seed of the soybean, soybean oil is widely used as a healthy cooking oil.

Coconut Oil

Although not as much research has been done compared to olive or fish oil, coconut oil is believed to enhance energy, skin health, and dental health.

Fats that can be harmful

While adding these healthy fats to a nutritious diet might be a good thing, there are definitely fats that can have harmful effects, according to doctors at the Mayo Clinic.

Saturated fat is fat that comes mainly from animal sources of food, such as red meat, poultry and full-fat dairy products. Too much can raise total blood cholesterol levels and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels, which can increase your risk of cardiovascular disease. Saturated fat may also increase your risk of type 2 diabetes.

Trans fat occurs naturally in some foods but most are manufactured from oils through a food processing method called partial hydrogenation. The Mayo Clinic cites studies showing that these partially hydrogenated trans fats can increase unhealthy LDL cholesterol and lower healthy high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. This can also increase your risk of cardiovascular disease.

Contrave (naltrexone hydrochloride and bupropion hydrochloride extended-release tablets) has won approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as treatment option for chronic weight management.

The drug is approved -- along with a reduced-calorie diet and physical activity -- for use in adults with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater (obesity) or adults with a BMI of 27 or greater (overweight) who have at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure (hypertension), type 2 diabetes, or high cholesterol (dyslipidemia).

BMI, which measures body fat based on an individual’s weight and height, is used to define the obesity and overweight categories. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than one-third of U.S. adults are obese.

“Obesity continues to be a major public health concern,” said Jean-Marc Guettier, M.D., director of the Division of Metabolism and Endocrinology Products in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “When used as directed in combination with a healthy lifestyle that includes a reduced-calorie diet and exercise, Contrave provides another treatment option for chronic weight management for people who are obese or are overweight and have at least one weight-related health condition.”

Impressive test results

The effectiveness of Contrave was evaluated in multiple clinical trials that included approximately 4,500 obese and overweight patients with and without significant weight-related conditions treated for one year. All patients received lifestyle modification that consisted of a reduced- calorie diet and regular physical activity.

Results from a clinical trial that enrolled patients without diabetes showed that patients had an average weight loss of 4.1% over treatment with placebo (inactive pill) at one year. In this trial, 42% of patients treated with Contrave lost at least 5% of their body weight compared with 17% of patients treated with placebo.

In another clinical trial that enrolled patients with type 2 diabetes, patients had an average weight loss of 2% over treatment with placebo at one year. In this trial, 36% of patients treated with Contrave lost at least 5% of their body weight compared with 18% of patients treated with placebo.

Patients using Contrave at the maintenance dose should be evaluated after 12 weeks to determine if the treatment is working. If a patient has not lost at least 5% of baseline body weight, Contrave should be discontinued, as it is unlikely that the patient will achieve and sustain clinically meaningful weight loss with continued treatment.

Use with caution

Because it contains bupropion, Contrave has a boxed warning to alert health care professionals and patients to the increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors associated with antidepressant drugs.

The warning also notes that serious neuropsychiatric events have been reported in patients taking bupropion for smoking cessation.

Contrave can cause seizures and must not be used in patients who have seizure disorders. The risk of seizure is dose-related. The drug should be discontinued and not restarted in patients who experience a seizure while being treated with Contrave.

Contrave can also raise blood pressure and heart rate and must not be used in patients with uncontrolled high blood pressure. Blood pressure and pulse should be measured prior to starting the drug and should be monitored at regular intervals, particularly among patients with controlled high blood pressure prior to treatment.

Other products containing bupropion should not be taken along with Contrave. The drug should not be used in patients who have eating disorders (bulimia or anorexia nervosa). Contrave should also not be taken by patients who are using opioids or treatments for opioid dependence, or who are experiencing acute opiate withdrawal.

Patients undergoing an abrupt discontinuation of alcohol, benzodiazepines, barbiturates and antiepileptic drugs should not take Contrave. Women who are pregnant or trying to become pregnant should not take Contrave.

The most common adverse reactions reported with Contrave include nausea, constipation, headache, vomiting, dizziness, insomnia, dry mouth, and diarrhea.

Post-marketing requirements

The FDA is requiring the following:

• a cardiovascular outcomes trial to assess the cardiovascular risk associated with Contrave use;
• two efficacy, safety, and clinical pharmacology studies in pediatric patients (one in patients 12 to 17 years of age, and one in patients 7 to 11 years of age);
• a nonclinical (animal) juvenile toxicity study with a particular focus on growth and development as well as behavior, learning, and memory;
• a study to evaluate the effect of Contrave on cardiac conduction;
• clinical trials to evaluate dosing in patients with hepatic or renal impairment;
• a clinical trial to evaluate the potential for interactions between Contrave and other drugs.

If you look long enough, you can find claims that just about anything you can think of will help you lose weight. Unfortunately, most of those claims don't hold water. And they certainly don't help you lose weight, even when they're made by Dr. Oz or some other celebrity.

One thing you can add to the not-much-help list is green coffee beans. the subject of a flawed study touted by Dr. Oz but later discredited. 

Now, a Texas-based company, Applied Food Sciences, Inc. (AFS), has settled Federal Trade Commission charges that it used the results of that flawed study to make baseless weight-loss claims about its green coffee extract to retailers, who then repeated those claims in marketing finished products to consumers.

The FTC complaint alleges the study was so hopelessly flawed that no reliable conclusions could be drawn from it. 

The settlement requires AFS to pay $3.5 million, and to have scientific substantiation for any future weight-loss claims it makes, including at least two adequate and well-controlled human clinical tests.

“Applied Food Sciences knew or should have known that this botched study didn’t prove anything,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “In publicizing the results, it helped fuel the green coffee phenomenon.”

Researchers in India

According to the FTC’s complaint, in 2010, Austin, Texas-based AFS paid researchers in India to conduct a clinical trial on overweight adults to test whether Green Coffee Antioxidant (GCA), a dietary supplement containing green coffee extract, reduced body weight and body fat.

The FTC charges that the study’s lead investigator repeatedly altered the weights and other key measurements of the subjects, changed the length of the trial, and misstated which subjects were taking the placebo or GCA during the trial.

When the lead investigator was unable to get the study published, the FTC says that AFS hired researchers Joe Vinson and Bryan Burnham at the University of Scranton to rewrite it. Despite receiving conflicting data, Vinson, Burnham, and AFS never verified the authenticity of the information used in the study, according to the complaint.

Despite the study’s flaws, AFS used it to falsely claim that GCA caused consumers to lose 17.7 pounds, 10.5 percent of body weight, and 16 percent of body fat with or without diet and exercise, in 22 weeks, the complaint alleges.

"Without diet or exercise"

Although AFS played no part in featuring its study on The Dr. Oz Show, it took advantage of the publicity afterwards by issuing a press release highlighting the show.

The release claimed that study subjects lost weight “without diet or exercise,” even though subjects in the study were instructed to restrict their diet and increase their exercise, the FTC contends.

The proposed order settling the FTC’s charges bars AFS from misrepresenting any aspect of a test or study related to the products it sells, and prohibits the company from providing anyone else with the means of falsely advertising, labeling, promoting, or using purported substantiation material in marketing their own products.

Some studies are more surprising than others. Falling into the not-too-surprising category is the finding by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health that finds overweight counselors aren't as effective as their slimmer counterparts are getting obese patients to lose weight.

In other words, patients may be more receptive to those who "practice what they preach."

Study leader Sara Bleich, PhD, an associate professor with the Bloomberg School's Department of Health Policy and Management, put it a bit more academically:

"Our research shows that the personal weight of health professionals matters when assessing their perceived level of success in helping obese patients to lose weight," she said. "Health professionals who maintain a healthy weight feel more empowered to help their obese patients achieve their weight loss goals and reported being more successful at helping obese patients lose weight."

Study details

The researchers surveyed 500 non-physician health professionals specializing in nutrition, nursing, behavior/mental health, exercise and pharmacy between January 20 and February 5, 2014.

Professionals of all weights, the survey found, were equally confident in their ability to relay proper weight-loss advice and felt that patients were equally receptive to it. But 52 percent of those counselors of normal weight reported success in helping obese patients achieve clinically significant weight loss as compared to 29 percent of overweight counselors.

The study also found that most health professionals, regardless of their weight, do not feel successful in helping patients with weight loss until they are morbidly obese, which suggests missed opportunities for early intervention.

A 2012 study led by Bleich on the impact of physician BMI on obesity care found that size also matters when it comes to physician care of obese patients. It found that normal-weight physicians, as compared to overweight/obese physicians, were more likely to provide recommended obesity care to their patients and feel confident doing so.

"More research is needed to understand how to improve obesity care delivered by non-physician health professionals, and why these groups do not typically initiate weight management discussions until their patients are morbidly obese, regardless of their personal body weight," Bleich says. "Going forward, it will be important to increase the confidence, perception and skill set among all health professionals who work on this public health issue."

The findings were published online Sept. 4 in the journal Obesity.

A brain scan study suggests it may be possible to train your brain to prefer healthy low-calorie foods over unhealthy higher-calorie foods, reversing the addictive power of unhealthy food.

"We don't start out in life loving French fries and hating, for example, whole wheat pasta," said Susan B. Roberts, Ph.D., a professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University and an adjunct professor of psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine. "This conditioning happens over time in response to eating -- repeatedly! -- what is out there in the toxic food environment."

Scientists have long suspected that, once unhealthy food addiction circuits are established, they may be hard or impossible to reverse, subjecting people who have gained weight to a lifetime of unhealthy food cravings and temptation.

To find out whether the brain can be re-trained to support healthy food choices, Roberts and colleagues studied the reward system in 13 overweight and obese men and women, 8 of whom were participants in a new weight loss program designed by Tufts University researchers and 5 who were in a control group and were not enrolled in the program.

The study is published in the journal Nutrition & Diabetes.

Both groups underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scans at the beginning and end of a 6-month period. Among those who participated in the weight loss program, the brain scans revealed changes in areas of the brain reward center associated with learning and addiction. After 6 months, this area had increased sensitivity to healthy, lower-calorie foods, indicating an increased reward and enjoyment of healthier food cues. The area also showed decreased sensitivity to the unhealthy higher-calorie foods.

"The weight loss program is specifically designed to change how people react to different foods, and our study shows those who participated in it had an increased desire for healthier foods along with a decreased preference for unhealthy foods, the combined effects of which are probably critical for sustainable weight control," said co-author Sai Krupa Das, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the Friedman School. "To the best of our knowledge this is the first demonstration of this important switch."

The authors hypothesize that several features of the weight loss program were important, including behavior change education and high-fiber, low glycemic menu plans.

"There is much more research to be done here, involving many more participants, long-term follow-up and investigating more areas of the brain," Roberts added. "But we are very encouraged that, the weight loss program appears to change what foods are tempting to people."

Fast-food restaurants take a lot of blame for the U.S. obesity epidemic but a new study weighs in with the news that eating out -- period -- piles on the calories, sugar, saturated fat and sodium.

The study, appearing online in Public Health Nutrition, finds that on days when adults ate at a restaurant -- fast-food or full-service -- they consumed about 200 additional total daily calories.

"The United States is one of the most obese nations in the world, with more than one in three adult men and women in defined as obese," said Dr. Binh Nguyen of the American Cancer Society. "Just as obesity rates rise, there's been a marked increase in total energy consumption consumed away from home, with about one in four calories coming from fast food or full service restaurants in 2007. Our study confirms that adults' fast-food and full-service restaurant consumption was associated with higher daily total energy intake and poorer dietary indicators."

For the current study, Nguyen and Lisa M. Powell of the University of Illinois at Chicago used recent data from more than 12,000 respondents between the ages of 20 and 64 taking part in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003 (NHANES). Participants were asked about visits to fast-food and full-service restaurants on two successive days.

The study found on days when eating at a fast-food restaurant, there was a net increase of total energy intake (194.49 kcal), saturated fat (3.48 g), sugar (3.95 g) and sodium (296.38 mg). Eating at a full-service restaurant was also associated with an energy intake (205.21 kcal), and with higher intake of saturated fat (2.52 g) and sodium (451.06 mg).

Individual characteristics moderated the impact of restaurant food consumption. Net energy intake was larger for black adults compared with their white and Hispanic counterparts and greater for middle-income v. high-income adults.

The researchers say the larger adverse effect they measured on energy intake for some lower socio-economic and minority populations has policy implications. They say efforts to improve diet and reduce energy intake from restaurant sources could actually help to reduce racial and socio-economic disparities in Americans' diets.

Beer drinkers tend to be a devoted bunch. So are brewmasters and the others involved in beer production, as food blogger Vani Hari -- the self-proclaimed "Food Babe" -- is learning.

Hari has been promoting a petition calling on Anheuser-Busch and MillerCoors to put ingredient labels on their beer, just as soft drink bottlers and other food producers do.  

Many consumer petition crusades go unnoticed but apparently not when beer is involved. Within hours of our posting a story about Hari's campaign yesterday, Anheuser-Busch issued a statement noting that it provides nutritional information about the contents of its beers at www.tapintoyourbeer.com. 

Hari's not buying that, however.

"Nutritional labeling is distinctly different than ingredient disclosure, and it is not enough transparency for consumers to avoid additives like the corn syrup they use in many of their beers," she told USA Today. 

Today, Anheuser-Busch followed up and said it is working on putting the ingredient list online, noting it's not required to do so by law.

"[A]s American consumer needs evolve, we want to meet their expectations.  Therefore, we are working to list our beer ingredients on our website, just as you would see for other food and non-alcohol beverage producers," an Anheuser-Busch spokesman told ConsumerAffairs in an email.  "We are beginning immediately, having incorporated this information earlier today on www.tapintoyourbeer.com for our flagship brands, Budweiser and Bud Light, and will be listing this for our other brands in the coming days.”

Brewery tour

Just about anyone who lives in the Midwest at some point makes the pilgrimage to the Anheuser-Busch brewery in St. Louis and the company thinks Vani Hari and her husband should share the experience. 

“We are inviting Vani Hari and her husband to our flagship St. Louis brewery to show how our beers are made and the ingredients we use.  Our brewmasters take great pride in making our beers to the highest standards of quality and consistency," the spokesman said. 

 No word yet on whether the Haris will be heading to St. Louis anytime soon.

Consumers spend millions of dollars on gym memberships and weight loss programs but not everyone has something to show for it. If results come slowly or not at all it's easy to get discouraged and give up.

Very often people jump from one diet and exercise fad to the next in hopes it will pay off.

Paul Arciero, an exercise scientist at Skidmore College, thinks most people simply aren't maximizing their exercise effort. It's not that they aren't spending enough time and effort, he says. They haven't found the right combination.

In a report in the Journal of Applied Physiology, Arciero and his research team say it's the quality of the exercise that's important, not the quantity. They reached that conclusion based on the results of a study of adults between the ages of 36 and 57.

Multi-dimensional

They argue that when it comes to a workout, a multi-dimensional exercise regimen provides the best results. That includes resistance exercise, interval sprint exercise, stretching – such as yoga or pilates -- and endurance exercise.

Resistance training is “carrying a load,” or lifting weights. It can be done with free weights or with machines at the gym. It is important because it builds and maintains muscles, promoting healthy metabolism.

Interval sprint exercise is a workout in which you mix a moderate walk with a more intense jog or sprint.

In 2012 researchers at the Researchers at the University of Colorado found sprint interval exercise burned more calories in a shorter period of time.

They have found that exercisers can burn as many as 200 extra calories in as little as 2.5 minutes of concentrated effort a day —- as long as they intersperse longer periods of easy recovery in a practice known as sprint interval training.

Stretching

Stretching is important before and after vigorous exercise so you don't damage muscles. But it can also promote a healthy weight because it promotes flexibility. According to the Mayo Clinic, people with flexibility in their joints tend to be more active.

Endurance exercise are any activities that step up your breathing and heart rate for longer periods of time. Walking, jogging, swimming, raking, sweeping, dancing, and playing tennis are good examples.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommends doing it gradually, starting with as little as 5 minutes at a time before working up to about 30 minutes a day.

Arciero says a workout routine employing all 4 exercises will produce better results that using just 1. The final ingredient, he adds, is the right diet.

Arciero suggests adding moderate amounts of protein to your diet throughout the day to decrease total and abdominal fat while increasing lean body mass.

“It’s very difficult to just lift weights, or only do the treadmill or the elliptical machine and be healthy,” Arciero said. ”Your exercise regimen needs to encompass as much of what makes you a fully integrated living person as possible.”

Americans know more about nutrition than ever before. Despite the sluggish economy, most are well able to afford to buy fresh, healthful food. And, thanks to constantly evolving efficiencies in agriculture, marketing and transportation, there is plenty of food available in just about any form anytime we want it.

It's that last item that may hold the clue to the continuing epidemic of obesity in the U.S. and other Western nations, a new RAND study finds.

After all, it's not just one group that's the problem -- we're all getting fatter. Old, young, educated, not so educated, active, sedentary, rich, poor, black, white and brown, we've been getting fatter at about the same rate for the past 25 years. 

More food, more often

Since 1970, the average per capita consumption of calories of Americans has risen by about 20 percent, while at the same time there has been a sharp drop in the cost of food as a proportion of disposable income, according to a report published online by the journal CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

"Not only has food been getting cheaper, but it is easier to acquire and easier to prepare," said Roland Sturm, lead author of the report and a senior economist at RAND, a nonprofit research organization. "It's not just that we may be eating more high-calorie food, but we are eating more of all types of food."

Analyzing economic factors that contribute to obesity, Sturm and co-author Ruopeng An of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign found that weight gain was surprisingly similar across sociodemographic groups and geographic areas, rather than specific to some groups. The findings suggest that the cause of obesity is driven by environmental factors that affect all groups, not just a few.

The RAND researchers say that Americans now have the cheapest food in history, when measured as a fraction of disposal income. During the 1930s, American spent about one-quarter of their disposal income on food, dropping to one-fifth during the 1950s. Today, Americans spend about one-tenth of their disposable income on food.

"Not only has the cost of food dropped, but it has become even more available," An said. "So a smaller share of Americans' disposable income now buys many more calories."

Meanwhile, Sturm and An say that effective economic policies to curb obesity remain elusive.

Imposing taxes on foods with low-nutritional value could nudge behavior toward healthier diets, as might subsidies or discounts for healthier foods. But political and popular support for such approaches has been low.

"The high cost of healthy food may not be the problem as far as obesity is concerned, rather it is the excess availability and affordability of all types of food," Sturm said. "We need to consider strategies that replace calorie-dense foods with fruits and vegetables, rather than just add fruits and vegetables to the diet."

Statins are the drugs that many millions of us take to control cholesterol, in an effort to prevent heart disease, stroke and other serious health problems.

The drugs are amazingly effective but a new study says the people taking them may be developing a false sense of security -- sort of like drivers who think their airbags and anti-lock brakes make it OK to drive recklessly.

That's the suggestions of a new study from UCLA, which suggests that people who took statins in the 2009–10 year were consuming more calories and fat than those who used statins 10 years earlier. There was no similar increase in caloric and fat intake among non–stain users during that decade, researchers said.

In 1999–2000, statin users were consuming fewer calories and less fat than individuals who didn't take these medications, but that is no longer the case, the researchers said. Increases in body mass index — a measure of obesity that considers body weight and height — were greater for statin users than for non-users.

"We believe that this is the first major study to show that people on statins eat more calories and fat than people on those medications did a decade earlier," said the study's primary investigator, Takehiro Sugiyama, who led the research while a visiting scholar in the division of general internal medicine and health services research at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

"Statins are used by about one-sixth of adults. We may need to reemphasize the importance of dietary modification for those who are taking these medications, now that obesity and diabetes are important problems in society."

Gluttony in the Time of Statins

"[E]ating more fat, especially saturated fat, will lead to higher cholesterol levels, which will undermine the effect of statins and may lead to unnecessary cost of medications," Sugiyama said. "Being overweight also increases the risk of diabetes and hypertension, which also are risk factors for heart disease and stroke.

"Ethical considerations should be included in the discussion. We believe that when physicians prescribe statins, the goal is to decrease patients' cardiovascular risks that cannot be achieved without medications, not to empower them to put butter on steaks."

The study, subtitled "Gluttony in the Time of Statins?", is published online in the peer-reviewed journal JAMA Internal Medicine. 

Details

For the study, the researchers used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to compare fat and caloric intake among statin users and non-users in 1999–2000 and 2009–10. They found that caloric intake among statin users had risen by 9.6 percent over that decade and that fat consumption had jumped by 14.4 percent. In contrast, caloric and fat intake by non–statin users did not change significantly during the 10-year period.

Statin-users ate roughly 180 kilogram calories less each day and 9 grams of fat less each day than non-users in 1999–2000. But as a result of increases over the decade, the researchers observed no difference in caloric and fat intake between statin users and non-users in 2009–10.

The differences may be explained by the fact that statin users simply don't feel the urgency to reduce their caloric and fat consumption or to lose weight the way statin users 10 years ago did, said Sugiyama, who is now a clinical fellow at the National Center for Global Health and Medicine in Japan. Also, doctors today may be more likely to prescribe statins for patients who eat and weigh more.

Just about everybody wants to lose weight, it seems. And there's no shortage of advice about how to do it. But for those looking for a safe, effective and affordable plan, it can be difficult to work through all the competing claims.

ConsumerAffairs contributing editor and weight loss expert JJ Virgin cuts through the confusion with her new buyer's guide that outlines the different kinds of weight loss programs, their features and the types of consumers most likely to benefit from them. 

Perhaps the most important feature of any plan is the food, Virgin says: "Ask yourself: Realistically, could you eat the foods on this plan more or less for the rest of your life?"

Besides taste, consumers should consider the cost and availability of competing food plans, as well as the potential for allergic reactions and sugar and sodium content. 

Crucial factors

Then there's the matter of meal plans. "If you prefer home-cooked meals, packaged shakes and shakes aren't going to work for you; likewise, if a plan demands elaborate meals and you need convenience, you'll probably struggle with the plan," says Virgin, author of the New York Times best-seller "The Virgin Diet: Drop 7 Foods, Lose 7 Pounds, Just 7 Days."

Long-term sustainability is another crucial factor.

"Maintaining fat loss is just as important as losing it. Does a plan provide the tools and strategies you need to stay lean for the long haul?" Virgin says, noting that many plans will produce a dramatic short-term loss while doing little to help keep pounds off over time.

No single plan is best for everyone, Virgin notes, discussing the varying needs of busy adults, college students, seniors, new moms and former athletes, among others.

She rates well-known plans for each type of consumer. For example, Virgin finds that Nutrisystem is best for college students, busy adults and new moms but no so good for dieters with food sensitivities and those on a budget. 

See the weight-loss buyers guide here.

Losing weight is one thing. Reducing the risk of coronary disease is another. And a study published in The American Journal of Medicine finds that when it comes to heart health, a whole diet approach, which focuses on increased intake of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and fish, has more evidence for reducing cardiovascular risk than strategies that focus exclusively on reduced dietary fat.

This new study explains that while strictly low-fat diets have the ability to lower cholesterol, they are not as conclusive in reducing cardiac deaths. By analyzing major diet and heart disease studies conducted over the last several decades, investigators found that participants directed to adopt a whole diet approach instead of limiting fat intake had a greater reduction in cardiovascular death and non-fatal myocardial infarction.

Early investigations of the relationship between food and heart disease linked high levels of serum cholesterol to increased intake of saturated fat, and subsequently, an increased rate of coronary heart disease. This led to the American Heart Association's recommendation to limit fat intake to less than 30% of daily calories, saturated fat to 10%, and cholesterol to less than 300 mg per day.

"Nearly all clinical trials in the 1960s, 70s and 80s compared usual diets to those characterized by low total fat, low saturated fat, low dietary cholesterol, and increased polyunsaturated fats," says study co-author James E. Dalen, MD, MPH, Weil Foundation, and University of Arizona College of Medicine. "These diets did reduce cholesterol levels. However they did not reduce the incidence of myocardial infarction or coronary heart disease deaths."

Carefully analyzing studies and trials from 1957 to the present, investigators found that the whole diet approach, and specifically Mediterranean-style diets, are effective in preventing heart disease, even though they may not lower total serum or LDL cholesterol.

The Mediterranean-style diet is low in animal products and saturated fat, and encourages intake of monounsaturated fats found in nuts and olive oil. In particular, the diet emphasizes consumption of vegetables, fruit, legumes, whole grains, and fish.

For all the undeniable health benefits of exercise and working out, we admit to taking a pretty dim view of long-term gym memberships. This is partly due to a flaw in human nature – rare indeed is the person with enough free time and willpower to visit the gym often enough to make the membership fees worthwhile (and if you have that much determination you probably don't need a gym membership to stay fit, anyway).

Furthermore, there's no way of knowing what the future will hold — that great deal on the gym down the street isn't so great when you have to move to a new state and are still stuck paying monthly membership fees. And a lifetime membership to a bankrupt gym is pretty much identical to no gym membership at all, except the latter option is free whereas the former can cost you a lot of money.

To pick an example at random: We recently heard complaints from two different people whose lifetime memberships to Bally Total Fitness proved useless after Bally closed. Lynn in Maryland kept an old out-of-state membership active just in case she needed it later, but by the time she did it proved useless:

“After having a lifetime membership that started back in the late 80's in Willow Grove, PA, and [paying] a small fortune for it, it was finally paid off and after moving to another state, I would receive a $5 yearly bill to keep it going.”

For several years, she paid that small annual fee without ever setting foot in the gym. Then what? “I just found out in December through a friend that Bally was sold ... I never got anything in the mail to me! I decided to go to the local LA Fitness and was told my membership had expired!”

Dismayed in Ohio

Glenn in Ohio was similarly dismayed when his local Bally was bought out by Red Fitness 24/7, which did not want to honor the old Bally lifetime memberships. “If you were paying $1 to $50 they want you to pay $79 plus 10% tax plus a $20.99 CIF so the new annual fee is $109. If you are between 50 and 100 they want $99 plus [tax and fees] so you will pay $130. They now have very upset members and will probably file a class action lawsuit for this also.”

If filed, such a class-action attempt would not be the first; in January 2012 some plaintiffs in northern Illinois filed suit (.pdf) against Bally and LA Fitness alleging violation of various state-level anti-fraud acts, specifically after Bally sold lifetime memberships to people just before selling the company to LA Fitness, which did not honor the old Bally contracts; instead, Bally lifetime membership holders were allegedly told their memberships were only valid at the nearest Bally some three hours away.

But that Illinois lawsuit wouldn't likely help people with complaints in Ohio, Maryland or Pennsylvania. Oddly enough, in December 2011, one month before the Illinois plantiffs filed that class action suit against Bally and LA Fitness, the Norristown Patch in Pennsylvania reported that, due to similar complaints from former Bally members, LA Fitness has henceforth decided to honor all former Bally membership agreements.

As of presstime, there exists a Facebook page dedicated to “Bally /LA Fitness Class Action Lawsuit.” But the most recent post, dated December 11, 2013, says this: “UPDATE: Page will be closing down soon” and includes more detail:

As you may recall, there were initially a number of different lawsuits against Bally’s Total Fitness and LA Fitness, including the federal action which we began in the Pennsylvania courts. A number of those lawsuits have been dismissed or withdrawn — including our case (Tobia, et al. v. Bally’s Total Fitness, et al). However, you are all still protected. You may choose to be included in one of the remaining lawsuits, and you always retain your right to proceed on your own, in your own lawsuit.

The remaining federal lawsuits, which we are aware of, are Grabianski v. Bally Total Fitness Holding Corporation, Case No. 12-C-284, pending in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, and Piegaro v. Bally Total Fitness Holding Corp., Case No. 3:12-cv-04595, pending in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. …. Neither case has been certified as a class action lawsuit. Likewise, the federal courts have not seen fit to consolidate the cases for handling in one single location.... If either of these cases ever becomes a class action, you may be automatically included among the Plaintiffs who were damaged by Bally’s misconduct.”

Remember: this refers specifically to former Bally locations bought by LA Fitness. Thus far we've not found attempts at actual class-action suits against Red Fitness 24/7 – though a brief search of Pissedconsumer.com netted other Ohio residents and former Bally members with complaints similat to Glenn's.

We tried calling the specific Red Fitness gym that Glenn complained about, to ask what if any policy they had regarding former Bally  members, but nobody answered the phone.

If something like this happens to you, what can you do? The first step should be to complain to your state's Attorney General. Many AGs have taken action against gyms in recent years and may do so again if they get enough complaints.

You can find the AG in your state by typing "[your state] Attorney General" in your favorite search engine and then locating the site's complaint-submission page. 

Most people think they know what causes kids to be overweight. They'll often name over-eating, fast food and lack of exercise as the primary villains.

But a new study from the University of Illinois, published in Childhood Obesity, looked at 22 variables and found three that emerged as the strongest predictors:

1. inadequate sleep,
2. a parental BMI that classifies the mom or dad as overweight or obese, and
3. parental restriction of a child's eating in order to control his weight.

"What's exciting here is that these risk factors are malleable and provide a road map for developing interventions that can lead to a possible reduction in children's weight status," said Brent McBride, a U of I professor of human development and director of the university's Child Development Laboratory. "We should focus on convincing parents to improve their own health status, to change the food environment of the home so that healthy foods are readily available and unhealthy foods are not, and to encourage an early bedtime." 

The researchers reached their conclusions after compiling the results from an extensive survey distributed to 329 parent-child dyads recruited from child-care programs in east-central Illinois.

The survey yielded wide-ranging information on demographics, health histories of both child and parent, and pertinent feeding practices. Research assistants also did home visits with each participant, checking height and weight and taking further information about the parents' history. The data was then subjected to statistical analysis.

What to do

As a result of that analysis, McBride and U of I nutritional sciences graduate student Dipti A. Dev offer some recommendations for families.

Parents should recognize that their food preferences are being passed along to their children and that these tastes are established in the preschool years, Dev said.

"If you, as an adult, live in a food environment that allows you to maintain an elevated weight, remember that your child lives in that environment too. Similarly, if you are a sedentary adult, you may be passing on a preference for television watching and computer games instead of playing chasing games with your preschooler or playing in the park," she added.

Consider too that restricting your children's access to certain foods will only make them want those foods more, she said.

"If kids have never had a chance to eat potato chips regularly, they may overeat them when the food appears at a friend's picnic," McBride said.

Instead, work on changing the food environment in your home so that a wide variety of healthy choices such as fruits and vegetables are available while unhealthy options are not, he added.

"And remember that it takes a certain number of exposures to a food before a child will try it, let alone like it, so you have to offer it to them over and over and over again. And they have to see you eat it over and over," McBride noted.

Don't use food to comfort your children when they are hurt or disappointed, do allow your preschoolers to select their foods as bowls are passed at family-style meals (no pre-plating at the counter — it discourages self-regulation), and encourage all your children to be thoughtful about what they are eating, the researcher said.

If you're trying to lose weight, you already know that healthy a healthy, low-fat, low-calorie lunch is a good start -- but it's what happens after lunch, namely snacking, that often caues problems.

Some potentially helpful advice comes from a study published in the November issue of Nutrition Journal. It found that adding half of a fresh avocado to lunch may have helped healthy, overweight people feel more satisfied and reduced their desire to eat following a meal. 

The study compared the effects of incorporating a fresh avocado into a lunch — either by replacing other foods or by simply adding it to the meal —  to the effects of eating a standard lunch to determine how avocado consumption would influence satiety, blood sugar and insulin response and subsequent food intake. The subjects were 26 healthy, overweight adults.

Researchers found that participants who added half of a fresh avocado to their lunch reported a significantly decreased desire to eat by 40 percent over a three-hour period, and by 28 percent over a five-hour period after the meal, compared to their desire to eat after a standard lunch without avocado. In addition, they reported increased feelings of satisfaction by 26 percent over the three hours following the meal.

"Satiety is an important factor in weight management, because people who feel satisfied are less likely to snack between meals," said Joan Sabaté, MD, DrPH, Chair of the Department of Nutrition who led the research team at Loma Linda University. "We also noted that though adding avocados increased participants' calorie and carbohydrate intake at lunch, there was no increase in blood sugar levels beyond what was observed after eating the standard lunch. This leads us to believe that avocados potential role in blood sugar management is worth further investigation."

While the findings were generally positive, more research is needed to determine whether the conclusions drawn from this study can be applied to the general public. However, the results do provide promising clues and a basis for future research to determine avocados' effect on satiety, glucose and insulin response.

"These research findings provide support for the emerging benefits of avocados," said Nikki Ford, PhD, Director of Nutrition at the Hass Avocado Board (HAB). "These results further complement our research efforts in weight management and diabetes as well as our continued work to explore the many benefits that fresh avocados have to offer when consumed in everyday healthy eating plans."

The study was funded by the Hass Avocado Board.

The commercials for weight loss programs have already begun. Chances are January will bring even more as consumers resolve to improve their health and drop pounds in the year ahead.

Today's Dietitian, an professional journal, surveyed 500 registered dietitians to determine what's hot and what's not when it comes to diet. What emerged was a list of trends that may influence what you buy and eat in 2014.

According to the consensus, the trend away from bread – specifically wheat – should get stronger in the coming year. The Paleo diet and gluten-free food products will continue to command attention from consumers, even though it's been shown that avoiding gluten has almost no health benefits except for people with disorders making them sensitive to the substance.

"Despite the lack of evidence to support wheat- or gluten-elimination diets for weight loss or health – not associated with a clinical disorder or disease – consumers are still looking for ways to control their weight," said Jenna A. Bell, Senior Vice President and Director of Food & Wellness at Pollock Communications, which conducted the survey.

Caveman diet

Just over half of the dietitians in the survey agreed that the Paleo diet, gluten-free or "wheat belly" would top the list of most popular diet fads for 2014. The Paleo diet, also known as the “caveman diet,” consists mostly of fish, free-range meats, eggs, vegetables, fruit, and nuts. Paleo dieters avoid processed oils, refined sugars, grains, refined salt and potatoes.

Not all grains are bad, apparently. The dietitians in the survey cited “ancient grains” as another top diet trend for 2014. Consumers are increasingly buying bread made with quinoa, amaranth, spelt and Kamut, which are considered ancient grains.

These grains are valued for their whole grains, protein, omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants, and they're supposedly safe for people with wheat allergies or celiac disease, a gluten intolerance.

Hot vegetable

When it comes to vegetables, kale is quickly rising up the diet hit parade. A green leafy vegetable, kale provides high levels of beta carotene, vitamins K and C and is rich in calcium. In the American south Kale is often served braised, either by itself or mixed with other greens such as collard, mustard or turnip.

When it comes to ingredients, 37% of dietitians in the survey report that coconut oil is all the rage, followed by omega-3 and ALA-rich chia seeds. Chia sees are said to help reduce food cravings, making it easier for you to stay on a diet.

What food fads are losing favor? The dietitians in the survey predict “low fat” will fall flat in 2014. The demand for foods low in carbs is likely to remain strong, they say, but there is less demand for low-fat products. In fact, the dietitians predict that the-low fat diet will be the least talked about plan for 2014.

Too much bad information

A negative trend, according to the dietitians, is a growing amount of nutritional information in the public sphere that is simply wrong. The dietitians report that most consumers base their nutritional information on personal beliefs and half-truths rather than published peer-reviewed research. And, 75% of those in the survey say that there will still be a lot of misinformation to digest in 2014.

Where do you get good nutritional information? Overwhelmingly the nutrition pros recommend MyPlate, the replacement for the government's food pyramid. MyPlate is part of a larger communication initiative based on 2010 dietary guidelines to help consumers make better food choices.

Need another reason to shed some pounds? Here's one: Researchers at Duke Medicine have found that medical costs rise steadily as the body mass index (BMI) goes up.

Even when the BMI is in the high normal range -- 19 or so -- medical costs were higher than they were for thinner people, the study published in the journal Obesity found. 

"Our findings suggest that excess fat is detrimental at any level," said lead author Truls Østbye, M.D., Ph.D., professor of community and family medicine at Duke and professor of health services and systems research at Duke-National University of Singapore.

BMI is a measurement of a person's weight adjusted for his or her height, and can be used to screen for possible weight-related health problems. A healthy or normal BMI is 19-24, while overweight is 25-29 and obese is 30 and above. For example, a 5-foot-6-inch person who weighs 117.5 pounds has a BMI of 19, while a person of the same height weighing 279 pounds has a BMI of 45.

You can calculate your BMI online. 

Fat and healthy?

The findings may give pause to those who, like New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, argue that it's possible to be both healthy and obese. 

Østbye said the study was motivated partly by research published earlier this year in the Journal of the American Medical Association, using death data from several large population studies, which concluded that while higher degrees of obesity were associated with higher mortality rates, being overweight or even slightly obese was actually linked with lower mortality.

Since these findings questioned the general belief that high body mass leads to poor health outcomes, Østbye and his colleagues sought to better understand the rates of obesity-related disease, or morbidity, by measuring health care utilization and costs.

Using health insurance claims data for 17,703 Duke employees participating in annual health appraisals from 2001 to 2011, the researchers related costs of doctors' visits and use of prescription drugs to employees' BMIs.

Measuring costs related to doctors' visits and prescriptions, the researchers observed that the prevalence of obesity-related diseases increased gradually across all BMI levels. In addition to diabetes and hypertension -- the two diseases most commonly associated with being overweight or obese -- the rates of nearly a dozen other disease categories also grew with increases in BMI. Cardiovascular disease was associated with the largest dollar increase per unit increase in BMI.

The average annual health care costs for a person with a BMI of 19 was found to be $2,368; this grew to $4,880 for a person with a BMI of 45 or greater. Women in the study had higher overall medical costs across all BMI categories, but men saw a sharper increase in medical costs the higher their BMIs rose.

"The fact that we see the combined costs of pharmacy and medical more than double for people with BMIs of 45 compared with those of 19 suggests that interventions on weight are warranted," said Marissa Stroo, a co-investigator on the study.

If our distant ancestors could see us now they’d be flabbergasted and frustrated by how we managed to take a biological process as simple and basic as eating and turn it into an overcomplicated overanalyzed mess.

Granted, our modern world does contain some culinary complications our ancestors never had to handle: their primary food-related health problems mostly involved malnutrition and famine, whereas ours center around too much access to too many temptingly fattening foods.

Even so, we confess to a bit of head-shaking when we read this press release from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business, about another eating-habits research study. The press release had the headline “Political correctness could affect holiday weight gain.”

In the context of the article, it’s obvious that “political correctness” here actually means “being hyper-vigilant against the possibility of offending someone due to their weight.” Indeed, the actual research study doesn’t mention political correctness at all, but instead has the title Matching Choices to Avoid Offending Stigmatized Group Members.

The gist of the research seems to be that, when people are asked to select food both for themselves and for others, and are given a choice between healthy or unhealthy food options (wheat crackers or chocolate-chip cookies, respectively), those choices are likely to change based on whether the various people are overweight or of normal weight.

As the press release says:

… in similar, additional studies, participants told researchers they thought it would be offensive either to give an overweight person healthy food and then take unhealthy food for themselves or, conversely, to give an overweight person unhealthy food and then take healthy food for themselves.

"This suggests that if you are heading back to the buffet to cut a piece of pumpkin pie for your overweight uncle, you might also cut a larger piece than normal for yourself, so you don't hurt his feelings," [researcher Peggy] Liu said.

We must be doing buffets and dinner parties wrong; in buffet situations we only select food for children too young to do so themselves, and at parties we always let our guests pretty much choose what they want from whatever options we’ve made available. That said, we do indeed think it would be offensive if we not only abandoned this practice, but made a point of serving delicious cookies to our skinny guests and whole-wheat crackers to the plump ones.

Despite this, the study does make some potentially good points regarding how your own personal food choices could be affected by what others are eating—such as eating more pie than you intended so your uncle’s serving looks smaller. It might be hard to avoid overthinking such matters, because when you get right down to it, we’re evolutionarily hard-wired to have a bit of a Goldilocks fetish where food is concerned—especially fat, sugar and salt, which collectively bear the bulk of the blame for modern obesity problems.

Because our bodies need all of these things to survive and be healthy: eat too little, you can get sick or even die. Eat too much, and you can also get sick or even die. Only when everything’s Just Right do you feel just right too, and we’d tell you how to eat Just Right according to the latest nutritional scientific consensus, but new research will probably make our advice obsolete by next week, so we’ll keep eating according to our old rule: A little bit of everything, but not too much of anything. (Except maybe at a Thanksgiving feast.)

News flash for weight-conscious office workers: eating at your desk makes you more likely to gain weight than leaving your desk for an official lunch break — though not for the reasons you might think.

According to an unspecified “survey” mentioned in the British Daily Mail tabloid, eating “al desko” (their pun, not ours) leads to increased weight gain, not just from the inactivity of sitting at your desk all day, but mainly because desk-eaters are more likely to, for example, wash down chocolate and potato chips with a Coke, in lieu of eating healthier, more nutritious food.

Psychologically, it appears, when people can’t take a break from their workday routine and get the chance to recharge their batteries (so to speak), it makes us more likely to “reward” ourselves in other way — like eating tasty but unhealthy junk food.

The survey focused exclusively on British workers and unhealthy British meals (where the average American is concerned, it doesn’t matter how many grams of fat are to be found in a carrot-chutney-with-Wensleydale sandwich from London’s Marks and Spencer) but people in both countries share similar pressures to juggle evermore-hectic work schedules.

Yet blaming office work for expanding waistlines might not tell the whole story. Last May, a Gallup-Healthways survey of American workers found that the jobs with the highest employee-obesity rates weren’t desk jobs, but the transportation, maintenance, repair and service industries, whereas the lowest obesity rates were to be found among doctors, teachers, business owners and other professionals. In other words: the lower the average educational level in a given field, the greater the risk of obesity among its workers.

The poverty connection

And in both America and Britain, there appears to be a strong correlation between obesity and poverty, since high-fat, high-calorie processed foods tend to be cheaper than healthier, less-fattening alternatives.

So: being an educated professional with a desk job might make you fat. Being an uneducated worker with a service or retail job might make you fat. Exposure to modern environmental pollutants might do the trick; after all, it’s not just modern people getting fatter, but modern animals, too.

Indeed, our own evolutionary history conspires to make us gain weight — though we all live in a modern technological society where food is abundantly available, we still have the bodies of cavemen hunter-gatherers wired to crave fat and sugar — which are very rare in wild plants and animals, but extremely common in modern processed food.

Since we’re not willing to drop out of modern society and live in some remote wilderness, what can we do to offset all these fat-making factors? There’s no simple, easy answer (if we had one, we could sell it and get rich), but we know of a good start: if you must eat at your desk every day, at least put down the junk food and replace it with some fruit.

If you wonder why so many Americans (and other industrialized-world citizens) are getting fat these days, the answer is probably quite simple: human evolution is lagging behind human technology. We live in an industrially and technologically advanced world where food is abundant, yet still have the bodies of Cro-Magnon hunter gatherers living under constant threat of famine.

For example: last April the journal Obesity published a study about late-night snack cravings: namely, why are they so common? If you’re trying to lose weight—or just avoid gaining any—then eating before bedtime is the worst thing you can do, because your sleeping body takes those calories and converts them almost immediately into fat.

Obesity discovered evidence suggesting that our body’s circadian rhythms are naturally inclined to make us feel hungry at night.

Dr. Steven Shea, from the Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxicology at Oregon Health & Science University, wrote: “We found with this study that the internal circadian system also likely plays a role in today's obesity epidemic because it intensifies hunger at night …. it seems likely that the internal circadian system helps with efficient food storage. While this may have been valuable throughout evolution, nowadays it is likely to contribute to the national epidemic of obesity.”

Age of abundance 

Packing on some extra body fat tonight is a very good idea when you know you might not eat at all tomorrow—and until only a few generations ago, that was the human status quo. Only in an age of abundance, when people’s main calorie-related problem is “We eat too many of them,” does the urge to eat just before bed become fantastically counterproductive.

Of course, this was far from the only study suggesting our own evolutionary history is conspiring to expand our waistlines.

Last month, researchers at Yale suggested that eating low-calorie artificial sweeteners might paradoxically make you fatter than full-calorie sugar—because when your brain tells you “We’re seriously craving some sugar right now,” sugar is the only thing that will satisfy that craving. And, unfortunately, even if you personally are a genius, your brain still isn’t smart enough to figure out “Instead of generating fresh sugar cravings, maybe I should do something with the extra poundage bulging around my owner’s waistline.”

So when you get annoyed by those late-night snack cravings, just remember: it’s because your brain and body are trying to save you from starving to death. (Which does not make it any easier for us to fit into our old blue jeans, but—well, it’s the thought that counts, right?)  

The holidays can be a dangerous time for people trying to control their weight. There are parties with food and drink, celebratory dinners with family and friends and plenty of cookies, candy and pastries.

You can easily consume more sugar between October and January than you do the other nine months combined, unless you exercise a little self-control.

The temptation starts with Halloween. In case you haven't noticed stores putting out their Halloween displays around Labor Day. At the grocery store in early October you may be tempted to pick up several bags of Halloween candy.

Willpower needed

Unless you have exceptional willpower, that's a bad idea. Once a bag gets opened it's easy to start snacking, running through your candy stash well before October 31st. Halloween candy, it turns out, is a slippery slope that can propel you into the holidays on the wrong nutritional foot.

It can be even worse at work, with co-workers bringing in orange-colored candy, cake, donuts and cupcakes. Health experts Dian Griesel, Ph.D., and Tom Griesel, who've written books on nutrition and weight control, suggest bringing up your concerns at work, letting co-workers know you're trying to avoid temptation and extra weight gain. Gently suggest that they keep candy and other goodies out of your sight and reach.

But that doesn't mean you can't get into the spirit of things. The Griesels suggest brewing a pot of pumpkin-flavored coffee or tea to share or bringing in fruit or low-cal desserts.

On to Thanksgiving

Once you get past Halloween there's Thanksgiving to contend with, and food seems to play a bigger and bigger role in celebrations the closer you get to New Year's Day. Nutritionists at the Cleveland Clinic offer a number of tips that can allow you to enjoy yourself without packing on the pounds. Being aware of the high-calorie content of the food you are offered is a first step.

“Even though it’s hard to resist temptations all around you, there are simple steps you can take that can keep the extra holiday pounds off,” said Julia Renee Zumpano, a registered dietitian at the Cleveland Clinic. 

Among the tips – never go to a holiday party hungry. You'll find it much harder to control yourself. In fact, during the holidays make it a point to eat balanced, nutritious meals each day. You'll be less hungry and less likely to give in to temptation.

Just a bite

A particular treat may look delicious and just because it's fattening, it doesn't mean you can't try it. But just take a bite and discard the rest. Most of us would think of that as wasteful but in this case, you're simply preserving your waistline.

When you sit down at a holiday dinner, eat more vegetables, fruit and salad and less turkey, ham, beef and stuffing. And by all means, skip the gravy and sauces.

Go easy on the alcohol. A glass of wine or beer contains about 100 calories. An ounce of distilled spirits, about the same. By substituting club soda for two holiday drinks you save about 200 calories.

Finally, don't forget to exercise, burning off some of those extra calories you will inevitably consume. Many people wait until January to resolve to get into shape. Don't wait, start now when it can do you some real good and before the damage is done.

According to the Mayo Clinic the typical holiday weight gain is probably less than five pounds, which doesn't sound like much. The problem is, that weight is almost never lost -- so it adds up to 50 pounds every ten years or so. Being mindful of your eating all year round – but especially during the holidays – is the best way to keep your weight at a healthy level.

Americans—along with everybody else in the industrialized world—have been growing fatter over the last couple of generations. But why? Dozens of different causes have been suggested: It’s because food is less expensive and more readily available than ever before in history, so we generally eat more than our ancestors did. Or it’s because of sedentary lifestyles—our televisions, computers, desk jobs, lengthy car commutes and all the other reasons people sit still for hours at a time, rather than move around and burn calories.

These factors surely contribute to our expanding waistlines. But might environmental pollution also be a culprit? Because it’s not just people getting fatter in the modern world—animals are, too. Our pets, our laboratory animals, even the unwanted feral rats infesting our cities are all bigger than they were in our grandparents’ day, and maybe some of this comes from chemical pollutants that imitate various “fat” hormones naturally produced by our bodies.

Unlikely though this might sound, over the past decade and more there’s been a wide variety of research studies which seem to support the theory. Over at ProPublica, reporter David Epstein collected and summarized a sample range of these reports in a thought-provoking investigative article titled “Do These Chemicals Make Me Look Fat?”

Pet obesity

To share just a couple of statistics: the National Pet Obesity Survey claims that over 50 percent of American cats and dogs are obese. Also, there exists a “National Pet Obesity Survey.”

Despite having pretty much the same diet and lifestyle as they ever did, American laboratory rats have grown steadily fatter over the last 30 years (which is several generations, for rats). This might, possibly, be blamed on other factors present in a laboratory environment (including exposure to antibiotics), except that feral rats studied in Baltimore have also grown fatter—without exposure to antibiotics or other factors present in a lab-rat lifestyle.

But today’s environments—whether natural, urban or laboratory—are all contaminated by trace amounts of various pollutants, including growth hormones fed to livestock, and toxic ingredients in widely used insecticides, fungicides and other anti-pest poisons. These pollutants, in turn, can affect people’s (or animal’s) bodily systems in a variety of ways, either mimicking or suppressing the functions of various hormones.

As obesity researcher Emily Dhurandhar said to ProPublica, “Obesity really is more complex than couch potatoes and gluttons.”

Face it, it's pretty hard to give up French fries. So Burger King is hoping its new lower-calorie fries will find a following.

The company says its new "Satisfries" have 70 fewer calories than a same-sized serving of their regular fries -- 270 compared to 340. The ingredients are the same -- potato, oil and batter.

The difference, Burger King says, is in the batter, which absorbs less oil and, therefore, less fat and fewer calories. 

This isn't really a new idea. For decades, food manufacturers have been producing lower-fat, lower-calorie versions of what are basically indulent foods -- ice cream, cookies and so forth.

It's a way of having your cake and eating it too, as the saying goes. BK is hoping to lure customers who want to cut back on calories and fat but don't want to give up the satisfaction of munching on a new crispy French fry.

Burger King isn't saying exactly what it did to the batter, in hopes of staying ahead of the competition for at least a few months.

The new fries have a different shape -- they're crinkle-cut, whereas Burger King's regular fries are straight-edged. The company says the shape has nothing to do with the caloric content; it's just intended to help customers and employees tell which kind of fry they're eating.

If you’re trying to lose weight or keep from gaining any, eating actual sugar might be better than making do with low-calorie artificial sweeteners.

So says Yale University professor Ivan de Araulo, in a press release published on Sept. 22. De Araulo was lead researcher of a study which seems to indicate that your brain is much harder to fool than your tongue—however sweet an artificial sugar-free might taste, it won’t satisfy your brain’s food-craving center as effectively as genuine sugar.

With all the “sugar makes you fat” and “beware diabetes” warning stories you see in the news, sometimes it’s easy to forget that there’s a valid biological reason humans evolved to crave sugar: it’s a concentrated source of food energy. Sugar isn’t inherently bad for your health; excessive amounts of sugar is.

Fewer calories

The logic behind using artificial sweeteners in lieu of sugar is that the fake stuff has fewer calories than sucrose or fructose; thus, the weight-conscious person can satisfy their craving for sweets while consuming far less calories.

The problem, as suggested by de Araulo’s study (among others),  is that artificial sweeteners might not satisfy that craving after all. As de Araulo wrote in his press release, “The study identified a specific physiological brain signal that is critical for determining choice between sugars and sweeteners. This signal regulates dopamine levels – a chemical necessary for reward signalling in the brain – and only arises when sugar is broken down into a form where it is usable as fuel for cells of the body to function.”

In other words: when you have a sugar craving, what eventually satisfies that craving is not the sensation of sweetness on your tongue, but the presence of dopamine in your brain. And, regardless of what sweet flavors stimulate your taste buds, your brain won’t generate that dopamine unless it gets some genuine sugar to work with.

Yale and de Araulo are far from the first researchers to suggest that low-calorie sweeteners might paradoxically result in weight gain caused by increased food cravings; as early as 2008, we noted that

“Psychologists at Purdue University's Ingestive Behavior Research Center reported that, compared with rats that ate yogurt sweetened with sugar, those given yogurt sweetened with zero-calorie saccharin later consumed more calories, gained more weight, put on more body fat, and didn't make up for it by cutting back later.

“Authors Susan Swithers, PhD, and Terry Davidson, PhD, theorize that by breaking the connection between a sweet sensation and high-calorie food, the use of saccharin changes the body’s ability to regulate intake.”

Five years later, de Araulo and his team made the similar observation that “humans frequently ingesting low-calorie sweet products in a state of hunger or exhaustion may be more likely to 'relapse' and choose high calorie alternatives in the future.”

The solution, according to de Araulo, might not be to cut out the use of artificial sweetener altogether, but to combine them with actual sugar in amounts sufficient to satisfy the brain’s craving for it. “The results suggest that a 'happy medium' could be a solution; combining sweeteners with minimal amounts of sugar so that energy metabolism doesn't drop, while caloric intake is kept to a minimum.”

“Three square meals a day,” the saying goes. But how many of us actually eat three meals a day? Specifically, how many of us eat breakfast every day?

In many households, mornings are a chaotic time. Kids have to get off to school and parents usually set off in different directions, sometimes facing long commutes to get to their jobs. Who has time for breakfast?

For decades nutritionists have called breakfast “the most important meal of the day” and that hasn't changed over the years.

Despite that, a recent survey conducted for the California Almond Board found 50% of women said they skip breakfast on busy mornings. Some said they don't eat because they just aren't hungry in the mornings.

Mood, weight, well-being

"Ditching breakfast can affect your mood, weight and well-being," said nutritionist Bonnie Taub-Dix, author of "Read It Before You Eat It." "Breakfast helps fill up our minds and bodies after we've gone without food for several hours while sleeping."

The American Diabetes Association has also weighed in on the issue of breakfast, pointing out it usually ends the longest period most people go without nourishment. If the last thing you eat is at 8 p.m. and then sleep to 7 a.m., that's eleven hours of fasting.

“Your body enters into a prolonged fasting state,” the association says in an article on its website. “It starts to believe that you won’t be eating any time soon. When you finally eat lunch, your body stores it as fat because it thinks, 'I’d better save this for later. I don’t know when the next meal will come.' That, of course, leads to weight gain. When you break the fast in the morning, on the other hand, your body can use that food to power you through the day.” 

Eat the right things

Nutritionists generally say that people who eat breakfast tend to eat healthier throughout the day. And eating the right things for breakfast can be just as important as eating the morning meal.

Eating a huge breakfast of eggs, sausage and pancakes – typical in the past – is not going to be helpful, unless you are preparing for a day of hard, manual labor, like plowing the back 40. Even then it probably isn't the best choice. Starting the day with a lot of calories probably means you'll consume a lot more before the sun sets.

Dr. Heather Leidy, a nutrition expert at the University of Missouri, says the best breakfasts are low in carbs and fat and high in protein and fiber. Fiber will fill you up and keep you from being hungry later on. And less is more. A healthy breakfast, she says, should really be no more than 500 calories.

Eating a healthy breakfast is particularly important for children and adults with chronic health conditions. According to Katherine Zeratsky, at the Mayo Clinic, it can also help people lose and control their weight. In addition to keeping you from getting hungry later in the day it will also boost your energy level. 

Healthy breakfast foods

What makes for a healthy breakfast? According to the John's Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, you should sample from the bread and grain, dairy and fruit or vegetable food groups. When you have little time for breakfast, have fruit, non-fat yogurt or granola bars on hand. 

You can also be creative. There's no law saying your have to consume traditional breakfast food first thing in the morning. If you have leftovers from a healthy dinner the night before and the mood strikes you, there's no reason you can't have warmed up salmon and vegetables for breakfast.

Cold pizza, on the other hand, is probably a bad idea.

Lots of things can make us fat -- too much food, too much sitting around and so forth. But researchers at Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) say there's another factor, one you might not of: the microbes in your gut.

Working in mice transplanted with intestinal microbes from lean and obese twins, a new WUSTL study shows that altering the microbial mix prevents mice destined for obesity from gaining weight and fat or developing related metabolic problems linked to insulin resistance.

But there’s a caveat: Microbes associated with leanness can’t take up residence in mice with “obese” gut microbes unless the animals eat a healthy diet. The research is reported Sept. 6 in the journal Science.

“Eating a healthy diet encourages microbes associated with leanness to quickly become incorporated into the gut,” said senior author Jeffrey I. Gordon, MD, director of the Center for Genome Sciences & Systems Biology at Washington University.

“But a diet high in saturated fat and low in fruits and vegetables thwarts the invasion of microbes associated with leanness. This is important as we look to develop next-generation probiotics as a treatment for obesity,” Gordon said.

While the research may lead to effective new treatments in the future, for now the advice remains the same: eat your vegetables and move around a little.

The study

The research involved identical and fraternal female human twin pairs, ranging in age from 21 to 32, in which one twin is obese and the other lean. This stark weight disparity occurs in about 6 percent of twins and is more common among fraternal twins than those who are identical.

As part of the study, the twins’ gut microbes (captured from fecal samples) were transferred into mice that had been raised in a previously microbe-free environment. Because mice naturally eat each other’s feces, the researchers had a chance to observe what happens when a mouse carrying a collection of gut microbes from an obese twin is housed with another mouse carrying gut microbes from the lean twin.

Do the mice transfer microbes to one another through their feces, the researchers asked. And if so, which microbes ultimately take over?

The answer depends on diet.

If the animals ate a healthy diet low in saturated fat and high in fruits and vegetables, microbes from the lean twin invaded the gut of the mouse with the obese twin’s microbes, preventing weight gain and the development of metabolic problems associated with insulin resistance. In people, insulin resistance is associated with significant weight gain and typically is the first sign of metabolic problems that eventually can lead to diabetes.

In 2009, a study by Gordon and his colleagues indicated that the collections of microbes in the guts of obese people lack the diversity and richness of people who are lean. This observation was confirmed by the new research.

“We think the lack of diversity leaves open niches – or jobs, if you will – that can be filled by microbes associated with leanness,” he said. “Our results underscore the strong interactions between gut microbes and diet and help illustrate how unhealthy diets select against gut microbes associated with leanness.”

More people are losing weight the old-fashioned way. They're simply being more aware and keeping track of what they eat. In the end, it's calories that make the difference.

While nutrition is key to good health, it's generally acknowledged that consuming too many calories – hundreds more than you burn each day – is a good way to pack on the pounds. That's one reason that many restaurants are being required to post calorie information on their menus.

A hungry consumer might want a triple burger with a large order of fries until they see how many calories that is. Armed with that information, they may opt for a small, single burger and a side order of fruit.

Increasingly, restaurants are getting on board. The Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF) recently reported member food and beverage companies have exceeded their goal of reducing 1.5 trillion calories in the marketplace in the United States.

“Our industry has an important role to play in helping people lead healthy lives and our actions are having a positive impact,” said Indra Nooyi, HWCF Chair, Chairman and CEO of PepsiCo. “We see continued opportunities to give consumers the choices they’re looking for and to work collaboratively with the public and non-profit sectors on initiatives that enable continued progress.”

Food providers under pressure

Restaurants, food processors and beverage companies have been under pressure as America's obesity problem has mushroomed over the last 30 years. McDonald's, for example, has responded with happy meals that include apple slices, salads and wraps, and began posting calorie information on menus before they were required to.

But that still hasn't silenced critics, nor did it spare CEO Don Thompson a recent scolding from a nine-year old girl, who stood up at a shareholders' meeting and accused his company of “tricking kids.”

Restaurants that post calorie information on their menus help consumers who want to maintain a limit on the number of calories they consume each day to stay on track. Previously, it has been difficult to know how much a restaurant meal bumped up your calorie intake.

When you eat at home it's much easier. Food nutrition labels state the calories per serving and if you total up the calories per part of a meal, you can keep track of your caloric intake.

More than just cutting calories

Nutritionists stress that restricting calories, while important, is only part of a healthy diet. There are good calories and bad calories, they say. Some foods give you more bang for the buck, when it comes to calories.

For example, foods that are high in fiber are not only good for you, but are more filling. You don't have to eat as much to feel full. Some foods provide what are called “empty” calories.

Alcohol falls into that category, packing seven calories per gram. Giving up alcohol for a while can definitely make it easier to shed pounds and lower your caloric intake.

There's growing research that suggests reducing your calories can improve your overall health. A 2006 study at the Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine found that reducing calories was good for your heart. The researchers, however, found increasing calories from vegetables promoted the best health, since vegetables contain a high percentage of nutrients per calorie. 

A 2012 study linked consuming too many calories with memory loss. And of course, consuming too many calories will make you obese, leading to all types of health problems, including heart disease and diabetes.

How many are too many? It will depend on your age, sex and body make-up. Here's a calculator that can help you determine the number that's right for you. 

What to do

To keep track of your daily calories you need to keep a food journal. With the memo functions on most smartphones now, it's easier than it once was.

Eat smaller portions. Americans have increased their portion sizes over the years because calories have become cheap. Eating less food will translate into consuming fewer calories.

Where possible, try pre-packaged meals. These will help get you accustomed to smaller portions and enable you to easily track the number of calories you are consuming.

Acting on behalf of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. marshals have seized tainted dietary supplements from Globe All Wellness (Globe All) in Hollywood, FL. The products contain an undisclosed active pharmaceutical ingredient and may be unsafe.

Several of the seized products contain sibutramine hydrochloride (sibutramine), the active ingredient in the obesity drug Meridia. Meridia was withdrawn from the U.S. market in December 2010 after clinical data demonstrated that it increased the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Unapproved drugs

Globe All markets its products with claims that its products can lower blood pressure and cholesterol, among others. Under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA), products offered for such use are considered to be drugs, since they are intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease.

The company’s products are drugs that have not been approved by the FDA for their claimed uses.

“Companies that distribute products containing undisclosed drugs are not only breaking the law, they are putting consumers at risk,” said Howard Sklamberg, director of the Office of Compliance in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “With these kinds of hidden dangers, consumers cannot make informed decisions about the products they are taking.”

Failed inspection

During inspections of Globe All conducted in October 2012 and February 2013, the FDA also found that the company distributed dietary supplements that were not manufactured in accordance with the current good manufacturing practice (cGMP) requirements for dietary supplements.

“Two important protections for the public are that a firm may not sell new drugs unless they have been tested and approved by the FDA and a firm may not make false or unsubstantiated claims about drugs they sell,” said Melinda K. Plaisier, acting associate commissioner for regulatory affairs. “When a firm disregards these protections, it not only violates the law but also creates a risk for consumers who may rely on a bogus product and forego effective and proven treatment. The FDA must and will take aggressive enforcement action.”

The FDA seized various lots of the following products:

• SlimXtreme
• SlimXtreme Gold
• SlimPlus
• SlimLee
• GelSlim
• SlimDrops
• Colonew

No illnesses have been associated to date with Globe All’s products.

How's that diet going? It's easy to get discouraged if you don't reach your goals when you think you should. So maybe it's time to readjust your goals.

“If we set lofty weight loss goals, like 10, 20 or 30-plus pounds, and we don’t make progress quickly enough, it’s too easy to get distracted and have our emotions convince us that the goal is not achievable,” said Lauren Whitt, director of University of Alabama Birmingham's (UAB) Employee Wellness.

Whitt and other fitness expects believe that breaking down goals into smaller, more manageable short-term targets, like losing one to two pounds per week, can lead to better chances of success.

“Once those first one or two pounds are lost, you can celebrate,” Whitt added. “Then the next mini-goal can become the focus.”

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has also found benefit from gradual weight loss. It's especially helpful, the agency says, when it comes to maintaining your new weight.

The challenge

Here's what dieters are up against. To lose one pound you need to burn or reduce 3,500 calories. For most people, walking briskly for one hour will burn about 300 calories, less than 10 percent of that. CDC recommends reducing caloric intake by 500 to 1,000 calories per day.

Going on a crash diet – reducing consumption far below that amount – can yield near-instant results. But it often results in what is known as “yo-yo dieting.” Your weight goes down and comes right back up.

Don't mess with your metabolism

By restricting so many daily calories, you are resetting your body's metabolism. Once you start eating normally again, your body burns calories more slowly. Not a good thing.

There's an abundance of commercial weight loss programs available to consumers. Some appear to be more effective than others. Before selecting one, however, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) suggests you discuss it with your doctor.

Based on your doctor's advice, the agency suggests choosing a diet that emphasizes healthy eating that reduces calories but does not forbid specific foods or food groups. Supplement that healthy eating plan with daily exercise of some kind. And again, start small, especially if you have not been very active lately.

What would such a plan yield in the way of results? According to NIH, between a half pound and two pounds per week.

How realistic are your goals?

Another important factor is having a realistic assessment of your current weight and measure your goals against that. You're here, but you want to be here – how realistic, or healthy, is that?

To start, you'll need to know your body mass index (BMI), a number calculated on your weight and height and a measure of how much fat your body is carrying. CDC has a handy online calculator to help you quickly establish your BMI. It will also give you a target weight to shoot for.

If you can't lose, stop gaining

It may be that before you can start losing weight, you need to stop gaining. Whitt says that can be a realistic and helpful goal if you are finding yourself struggling to lose weight.

“Look at the number you are now, and tell yourself you will stay right there,” Whitt said.

Whitt said a team of people supporting you, whether in a contest or in an individual weight-loss plan, is crucial.

“They are the ones who can pick you up and encourage you on a day when it feels overwhelming,” Whitt said. “These same people will also challenge you to continue to push forward, helping to propel you to greatness and encourage your efforts.”

It's also important not to focus on failure. Remember, there are going to be setbacks along the way. When you get right down to it, getting to and maintaining a healthy weight is not a destination but a journey. It's something you should try to do for the rest of your life.

Who couldn't stand to lose a few pounds? Consumers spend billions on diets, diet food, exercise equipment and gym memberships.

Maybe there is a less expensive way to lose weight and, in the process, become a little more healthy. We're going to pass along two such ideas.

First, if you consume alcohol, consume less of it. Over the years Americans have worked up what seems to be a mighty thirst. After the end of Prohibition in the 1930s per capita consumption of alcohol in the U.S. gradually rose, until it peaked in around 1985.

Empty calories

Drinking a lot of alcohol has health consequences but many drinkers don't stop and consider what it does to your waistline. The National Center for Health Statistics reported late last year that on average, American adults drink in 100 calories daily from beer, wine and other alcoholic beverages.

Men ages 20 to 39 consume the most alcohol, about 175 calories per day, while women in the same age group consume about 60 calories daily. The study also pointed out that almost 20 percent of men and six percent of women consume more than 300 calories daily from alcohol.

That's like eating a candy bar every day, something most people would not do if they were trying to drop a few pounds.

“It is certainly not a good health strategy to have alcohol calories constituting a significant percentage of total calorie consumption,” said Dian Griesel, co-author of the book TurboCharged: Accelerate Your Fatburning Metabolism.

The authors say women, especially, would be better off giving up alcohol until their weight goals are met.

Social networks

Another way consumers often seek to lose weight is though support groups. Weight Watchers, in fact, has been an effective program for many since it requires members to attend meetings for support and accountability.

But mobile technology now gives dieters access to some of the same kinds of support through Twitter feeds and other social networks.

A study at the University of South Carolina (USC) found that Twitter use among participants in a weight loss program increased the odds of their success at shedding pounds.

"The results show that those who regularly utilized Twitter as part of a mobile weight loss program lost more weight,” said Brie Turner-McGrievy, a USC researcher.

The study followed 96 overweight and obese men and women living in a metropolitan area over a six-month period. All participants had a smartphone or other mobile device that connected to the Internet.

The participants received regular podcasts on which they received health and nutrition information as well as feedback and encouragement. The study found the podcasts were effective in producing a 2.7 percent decrease in body weight at six months.

Twitter particularly effective

The researchers said they found the Twitter posts particularly effective. Many of the posts were from participants, offering encouragement or a personal success story.

"I avoided eating a pastry this morning at a breakfast meeting! I did have a skim Mocha without whipped cream...not too bad,” one post read.

It was these personal posts by study participants, Turner-McGrievy said, that seemed to be the most helpful.

“Traditional behavioral weight loss interventions generally provide social support through weekly, face-to-face group meetings,” she said. “While we know this is effective, it is costly and can create a high degree of burden on participants.”

But providing group support through online social networks can be a low cost way to reach a large number of people who are interested in achieving a healthy weight.

Downsize Fitness is an exclusive fitness center. People with six-pack abs need not apply. This club only takes members who are at least 50 pounds overweight.

The club currently has locations in Chicago, Las Vegas and Dallas but has plans to take the concept nationwide. It was developed specifically with chronically overweight and obese individuals in mind. The idea is to provide an environment where overweight consumers don't feel self-conscious, because they are no different from any of the other members.

Owner Francis Wisniewski says the center is modeled after hit TV show,"The Biggest Loser," but he says it's structured to be more realistic -- both from a financial and time perspective. Unlike a traditional health club, every Downsize Fitness member works with a trainer every time he comes to the gym. The trainers put members through their workouts and hold them accountable for their diet.

"Our goal is to help members change their lifestyle," Wisniewski said. "It's not just about following a diet or working out; it's about teaching members new habits they will embrace in and outside of the gym. Our goal is to give our members a new quality of life and we have the resources and unique trainer support to do that for everyone who walks through our door."

Personal experience

The motivation for the gym comes from Wisniewski who himself lost over 60 pounds in the last year. Wisniewski says he had success but always felt uncomfortable working out in the gym, where everyone else seemed to be in much better shape than he was.

He made the decision to open a gym for overweight individuals when he realized he was not alone in being uncomfortable at typical gyms. Through a supportive team-oriented environment and trainer-based workout plans, the aim is to get overweight individuals healthy and fit.

Some members who have posted comments online have pointed out the fitness equipment, such as treadmills, are built for heavy people and, unlike most health clubs, the walls are not covered with mirrors.

Curves

Downsize Fitness is not the first health club to set some exclusivity parameters for membership. Curves is a national franchise of health clubs whose membership is open only to women. It opened in 1992 with the premise that some women were intimidated by working out in a health club with men. The company says it now has locations in 85 countries.

Whether Downsize Fitness matches that success is yet to be seen. However, the company could be punished for its success.

Once its members are no longer 50 pounds overweight, they will no longer meet the membership requirements. But with America's obesity epidemic, that would be a problem Downsize Fitness might like to have.

With the best of intentions you have begun a new year with the goal of losing weight. So how's that going?

Yes, it's early in the process and you should understand that shedding pounds might not be as easy as you think it will be.

“Losing weight is one of the top resolutions made every year, yet only 20 percent of people achieve successful weight-loss and maintenance,” said Jessica Bartfield, MD, who specializes in nutrition and weight management at the Loyola Center for Metabolic Surgery & Bariatric Care in Chicago.

Despite that fact that two-thirds of Americans say they are on a diet to improve their health, very few are actually seeing results. Bartfield says it's because dieting is a skill. It takes practice to get there.

Knowing why people fail to lose weight might help you avoid some of the common mistakes. Bartfield says there are four main reasons dieters don't lose weight.

1. Underestimating calories consumed

This is a biggie. Most people underestimate the number of calories they eat per day. That's why you have to read food labels and look up the caloric value of foods. Writing down everything that you eat -- including drinks and "bites" or "tastes" of food -- can help increase self-awareness.

Pay attention to serving sizes and use measuring cups and spoons as serving utensils to keep portions reasonable. Food eaten outside of the home tends to be much larger portion sizes and much higher in calories. Frequent restaurants that post the calorie content of their food.

2. Overestimating Activity and Calories Burned

If you underestimate how many calories you consume you might also overestimate how many calories you burn in a typical day. The older you get the fewer calories you burn.

“Typically you need to cut 500 calories per day to lose one pound per week," Bartfield said.

This is very hard to do through exercise alone. It would require most people to add 60 minutes or more of vigorous activity every day. Exercise is important to good health but it's much easier to reduce the calories you consume than burn them off once you've consumed them. And when you do exercise be careful -- exercise is not an excuse to eat more!

3. Poor Timing of Meals

Bartfield says people need a steady stream of glucose throughout the day to maintain optimal energy and to prevent metabolism from slowing down. Eat breakfast every day within one hour of waking up, then eat a healthy snack or meal every three to four hours. Fasting is actually counter-productive. Try not to go longer than five hours without eating a healthy snack or meal to keep your metabolism steady.

4. Inadequate Sleep

Studies have shown that people who get fewer than six hours of sleep have higher levels of ghrelin, a hormone that stimulates appetite, particularly for high-carbohydrate/high-calorie foods. In addition, less sleep raises levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, which can lead to weight gain.

“Good health practices are more than just learned, they become a regular habit and a way of life,” Bartfield said.

A good first step is to determine how many calories you need each day. The American Cancer Society maintains an online calorie calculator to help you arrive at your number.

You should also discuss it with your doctor to find the approximate number of calories you burn. From there, you and your doctors can devise a target for calorie consumption that is right for you.

If you ask people for a New Year's resolution, chances are a lot of people will tell you they resolve to lose weight in the coming year. Chances are also good they will fail.

Despite the numerous diet programs and products available to consumers, losing weight and maintaining that new weight is not easy to do. Where most people run into trouble, says Shaynee Roper, clinical nutrition manager for the Harris Health System, is how they view the challenge.

Losing weight is not a change in diet, she says, but a change in lifestyle.

“A lot of people set goals and are really gung-ho in January and February, but then their energy fades because they’re not making a lifestyle change,” said Roper. “Most want a quick fix, but if you have more than 8-10 pounds to lose, it isn’t going to be a quick fix. You have to stay on task and stick with it for 6-12 months to see results.”

Small goals

How do you make losing weight part of your lifestyle? It starts with setting small goals. You might set a weekly goal of losing a pound or even five pounds over a month. Or better yet, don’t establish weight goals. Just try to reduce or eliminate bad foods like fried food or sweets.

Keeping track of what you eat and drink is also important. In the beginning it helps to write it down. If you know how many calories -- or approximately how many calories a food item has -- write that down too. Knowing how many calories you're taking in and how many you are burning is a good way to stay on track.

If you notice that there are certain foods you tend to over-consume, try to cut back. Eliminate them altogether if they aren't healthy. Replace them with fruits and vegetables.

Food is not a reward

Roper says it's fine to reward yourself for hitting certain goals, just don't reward yourself with food. Buy yourself something special or treat yourself to an event like a concert or movie.

The important thing to remember is the change can be gradual.

“When eliminating or reducing certain foods from your diet, pick one or two to start," Roper said. "Work on these for two weeks before adding more.”

Exercise is also part of a lifestyle change and 30 minutes a day will provide results. But again, don't feel like you have to do it all at once. Roper suggests breaking up the 30 minutes of recommended activity into small 5-10 minute segments throughout the day. The idea is to get your metabolism revved up and into gear.

Mayo Clinic advice

While hundreds of fad diets, weight-loss programs and outright scams promise quick and easy weight loss, the Mayo Clinic also stresses a healthy lifestyle as the foundation for a successful weight-loss program. And these changes must be permanent.

"It takes a lot of mental and physical energy to change your habits," the clinic staff says in a website posting. "So as you're planning new weight-loss-related lifestyle changes, make a plan to address other stresses in your life first, such as financial problems or relationship conflicts. While these stresses may never go away completely, managing them better should improve your ability to focus on achieving a healthier lifestyle."

For those who are watching their weight, the next few days will be critical. The end of the year holidays, from Christmas to New Years, bring dinners, parties and lots of sweets. One way to protect yourself is to resist reaching for that cookie -- and your car keys.

When you are adding extra calories to your body, it just makes sense that you need to do more to burn them. Unless you are going to make extra trips to the gym or spend more time on the treadmill, you might consider driving less and walking more.

Sheldon Jacobson is a University orf Illinois computer science professor who has studied the link between automobiles and body weight. He suggests that both daily automobile travel and calories consumed are related and reducing either one, even by a small amount, correlates with a reduction in body mass index (BMI).

Small changes

“We’re saying that making small changes in travel or diet choices may lead to comparable obesity reduction, which implies that travel-based interventions may be as effective as dietary interventions,” said graduate student Banafsheh Behzad, a co-author of the study, published in the journal Preventive Medicine.

The goal isn't just to walk more. Walking is good, make no mistake. But the object, according to the researchers, is to just spend less time in the car.

“Any time a person sits behind the wheel of a car, it’s one of the most docile activities they can do in a day,” Jacobson said. “The automobile is the quickest mode of transportation we have. But a consequence of this need for speed in getting things done may be the obesity epidemic.”

According to Jacobson, obesity is really just a math problem. Maintaining body weight essentially is a result of energy consumed and energy expended.

Other studies tend to look at the two issues individually, or at a local or individual level, but Jacobson’s group wanted to look at both sides of the equation through a national lens. They decided to use driving as a proxy for physical activity.

They created a model that took into account national average BMI, caloric intake and driving habits. They discovered that if all adults in the United States drove one mile less per day, the model predicted an associated decrease in the national average BMI -- though very slight -- after six years.

Moving more

“One mile is really not much,” Behzad said. “If they would just consider even taking the bus, walking the distance to the bus stop could have an impact like eating 100 calories less per day. The main thing is paying attention to caloric intake and moving more, together, can help reduce BMI.”

That's fine, of course, for people who live in urban areas and have access to public transportation. But people in rural areas sometimes don't have that kind of access. It might help explain why, year after year, the highest obesity rates in the nation are usually found in rural states like Mississippi and West Virginia.

The 2012 state-by-state obesity ranking by the Trust for America's Health(TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) found that 12 states had obesity rates of 30 percent or more -- the same number as last year. Twenty-six of the 30 states with the highest obesity rates are in the Midwest and South.

But for people not in rural areas, who are able to use mass transit, or better yet, walk to the post office or drug store, Jacobson insists it can be a practical way to help control weight.

“The most important thing for people to learn from this study is that they have a choice,” Jacobson said. “One has to be just as careful about when you choose to drive as when you choose to eat. These small changes in our driving and dietary habits can lead to long-term significant changes in obesity issues. Those are the kind of changes we advocate.”

And Jacobson says even a modest decrease in BMI, like that predicted by the model, could represent significant cost savings. If drivers nationwide traveled one mile less by car each day, not only would fuel consumption fall, but annual health care costs could drop by billions of dollars as fewer people would be classified as obese or overweight.

Some things aren't much fun to do alone. Losing weight must be one of them, as a new study finds that short-term weight-loss programs are more effective with the addition of a personal digital device and telephone coaching.

“Little is known about whether the outcome of physician-directed weight loss treatment can be improved by adding mobile technology,” the authors write in the study posted Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. However, “self-monitoring of diet and physical activity is associated with weight loss success and can be performed conveniently using handheld devices.”

Bonnie Spring, Ph.D., with Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, and colleagues conducted a two-group 12-month study involving 69 adults from October 2007 through September 2010.

Patients were randomly assigned to a standard care only treatment group (standard group) or to a standard treatment with mobile technology system (+mobile group). All patients attended biweekly weight loss groups held by Veterans Affairs outpatient clinics, and the +mobile group also received a personal digital assistant (PDA) to self-monitor diet and physical activity, and biweekly coaching calls for six months. Weight was measured at randomization, and at 3-, 6-, 9- and 12-month follow-up.

Patients assigned to the +mobile group lost an average of 3.9 kg (8.6 pounds) more than the control group at each weigh-in, and the authors found no evidence that this varied across time. Specifically, weight loss among the +mobile group was greater than weight loss in the control group at three and six months, nine months and 12 months.

Big loss

More than 36 percent of participants in the +mobile group lost at least 5 percent of their initial body weight at three months, compared with 0 percent in the standard group, and this effect also did not vary significantly across time.

“In sum, this study highlights the promise of a mobile technology system as a scalable, cost-effective means to augment the effectiveness of physician-directed weight loss treatment,” the authors conclude.

“Technology offers new channels to reconfigure the provision of effective components of behavioral weight loss treatment (i.e., self-monitoring, goal setting, lifestyle counseling and in-person sessions).”

Colorado and Washington recently became the first states to legalize marijuana for recreational use, not just for medicinal purposes, and the weed appears to be on the road to legalization elsewhere. 

But a new study finds that it may bring an unexpected problem with it -- binge eating. The study published Online First by Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, a JAMA Network publication finds that overeating and binge eating in adolescents and young adults may be associated with the use of marijuana and other drugs.

Kendrin R. Sonneville, Sc.D., R.D., of Boston Children’s Hospital, and colleagues examined the association between overeating and binge eating  and adverse outcomes such as overweight/obesity, depressive symptoms, frequent binge drinking, marijuana use and other drug use.

The study included 16,882 boys and girls who were 9 to 15 years old in 1996 and participated in the Growing Up Today Study. Overeating and binge eating were assessed by questionnaires every 12 to 24 months between 1996 and 2005.

More common among women

Binge eating was more common among females than males, with 2.3 percent to 3.1 percent of females and 0.3 percent to 1 percent of males reporting binge eating between the ages of 16 and 24, according to the study results.

“In summary, we found that binge eating, but not overeating, predicted the onset of overweight/obesity and worsening depressive symptoms. We further observed that any overeating ... predicted the onset of marijuana and other drug use,” the authors comment.

Binge eating is defined as eating an amount of food that is larger than most people would eat in a similar period under similar circumstances and feeling a lack of control over eating during the episode, according to the study background.

“Given that binge eating is uniquely predictive of some adverse outcomes and because previous work has found that binge eating is amenable to intervention, clinicians should be encouraged to screen adolescents for binge eating,” the authors said.

Two California brothers who have been leading promoters of the LAP-BAND surgical procedure for weight loss in obese adults are being targeted by several federal and state criminal investigations, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Michael and Julian Omidi, who for years ran the seemingly ubiquitous 1-800-GET-THIN ad campaign, are also facing numerous lawsuits filed by patients and the survivors of patients who had bad outcomes from the procedure.

The LAP-BAND is a ring that is placed on the upper part of the stomach forming a small pouch. It is supposed to cause patients to experience a full feeling and restrict their dietary intake.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the LAP-BAND in 2001 for use in severely obese patients with a body mass index (BMI) of at least 40, and those with a body mass index (BMI) of at least 35 and who also have an existing severe condition related to their obesity, such as heart disease or diabetes, or those who are at least 100 pounds overweight. Last year, it expanded the eligibility to those with a BMI of 30 to 34. BMI is a general measure of body fat based on an individual’s weight and height.

The investigation centers around "potential violations of federal law, including conspiracy, healthcare fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, tax violations, identity theft [and] money laundering," Samanta Kelley, a special agent for the Food and Drug Administration's criminal division, said in an affidavit filed at the federal courthouse in Los Angeles, the Times reported.

Ads everywhere

The 1-800-GET-THIN advertisements blanketed Southern California roadside billboards, television, radio and the Internet for years but disappeared earlier this year after the FDA warned the company that the ads were misleading because they failed to include adequate warnings about the surgery

One worker at a clinic affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN was recently arrested after she tried to sell the medical records of two patients who died after Lap-Band surgeries to an attorney, Kelley said in an affidavit.

An attorney representing the Omidis, John Hueston, said his clients have done nothing wrong and he did not expect criminal charges to be filed against them.

5 deaths

Five patients died after undergoing the Lap-Band procedures at clinics linked to the 1-800-GET-THIN campaigns. In their lawsuits, relatives of the dead patients have charged that the clinics failed to warn patients about the risks of the surgery and alleged that doctors made numerous errors that led to the patients' deaths.

One of the lawsuits seeks damages in the death of a 50-year-old California woman who died in July 2010, five days after Lap Band surgery. Laura Faitro of Simi Valley died after undergoing surgery at Valley Surgical Center in West Hills, Calif. 

Her husband, John, said Ms. Faitro became interested in the surgery after seeing television commercials for 1-800-GET-THIN. But a few days after the surgery, she was hospitalized with an infection and later died.

Faitro's suit charges that there were three lacerations on her liver and her abdominal cavity was filled with bloody fluid, KABC-TV reported. 

Faitro claims surgeons discharged his wife despite her complaints of severe abdominal pain, and that the pain was so intense it forced her to seek help at the Simi Valley Hospital emergency room. She died on July 26 of "multi-organ failure and infarction due to shock, secondary to bleeding and sepsis in the abdominal cavity," according to the complaint.

Last resort

The LAP-BAND is intended to be used for weight loss in adults who have not lost weight using non-surgical weight loss methods. 

Patients using the LAP-BAND must be willing to make major changes to their lifestyle and eating habits, the FDA notes.

“Obesity is a major public health concern in the United States,” said William Maisel, M.D., M.P.H., deputy director for science at the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health. “A healthy lifestyle and weight loss are keys to improvements in health and a person’s overall quality of life.”

Use of the LAP-BAND in patients with BMIs between 30 and 40 was examined in a U.S. study. Results showed that 80 percent of patients lost at least 30 percent of their excess weight and kept it off for one year. Some patients in the study lost no weight, while others lost more than 80 percent of their extra weight.

In the same study, more than 70 percent of patients experienced an adverse event related to LAP-BAND, most often vomiting and difficulty swallowing. The events ranged from mild to severe but most were mild and resolved quickly.

Seven out of 149 patients needed other procedures after implantation: four to remove the LAP-BAND, two for port revisions, and one to reposition the LAP-BAND.

More about weight loss

The U.S. government recommends the average adult get 150 minutes of moderate exercise each week or 75 minutes of a more strenuous workout. Most of us don't, however, using the lack of time as an excuse.

Researchers at the University of Colorado say it might not take nearly as long to achieve results if we would use an exercise technique known as sprint interval training. They have found that exercisers can burn as many as 200 extra calories in as little as 2.5 minutes of concentrated effort a day —- as long as they intersperse longer periods of easy recovery in a practice known as sprint interval training.

Manageable exercise

The finding could make exercise more manageable for would-be fitness buffs by cramming truly intense efforts into as little as 25 minutes.

Using a stationary bike as an example, the researchers suggest peddling at a moderate pace for 10 minutes or so before kicking into high gear and peddling at a fast pace for two or three minutes, then repeating the pattern. Their results showed a marked uptick in the amount of calories the volunteers burned on the workout day, despite the short amount of time spent in actual hard exercise.

“Research shows that many people start an exercise program but just can’t keep it up,” said Kyle Sevits, leader of the research team. “The biggest factor people quote is that they don’t have the time to fit in exercise. We hope if exercise can be fit into a smaller period of time, then they may give exercise a go and stick with it.”

Testing the theory

In a test, volunteers engaged in extended periods of moderate activity. One one day, they engaged in sprint interval training.

An analysis of a system that measured the subjects' calorie expenditure showed that the volunteers burned an average of an extra 200 calories on the sprint interval workout day, despite spending just 2.5 minutes engaged in hard exercise.

Though the researchers can’t yet speculate on whether such efforts could translate into weight loss, Sevits and his colleagues suggest that engaging in intense, but brief, bursts of exercise could aid in weight maintenance.

“Burning an extra 200 calories from these exercises a couple of times a week can help keep away that pound or two that many Americans gain each year,” Sevits said.

A word of caution: depending on age and medical factors, not everyone should engage in intense exercise. No change in exercise routine should be undertaken without first discussing it with your doctor.

A subsidiary of diet plan marketer Medifast Inc. will pay a $3.7 million civil penalty to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it violated a previous agency order by making unsupported claims about its weight-loss program.

Medifast unit Jason Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has agreed to settle FTC charges that weight-loss claims in the company’s advertisements for meal replacement products violated a 1992 FTC settlement order, which barred it from making any unsupported claims about users’ success in achieving or maintaining weight loss or weight control.

Jason Pharmaceuticals sells Medifast-brand low-calorie meal substitutes.  Its most advertised plan is the Medifast “5 and 1” plan that consists of 800-1,000 calories per day.  Filed on the FTC’s behalf by the Department of Justice, the complaint against Jason Pharmaceuticals alleges that the company made unsupported representations since at least November 2009 in radio, television, Internet, and print advertisements that consumers using Medifast programs and products would lose two to five pounds each week. 

The company also represented that the experiences of consumer endorsers featured in the advertisements were typical, and that consumers would lose more than 30 pounds, according to the complaint.

One such ad stated:
“Why Medifast?  Three great reasons.
Cynthia Lujan lost 73 lbs on Medifast! Cindy Daniels lost 43 lbs on Medifast!
Jennifer Lilley lost 70 lbs on Medifast!
You can lose up to 2 to 5 pounds per week on Medifast.”

Under the new settlement order announced today, Jason Pharmaceuticals is prohibited from misrepresenting that consumers who use any low-calorie meal replacement program, including the Medifast “5 and 1” plan, can expect to achieve the same results that an endorser does, or can lose a particular amount of weight or maintain the weight loss. 

Such representations must be non-misleading and backed by competent and reliable scientific evidence that consists of at least one adequate and well-controlled human clinical study of the low-calorie meal replacement program, or a study that follows a protocol detailed in the settlement order.

Under the settlement order, the company also is prohibited from making any other representation about the health benefits, safety, or side effects of any low-calorie meal replacement program, unless the representation is non-misleading and backed by competent and reliable scientific evidence that is generally accepted in the profession to yield accurate results.

The company also is prohibited from misrepresenting that any doctor, health professional, or endorser recommends a weight-loss product, program, service, drug, or dietary supplement.

A new study by University of North Carolina School of Medicine pediatrics researchers finds a surprising difference in the eating habits of overweight children between ages 9 and 17 years compared to those younger than nine. 

Younger kids who are overweight or obese consume more calories per day than their healthy weight peers. But among older overweight children the pattern is reversed: They actually consume fewer calories per day than their healthy weight peers. 

Is that possible? 

How to explain such a seemingly counterintuitive finding? 

"Children who are overweight tend to remain overweight," said Asheley Cockrell Skinner, PhD, assistant professor of pediatrics at UNC and lead author of the study published by the journal Pediatrics. 

"So, for many children, obesity may begin by eating more in early childhood. Then as they get older, they continue to be obese without eating any more than their healthy weight peers," Skinner said. "One reason this makes sense is because we know overweight children are less active than healthy weight kids. Additionally, this is in line with other research that obesity is not a simple matter of overweight people eating more -- the body is complex in how it reacts to amount of food eaten and amount of activity." 

Weight strategies 

These results also suggest that different strategies may be needed to help children in both age groups reach a healthy weight. 

"It makes sense for early childhood interventions to focus specifically on caloric intake, while for those in later childhood or adolescence the focus should instead be on increasing physical activity, since overweight children tend to be less active," Skinner said. "Even though reducing calories would likely result in weight loss for children, it's not a matter of wanting them to eat more like healthy weight kids -- they would actually have to eat much less than their peers, which can be a very difficult prospect for children and, especially, adolescents." 

These findings "have significant implications for interventions aimed at preventing and treating childhood obesity," Skinner said. 

In the study, Skinner and co-authors Eliana Perrin, MD, MPH, and Michael Steiner, MD, examined dietary reports from 19,125 children ages 1-17 years old that were collected from 2001 to 2008 as part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). 

They categorized the weight status based on weight-for-length percentile in children less than 2 years old, or body mass index (BMI) percentile for children between 2 and 17, and performed statistical analyses to examine the interactions of age and weight category on calorie intake.

Turn off the tube! That's the advice of a study on ways to keep your kids from becoming obese couch potatoes. 

The study, released in the September/October 2012 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, found that reducing television viewing may be an effective strategy to prevent excess weight gain among adolescents. 

Careful tracking 

Findings were based on a one-year community-based randomized trial that enrolled 153 adults and 72 adolescents from the same households. During that year, researchers from the University of Minnesota, School of Public Health Obesity Prevention Center conducted six face-to-face group meetings, sent monthly newsletters, and set-up 12 home-based activities. 

In addition, each household agreed to allow researchers to attach a "TV Allowance" to all televisions in the household for the one-year study period. Television viewing hours, diet, and physical activity levels were measured before and after the intervention. 

A clear association was observed among adolescents between reduction in TV hours and decreased weight gain over one year. The TV hours' impact on weight gain was not significant for adults. These findings suggest that television viewing is a risk for excess weight gain among adolescents. The implication is that parents who limit their adolescents' television viewing may help their adolescent maintain a healthy body weight. 

According to national survey data [NHANES] 2003-2006, about 31% of US children and adolescents are overweight or obese, therefore finding the causes for weight gain in this population is growing increasingly important. 

Baby steps 

"We tried to intervene on behaviors that are related to energy balance, such as television viewing, sugar-sweetened beverage intake, physical activity, and consumption of packaged convenience foods,” said Simone A. French, PhD, principal investigator of the study and the director of the University of Minnesota's Obesity Prevention Center. “Although the individual contribution of each of these behaviors to excess weight gain and obesity may be small, it is important to examine their possible role individually and together in promoting excess weight gain. Associations between these behaviors and risk for excess weight gain may differ among adults and adolescents because of their different physical and social developmental stages. 

"This study is an important piece of evidence that reducing TV hours is a powerful weight gain prevention strategy parents can use to help prevent excess weight gain among their children by changing the home environment and household television viewing norms," French concluded.

A Nebraska woman charges that Parkay Spray butter substitute isn't as calorie- and fat-free as it claims to be. Pamela Trewhitt claims in a lawsuit that seeks class action status that ConAgra Foods intentionally misrepresents Parkay Spray in its advertising. 

The spray is marketed as fat-free and caloria-free but Trewhitt's suit claims that, in fact, an 8-ounce bottle contains 832 calories and 93 grams of fat.

"Defendant knew or should have known that its product was mislabeled and engendered confusion among consumers," the lawsuit says.

The comany said it stands behind the product and its labeling.

"While we don’t comment on pending litigation, ConAgra Foods stands behind the accuracy of our labeling and has a long-established commitment to marketing our food responsibly. We intend to vigorously defend this litigation," Becky Niiya of ConAgra told ConsumerAffairs.

The lawsuit quotes consumer complaints on the Internet about the spray.

"I could not figure out why I simply could not lose hardly even a pound, even though I was working out hard ... and monitoring calories ... for a couple of years ... I was also literally taking the top of the 'fat and calorie free butter' spray and pouring it on all my carefully steamed veggies when I found out that a bottle of that stuff is 90 fat grams," said one consumer quoted in the suit.

"I was going through two bottles a week, and working out and getting fat and unhealthy," the consumer complained.

The lawsuit claims ConAgra is violating the Nebraska Consumer Protection Act and seeks damages of $5 million. It also asks for an injunction to prohibit the allegedly inaccurate labels.

Of course, not everybody's unhappy with the product. Melissa of North Carolina, for one, was so pleased with her bottle of Parkay Spray that she posted a video on the ExpoTv site. Melissa doesn't say whether she was paid or otherwise compensated for her endorsement.

Oklahoma City has seen some pretty good days in the last few years, and not just because of its successful NBA team, the Oklahoma City Thunder. Nationally, the city has been known to be pretty much recession-proof, with one of the lowest unemployment and home foreclosure rates in the country.

In addition, Oklahoma City has created a $700 million educational campaign to either renovate or build over 70 schools throughout the evolving city. The construction campaign is one of the biggest education initiatives in the country.

With Oklahoma City's steadily growing economy and its extremely rapid pace of development, other areas are looking to the city for both ideas and inspiration when it comes to avoiding the full impact of the nation's recession.

But not only is Oklahoma City considered one of the best places to live and start a business, its residents were also able to lose one million pounds collectively, after being challenged by the city's mayor. The city was also recently named one of the "seven worst places to smoke weed," which is either a big plus or a big minus, depending on your point of view.

The missing million

ConsumerAffairs spoke with the Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett about how his city has thrived during recessionary times, and how its residents lost those million pounds in a relatively short period of time.

“In the winter of 06/07, there was a story in Men's Fitness Magazine that went and called the city one of the most obese cities in the country, one of the fattest cities in the country,” he said.

 “It was about the time that we were starting to show up on a lot of complimentary lists -- best places to get a job -- those types of lists, and I was doing my best traveling the country and speaking inside the city talking about Oklahoma City's kind of emerging economy and [how] we're rising up to a new position. And that obesity list really bothered me,” he said.

 “And I kind of went through some personal reflection at the time, and got on the scales one day and went to a website and found out that I was obese. I didn't even know."

"So I decided to lose some weight and I lost a pound a week for about 40- weeks. During that time frame I studied the city’s infrastructure and culture and why we have a problem, and came up with an idea of trying to create awareness about obesity, [because] we weren't talking about it, we were in denial,” he explained.

“So I came up with the idea of putting the entire city on a diet and announcing that we were going to lose a million pounds. And got a private sector donor to put a website together so we can kind of collect the information from everybody. So there was no government money spent on it.”

“And as of January we reached the million-pound mark," he said. “We had 47,000 people sign up and we reached our goal. It took four years and three weeks.”

Self-inventory

Mayor Cornett said that during that time, the city was able to take a look at itself and reexamine how its infrastructure was leading to the high obesity rate.

After the city's self-inventory, the Mayor was able to include jogging, and biking trails, sidewalks, senior health and wellness centers, and other additions to the city that helped residents remain active.

The Mayor admitted that if it wasn't for the million pound weight loss challenge, the additions to the city may not have been included in the development.

“Once we went through the awareness campaign, we saw what we had to correct,” he said.

Although a city losing one million pounds is a huge challenge, a bigger challenge may have been for the Mayor, when he had to tell the same people who voted him into office, that they needed to lose a bit of weight.

And what was the initial reaction?

“I think most were stunned,” the Mayor said. “I think it was 'check-out what the crazy mayor did'. I think that was the first reaction. But even if that's what it was, it got people talking about it. And obesity became the sort of topic in Oklahoma City that no one was comfortable talking about.”

“I think it’s because we consider ourselves nice people and obesity can affect the way you look,” he added. “And it's not nice to talk about the way people look, it's an unflattering situation.”

“I think when I went public with my story and my personal struggles, and announced this was going to be a topic of public debate -- and we're not going to hide it anymore -- I think it freed up everybody to talk, inside their home, inside their businesses, inside their church. Many, many people jumped on board. It just took off,” he said.

Weight loss, economic growth

But has the city been able to maintain its new healthier lifestyle?

Mayor Cornett says there is a definite link between Oklahoma City's economic growth and its ability to keep improving its obesity rate.

“Our per capita income is going up because of the jobs we created, and with the per capita income on the rise, it will lower those obesity rates.” It all comes back to economic development and creating a city where they want to live,” he said.

And so far, the Mayor has been praised by Oklahoma City residents, as well as the entire nation for doing just that. Building a city that people are enthused to move to and reside in.

In fact, he says the old order of people moving to cities to follow certain jobs has changed. Nowadays people first determine where they want to live, then the jobs will follow them.

“Jobs follow people, people don't follow jobs anymore,” he says. "If you can create a city where highly educated twenty-somethings want to live, the jobs will follow. It was announced that we were the most entrepreneurial city in the country in terms of start-ups per capita.”

Mayor Cornett also says what makes Oklahoma City a great place to start a small business is the residents and their level of consumer confidence.

“People are spending money,” he said. “We have the lowest unemployment in the country. Our cost of living is low and is about 90 percent of the national average, and our wages are higher than the national average, so that creates a discretionary opportunity for people to spend money on things like, restaurants or NBA tickets or whatever they choose.”

“What it boils down to, if you're not spending all of your money on housing, and in many communities that's what it feels like, [then] you have money to do other things. And that option is one of the things that leads to the quality of life living in Oklahoma City.”

“Life is easy here,” he added. “Life can be a struggle in a lot of places, but life is not a struggle here on a daily business.”

The Mayor also says that because land is still very affordable in Oklahoma City, people are purchasing it in various areas, which will avoid any one area from becoming overpopulated.

In essence, the city has developed the best of both worlds. It's become a faster-paced city with more to see and do, but sprawled out enough so residents still have ample space.

So what's next for the country's number one developing city in the next decade or so?

“I think the next ten will be better than the last ten, with all of the projects we're building right now,” said the Mayor.

“We're building a new convention center and a new downtown street car, a new park, the new senior health and wellness centers, improvements on the river, the fairgrounds. We got a billion dollars of construction in the pipeline coming in, and almost all of it is in the inner city. You need to develop downtown.”

“We've convinced suburbanites that the quality of their life is directly related to the intensity of the core," he said. "You can't be a suburb of nothing. And that's been kind of the key to getting these tax generated infrastructure projects in line.

"We also pay cash; we don't go into debt for most of the stuff I just talked about. It takes us quite a while to build them, but I like that pay as you go philosophy."

Also,“We have another 10 years of projects to build. So you ask about the next ten years, the dirt is going to be flying from now on,” he said.

More than one-third of U.S. adults are obese, and obesity contributes to a number of health conditions, including high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol. 

To help obese and overweight Americans who have been unsuccessful in getting their weight under control with diet and exercise, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved two new medications -- the first drugs for long-term weight management that FDA has approved in 13 years. 

Life-long meds 

Marketed as Belviq and Qsymia, these prescription medications would be taken for the rest of a person’s life. “For many people, obesity is a life-long condition, but we don’t always think of it -- or treat it -- as such,” says Amy Egan, M.D., M.P.H., deputy director for safety in FDA’s Division of Metabolism and Endocrinology Products (DMEP). 

“Qsymia and Belviq are considered life-long therapies in patients who respond to and tolerate them,” says Egan. 

The drugs are meant to be used in conjunction with a balanced diet and exercise, says Mary Roberts, M.D., a medical officer in DMEP. “These drugs are another tool to be used by someone trying to reach and stay at a healthy weight,” she says. 

Are they for you? 

You may be a candidate for taking Belviq or Qsymia if you are at least 18 and: 

• your body mass index (BMI) is 30 or greater (obese); or
• your BMI is 27 or greater (overweight) and you have at least one other weight-related condition. 

Women who are pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant should not take either of these medications, Egan says, because weight loss offers no potential benefit to a pregnant woman and can cause fetal harm. Qsymia carries a risk for birth defects (cleft lip with or without cleft palate) in infants exposed during the first trimester of pregnancy. 

How they work 

Belviq -- the trade name for the drug lorcaserin -- is a 10 mg tablet taken twice a day that works by activating a part of the brain that controls hunger. It was tested in three clinical trials that lasted from 52 to 104 weeks and included nearly 8,000 obese and overweight patients. 

The average weight loss for patients taking Belviq ranged from 3 to 3.7 percent over those taking a placebo.

In studies of patients without type 2 diabetes, about 47 percent of patients lost at least 5 percent of their weight compared with 23 percent of patients treated with placebo.

Belviq should be discontinued if a patient fails to lose five percent of their weight after 12 weeks of treatment, as it is unlikely that continued treatment will be successful. 

Qsymia is a combination of two FDA-approved drugs: phentermine, an appetite suppressant, and topiramate, used to treat epilepsy and migraines. It is taken once a day, with patients starting at the lowest dose (3.75 mg phentermine/23 mg topiramate extended-release), then increasing to the recommended dose (7.5 mg/46 mg). In some circumstances, patients may have their dose increased to the highest dose (15 mg/92 mg). 

It was tested in two clinical trials which included nearly 3,700 obese and overweight patients treated for up to one year.

The average weight loss of patients taking Qsymia ranged from 6.7 percent (lowest dose) to 8.9 percent (recommended dose) over those taking a placebo. 

Sixty-two percent of patients on the lowest dose and 70 percent on the recommended dose lost at least 5 percent of their weight compared with 20 percent treated with placebo. 

If after 12 weeks, a patient has not lost 3 percent of his or her weight on the recommended dose of Qsymia, FDA recommends that treatment be discontinued or increased to the highest dose.  If after an additional 12 weeks on the highest dose, a patient does not lose at least five percent of weight, Qsymia should be discontinued gradually. 

The history

Why has it been 13 years since the last diet drug was approved? 

Eric Colman, M.D., deputy director of DMEP, says drug companies have been testing potential new weight loss drugs, but none had proven effective and safe for consumers until now. 

Before Belviq and Qsymia, the only prescription drug currently approved for long-term treatment of obesity was orlistat, marketed as Xenical. Orlistat is also sold over the counter in a lower dose as Alli. 

But Colman explains FDA has a long history with weight-loss drugs, one set against a backdrop of changing attitudes towards obesity. It wasn’t that long ago, he says, that vanity was considered the only reason to lose weight. That mindset has shifted over the last 20 years with recognition that obesity is a serious health concern. 

FDA approved the first prescription obesity medication in 1947, an appetite suppressant called desoxyephedrine or methamphetamine. Over the next few decades, several more appetite suppressants were approved. In 1973, FDA limited all weight loss drugs to short term use, reflecting concerns about an epidemic of amphetamine use, Colman says. 

In 1997, two diet drugs were removed from the market because of concerns about damage to heart valves. They were fenfluramine (part of the popular fen-phen) and dexfenfluramine (Redux). In 2010, the drug sibutramine (Meridia) was also removed because of concerns about an increased risk of heart attacks and strokes. 

The manufacturers of both Belviq and Qsymia will be required to perform long-term trials to examine the effect of these products on the risk for heart attacks and strokes.

People fighting the Battle of the Bulge have a new weapon in their arsenal with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of Qsymia (phentermine and topiramate extended-release) as an addition to a reduced-calorie diet and exercise for chronic weight management. 

The drug is approved for use in adults with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater (obese) or a BMI of 27 or greater (overweight), who have at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure (hypertension), type 2 diabetes, or high cholesterol (dyslipidemia). 

BMI, which measures body fat based on an individual’s weight and height, is used to define the obesity and overweight categories. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than one-third of adults in the United States are obese. 

“Obesity threatens the overall well being of patients and is a major public health concern,” said Janet Woodcock, M.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “Qsymia, used responsibly in combination with a healthy lifestyle that includes a reduced-calorie diet and exercise, provides another treatment option for chronic weight management in Americans who are obese or are overweight and have at least one weight-related comorbid condition.” 

Drug combo 

Qsymia is a combination of two FDA-approved drugs, phentermine and topiramate, in an extended-release formulation. 

Phentermine is indicated for short-term weight loss in overweight or obese adults who are exercising and eating a reduced calorie diet. 

Topiramate is indicated to treat certain types of seizures in people who have epilepsy and to prevent migraine headaches. 

Limited use 

Qsymia must not be used during pregnancy because it can cause harm to a fetus. Data show that a fetus exposed to topiramate, a component of Qsymia, in the first trimester of pregnancy has an increased risk of oral clefts (cleft lip with or without cleft palate). 

Females of reproductive potential must not be pregnant when starting Qsymia therapy or become pregnant while taking Qsymia. They should also have a negative pregnancy test before starting Qsymia and every month while using the drug, and should use effective contraception consistently while taking Qsymia. 

The safety and efficacy of Qsymia were evaluated in two randomized, placebo-controlled trials that included approximately 3,700 obese and overweight patients with and without significant weight-related conditions treated for one year. All patients received lifestyle modification that consisted of a reduced calorie diet and regular physical activity. 

Trial results 

Results from the two trials show that after one year of treatment with the recommended and highest daily dose of Qsymia, patients had an average weight loss of 6.7 percent and 8.9 percent, respectively, over treatment with placebo. 

Approximately 62 percent and 69 percent of patients lost at least five percent of their body weight with the recommended dose and highest dose of Qsymia, respectively, compared with about 20 percent of patients treated with placebo. 

Patients who did not lose at least three percent of their body weight by week 12 of treatment with Qsymia were unlikely to achieve and sustain weight loss with continued treatment at this dose. Therefore, response to therapy with the recommended daily dose of Qsymia should be evaluated by 12 weeks to determine, based on the amount of weight loss, whether to discontinue Qsymia or increase to the higher dose.  

If after 12 weeks on the higher dose of Qsymia, a patient does not lose at least five percent of body weight, then Qsymia should be discontinued, as these patients are unlikely to achieve clinically meaningful weight loss with continued treatment. 

Qsymia must not be used in patients with glaucoma or hyperthyroidism. Qsymia can increase heart rate; this drug’s effect on heart rate in patients at high risk for heart attack or stroke is not known. Therefore, the use of Qsymia in patients with recent (within the last six months) or unstable heart disease or stroke is not recommended. Regular monitoring of heart rate is recommended for all patients taking Qsymia, especially when starting Qsymia or increasing the dose. 

The most common side effects of Qsymia are tingling of hands and feet (paresthesia), dizziness, altered taste sensation, insomnia, constipation, and dry mouth. 

Qsymia is marketed by Vivus Inc. in Mountain View, Calif.

There are all kinds of diets and weight-control products on the market, but losing weight isn't complicated and doesn't have to be expensive. Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center say there are three things that cost nothing that can help people -- women especially -- lose weight.

Dr. Anne McTiernan and her colleagues were studying the impact of a wide range of self-monitoring and diet-related behaviors and meal patterns on weight change among overweight and obese postmenopausal women when they made their finding.

The first step is to keep a food journal. Faithfully record everything you eat each day.

The second step is to eat three meals a day. Skipping a meal here and there doesn't help, it actually hurts the weight-control process, the researchers said.

The third step is to avoid eating in restaurants. Restaurant meals, especially lunch, can easily torpedo your diet routine.

Reducing calories is the goal

“When it comes to weight loss, evidence from randomized, controlled trials comparing different diets finds that restricting total calories is more important than diet composition such as low-fat versus low-carbohydrate. Therefore, the specific aim of our study was to identify behaviors that supported the global goal of calorie reduction,” McTiernan said.

Specifically, McTiernan and colleagues found that:

• Women who kept food journals consistently lost about 6 pounds more than those who did not
• Women who reported skipping meals lost almost 8 fewer pounds than women who did not
• Women who ate out for lunch at least weekly lost on average 5 fewer pounds than those who ate out less frequently. Eating out often at all meal times was associated with less weight loss, but the strongest association was observed with lunch.

“For individuals who are trying to lose weight, the No. 1 piece of advice based on these study results would be to keep a food journal to help meet daily calorie goals. It is difficult to make changes to your diet when you are not paying close attention to what you are eating,” said McTiernan, director of the Hutchinson Center’s Prevention Center and a member of its Public Health Sciences Division.

Be honest

If you keep a food journal, McTiernan said its important that you be honest, accurate and complete. You should also be consistent. That means carrying your food journal with you at all times, or using a diet-tracking app on your smartphone.

The reason not to skip meals is it can cause you to crave high-calorie foods and eat more than you might otherwise. Eating in restaurants may cause you to make unhealthy food choices.

“Eating in restaurants usually means less individual control over ingredients and cooking methods, as well as larger portion sizes,” the authors wrote.

Another weapon in the battle against obesity. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Belviq (lorcaserin hydrochloride), as an addition to a reduced-calorie diet and exercise, for chronic weight management. 

Public Citizen's Health Research Group blasted the move as “reckless."

"We expect that as with many of the other drugs, this one will be withdrawn from the market after the agency is forced to confront the many serious adverse health effects, such as heart valve damage, that will be reported," said the group's director, Dr. Sidney Wolfe. 

Heart valve issues 

Regarding that concern, FDA says heart valve function was assessed by echocardiography in nearly 8,000 patients in the Belviq development program. There was no statistically significant difference in the development of FDA-defined valve abnormalities between Belviq and placebo-treated patients. 

Because preliminary data suggest that the number of serotonin 2B receptors may be increased in patients with congestive heart failure, Belviq should be used with caution in patients with this condition. Belviq has not been studied in patients with serious valvular heart disease. 

The drug’s manufacturer will be required to conduct six post-marketing studies, including a long-term cardiovascular outcomes trial to assess the effect of Belviq on the risk for major adverse cardiac events such as heart attack and stroke. 

Use driven by BMI 

The drug is approved for use in adults with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or greater (obese), or adults with a BMI of 27 or greater (overweight) and who have at least one weight-related condition such as high blood pressure (hypertension), type 2 diabetes, or high cholesterol (dyslipidemia). 

BMI, which measures body fat based on an individual’s weight and height, is used to define the obesity and overweight categories. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third of adults in the United States are obese. 

Belviq works by activating the serotonin 2C receptor in the brain. Activation of this receptor may help a person eat less and feel full after eating smaller amounts of food. 

Not for everyone 

Belviq should not be used during pregnancy. Treatment with Belviq may cause serious side effects, including serotonin syndrome, particularly when taken with certain medicines that increase serotonin levels or activate serotonin receptors. These include, but are not limited to, drugs commonly used to treat depression and migraine. Belviq may also cause disturbances in attention or memory. 

In 1997, the weight-loss drugs fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine were withdrawn from the market after evidence emerged that they caused heart valve damage. This effect is assumed to be related to activation of the serotonin 2B receptor on heart tissue. When used at the approved dose of 10 milligrams twice a day, Belviq does not appear to activate the serotonin 2B receptor. 

The most common side effects of Belviq in non-diabetic patients are headache, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, dry mouth, and constipation, and in diabetic patients are low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), headache, back pain, cough, and fatigue. 

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg riled the beverage industry with his proposal to ban large sugary beverages at food establishments, in an effort to combat obesity.

Many health experts who have weighed-in on the subject say the Mayor may have been well intentioned, but the plan probably won't meet its objective. Experts at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) say by focusing on one product the city could be missing the big picture in the obesity battle.

In fact, in 2009 a team of researchers from the UAB School of Public Health and Purdue University reviewed five randomized trials that studied the effect of drinking sugar-sweetened beverages on body weight.

“We found no significant effect on overall weight reduction as a result of reducing intake of sugar-sweetened beverages,” said Kathryn Kaiser, Ph.D., instructor in the SOPH. “Since this was published, two other randomized trials have been published, and neither showed large effects on weight change.”

Kaiser says energy should be directed toward the design and conduct of randomized trials that will definitively answer the questions about actions that can significantly reduce weight. That, she says, has a better chance of producing effective policies.

Short-sighted?

“I think to say people drinking large sodas at events is the cause of obesity is short sighted and it is making a villain out of something that may not be the true villain,” said Suzanne Judd, Ph.D., assistant professor of biostatistics at UAB. “I think that while reducing consumption of sugar sweetened beverages is important, I don’t think making it unavailable in certain settings is a way to accomplish that.”

Consumers posting comments on our original story about the proposed ban were, for the most part, also skeptical.

“Another example of failing to consider second, third, etc. order consequences of a policy,” Earl, of Arlington, Va., wrote. “Folks wanting 20 or 24 ounces will buy two 16-ounce drinks. Hence, yet more calories.”

Judd said she thinks that individuals are ultimately responsible for their own health and the actions they take related to it.

“People make their own choices and we can’t force them into those decisions. A public health effort must be made so they can better understand the consequences of their choices,” Judd said.

Looking for a way to take weight off and keep it off? Forget the fad diets and hyped exercises -- the answer may lie with remote coaching by email, financial incentives and other modification behavior techniques, according to a report of a randomized controlled trial published in the May 28 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, a JAMA Network publication. 

It's no secret that not following a physician’s lifestyle change advice is a common problem. Many physicians are skeptical that patients will change their unhealthy behaviors, and physicians also report a lack of time and training to effectively counsel their patients, researchers write in the study background.

“This study’s interventions leveraged handheld technology to create efficient interventions that make self-monitoring more convenient, extend decision support into life contexts where lifestyle choices are made, and convey time-stamped behavioral data to paraprofessionals who provide coaching remotely,” the researchers note.

Bonnie Spring, Ph.D., of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, and colleagues randomly assigned 204 adult patients (48 men) with elevated intake of saturated fat and low intake of fruits and vegetables, and high sedentary leisure time and low physical activity into 1 of 4 treatments.

The treatments were: increase fruit/vegetable intake and physical activity, decrease fat and sedentary leisure, decrease fat and increase physical activity, and increase fruit/vegetable intake and decrease sedentary leisure. Patients used personal digital assistant devices to record and self-regulate their behaviors.

Daily uploads

During three weeks of treatment, patients uploaded their data daily and communicated as needed with their coaches by telephone or by email. The participants could earn $175 for meeting goals during the treatment phase. In addition, there was a 20-week follow-up during which patients could earn from $30 to $80 for continuing to record and transmit their data.

“The increase fruits/vegetables and decrease sedentary leisure treatment maximized healthy lifestyle change compared with the other interventions,” the authors comment. They note that lifestyle gains diminished once treatment ended, as expected, but improvements persisted throughout the follow-up period.

From baseline to the end of treatment to the end of the follow-up, respectively, mean (average) servings per day of fruits/vegetables changed from 1.2 to 5.5 to 2.9, mean minutes per day of sedentary leisure from 219.2 to 89.3 to 125.7, and daily calories from saturated fat from 12 percent to 9.4 percent to 9.9 percent, according to the study results.

“This study demonstrates the feasibility of changing multiple unhealthy diet and activity behaviors simultaneously, efficiently and with minimal face-to-face contact by using mobile technology, remote coaching, and incentives,” the authors comment.

Is it possible that obesity is the problem it is because American just don't know how to eat properly any longer?

It doesn't seem likely since children are supposed to learn about nutrition in school and government agencies have been offering guidance for decades. But the International Food Information Council (IFIC) Foundation’s 2012 Food & Health Survey offers some intriguing results.

First, it found that most people think a great deal about the healthfulness of their diets and want to make improvements. Yet an overwhelming majority confessed to not really knowing what to eat to be healthy and maintain a healthy weight.

Confusing

Seventy-six percent said that ever-changing nutritional guidance makes it hard to know what to believe. And when it comes to making decisions about food, consumers today rely most often on their own research rather than third-party experts.

Six out of 10 Americans have given a lot of thought to the foods and beverages they consume and the amount of physical activity they get. Yet, only 20 percent say their diet is very healthful and 23 percent describe their diet as extremely or very unhealthful; less than 20 percent meet the national Physical Activity Guidelines.

“This year’s Survey was designed to reveal consumer behavior, not just thoughts and desires. Clearly, there is a disconnect for many Americans,” said Marianne Smith Edge, Senior Vice President, Nutrition and Food Safety, IFIC Foundation. “Some questions also reveal clear differences based on gender and age.

Gender differences

For example, men feel it is harder to eat a healthful diet than to find time to exercise, while women feel just the opposite. Older respondents tended to value a healthy diet while younger people did not.

The Survey found that 90 percent of Americans have given at least a little thought to the ingredients in their food and beverages. Consumers say they are trying to eat more whole grains, fiber and protein, while cutting calories, sugar, solid fats and salt.

However, 87 percent said the most important factor in the food they choose is taste, followed by price, which dropped significantly as a factor compared to 2011, and healthfulness. In terms of trying to lead healthier lives, nearly 60 percent of Americans believe that online and mobile tools are helpful.

While 55 percent of Americans said they are trying to lose weight, 23 percent of obese consumers and 44 percent of overweight consumers say they are not trying to lose weight.

Fewer than one in 10 U.S. consumers could correctly estimate the number of calories they need to maintain their weight and only three in 10 believe that all sources of calories play an equal role in weight gain.

Most weight-loss programs focus on what we eat. Two researchers, T. Bettina Cornwell of the University of Oregon and Anna R. McAlister of Michigan State University, say we should pay more attention to what we drink.

In a paper written up in the journal Appetite, they conclude that beverages consumed with a meal provide a powerful influence. It's not so much the calories in the beverages, it's how they play with your taste buds.

The paper featured separate studies. One involved a survey of 60 young U.S. adults between the ages of 19 and 23. The second involved 75 children, three to five years old.

The older group was served soda and chose salty, high-calorie foods to go with it. Preschoolers ate more raw vegetables, either carrots or red peppers, when accompanied with water rather than when accompanied by a sweetened beverage.

Influencing taste preference

"Our taste preferences are heavily influenced by repeated exposure to particular foods and drinks," said Cornwell. "This begins early through exposure to meals served at home and by meal combinations offered by many restaurants. Our simple recommendation is to serve water with all meals. Restaurants easily could use water as their default drink in kids' meal combos and charge extra for other drink alternatives."

Serving water, McAlister said, could be a simple and effective dietary change to help address the nation's growing obesity problem, which has seen increasing number of diabetes cases in young adults and a rise in health-care costs in general.

Drinking water with meals, Cornwell said, also would reduce dehydration. While estimates of dehydration vary by sources, many estimates suggest that 75 percent of adult Americans are chronically dehydrated.

Switching to water might help children the most. From an early age, Cornwell said, children learn to associate sweet, high-calorie drinks such as colas with salty and fatty high-calorie-containing foods like French fries.

"If the drink on the table sets the odds against both adults and children eating their vegetables, then perhaps it is time to change that drink, and replace it with water," Cornwell said.

For years the weight loss industry has been searching for a magic bullet: a pill obese consumers could take and lose weight. A pill that would allow you to eat what you want and not gain weight.

Too good to be true? Researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas say maybe not. Working with mice, they have found that manipulating a genetic pathway in the heart can speed up metabolism and burn calories faster.

The experiments, in which laboratory mice were fed a high-fat diet, also found that manipulating a heart-specific genetic pathway prevents obesity and protects against harmful blood-sugar changes associated with type 2 diabetes.

The scientists report their findings in the April 27 issue of of the journal Cell.

There have been a number of attempts to regulate human metabolism, seen as a key factor in weight control. This attempt is different, researchers say, because for the first time, they have found a way to use the heart to control the burn rate, and in the long run, improve human health.

Promoting health

“Obesity, diabetes, and coronary artery disease are major causes of human death and disability, and they are all connected to metabolism,” said Dr. Eric Olson, chairman of molecular biology at UT Southwestern and senior author of the study. “This is the first demonstration that the heart can regulate systemic metabolism, which we think opens up a whole new area of investigation.

What was most impressive, the researchers say, was the fact the test mice stayed at a normal weight despite being fed a diet high in fat. But when the protein in their heart was no longer manipulated, they quickly became obese.

The research team is using the protein isolated in the heart to develop a drug that would not only prevent obesity, but obesity-related disease like high cholesterol and Type 2 diabetes.

The researchers say there will be more animal testing before such a drug is ever tested on humans.

If red wine enthusiasts need another reason to indulge their favorite passion, here it is: piceatannol, a substance found in red grapes, may help keep you trim.

Researchers at Purdue University report piceatannol has a structure similar to another substance found in red wine, resveratrol, which may hold some health benefits of its own.

Kee-Hong Kim, an assistant professor of food science, and Jung Yeon Kwon, a graduate student in Kim's laboratory, say piceatannol is able to block cellular processes that allow fat cells to develop, opening a door to a potential method to control obesity.

Alters the timing

"Piceatannol actually alters the timing of gene expressions, gene functions and insulin action during adipogenesis, the process in which early stage fat cells become mature fat cells," Kim said. "In the presence of piceatannol, you can see delay or complete inhibition of adipogenesis."

Previous studies of red win have focused mostly on resveratrol, which is also found in peanuts, and is believed to be helpful in combating cancer and heart and cognitive diseases. It turns out that resveratrol is converted to piceatannol in humans after consumption.

While similar in structure to resveratrol – the compound found in red wine, grapes and peanuts that is thought to combat cancer, heart disease and neurodegenerative diseases – piceatannol might be an important weapon against obesity.

The way the researchers explain it, fat cells reach maturity over a relatively short period of time.

Interference

Kim found that piceatannol, in effect, interferes with that process. Piceatannol essentially blocks the pathways necessary for immature fat cells to mature and grow.

Increasingly, red wine is being analyzed for its potential health benefits. Besides studies suggesting it is helpful in preventing various types of cancer, a National Institutes of Health study earlier this year tried to figure out why.

Researchers found that resveratrol does not directly activate sirtuin 1, a protein associated with aging. Rather, the authors found that resveratrol inhibits certain types of proteins known as phosphodiesterases (PDEs), enzymes that help regulate cell energy.

These findings may help settle the debate regarding resveratrol's biochemistry and pave the way for resveratrol-based medicines.

Eat chocolate and lose weight? Maybe, but it's not quite that simple. 

According to a research letter in the March 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, frequently eating chocolate was linked to lower body mass index (BMI), As other studies have suggested, the latest study finds that eating certain types of chocolate has been linked to some favorable metabolic associations with blood pressure, insulin sensitivity and cholesterol level. However, because chocolate can be a calorie-laden sweet there are concerns about eating it.

In February 2011, Japanese scientists followed up on earlier studies that have shown cocoa, the main ingredient in chocolate, appears to reduce the risk of heart disease by boosting levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good" cholesterol, and decreasing levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad" cholesterol

In the latest study, Beatrice A. Golomb, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues with the University of California, San Diego, studied 1,018 men and woman without known cardiovascular disease, diabetes or extremes of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels who were screened for participation in a clinical study examining noncardiac effects of statins. To measure chocolate consumption, 1,017 of the participants answered a question about how many times per week they ate chocolate. BMI was calculated for 972 of them. Of the participants, 975 completed a food frequency questionnaire. 

“Adults who consumed chocolate more frequently had a lower BMI than those who consumed chocolate less often,” the authors note.

Participants had a mean (average) age of 57 years, 68 percent were men and the mean BMI was 28. They ate chocolate a mean (average) of two times a week and exercised 3.6 times a week.

“In conclusion, our findings – that more frequent chocolate intake is linked to lower BMI – are intriguing,” the authors conclude. “A randomized trial of chocolate for metabolic benefits in humans may be merited.”

Japanese study

In their study, the Japanese researchers said that credit for those heart-healthy effects goes to a cadre of antioxidant compounds in cocoa called polyphenols, which are particularly abundant in dark chocolate.

The scientists analyzed the effects of cocoa polyphenols on cholesterol using cultures of human liver and intestinal cells. They focused on the production of apolipoprotein A1 (ApoA1), a protein that is the major component of "good" cholesterol, and apolipoprotein B (ApoB), the main component of "bad" cholesterol.

What they discovered was cocoa polyphenols increased ApoA1 levels and decreased ApoB levels in both the liver and intestine.

Additionally, the scientists discovered the polyphenols seem to work by enhancing the activity of so-called sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs).

SREBPs attach to the genetic material DNA and activate genes that boost ApoA1 levels, increasing "good" cholesterol. The scientists also found polyphenols appear to increase the activity of LDL receptors, proteins that help lower "bad" cholesterol levels.

Would the Kardashian sisters lead you astray?  A proposed class action lawsuit says the reality TV star and two of her sisters have made false claims about QuickTrim diet pills.

The lawsuit says the pills amount to little more than caffeine with a few herbal ingredients thrown in and says the claims made by the Kardashians are "false, misleading, and unsubstantiated."

The plaintiffs in the case live in New York, California and Florida and alleged that they purchased the diet pills because of the Kardashians' endorsements.

The suit, filed in federal court in New York, seeks over $5 million in damages.  It was filed by the law firm of Bursor & Fisher.

Kim Kardashian, 31, made an estimated $65 million in 2010 from her TV shows, clothing line and numerous endorsements of fitness, beauty and weight-loss products.

Despite reservations about issues with past drugs, a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel has recommended approval of the weight loss drug Qnexa. The vote was 20-2. The FDA does not have to follow an advisory panel's recommendation, but it usually does.

The panel said, if Qnexa wins FDA approval, it should be closely monitored in a clinical trial to make sure it is safe.

Many anti-obesity groups have pleaded with the FDA to approve a drug for use in weight control. It has been 13 years since there has been a new approved weight-loss pill on the market.

Second attempt at approval

Previously, the FDA rejected Qnexa, saying it had concerns about potential side effects, including heart problems and birth defects in children of women taking the drug during pregnancy. In July 2010, another FDA panel advised against approving Qnexa and the FDA followed the recommendation.

Some doctors who treat obesity complain that the FDA sets a higher standard for weight control drugs than it does for other types of pharmaceutical products. That may be because of past experience.

The last major weight control drug disaster was fen-phen, which was withdrawn from the market in 1997 after it was shown to cause heart valve damage. Qnexa includes phentermine, part of the phen-fen cocktail that was allowed to stay on the market. The drug company said people taking Qnexa in clinical trials reported success in losing weight.

Phentermine now used alone

Currently, some doctors are prescribing phentermine, which Emily, of Irvine, Calif., reported last December presented her with some negative side effects.

"The first 3 weeks, I dropped 20 pounds," Emily wrote in a post on ConsumerAffairs. "I was eating a regular based 1400 calorie diet with fruits and vegetables. In week 4, I was losing my hair. In week 5, my heart began racing even if I climbed a flight of stairs to go to my apartment. In week 6, my face was extremely pale. Looking back at photos, I looked very pale and almost gray."

In clinical trials, Qnexa helped patients lose about 10 percent of their body weight. While that might not be enough to make an obese person think, advocates say that small amount of weight loss could be helpful.

It's hard to lose weight this time of year. Those New Year's resolutions may be going unfulfilled, not because you lack willpower, but perhaps because of the prescription medication you are taking.

Surprisingly, certain medicines can cause significant weight changes, which can be challenging for anyone wanting to shed pounds or maintain weight.

Weight side-effects are common in medicines used for diabetes, high-blood pressure and mental health conditions. Big gainers are likely for users of steroids for cancer treatment and women on birth control, while some antidepressants like Prozac and Wellbutrin are known for weight losses.

“Because of the stigma of weight gain, patients may tend to stop taking their medicines or decrease their dosage without talking to their physician,” said Ryan Roux, chief pharmacy officer, at Houston's Harris County Hospital District. “Doing this is a bad thing. It can affect your health in a number of negative ways.”

Talk to your doctor

Roux says patients should tell their physicians about any weight changes. The weight gains or losses could mean reassessing types of medicine or dosages taken. Additionally, gaining weight could increase the chances of developing diabetes, hypertension or high cholesterol.

Your healthcare provider should advise you of any potential side effects associated with your medication.

Is your medication one that promotes weight gain? Take a look at the list below, provided by the Harris County Health District.

Diabetes:

• Actos (pioglitazone) 
• Amaryl (glimepiride)
• Insulins

Hypertension:

• Actos (pioglitazone)
• Amaryl (glimepiride)
• Insulins

Hypertension:

• Lopressor (metoprolol)
• Tenormin (atenolol)
• Inderal (propranolol)
• Norvasc (amlodipine)
• Clonidine

Antidepressants:

• Paxil (paroxetine)
• Zoloft (sertraline)
• Amitripyline
• Remeron (mirtazapine)

Antipsychotic:

• Clozaril (clozapine)
• Zyprexa (olanzapine)
• Risperdal (risperidone
• Seroquel (quetiapine)
• Lithium
• Valproic Acid
• Carbamazepine

Antiepileptic Drugs:

• Carbamazapine
• Neurontin (gabapentin)

Yes, chocolate is good for you ... but only up to a point.  And Mars Inc. has decided that point falls right at 250 calories.

The candy giant says that by the end of next year, all of its chocolate products will contain no more than 250 calories.  The king-sized Snickers bar will be among the targets of the slimdown. 

The calorie limit is part of the company's "broad-based commitment to health and nutrition," said spokeswoman Marlene Machut.

Mars, which makes a great deal of its environmental, social and health commitment, previously announced it would reduce sodium levels in all its products by 25 percent by 2015.

In 2007, the company promised not to buy advertising if more than one quarter of the audience was expected to be under 12 years old.

Based in McLean, Virginia, Mars has net sales of more than $30 billion and six business segments including Petcare, Chocolate, Wrigley, Food, Drinks and Symbioscience. 

There's a very good reason that so many New Year's resolutions involve losing weight. The previous month often includes holiday parties and family feasts that add to the weight that needs shedding in January.

What if you could avoid putting on those extra pounds in the first place? A team of medical experts at Greenwich Hospital’s Weight Loss & Diabetes Center, in Connecticut, has come up with 10 tips for avoiding holiday weight gain.

1. Set realistic expectations. Consider patterns in your weight during previous holiday periods. This is usually a time to maintain, not lose, weight.
2. Schedule downtime. If you tend to have a lot of social events and responsibilities on your calendar, also schedule times to relax. It’s equally important for your overall health.
3. Plan your meals and snacks ahead of time as best as you can. It’s easy to get distracted and pick up something "quick and easy" from a fast food restaurant. Instead, bring an apple, banana or small bag of nuts to eat in the car as a healthy snack.
4. Write it down. This applies to a meal and snack schedule, and also to a food diary of everything you eat. Review it at the end of the day and start again the next day.
5. Ask for help. It's nice to take care of others, but not to the point that it gets in the way of eating healthy, exercising adequately, and getting enough sleep for your personal health.
6. Never go to a holiday party hungry. It’s a sure bet that you’ll overindulge on calorie-dense foods, and you'll be overeating in no time, but don’t get down on yourself for a special-occasion binge.
7. Engage in mindful eating. In other words, don’t eat while multitasking. Savor each bite, focus on the joy of flavor. Appreciate every morsel.
8. Drink water throughout the day and at events. Staying well hydrated can keep you alert. People often misread the body’s signals for thirst as hunger.
9. Use exercise to relieve stress and empower you with physical and mental energy to follow your healthy holiday plans. Take a daily walk, even if it's only for a few minutes. This will help clear your head, regain perspective, help control your hunger and bump up your rate of metabolism.
10. Get an adequate amount of sleep. When you are tired, simplest daily tasks can be a struggle, not to mention all of the holiday hustling. Lack of sleep triggers hormones that affect your weight and mood.

This time of year can be murder on the waistline. Holiday parties and family dinners provide lots of temptation. Controlling your desires at these events is crucial to maintaining a healthy weight during the holidays.

But nutritionists point out the danger is not just at these events, but can linger afterward if they result in a refrigerator full of leftovers. Very often, the restraint you show at the dinner table seems to melt once the leftover food has been stored in microwavable dishes.

“Unfortunately, most people don’t shed extra holiday weight and just keep adding pounds year after year,” said Mary Ellen Herndon, wellness dietitian at the University of Texas. “And, unhealthy weight gain can put you at greater risk for diseases like cancer.”

Make a game plan

Herndon says you should make a game plan for leftovers.

“Right after a holiday meal, divide all leftovers into one-half cup servings,” Herndon said. “Refrigerate enough for a day or two and freeze the rest.”

Don't just reheat leftovers - turn them into new, healthy dishes. For example, white turkey meat can be used in chili instead of ground beef. Instead of a turkey sandwich, create turkey wraps, using whole wheat tortillas.

Sweet potatoes can be used to make a protein-packed sandwich spread or veggie dip by pureeing one-half cup sweet potatoes with one-half cup chickpeas. Eat only one or two tablespoons at a time.

Small is beautiful

Keep servings small. Whether eating a holiday meal, snacking on appetizers at a party or indulging in leftovers, keeping off the extra pounds starts with portion control.

Herndon says women should try to keep each meal to around 500 calories; men should strive for 700. Find the calorie counts and serving sizes for favorite holiday foods by using an online calorie calcuator.

Finally, one way to avoid overindulging is to get leftovers out of sight. Here’s how:

• Give guests “doggie bags.” Have containers ready to speed up the process.
• Give leftovers to relatives or friends who don’t cook or join the festivities.
• Donate canned or boxed foods, as well as unopened store-bought baked goods to a food bank or homeless shelter.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have issued seven Warning Letters to companies marketing over-the counter (OTC) HCG products that are labeled as “homeopathic” for weight loss.

Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is a hormone produced by the human placenta and found in the urine of pregnant women. HCG is FDA-approved as an injectable prescription drug for the treatment of some cases of female infertility and other medical conditions.

The letters warn the companies that they are violating federal law by selling drugs that have not been approved, and by making unsupported claims for the substances. There are no FDA-approved HCG drug products for weight loss.

The joint action is the first step in keeping the unproven and potentially unsafe products from being marketed online and in retail outlets as oral drops, pellets, and sprays.

Side effects

The labeling for the “homeopathic” HCG products states that each product should be taken in conjunction with a very low calorie diet. There is no substantial evidence HCG increases weight loss beyond that resulting from the recommended caloric restriction.  Consumers on a very low calorie diet are at increased risk for side effects including gallstone formation, electrolyte imbalance, and heart arrhythmias. 

“These HCG products marketed over-the-counter are unproven to help with weight loss and are potentially dangerous even if taken as directed,” said Ilisa Bernstein, acting director of the Office of Compliance in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “And a very low calorie diet should only be used under proper medical supervision.”

“Deceptive advertising about weight loss products is one of the most prevalent types of fraud,” said David Vladeck, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Any advertiser who makes health claims about a product is required by federal law to back them up with competent and reliable scientific evidence, so consumers have the accurate information they need to make good decisions.”

The airwaves are filled with commercials for diets that promise results. Since those promises come from companies trying to sell a diet product, you tend to take those claims with a grain of salt.

But when the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine publishes an article on a successful method to lose weight and keep it off, you tend to pay attention. Just such an article is in the latest issue.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins say they found that obese patients enrolled in a weight-loss program delivered over the phone by health coaches and with website and physician support lost weight and kept it off for two years. The program was just as effective as another weight-loss program that involved in-person coaching sessions.

A 40 percent success rate

Roughly 40 percent of obese patients enrolled in each of the two weight-loss programs lost at least five percent of their body weight, an amount associated with real health benefits such as lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol and better diabetes control, the researchers say.

“Until now, doctors had no proven strategy to help their patients lose weight and keep it off. Now, we have two programs that work,” said study leader Lawrence J. Appel, M.D., M.P.H., a professor of medicine and director of the Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and the Bloomberg School of Public Health.

You won't find such a weight loss program in the frozen food section of your local supermarket, however. And when it does become commercially available, it probably won't be cheap, since it requires hands-on participation of health professionals.

Why it works

The may be several reasons it's effective, says Appel. Frequent counseling (by phone or in person), physician support and an interactive website with tools to track weight and provide regular feedback by email are the main factors.

Patients were encouraged to sign in at least weekly to the program’s website to track their weight and to learn how to reduce it. If patients didn’t log in for more than a week, they got automated reminders. If they were out of touch for too long, patients got phone calls from their coaches and letters from their doctors.

It had to come to this.  First it was super-sized burgers and fries, then Starbucks' Trenta. Now it's the king-sized candy bar that's flying off the shelves (and onto customers' hips but that's another story).

Yep.  Hot from Hershey, Pa., comes news that sales of king-sized Hershey bars are up about 18%.  Not only that, but Hershey says it is the kind-size leader with a 54%  share of the market for bigger bars.

"King-size conversion has progressed nicely due to merchandising, continued distribution gains, innovation and consumer recognition that this is a good price/value proposition," said Hershey Chief Executive John Bilbrey.

Yes, and also because they're really big candy bars.

It's not just candy bars that are making the cash register ring, though.  Bilbrey is also smiling over sales of Reese's Minis king-size.  It's hard to see how Minis can be king-size but Bilbrey must know.  After all, he's the candy man.

If you lie awake nights wondering what's in the candy pipeline, Bilbrey told market analysts that he expects to "launch some close-end line extensions that will bring variety and excitement to some existing brands including Hershey's Drops, Cookies 'n' Cream at a king-size pack price, Hershey's Pieces Milk Chocolate with Almonds, and Jolly Rancher Crunch 'N Chew," according to trade papers.

Besides helping build Hershey's bottom line, the new king-sized bars should also help build consumers' bottoms, as they rationalize that it is, after all, just a single candy bar. 

Eveyone, it seems, has an opinion about what you should and should not eat. Diet books are nearly always best sellers and popular diets can influence consumer behavior, for better or worse.

You should always discuss any change in your diet with your doctor, but in narrowing down your options, wouldn't it be helpful to know what nutritionists and dietitians think about your proposed choice?

“Every day, Americans are flooded with information about how to lose weight and feel great fast,” said Marjorie Nolan of the American Dietetic Association (ADA). “While some of these products and programs offer sound nutrition information, others are gimmicks and can even be dangerous.”

To help consumers separate diet fads from healthy, science-based options, registered dietitians who are media spokespeople of the American Dietetic Association have reviewed 15 of the latest diet and lifestyle books. You can read the reviews here.

The reviewed books include:

• The 4 Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat–Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman by Timothy Ferriss (Crown Archetype December 2010)
• The 17 Day Diet by Mike Moreno, MD (Simon & Schuster’s Free Press March 2011)
• The Amen Solution by Daniel G. Amen, MD (Crown Archetype February 2011)
• Cinch! Conquer Cravings, Drop Pounds and Lose Inches by Cynthia Sass, MPH, RD (Harper One January 2011)
• Clean & Lean Diet by James Duigan (Kyle Books January 2011)
• Crazy Sexy Diet: Eat Your Veggies, Ignite Your Spark and Live Life Like You Mean It! By Kriss Carr (Globe Pequot Press January 2011)
• The Dukan Diet by Pierre Dukan, MD (Crown Archetype April 2011)
• Full: A Life without Dieting by Michael A. Snyder, MD, FACS (Hay House January 2011)
• The Game On! Diet by Krista Vernoff and Az Ferguson (HarperCollins June 2009)
• Healthy Eating for Lower Blood Pressure by Paul Gayler with Gemma Heiser, MSc (Kyle Books February 2011)
• The Italian Diet by Gino D’Acampo (Kyle Books February 2011)
• Living Skinny in Fat Genes: The Healthy Way to Lose Weight and Feel Great by Felicia Stoler, DCN, MS, RD, FACSM (Pegasus Books January 2011)
• The New Sonoma Diet: Trimmer Waist, More Energy in Just 10 Days by Connie Guttersen, PhD, RD (Sterling Publishing Company January 2011)
• Prevent a Second Heart Attack by Janet Bond Brill, PhD, RD, LDN (Three Rivers Press February 2011)
• The Super Health Diet: The Last Diet You Will Ever Needby KC Craichy (Living Fuel Publishing February 2011)

The reviews are designed to give consumers a view of the dietary advice from a health care professional's perspective, along with a healthy dose of realism.

“It is important for consumers to achieve a healthy weight in a way that is safe and provides their bodies with the nutrition they need to thrive,” Nolan said. “There is no miracle cure or overnight plan for healthy weight loss.”

Figuring out the reasons behind the obesity epidemic may not be so difficult. A new study by researchers at the University of North Carolina finds that, in the last three decades, U.S. adults have been eating larger portions and eating more often.

“First, the food industry started ‘super sizing’ our portions, then snacking occasions increased and we were convinced we needed to drink constantly to be hydrated,” said Barry Popkin, Ph.D., the study’s senior author and a professor at UNC's School of Global Public Health. “This study shows how this epidemic has crept up on us. The negative changes in diet, activity and obesity continue and are leading to explosions in health-care costs and are leading us to become a less healthy society.”

The study, appearing in the journal PloS Medicine, is believed to be the first to examine the combined contribution of changes in three key factors; portion sizes, food energy density and eating frequency.

The study analyzed individuals’ dietary intake over a 24-hour period, based on surveys of U.S. adults taken between 1977–78, 1989–91, 1994–98 and 2003–06. It found that the average daily total energy intake, measured in calories, increased from about 1,803 kcal in 1977–78 to 2,374 kcal in 2003–06, an increase of 570 kcal.

Americans eat too often

Increases in the number of eating occasions and portion sizes of foods and beverages over the past 30 years accounted for most of the increase. Energy density - the number of calories in a specific amount of food - also accounted for some of the change, but may have decreased slightly in recent years, the researchers reported.

The study concludes that the key to obesity may be quite simple. The researchers say their findings suggest that efforts to prevent obesity among adults in the U.S should focus on reducing the number of meals and snacks people consume during the day and reducing portion size as a way to reduce the energy imbalance caused by recent increases in energy intake.

The researchers say they believe their findings also have relevance for developing countries, that have also experienced an obesity problem in recent years.