Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Latest Diet & Nutrition News and Research

Chromium helps muscles become more efficient

Researchers found that daily use of chromium picolinate enhanced muscle sensitivity to insulin in obese, insulin-resistant rats

7 Feb 2006

Pollution may increase heart attack risk for obese

A University of Alberta researcher believes obese humans face same dangers from diesel exhaust and coal emissions.

7 Feb 2006

Eosinophilic esophagitis gene discovery

Researchers at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center have discovered the first gene associated with eosinophilic esophagitis, one of a number of eosinophil-related diseases in which the body produces abnormally large amounts of white blood cells that can lead to allergy related illnesses.

7 Feb 2006

Babies fully breastfed for six months less likely to suffer from respiratory illnesses

Babies fully breastfed for six months are less likely to suffer from respiratory illnesses in their first two years than babies fully breastfed for only four months, according to research conducted by investigators at UC Davis Children's Hospital, the University of Rochester and the American Academy of Pediatrics, Center for Child Health Research.

7 Feb 2006

Mediterranean diet may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with metabolic syndrome

Nearly 50 million Americans have metabolic syndrome, a cluster of risk factors placing them at increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

7 Feb 2006

Soy's cardiovascular benefits may have been overestimated

Many soy food products carry health claims stating that they reduce the risk of heart disease. A review of the evidence, however, suggests that soy's cardiovascular benefits may have been overestimated by the early studies that formed the basis for its health claim.

7 Feb 2006

Diet rich in whole-grain foods may lower heart disease risk in elderly people

With the recent revision of the Food Guide Pyramid, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans have for the first time provided the public with a quantitative recommendation for whole-grain intake.

7 Feb 2006

Teens' healthy food choices foiled by early lunch

Penn State researchers have identified three previously unreported factors that foil the efforts of high school students to make healthy food choices - early lunch, school income from soft drink incentives, and parents who bring fast food to the cafeteria for their kids.

7 Feb 2006

"Freshman Fifteen" phenomenon is exaggerated

A common, but often undocumented, truism among college students is that they are likely to gain 15 pounds during their freshman year. But now a new study at Rutgers' Cook College has found that the "Freshman Fifteen" phenomenon is exaggerated.

7 Feb 2006

Inequality in recreational resources decreases physical activities

In general, minorities and people with lower incomes have much less access than wealthier people to recreational facilities, a new University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill investigation concludes. The result is that they are less physically active and are more likely to be overweight.

7 Feb 2006

Fatty acids such as those found in corn oil turn on genes that stimulate tumor growth

Omega-6 fatty acids--such as those found in corn oil--caused human prostate tumors in cell culture to grow twice as quickly as tumors to which omega-6 fats had not been added, according to a study conducted at the San Francisco VA Medical Center.

5 Feb 2006

Diabetic heart muscle makes heart disease the most common killer of diabetics

The high-fat "diet" that diabetic heart muscle consumes helps make cardiovascular disease the most common killer of diabetic patients, according to a study done at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

5 Feb 2006

Babies of obese mothers have higher risk of some birth defects

Compared to normal-weight women, overweight and obese women suffer more pregnancy complications and their babies have more medical problems at birth, according to a position paper of the Public Affairs Committee of the Teratology Society.

5 Feb 2006

Remifemin black cohosh extract shown to reduce menopausal symptoms

The controversy over Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) rages on. Over 40 million American women are within menopause age, and in five years the numbers will increase to over 60 million.

2 Feb 2006

Married, happy and rich, means you should look young!

According to Danish researchers, in order to hang on to your looks and retain a youthful demeanor all you need is happy family life and plenty of money.

2 Feb 2006

8 million children born every year with serious birth defects

According to a new report, every year an estimated 8 million children are born with a serious birth defect of genetic or partially genetic origin.

31 Jan 2006

Virus could mean obesity is contagious

According to researchers in the U.S., a virus may be why some people are obese.

30 Jan 2006

NHS shake up will see hospital consultants working in the community

As part of the huge shake up of the nations health service in Britain, hospital consultants are facing the prospect of government ministers forcing them to work out in the community as part of a crackdown on the "wasted hours" of outpatient appointments.

29 Jan 2006

Program for defining individualized treatments for each type of obesity

The Danone Institute has provided a fellowship for basic research to Ana Antsn Solanas, a research assistant in the Dietetics and Diet Therapy Unit of the University of Navarra. With the help of this fellowship, the researcher will collaborate in a program for defining individualized treatments for each type of obesity.

27 Jan 2006

Weight loss and exercise reduces urinary incontinence in women with prediabetes

Losing a modest amount of weight through dietary changes and increased physical activity reduces the occurrence of urinary incontinence (UI) in women with prediabetes, a condition in which blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not yet diabetic.

27 Jan 2006