Diet News and Research

Latest Diet News and Research

Teens more likely to die from heart disease at younger age than adults

A new study that takes a complete snapshot of adolescent cardiovascular health in the United States reveals a dismal picture of teens who are likely to die of heart disease at a younger age than adults do today, reports Northwestern Medicine research.

17 Nov 2011

Mediterranean diet can reduce risk of future heart disease

A team of Johns Hopkins researchers has uncovered further evidence of the benefits of a balanced diet that replaces white bread and pasta carbohydrates with unsaturated fat from avocados, olive oil and nuts — foods typical of the so-called "Mediterranean diet."

17 Nov 2011

Multivitamin use linked to less healthy behaviors

The lack of evidence on multivitamin health benefits is no impediment to their widespread popularity, with over half the U.S. population popping such pills. This translates into a $27 billion industry, which lures consumers with the illusory promise of better health. But shocking new research suggests taking multivitamins might have the opposite effect -- not simply on the metabolic level, but on a metaphysical one: promoting a false sense of invulnerability that actually leads users to engage in riskier behaviors.

17 Nov 2011

More risk of health problems in lean children who become obese as adults

Insulin sensitivity in the ovaries and the pituitary linked to infertility

Infertility is common among obese women, but the reasons remain poorly understood and few treatments exist. Now a team of Johns Hopkins Children's Center scientists, conducting experiments in mice, has uncovered what they consider surprising evidence that insulin resistance, long considered a prime suspect, has little to do with infertility in women with type-2 diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome and metabolic syndrome, all obesity-related conditions.

16 Nov 2011

Evacetrapib drug may increase HDL-C and decrease LDL-C levels

Among patients with sub-optimal low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels, use of the drug evacetrapib alone or in combination with statin medications was associated with significant increases in HDL-C levels and decreases in LDL-C levels, according to a study appearing in the November 16 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on cardiovascular disease.

16 Nov 2011

Children advised to get tested for cholesterol: Guidelines

According to latest medical guidelines announced Friday, all children aged 9 to 11 should have their cholesterol checked to help head off cardiovascular disease early. Overweight children and those who have other risks of Type 2 diabetes should be screened for diabetes every two years starting as early as 9, according to the panel.

15 Nov 2011

Whole-body-vibration does not effectively boost bone density

Whole-body-vibration, a popular exercise which uses a vibrating platform, is sometimes advertised as being able to boost bone density. However, a one-year-study on healthy postmenopausal women has shown that it has no such effect.

15 Nov 2011

Multiple medication use may increase severity of erectile dysfunction

The use of multiple medications is associated with increased severity of erectile dysfunction, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published online in the British Journal of Urology International.

15 Nov 2011

New clues about connections among fat, inflammation and insulin resistance

In a new study, scientists report that they substantially curbed weight gain, improved metabolism, and improved the efficacy of insulin in mice by engineering them to express a specific human enzyme in their fat tissue. Although the obesity prevention came at the significant cost of widespread inflammation, the research offers new clues about the connections among obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, and inflammation.

14 Nov 2011

Lower glycemic index diet may delay onset of AMD-like lesions

Feeding older mice a lower glycemic index (GI) diet consisting of slowly-digested carbohydrates delays the onset of age-related, sight-threatening retinal lesions, according to a new study from the Laboratory for Nutrition and Vision Research at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University.

14 Nov 2011

Fiber from whole grains reduces risk of bowel cancer: Study

The researchers from Britain and the Netherlands found that the more total dietary fiber and cereal fiber people consumed, the lower their colorectal cancer risk. For example, people who consumed an extra 90 grams of fiber from whole grains a day also had a 20 percent lower risk of colorectal cancer, according to the British Medical Journal review.

14 Nov 2011

Sugary drinks raise risk of heart disease in women: Study

A new study shows that women who take sugared beverages every day may be raising their risk for heart disease, even if their habit is not packing on the pounds. The researchers say the drinks could be anything - sweet tea, soda, or coffee drinks that look like desserts.

14 Nov 2011

First study to look at alcohol consumption in adolescents and risk of breast disease

Adding to research linking alcohol to breast cancer risk, a new study from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis shows that adolescent girls with a family history of breast disease - either cancer or the benign lesions that can become cancer - have a higher risk of developing benign breast disease as young women than other girls. And unlike girls without a family history, this already-elevated risk rises with increasing alcohol consumption.

14 Nov 2011

Scientists discover molecular basis for tamoxifen resistance and potential way to defeat it

In the last three decades, thousands of women with breast cancer have taken the drug tamoxifen, only to discover that the therapy doesn't work, either because their tumors do not respond to the treatment at all, or because they develop resistance to it over time. Now researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) have discovered the molecular basis for tamoxifen resistance and found a potential way to defeat it.

14 Nov 2011

Intensive therapy can preserve kidney function in patients with type 1 diabetes

People with type 1 diabetes are at high risk of developing kidney disease, but no therapies are proven to prevent impaired kidney function in these patients. In the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), Ian de Boer, MD and his team looked to see if intensive diabetes therapy aimed at reducing blood sugar as close to the normal range as possible might protect type 1 diabetics' kidney function. The study's results were presented during the American Society of Nephrology's Annual Kidney Week.

14 Nov 2011

New information on kidney-related policies in the U.S.

Two studies presented during the American Society of Nephrology's Annual Kidney Week provide new information on kidney-related policies in the United States.

14 Nov 2011

Low levels of vitamin C associated with worse outcomes for heart failure patients

Low levels of vitamin C were associated with higher levels of high sensitivity C-Reactive protein (hsCRP) and shorter intervals without major cardiac issues or death for heart failure patients, in research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2011.

14 Nov 2011

Sitagliptin as safe and effective as glipizide in patients with type 2 diabetes, CKD

Some blood-sugar-lowering drugs have caused kidney problems in patients with type 2 diabetes, so physicians are especially cautious when prescribing these agents to diabetics who also have chronic kidney disease.

14 Nov 2011

Depression linked to heart disease mortality among young people

The negative effects of depression in young people on the health of their hearts may be stronger than previously recognized. Depression or a history of suicide attempts in people younger than 40, especially young women, markedly increases their risk for dying from heart disease, results from a nationwide study have revealed.

14 Nov 2011