Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Food health and safety stories top the list of memorable food stories of 2009

When Americans were asked which were the most memorable food stories of 2009, food health and safety stories topped the list.

17 Dec 2009

Santa Claus: A public health pariah?

Santa should share Rudolf's snack of carrots and celery sticks rather than brandy and mince pies and swap his reindeer for a bike or walk, says a public health expert in the Christmas issue published on bmj.com today.

17 Dec 2009

UK researchers encourage families to go for regular walks

Researchers from the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Science at Loughborough University in the UK are today encouraging families worldwide to take more regular exercise together in the New Year following concerning research that shows two-thirds of people across the globe are not walking together as a family (68%), with the Portuguese being the least likely (71%) and Austrians (63%) most likely to walk together.

17 Dec 2009

FDA Advisory Committee votes against the approval of Tarceva

OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Genentech, Inc., a wholly owned member of the Roche Group, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee (ODAC) voted 12 to one recommending against approval of the daily pill Tarceva® (erlotinib) for first-line maintenance use in people with advanced or metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) whose cancer has not progressed (grown or spread) following first-line treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy.

17 Dec 2009

New learning collaborative for healthcare organizations

HealthSciences Institute will sponsor a new learning collaborative for health care professionals, teams and organizations who serve individuals at risk of, or affected by, chronic diseases in employer, health plan, medical home and other provider settings.

17 Dec 2009

Foods with anti-hunger aromas could become a new weapon to fight obesity

A real possibility does exist for developing a new generation of foods that make people feel full by releasing anti-hunger aromas during chewing, scientists in the Netherlands are reporting after a review of research on that topic. Such foods would fight the global epidemic of obesity with aromas that quench hunger and prevent people from overeating.

17 Dec 2009

Sara Lee plans to reduce salt in its top food brands

Sara Lee Corp. today announced it is committed to reducing salt an average of 20 percent over the next five years across its key categories of fresh bread, hot dogs, lunchmeat, breakfast foods and cooked sausage.

17 Dec 2009

Pistachios can decrease inflammation and cardiovascular disease

New research published online, December 10, 2009 indicates that bioactive compounds in pistachios, and molecules present in pistachios, have anti-inflammatory properties.

17 Dec 2009

Arizona State University and Mayo Clinic team up to explore metabolic syndrome

Arizona State University and Mayo Clinic in Arizona are joining forces in a partnership to investigate metabolic syndrome - a cluster of high-risk medical factors that include increased blood pressure, elevated insulin levels, excess body fat and abnormal cholesterol levels, which can lead to heart disease, stroke and diabetes.

16 Dec 2009

Higher leptin levels associated with lower incidence of AD and dementia

Persons with higher levels of leptin, a protein hormone produced by fat cells and involved in the regulation of appetite, may have an associated reduced incidence of Alzheimer disease and dementia, according to a study in the December 16 issue of JAMA.

16 Dec 2009

CPA introduces 10 resolutions and rules to help people live healthy life

With rates of obesity and inactivity at alarming levels in Canada there has never been a more urgent time for our country's citizens to take control of their health. Members of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association (CPA) are calling on Canadians and their families to make 2010 the year they make meaningful and long lasting changes to their physical care and fitness habits.

16 Dec 2009

AstraZeneca, UVa announce collaboration in development of new treatments for CAD and PAD

AstraZeneca and the University of Virginia (UVa) in Charlottesville, today announced that they have entered into a strategic research collaboration to enhance development of new treatments primarily for coronary artery disease (CAD) with a secondary focus on peripheral vascular disease (PAD).

15 Dec 2009

Positive results from study comparing exenatide once weekly to BYETTA

Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Eli Lilly and Company and Alkermes, Inc. today announced positive results from a head-to-head study comparing exenatide once weekly, an investigational diabetes therapy, to BYETTA® (exenatide) injection taken twice daily, in patients with type 2 diabetes.

15 Dec 2009

Interpersonal Psychotherapy may hold hope for teenager girls at risk of obesity

A team of scientists at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and the National Institutes of Health have piloted psychotherapy treatment to prevent excessive weight gain in teenager girls deemed 'at risk' for obesity.

15 Dec 2009

Study to determine link between insulin glargine and cancer

Type 2 diabetes and obesity are linked to an increased risk of certain cancers. Recently published studies suggested that insulin glargine (a synthetic insulin preparation marketed under the trade name Lantus), may be associated with a higher risk of certain cancers than other insulins or oral glucose lowering medications. However, these studies were unable to control for important factors such as obesity that may have driven the association.

15 Dec 2009

Study says children are still bombarded with TV ads for unhealthy food choices

A new study released Monday, Dec. 14, in Washington, D.C., criticizes the nation's food and beverage industry for failing to shift their marketing efforts aimed at children. The report said television advertising continues to contribute to epidemic levels of obesity, despite industry promises of reform.

15 Dec 2009

Anthem Blue Cross to receive Tri-County Commercial contract renewal award

Anthem Blue Cross announced today that the California Department of Health Care Services intends to award Anthem the Tri-County Commercial contract renewal to provide Medi-Cal benefits to residents in the Fresno, Kings and Madera Counties.

15 Dec 2009

Reducing TV time may help prevent obesity in adults

Adults who used an electronic lock-out system to reduce their television time by half did not change their calorie intake but did expend more energy over a three-week period, according to a report in the December 14/28 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

15 Dec 2009

Being obese increases the risk for developing OSA in adolescents, study shows

A study in the Dec. 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine shows that being overweight or obese increases the risk for developing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in adolescents but not in younger children.

15 Dec 2009

Researchers to receive more than $4.5 million in grants to study Sudden Infant Death Syndrome

Researchers at the Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute (LA BioMed) expect to receive more than $4.5 million in grants from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act.), including nearly $1 million from the highly competitive Challenge Grant program for a study that seeks to reduce the number of children who die from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, it was announced today.

15 Dec 2009