Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Risk scores may identify young individuals with atherosclerosis

Young people with atherosclerotic lesions may be identified by a risk score calculated from coronary heart disease factors like obesity, sex, age, cholesterol, and smoking, according to an article in the April 25 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

25 Apr 2005

Fatness, despite fitness, is linked with cardiovascular risk factors

Body fatness was associated with more cardiovascular disease risk factors even among healthy, aerobically fit men, according to a report today in an obesity-themed issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

23 Apr 2005

Obesity and insulin resistance fuels cardiovascular risk factors in teens

Obesity and insulin resistance are a menacing tag team that fuels cardiovascular risk factors in teens, according to a study reported in an obesity-themed issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

23 Apr 2005

Enlarged waist + elevated triglycerides = heart, stroke risks for women

A tape measure and a simple blood test may be the best way to gauge cardiovascular risk for postmenopausal women, according to a report published today in an obesity-themed issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

23 Apr 2005

Obesity sends Type 2 diabetes rates in children soaring

Research results revealed at the Diabetes UK Annual Professional Conference, show 22 children under 16 have Type 2 diabetes in East London alone. Past estimates suggest there were only around 100 children diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in the UK but this figure now appears to be a vast underestimate.

23 Apr 2005

Canadian Diabetes Association, UBC partner on funding for childhood diabetes research

A new partnership announced by the Canadian Diabetes Association and the University of British Columbia (UBC) will help fund research in childhood diabetes. Not only will this research further investigate type 1 diabetes, it will also explore the areas of type 2 diabetes and obesity in children, a problem of growing concern and proportions.

23 Apr 2005

New research says global food demands threaten to outstrip world water supply

While many of today’s rivers, lakes and groundwater reservoirs continue to be overexploited, a new report launched today by leading scientists at the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development warns that unless steps are taken to improve the way water is managed, twice the world’s current water consumption may be needed by 2050 to feed a global population of some 9 billion.

23 Apr 2005

Being chubby means you may be healthier!

A new study is saying that being overweight may not be the killer we once thought it was and the number of deaths each year attributed to obesity and being overweight in the United States is around 112,000 - about one-quarter of the previous estimate of more than 400,000 deaths.

23 Apr 2005

Brain system that controls the sleep/wake cycle might also play a role in regulating appetite and metabolism

A new mouse study suggests that a brain system that controls the sleep/wake cycle might also play a role in regulating appetite and metabolism. Mice with a mutation in a gene called "Clock," which helps drive circadian rhythm, ate significantly more and gained more weight.

22 Apr 2005

Propensity for obesity, diabetes may occur in utero

The adage "You are what you eat" should be rephrased to include "and so are your children," based on metabolic research pioneered by researchers at the University at Buffalo.

22 Apr 2005

Body's 24-hour internal clock linked to obesity and diabetes

Obesity and diabetes in both adults and children are rising at alarming rates and a wide range of culprits -- super-sized food portions, lack of exercise due to television, computers, suburban sprawl and loss of gym classes, high-fat and fast foods, sugar-laden drinks and psychological trauma -- have been blamed.

21 Apr 2005

Overweight not as bad as once thought

Being overweight may not be very good for you but it now seems it is nowhere near as big a killer as the US government once thought.

20 Apr 2005

CDC playing politics over obesity

Leaders at Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were criticized by The Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF) today for playing politics over obesity.

20 Apr 2005

New study challenges CDC's 400,000 obesity deaths figure

A new study by researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) published in JAMA concludes that obesity kills 112,000 Americans each year -- a dramatic decrease from an admittedly flawed study published last year by the CDC.

20 Apr 2005

USDA new Food Guide Pyramid not rated by all experts

The U.S. Agriculture Department, (USDA), in an attempt to combat the obesity epidemic has updated its well-known Food Guide Pyramid with a triangular symbol that emphasizes exercise and urges consumers to use an Internet site to design a personalized plan for healthy eating.

19 Apr 2005

Cardiovascular risk factors have declined substantially over past 40 years

Prevalence of high cholesterol levels, hypertension and smoking, particularly among overweight and obese adults, have declined considerably over the past 40 years, according to a study in the April 20 issue of JAMA. This trend was not true for diabetes, which has had a stable prevalence.

19 Apr 2005

Being overweight, underweight, associated with increased risk of death

Compared with normal weight, a person who is overweight or underweight has an increased risk of death, although that risk appears to have decreased in recent years for obesity, according to a study in the April 20 issue of JAMA.

19 Apr 2005

Obesity is straining America's knees

America's expanding waistline is straining its knees--and pocketbook--with hundreds of thousands of overweight people undergoing surgery every year because the extra pounds they pack are leading to tears in their meniscal cartilage.

19 Apr 2005

Babies who gain weight rapidly during their very first week of life may be more likely to be overweight as young adults

Researchers from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Iowa studied 653 adults, ranging in age from 20 to 32. The subjects, all of whom were white, had been measured as newborns while participating in infant formula studies in Iowa. Those who had gained weight more rapidly during their first week were significantly more likely to be overweight decades later.

19 Apr 2005