Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

British parents admit responsibility lies with them to tackle childhood obesity

More than 80% of parents say that they intend to be more accountable for their child's weight and four in five believe that measures set out in the Government's White Paper last week would go a long way to help them combat obesity in their children.

29 Nov 2004

Parents are failing to recognise obesity

Researchers surveyed the parents of 277 children and found that only a quarter recognised when their offspring were overweight. Where children were obese, a third of mothers and 57% of fathers thought their sons and daughters were "about right".

29 Nov 2004

European regulators should avoid excessive legislation when trying to tackle obesity

European regulators should avoid excessive legislation when trying to tackle the increasing problem of overweight groups in their population, according to a new study by Austrian researchers published today by the Brussels think-tank the European Enterprise Institute (EEI).

24 Nov 2004

Weight gain beginning in childhood can lead to an enlarged heart

Weight gain beginning in childhood can lead to an enlarged heart by early adulthood, researchers reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

24 Nov 2004

Chylomicrons may be as dangerous or more dangerous than low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol

You may not yet have heard of chylomicrons, but a nutritional scientist at the University of Alberta believes you will soon--especially if you care about preventing a stroke or heart attack.

24 Nov 2004

Low-glycemic load diets may make dieting easier

Low-glycemic load diets, those low in sugars with moderate levels of carbohydrates and not as low in fat and protein, may lower metabolism less when compared with low-fat diets, making the dieters feel less tired, cold and hungry, as well as improve cardiovascular risk factors

24 Nov 2004

CDC admits obesity stats flawed - pharmaceutical and weight loss industry at fault

A Wall Street Journal bombshell report that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has admitted to serious statistical errors in calculating that obesity kills 400,000 Americans each year is only the tip of the iceberg of gross exaggerations and miscalculations, according to The Center for Consumer Freedom (CCF).

24 Nov 2004

Obesity could increase a person’s risk for atrial fibrillation

New research indicates that being obese could increase a person’s risk for atrial fibrillation, the most common irregular heart rhythm, by 50 percent, according to work published in the November 24 issue of JAMA.

24 Nov 2004

Having diabetes raises a woman's risk of having a heart attack to nearly 10 times

Having diabetes raises a woman's risk of having a heart attack to nearly 10 times that of other women, according to a study in the December issue of Diabetes Care. The study also describes why women with diabetes are at much higher risk than men with diabetes when it comes to having cardiac events.

23 Nov 2004

Highly obese women are 12 times more likely to have diabetes

Highly obese women are 12 times more likely to have diabetes or knee replacement surgery, and five times more likely to have high blood pressure than women who are at a normal weight, says a new study.

23 Nov 2004

People living along the U.S.-Mexico border have higher rates of diabetes

A new study shows that people living along the U.S.-Mexico border have higher rates of diabetes and are more overweight and obese than national averages in both Mexico and the United States, according to results of a survey of more than 4,000 people in the border area.

20 Nov 2004

Where you live affects what you eat

People who live in poor, urban neighborhoods have less access to quality fruits and vegetables and to stores selling a larger variety of foods than those who live in higher-income neighborhoods, according to two studies being presented at the North American Association for the Study of Obesity (NAASO)'s Annual Scientific Meeting.

19 Nov 2004

The passive smoking proposals, whilst welcome, do not go far enough

Commenting on the proposals in today's English Public Health White Paper, local hospital consultant and Deputy Chairman of the BMA's Board of Science, Dr Peter Maguire, said: "The passive smoking proposals, whilst welcome, do not go far enough to protect the health and lives of all workers.

16 Nov 2004

BMA welcomes smoke-free plan

Commenting on today's (16 November 2004) White Paper on public health for England, BMA Chairman, Mr James Johnson, welcomed the fact that John Reid had gone a long way to making enclosed public places smoke-free but said he had not moved far enough.

16 Nov 2004

White Paper aims to reduce the number of people who smoke

Health Secretary John Reid today published Choosing Health – the Government’s White Paper on improving public health in England.

16 Nov 2004

Vasogen announces full patient enrollment in its trial of Celacade in peripheral arterial disease

Vasogen today announced that it has reached full enrollment in its 500-patient pivotal phase III SIMPADICO trial of Celacade (immune modulation therapy) for the treatment of peripheral arterial disease (PAD).

16 Nov 2004

Keeping fit lowers C-Reactive protein in people with metabolic syndrome

In people with signs of metabolic syndrome, including high blood pressure, high triglycerides, high cholesterol, elevated blood glucose and obesity, physical activity appears to reduce a marker for inflammation which has been linked to heart disease

16 Nov 2004

Being overweight or obese significantly impairs a persons' sex life

Obese people report sexual problems such as lack of desire, lack of enjoyment, avoiding sex and performance difficulty at a much higher rate than people of normal weight – in some cases, they are 25 times more likely to report problems, according to the Duke study.

16 Nov 2004

Financial impact of diabetes on the American economy

Sick days, disability, early retirement, and premature death of diabetic Americans born between 1931 and 1941 cost the country almost $133.5 billion by the year 2000, according to a new estimate by researchers with the University of Michigan (U-M) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

16 Nov 2004

Millions of people threatened by the diabetes time bomb

Millions of lives are threatened by the dual epidemics of diabetes and obesity that are bound to explode in this century, international diabetes and obesity organizations said today in the run up to World Diabetes Day.

11 Nov 2004