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Obese patients with type 2 diabetes who consumed a low-calorie diet were able to eliminate insulin dependence, according to an unpublished Dutch clinical study. They also showed signs of improved heart function. The researchers used cardiac MRI to analyze cardiac function and pericardial fat in 15 patients after four months of a 500-calories-a-day diet. BMI dropped from 35.3 to 27.5 over four months. Pericardial fat decreased and diastolic heart function improved. After an additional 14 months of follow-up on a regular diet, BMI increased to 31.7, but pericardial fat only increased slightly. "Despite regain of weight, these beneficial cardiovascular effects were persistent over the long term," the researchers concluded.
"Restricted calorie diet improves heart function in obese patients with diabetes", News release, presentation at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, November 28, 2011
Postmenopausal women on a diet who snacked between breakfast and lunch lost significantly less weight than women who avoided snacks, a randomized U.S. clinical study has found. Researchers found in the year-long study that mid-morning snackers lost an average of seven percent of their total body weight. But those who ate a healthy breakfast and did not snack before lunch lost more than 11 percent of their body weight. The researchers said snacks can be a source of additional fruits, vegetables, and fiber-rich foods, but “snacking patterns might also reflect unhealthy eating habits and impede weight-loss progress.” They suggested that future studies should focus on the impact of such factors as timing, frequency, and quality of snacks on weight loss.
"Associations between Snacking and Weight Loss and Nutrient Intake among Postmenopausal Overweight to Obese Women in a Dietary Weight-Loss Intervention", Journal of the American Dietetic Association, November 28, 2011
An increase in physical activity is associated with improvement in the quality of diet, a U.S. study has found. The researchers said that an understanding of the interaction between exercise and a healthy diet can improve both preventative and therapeutic measures against obesity. Data from studies suggest that tendencies toward a healthy diet and the right amount of exercise often go hand in hand: increasing physical exercise actually tends to improve diet quality. The researchers said that “when exercise is added to a weight-loss diet, treatment of obesity is more successful and the diet is adhered to in the long run."
"The neurocognitive connection between physical activity and eating behavior", Obesity Reviews, November 23, 2011
Eating fish during the first nine months of life reduces the likelihood of preschool respiratory wheezing, a Swedish study of 4,171 randomly selected families has found. The researchers also noticed that infants treated with antibiotics in their first week – or whose mothers took the pain/fever reducing drug paracetamol during pregnancy – had a higher risk of preschool wheezing. Researchers analyzed responses from families who answered questions when their children were six months, 12 months and four-and-a-half years of age. Eating fish before the age of nine months almost halved the likelihood of suffering recurrent wheezing at 4.5 years. The fish most commonly eaten was white fish, followed by salmon and flat fish.
"Prenatal paracetamol exposure and risk of wheeze at preschool age", Acta Paediatrica, November 22, 2011
U.S. and Australian researchers believe they may soon have a simple way to get an appetite-suppressing hormone into the bloodstream easily – by chewing a vitamin B12 gum after meals. The hormone PYY is a component of a chemical system in the body that regulates appetite and energy. Eating and exercising releases PYY into the bloodstream. The researchers had already developed a way to attach insulin to vitamin B12 to deliver it safely through the digestive system. They have now been able to attach the PYY hormone to this patent-pending vitamin B12 delivery system. The next step is to find a way to insert the B12-PYY system into such things as chewing gum or oral tablets to create a nutritional supplement.
"Oral Delivery of the Appetite Suppressing Peptide hPYY(3–36) through the Vitamin B12 Uptake Pathway", Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, November 21, 2011
Worsening teen health linked to high blood sugar levels, obesity, poor diet, lack of exercise and smoking is likely to lead to death at an earlier age from cardiovascular disease, a U.S. study has found. The researchers analyzed the health profiles of 5,547 children and adolescents who constituted a representative sample of 33.1 million American youth. The poor health condition of today’s teens is already having an impact on the health profiles of young adults: cardiovascular mortality rates in adults aged 35 to 44, particularly women, are on the rise. The researchers said it was especially alarming that “zero children or adolescents surveyed met the criteria for ideal cardiovascular health," indicating that “ideal cardiovascular health is being lost as early as the teenage years."
"Today's Teens Will Die Younger of Heart Disease, Study Finds", News release, presentation at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions, November 16, 2011
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Nutrimenthe, November 17, 2011
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