March 21, 2013 — Models for real people was the subject of an Internet meme that captured remarkable attention over the last week. It started with a Facebook post March 12, by Women’s Rights News. They posted the photograph above with the caption: “Store mannequins in Sweden. They look like real women. The U.S. should invest in some of these.” […]
March 20, 2013 — Obesity is likely to shorten life by nearly 10 years for America’s young and middle-aged adults, according to research published in the medical journal, Obesity. The article, “Obesity and Early Mortality in the U.S.,” by James A. Greenberg, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Health and Nutrition Sciences at Brooklyn College of the City University of […]
March 20, 2013 — It turns out that the modern miracle of household labor saving devices has been quite effective. A new study published in PLOS ONE documents almost five decades of declining energy expenditure for housework by U.S. women. At the same time, they found a substantial rise in sedentary time. The investigators concluded that this observation may […]
March 19, 2013 — Some cities, including Chicago, and schools are considering a ban on energy drinks. According to Ed Burke, the alderman who has proposed the ban in Chicago, “This is an issue that’s starting to resonate around the country.” A study cited by Burke from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) showed that visits […]
March 17, 2013 — Chocolate’s benefits may extend beyond mere pleasure. A number of recent studies have looked at the prebiotic effects of chocolate or cocoa in the guts of laboratory rats and humans. Chocolate or cocoa appears to be a prebiotic that is rich in polyphenols, among other substances. A prebiotic is a food ingredient that promotes healthy bacteria in […]
March 17, 2013 — More people than ever are using smartphones, computers, and other devices as part of a personal health tracking routine, according to a recent survey. Fully 60% of U.S. adults say they track their weight, diet, or exercise routine. “The explosion of mobile devices means that more Americans have an opportunity to start tracking health data […]
March 16, 2013 — If you want to change an environment dominated by huge corporations like PepsiCo to improve public health, what do you do? For tobacco control advocates, the answer was easy: raise the prices on tobacco, restrict the places where it can be used, and demonize the companies that make it. But with sugary drinks and junk […]
March 15, 2013 — Yet again, FDA is looking closer at the safety of diabetes drugs, this time a group of relatively new drugs often called GLP-1 agonists. Late yesterday, the agency announced it is “evaluating unpublished new findings by a group of academic researchers that suggest an increased risk of pancreatitis, or inflammation of the pancreas, and pre-cancerous […]
March 14, 2013 — In a refreshing alternative to tired debates about choice and freedom versus regulation, Harvard Law Professor Cass Sunstein asserts that consumer choice can be a powerful tool against obesity, instead of a problem. Sunstein upends arguments that consumer choice is driving obesity, describing how the problem is not the choices consumers make. Instead, the problem […]
March 13, 2013 — New long-term data from people with severe obesity (BMI ≥40) and diabetes in the Look AHEAD study shows that lifestyle interventions can make a big difference. Compared to patients with lower BMI (25-29), those with severe obesity lost a significantly higher percent of their weight, 4.9%, after four years in the study. Patients with severe obesity […]
