April 19, 2021 — Does staying active reduce the risk of severe outcomes with COVID-19? A new study suggests this possibility. In fact, the authors of this study found that being inactive was a top risk factor for landing in the hospital or dying from COVID-19. Only advanced age or an organ transplant had higher risks. This makes sense. […]
April 18, 2021 — It’s official. We seem to be in the early stages of a new denim cycle. Looser fitting jeans with a high waist or a flare at the bottom are in. The pandemic may have hastened the demise of skinny jeans, says Levi Straus CEO Chip Bergh: “This is not the first time we’ve seen this […]
April 18, 2021 — Penn State earns an award this week for Most Fanciful Research Press Release. It was all about how chocolate might help with the health effects of excess fat. Of course, it was based on a study in mice. But the press release tells us that this research is relevant for humans because the dose used […]
April 17, 2021 — Obesity is growing more prevalent for all. But at the same time, racial and ethnic disparities are growing wider. In the U.S., 42 percent of adults have obesity. For Black women, that number is 57 percent. Despite this high prevalence and wide disparity, though, medical education board exams skip right over obesity and disparities. The […]
April 16, 2021 — We are on the cusp of great progress for anti-obesity medicines. Writing in Cell Metabolism, Fiona Gribble and Stephen O’Rahilly call it the end of the beginning. They have high hopes for new medications to treat obesity – one of the most common and difficult chronic diseases we face. But these advances fly in the […]
April 15, 2021 — About a year ago, Boris Johnson had an epiphany. He came uncomfortably close to death because of COVID-19. Obesity was the reason it was so bad for him, he decided. “I was too fat,” he said. So he launched the Better Health campaign to slim down the UK. But the UK is not alone in […]
April 14, 2021 — To prevent health problems across the population, what should we do? Answering that question is the job of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. It’s been seven years since the USPSTF looked at screening for vitamin D levels. Since vitamin D has been a hot topic in the COVID-19 pandemic, a new update in JAMA […]
April 13, 2021 — In all of the work we do with nutrition, obesity, and metabolic health, nothing is more irritating than a false choice between prevention and treatment. More than a century old, the parable of The Ambulance Down in the Valley is a perfect expression of it. Shall we spend all of our money on an ambulance […]
April 12, 2021 — So many things about dietary guidance foster seemingly endless arguments. Fights about meat, dairy, and saturated fats flare up over and over again. But whole grains seem like something of a safe zone. A recent study tells us they are more satisfying than refined grains. Observational research points to less risk for diabetes, cancer, and […]
April 11, 2021 — By and large, people can deal with anything they can talk about. But if they can’t talk about it, they can’t deal with it. Talking through a problem is the first step to solving it. Until now, though, racism in healthcare has been a problem that no one wants to talk about. Writing in the […]
