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How some people maintain weight loss, others don’t

September 17, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Sep 16 (ANI): Ever wondered how some people successfully maintain a significant weight loss, while others tend to regain the weight? Well, researchers at The Miriam Hospital attribute such tendencies to a difference in brain activity patterns.

The researchers showed that when individuals who had kept the weight off for several years were shown pictures of food, they were more likely to engage the areas of the brain associated with behavioural control and visual attention, as compared to obese and normal weight participants.

The findings of the study suggest that successful weight loss maintainers may learn to respond differently to food cues.

“Our findings shed some light on the biological factors that may contribute to weight loss maintenance. They also provide an intriguing complement to previous behavioral studies that suggest people who have maintained a long-term weight loss monitor their food intake closely and exhibit restraint in their food choices,” said lead author Dr. Jeanne McCaffery.

Long-term weight loss maintenance continues to be a major problem in obesity treatment.

Participants in behavioural weight loss programs lose an average of 8 to 10 percent of their weight during the first six months of treatment, and will maintain approximately two-thirds of their weight loss after one year.

However, despite intensive efforts, weight regain appears to continue for the next several years, with most patients returning to their baseline weight after five years.

The researchers used functional magnetic resource imaging (fMRI) to study the brain activity of three groups- 18 individuals of normal weight, 16 obese individuals (defined as a body mass index of at least 30), and 17 participants who have lost at least 30 lbs and have successfully maintained that weight loss for a minimum of three years.

When the participants were shown pictures of food items after a four-hour fast, it was found that those in the successful weight loss maintenance group responded differently to these pictures compared to the other groups.

Specifically, researchers observed strong signals in the left superior frontal region and right middle temporal region of the brain – a pattern consistent with greater inhibitory control in response to food images and greater visual attention to food cues.

“It is possible that these brain responses may lead to preventive or corrective behaviors – particularly greater regulation of eating – that promote long-term weight control. However, future research is needed to determine whether these responses are inherent within an individual or if they can be changed,” said McCaffery.

The study has been published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. (ANI)

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Healthy lifestyle simplest, best way to cut breast cancer risk

September 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, Sept 1 (ANI): A healthy lifestyle, including keeping weight down, exercising for 30 minutes a day and limiting alcohol to a single drink a day, is the simplest and best way for women to cut the risk of breast cancer, says a new study.

The study by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF ) has found the strongest evidence yet that lifestyle is linked to the risk of developing breast cancer, reports The Times.

The research came to the conclusion after showing that more than four out of ten cases could be prevented if women exercised, limited their alcohol intake and maintained a healthy weight.

Breastfeeding also helps to reduce the risk of developing the disease, the scientists at Imperial College London said.

Arlene Wilkie, director of research and policy at Breast Cancer Campaign, said: “This review provides further evidence that maintaining a healthy weight throughout life along with regular exercise will reduce the risk of health problems such as breast cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and arthritis.” (ANI)

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Kids more susceptible to headaches, migraine in new school year

August 30, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Aug 30 (ANI): A new study has revealed that children and teens become more susceptible to the pain and discomfort of headaches and migraines as the new school year begins.

More than a third of children suffer from recurrent headaches – headaches that occur more than once a month. Most are tension headaches, which are less severe and do not occur with nausea or vomiting.

“Try to get your kids back into a routine schedule at least two weeks before school starts,” said Dr Ann Pakalnis, neurologist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

“Begin enforcing earlier bedtimes, and make sure children are well-rested before beginning a new school year,” the expert added.

In the new study, researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital found that sleep and emotional disorders were common in adolescents with migraines.

Sleep disorders and mild, chronic depression became more common as headaches became more frequent.

In addition those who regularly consumed caffeine also reported more depression and were poorer sleepers.

“Our study indicates that patients with migraines should be monitored for sleep and emotional disorders,” said Pakalnis.

“These findings suggest that factors such as frequent migraines may play a role in the occurrence of these disorders.

“Also, minimizing caffeine consumption may benefit sleep and mood in headache patients and decrease susceptibility to migraine attacks,” she added.

In addition to making sure kids get plenty of sleep and minimize caffeine intake, parents should ensure their children are eating balanced meals and snacks regularly.

Also, limit their caffeine intake and monitor to check that they are getting the proper amount of fluids.

Over-the-counter medicines can provide relief but are sometimes difficult for children to swallow or digest, particularly if they have a migraine accompanied by nausea. Newer therapies such as triptans, which work on the brain’s serotonin system, are very specific for migraine treatment.

The study is published in journal Headache. (ANI)

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Young animals better at keeping warm than previously believed

August 21, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, August 21 (ANI): A new study has found that young muskoxen conserve heat almost as well as adults, a finding that runs contrary to a longstanding assumption among scientists that young animals should be more vulnerable in extreme cold.

Biologist Adam Munn from the University of Sydney, Australia, carried out the study.

Surviving freezing winters is tough for any animal, but it is generally assumed to be tougher on the young.

Young animals theoretically should have a harder time holding heat because they have larger ratios of surface area to body volume, meaning more of their body mass is directly exposed to the cold.

That theory appeared to hold true for muskoxen-shaggy vegetarians that look a bit like buffalo, but are actually more closely related to sheep.

Scientists have previously reported high death rates for muskox calves during especially cold winters in their arctic habitats.

But, in measuring heat loss in adult and young muskoxen, Munn and his research team found that the cold itself might not be the culprit.

“To our surprise, we found that the smaller calves were not more thermally stressed than larger adults,” said Munn.

Munn and his team observed a population of muskoxen at the University of Alaska’s R.G. White Large Animal Research Facility in Fairbanks.

They used infrared sensing equipment to measure heat loss from the body surface of animals in contact with cold air and the frozen ground.

Munn tested the muskoxen during winter foraging, when the animals were the most directly exposed to the cold.

The researchers found that both calves and adults sacrificed only two to six percent of their daily energy intake to heat loss during foraging bouts, even when temperatures dipped to minus 50 Celsius (minus 58 Fahrenheit).

“This suggests that any thermoregulatory constraints associated with a small body size may not be as important for calf survival as previously thought,” Munn said.

“This is important because calf mortality in muskoxen and other large arctic herbivores has been variously linked with severe winters, which are expected to increase in number and severity with current climate trends,” he added.

“However, we present evidence that thermal costs per se may not be driving calf mortalities in muskoxen,” he said.

Muskoxen have a variety of ways to fight heat loss. They are insulated by thick fur called qiviut, and they likely have the ability to direct blood away from their extremities in cold weather. (ANI)

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High-fat diets ‘make us lazy, forgetful’

August 13, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, Aug 13 (ANI): Eating hotdogs and French fries might be a great treat, however, these high fat diets can significantly reduce our exercising ability and lead to short term memory loss, reveals a new study.

The research conducted using mouse model showed that in less than 10 days of eating a high-fat diet, rats had a decreased ability to exercise and experienced significant short-term memory loss.

“Western diets are typically high in fat and are associated with long-term complications, such as obesity, diabetes, and heart failure, yet the short-term consequences of such diets have been given relatively little attention,” said Andrew Murray, co-author of the study and currently at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom.

“We hope that the findings of our study will help people to think seriously about reducing the fat content of their daily food intake to the immediate benefit of their general health, well-being, and alertness,” he added.

Study leader Murray fed rats with low-fat diet (7.5 percent of calories as fat) and high-fat diet (55 percent of calories as fat).

He discovered that the muscles of the rats eating the high-fat diet for four days were less able to use oxygen to make the energy needed to exercise, causing their hearts to worker harder-and increase in size.

After nine days on a high-fat diet, the rats took longer to complete a maze and made more mistakes in the process than their low-fat-diet counterparts.

The researchers also studied the cellular causes of these problems, particularly in the mitochondria of muscle cells.

They found increased levels of a protein called uncoupling protein 3, which made them less efficient at using oxygen needed to make the energy required for running.

The new research is published online in The FASEB Journal. (ANI)

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Grapefruit derivative ‘prevents obesity’

July 14, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 14 (ANI): A new study on mice, conducted by University of Western Ontario researchers, has shown that grapefruit contains a substance that’s a natural fat fighter.

Derived from citrus fruit, particularly grapefruit, the substance has shown it can reduce weight gain and fatty particles in the body, Murray Huff of UWO’s Robarts Research Institute said.

The substance, a flavonoid – a bioactive molecule – called naringenin, shows promise as an inhibitor of conditions associated with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, he said.

In the study, one group of mice was fed a high-fat diet to induce the symptoms of metabolic syndrome. A second group was fed the exact same diet and treated with naringenin.

Naringenin corrected the elevations in triglyceride and cholesterol, prevented the development of insulin resistance and completely normalized glucose metabolism.

The researchers found it worked by genetically reprogramming the liver to burn up excess fat, rather than store it.

“Furthermore, the marked obesity that develops in these mice was completely prevented by naringenin,” said Huff.

“What was unique about the study was that the effects were independent of caloric intake, meaning the mice ate exactly the same amount of food and the same amount of fat. There was no suppression of appetite or decreased food intake, which are often the basis of strategies to reduce weight gain and its metabolic consequences,” Huff added.

This study investigated naringenin’s preventative properties, but Huff is also investigating whether it can treat obesity and other existing metabolic problems.

The findings are published online in the journal Diabetes. (ANI)

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College students less likely to drink if they know peers’ actual habits

July 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 10 (ANI): While peer pressure is known to play a vital role in alcohol misuse among college students, a new study has shown that when the students learn that they are mistaken about the actual normal drinking habits of their peers, they tend to drink less often.

The study has shown that much of that peer influence is the result of incorrect perceptions.

“In the UK, young people are drinking earlier and heavier than ever before,” said co-author David Foxcroft of Oxford Brookes University, in England.

“Levels of alcohol consumption amongst 11- to 13 year-olds have almost doubled in the last 10 years or so,” he added.

The researchers say if a student believes that his or her peers drink heavily, it would likely influence the amount of alcohol the student personally drinks.

During the study, they placed students into either intervention or control groups.

Those in the intervention groups received personalized feedback about actual college students’ normal drinking habits, their own personal drinking profiles – quantity of alcohol consumed, calorie intake and money spent on alcohol – as well as the health risk factors involved in heavy drinking.

The interventions occurred in different ways: alone, either by mail or via the Web; or together with individual face-to-face or group counselling.

Interventions that occurred electronically reduced the students’ alcohol-related problems, drinking frequency, peak blood-alcohol content and drinking quantity.

The study showed that 62 percent of the students reported a reduction in alcohol-related problems.

In addition, 65 percent of the students reported that they were drinking less frequently.

“There were only a small number of good quality studies that we could draw on to make this somewhat tentative conclusion,” said Foxcroft.

“More research is definitely needed, especially in different settings. We don’t know, for example, how well Web feedback would work in the UK, where the drinking context and culture is quite different,” he added. (ANI)

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Having chocolate, red wine regularly may help protect against Alzheimer’s

July 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, July 10 (ANI): Regular intake of chocolate, fruits, vegetables, red wine and tea could help protect against Alzheimer’s disease, according to an expert.

Dr Robert Williams, a biochemist at Kings College London, says that all contain chemicals called flavonoids that may also help existing dementia sufferers.

Flavonoids are naturally occurring antioxidants, which help beat cancer and the ageing process by protecting cells from damage. They also mop up potentially harmful oxygen molecules in the body.

New research is emerging that suggests flavonoids do not act only as antioxidants but exert their effects in other ways.

“There have been some intriguing epidemiological studies that show the consumption of flavonoid-rich vegetables, fruit juices and red wine delays the onset of the disease,” the Daily Express quoted Williams as saying.

Williams and his colleagues have focused their own cellular studies on a flavonoid called epicatechin, found in many foodstuffs, including cocoa.

“We have found that epicatechin protects brain cells from damage but through a mechanism unrelated to its antioxidant activity and have shown in laboratory tests that it can also reduce some aspects of Alzheimer’s disease pathology,” he said.

Central to the development of Alzheimer’s disease is beta-amyloid peptide, a substance normally produced in the brain but which in Alzheimer’s is deposited abnormally.

Williams has shown that flavonoids can protect brain cells against the toxic actions of beta-amyloid.

“The challenge now is to identify the single flavonoid or combination of flavonoids that exert the most positive effects,” he said.

Williams will present his findings at the British Pharmacological Society’s Summer Meeting in Edinburgh. (ANI)

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Fruit, vegetable intake cuts upper respiratory tract infection risk in pregnant women

July 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 10 (ANI): Eating nutritious foods, especially fruits and vegetables, could reduce pregnant women’s risk of developing an upper respiratory tract infection (URTI), according to a new study.

Researchers Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found that consumption of at least seven servings per day of fruits and vegetables moderately reduced the risk of developing URTI in expectant mothers.

URTIs include the common cold and sinus infections, which can lead to lower respiratory problems, such as asthma or pneumonia.

Even though the majority of URTIs are uncomplicated colds, identifying ways to prevent their occurrence is important because colds are the most common reason for school and work absences.

Eating fruits and vegetables improves immunity but hadn’t previously been associated with reducing the risk of URTIs in pregnant women.

The researchers studied more than 1,000 pregnant women and found those who ate the most fruits and vegetables were 26 percent less likely to have URTI relative to those who ate the least amount.

Neither fruit nor vegetable intake alone was found to be associated with the five-month risk of URTI.

The patterns observed for total fruit and vegetable intake and either fruit or vegetable intake alone in relation to the three-month risk of URTI were consistent with those when assessing the five-month risk of URTI.

Women in the highest quartile of fruit and vegetable intake had a stronger reduced three-month risk than the five-month risk of URTI. Moreover, there was a significant decreasing linear trend for the three-month risk of URTI with consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Pregnant women have been recommended to consume at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day. This study showed that intake of higher levels, 6.71 servings per day, was associated with a moderate risk reduction for URTI.

“Pregnant women may require more fruits and vegetables than usual because of the extra demands on the body,” said senior author Martha M. Werler, M.P.H., Sc.D., professor at Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University.

The study appears online in the journal Public Health Nutrition. (ANI)

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Eating more and using less energy made dinos gigantic

July 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Sydney, July 9 (ANI): A US scientist has said that some dinosaurs grew larger than today’s elephants because they ate more and used less energy.

According to a report in ABC Science, the study suggests two factors, energy expenditure and food intake, influence the size of animals.

Using a mathematical model, study author Dr Brian McNab of the University of Florida, determined that animals that expend more energy and have a faster metabolism, which is typically linked to temperature regulation, have a smaller body mass.

Fast metabolism is a characteristic of large warm blooded animals. They use food to generate heat and maintain a constant body temperature, he writes.

Cold blooded animals, like most reptiles, have a slow metabolism and rely on the environment for body warmth.

McNab has proposed that, rather than use all their energy to maintain body temperature the way warm-blooded animals do, large dinosaurs used their energy to grow.

Large present-day mammals, like the African elephant, haven’t reached sizes similar to dinosaurs because they use most of their energy on temperature regulation, he added.

McNab said that due to their size, large dinosaurs were able to maintain a constant body temperature through thermal inertia and a small surface-to-volume ratio.

As a result, McNab concludes that dinosaurs like sauropods were homeothermic – had an intermediate body temperature.

Palaeontologist Dr John Long, of Museum Victoria, said that the idea that dinosaurs had intermediate body temperatures is not unusual.

He said that some large cold blooded animals can maintain a constant body temperature regardless of the environment – much like warm blooded animals.

“If you think of the giant turtles that live in the cold waters of the Atlantic they can have much higher body temperatures than the sea water around them,” said Long.

He said that the bigger an animal is, the less energy it takes to maintain a constant and higher body temperature.

“They can generate heat through their muscle metabolism,” he said. (ANI)

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Two dietary oils could reduce body fat in older diabetic women

July 8, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 8 (ANI): Two common dietary oil supplements, safflower oil and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), have an inherent ability to reduce body fat in obese postmenopausal women with Type 2 diabetes, revealed a study.

Safflower oil is common cooking oil, while conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a compound naturally found in some meat and dairy products, which has been associated with weight loss in previous studies.

Both are composed primarily of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are considered “good fats”, which, when consumed in proper quantities, could lead to a variety of health benefits.

By comparing the two oils, the researchers found that16 weeks of supplementation with safflower oil reduced fat in the trunk area, lowered blood sugar, and increased muscle tissue in the women participants.

On the other hand, conjugated linoleic acid supplementation for the same length of time reduced total body fat, and lowered the women’s body mass index (BMI).

The women, who participated in the study, took one type of oil for 16 weeks, followed by the other oil for an equal amount of time.

The participants were instructed not to change their diets or exercise patterns over the course of the study, so the research would measure the effects of only the supplementation.

“Making this subtle change in the intake of high-quality dietary fats in an effort to alter body composition is both achievable and affordable to postmenopausal women in the United States who are managing the difficult combination of obesity and diabetes,” said Martha Belury, professor of human nutrition at Ohio State University and senior author of the study.

One of the most surprising finding was that, in 16 weeks, these women could lose between about two pounds and four pounds of trunk fat simply by taking safflower oil supplements.

The study showed that CLA supplementation significantly decreased body mass index and total body fat over both diet periods.

“I never would have imagined such a finding. This study is the first to show that such a modest amount of a linoleic acid-rich oil may have a profound effect on body composition in women,” said Belury.

The dose of either oil taken each day was approximately 1 2/3 teaspoons.

Postmenopausal women tend to lose muscle at the same time that body fat accumulates toward their middle.

Thus, the research shows how dietary oils can complement lifestyle and medication in helping older diabetic women manage their health, said Belury.

The research has been published online, and is scheduled for later print publication, in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. (ANI)

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Component of vegetable protein linked to lower BP

July 7, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 7 (ANI): A new study has shown that consuming an amino acid commonly found in vegetable protein is associated with lower blood pressure.

The study, conducted by Jeremiah Stamler, M.D., lead author of the study, and colleagues, showed that a 4.72 percent higher dietary intake of the amino acid glutamic acid as a percent of total dietary protein correlated with lower group average systolic blood pressure, lower by 1.5 to 3.0 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Group average diastolic blood pressure was lower by 1.0 to 1.6 mm Hg.

In the study, researchers examined dietary amino acids, the building blocks of protein.

Stamler, professor emeritus of the Department of Preventive Medicine in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago, Ill, said that glutamic acid is the most common amino acid and accounts for almost a quarter (23 percent) of the protein in vegetable protein and almost one fifth (18 percent) of animal protein.

In the study, researchers analyzed data from 4,680 middle-age people participating in an international population study on the effects of dietary nutrients on high blood pressure. Participants were from the U.S., U.K., China, and Japan.

The results showed that a nearly 5 percent higher intake of glutamic acid as a percent of total protein in the diet was linked to lower average blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure was lower by an average of 1.5 to 3.0 points and diastolic blood pressure was lower by 1.0 to 1.6 points.

Stamler said that the study might help explain on a molecular level why the Dieatary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet lowers blood pressure.

The DASH eating pattern, developed by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, is rich in fruits, vegetables and low-fat and nonfat dairy products as well as whole grains, lean poultry, nuts and beans.

The study has been published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. (ANI)

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Jacko often forgot to eat and had to be ‘force fed’ while preparing for O2 gigs

July 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, July 2 (ANI): One of Michael Jackson’s closest confidants has revealed that the star was so immersed in his preparations for his O2 Arena comeback gigs that he often forgot to eat, and had to be “force fed”.

If AEG Live boss Randy Phillips is to be believed, Jackson’s calorie intake had fallen to dangerously low levels in the days before his death.

The promoter behind the 50 shows at the O2 Arena also said that he and director Kenny Ortega often cut Jackon’s food up into bite-sized potions so that he could be fed quickly.

However, despite trying their level best to keep Jackson healthy, the ‘Thriller’ hitmaker survived on just one meal a day.

Phillips revealed that Jackson continued his gruelling rehearsal schedule eating meagre portions of his favourite dishes-vegetarian lasagne, steamed broccoli, nut loaf or tofu with chilli sauce.

“He used to forget to eat because he was so focused and Kenny Ortega and I used to cut up his food and physically feed him,” the Mirror quoted Phillips as saying.

The promoter was with Jacko at rehearsals the morning of his cardiac arrest.

He revealed: “He did a three-hour rehearsal and we all finished up at 12.30am on Thursday morning. He was really excited. He was super-charged and did a group hug with the director Kenny Ortega and his manager. He was like a kid in the candy store – he was so up for it.”

He added: “I walked him out to the car and he put his arm around me and, speaking softly like he always does, he said to me: ‘Do you know what – we are here, we are going to make it. I love you for doing this and now I know I can do it.’ That was the last thing he said to me and I never heard from him again.”

Just hours later Jackson, 50, was found dead in his exclusive Holmby Hills home after suffering a massive heart attack. (ANI)

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How dairy foods are nutritional bang for the buck

July 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 2 (ANI): A daily consumption of dairy products like milk, cheese, and yogurt can provide a unique package of nine essential nutrients at a low cost per serving, according to a recent review.

Several prominent nutrition researchers have detailed an updated review of the health benefits of consuming dairy foods, which contributes to the well-established evidence that consuming three to four daily servings of dairy foods each day is a convenient and affordable way to get several key nutrients.

Dairy products help in improving the following:

Child nutrition

Children and adolescents between the ages of 9-18 need, on average, four servings of dairy foods a day to meet calcium recommendations and at least three servings to meet magnesium recommendations. Adolescents who do not regularly consume dairy, on average, only meet 40 percent of the Adequate Intake for calcium.

Bone health

The evidence supports the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommendation to meet nutrient needs through foods, including dairy foods, rather than supplements. Studies continue to show that dairy foods provide a unique nutrient package beneficial for bone mass and play a major role in lifelong bone health.

Cardiovascular health

Low-fat and fat-free dairy foods play a key role in the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, which has been shown to lower blood pressure and prevent hypertension. Eating the recommended servings of dairy foods can lower blood pressure and is associated with a lower risk of developing high blood pressure.

Healthy weight

Studies have shown that dairy foods may favourably impact body composition and weight maintenance, particularly in overweight or obese adults who consume three servings of dairy foods daily while moderately reducing daily caloric intake.

Shortfall nutrients

Dairy foods play a vital role in building a diet that contains the nutrients Americans consistently do not consume enough of including calcium, potassium and magnesium. The most practical way to meet these nutrient recommendations may be to add an additional serving of dairy to the current daily recommendation.

The review has appeared in a supplement to the current issue of the Journal of the American College of Nutrition (JACN). (ANI)

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Successful Murray tucks into high calorie steaks, eggs, sushi, yogurt and fruit

July 2, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

London, July 2 (ANI): British tennis star Andy Murray has been tucking into high-calorie dishes even as he continues his march towards an expected place in the Wimbledon finals.

According to the Daily Express, Murray has been feasting on margherita pizzas, chocolate, pasta, bagels and his gran’s shortbread biscuits.

Murray, who lost four pounds during his five-set match against Stanislas Wawrinka on Monday night, has also gobbled up steaks, eggs, a mountain of sushi plus yogurt and fruit.

The recommended daily calorie intake for a man of Murray’s age is 2,500 – but he typically eats up to 4,000. (ANI)

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Energy intake reaches a limit despite abundant food supply

July 1, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, July 1 (ANI): Contradicting Charles Darwin’s theory, scientists have now shown that despite abundant food supply, energy intake reaches a limit even in animals with high nutrient demands, such as lactating females.

Darwin and his contemporaries postulated that food consumption in birds and mammals was limited by resource levels, which meant that animals would eat as much as they could while food was plentiful and produce as many offspring as this would allow them to.

Scientists at the Research Institute of Wildlife Ecology in Vienna have now suggested that energy intake reaches a limit due to active control of maternal investment in offspring in order to maintain long-term reproductive fitness.

The new research led by Dr Teresa Valenca showed that Brown hares could increase their energy turnover and rate of milk production above normal levels when their energy reserves were low, or when their offspring were kept in cooler temperatures.

That indicated that, ordinarily, the hares were operating at below their maximum capacity.

It also showed that this is not due to any kind of physiological constraint, such as length of digestive tract or maximum capacity of mammary glands.

As the hares were also provided with plentiful food, there could be no limitation of energy turnover due to food availability.

The way that females regulated their energy expenditure according to pup demand and their own fat reserves but did not exceed certain levels was in line with the group’s theory that using energy at close to the maximum rate has costs for animals which may compromise their ability to successfully reproduce in the future.

For example, if a hare puts most of its energy into a litter of pups then it will have little left over for growth and body repairs, which may shorten its life or make it less able to produce or care for young in the future.

Thus, by actively limiting the rate of energy turnover, a mother can prevent this and maintain a higher level of reproductive success over her lifetime.

The study will be presented at the Society for Experimental Biology Annual Meeting in Glasgow. (ANI)

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Bangers and mash is Brits’ most popular comfort food amid recession

June 22, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

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London, June 22 (ANI): Bangers and mash is Britons’ most popular food for comfort eating as they battle the ongoing recession, according to a new survey./pp
According to the survey commissioned by TV channel Good Food, the traditional dish emerged as the frontrunner with 16 per cent of the votes in its favour as compared to last year./pp
More than 3,000 British adults voted fish and chips to the second spot, with 15 per cent votes, followed by beans on toast, with 10 per cent. /pp
The survey also found that British people were gaining more weight as they upped their food intake because of the economic slump. /pp
It’s heartening to know that even if people can’t afford to go out they are still having fun with good food and the friends they’ve invited round, the Telegraph quoted Richard Kingsbury, head of the Good Food channel, as saying./pp
Food programmes have played a part in giving people the confidence and creativity to have a go at cooking for friends whether it be bangers and mash or Thai green curry, he added. /pp
Celebrity chef Brian Turner also said: At a time when we are getting less for more when we buy food, comfort deserts such as chocolate cake, fruit crumble and custard and treacle sponge with custard are helping to put a smile back on our faces. It’s feel-good food for Britain at its best. /pp
Most popular comfort food /pp
Bangers and mash (16 per cent) /pp
Fish and chips (15 per cent) /pp
Baked beans on toast (10 per cent) /pp
Chocolate cake (8 per cent) (ANI) /p

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Salmona, tuna ‘protects against age-related macular degeneration’

June 20, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, June 19 (ANI): Omega-3 fatty acids found in fatty fish such as tuna and salmon may help prevent age-related macular degeneration (AMD) progression, depending upon the stage of the disease, suggest researchers.

AMD is a progressive disease that attacks central vision, resulting in a gradual loss of eyesight and, in some cases, blindness

During the study, the research team from Laboratory for Nutrition and Vision Research (LNVR) and Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (HNRCA) at Tufts University calculated the intakes of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) among 2,924 patients aged 55 to 80 years.

The findings revealed that taking supplements of antioxidants plus zinc prevents progression of late-stage AMD.

“In our study, we observed participants with early stages of AMD in the placebo group benefited from higher intake of DHA, but it appears that the high-dose supplements of the antioxidants and/or the minerals somehow interfered with the benefits of DHA against early AMD progression,” said senior author Dr Allen Taylor, director of the LNVR at the USDA HNRCA.

The antioxidant supplements did not seem to interfere with the protective effects of DHA and EPA against progression to advanced stages of AMD.

The study also showed that participants who consumed higher amounts of DHA and EPA appeared to have lower risk of progression to both wet and dry forms of advanced AMD.

“Data from the present study also shows the supplements and omega-3 fatty acids collaborate with low-dietary glycemic index (dGI) diets against progression to advanced AMD,” said corresponding author Chung-Jung Chiu, DDS, PhD, a scientist in the LNVR and an assistant professor at TUSM.

“Our previous research suggests a low-GI diet may prevent AMD from progressing to the advanced stage,” Chiu added.

The researchers suggest that eating two to three servings of fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, mackerel, shellfish, and herring every week would achieve the recommended daily intake of DHA and EPA, however, further research is required to conclude dietary recommendations for people with AMD.

The study appears in the British Journal of Ophthalmology. (ANI)

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How oxidative stress may help extend lifespan

May 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, May 29 (ANI): Scientists at the University of California, San Diego claim to have identified a mechanism of oxidative stress that prevents cellular damage.

“We may drink pomegranate juice to protect our bodies from so-called ‘free radicals’ or look at restricting calorie intake to extend our lifespan,” said Dr Trey Ideker, chief of the Division of Genetics in the Department of Medicine at UC San Diego’s School of Medicine and professor of bioengineering at the Jacobs School of Engineering.

“But our study suggests why humans may actually be able to prolong the aging process by regularly exposing our bodies to minimal amounts of oxidants,” Ideker added.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS), ions that form as a natural byproduct of the metabolism of oxygen, play important roles in cell signalling. However, due to environmental stress like ultraviolet radiation or heat or chemical exposure the ROS levels can increase dramatically, resulting insignificant damage to cellular damage to DNA, RNA and proteins – cumulating in an effect called oxidative stress.

The scientists claim to have discovered the gene responsible for this effect.

One major contributor to oxidative stress is hydrogen peroxide. While the cell has ways to help minimize the damaging effects of hydrogen peroxide by converting it to oxygen and water, this conversion isn’t 100 percent successful.

During the study, the researchers designed a way to identify genes involved in adaptation to hydrogen peroxide.

To figure out which genes might control this adaptation mechanism, the team ran a series of experiments in which cells were forced to adapt while each gene in the genome was removed, one by one – covering a total of nearly 5,000 genes.

They identified a novel factor called Mga2, which is essential for adaptation.

“This was a surprise, because Mga2 is found at the control point of a completely different pathway than those which respond to acute exposure of oxidative agents,” said Ideker.

“This second pathway is only active at lower doses of oxidation,” Ideker added.

“It may be that adaptation to oxidative stress is the main factor responsible for the lifespan-expanding effects of caloric restriction,” said Ideker.

“Our next step is to figure out how Mga2 works to create a separate pathway – to discover the upstream mechanism that senses low doses of oxidation and triggers a protective mechanism downstream.”

The study is published in PLoS Genetics. (ANI)

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Daily alcohol intake leads to binge drinking

May 29, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Washington, May 29 (ANI): A tipple three to four times per week can put youngsters at a greater risk of binge drinking, suggests a new study.

The research team from the Universite de Montreal and the University of Western Ontario showed that frequent alcohol consumption can lead to binge drinking among all gender and all age groups, particularly young men.

“The relationship between drinking frequency and consumption per occasion might be both cultural and biological,” said study coauthor Andree Demers, a Universite de Montreal sociology professor and director of the Research Group on the Social Aspects of Health and Prevention.

“Regular drinking builds up tolerance, therefore daily drinkers will need more than their usual drink or two to make a difference with everyday life and gain that festive feeling,” said lead author Catherine Paradis, a Universite de Montreal PhD candidate.

“That fosters drinking beyond healthy limits – at least sporadically and perhaps weekly – to five drinks or more per occasion. And five units is above the recommended limits of healthy drinking,” she added.

During the study, researchers examined the GENACIS Canada project data, approximately 11,000 respondents were asked to report on their alcohol consumption within the last 12 months.

The study is published in the journal Addiction. (ANI)

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