Group weight-loss program helps reduce diabetes risk: Study

May 21, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, May 20 (ANI): A new study has claimed that attending periodical sessions of weight loss programs in groups can benefit overweight or obese people and reduce risk of diabetes.

Researchers found that after a 6-month Weight Watchers group program, overweight or obese adults who attended at least 66 per cent of the weekly sessions, not only lost weight, but also significantly reduced glucose and insulin levels – important indicators of diabetes risk.

The program included education on a low calorie diet, exercise and weekly group support sessions.

The fact that participants who attended regularly improved the most only reinforces the importance of group therapy.

“We know that previous research programs have successfully reduced diabetes risk using intensive lifestyle treatment,” said Kathleen Melanson, study co-author.

“But what we didn”t know is that a program that costs appreciably much less than specially-designed diabetes prevention programs would have a profound impact on the same risk factors for type 2 diabetes. These findings could have important public health potential,” Melanson added.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the total cost of treatment of diabetes in the United States exceeds 200 billion dollars, making treatment and prevention a priority for healthcare experts.

Experts say that individual lifestyle interventions could reduce the risk of developing diabetes by more than fifty percent.

Karen Miller-Kovach, chief scientific officer for Weight Watchers International, said: “Individual lifestyle intervention is obviously successful in reducing the risk for diabetes, but it comes at a high cost, and may not be realistic for all Americans.”

“We”re encouraged that the Weight Watchers program, already successful for helping millions of Americans lose weight, could also have the potential to reduce disease risk and even help reduce healthcare burden, for as little as about forty dollars per month, per person.”

The study will be published in this month”s American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine (ANI)

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Obesity a factor in how kids metabolize drugs

April 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, April 28 (ANI): Children who are overweight or obese metabolize drugs differently than normal-weight kids, according to a new study.

As part of the study, researchers from the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy evaluated drug metabolism in sixteen healthy weight children and nine obese children.

“We have known for years that drugs metabolize differently in obese adults as compared to healthy weight adults. But, there has been very little, if any, information available that specifically addresses the consequences of obesity on drug metabolism in children. Without this information, our ability to identify optimal drug dosing in children often relies on trial and error approaches,” said L”Aurelle Johnson in the Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacy.

In the study, Johnson and co-author Manoj Chiney examined drug metabolizing enzyme activity in healthy weight and obese children, age 6 to 10 years old.

Specifically, they looked at how the children metabolized caffeine and dextromethorphan, a key ingredient in the cough suppressant Robitussin DM.

They found that obese children metabolized both drugs at different rates than healthy weight children.

Johnson said this finding is the first of many steps in determining the overall effect of obesity on drug absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination in children.

She plans to conduct additional research to define the activity of other drug metabolizing enzymes that may also be altered in the pediatric population as a result of obesity.

“Collectively, such knowledge concerning key factors that impact activity of drug metabolizing enzymes in children will have a significant positive impact on the development of optimal drug dosing regiments in children in order to maximize efficacy, while minimizing potential adverse drug effects, in the treatment of serious diseases such as cancer,” said Johnson.

Johnson will present the research at the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics annual meeting. (ANI)

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Tart cherries reduce inflammation, risk for heart disease

April 28, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Apr 28 (ANI): Tart cherries do have powerful anti-inflammatory benefits, claims a new study by Michigan researchers.

The researchers used a “whole food” approach to find that a cherry-enriched diet not only reduced overall body inflammation, but also reduced inflammation at key sites (belly fat, heart) known to affect heart disease risk in obese, at-risk rats.

At-risk obese rats were fed a cherry-enriched “Western Diet,” characterized by high fat and moderate carbohydrate – in line with the typical American diet – for 90 days.

Cherry-enriched diets, which consisted of whole tart cherry powder as 1 percent of the diet, reduced risk factors for heart disease including cholesterol, body weight, fat mass and known markers of inflammation.

While inflammation is a normal process the body uses to fight off infection or injury, scientists have said that a chronic state of inflammation increases the risk for diseases.

“Chronic inflammation is a whole body condition that can affect overall health, especially when it comes to the heart. This study offers further promise that foods rich in antioxidants, such as cherries, could potentially reduce inflammation and have the potential to lower disease risk,” said study co-author Dr. Mitch Seymour.

A second pilot study found similar results in humans.

Ten overweight or obese adults drank eight ounces of tart cherry juice daily for four weeks.

At the end of the trial, there were significant reductions in several markers of inflammation, in addition to lower levels of triglycerides, another key risk factors for heart disease.

Researchers say both studies are encouraging and will lead to further clinical studies in humans to explore the link between diet, inflammation and lowering disease risk.

The new study is the latest linking cherries to protection against heart disease and inflammation.

According to researchers, it”s the anthocyanins – powerful antioxidant compounds in cherries – also responsible for the fruit”s bright red color, that link cherries to reduced inflammation, even inflammation related to muscle recovery post-exercise.

Due to their availability throughout the year, cherries—dried, frozen and juice forms— could be incorporated into the daily diet to help manage inflammation.

The study has been presented at the Experimental Biology annual meeting. (ANI)

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Aerobic exercise can cut risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

September 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Sept 10 (ANI): Patients with a sedentary lifestyle who engage in routine physical activities lower their risk of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), say researchers from the University of Sydney.

The lower risk of problems associated with fatty liver was not contingent upon weight loss, but a direct result from the increased aerobic exercise, the study published in the October issue of Hepatology found.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, where fat accumulates in the liver of those people who drink little or no alcohol, can cause inflammation or scarring of the liver with more serious cases, known as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, possibly progressing to liver failure.

The study, led by Jacob George, M.D. from Westmead Hospital at the University of Sydney, included 19 obese adults who had a body mass index >30 kg/m2 and reported a sedentary lifestyle. Baseline measurements were performed to determine hepatic triglyceride concentration (HTGC) and hepatic lipid saturation index (SI), intramyocellular triglyceride (IMTG) levels, visceral adipose tissue (VAT) or amount of fat stores in the abdomen, cardiorespiratory fitness, blood biochemistry, and measurements for body height and weight. Volunteers either received 4 weeks of aerobic cycling exercise (12 subjects) or a placebo (7 participants), which involved regular stretching.

At the end of the 4-week period, measurements were again taken from each participant. Body weight and body mass index (BMI) remained unchanged, but cardiorespiratory fitness significantly improved in the exercise group versus placebo.

Researchers noted a 21 percent reduction of HTGC and 12 percent VAT volume in those participants who were subject to regular exercise.

“Our data provides the first direct experimental evidence that regular aerobic exercise reduces fatty liver in obesity without concurrent changes in body weight or abdominal fat,” explained researchers. (ANI)

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How dairy foods are nutritional bang for the buck

July 2, 2009 By 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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Weight-loss surgery cuts diabetes risk, improves fertility

April 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Washington, Apr 12 (ANI): For people considering weight loss surgery, the operation can offer significant health benefits ranging from reversal of Type 2 diabetes to improving fertility and increasing an individual’s lifespan, says an expert.

Dr Nick Nicholson, weight loss surgeon on the medical staff at Baylor Regional Medical Centre at Plano revealed how the surgery can actually improve certain health conditions.

“Because obesity is the primary risk factor for Type 2 diabetes, weight-loss surgery can have a profound impact on the condition,” said Dr. Nicholson.

A study showed that 82 percent reversed their diabetes in less than two years, and 62 percent remained of patients who had weight-loss surgery diabetes free two years following surgery.

The surgery can also improve fertility. Although most obese women are not infertile, ovulatory functions and pregnancy rates frequently improve significantly after weight loss in obese women.

Another study showed that hypertension was eliminated in 61.7 percent of weight-loss surgery patients and significantly improved in 78.5 percent of patients.

Weight-loss surgery can also ease the pain caused by the stress of extra weight on joints;

A 2004 study showed the number of painful joints and other painful areas reported by the obese adults in the study was cut in half six to 12 months after weight-loss surgery.

“Partnered with improved quality of life, the medical benefits of weight-loss surgery can’t be taken lightly; the surgery can truly lead to greater physical and emotional health and wellness,” said Dr. Nicholson. (ANI)

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Heart-healthy, low-cal diets promote weight loss

February 26, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, Feb 26 (ANI): A new study has suggested that heart-healthy diets that reduce calorie intake – regardless of differing proportions of fat, protein, or carbohydrate – can help overweight and obese adults achieve and maintain weight loss.

During the study, researchers found similar weight loss after six months and two years among participants assigned to four diets that differed in their proportions of these three major nutrients.

The diets were low or high in total fat (20 or 40 percent of calories) with average or high protein (15 or 25 percent of calories). Carbohydrate content ranged from 35 to 65 percent of calories.

The diets all used the same calorie reduction goals and were heart-healthy-low in saturated fat and cholesterol while high in dietary fiber.

Researchers found that on average, participants lost 13 pounds at six months and maintained a 9-pound loss at two years.

They also found that participants reduced their waistlines by 1 to 3 inches by the end of the study. Craving, fullness, hunger, and diet satisfaction were all similar across the four diets.

“These results show that, as long as people follow a heart-healthy, reduced-calorie diet, there is more than one nutritional approach to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight,” said Elizabeth G. Nabel, M.D., director, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

“This provides people who need to lose weight with the flexibility to choose an approach that they’re most likely to sustain-one that is most suited to their personal preferences and health needs,” she added.

Research was conducted in Boston at Harvard University School of Public Health and at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center of Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, La

The study has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine. (ANI)

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You may catch obesity bug from other people’s sneezes

January 26, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, January 26 (ANI): You may find it a bit surprising, but an Indian-origin researcher in the U.S. has revealed other people’s coughs, sneezes and dirty hands can infect you with an obesity bug.

Professor Nikhil Dhurandhar, of Pennington Biomedical Research Centre in Louisiana, believes that an airborne “adenovirus” germ may be causing the fat plague that is blighting Britain and other countries.

He reckons that about one in three obese people might have become overweight after falling victim to the highly infectious cold-like virus, known as AD-36.

The researcher says that the virus-which is known to cause coughs, sore throats, diarrhoea and conjunctivitis-has of late been found to make fat cells multiply, leading to weight gain.

While genes are thought to make some people more susceptible to weight gain, the current study suggests that infections could also hold the key.

Chickens, mice and monkeys infected with AD-36 have been found to put on weight quicker than uninfected animals in previous studies.

Recent findings in humans suggest that 33 per cent of obese adults had contracted AD-36 at some point in their lives, compared with only 11 per cent of lean men and women.

Professor Dhurandhar said that AD-36 continued to add weight gain long after those infected had seemingly recovered.

His research suggested that the virus lingers for up to three months, during which time it multiplies fat and is contagious to others.

“We now know that this virus goes to the lungs and spreads to various organs such as the liver, kidney, brain and fat tissue,” the Daily Express quoted the researcher, who will make the extraordinary claims on BBC2′s Horizon tonight, as saying.

“When it goes to fat tissue it replicates, making more copies of itself and in the process increases the number of new fat cells, which may explain why people get fat when they are infected with this virus,” he added.

While some medical experts welcomed the findings, others sounded a note of caution.

Dr Shahrad Taheri, clinical director for obesity at the Birmingham Heartlands Hospital, said: “Most people believe obesity is caused by environmental factors. But there is a lot of information about how things like the furring up of arteries could be linked to infections. It is not beyond reason to think about various different factors, including infections, adding into the mix about what causes obesity.”

Tony Barnett, professor of medicine at the University of Birmingham, said: “These associations may give some clues but they detract from the basic message that we all need to take more exercise and eat a bit less. This kind of research needs to go on but we have to be cautious.” (ANI)

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Why some people become fat and others don’t

January 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

London, Jan 19 (ANI): Researchers at Imperial College London, the French National Research Institute CNRS and other international institutions have discovered three new genetic variations that increase the risk of obesity, giving new insight into the reasons why some people become fat and others don’t.

They suggest that if each acted independently, these variants could be responsible for up to 50 percent of cases of severe obesity.

According to researchers, the new findings should ultimately provide the tools to predict which young children are at risk of becoming obese.

For the study, the researchers looked at the genetic makeup of obese children under six and morbidly obese adults, most of whom had been obese since childhood or adolescence, and compared this with age matched people of normal weight.

The researchers discovered three previously unidentified genetic variations that increase the risk of severe obesity significantly.

The gene variant most strongly linked to childhood obesity and adult morbid obesity in the study is located near the PTER gene, the function of which is not known.

This variant is estimated to account for up to a third of all childhood obesity, and a fifth of all cases of adult obesity.

The second variant linked to child and adult obesity is found in the NPC1 gene.

Previous studies in mice have suggested that this gene has a role in controlling appetite, as mice with a non-functioning NPC1 gene suffer late-onset weight loss and have poor food intake.

This gene variant accounts for around 10 per cent of all childhood obesity and about 14 per cent of adult morbid obesity cases.

The final variant is found near the MAF gene, which controls the production of the hormones insulin and glucagon, as well as chains of amino acids called glucagon-like peptides.

These hormones and peptides are known to play key roles in people’s metabolisms by metabolising glucose and carbohydrates in the body. Also, glucagon and glucagon-like peptides appear to have a strong effect on people’s ability to feel ‘full’ or satiated after eating.

This variant accounts for about 6 per cent of early-onset obesity in children, and 16 per cent of adult morbid obesity.

The researchers reached their conclusions by conducting a genome-wide association study of 1,380 Europeans with early-onset childhood obesity and adult morbid obesity, and 1,416 age-matched normal weight controls.

The study revealed 38 genetic markers with a strong association to a higher than normal body mass index, which the researchers evaluated in 14,186 Europeans, identifying three mutations that are significantly linked to obesity.

The study is published in the journal Nature Genetics. (ANI)

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