Diet News and Research

Latest Diet News and Research

Cambridge scientists solve brain puzzle behind popular obesity drugs

Cambridge scientists have solved the mystery of why both stimulating and blocking a particular 'switch' in the brain can help people lose weight – findings which could help boost the effectiveness of obesity drugs.

24 Jul 2026

Evidence shows artificial sweeteners cannot be judged as a single group

This narrative review found that non-nutritive artificial sweeteners have compound-specific and context-dependent associations with gut microbiota, metabolism, and health-related outcomes. Evidence does not support treating all sweeteners as uniformly harmful or safe, with human findings often limited or inconsistent.

23 Jul 2026

Lifestyle changes improve MASLD by suppressing key molecular pathway

Lifestyle modification is the cornerstone of managing metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), a growing cause of chronic liver disease worldwide.

23 Jul 2026

Study finds greater social jetlag linked to a later eating pattern

In a 14-day study of 101 healthy UK adults, greater social jetlag was associated with a later distribution of energy intake, particularly greater late-evening intake among women. The effects were modest, varied by sex and day type, and did not establish whether total daily energy intake differed between groups.

23 Jul 2026

Study links collagen peptides to improved bone health in runners

Collagen is a protein found in skin, hair, nails, tendons, cartilage, and bones. Our bodies naturally produce collagen using the foods we eat. But, in recent years, collagen peptides have gained popularity as a supplement to support joint, hair, skin, and gut health.

22 Jul 2026

Urbanization reshapes gut microbiomes across diverse South Asian communities

Urbanization is one of the most consequential demographic shifts of the 21st century. As communities move from traditional or rural to urbanized ways of life, changes in diet, lifestyle, and environmental exposures can influence many aspects of human biology and health.

22 Jul 2026

Dietary emissions vary substantially across different stages of life

A new international study published in Nature Food reveals that age plays an important but often overlooked role in shaping global food-related greenhouse gas emissions.

22 Jul 2026

Handheld breathalyzer enables precise monitoring of fat metabolism

Researchers from ETH Zurich have developed a portable measuring device that detects the metabolic marker acetone in breath almost as accurately as a mass spectrometer.

22 Jul 2026

Red meat intake emerges as a potential pancreatic cancer risk factor

A systematic review and meta-analysis of 16 studies involving nearly 2 million participants found that higher red meat intake was associated with a modestly higher risk of pancreatic cancer. Processed meat intake showed no statistically significant association, although variation between studies means a small effect cannot be excluded.

22 Jul 2026

Global hunger declines for third straight year but remains fragile, report reveals

Global hunger declined for a third consecutive year in 2025, demonstrating that progress is possible. However, the improvements remain fragile, unevenly distributed and insufficient to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, according to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026 (SOFI 2026) report, released on Tuesday by five United Nations specialized agencies.

22 Jul 2026

Corn-based foods linked to higher mycotoxin exposure in pregnancy

Consuming common foods such as corn chips and popcorn may put pregnant women at risk of being exposed to mycotoxins – harmful substances produced by mold – according to Rutgers researchers.

22 Jul 2026

Repeatedly losing and gaining weight may accelerate muscle loss

Repeatedly losing and gaining weight may do more than frustrate dieters - it also accelerates muscle loss in middle-aged people, according to new UC San Francisco research that comes as weight-loss medications transform obesity treatment.

21 Jul 2026

Early electroacupuncture intervention protects pancreatic function in prediabetes

Prediabetes refers to a metabolic state in which blood glucose is higher than normal but has not yet reached the diagnostic threshold for diabetes. It may involve impaired fasting glucose, impaired glucose tolerance, or elevated glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and is closely associated with progressive β-cell dysfunction.

21 Jul 2026

Experts urge focus on prevention to tackle global heart failure

Heart failure already affects more than 60 million people worldwide and is one of the leading causes of hospitalization among people over the age of 65.

21 Jul 2026

Study tests chronotype’s liver link and finds no significant association

Researchers found no significant association between chronotype and FibroScan-derived liver fat or stiffness in 119 medication-naïve adults with overweight or obesity. The exploratory findings cannot exclude smaller effects, particularly for fibrosis, and require confirmation in larger longitudinal studies.

21 Jul 2026

Filtered coffee links to slower biological aging while instant coffee shows the opposite

Filtered coffee consumption was associated with slower biological aging, while instant coffee was linked to faster aging in UK Biobank participants. The cross-sectional findings do not prove causation, but they suggest that brewing method may influence coffee’s relationship with aging biomarkers.

20 Jul 2026

Vitamin D falls short as an add-on treatment for endometriosis

An eight-week randomized trial of 66 women found that adjunctive vitamin D did not significantly or meaningfully improve endometriosis pain or quality of life compared with placebo during dienogest therapy. The results do not support routine short-term adjunctive supplementation, although the brief trial and absence of post-treatment vitamin D measurements leave longer-term effects uncertain.

19 Jul 2026

Long-term study shows how neighborhood conditions shape women's heart health

Women who live in disadvantaged neighborhoods face worse heart health and experience faster decline as they approach menopause, according to a long-term study led by the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute.

17 Jul 2026

Diet helps people lose weight regardless of genetic obesity risk

A study reveals dietary coaching aids weight loss equally in individuals with high and low genetic obesity risk, challenging genetic determinism in weight loss.

17 Jul 2026

Maternal diets high in UPFs may influence children’s health years later

A narrative review of 84 publications links higher ultra-processed food intake during pregnancy and early childhood with poorer diet quality, maternal complications, childhood obesity, and potential immune, metabolic, and neurodevelopmental effects. The authors identify possible microbiome and biopsychosocial pathways but emphasize that the predominantly observational evidence cannot establish causality.

17 Jul 2026