Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

USPTO awards Immunitor key patent for viral vaccine

Immune Network Ltd., advises that its potential acquisition, Immunitor USA Inc., has been issued a key patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

29 Nov 2010

Weight Watchers introduces PointsPlus weight loss program in the U.S.

The new era of Weight Watchers is here. Today Weight Watchers, the world-renowned leader in weight management, has announced it is introducing in the United States a successor to its popular POINTS weight loss system–the new PointsPlus program.

29 Nov 2010

ESF report: Reduced male fertility may contribute to low birth rates

Reduced male fertility may be making it even harder for couples to conceive and be contributing to low birth rates in many countries, reveals a new European Science Foundation (ESF) report launching today at the IPSEN meeting in Paris.

28 Nov 2010

Study suggests less than 10% of UK adults with CAH receive specialist endocrine care

A new study suggests that less than 10% of the estimated 3,591 adults in the UK with the genetic condition congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) receive specialist endocrine care, and that there is no standard treatment for these patients.

26 Nov 2010

Children with high BMI have adverse heart disease risk factors at adolescence

Children who have a high body mass index (BMI) between 9 and 12 years of age are more likely to have high blood pressure, cholesterol and blood insulin levels (all risk factors for developing heart disease) by the time they reach adolescence, according to a study published today.

26 Nov 2010

Breastfeeding while remaining on epilepsy medications may not affect child's IQ

There's good news for women with epilepsy. Breastfeeding your baby while taking your seizure medication may have no harmful effect on your child's IQ later on, according to a study published in the November 24, 2010, online issue of Neurology-, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

25 Nov 2010

Diogenes study investigates optimum diet composition for preventing, treating obesity

Researchers at the Faculty of Life Sciences (LIFE), University of Copenhagen, can now unveil the results of the world's largest diet study: If you want to lose weight, you should maintain a diet that is high in proteins with more lean meat, low-fat dairy products and beans and fewer finely refined starch calories such as white bread and white rice.

25 Nov 2010

Public health: Frequency of dialysis treatment questioned, chemotherapy drug shortages

A new study funded by the National Institutes of Health suggests that receiving dialysis six days a week results in better self-reported patient health than the conventional treatment of three times per week.

25 Nov 2010

Breastfeeding while taking epilepsy drugs may not affect child's IQ

New research from the Emory University School of Medicine offers reassurance for nursing mothers with epilepsy. According to a study published in the November 24 online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, breastfeeding a baby while taking a seizure medication may have no harmful effect on the child's IQ later in life.

24 Nov 2010

Best diet: High protein and low good carbs

A group of European researchers have found that eating more protein and fewer refined carbohydrates helps to stay within normal weight. The team showed that men and women who had lost at least eight percent of their body weight on a low-calorie diet were kept on a maintenance diet high in protein and low in refined carbohydrates for six months. They were least likely to regain any weight, and were also the least likely to drop out of the study.

24 Nov 2010

New book to prevent childhood obesity

Today, childhood obesity contributes to a number of potential health risks. Written in an easy to read format, with lively, colorful characters, 'In Moderation' is a children's book that provides simple advice that can significantly reduce over consumption and prevent childhood obesity.

24 Nov 2010

Lifestyle-related diseases will be costly down the road; Americans rate their healthcare highly

Increased efforts to prevent several lifestyle-related diseases could save the United States billions of dollars a year in medical costs, according to a study scheduled to run in the American Journal of Public Health.

24 Nov 2010

Less affluent cancer patients more likely to develop life-threatening health problems

CANCER patients from deprived backgrounds are more likely to develop life-threatening health problems, research published today (Wednesday) in the British Journal of Cancer shows.

24 Nov 2010

Women view their weight wrong: Study

Researchers have found that among more than 2,200 women ages 18 to 25 seen at several Texas reproductive-health clinics there were many who did not know if they weighed normal or were overweight.

23 Nov 2010

Scientists establish new biological links between early puberty and obesity

An international group of scientists, including researchers at the Medical Research Council (MRC), has discovered 30 genes that control the age at which girls reach sexual maturity. They found that many of the genes responsible for puberty also play a strong role in how the body metabolises fat, establishing new biological links between going through puberty at a young age and being at increased risk of obesity.

23 Nov 2010

High BMI remains primary problem among wealthier women in developing countries

A new study from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) finds that high body mass index (BMI) in developing countries remains primarily a problem of the rich. The findings suggest that the shift towards overweight and obesity among the poor that has already happened in wealthier countries has not yet happened in developing countries.

23 Nov 2010

Researchers investigate ways to counteract unhealthy effects of fat

A fat yet muscular mouse is helping researchers learn whether more muscle improves the cardiovascular health of obese individuals. We are looking for ways to counteract the unhealthy effects of fat, said Dr. David Stepp, vascular biologist at the Medical College of Georgia Vascular Biology Center and co-director of MCG's Diabetes & Obesity Discovery Institute.

23 Nov 2010

Frequent hemodialysis improves left ventricular mass, physical health than conventional treatment

Frequent hemodialysis improved left ventricular mass (heart size) and self-reported physical health compared to conventional hemodialysis for kidney failure, according to the Frequent Hemodialysis Network (FHN) Daily Trial funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

23 Nov 2010

Mother’s high-fat diet alters fetal genes that regulate circadian rhythm: Study

The link between sleeping and obesity is drawn tighter as a new research published online in the FASEB Journal study shows that what your mother ate when she was pregnant may make you obese or overweight by altering the function of genes (epigenetic changes) that regulate circadian rhythm.

23 Nov 2010

New computer method measures mechanical stress in fat cells

From fad diets to exercise programs, Americans continue to fight the battle of the bulge. Now they'll have help from recent Tel Aviv University research that has developed a new method to look at how fat cells which produce the fat in our bodies respond to mechanical loads.

23 Nov 2010