Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Teaching first-time mothers to feed babies responsively promotes more healthful diet: Research

Research to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior, the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior, shows that teaching first-time mothers to feed their babies "responsively" promotes higher acceptance of vegetables and novel foods by their infants.

13 Jul 2010

Study highlights impact of diet on brain neurochemistry

Research to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior, finds that prolonged exposure to a high fat diet is correlated with changes in the brain chemical dopamine within the striatum, a critical component of the brain's reward system. The authors measured 'real-time' changes in dopamine levels after rats consumed a high fat diet for either 2 or 6 weeks.

13 Jul 2010

High fat diet while nursing poses greater risk for infant obesity

The future health of offspring is more negatively impacted when their mothers consume a high fat diet while nursing compared with high-fat diet consumption during pregnancy, according to animal research at Johns Hopkins University. These new research results are being presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior.

13 Jul 2010

Men who enter adult life obese are at increased risk of premature death

Men who enter adult life obese face a life-long doubling of the risk of dying prematurely, new research has found.

13 Jul 2010

GWAS suggests genetic variant with increased oncogene expression for cancer study

The study, published July 13th in Genome Research, showcases a new protocol for studying the activity of cancer-risk variants suggested by GWAS studies. The results also underscore the dramatic consequences of small genetic changes even in the vast stretches of DNA, known as "gene deserts," that do not code for proteins.

13 Jul 2010

Finalists for Best Practices in Health Care Consumer Empowerment and Protection Awards announced

URAC announced today that a distinguished panel of judges has selected 30 finalists for its Best Practices in Health Care Consumer Empowerment and Protection Awards. The competition drew entries from across the nation. The finalists will be honored during URAC's 11th Annual Quality Summit, October 5-7, 2010 in Chicago, IL. The awards honor programs in two areas: Consumer Decision-Making and Consumer Health Improvement.

13 Jul 2010

Early markers for metabolic syndrome in youth

Melinda Sothern, PhD, CEP, Professor of Public Health and Director of Health Promotion at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, will present evidence that supports relationships seen in adolescents between insulin sensitivity and fatty liver, belly fat, and total body fat and identifies additional potential early markers of insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome in healthy 7-9 year-old children, including fat in muscle cells, blood pressure, physical activity, and birth weight.

13 Jul 2010

Soy reduces weight gain in post-menopausal female rats

13 Jul 2010

Behavioral change programs help lower risk for cardiovascular diseases: Scientific statement

Combining counseling, extended follow-up with a healthcare provider and self-monitoring of diet and exercise is the most effective way to help patients embrace lifestyle changes that can lower their risk for heart and blood vessel (cardiovascular) diseases, according to a scientific statement published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

13 Jul 2010

Differences in response to taste of fat between obese and lean men

Research to be presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior, finds marked differences between obese and lean men in how they respond to the taste of fat. Fat also is less effective in obese men in stimulating certain gut hormones that are released into the bloodstream and normally suppress appetite.

13 Jul 2010

Researchers identify genetic variant associated with increased risk of AAA

Geisinger researchers are part of an international team that has identified a genetic variant more common in individuals with abdominal aortic aneurysms. This is one of the largest studies ever into the genetics of AAA. The results of the work will appear in this week's online edition of Nature Genetics.

13 Jul 2010

Weight loss related to fewer hot flashes in menopausal women: study

Hot flashes are an uncomfortable and distressing part of menopause that many women go through. Hot flashes also known as hot flushes are usually sudden sweatiness and redness in the face that can remain for four or five years into menopause. Now researchers have shown that losing weight may help reduce these symptoms.

13 Jul 2010

Kid cholesterol

According to a new study published in the 12th July issue of the journal Pediatrics, one third of kids have blood cholesterol on the higher side and these levels might be overlooked with the current screening recommendations.

13 Jul 2010

Exercise can reverse effects of early-life trauma

Athletes have long known about the natural “high” exercise can induce. Now, for the first time, medical researchers have demonstrated that exercise can reverse the effects in the brain of psychological trauma experienced early in life.

13 Jul 2010

Portion control all a matter of perception!

The key to losing weight could lie in manipulating our beliefs about how filling we think food will be before we eat it, suggesting that portion control is all a matter of perception.

13 Jul 2010

Older adults with low levels of vitamin D more likely to experience cognitive decline: Report

Older adults with low levels of vitamin D appear more likely to experience declines in thinking, learning and memory over a six-year period, according to a report in the July 12 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

13 Jul 2010

Research findings could offer new approach to diabetes therapy, nutrition experts say

Nutrition experts at Oregon State University have essentially "cured" laboratory mice of mild, diet-induced diabetes by stimulating the production of a particular enzyme. The findings could offer a new approach to diabetes therapy, experts say, especially if a drug could be identified that would do the same thing, which in this case was accomplished with genetic manipulation.

13 Jul 2010

Obesity crisis in the spotlight as FDA reviews weight loss drugs

The Washington Post explores the obesity epidemic by reporting from Manchester, Ky., which has an obesity rate as high as 52 percent in a nation where the obesity rate is 24 percent. "The residents of this town of 2,100 — 95 miles southeast of Lexington and deep in the Appalachian foothills — indeed appear to celebrate the joys of community closeness.

13 Jul 2010

BCN launches Healthy Blue Living Rewards to improve overall health

Introducing Healthy Blue Living Rewards, an extension of Blue Care Network's successful Healthy Blue Living product. This new product is an innovative outcome-based HMO health care plan that takes personal accountability to the next level by lowering insurance costs for people who succeed in improving their health and thereby making health care more affordable.

13 Jul 2010

Study explores direct role of FTO gene on Alzheimer's and dementia risk in old age

A gene known as FTO, which appears to be correlated with obesity in humans, may also increase risk of Alzheimer's disease and dementia, according to new research presented today at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease 2010 in Honolulu, HI. And when a person has certain variants of both FTO and a recognized Alzheimer's risk gene known as APOE, the risk of Alzheimer's could be doubled.

13 Jul 2010