Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Mathematical model of an ischemic wound

Scientists expect a new mathematical model of chronic wound healing could replace intuition with clear guidance on how to test treatment strategies in tackling a major public-health problem.

22 Sep 2009

Research reveals that thin people influence the way others around them eat

Thin friends who eat a lot could put your waistline at risk, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, which examines how other peoples' weight and food choices influence how much we eat.

22 Sep 2009

NIDDK grants HealthPartners Research Foundation $7.3M to study childhood obesity

Three new HealthPartners Research Foundation studies will examine ways to prevent and treat childhood obesity and hypertension. One study will look at interventions to prevent obesity in children ages 5-9, another will focus on obesity prevention in children ages 2-5, while another will examine hypertension in children and adolescents, including the quality and cost of care.

21 Sep 2009

Optimized diabetes management with the CONTOUR(R) USB blood glucose meter

Bayer Diabetes Care today announced U.S. Food & Drug Administration clearance to market the CONTOUR(R) USB blood glucose meter. Bayer's CONTOUR USB meter is the first and only blood glucose monitor that plugs directly into a computer providing users with instant access to information that can help optimize diabetes management. The CONTOUR USB meter is integrated with Glucofacts(TM) DELUXE software for easy retrieval of data as well as longer-term tracking and analysis of blood glucose test results.

21 Sep 2009

A new study links 45,000 deaths a year to lack of insurance

Researchers find that 45,000 deaths a year can be linked to the lack of health insurance. But, some question the study's merits. CBS News reports that the study was conducted by a team "that tracked more than 9,000 people for up to 13 years, comparing the health of those with insurance to those without. After factoring in education and income, smoking, drinking and obesity, researchers found that the uninsured had about a 40 percent higher risk of death, linking 45,000 American deaths a year to lack of insurance. In 1993 it was 25 percent" (Axelrod, 9/17).

21 Sep 2009

Study reveals that KCNE2 and KCNQ1 mutations can results in thyroid dysfunction

Genes previously known to be essential to the coordinated, rhythmic electrical activity of cardiac muscle -- a healthy heartbeat -- have now also been found to play a key role in thyroid hormone (TH) biosynthesis, according to Weill Cornell Medical College researchers.

21 Sep 2009

Experts’ comments on America's obesity epidemic

As a recent Newsweek article states, "it's hardly clear that there actually is an obesity epidemic, or that fat people are at greater risk of death than people of normal weight, or that weight loss—relentlessly promoted by public-health officials as the solution to America's weight problem—is an attainable goal at all."

19 Sep 2009

Research program to study personalized medicine

A new collaborative research program that will use the power of metabolomic profiling to help advance the concept of personalized medicine was announced September 17, 2009 by the Burnham Institute for Medical Research and the Sarah W. Stedman Nutrition and Metabolism Center at Duke University Medical Center.

18 Sep 2009

Treatment costs for diabetes care are higher in Texas than other states

The Texas Business Group on Health (TBGH), a non-profit business association, today released its annual report on the prevalence, cost and quality of care for Texans with Type 2 diabetes.

18 Sep 2009

TFAH supports ARRA Prevention and Wellness Fund

Trust for America's Health (TFAH) applauds today's announcement of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's (ARRA) Prevention and Wellness Fund by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

18 Sep 2009

Results from the BLOSSOM trial announced by Arena Pharmaceuticals

Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARNA) reported today positive, highly significant top-line results from the BLOSSOM (Behavioral modification and LOrcaserin Second Study for Obesity Management) trial.

18 Sep 2009

Proposal renews calls for tax on sugary beverages

A proposal to tax sugary drinks as a way to improve the nation's health had been considered dead. But it was given new life Wednesday by a group of experts who published their idea to tax soft drinks at a rate of 1 cent per ounce.

18 Sep 2009

HHS Secretary announces a funding opportunity for communities and tribes

Creating ways for healthful lifestyle habits to be the natural first choice for Americans is the goal of a $650 million initiative of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be used to increase physical activity, improve nutrition, decrease obesity, and decrease smoking in U.S. communities.

18 Sep 2009

Notice of Allowance issued by PTO for OSI's EGFR drug

OSI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office has issued a “Notice of Allowance” in OSI’s reissue application for U.S. Patent No.5,747,498 (the ‘498) composition of matter patent for Tarceva® (erlotinib). The reissued patent will replace the original ‘498 patent and have the same November 2018 expiration date.

18 Sep 2009

Strategies for reducing tobacco use and health care costs in the U.S.

The Communities Putting Prevention to Work initiative announced today by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which includes support for strategies to reduce tobacco use, is a smart investment in the nation's health that will save lives, prevent disease and help reduce health care costs.

18 Sep 2009

$650 million funding from HHS to benefit black and Latino communities

The health of the nation's black and Latino communities stands to get a significant shot in the arm from the $650 million in health and wellness funding announced this afternoon by the Department of Health and Human Services, according to PolicyLink, a national research and advocacy organization.

18 Sep 2009

Study compares annual healthcare costs of diabetic and non-diabetic individuals

Risk factors for metabolic syndrome, such as obesity, high blood pressure, and elevated blood lipid levels, can increase a person's healthcare costs nearly 1.6-fold, or about $2,000 per year. For each additional risk factor those costs rise an average of 24%, according to an illuminating article in a recent issue of Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

18 Sep 2009

Study reveals that low invadolysin could reduce fat storage in lipids

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have found that the protein invadolysin, which is essential for healthy cell division, is present in lipid droplets - the parts of cells used to store fat.

18 Sep 2009

Vitamin K prevents age-related conditions

An important analysis conducted by Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute scientists suggests the importance of ensuring optimal dietary intakes of vitamin K to prevent age-related conditions such as bone fragility, arterial and kidney calcification, cardiovascular disease, and possibly cancer. Vitamin K is concentrated in dark green plants such as spinach or Swiss chard, and is either not present or present in only small amounts in most multivitamin pills.

18 Sep 2009

African Americans at higher risk of developing potentially deadly DVT and PE than other ethnic populations

Speaking at the Venous Disease Coalition (VDC) Annual Meeting today, Dr. Garth Graham from the Office of Minority Health at the Department of Health and Human Services followed up on last year's Surgeon General's Call to Action by focusing attention on the African American population which is at significantly increased risk of Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) and Pulmonary Embolism (PE).

18 Sep 2009