Obesity News and Research

Latest Obesity News and Research

Researchers make white fat take on characteristics of brown fat

Brown seems to be the color of choice when it comes to the types of fat cells in our bodies. Brown fat expends energy, while its counterpart, white fat stores it. The danger in white fat cells, along with the increased risk for diabetes and heart disease it poses, seems especially linked to visceral fat. Visceral fat is the build-up of fat around the organs in the belly.

7 May 2012

For U.S., preventable health conditions a gathering storm

The current generation of American children may be the first not to live as long as their parents. Much of this projection is linked to the increase in obesity and health conditions. These and other medical deficits in the U.S. health system were highlighted Thursday at an Atlanta conference and in national media reports.

5 May 2012

Parents can have significant impact in reducing children's sedentary behaviors

Parents can have a significant impact in steering young children away from too much time spent in sedentary pursuits. This new study, in the American Journal of Health Promotion, found this effect in Hispanic families, whose children are more likely to be sedentary than non-Hispanic white children and who are also especially vulnerable to becoming overweight or obese.

5 May 2012

Low levels of testosterone in men could increase risk of diabetes

Low levels of testosterone in men could increase their risk of developing diabetes, a study suggests.

5 May 2012

Isis commences ISIS-APOCIIIRx Phase 2 study in hypertriglyceridemia

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced the initiation of a Phase 2 study evaluating ISIS-APOCIIIRx in patients with hypertriglyceridemia.

5 May 2012

Guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention in clinical practice launched at EuroPRevent2012

The latest cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention guidelines have been overhauled to produce a user friendly document with concise messages that awards greater weight than ever before to evidence from clinical trials and observational population studies. The "European Guidelines on Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Clinical Practice (version 2012)" - were launched at the EuroPRevent2012 meeting in Dublin, Ireland.

4 May 2012

In global study, U.S. ranks very low in preventing premature births

A World Health Organization/United Nations/March of Dimes report ranks countries on their premature birth rates.

4 May 2012

Jogging may add years to life: Study

According to a new study from Denmark, jogging regularly may help a person live longer. The findings show that women who regularly jogged lived 5.6 years longer than women who didn't, and men who jogged lived 6.2 years longer than those who didn't.

4 May 2012

State roundup: Pittsburgh insurer, hospital extend contract despite ongoing fight

A restaurant workers' group and a Los Angeles community clinic have launched a unique cooperative to provide health coverage to a group of people excluded from federal health care reform -- illegal immigrants. The pilot program, believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, offers preventive and primary care to low-wage, uninsured workers in the restaurant industry. Legal immigrants and other restaurant workers who don't meet the criteria or cannot afford coverage under the health care law are also eligible.

4 May 2012

Regular jogging increases life expectancy

Undertaking regular jogging increases the life expectancy of men by 6.2 years and women by 5.6 years, reveals the latest data from the Copenhagen City Heart study presented at the EuroPRevent2012 meeting.

4 May 2012

Viewpoints: Doctor-led frugality; George will on his son's life with Down syndrome; Facebook spurs organ donors

In case you missed it, a recommendation came out last month that physicians cut back on using 45 common tests and treatments. ... Most doctors will agree with the recommendations on the list. But the problem of overuse is less one of bad doctors although there are a few; the problem is more one of good doctors working in a bad system. ... But we have to start somewhere - and this list is a good start. Now it needs to be extended.

4 May 2012

Health care quality varies widely despite high spending in the U.S.

The United States spends more on health care than 12 other industrialized countries yet does not provide "notably superior" care, according to a new study from The Commonwealth Fund.

4 May 2012

IGF-axis proteins may have a role in development of type 2 diabetes

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in collaboration with Nurses' Health Study investigators have shown that levels of certain related proteins found in blood are associated with a greatly reduced risk for developing type 2 diabetes up to a decade or more later. The findings, published today in the online edition of Diabetes, could open a new front in the war against diabetes.

4 May 2012

Sleep adequately to maintain healthy weight

The genes behind weight gain may work overtime with lack of sleep says the study in this week's issue of the journal Sleep. In the study, neurologist Dr. Nathaniel Watson of the University of Washington Medicine Sleep Center in Seattle looked at the height, weight and sleep habits of 604 pairs of identical twins and 484 fraternal twins with an average age of 37.

3 May 2012

15 million preterm babies born each year: WHO global report

According to a new report released this Wednesday, nearly 15 million premature babies are born every year - more than 1 in 10 of the world's births. This is considered by experts an obstetric epidemic. 1.1 million of these fragile new born babies die as a result, and even those who survive can suffer lifelong disabilities. Further most of these babies are born in Africa and Asia the report adds.

3 May 2012

Combination of two mTOR inhibitors stops growth of hepatocellular carcinoma

The combination of two inhibitors of protein mTOR stops the growth of primary liver cancer and destroys tumour cells, according to a study by researchers of the Group of Metabolism and Cancer at Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute.

3 May 2012

HSPH introduces Obesity Prevention Source website

What is causing the obesity epidemic-and how can we stop and reverse this worldwide weight problem? A new website offers authoritative answers to these pressing questions and sheds light on one of the most challenging public health threats of our time.

3 May 2012

Study explains beneficial fat-fighting effects of black pepper

A new study provides a long-sought explanation for the beneficial fat-fighting effects of black pepper. The research, published in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, pinpoints piperine - the pungent-tasting substance that gives black pepper its characteristic taste, concluding that piperine also can block the formation of new fat cells.

3 May 2012

High fructose intake may increase risk of NFALD in obese people

Obese people who consume increased amounts of fructose, a type of sugar that is found in particular in soft drinks and fruit juices, are at risk for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NFALD) and more its more severe forms, fatty inflammation and scarring.

3 May 2012

CSI third quarter revenues increase 5% to $21.2 million

Cardiovascular Systems, Inc. (CSI), a medical device company developing and commercializing innovative interventional treatment systems for vascular disease, today reported financial results for its fiscal third quarter ended March 31, 2012.

3 May 2012