Public Health
Rocket science, it isn't: eating at restaurants is typically a more caloric experience than if you prepare foods at home.1
However, the new health care law has a provision that may help customers make more informed choices about the calorie content of their food. The law requires that any restaurant chain with at least 20 outlets post calorie counts for all the food items they sell. This affects about 200,000 restaurants nationwide, WSJ reports. The general idea is that it could help consumers make decisions that will change their behavior and lead to more healthy eating habits.
New York City…
Foods spiked with "fructans" from the agave plant, the source of tequlia, may help protect against osteoporosis by boosting the body's absorption of calcium and could have other health benefits, according to research presented today at the ACS National Meeting.
Fructans are non-digestible carbohydrates. They consist of molecules of fructose -- the sugar found in honey, grapes, and ripe fruits -- linked together into chains. Rich natural sources include artichokes, Jerusalem artichokes, garlic and onions, and chicory. Fructans do not occur in tequila, however, because they change into alcohol…
Binge drinking the night before a test does not impact college students' test performance, according to a controlled experiment conducted by researchers from Boston University and Brown University.
Getting slammed does, however, slow participants' attention/reaction times and worsen mood states – impacts that could make driving dangerous and the morning after the partying generally miserable.
A paper detailing the research appears in this month in Addiction.
The team of researchers tested 193 university students, ages 21 to 24, recruited from the Boston area. Over the course of four days –…
According to a new study in the Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, common marinades used to flavor up barbecued meats may be more than just tasty sauces – they can also provide a major source of natural antioxidants, which help prevent dozens of serious diseases.
The findings, researchers say, are particularly relevant given concerns about the potential health risks and toxicity associated with the use of some synthetic antioxidants. This concern has resulted in an ongoing search for safe and inexpensive antioxidants of natural origins, including those found in herbs and spices…
Research has shown that healthy people can benefit from moderate alcohol consumption.
And a new analysis in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology suggests that patients who have already suffered a heart attack, stroke or another ischemic vascular event can reap these benefits, too.
Researchers analyzed the most important scientific studies performed during the last years. Eight in total in four Countries: United States, Sweden, Japan and Great Britain. Each study took into account patients already affected by an ischemic vascular event.
During the years following the disease…
Past studies have suggested that high-fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners like table sugar are nutritionally identical. But the authors of a new study in Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior say that's not so.
When it comes to weight gain, the study found, rats with access to high-fructose corn syrup gained significantly more weight than those with access to table sugar, even when their overall caloric intake was the same.
In addition to causing significant weight gain in lab animals, long-term consumption of high-fructose corn syrup also led to abnormal increases in body fat,…
Blocking the protein Granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) can reduce or prevent cigarette smoke-induced lung inflammation in mice and may lead to new treatments for smoke-related disease, specifically chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
The findings appear in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
Cigarette smoke triggers the release of GM-CSF and other cytokines and chemokines which cause activation and recruitment of more inflammatory cells into the lung,thereby perpetuating the inflammatory response and exacerbating ongoing…
Legislation restricting or banning smoking in public places reduces heart attacks, a study in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health suggests.
The study examined trends in acute heart attacks in Christchurch, New Zealand following the enactment of legislation which made smoking illegal in all workplaces including bars and restaurants.
Three years after a smoking ban in all workplaces was introduced hospital admissions for heart attacks among men and women aged 55-74 fell by 9 per cent. This figure rose to 13 per cent for 55-74 year olds who had never smoked.
Overall, the…
Being skinny confers no advantage when it comes to the risk of dying suddenly from cardiac causes, a study presented today at the American College of Cardiology Annual Scientific Session has found.
According to the authors, non-obese heart failure patients – including overweight, normal and underweight patients – had a 76 percent increase in risk of sudden cardiac death compared to obese heart failure patients. Normal and underweight patients showed a startling 99 percent increase in risk for sudden cardiac death compared to obese patients.
Risk of sudden cardiac death was studied in 1,…
In a new article in Nature Reviews Endocrinology, scientists from the University of Liverpool argue that anti-obesity drugs fail to provide lasting health benefits because they tackle the biological consequences of obesity, not the important psychological causes of overconsumption.
Anti-obesity drug developers focus primarily on weight loss as their end goal, and do not take into consideration the motivational and behavioral factors that most commonly cause obesity. Obesity typically results from eating too much food combined with too sedentary a lifestyle.
However, obese people may also…