Is Nutrition the missing link to your health?

Posts Tagged ‘Weight Loss’

New research has uncovered a link between obesity in teenage years and future risk of developing MS. A study tracked more than 238,000 over 40 years and found that women who were obese at 18 were twice as likely to get MS. This may be due to the fact that obese women tend to have lower levels of vitamin D (a nutrient that has been linked to prevention of MS). Another possible cause is that fatty tissue secretes substances that effect immunity and may make MS more likely

New research reveals that eating a lot of food quickly curbs the release of certain gut hormones that make us feel full. As a result the message doesn’t get through and we are likely to carry on eating leading to weight gain.

Earlier studies have revealed that it takes 12 minutes for satiety signals to reach the brain in lean individuals and as long as 20 minutes in those who are obese.

A growing body of evidence is showing that bacteria in the gut play a big role in weight management. Recent research has now shown that the consumption of large amounts of sugar in the diet can alter the composition of the bacteria making weight gain more likely. 90% of bacteria in the gut fall into two main categories – bateroidetes and firmicutes. Firmicutes are more efficient at digesting foods that our body’s can’t digest and so important for a healthy weight. When researchers fed mice a high sugar diet, however they discovered that within 24 hours the proportions of these two groups of bacteria were reversed and the mice gained more weight,

In a recent study involving 42000 individuals, green tea was shown to improve the symptoms of psychological stress. Green tea has also shown benefits in other studies for weight loss, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimers and oral health

A recent study in the Journal of Nutrition revealed that those individuals with the highest levels of omega 3 in their blood had the lowest BMIs, the smallest waists and the smallest hip circumferances. Omega 3 therefore may be an important nutrient in the battle against obesity. Omega 3 is found predominantly in oily fish such as salmon, mackerel, fresh tuna, mackerel and sardines. Vegetarian sources include linseeds, walnuts and columbus eggs. Fish or linseed oil capsules are available

It has long been known that there is a strong link between chronic stress and obesity, but recent research has indicated that in addition to the stresses and strains of our own lives, the stress of the animals, fish and possibly the plants that we eat may also be contributing to our excess weigh – a concept called xenohormesis. Increasing pressures on the farming industry to produce large quantities of inexpensive food have led to animals being intensively reared in stressful conditions and researchers believe that obese livestock and unusual fat profiles in farmed fish are signs that we may be eating food that contains a stressed energy blueprint The thinking is that when we consume these foods our bodies begin to react so that we too become stressed and begin to lay down fat by increasing appetite and cravings for calorie dense foods.

Finding it hard to give up chocolate? Try walking. Research has shown that walking just fifteen minutes at a time can reduce chocolate cravings.

Following three days without chocolate, 25 regular chocolate eaters were asked to either complete a 15-minute brisk walk or rest. They then engaged in tasks that would normally induce chocolate cravings, including a mental challenge and opening a chocolate bar.

After exercise, participants reported lower cravings than after rest. Cravings were not only reduced during the walk, but for at least ten minutes afterwards. The exercise also limited increases in cravings in response to the two tasks.

The benefits of exercise in helping people manage dependencies, such as for nicotine and other drugs, have long been recognized.

Some recent medical research is showing that weight may not be such an important indicator of health as has been previously thought. Last week a report in The Archives of Internal Medicine compared weight and cardiovascular risk factors among a representative sample of more than 5,400 adults. Half of the overweight people and one-third of obese people in the study were “metabolically healthy.” That means that many overweight and obese adults may have healthy levels of “good” cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood glucose.

At the same time, about one out of four slim people in the study actually had at least two cardiovascular risk factors typically associated with obesity.

Being overweight or obese is definitely linked with numerous health problems. Nonetheless, researchers found the proportion of overweight and obese people who are metabolically healthy surprising.

Several studies have shown that fitness, as determined by how a person performs on a treadmill, is a far better indicator of health than body mass index. Some research has indicated that people who are fat but can still keep up on treadmill tests have much lower heart risk than people who are slim and unfit.

Sources:
New York Times August 18, 2008

A new study has found that Women who want to lose weight and keep it off need to exercise for almost an hour, five days a week.

Researchers found that a 55-minute regime was the minimum needed to keep up a 10percent drop in weight. Only a quarter of the 200 women involved in the study managed to lose this amount.

Research suggests a combination of exercise and calorie control as being the most successful combination for weight loss. This latest research once again confirms that plenty of exercise, along with an appropriate diet is key for weight loss.