Nutrition & Wellness

Less than every fourth child in Europe have enough fruit and vegetables included in their daily diet, a study by Swedish researchers at Örebro University and Karolinska Institutet shows. The findings are a part of an EU-funded study and are presented in Public Health Nutrition today. "It is time to act," says Agneta Yngve, professor of culinary arts and meal science at … [Read more...]

Can initial modes of behavior be used to predict how fit and healthy a person will be 18 years later? This question was in the focus of studies performed by researchers of KIT, Technische Universität München, and the universities of Konstanz and Bayreuth. A basic survey covered about 500 adults over a longer term. The result: Initial habits determine physical fitness and health … [Read more...]

Emotional eating is something we're all familiar with. Maybe you had had a rough week at work and all you want on Friday night is to plop down and watch a movie with a giant bowl of buttery popcorn. Maybe you're a student stressed about a big exam and you're munching on candy as you study. Or maybe your child's birthday party is coming up and you've bought an ice cream cake to … [Read more...]

Soy isoflavones and peptides may inhibit the growth of microbial pathogens that cause food-borne illnesses, according to a new study from University of Guelph researchers. Soybean derivatives are already a mainstay in food products, such as cooking oils, cheeses, ice cream, margarine, food spreads, canned foods and baked goods. The use of soy isoflavones and peptides to … [Read more...]

A range of diseases -- from diabetes to cardiovascular disease, and from Alzheimer's disease to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- are linked to changes to genes in the brain. A new study by UCLA life scientists has found that hundreds of those genes can be damaged by fructose, a sugar that's common in the Western diet, in a way that could lead to those … [Read more...]

A recent study at Oregon State University has identified specific intake levels of xanthohumol, a natural flavonoid found in hops, that significantly improved some of the underlying markers of metabolic syndrome in laboratory animals and also reduced weight gain. The findings were published in a special issue of Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics that was focused on … [Read more...]

A range of diseases -- from diabetes to cardiovascular disease, and from Alzheimer's disease to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder -- are linked to changes to genes in the brain. A new study by UCLA life scientists has found that hundreds of those genes can be damaged by fructose, a sugar that's common in the Western diet, in a way that could lead to those … [Read more...]

Mice consuming a supplement of omega 3 fatty acids had healthier joints than those fed diets high in saturated fats and omega 6 fatty acids, according to Duke Medicine researchers. The findings, published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, suggest that unhealthy dietary fats – not just obesity – may contribute to worsening osteoarthritis. “Our results suggest that … [Read more...]

A study from the Journal of the American College of Nutrition (JACN) discusses fluid intake adequacy in detail and a simple tool is reviewed that may help healthy, active, low-risk populations answer the question, "Am I drinking enough?" The article "Am I Drinking Enough? Yes, No, and Maybe" by Samuel N. Cheuvront PhD, RD and Robert W. Kenefick PhD is made available with Free … [Read more...]

Children with a greater number of healthy food outlets near their homes had a reduced likelihood of being overweight or obese, finds an Australian study published in American Journal of Health Promotion. Children who had access to at least one healthy food outlet within 800 meters (about half a mile) of their home had a 38 percent decreased risk of being overweight or obese … [Read more...]

University of Adelaide researchers have found that men who consume diets high in fat are more likely to feel sleepy during the day, to report sleep problems at night, and are also more likely to suffer from sleep apnea. This is the result of the Men Androgen Inflammation Lifestyle Environment and Stress (MAILES) study looking at the association between fatty diets and sleep, … [Read more...]

The ubiquitous nutrition facts panel has graced food packages for many years. But can it be improved? Results from a study led by Michigan State University and featured in a recent issue of the journal Food Policy indicates the answer is, "Yes." Obesity is a serious and growing global health crisis. According to the World Health Organization, nearly 40 percent of the world's … [Read more...]

It makes sense that people who are trying to slim down would avoid fats. But as anyone who has unsuccessfully tried this approach to dieting knows, it's not quite that simple. New research from the Texas A&M Health Science Center and Texas A&M AgriLife parses out why saturated fats are "bad"--and suggests that it may all be in the timing. Circadian clocks, which … [Read more...]

UK researchers have presented a new study that supports the cardiovascular safety of calcium and vitamin D supplementation. The study was based on analysis of the UK Biobank, a very large study comprising 502,664 men and women aged 40-69 years. Of the total UK Biobank participants, 34,890 individuals (6.94%) reported taking calcium supplements, 20,004 taking vitamin D … [Read more...]

Catherine Aaron and Gabrielle Beaudry were 17 when they knocked on the door of the laboratory of Alex Parker, a neuroscience researcher at the University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM). While students at Collège Jean-de-Brébeuf in Montreal, they were looking for a mentor for an after-school research project. Two and half years later, the results of this … [Read more...]

An essential mineral in our diets has an unexpected role in helping living things remain adapted to the rhythms of night and day, scientists have found. Magnesium -- a nutrient found in many foods -- helps control how cells keep their own form of time to cope with the natural environmental cycle of day and night. The discovery in cells is expected to be linked to whole … [Read more...]

Alcohol addiction causes almost 3.8 per cent of deaths worldwide but a study led by QUT researchers offers new hope in the form of a drug already approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Neuroscientist Professor Selena Bartlett from QUT's Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation said the drug, pindolol, is an inexpensive approach for treating alcohol … [Read more...]

Adding coffee to the diet of people with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) could help reverse the condition, according to a new study conducted in mice presented at The International Liver CongressTM 2016 in Barcelona, Spain. The study found that a daily dose of coffee (equivalent to six cups of espresso coffee for a 70kg person) improved several key markers of NAFLD … [Read more...]

Scientists have shown that instead of counting calories for weight loss, we would do better to boost the protein content of our diet. Nutritional values of foods are typically given in kilojoules or kilocalories, standard units of energy. However, new research on apes and monkeys suggests that this is too simplistic as different macronutrients -- carbohydrates, fats and … [Read more...]

In a new study, researchers from Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) described a new mouse model featuring a combination of genetic and environmental risk factors that can trigger the compulsive restriction of food intake seen in patients with anorexia nervosa. The findings may help to identify new prevention and treatment strategies for the eating disorder in … [Read more...]

Scientists are pushing to restore human health in Western countries by changing our diet to restore the microbial species lost over the evolution of Western diet. In a Commentary published April 11 in Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism, researchers at the University of Alberta advocate for strategically increasing dietary fiber intake as one path forward in regaining … [Read more...]

A milestone has been reached in the research of zinc loading in crop seeds with large potential benefits to people in the developing world. A team of scientists, led by Professor Michael Broberg Palmgren from the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at University of Copenhagen, has just published an article about their findings in Nature Plants, which might well lead … [Read more...]

People who do shiftwork are more likely to have a diet that promotes chronic inflammation—which may partly explain the health risks associated with shiftwork, reports a study in the February Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM). Michael Wirth, MSPH, PhD, of the … [Read more...]

A recent pilot study in Brooklyn, New York, with minority students found that exposure to Manga comics (Japanese comic art) promoting fruit intake significantly improved healthy snack selection. As snacking accounts for up to 27% of children's daily caloric intake, and childhood obesity has been linked to inadequate intake of fruits and vegetables, the results of this study … [Read more...]

A child suddenly runs out into the road. Brake!! A driver who has recently eaten spinach or eggs will stop faster, thanks to the amino acid tyrosine found in these and other food products. Leiden cognitive psychologist Lorenza Colzato publishes her findings in the journal Neuropsychologia. The German philosopher Ludwig Feuerbach has already said it: Der Mensch ist was er … [Read more...]

Drinking water with a relatively high concentration of magnesium protects against hip fractures, according to results of a study from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health. There are considerable variations in the quality of drinking water in Norway. The researchers studied variations in magnesium and calcium levels in drinking water between different areas, as these are … [Read more...]

People munching popcorn in a cinema don't change their eating habits whether the snacks are labelled high fat, low fat or not labelled at all, even if they are concerned about their weight, according to a new study led by the University of Greenwich. But add in a third factor -- the socioeconomic background of eaters -- and some quirky results emerge. When concerned eaters … [Read more...]

It is a commonly recommended weight-loss tactic to increase the feeling of being full by consuming more fruits and vegetables, but that may be another diet recommendation dead-end, according to a new study from the University of Alabama at Birmingham published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The recommended daily serving amount for adults is 1.5-2 cups of … [Read more...]