Nutrition & Wellness

  While necessary for some, many people eat gluten-free diets because they believe they'll gain certain health benefits, but these beliefs are not all supported by research, a University of Florida nutrition expert says. Those with celiac disease, or about 1 percent of the U.S. population, must follow a gluten-free diet because it's the only treatment for their … [Read more...]

The microbes living in the guts of males and females react differently to diet, even when the diets are identical, according to a study by scientists from The University of Texas at Austin and six other institutions published this week in the journal Nature Communications. These results suggest that therapies designed to improve human health and treat diseases through nutrition … [Read more...]

A new study involving researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and other institutions says patients with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes should eat a diet low in carbohydrates. The study, accepted for publication in Nutrition and available on the journal's website, offers 12 points of evidence showing that low-carbohydrate diets should be the first line of attack … [Read more...]

During the school year, 21 million children receive free or reduced-price lunches, yet less than 10% of those children participate in the Department of Agriculture's Summer Food Service Program. This discrepancy places responsibility for food choices during the summer on parents. Previous efforts to improve the healthfulness of foods and beverages provided by parents have … [Read more...]

Could stuffing yourself full of high-fat foods cause you to lose your sense of smell? A new study from Florida State University neuroscientists says so, and it has researchers taking a closer look at how our diets could impact a whole range of human functions that were not traditionally considered when examining the impact of obesity. "This opens up a lot of possibilities … [Read more...]

Open a child’s lunch box and you’re likely to find that the lunches and snacks inside fall short of federal guidelines. Those are the findings of a study conducted by researchers at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University and in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine. The findings are … [Read more...]

Children with mild gastroenteritis and minimal dehydration experienced fewer treatment failures such as IV rehydration or hospitalization when offered half-strength apple juice followed by their preferred fluid choice compared with children who received electrolyte maintenance solution to replace fluid losses, according to a study published online by JAMA. The study is being … [Read more...]

New research by Andersen et al, published in the International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, may have an impact on the sugar tax debate. The research team observed overall changes in dietary patterns in overweight children, including a decrease in consumption of sugary drinks, when additional water or milk is added to their diet. Since 2011 the European Society for … [Read more...]

Contrary to conventional wisdom, a growing body of evidence shows that eating lean beef can reduce risk factors for heart disease, according to recent research by nutritional scientists. "This research adds to the significant evidence, including work previously done in our lab, that supports lean beef's role in a heart-healthy diet," said Penny M. Kris-Etherton, … [Read more...]

Spanish scientists have demonstrated through an experiment on obese rats that the consumption of probiotics for thirty days helps diminish the accumulation of fat in the liver. This new finding, recently published by the journal PLOS ONE, is a step forward on the fight against Non-Alcolohic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), which is closely related to obesity and … [Read more...]

Dietary elimination is a successful method of treatment for adults with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), according to a new study in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology, the official clinical practice journal of the American Gastroenterological Association. "By eliminating specific foods from patients' diets, symptoms improved in 71 percent of patients, and endoscopic … [Read more...]

A new study in women suggests that experiencing one or more stressful events the day before eating a single high-fat meal can slow the body's metabolism, potentially contributing to weight gain. Researchers questioned study participants about the previous day's stressors before giving them a meal consisting of 930 calories and 60 grams of fat. The scientists then measured … [Read more...]

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...]