Tag Archives: obesity

Cactus extract mops up dietary fat

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London: A unique cactus extract, with clinically proven fat binding qualities, can remove up to 28% of undigested fat (up to 150 calories) from a standard meal.

Launched today, this is the first in a new class of weight management products and could be the natural answer to prescription drugs such as Xenical, without some of the unpleasant side effects. Obesity has trebled in the UK since the 1980’s – more than half of all adults are now either overweight or obese.

The Department of Health forecasts that more than 12m adults and one million children will be obese by 2010 if no action is taken.However, studies have shown that a reduction of just 5-10% of body weight can alleviate weight related health
problems such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

Dr Adam Carey, leading nutritionist, comments: “Being overweight has a huge impact on our health, yet levels of obesity continue to escalate and we are failing to do anything about it. This new treatment, called Liposinol, could provide a kick start for those who find it hard take control of their weight.”

Taken after food, Liposinol™, made of non-soluble and soluble fibres, immediately attaches to fats in the stomach and in a secondary action forms a gel-like protection around the primary interaction. This creates a fat-fibre complex that is too large to be absorbed in the small intestine, allowing the fat to pass naturally through the body, protected from being broken down by pancreatic lipase or pH changes.

Dr Carey adds“Ideally people need to adopt a healthy lifestyle with plenty of exercise and a balanced diet, however, we need to recognise that many people find it hard to take that first step. Liposinol could provide some initial support by binding dietary fat, decreasing food cravings, suppressing appetite and reducing blood cholesterol.”

Liposinol is clinically proven and has been registered in the EU as a licensed medical product for the treatment of obesity, weight management and the reduction of blood cholesterol. The active ingredient is UK Vegetarian Society approved and certified organic by France Ecocert. Liposinol comes in packs of 48 and retails for £19.95. 1-2 tablets are taken with a main meal and up to 8 tablets can be taken per day. Available from independent health food stores, Superdrug and Holland & Barrett. Find more information online at www.liposinol.com
1 Pilot Clinical Study on Fat Binding – Data on File 2 Forecasting Obesity to 2010. Survey Report Prepared for the DoH, July
2006.

UK diabetes figures soar

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London: The number of people suffering from diabetes continues to rise, according to new figures from Britain’s National Health Service. And the epidemic of obesity is to blame say officials.

The numbers suffering from the disease in England has increased by 124,000 in a year to 1.89 million. The total figure is estimated at 2.1 million – compared with just 1.4 million a decade ago. The statistics are based on figures from doctors.

More than a fifth of men and women, and one in 15 schoolchildren, are now classed as obese.

Doctors have long warned this represents a health crisis because being overweight is a major trigger for Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of the condition.

The World Health Organisation recently estimated that by 2015 diabetes could be killing 41,000 Britons a year – a 25 per cent rise on the current total of around 33,000.

Experts said the latest rise in cases proves that action must be taken to improve our lifestyles.

Diabetes occurs when the body loses the ability to process blood sugar, leading to dangerously high levels which can damage organs.

Type 1 develops at a young age, while Type 2 typically occurs in later life. However, high obesity levels mean Type 2 is increasingly developing at younger ages and now makes up an estimated 75 per cent of cases. They represent an increase in prevalence of diabetes from 3.3 to 3.6 per cent of the population.

The Black Country and North-East London had the highest rates of diabetes at 4.1 per cent of their populations. The lowest rate was in the Thames Valley, at 2.9 per cent.

Young adults ravaged by lifestyle disease, says new report

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London: Poor lifestyle habits such as binge-drinking, bad eating habits and smoking are to blame for the increasing number of young adults who are not getting enough vital nutrients, a new UK study says.

As a result it is predicted that many will go on to suffer debilitating illnesses such as the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis and even a drop in life expenctancy.

The study, commissioned by Boots Health Club, part of the nationwide chemist chain, found that large numbers of men and women have low intakes of at least eight key vitamins and minerals, including iron, calcium, magnesium, vitamin B12, vitamin D, zinc and vitamin A.

It warned that millions of young people are thought to be ‘vita-rexic’ – a term coined for vitamin deficiency. Alarmingly, the study found that 96 per cent of women aged 19 to 24 were at risk of becoming iron deficient. This can lead to symptoms of anaemia, which leaves the sufferer feeling weak and tired.

More than half of women and a third of men were also found to be deficient in calcium, which is vital to help maintain healthy bones.

Dr Ann Walker, senior lecturer in nutrition at the University of Reading, said: ‘Modern lifestyles are at fault with many people working long hours, with bad diets and little time for exercise.

‘Bad diet, smoking and binge drinking are having a devastating effect on people’s health – women in particular – and adding to the burden of full-time work. It is hugely important that young adults start eating more healthily to avoid stressing the immune system.’

Every year Britons spend £300million on vitamin and mineral pills in the belief they can help prevent illnesses or make up for the nutrients lacking in their diet.

But earlier this year an influential panel of U.S. scientists said there is no strong evidence that they provide any benefit.

They warned that as many as one in ten of those taking supplements could even be in danger of overdosing and exceeding the daily ‘safe’ intake when nutrients in their food are included.

Most nutritionists agree that a healthy and balanced diet – which includes plenty of fruit and vegetables – will provide all the nutrients that most people need.

Chewing gum has health benefits, says new report

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London:The world’s largest manufacturer of chewing gum, The Wrigley Company, today announced the launch of the first Expert Report outlining the four key benefits of chewing gum.

The report pulls together research on how chewing gum can improve dental health (specifically aiding plaque reduction), help with weight management, improve concentration and alertness and also relieve stress. This is the first time the research, conducted by academics and scientists across the globe over the last few years, has been pulled together in one comprehensive, user friendly guide.

The launch of the Expert Report follows the creation of the Wrigley Science Institute (WSI) earlier this year. The Institute has been set up to conduct further research into the health benefits of chewing gum and brings together experts in their fields from Europe, United States and Asia. Initial findings from the WSI are due out later this year.

“Most people associate chewing gum with fresh breath and a cleaner feeling mouth but the benefits of chewing gum are a lot broader than that. Research conducted in the last few years has already shown direct correlations between chewing gum and reducing stress, improving focus, effective weight management and dental health,” said Alexandra MacHutchon, a Wrigley spokesperson.

“This report brings together the science behind these claims in a consumer friendly report that also provides information on other additional benefits such as reducing acid reflux, helping with the affects of air pressure while flying and aiding smoking cessation.”

The Expert Report is the first in what will be a series of updates from The Wrigley Company on the health benefits of chewing gum.

“As the WSI publishes new research on the different ways that chewing gum can benefit your health we will be updating and refreshing the Expert Report and continuing to educate consumers. We are continually finding new benefits both in terms of general health and in specific medical areas such as surgery recovery times. As more research is commissioned we are very excited about the prospect of finding new ways in which gum can help people maintain a healthy body and mind,” said Alexandra.

About the Wrigley Company

The Wrigley Company is the world’s leading manufacturer of chewing and bubblegum and a major player in the confectionery industry worldwide.

Some of Wrigley’s most famous brands include Wrigley’s Extra®, Airwaves®, Orbit®, Juicy Fruit®, Wrigley’s Spearmint®, Doublemint® and Hubba Bubba®. Wrigley is committed to diversifying close to home and recently launched its first non-gum products for over one hundred years – Extra™ Thin Ice™ and Extra™ Mints.

Obesity baloon operation now available in UK

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London:As the UK obesity rate continues to climb and more than two thirds of the population are deemed clinically overweight, one of the country’s leading medical groups is to offer an innovative ‘Diet Balloon’ treatment for the first time in the UK.

Billed as a lifestyle changing treatment, the procedure is two-fold offering an innovative, balloon, designed to suppress appetite by filling the stomach, and a six-month diet and wellbeing aftercare programme.

In order to ensure the patient breaks their bad habits and increase their chances of losing the weight and keeping it off, the procedure is managed by a qualified team of experts including dieticians, endoscopists, doctors and nutritionists.

Ultralase Medical Aesthetics (UMA) has introduced the treatment in the UK following the successful launch by its parent company, Corporacion Dermoestetica, in Europe, where over 300 patients have already completed the Diet Balloon programme.

The initial procedure is straightforward and does not involve general anaesthetic or surgery: a silicone intragastric balloon is inserted into the stomach (via the mouth and oesophagus, under sedation) and is filled with liquid so it partially fills the stomach and creates a feeling of fullness.

An intensive support programme is then put in place with a nutritionist, who examines diet, eating habits (including favourite restaurants) and offers a lifestyle ‘bible’ of tips to keep temptation at bay and stave off bad eating habits for good!

The programme involves regularly scheduled face-to-face meetings, text reminders and access to 24-hour access to a dedicated qualified specialist by phone.

“For patients who are obese and have failed medical therapy, the intra-gastric balloon is a welcomed and effective next step. It can also be used as a bridge to weight reducing surgery or in place of such surgery especially in patients who may be deemed too high an operative risk or who do not want invasive surgery”, says Dr Jude Oben, consultant gastroenterologist.

Anne-Marie Holdsworth, UMA’s consultant nutritionist comments: “Often with any new diet you have an initial burst of confidence that helps you make the required changes. However, over time, this often wanes and old habits creep back in as your willpower eventually begins to crumble.”

Ultralase Medical Aesthetics’ weight loss programme is designed to help overcome all the obstacles associated with dieting; what to eat when dining out, how to steel yourself from reaching for the chocolate bar when watching your favourite TV programme. Most of all it encourages patients to change their lifestyle habits and break away from the couch and get active instead.

Anne-Marie again: “Because the focus is placed firmly on re-educating people about their eating choices over a sustained length of time – the Diet Balloon doesn’t offer a ‘quick fix’ weight loss solution. Its aim to promote a total lifestyle change, is what I believe will be a key factor in its success.”

For patients who are obese and have failed medical therapy, the intra-gastric balloon is a welcomed and effective next step. It can also be used as a bridge to weight reducing surgery or in place of such surgery especially in patients who may be deemed too high an operative risk or who do not want invasive surgery.

Ultralase Medical Aesthetics will only recommend the procedure after detailed consultations with the patient, and after the Diet Balloon has been inserted there is a continuous after-care programme during the maximum six-month period the balloon remains in place.

In the largest study conducted on intragastric balloon effectiveness, 323 patients underwent the procedure and lost on average 48% of their excess weight. The study, undertaken in Brazil, demonstrated that the balloon was highly effective and safe, with a low risk of major side effects.

Dr. Jude Oben has appeared in:

Channel 5 TV – Doctor-Doctor, August 2006: Obesity and Fatty Liver
BBC TV – City Hospital, May 2006: Obesity and Fatty Liver

Obesity figures supplied by ONS survey, < ahref="http:www.statistics.gov.uk">www.statistics.gov.uk

The treatment is currently available at four UK clinics; Hammersmith, Guildford, Chelmsford and St Albans.

A full consultation is required prior to considering the procedure to determine the history and suitability of the patient.

The intragastric balloon procedure was first developed in the 1980s and is recognised as a safe and effective means for achieving significant weight loss amongst obese patients whose health is at risk because of their condition and who have failed to lose and maintain weight loss through weight-control programmes.

It can also be used for severely-obese patients who need to lose weight before surgery (either for obesity or any other condition), in order to reduce surgical risk.

Diet sodas – indirect cancer link

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Rochester: Although diet sodas cannot be discounted in esophageal cancer, according to doctors at the US Mayo Clinic.

There are interconnections between soda, obesity, gastroesophagel reflux disease and esophageal cancer that may indicate it’s best to go easy on soda, say Dr Claude Deschamps, Thoracic Surgery and Jennifer Nelson dietitician.

The incidence of esophageal cancer continues to increase, and so far, researchers can’t pinpoint a single reason for the increase. But there are two important risk factors associated with soda consumption.

First, frequent or constant heartburn is the most common symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disease. While heartburn seems like just a nuisance, about 5 percent of people with GERD will develop Barrett’s esophagus, a condition that occurs when acid reflux stimulates changes in the lining of the lower esophagus. Patients with Barrett’s esophagus have a 30- to 125-fold increased risk of developing esophageal cancer. And GERD is also associated with obesity.

Second, soda consumption – even of diet soda – can contribute to weight gain.

A 12-ounce regular soda contains about 10 teaspoons of sugar, which boosts calories. And according to a study presented at last year’s annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association, people who drink two or more cans of diet soda a day have a 57.1 percent risk of becoming overweight or obese compared to 47.2 percent for those who drank more than two cans of regular soda a day. The study, done by researchers at Texas Health Science Center, tracked 622 people for about seven years.

It’s not clear why diet soda consumption was associated with a higher risk of weight gain. The researchers speculated that diet soda drinkers fared worse because they opted for diet soda in an effort to lose weight. But drinking diet soda – without other changes – isn’t enough to shed pounds. Another theory is that perhaps the artificial sweeteners in diet soda somehow stimulate appetite.

Maintaining a healthy body weight clearly reduces your risk of many chronic illnesses, including some cancers. While the interplay between soda, obesity and GERD has not been directly linked to esophageal cancer, there are enough connections to be cautious and watch what you drink.

UK second fatest nation in world after US

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London: The UK government has warned of an “obesity timebomb” after a Department of Health report predicts that on third of adults will be dangerously overweight by 2010.

This means Britain has the most fat adults than any other country apart from the US.

This means that 14 million adults will be putting their health at risk with a lifetime of related illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, stroke and Alzheimer’s.

As usual experts blame junt food and lack of exercise, the latter caused by the digital age of computers and TV entertainment.

In the UK obesity causes 9,000 premature deaths every year and the annual cost of the condition to the Health Service is estimated at up to £1billion. And the situation will worsen.

Three years ago just over 9million adults were classed as obese – but by 2010 the figure will have rocketed to almost 13million.

In the case of children, in 2003, 17 per cent of boys and 16 per cent of girls were classed as chronically overweight. But by 2010 some 19 per cent of boys and a shocking 22 per cent of girls between the ages of two and 15 will be obese – some
1.7million children in total. Experts warn that if the current trend continues, half of all children could be obese by 2020.

The forecast means that the Government is likely to miss its 2004 target to halt the rise of obesity in under-11s by 2010.

Health campaigners have already warned that parents will soon be living longer than their children because of the epidemic of lifestyle diseases.

Doctors question BMI obesity guide

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Rochester: One of the main measurements for obesity, the body mass index (BMI) is being called into question by US doctors.

This follows research by the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, which investigated 40 studies involving 250,000 victims of heart disease. As expected it found that severely obese patients had a higher risk of heart-related death.

But would it didn’t expect was that overweight patients, as defined by BMI scores, had better survival and fewer heart problems than those with a normal BMI. In turn, those with normal BMI were less likely to die than those with a low BMI.

They concluded that many of the so-called BMI defined overweight patients actually had more muscle – which actually weighs more than fat – and that BMI failed to identify the difference.

Many experts now want waist circumference or waist to hip ratio, which indicates levels of abdominal fat, adopted as a more accurate guide rather than the method for BMI which is calculated by dividing weight in kilograms by height in metres squared. Someone with a BMI of less than 18.5 is considered underweight, between 18.5 and 24.9 lies within the ‘ normal’ range, and 25 to 29.9 is classified as overweight. Clinical obesity is defined by a BMI of 30 or greater.

A recent international study in 52 countries found waist-to-hip ratio was the most reliable predictor of heart attack risk. As a rough guide to healthy waist circumference, doctors regard over 40 inches for a man and 35 for a woman as danger signs.

Gut bug clue to life-threatening diseases

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London: Altering the makeup of bugs in the gut could be a way of tackling insulin resistance and related problems such as non alcoholic fatty liver disease, according to new research published this week.

The study also has implications for the treatment of associated conditions such as type 2 diabetes, obesity and heart disease.

The research shows that the type of microbes found in the guts of mice with a certain genetic makeup causes them to be pre-disposed to insulin resistance and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). On a high fat diet, these microbes transform the nutrient choline, found in food and essential for metabolising fat, into methylamines.

Scientists believe that these methylamines, which can only be produced by the microbes in the gut, lead to insulin resistance. In addition, because choline is needed to transport fat out of the liver, altering choline metabolism leads to fat accumulating in the liver and NAFLD.

The researchers are hopeful that their results in mice mean that they could intervene to change the makeup of gut microbes in people, to prevent their microbes from changing choline into methylamine. This would greatly reduce a person’s chances of becoming insulin resistant, developing NAFLD or suffering from associated problems.

The research is published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by researchers from Imperial College London and the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford.

Professor Jeremy Nicholson, senior author of the paper from Imperial College London, said: “It has been known for some time that a person’s genetic makeup can make them pre-disposed to insulin resistance and associated conditions. Finding out how this pre-disposition is linked to microbes in the gut offers us the prospect of tackling major health problems in people by intervening to change the makeup of these microbes. This is much more feasible than altering a person’s genetic makeup.”

The researchers measured the plasma and urine of two genetic strains of mice using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and computer modelling. One strain had a genetic predisposition to insulin resistance and NAFLD whilst the other strain did not.

The authors conclude their study provides more evidence that complex metabolic diseases are the product of the human and bacterial genomes as well as diet and lifestyle.

-ends-

For further information please contact:

Laura Gallagher
Press Officer
Communications Division
Imperial College London
Tel: +44 (0)20 7594 6702
E-mail: l.gallagher@imperial.ac.uk

Notes to editors:

1. “Metabolic profiling reveals a contribution of gut microbiota to fatty liver phenotype in insulin-resistant mice” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, August 15 2006

Marc-Emmanuel Dumas(1)*, Richard H Barton(1), Ayo Toye(3), Olivier Cloarec(1), Christine Blancher(3), Alice Rothwell(3), Jane Fearnside(3), Roger Tatoud(2), Veronique Blanc(2), John C Lindon(1), Elaine Holmes(1), Mark I McCarthy(3), James Scott(2), Dominique Gaugier(3), Jeremy K Nicholson(1)(2)*

(1) Department of Biological Chemistry, Imperial College London
(2) Genetics and Genomics Research Institute, Imperial College London
(3) Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford
* Corresponding authors

2. About non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)
NAFLD is a fatty inflammation of the liver related to insulin resistance that in its most extreme form can cause cirrhosis. There is currently no standard treatment for the disease and patients are usually encouraged to try weight loss or insulin sensitisers to reduce its effects. It is estimated to affect between 10-27% of the world’s population.

3.About Imperial College London
Consistently rated in the top three UK university institutions, Imperial College London is a world leading science-based university whose reputation for excellence in teaching and research attracts students (11,000) and staff (6,000) of the highest international quality. Innovative research at the College explores the interface between science, medicine, engineering and management and delivers practical solutions that enhance the quality of life and the environment – underpinned by a dynamic enterprise culture. Website: www.imperial.ac.uk

4.Imperial College London, in conjunction with Queen Mary and Westfield College London, Cambridge University and Oxford University was awarded a £5.4 million collaborative program grant funded by the Wellcome Trust www.wellcome.ac.uk Functional Genomics Development Initiative in 2002. The programme designated a Biological Atlas of Insulin Resistance www.bair.org.uk has been implemented by international investigators with expertise in insulin signalling, rodent genetics, human genetics, emergent ‘-omics’ sciences (metabonomics, proteomics, transcriptomics), bioinformatics, and structural biology.

Hormone link to child obesity

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San Francisco: Children in developed countries are becoming fatter because their diets play havoc with their hormones, according to a new study by scientists.

Robert Lustig, a paediatrician at the Children’s Hospital of the University of California in San Francisco, said: “Our current western food environment has become highly insulinogenic, as demonstrated by its increased energy density, high-fat content, high glycaemic index, increased fructose composition, decreased fibre, and decreased dairy content.”

Overweight children are more likely to become overweight adults, putting people at greater risk of heart disease and stroke.

In the latest issue of Nature Clinical Practice Endocrinology and Metabolism, Dr Lustig says the obesity epidemic rests on effects of processed food, which has sugar added to a wide variety of products that used never to include it and has fibre removed. This upsets the balance of two hormones which regulate how much we eat – leptin and insulin.

UK has higher levels of bad fats in foods than rest of Europe

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Copenhagen: Some convenience foods in the UK contain more unhealthy fats than the same foods bought in other parts of Europe, a study by Danish scientists has found.

An international survey of McDonald’s and Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) outlets, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, shows how customers are being unwittingly exposed to potentially harmful levels of the processed fats – trans fats. Two tip supermarkets Sainsbury’s and Tesco have already announced they are removing trans fats from own-brand products.

Trans fats are produced by heating vegetable oils to very high temperatures or by bubbling hydrogen into them. They are used for frying in fast-food outlets and to help prolong the shelf life of cakes and biscuits.

Eating 5 grams of trans fats daily can increase the risk of heart disease by 25%, according to research. Most consumers are unaware of the amount of trans fats they are eating because manufacturers and fast-food outlets are not legally obliged to declare the volumes.

The survey has shown the level of trans fats can vary widely between apparently identical products. Researchers bought a large serving of chicken nuggets and french fries from outlets of McDonald’s in America and Europe.

Sixteen per cent of the cooking oil used for the french fries was comprised of trans fats in the UK, compared with 10% in Germany, 5% in Spain and 1% in Denmark.

An outlet in New York had the highest levels of trans fats, with each meal containing more than 10 grams, compared with more than 6 grams in the UK, over 5 grams in France and less than 1 gram in Denmark.

The researchers also bought chicken nuggets with fries from KFC outlets. Hungary had the most trans fats, with 25 grams in one serving. The UK serving had about 3 grams of trans fats.

McDonald’s said trans fats levels varied between countries because of the use of different oils: British outlets use rapeseed oil, while palm oil is used in Denmark. The company is aiming to cut trans fats in British outlets to the levels in Denmark by 2008.

KFC said is striving to find alternative oils to cut trans fats. :

Will you get dementia?

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Stockholm: Scientists have developed a two-minute test that can access the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

There are seven lifestyle questions on age, education, health and exercise yield a personal score out of the highest of 15, which is then translated into a personal risk level. The higher the score, the more likely dementia will develop within 20 years.
The aim of the test is to shock those at risk into making lifestyle changes necessary to reduce the danger.

Accuracy is estimated at around 70 per cent The test. Those who score highest are estimated to have a 16 per cent chance of developing the disease while those at the lower end have one per cent, according to a report in The Lancet Neurology.

The number of cases of Alzheimer’s is on the increase and presently there is no cure and no predictive testing other than a genetic test.

Though it is generally recognised that there are some risk factors such as obesity, high blood pressure, not taking exercise, poor diet and high levels of the substance homocysteine in the blood. These may combine years before the disease to create an environment for Alzheimer’s to develop.

The doctors looked at the health of more than 1,400 middle-aged people from Finland to device the scorecard. They looked at their health when they were around 50 and then 20 years later examined them for signs of dementia.

Those who are obese or have high blood pressure or high cholesterol are twice as likely to develop dementia. Scoring badly on all three fronts raises the risk sixfold.

Swedish neurologist Dr Miia Kivipelto, who developed the scorecard, said it could change the face of dementia treatment and gave doctors and patients a better chance in intervention.

TV’s Anne Diamond launches obesity helpsite

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Lonson: TV personality Anne Diamond today announced the launch of www.fathappens.com – a site for people who want to lose weight through mutual support and encouragement – believing that more will be achieved through BUDDYing not BULLYing.

Anne Diamond says: “Fat isn’t a sin – and it doesn’t deserve punishment. You know what they say when things go wrong? Don’t beat yourself up about it – “s### happens”! It doesn’t mean you’re a bad person, it doesn’t mean you deserve it. s### happens – it’s part of life. So…fat happens. It just happens. Whose fault is it? Who cares? Beating yourself up won’t help, that’s for sure. Just find a way to deal with it.

That’s why I have set up a new website – called FatHappens.com. It’s for the millions of us to whom fat has happened – and who spend so much time trying to do something about it. It’s not for those who like being fat, or who reluctantly accept it. It is a site for men and women who are going to battle the bulge in their own way, in their own time – and not according to the fat fascist attitudes of the outside world.

I was moved to set up this forum by the thousands of viewers, listeners and readers who’ve been following my progress in the media over the past few years. Time and again I was struck by their own stories. And, like me, they’re furious that they become the focus of such prejudice, backstabbing and spite from the thin world. I wanted to provide a new environment, a meeting place and a living magazine for them all to contribute, share views, inspire and entertain with collected stories and experiences.

Once you’ve put it on, losing weight is a much, much bigger battle than thin people can even countenance. Sometimes you feel you’re climbing a sheer rockface whilst others are throwing stones at you. In that sort of environment, it’s little wonder so many fall. When fat happens to you, you need friends to give you the encouragement and support you deserve – on Posted in Diet, News | Tagged , , ,

Heart charity calls on Government to act over obesity and food industry

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London:The British Heart Foundation has called on Government to act on food industry and obesity following Tony Blair’s speech on the nation’s health in Nottingham yesterday.

Dr Mike Knapton, Director of Prevention and Care at the BHF, said: “It’s great to see the spotlight on prevention but these aren’t just individual lifestyle problems.

“If millions of children are not eating the right food and not getting enough exercise then it’s not just a million individual problems. It’s a collective problem that will require us all to work together, including Government.

“Yes. Our lifestyle choices make a huge difference to our health, but it’s not easy for many people – it is the Government’s responsibility to create an environment that enables each and every one of us to make choices for a longer and healthier life.

“Tony Blair has said the Government is prepared to act. Industry had its chance and failed to regulate itself effectively in areas such as food advertising and labelling.

“The time for Government to act is now. Requiring the food industry to adopt one sensible system for front pack labels and banning junk food advertising before the watershed would be a good next step.”

GI diet speeds weightloss

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Sydney: New research has shown that a diet which scores low on the “glycaemic index” (GI) helps overweight people lose body fat and reduce their levels of “bad” cholesterol, which contributes to the risk of heart attacks and strokes.

A study of 189 overweight and obese adults, carried out by the University of Sydney concluded that a diet high in either protein or carbohydrates, but with a low total GI score, brought about the biggest reduction of body fat, and that a high-carbohydrate and low GI diet caused the greatest drop.

The researchers studied men and women aged 18-40 assigned to one of four reduced-calorie and reduced-fat diets for 12 weeks.

The first diet was high in carbohydrates (55 percent of total energy) but low on the GI index. The second was high in carbohydrates and high in GI rating. The third was high in protein(25 percent of total energy) and high in GI score, while the fourth was also high in protein but low in GI score.

After three months, all the volunteers lost a statistically similar amount of weight: between 4.2 and 6.2 percent of their body weight. However, those on the low GI diets lost the most body fat, with those on the high-carb, low-GI diet losing about 80 percent more body fat than those on the high-carb and high-GI diet.

As for cholesterol levels, the researchers said the effects of each diet varied, with those eating the high-protein, high-GI diet seeing their LDL cholesterol level increase, while those on the high-protein, low GI regimen, saw cholesterol levels go down slightly.

The GI measures the impact of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels. Food with a high GI score, like biscuits, causes sharper peaks in sugar levels than low GI food, such as pasta, which makes people feel fuller for longer, and may promote the breakdown of fat and reduce total and low density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad” cholesterol.

Overweight teenagers may face early death

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Boston: Overweight teeenagers have a greater risk of early death, a new US study from the Harvard School of Public Health has found.

Teenagers who are obesity threatens their health are three times more likely to die early than peers of a normal weight. Obesity also raises the risk of heart disease, diabetes and several types of cancer – including bowel, kidney, oesophageal and stomach cancers – as well as womb and breast cancer in post-menopausal women.

Women who are overweight at 18 are 66 per cent more likely to die prematurely than those who are thin.

Obesity at 18, however, nearly triples the risk of dying by middleage, according to the US study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, and are likely contributed to long-terms effects on the cardiovascular system that led to early death.

Researchers looked at the medical records of 100,000 women. But the doctors conclude that the results may well apply to men.

Their findings revealed that those who were overweight or obese at 18 faced a higher risk of early death from heart disease, cancer, suicide and other causes just 12 years later.

The definition of being overweight or obese was measured according to the body mass index. BMI is an individual’s weight in kilos divided by the square of their height in metres.

Under 18.5 is classed as underweight, 18.5 to 25 is healthy, 25 to 30 is overweight, 30 to 35 is obese and over 35 very obese.

The medical records come from the long-running Nurses’ Health Study II, which began following 116,671 female nurses in 1989, when the women were aged between 24 and 44. Over the next 12 years 710 women died, with an increase in risk climbing in tandem with their weight at 18.

Weight gain in older women increases cancer risk

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Boston: Weight gain after the menopause may mean an increased risk of breast cancer, according to a new US study.

Researchers at the Brigham Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, examined the links between weight gain and the risk of breast cancer among post-menopausal women. They discovered that weightloss after the menopause lowers levels of circulating oestrogen, the hormone that elevates cancer risk, in women. It has already been proven that weight gain in earlier life also raises cancer risk.

The researchers examined changes in weight in two different life periods – after the age of 18 and after menopause over a follow up period of 24 years. The study involved a total of 87, 143 postmenopausal women, aged 30 to 55 years, who were followed up for up to 26 years to analyse weight change since age 18. Weight change since menopause was assessed among 49,514 women. The study is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Women who gained about 55 pounds or more since age 18 were at a 45 percent increased risk of breast cancer, compared with those who maintained their weight, with a stronger association among women who have never taken postmenopausal hormones.
Women who gained about 22 pounds or more since menopause were at an 18 percent increased risk of breast cancer. Those who lost about 22 pounds or more since menopause (and kept the weight off) and had never used postmenopausal hormones were at a 57 percent lower risk of breast cancer than those who simply maintained their weight. The researchers concluded that 15 percent of the study’s breast cancer cases may be attributable to weight gain of 4.4 pounds or more since age 18 and 4.4 percent of the cases may be attributable to weight gain of 4.4 pounds or more since menopause.

New pill to tackle obesity in UK

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London: A new drug, which fights obesity by preventing food cravings, is to be made available to British patients through the country’s National Health Service.

The drug called Acomplia, is made by a French company and can cut bodyweight by up to 10 per cent in a year and significantly reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes.

The pill, which costs £2 a day, acts on the brain and reduces appetite and assists in loss of abdominal fat. It is licenses for those who are medically obese but will be prescribed to those who are overweight with type 2 diabetes. It will also only be given to failed dieters and exercisers.

Tests of the drug showed that 40 per cent of users lost 10 per cent of their body weight, incuding from around the waist.

In trials when overweight people took a daily 20 mg pill, up to 40 per cent of them lost 10 per cent of their body weight, much of it from around their waist, which cuts the risk of diabetes and heart problems.

The pill works by interfering with a system in the body that controls energy levels, regulates body weight plus breaks down sugars and fats.

Britain is the first country to have the drug, but manufacturer Sanofi-Aventis hopes to sell it in the USA once it wins approval from American FDA

Should the fat be taxed?

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London: UK TV food critic, Giles Coren, is campaigning for a tax on the fat. In a TV programme – Tax the Fat – being broadcast on More4 today, he argues that Britain is dying of fat.

He says: “And the bill is not just a few pounds here and there to repair a broken park bench or the odd public loo seat. Last year, treatment of obesityrelated illnesses, including Type 2 diabetes and knee and hip operations, cost the National Health Service — wait for it — £1 billion. Another £2.5 billion was lost to the economy on account of premature death, sick pay and incapacity benefits related to obesity.

“Extra transport costs incurred as a result of our increasing weight ran to £250 million because the fatter we grow, the fewer people can fit on any given bus or train. (By 2020, when a third of Britons will be clinically obese, 2,500 extra buses will have to be built, at a cost of £100,000 per bus, to cart our bulkier frames around.)

There are 900 people in Britain so fat that they can do, almost literally, nothing at all. These super-whoppers cost the country £8million just on their own. “

He says the total cost of supporting the obese, some £4 billion comes from the taxes paid by the thin and like smokers and people who consume alcohol, they should also be taxed. They are fat, he says, because they lack willpower.

“Smokers are expected to pay vast amounts in tax to fund their habit. Boozers are taxed in the same way; gamblers, too. And I think it’s high time the obese were made to stump up as well. The time has come to tax the fat.”

In the TV documentary he reveals some obesity facts: two thirds of the adult population of Britain is overweight with a Body Mass Index of more than 25 or obese with a BMI of more than 30; 10% of premature deaths are obesity related and that by 2012 obesity will overtake smoking as the biggest preventable killer.

The only solution is to tax fat, he argues – that is everyone with a BMI over 36, for example. This is the size of the UK’s Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott. This would mean paying and extra £300 a year in tax if you already paid £5,000.

A fat tax would raise money to pay for the UK’s economic fat burden and act as a deterrent.

Coren has taken his fat tax proposal to the heart of Government and even put it to John Prescott himself who reponded, as one would expect, less than enthusiastically.

Sleep deprivation may cause weight gain

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New York: Women who sleep less than five hours put on more weight than those who sleep for longer, says a new study comparing sleeping patterns with obesity.

The study. which took place over a 16-year period, was presented at the recent American Thoracic Society International Conference. It found that women who slept for five hours per night were 32% more likely to experience major weight gain, such as an increase of 33 pounds or more, and 15% more likely to become obese, compared with women who slept seven hours. Women who slept for six hours were 12% more likely to have major weight gain and 6% more likely to become obese compared with women who slept seven hours a night.

The study included 68,183 middle-aged women who were enrolled in the Nurses Health Study. They were asked in 1986 about their typical night’s sleep, and were then asked to report their weight every two years for 16 years.

On average, women who slept five hours or less per night weighed 5.4 pounds more at the beginning of the study than those sleeping seven hours and gained an additional 1.6 pounds more over the next 10 years.

“That may not sound like much, but it is an average amount–some women gained much more than that, and even a small difference in weight can increase a person’s risk of health problems such as diabetes and hypertension,” said lead researcher Sanjay Patel, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH.

Dr. Patel noted that this is by far the largest study to track the effect of sleep habits on weight gain over time. “There have been a number of studies that have shown that at one point in time, people who sleep less weigh more, but this is one of the first studies to show reduced sleep increases the risk of gaining weight over time.”

The researchers looked at the women’s diets and exercise habits to see if they could account for part of the findings. “Prior studies have shown that after just a few days of sleep restriction, the hormones that control appetite cause people to become hungrier, so we thought that women who slept less might eat more. But in fact they ate less,” Dr. Patel said. “That suggests that appetite and diet are not accounting for the weight gain in women who sleep less.”

The researchers also asked women about how much they participated in exercise activities such as running, jogging or playing tennis. But they didn’t find any differences in physical activity that could explain why women who slept less weighed more.

“We don’t have an answer from this study about why reduced sleep causes weight gain, but there are some possibilities that deserve further study,” Dr. Patel said. “Sleeping less may affect changes in a person’s basal metabolic rate (the number of calories you burn when you rest). Another contributor to weight regulation that has recently been discovered is called non-exercise associated thermogenesis, or NEAT, which refers to involuntary activity, such as fidgeting or standing instead of sitting. It may be that if you sleep less, you move around less, too, and therefore burn up fewer calories.”

Women who work are less likely to be obese

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London: Holding down a job and being a mum in a steady relationship helps keep women healthy and in good shape over the long term, suggests research in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

A career as a homemaker seems to increase the chances of becoming obese, indicates the research.

The authors base their findings on data from women participants in the Medical Research Council National Study of Health and Development. This tracks the long term health of British men and women born in 1946 throughout their life.

Health at the age of 26 and in mid life at the age of 54 was assessed using a validated questionnaire.

Information about the women’s employment history, marital status, and whether they had had children was also collected for every decade from the age of 26. Their weight and height were also measured at regular intervals.

Analysis of the information showed that by the age of 54 women who had been partners, parents, and employees were significantly less likely to report ill health than women who did not fulfil all three roles.

Women who had been home-makers for all or most of their lives, and had not held down a job, were most likely to say their health was poor, followed by lone mothers and childless women.

Women who had worked during several periods of their lives were less likely to be obese than women who had rarely worked. Weight gain tended to occur at a faster rate among the homemakers.

Obesity was most common among the long term homemakers (38%) and least common among women who had fulfilled all three roles (23%).

These findings were not explained by the women’s earlier health nor did health status in early life influence whether the women became employees, wives, or mothers.

The authors conclude that good health among women is more likely to be the result, rather than the cause, of adopting several roles.

Americans risking early death through smoking or obesity

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Washington: Over 80 million American adults are putting themselves at serious risk of long-term illness and early death through smoking, obesity, or both, finds a study published on bmj.com.

Smoking and obesity are two of the leading causes of death and illness in the United States, but the overlap between the two conditions has never been measured.

Using data from the 2002 national health interview survey, researchers estimated the proportion of adults in the US who smoke and are obese. The results were stratified for various factors, such as income and education levels.

They found that 23.5% of adults were obese and 22.7% smoked (a total of 81 million).

About 4.7% (9 million) smoked and were obese. This proportion was particularly high in African Americans (7%) and in people with lower income and education levels.

Although this overlap is relatively low, the presence of these two conditions together may carry an increased risk to health, say the authors.

Treatments for people who smoke and who are obese need to be investigated, they add. Clinical trials should monitor the effects of programmes aimed at simultaneously stopping smoking and weight control. These results could be used to develop policies for prevention and treatment.

US obesity far worse than estimates reveal

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Harvard: Obesity levels in the US may be 50% higher than previous official estimates. And the fatest people are those in the southern states of the US.

The Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) has analysed data from a range of surveys to conclude that estimates of obesity in individual states have been too low, by more than 50%, according to a report in the journal of the Royal Society of Medicine.

Obesity is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality, causing some 2.6 million deaths worldwide each year. The US survey data on obesity on a national and state level is obtained using information gathered by the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), which uses telephone interviews and national data is also collected using the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which does in-person interviews and follow-up height and weight measurements on people who agree to a clinical exam.

The research, which presents the first-ever corrected estimates of obesity for individual states, found that Southern states have the highest levels of obesity in the country. Using the report’s corrected data for 2000, the highest obesity levels for men were found in Texas (31%) and Mississippi (30%). For women, Texas (37%), Louisiana (37%), Mississippi (37%), District of Columbia (37%), Alabama (37%) and South Carolina (36%) led the pack. States with the lowest prevalence of corrected obesity for men in 2000 were Colorado (18%), District of Columbia (21%) and Montana (21%); for women Colorado (24%), Montana (25%) and Massachusetts (27%).

Lead author Majid Ezzati, Associate Professor of International Health at HSPH, and his colleagues analyzed and compared the data from the two surveys in order to quantify the level of bias when people self-report their height and weight, especially in a telephone interview.

Based on this new understanding of the survey data, the authors found that, on average, women tend to underestimate their weight while men do not. When it comes to height, young and middle-aged men tend to overestimate their height more than women in the same age group. In 2002, the corrected prevalence of obesity in the U.S. population was 28.7% for adult men and 34.5% for adult women, more than 50% higher than previously estimated.

Scientists discover hormone that reduces appetite and promotes activity

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London: New research shows how topping up the levels of a hormone found in the gut could help reduce the appetite and increase activity in overweight and obese people.

The study published online in the International Journal of Obesity shows how the team from Imperial College London gave injections of oxyntomodulin to fifteen overweight but healthy volunteers from Hammersmith Hospital, and monitored how this affected their food intake, and levels of activity.

Professor Steve Bloom, from Imperial College London, who led the research, said: “The discovery that this hormone has a double effect, increasing energy expenditure as well as reducing food intake, could be of huge importance. When most people diet, this produces a reduction in activity, which is probably an adaptive trait to conserve energy during times of famine. However this does make it especially difficult for obese individuals trying to loose weight. In contrast oxyntomodulin decreases calorific intake, but actually increases energy expenditure, making it an ideal intervention for the obese.”

The researchers used fifteen healthy overweight male and female volunteers, aged between 23 and 49 years. The volunteers completed three separate four-day study sessions, where they self administered either saline or oxyntomodulin according to a double blind randomised trial.

After the first injection, the volunteers were given a meal, and their calorific intake was monitored. They spent the next two days in their normal environment, self administering oxyntomodulin three times a day before meals. On the fourth day, the volunteers came back to the hospital to have their energy expenditure measured.

They found that after the first meal, the volunteers ate on average 128 kcal or 17.4 percent less, while activity related energy expenditure increased by an average of 143 kcal or 26.2 percent.

The researchers also found a reduction in body weight by an average of
0.5 percent.

Professor Bloom added: “This discovery could provide doctors with a whole new way to treat the current obesity epidemic. We need to get away from the focus on food and start to think about how to increase exercise. The question is how to make people enjoy taking exercise and how to encourage them to do it spontaneously.

“Oxyntomodulin could work by letting the brain know it has an adequate energy supply and that it can afford to do productive things rather than concentrate solely on food seeking or conserving energy. It signals to the brain that it can increase exercise by letting it know that the energy is available to do more things.

“If used as a therapy for obesity, oxyntomodulin provides a double whammy – reducing food intake and increasing spontaneous activity.”

Obesity in children set to rise

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Boston: US doctors have found that having just one fizzy drink a day could equate to putting on almost a stone in a year.

The warning follows a study of teenagers by US researchers assessing if home deliveries of ‘healthy’ drinks such as bottled water helped.

A second study, by the International Obesity Task Force, warns childhood obesity will almost double by the end of the decade.

The IOTF, which studied data on childhood obesity from around the world, warns that the number of children who are overweight in the EU is set to rise by 1.3m a year, with more than 300,000 of those likely to be obese.

By the end of the decade, it is estimated that 26m children in the EU will be overweight, including 6.4m who will be obese – double the current number.

In the Middle East, the proportion of obese children is set to rise to 11.5%, and in both North and South America, it will be up to 15.2%.

In Asia, the proportion of obese children is set to treble to 5.3% – up from 1.5% now.

Dr Tim Lobstein, co-ordinator of the IOTF’s childhood and adolescent obesity research programme, said: “The obesity estimates are very cautious, but extremely worrying.”

In the US study, researchers from the Children’s Hospital Boston studied 103 children aged 13 to 18. Half received weekly deliveries of healthy drinks.

They were instructed to avoid drinks containing sugar and received reminders via monthly phone calls and refrigerator magnets to “think before you drink”.

The rest of the teenagers were asked to continue their usual eating and drinking patterns.

At the end of six months, those receiving deliveries had cut their consumption of sugary drinks by 82%, while that of the other group remained unchanged.

Researchers found that the heavier the teenager had been initially, the stronger the effect on body weight.

Among the heaviest third, those who had drinks delivered saw a decrease in their body mass index (BMI), while the control group had a slight increase – the difference equated to almost one pound per month.

Other factors affecting obesity, such as the amount of physical activity levels and time spent watching television, did not change in either group.

Dr Cara Ebbeling, who led the study, said: “Sugary beverages have no nutritional value and seem to make a huge contribution to weight gain.”

She said the study showed it was relatively easy to have a significant impact on teenagers’ habits.

“People often get overwhelmed by nutrition advice and give up.

“We opted to study one simple, potentially high-impact behaviour, and made it easy for adolescents to replace sugary drinks with noncaloric [no or low calorie] beverages.”

She added: “It should be relatively simple to translate this intervention into a pragmatic public health approach.

“Schools could make noncaloric beverages available to students by purchasing large quantities at low costs.”