Sugar and salt are damaging the health of Americans by raising blood pressure and cholesterol -- and regulation may be the only way to help, researchers agree.
Two reports published on Tuesday take aim at the much-loved ingredients and add to a growing body of scientific opinion that Americans won't be able to eat more healthily without help from the food industry.
Americans have been eating more and more sugar and salt in recent decades and most of it is not sprinkled on food. It is in the burgers, sodas and processed foods that are hastily gobbled by adults and children alike, the reports show.
Education efforts to help Americans cut down on salt have not worked and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration should start regulating the industry to help remove it from food, a panel at the Institute of Medicine said.
Regulators and the food industry agree that Americans cannot give up salt cold-turkey and will have to be gradually weaned off it. Sodium adds flavor and texture to food to make it palatable and can extend its shelf life.
In another study Dr. Miriam Vos of Emory School of Medicine in Georgia and colleagues found that the more sugar people ate, the worse their cholesterol levels.
"Just like eating a high-fat diet can increase your levels of triglycerides and high cholesterol, eating sugar can also affect those same lipids," Vos said in a statement.
Studies have shown Americans are eating and drinking far more sugar than in years past. The use of processed sugar products like high fructose corn syrup can be linked directly to diabetes rates.
The food and restaurant industry has been lobbying for self-regulation, arguing that Americans need to control their own eating habits. But the science shows it is difficult to eat a typical American diet without consuming too much salt and sugar.
MANDATORY POLICY
The trend points in one direction: more regulation of food.
While a move to limit sugar is not imminent, Iowa Senator Tom Harkin and Representative Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut said they would push the FDA to crack down on salt, which clearly contributes to an epidemic of high blood pressure.
"What we're all hoping is this is going to be federal policy so it becomes mandatory. I think slow and steady is the right way to go," Dr. Alice Lichtenstein of the American Heart Association said in a telephone interview.
"If across the board reductions in sodium in our food supply become law, then I think a gradual, stepwise approach is probably best in the long run to ensure that it actually happens and there is acceptance from the people."
New York City, which has banned smoking and artificial trans-fats in restaurants, has pledged to coordinate a nationwide effort to reduce salt in restaurant and packaged foods by 25 percent over five years.
As for sugar, California state Senator Dean Florez introduced legislation in February to tax sodas and other sugar-sweetened drinks and use the proceeds to bankroll programs to fight childhood obesity.
California has also imposed menu-labeling rules and banned trans-fats in restaurants and on soda sales in public schools.
The American Beverage Association, whose members include Coca-Cola (KO.N) and Kraft Foods (KFT.N) have strongly, and successfully, opposed efforts to tax soda.
However the food industry has been more amenable to offering lower-salt foods and the FDA suggests it will work with manufacturers to make the transition painless.
The Obama Administration and Congress have shown strong appetites for regulating the food and restaurant industry. Newhealthcare reform legislation requires large chain restaurants to give calorie counts on menus.
(Additional reporting by Julie Steenhuysen in Chicago; editing by Chris Wilson)
Showing posts with label Health Tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Health Tips. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Obesity Takes Years Off Your Life
It's similar to smoking when it comes to effect on longevity, researchers note
TUESDAY, March 17 (HealthDay News) -- Being obese can shorten your life, a new study shows.
"Moderate obesity typically shortens life span by about three years," said researcher Gary Whitlock, from the Clinical Trial Service Unit at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. "By moderate obesity, I mean weighing about a third more than is ideal, which for most people would mean being about 50 or 60 pounds overweight."
More than one in three middle-aged Americans are now in this category, Whitlock said. "By contrast, weighing twice your ideal weight -- say, an extra 150 pounds -- shortens life span by about 10 years," he added.
This obesity level is still not common, but it equals the known 10-year reduction in life span caused by smoking. "So, smoking is about as dangerous as being severely obese, and about three times as dangerous as being moderately obese," he said.
The report is published in the March 18 online edition of The Lancet.
For the study, Whitlock and other members of the Prospective Studies Collaboration collected data on 894,576 men and women who participated in 57 studies. The people in these studies came primarily from western Europe and North America. Their average body-mass index (BMI) was 25.
BMI is a calculation that expresses a relationship between height and weight. People are considered underweight if their BMI is less than 18.5, normal weight when the BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9, overweight when BMI is between 25 and 29.9, and obese when BMI is 30 or more, according to the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
The researchers found that men and women whose BMI was between 22.5 and 25 lived the longest. For a person 5 feet 7 inches tall, his or her optimum weight would be about 154 pounds, they noted.
For those with a BMI over 25, every 10 to 12 pound increase translated to about a 30 percent increased risk of dying. In addition, there was a 40 percent increase in the risk for heart disease, stroke and other vascular disease, a 60 percent to 120 percent increased risk of diabetes, liver disease or kidney disease, a 10 percent increased risk of cancer, and a 20 percent increased risk for lung disease, the researchers reported.
"Obesity causes kidney disease, liver disease and several types of cancer, but the most common way it kills is by causing stroke and, most importantly, heart disease. Obesity causes heart disease by pushing up blood pressure, by interfering with blood cholesterol levels, and by bringing on diabetes," Whitlock said.
People who are moderately obese with a BMI in the 30 to 35 range reduced their life span by two and four years. For those who are severely obese with BMIs between 40 and 45, their life span was reduced by eight to 10 years. That's comparable to the effects of smoking, Whitlock said.
In fact, people whose weight was below normal also died earlier, due mainly to smoking-related diseases, the researchers noted.
"If you are obese and smoke, then, above all else, quit smoking," Whitlock said. "If you are obese and don't smoke, then don't start, and do what you can to avoid further weight gain. By avoiding further weight gain, you may well live a few years longer than you otherwise would do. By quitting smoking, a smoker can expect to gain several extra years of life -- about as many as a severely obese person might gain by shedding half of his or her body weight."
Dr. David L. Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine, said this study confirms that the obesity epidemic is "the clear and present danger many of us knew it to be."
The association between BMI and mortality has been challenged in the scientific community, due in part to uncertainty about weight estimates and debate about measurement methods. "Here we have an emphatic reaffirmation of the fundamental issue: Overweight and obesity take years from life," Katz said.
"We know that, in many ways, BMI is a crude measure of the health risks associated with obesity, since not all excess body fat is created equal," he said. "Weight gained around the middle tends to be most dangerous, so for those subject to this pattern, risks may indeed be higher than this study suggests. For those with lower body weight gain, risks may be lower."
A study published in the Nov. 13 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine also found that where weight is centered is a risk factor. Men with the largest waist circumference had more than double the risk of death, and women with the largest waist circumference increased their risk of death by 78 percent.
TUESDAY, March 17 (HealthDay News) -- Being obese can shorten your life, a new study shows.
"Moderate obesity typically shortens life span by about three years," said researcher Gary Whitlock, from the Clinical Trial Service Unit at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. "By moderate obesity, I mean weighing about a third more than is ideal, which for most people would mean being about 50 or 60 pounds overweight."
More than one in three middle-aged Americans are now in this category, Whitlock said. "By contrast, weighing twice your ideal weight -- say, an extra 150 pounds -- shortens life span by about 10 years," he added.
This obesity level is still not common, but it equals the known 10-year reduction in life span caused by smoking. "So, smoking is about as dangerous as being severely obese, and about three times as dangerous as being moderately obese," he said.
The report is published in the March 18 online edition of The Lancet.
For the study, Whitlock and other members of the Prospective Studies Collaboration collected data on 894,576 men and women who participated in 57 studies. The people in these studies came primarily from western Europe and North America. Their average body-mass index (BMI) was 25.
BMI is a calculation that expresses a relationship between height and weight. People are considered underweight if their BMI is less than 18.5, normal weight when the BMI is between 18.5 and 24.9, overweight when BMI is between 25 and 29.9, and obese when BMI is 30 or more, according to the U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
The researchers found that men and women whose BMI was between 22.5 and 25 lived the longest. For a person 5 feet 7 inches tall, his or her optimum weight would be about 154 pounds, they noted.
For those with a BMI over 25, every 10 to 12 pound increase translated to about a 30 percent increased risk of dying. In addition, there was a 40 percent increase in the risk for heart disease, stroke and other vascular disease, a 60 percent to 120 percent increased risk of diabetes, liver disease or kidney disease, a 10 percent increased risk of cancer, and a 20 percent increased risk for lung disease, the researchers reported.
"Obesity causes kidney disease, liver disease and several types of cancer, but the most common way it kills is by causing stroke and, most importantly, heart disease. Obesity causes heart disease by pushing up blood pressure, by interfering with blood cholesterol levels, and by bringing on diabetes," Whitlock said.
People who are moderately obese with a BMI in the 30 to 35 range reduced their life span by two and four years. For those who are severely obese with BMIs between 40 and 45, their life span was reduced by eight to 10 years. That's comparable to the effects of smoking, Whitlock said.
In fact, people whose weight was below normal also died earlier, due mainly to smoking-related diseases, the researchers noted.
"If you are obese and smoke, then, above all else, quit smoking," Whitlock said. "If you are obese and don't smoke, then don't start, and do what you can to avoid further weight gain. By avoiding further weight gain, you may well live a few years longer than you otherwise would do. By quitting smoking, a smoker can expect to gain several extra years of life -- about as many as a severely obese person might gain by shedding half of his or her body weight."
Dr. David L. Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine, said this study confirms that the obesity epidemic is "the clear and present danger many of us knew it to be."
The association between BMI and mortality has been challenged in the scientific community, due in part to uncertainty about weight estimates and debate about measurement methods. "Here we have an emphatic reaffirmation of the fundamental issue: Overweight and obesity take years from life," Katz said.
"We know that, in many ways, BMI is a crude measure of the health risks associated with obesity, since not all excess body fat is created equal," he said. "Weight gained around the middle tends to be most dangerous, so for those subject to this pattern, risks may indeed be higher than this study suggests. For those with lower body weight gain, risks may be lower."
A study published in the Nov. 13 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine also found that where weight is centered is a risk factor. Men with the largest waist circumference had more than double the risk of death, and women with the largest waist circumference increased their risk of death by 78 percent.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
8 Surprising Causes of Bad Breath
Halitosis can't always be brushed or flossed away—but having breakfast might help defeat it
Posted December 2, 2008
Has a friend or significant other gently hinted that your breath is, um, pungent? (Many halitosis sufferers can't tell.) Brushing and flossing more diligently may do the trick, and U.S. News's Sarah Baldauf offered other suggestions earlier this year. But a few more minutes at the sink won't always help, say experts. Here are eight causes of bad breath that may surprise you:
Bacteria. The stink-creating kind mostly hang out on the tongue, happily churning out gases as they munch on food particles and substances broken down from saliva, and multiply at night, when the salivary glands slow down (hence morning breath). Some people harbor more species of malodorous bacteria than others do, which may be why certain individuals are especially halitosis-prone. This month, a study in the Journal of Medical Microbiology suggests that H. pylori, the same bug that is often responsible for stomach ulcers, can cause bad breath and gum disease if it finds a home in the mouth.
Respiratory tract infections. Tooth and gum infections are recognized sources of bad breath. But so are bronchitis, sinusitis, and even a cold. RTIs break down tissue, starting a flow of cells and mucus that feed bacteria that create foul odors.
Skipping breakfast. Besides the well-established advantages to body and mind of having a good breakfast, it helps quell morning breath by stimulating saliva production and scrubbing bacteria from the tongue. (But lay off the sardine-onion sandwich.)
Diet. Foods high in protein or dairy products generate large amounts of amino acids, which are fodder for bacteria. A diet low in carbs burns stored fat, creating toxic-smelling ketones. And last year, researchers linked bad breath with obesity, although the basis is unclear.
Mouth breathing. Any condition that dries the tissues of the mouth, preventing saliva from washing away bacteria, encourages bad breath. Candidates include sleep apnea, snoring, and asthma.
Ongoing illnesses. A potent breath can signal particular diseases. Kidney failure produces a fishy smell and uncontrolled diabetes generates fruity fumes, for instance.
Alcohol. Heavy alcohol consumption also can dry out the mouth.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Take Regular Walk & Eat apples, bananas and oranges to boost memory
Regular walk in a park can help improve memory
Saturday, 20 December , 2008, 01:14
Washington: A simple walk in the park a day can help improve your memory and attentiveness, according to a new study.
The new study led by Marc G Berman, John Jonides, and Stephen Kaplan from the University of Michigan have found that spending time in nature may be more beneficial for mental processes than being in urban environments.
For the study, the researchers conducted two experiments to test how interactions with nature and urban environments would affect attention and memory processes.
First, a group of volunteers completed a task designed to challenge memory and attention. The volunteers then took a walk in either a park or in downtown Ann Arbor. After the walk, volunteers returned to the lab and were retested on the task.
Mystery behind forgetfulness revealed
In the second experiment, after volunteers completed the task, instead of going out for a walk, they simply viewed either nature photographs or photographs of urban environments and then repeated the task.
The results showed that performance on the memory and attention task greatly improved following the walk in the park, but did not improve for volunteers who walked downtown
Moreover, the group who viewed the nature photographs performed much better on the retest than the group who looked at city scenes.
The authors suggest that urban environments provide a relatively complex and often confusing pattern of stimulation, which requires effort to sort out and interpret.
Eat apples, bananas and oranges to boost memory
Natural environments, by contrast, offer a more coherent (and often more aesthetic) pattern of stimulation that, far from requiring effort, are often experienced as restful.
The study appears in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Saturday, 20 December , 2008, 01:14
Washington: A simple walk in the park a day can help improve your memory and attentiveness, according to a new study.
The new study led by Marc G Berman, John Jonides, and Stephen Kaplan from the University of Michigan have found that spending time in nature may be more beneficial for mental processes than being in urban environments.
For the study, the researchers conducted two experiments to test how interactions with nature and urban environments would affect attention and memory processes.
First, a group of volunteers completed a task designed to challenge memory and attention. The volunteers then took a walk in either a park or in downtown Ann Arbor. After the walk, volunteers returned to the lab and were retested on the task.
Mystery behind forgetfulness revealed
In the second experiment, after volunteers completed the task, instead of going out for a walk, they simply viewed either nature photographs or photographs of urban environments and then repeated the task.
The results showed that performance on the memory and attention task greatly improved following the walk in the park, but did not improve for volunteers who walked downtown
Moreover, the group who viewed the nature photographs performed much better on the retest than the group who looked at city scenes.
The authors suggest that urban environments provide a relatively complex and often confusing pattern of stimulation, which requires effort to sort out and interpret.
Eat apples, bananas and oranges to boost memory
Natural environments, by contrast, offer a more coherent (and often more aesthetic) pattern of stimulation that, far from requiring effort, are often experienced as restful.
The study appears in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
