tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23521502621938819592024-03-05T02:32:45.846-08:00Views behind the newsReading between the linesAndrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-67023922646741663952013-01-23T00:39:00.000-08:002013-01-23T00:39:53.823-08:00Court to hear lawsuit against cola ban<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">A New York court will today hear a petition filed by the American Beverage Association against the city's plan to crack down on supersized sugary drinks.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">In September last year, the city's Board of Health overwhelmingly voted to ban restaurants, street carts and entertainment and sports venues from selling sweetened drinks in cups or containers bigger than 16 ounces.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">The size limit is set to take effect, as planned, on March 12. Violations will incur a fine of $200.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">However, last week New York City announced a three-month grace period from fines for breaking the law which the city sees as a groundbreaking step in its fight against the rapid spread of obesity.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">"Health officials will not seek fines for non-compliance for the first three months," said City's lawyer Mark Muschenheim in a statement.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">But the American Beverage Association, in the </span></span></span></span><a href="http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/463325-soda-industry-v-new-york-city-petition.html"><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">suit</span></span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">, filed in the State Supreme Court in Manhattan, contends that New York City's Board of Health did not have the authority to ratify the rules unilaterally.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">It also claims "the Board of Health's decision … usurps the role of the City Council, violating core principles of democratic government and ignoring the rights of the people of New York City to make their own choices".</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">The 61-page filing says, among other things, that the Board of Health adopted the </span></span></span><a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/notice/2012/notice-adoption-amend-article81.pdf"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">ban</span></span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">, first proposed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, completely ignoring the public objection of 17 members of the City Council, the legislative body elected by the people.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><u>Michael Bloomberg: A modern-day Don Quixote?</u></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">However, the mayor’s office dismissed the lawsuit as “baseless”, maintaining that the Board of Health “absolutely has the authority to regulate matters affecting health, and the obesity crisis killing nearly 6,000 New Yorkers a year”.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Runaway obesity rates are threatening not just New York.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">A </span></span></span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://healthyamericans.org/newsroom/releases/?releaseid=273"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">report</span></a></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"> says that the number of obese adults will increase dramatically in every state in the country over the next two decades – and along with it related disease rates and health care costs.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Which means, by 2030 more than half the population in the United States will be obese – if corrective measures are not taken, starting now.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/c2ms7dh"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">Obesity in the U.S.: A Burgeoning Crisis</span></a></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Obesity increases the risk of heart diseases, diabetes, hypertension and other chronic illnesses.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">Obesity is </span></span></span><a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004552/"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">defined</span></span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"> as having a Body Mass Index above 30, while overweight means a Body Mass Index of between 25 and 29.9.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.bmi-calculator.net/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">Calculate your body mass index.</span></a></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;">The ban applies to any establishment, in New York City’s five boroughs, with a food-service license, including fast-food restaurants, workplace cafeterias, delis, movie and Broadway theaters, the concession stands at Yankee Stadium and the pizzerias of Little Italy.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><i>Do you think New York City has acted fairly in imposing the ban? Let's hear your views. Please leave your comments below.</i></span></span></span></span></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-32859477585656983072013-01-19T23:18:00.002-08:002013-01-19T23:18:29.347-08:00Fast food linked to asthma<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">It is an established, and grudgingly acknowledged, fact that consumption of too much fast food leads to obesity – which has been called, by many health experts, as the scourge of the 21st century!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Over the past few months so much has been written about this burgeoning epidemic that today most people are aware of the hazards of rising consumption of fast food globally – on health, weight and environment.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">However, a new <a href="http://thorax.bmj.com/content/early/2013/01/03/thoraxjnl-2012-202285"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px color: #001faa; text-decoration: underline;">study</span></a> now says that eating fast food more than three times a week may also lead to asthma, eczema and rhinoconjunctivitis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Researchers studying global dietary and disease patterns collected data from 500,000 children in more than 50 countries and found that poor diet may be to blame for rising levels of these allergy-related conditions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">On the other hand, eating fruits more than three times a week was found to be associated with a potential protective effect on severe asthma.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The study was Phase Three of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (<a href="http://isaac.auckland.ac.nz/"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px color: #001faa; text-decoration: underline;">ISAAC</span></a>).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Over the period of a year, 13- and 14-year-olds and parents of six- and seven-year-olds completed written questionnaires on the prevalence of symptoms of asthma, rhinoconjuntivitis and eczema and the frequency of food intake.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The study, which corroborated evidence that saturated fat levels in fast food lowered children’s immune systems, found that teenagers who tucked into burgers and the like three times a week or more were 39 per cent more likely to get severe asthma, eczema and rhinoconjunctivitis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Younger children were 27 per cent more at risk.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">However, three weekly portions of fruit and vegetables cut the risk by 11 per cent among the teenagers and 14 per cent in the younger group.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">According to the <a href="http://www.who.int/respiratory/asthma/en/"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px color: #001faa; text-decoration: underline;">World Health Organization</span></a>, some 235 million people currently suffer from asthma and it is the most common chronic disease among children. And the number continues to grow.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">In the United States, too, the number of people with asthma has been growing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The <a href="http://www.aaaai.org/about-the-aaaai/newsroom/asthma-statistics.aspx"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px color: #001faa; text-decoration: underline;">American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology</span></a> put asthma sufferers in the United States at one in 12 people (about 25 million, or 8 per cent of the population) in 2009, compared with one in 14 (about 20 million, or 7 per cent) in 2001.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Asthma costs in the US grew from about $53 billion in 2002 to about $56 billion in 2007, posting a 6 per cent increase.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Conservative estimates put sufferers of eczema at 10 per cent to 20 per cent of the world’s population.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">A <a href="http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/559989"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px color: #001faa; text-decoration: underline;">study</span></a> in 2007 found that a substantial proportion of the US population had symptoms of eczema or eczematous conditions; 31.6 million met the empirical symptom criteria for eczema and 17.8 million met the empirical criteria for atopic dermatitis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: small; letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Although not life threatening, eczema can result in disability, skin damage and secondary infection adversely affecting the quality of life.</span></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-22815813097441105482013-01-15T01:23:00.000-08:002013-01-15T01:23:55.883-08:00Coca-Cola slammed over anti-obesity advert<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A frame grab taken from a new commercial from Coca-Cola</span></h6>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">No sooner did Coca-Cola put out an advertisement on Monday night on several American cable television channels – encouraging people to come together to fight obesity – than critics were quick to pounce on its back.</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Activists and health experts criticized the soft drinks giant for trying to do "damage control" to combat the widespread belief that sugary beverages contribute immensely to the scourge of the 21st century – obesity.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The two-minute <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zybnaPqzJ6s">video</a> is a first of sorts for one of the world's most popular cola brands. In it, the company talks about its range of beverages and how the soft drinks industry has voluntarily changed its offerings in US schools to primarily waters, juices and low or no-calorie options.</span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">"All calories count, no matter where they come from including Coca-Cola and everything else with calories," the advert says.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">"And if you eat and drink more calories than you burn off, you'll gain weight."</span></div>
<div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However, critics are not impressed by the "public relations" gimmick. They see it as an attempt to take the heat away from the cola industry which has come under increasing fire from all directions. Legislators are proposing a tax on sugary drinks, schools are seeking alternatives to full-calorie soft drinks and New York city is on the verge of limiting the size of soft drinks that can be served in restaurants and public outlets.</span></div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">"The company remains one of the major causes of obesity," says Barry Popkin, a nutrition professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and one of America's top experts on beverage consumption.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Michael Jacobson, executive director of Washington, D.C.-based Center for Science in the Public Interest, says the new advert "is a page out of Damage Control 101, which is to try to pretend you're part of the solution rather than part of the problem".</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">According to latest statistics, two-thirds of adults and a third of the children in America are either obese or overweight – and, given the current lifestyles, these numbers are expected to increase in the next couple of decades.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A diet high in added sugars is linked to many poor health conditions, including obesity, high blood pressure and other risk factors for heart disease and stroke.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-62235751630663519792012-11-03T23:55:00.000-07:002012-11-04T00:04:10.474-07:00Researchers find treatment for obesity<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">When we are
eating, we reach a stage where a little “voice” tells us that we’ve had enough
and that we should stop eating. That “voice” is, in fact, a hormone that
“tells” our body to stop eating.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Scientists have
now identified a compound that imitates that hormone and are hoping to use it
to treat obesity – which should be good news for one-third of the US population
considered obese.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">After years of
painstaking research, Keqiang Ye, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory
Medicine at Emory University, and his team have identified what they call a
“magical compound” when studying a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic
factor.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">These hormones
are released in the body after a person eats and tell the body to stop eating.
During drug screening the researchers found a compound, which can mimic the
physiological function of these hormones.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">So excited are
Prof Ye and his team with the findings, that they have secured a patent for the
“magical compound”, according to a <a href="http://www.digtriad.com/news/article/252803/57/Researchers-Discover-Possible-Answer-To-Obesity">report</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">The compound
tested</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"> on mice bore positive results. For a few months, a group of mice fed
high fat diets with the “magical compound” were found to be 30 to 40 per cent
lighter than a group fed a high fat die without the compound.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Interestingly,
the research was successful only in female mice – it had no positive impact on
the male lot!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">However, Prof
Ye cautions that the findings of his research will not translate into a magical
cure overnight. But it will not take many years, either.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">The compound is
non-toxic and found in tree leaves from Central and South America and in small
quantities in celery, parsley and even citrus peels.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-62911272057836300212012-10-13T06:45:00.000-07:002012-10-13T06:45:04.599-07:00The great cola ban war begins!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">As expected,
the big guns have, indeed, come out blazing!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Soda
manufacturers, restaurateurs and other businesses have sued New York City over
its plan to restrict the sales of super-sized calorie-filled, sugary drinks in its efforts to
check runaway rates of obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Exactly a month
ago, the city’s Board of Health approved a motion to limit the size of
sweetened beverages to 16 ounces or less at restaurants, street carts and
entertainment and sports venues.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">The <a href="http://www.documentcloud.org/documents/463325-soda-industry-v-new-york-city-petition.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">suit</span></a>,
filed in the State Supreme Court in Manhattan, contends that the board did not
have the authority to ratify the rules unilaterally.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">It also claims
“the Board of Health’s decision … usurps the role of the City Council,
violating core principles of democratic government and ignoring the rights of
the people of New York City to make their own choices”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">The American Beverage Association's 61-page
filing says, among other things, that the Board of Health adopted the <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/notice/2012/notice-adoption-amend-article81.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">ban</span></a>,
first proposed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, completely ignoring the public
objection of 17 members of the City Council, the legislative body elected by
the people.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia;"><a href="http://bit.ly/PGuRO2"><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Michael Bloomberg: A modern-day Don Quixote?</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">However, the
mayor’s office dismissed the lawsuit as “baseless”, maintaining that the Board
of Health “absolutely has the authority to regulate matters affecting health,
and the obesity crisis killing nearly 6,000 New Yorkers a year”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Runaway
obesity rates are threatening not just New York.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">A <a href="http://healthyamericans.org/newsroom/releases/?releaseid=273"><span style="color: #121de3;">report</span></a>, titled <i>F as in Fat: How Obesity
Threatens America’s Future 2012</i></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">, says that the number of obese adults will increase dramatically in
every state in the country over the next two decades – and along with it
related disease rates and health care costs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Which means,
by 2030 more than half the population in the United States will be obese – if
corrective measures are not taken, starting now.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/c2ms7dh"><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Obesity in the U.S.: A Burgeoning Crisis.</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Obesity
increases the risk of heart diseases, diabetes, hypertension and other chronic
illnesses.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Obesity is <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004552/"><span style="color: #1420f8; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">defined</span></a>
as having a Body Mass Index above 30, while overweight means a Body Mass Index
of between 25 and 29.9.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times-Roman;"><a href="http://www.bmi-calculator.net/"><span style="color: #131ddd; font-family: Georgia; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Calculate your body mass
index.</span></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">The ban,
scheduled to take effect in March 2013, applies to any establishment, in New
York City’s five boroughs, with a food-service license, including
fast-restaurants, workplace cafeterias, delis, movie and Broadway theaters, the
concession stands at Yankee Stadium and the pizzerias of Little Italy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Violations
would incur a fine of $200.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Interestingly,
the lawsuit’s preliminary statement starts thus:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">“This case is
not about obesity in New York City or the motives of the Board of Health in
adopting the rule being challenged.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Further on it
says, “The ban at issue in this case burdens consumers and unfairly harms small
businesses at a time when we can ill afford it.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">The bottom line
here seems to be that the soft drinks industry would stand to lose a
considerable sum of money should Bloomberg’s ban come to fruition.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Besides, if
everybody agrees that obesity rates need to be brought down, shouldn’t they
welcome any, or all, steps taken to achieve that?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">In related
news:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Controversial
designer Karl Lagerfeld <a href="http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/entertainment/lagerfeld-obesity-more-dangerous-than-being-underweight-570420.html">says</a>
Obesity is more dangerous than being overweight.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">A <a href="http://www.muscatdaily.com/Archive/Oman/Study-shows-half-of-SQU-students-overweight-obese-1rg2">study</a>
shows that nearly 50 per cent of students at Sultan Qaboos University are
either overweight or obese.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Obesity is on
the rise in children as well as adults in Vietnam, says a <a href="http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/society/49977/obesity-on-the-rise-in-children--adults-in-vietnam.html">report</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><i>Do you think
the soft drinks industry is right in challenging New York City’s ban on
super-sized sugary beverages? Please leave your comments below.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-601995949931990352012-10-12T05:16:00.000-07:002012-10-12T05:16:01.864-07:00Obesity raising risk of strokes in young adults<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">When
someone uses the word ‘stroke’, what is the first thing that crosses your
mind?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">‘Older
people’, right?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">And
you won’t be too far wrong. That is because for many years we have tended to
believe that only elderly people are prone to strokes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In
fact, according to some <a href="http://www.csuchico.edu/~pmccaffrey/syllabi/SPPA336/336unit3.html">statistics</a>,
83 per cent of strokes occur in people who are aged 59 and above, with the most
first strokes occurring in people in their 60’s and 70’s.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<div style="text-align: right;">
<a href="http://foter.com/photo/stroke-survivors-need-intensive-strategies-for-physical-activity/" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img class="foter-photo mceItem" height="400" src="http://foter.com/img/photo/90/stroke-survivors-need-intensive-strategies-for-physical-activity_l.jpg" style="display: block;" width="257" /></a></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However,
over the years rapid changes in lifestyles have meant that younger people
have now also become more susceptible to strokes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The
risk factors in these cases include obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Two
studies in the US, <a href="http://neurology.org/content/early/2012/10/10/WNL.0b013e318270401d.abstract?sid=505bad8c-6827-4630-95a8-54597dd29cd0">reported</a>
in the journal <i>Neurology</i>, have found that the rate of strokes in younger adults,
aged between 20 and 54, increased between 1999 and 2005.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The
studies were conducted in the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky region
and stroke data were studied between July 1, 1993 and June 30, 1994 and in
1999 and 2005.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Researchers
found that the mean age at stroke significantly decreased from 71.2 years in
1993-1994 to 69.2 years in 2005 and the proportion of all strokes under age 55
increased from 12.9 per cent in 1993-1994 to 18.6 per cent in 2005.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In
the 20-54 years age group, incident stroke increased from 26 per 100,000 in
1993-1994 to 48 in 2005 among white patients, and 83 in 1993-1994 to 128 in
2005 among African-American patients.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Firstly, is it possible that younger adults have been prone to strokes all along, only that with </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">the advances in technology it has been more easier for doctors to detect strokes in young people more often?</span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“I really don’t think that's the major reason,” said lead researcher Brett
Kissela, of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“We’re
definitely seeing a higher incidence of risk factors for stroke now.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Secondly, can studies conducted in just two states apply to the entire United States?<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;">An </span><a href="http://neurology.org/content/suppl/2012/10/11/WNL.0b013e318270401d.DC2/WNL.0b013e31827040d6.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">editorial</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;">
accompanying the findings thinks so.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“The
estimates in the (current study) are comparable to contemporary estimates from
other countries and other parts of the United States,” it said.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A few weeks ago, a <a href="http://healthyamericans.org/newsroom/releases/?releaseid=273">report</a>, titled <i>F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens America’s Future 2012</i>, said that the number of obese adults will increase dramatically in every state in the United States over the next two decades – and along with it related disease rates and health care costs.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The report suggested that the doomsday scenario could be avoided </span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Times;"></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">if only the states could reduce the average Body Mass Index of their residents by just 5 per cent by 2030.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“The study shows us two futures for America’s health,” said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president and CEO of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which had commissioned the study.</span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“At every level, we must pursue policies that prevent health, prevent disease and reduce health care costs.</span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Nothing less is acceptable.”</span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Trust for America’s health executive director Jeff Levi said increasing physical activity times in schools and making fresh fruits and vegetables more affordable can help make healthier choices easier.</span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Small changes can add up to a big difference,” he says.</span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Policy changes can help make healthier choices easier for Americans in their daily lives.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Those suffering from hypertension and atherosclerosis are the most likely candidates for a stroke, though smoking and high cholesterol levels are also significant contributing factors.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Add obesity to the equation and you are looking at a disaster in the making.</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
</div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><div class="MsoNormal">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBltxo0Iw9HujxoubFLgmYTMjfro5snZdPu1Pd3IEpJXoUeALQpHVJQANejBk_YM668G8SL3JYJiMssnctjGP0EY_H7k4uccqRoLCFUI_XV27pn87R1sTiIFNjefk0ZgglF1lDET5iPUQF/s1600/logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: Times; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBltxo0Iw9HujxoubFLgmYTMjfro5snZdPu1Pd3IEpJXoUeALQpHVJQANejBk_YM668G8SL3JYJiMssnctjGP0EY_H7k4uccqRoLCFUI_XV27pn87R1sTiIFNjefk0ZgglF1lDET5iPUQF/s1600/logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; font-family: Times; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times;">
</div>
</span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However,
the important point here is that the findings of the stroke study suggest increased efforts towards
stroke awareness and education to reduce stroke incidence in young adults,
particularly in minority communities.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="FreeForm">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The
need for a healthy lifestyle also cannot be emphasized enough here because
while a person who suffers from a small stroke may recover with minor
disabilities, a major stroke can cause permanent disability or even death. </span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
<dl class="wp-caption foter-photo" id="foter-photo-figure" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-left-radius: 3px; border-bottom-right-radius: 3px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-left-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-left-style: solid; border-left-width: 1px; border-right-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-right-style: solid; border-right-width: 1px; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-top-left-radius: 3px; border-top-right-radius: 3px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-width: 1px; color: #888888; float: right; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 20px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 5px; overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; padding-bottom: 4px; padding-left: 4px; padding-right: 4px; padding-top: 4px; position: relative; width: 270px; zoom: 1;">
<dt class="wp-caption-dt"></dt>
<dd class="wp-caption-dd" style="margin: 0; padding: 0;"><span style="display: block; float: right;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/33772445@N07/">sportEX journals</a> / <a href="http://foter.com/" title="Free Photos">Free Photos</a></span></dd></dl>
</div>
<br />
Photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/sportex/3947967404/">sportEX journals</a> / <a href="http://foter.com/">Foter</a> / <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/">CC BY-ND</a></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-274879811521409202012-10-05T18:34:00.001-07:002012-10-05T18:36:53.459-07:00New York hospitals face junk food ban<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Nearly two weeks after getting the nod for a ban on sugary,
super-sized colas in almost all public eateries, New York Mayor Michael
Bloomberg has set his sights on banning sugary and fatty foods from both
private and public hospitals in the city.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“If there’s any place that should not allow smoking and try
to make you eat healthy, you would think it’d be the hospitals,” he said, while
announcing the initiative.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Hospitals, which have already signed up to the Healthy
Hospital Food initiative, said it would be hypocritical of them to serve
unhealthy food to patients who are often suffering from obesity and other
health problems.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But sadly enough, the fact remains that most people, who
visit hospitals, are already in such a distressed state that they easily fall prey
to “<a href="http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/emotional-eating-feeding-your-feelings">emotional
eating</a>”, which usually involves “comfort” or junk foods.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It is an established fact that emotions, most often,
dictate our diet with the result that depression, anxiety, frustration and
stress can often result in overeating and unwanted weight gain.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Gorging on junk food seems to be some form of a coping
mechanism, according to an Australian <a href="http://eprints.qut.edu.au/28951/1/c28951.pdf">study.</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">For instance, when you are happy, you tend to opt for steak
or pizza; when you are sad, your choice could be ice cream or cookies and when
you are bored, you could reach out for potato chips.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Not healthy choices, by a long chance!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">And, as New York’s health department’s director of
nutrition strategy Christine Curtis, pointed out: “People sometimes don’t have
healthy options. So you are there at 2 in the morning and maybe your only
choice is soda and chips.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A <a href="http://andrewsvictor.blogspot.com/2012/09/obesity-in-us-burgeoning-crisis.html">report</a>
recently said that, if the current rates of obesity rise continue, by 2030 more
than half the population of the United States will be obese.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The new crackdown in hospitals will:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ban deep fryers;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Make leafy green salads a mandatory option;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Allow only healthy snacks to be stocked near the cafeteria
entrance and at cash registers;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ensure half of all sandwiches and salads are made or served
with whole grains;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Ensure that half-size sandwich portions are available.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The move, though voluntary, has its critics.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">For instance, Brooklyn Hospital Centre president and CEO
Richard B. Becker <a href="http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20120919/fort-greene/emergency-room-visitors-prefer-junk-food-hospital-ceo-says">said</a>
that visitors to the emergency room of his hospital prefer the junk food-filled
vending machines to healthy snacks.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In times of crisis, he reasoned, most people prefer
something “delicious” like junk food rather than some nutritious alternatives.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Other critics have pointed to Bloomberg’s new measure as
another evidence of his intention of turning New York into a “nanny state”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Most hospital have, however, overhauled their vending
machines by allowing only two types of 12-ounce high-calories beverages at each
vending machine – and they must be featured on the lowest rack. Most vending
machines have also phased out most baked good for snacks like granola bars and
nuts.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 18pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-48233089768624765802012-10-03T18:02:00.000-07:002012-10-03T18:02:04.251-07:00Healthy weight can cut cancer risk<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Being obese or overweight raises the risk
of cancers of the breast, bowel, pancreas, kidney, womb, oesophagus and gall
bladder.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Researchers in the United Kingdom maintain </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">that excess fat is the second
biggest cause of cancer – next to, of course, smoking.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Researchers from the World Cancer Research
Fund said that an alarming 63 per cent of the population in the United Kingdom is either
obese or overweight – one of the highest levels in Europe.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However, they also claimed that 18 per cent
of the 123,000 weight-related cases of cancer in the United Kingdom could be
prevented every year if only people maintained a healthy weight.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">They also claim that 22,000 Britons suffer
from cancer every year because they are too fat, according to a <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2212574/How-obesity-epidemic-causes-22-000-cases-cancer-year.html?ito=feeds-newsxml">report</a> in the
<i>Daily Mail</i> newspaper.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Anyone with a Body Mass Index of 30 and
above is classified as obese while 25 and above falls in the overweight
category.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #0200e9; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 37px;"><a href="http://www.bmi-calculator.net/">Calculate your body mass index.</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Professor Alan Jackson, chairman of the
fund’s continuous update project panel and professor of human nutrition at the
University of Southampton, said: “A significant number of cancer cases could be
prevented by people maintaining a healthy body weight.”</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The fund is carrying out a study of
existing research to determine how many cancers are caused by people’s
lifestyles.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Through keeping levels of body fat low, a
lot of people will avoid getting cancer in the first place – forestalling the
pain and anguish associated with the disease.”</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>It would be nice to hear your views. Please leave your comments below.</i></span></span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-13012188003790799542012-09-23T00:21:00.000-07:002012-09-23T00:22:50.699-07:00Sugary drinks linked to obesity<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Health experts the world over have long believed that the dramatic rise in
the consumption of sugary drinks during the past few decades has paralleled the
equally dramatic rise in obesity.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A new study in the U.S. now reinforces that notion, giving
public health officials the much-needed evidence to consider clamping down on
the consumption of sodas and other sweetened beverages that are high in
calories but provide next to nil nutrition.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The <a href="http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1203039?query=featured_home#t=articleTop">study</a>,
published in the <i>New England Journal of Medicine,</i> follows research involving
more than 33,000 American men and women, which proved that sweetened drinks raise the
genetic risk of obesity, as they interact with genes that affect weight.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The researchers selected 32 variations of genes that are
known to be associated with Body Mass Index to establish a genetic profile of
the participants. They also determined the participants’ eating habits, their
consumption of sweetened beverages and exercise habits.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times;"></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 28pt;">
<div style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><span style="color: #0200e9; text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.bmi-calculator.net/">Calculate your body mass index.</a></span></span></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The decades-long research involved three long-running
studies that separately and collectively reached the same conclusions.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In all the three studies, “the combined genetic effects on
Body Mass Index and obesity risk among persons consuming one or more servings
of sugar-sweetened beverages per day were approximately twice as large as those
among persons consuming less than one serving per month”, the researchers said.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity has today become a major threat to people’s health
all over the world. So great is the threat that it has been classified as an
epidemic.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity and overweight are the fifth leading risk for
global deaths. They are linked to more deaths than underweight.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The World Health Organisation <a href="http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs311/en/">defines</a> obesity
and overweight as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair
health.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The good news is that these conditions are preventable.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Experts believe that changes to our diet and lifestyle in
the past three decades have contributed to the obesity epidemic.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Consumption of junk food and calorie-laded sugary drinks, a
sedentary lifestyle and lack of physical activity are the three main causes of
people piling on the pounds.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Of the three, the largest blame goes to sugar-sweetened
beverages that are high in calories but low in nutrition but whose consumption
has increased dramatically in the past few years.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In the U.S. diet, sugary drinks are the single biggest
source of calories. They are blamed for the fact that a third of the U.S.
children and teens and more than two-thirds of adults are obese or overweight.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A new damning report says that if the current trend continues then by 2030 more than half the population of the U.S. will be obese!</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://tinyurl.com/c2ms7dh">Obesity in the U.S.: A Burgeoning Crisis.</a></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The new study vindicates what New York Mayor Michael
Bloomberg is trying to do in his city. In a trend-setting move, the city’s
Board of Health has passed legislation banning the sale of super-sized colas in
most public outlets.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://bit.ly/PGuRO2">Michael Bloomberg: A modern-day Don Quixote?</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The ban does not come into effect until March 2013 but
whether this limited clamp will have the desired result of reducing the
consumption of colas and thereby bringing down the obesity rate remains to be
seen but it seems a well-intentioned measure.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">At least, well worth adopting in other cities in the U.S.
and around the world where cola consumption is high.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 18pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-32583454173946848982012-09-20T05:22:00.001-07:002012-09-20T05:22:16.666-07:00Obesity in the US: A Burgeoning Crisis<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It makes for frightening reading, really.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In the past few years, obesity has been rising rapidly in
the United States with the result that today it has reached epidemic
proportions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">To make matters worse, a new damning report says that if the current trend continues then by
2030 more than half the population of the United States will be obese!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The <a href="http://healthyamericans.org/newsroom/releases/?releaseid=273">report</a>, aptly titled <i>F as in Fat: How Obesity Threatens
America’s Future 2012</i>, says that the number of obese adults will increase
dramatically in every state in the country over the next two decades – and
along with it related disease rates and health care costs.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBltxo0Iw9HujxoubFLgmYTMjfro5snZdPu1Pd3IEpJXoUeALQpHVJQANejBk_YM668G8SL3JYJiMssnctjGP0EY_H7k4uccqRoLCFUI_XV27pn87R1sTiIFNjefk0ZgglF1lDET5iPUQF/s1600/logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="62" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBltxo0Iw9HujxoubFLgmYTMjfro5snZdPu1Pd3IEpJXoUeALQpHVJQANejBk_YM668G8SL3JYJiMssnctjGP0EY_H7k4uccqRoLCFUI_XV27pn87R1sTiIFNjefk0ZgglF1lDET5iPUQF/s200/logo.jpg" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The report follows analyses of state-by-state data from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention commissioned by Trust for America’s
Health and the <a href="http://www.rwjf.org/en/about-rwjf/newsroom/newsroom-content/2012/09/new-report-finds-adult-obesity-rates-could-exceed-60-percent-in-13-states-by-2030.html">Robert Wood Johnson Foundation</a> and conducted by the National
Heart Forum.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity is <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0004552/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">defined</span></a> as having a Body Mass Index above 30,
while overweight means a Body Mass Index of between 25 and 29.9.</span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
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</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 28.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US"><a href="http://www.bmi-calculator.net/"><span style="color: #0200e9; text-decoration: none;">Calculate your body mass index.</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
<!--EndFragment--></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity increases the risk of heart diseases, diabetes, hypertension and other chronic illnesses.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Key findings of the study:</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">If the obesity rise continues on its current path, 13
states could have adult obesity rates above 60 per cent, 39 states about 50 per
cent, and all 50 states could have rates above 44 per cent by 2030.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">By 2030, Mississippi could become the fattest state in the
United States with an obesity rate of 66 per cent with Colorado at the bottom
of the ladder with 44.8 per cent – in 2011, the rates were 34.9 per cent and
20.7 per cent, respectively.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">There could be a 10-fold increase in new cases of Type 2
diabetes, coronary heart disease and stroke, hypertension and arthritis between
2010 and 2020 – and double that by 2030.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity could contribute to more than 6 million case of
Type 2 diabetes, 5 million cases of coronary heart disease and stroke, and more
than 400,000 cases of cancer in the next two decades. Currently, more than 25
million Americans have Type 2 diabetes, 27 million have chronic heart disease,
69 million have hypertension and 50 million have arthritis. Besides, 795,000
Americans suffer a stroke each year and nearly a third of the cancer deaths are
related to obesity, poor nutrition and lack of physical activity.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Medical costs associated with treating preventable
obesity-related diseases are estimated to increase by $48 billion to $66
billion per year.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Loss in economic productivity could be between $390 billion
and $580 billion annually.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Nine states could see their obesity-related health care
costs shoot up by more than 20 per cent with New Jersey seeing the highest
increase of 34.5 per cent.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A grim picture, no doubt. However, all is not lost.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The report suggests that the doomsday scenario can be
avoided if only the states could reduce the average Body Mass Index of their
residents by just 5 per cent by 2030. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“The study shows us two futures for America’s health,” says
Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, president and CEO of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“At every level, we must pursue policies that
prevent health, prevent disease and reduce health care costs.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Nothing less is acceptable.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Trust for America’s health executive director Jeff Levi
says increasing physical activity times in schools and making fresh fruits and
vegetables more affordable can help make healthier choices easier.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Small changes can add up to a big difference,” he says.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Policy changes can help make healthier choices easier for
Americans in their daily lives.”<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Not a tall order, surely. But there needs to be a national
commitment and will.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><i>What more do you think Americans should do to tackle the
obesity crisis? Please, leave your comments below.</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Garamond; font-size: 18pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-44687487931653071972012-09-15T23:15:00.000-07:002012-09-20T05:36:37.657-07:00Michael Bloomberg: A modern-day Don Quixote? <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">Love him or hate him, you just can't ignore him!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been vilified and
pilloried for steamrolling through legislation that clamps down on the sale of
super-sized colas and sugary drinks in many large outlets in the city’s five
boroughs.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">His justification?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">More than half of adult New Yorkers are obese or overweight
and annually nearly 6,000 New Yorkers lose their lives to the burgeoning
epidemic of obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Bloomberg has made curbing obesity a top goal of his
administration. Obesity increases the risk of heart diseases, diabetes,
hypertension and other chronic illnesses.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">"We cannot continue to have our kids come down with
diabetes at age 6."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Rising obesity among children is of specific concern as it
puts them at greater risk of serious health problems as they age. Doctors
believe that children who are extremely obese may continue to be extremely
obese as adults.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Despite his good, some call it misguided, intention
Bloomberg is being seen in some quarters as a modern-day Don Quixote tilting at
windmills represented, in this case, by large fast-food chain restaurants!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Up in arms are those who will be badly hit by the 16-ounce
limit on sodas and other sugary drinks at restaurants, delis and theaters – the
soft drinks and restaurant industries and the large movie chains.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Backing them are 60 per cent of New Yorkers who oppose the
restrictions, according to a <i>New York Times</i></span><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">
poll.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">They believe the measure is:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">An assault on personal liberty. At the best of times New
Yorkers don’t like to be told what to do. Bloomberg has been accused of being
overbearing, over-reacting and turning New York into a 'nanny’ state.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">Self-defeating. According to the ban refills are permitted.
Even by Bloomberg's admission "restaurant customers can still buy as much
soda as they want, as long as they are willing to carry it in multiple
containers".</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">The regulation has its limits. The restrictions do not
apply to supermarkets or most convenience stores since they are not subject to
New York City Board of Health regulations.</span></li>
</ul>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">However, let’s count the calories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">A 20-ounce Coke has 24o calories and a 16-ounce Coke 200
calories.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">If you drink a Coke a day, choosing a 16-ounce bottle over
the 20-ounce would say you 14,600 calories over a year. That is enough to add
about 1.8 kilograms of fat to your body!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Thomas Farley
believes that if New Yorkers reduced their cola consumption from 20 ounces to
16 ounces every other week, it would help them avoid gaining some 2.3 million
pounds a year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Bloomberg has been instrumental in introducing a number of
health measures in New York, including:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">A ban on smoking in public places;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">Forcing chain restaurants to post calories on their menus;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">A ban on artificial trans fats in french fries and other
restaurant food;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">Promoting breast-feeding over formula.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Though the ban on super-sized cola does not take effect until March 2013, the
big corporations have already declared their intention to fight the regulation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">"This is a political solution and not a health
solution," said Eliot Hoff, a spokesman for an industry-sponsored group
called New Yorkers for Beverage Choices, which claims to have gathered more
than 250,000 signatures on petitions against the plan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“This is not the end,” said Eliot Hoff, a spokesman for the
group, after the vote. “We are exploring legal options, and all other avenues
available to us.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;">Only time will tell whether the initiative will bear the
desired results and help New Yorkers lead healthier lives.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 16.0pt; mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-line-height-alt: 17.0pt; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">For sure, city officials, health experts around the nation,
and beverage and restaurant industries will be closely how this pans out.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span>
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #1f1f1f; font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><i>Do you think Michael Bloomberg is on the right track? Please leave your comments below.</i></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->
</div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-40161800184618222022012-09-15T22:58:00.000-07:002012-09-20T05:38:41.082-07:00New York calls time on super-sized cola<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<!--StartFragment-->
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Okay, it’s official now. New York City has added one more
weapon in its armory against its war on obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">In a groundbreaking move, the city’s Board of Health
unanimously passed, by an 8-0 vote, the first U.S. ban on super-sized sodas and
other sugary soft drinks.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">The ban applies to any establishment, in the city’s five
boroughs, with a food-service license, including fast-food restaurants,
workplace cafeterias, delis, movie and Broadway theaters, the concession stands
at Yankee Stadium and the pizzerias of Little Italy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Exceptions include supermarkets, groceries and convenience
stores because such establishments do not come under the jurisdiction of the
board.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Any of the above mentioned establishments caught selling
colas larger than 16 ounces (0.47 liters) face a fine of $200.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Exceptions include diet sodas, alcohol (which is regulated
by the state), beverages made mostly of milk or unsweetened fruit juice.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">The measure will take effect on March 12, 2013, provided no
court action is taken against the move.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">After the vote, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who
pioneered the move, <a href="file:///MikeBloomberg">tweeted</a>:
“NYC’s new sugary drink policy is the single biggest step any gov’t has taken
to curb #obesity. It will help save lives.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Health Commissioner Thomas Farley said the move is likely
to be copied by other cities in the U.S. – or even the world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“If this new step leads to New Yorkers simply reducing the
size of one sugary drink from 20 ounces to 16 ounces every other week, it would
help them avoid gaining some 2.3 million pounds a year,” he wrote in the <i><a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/20-oz-sugary-soda-a-threat-public-health-article-1.1158008?localLinksEnabled=false">New
York Daily News</a> </i></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">on the eve of the vote.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“This would slow the obesity epidemic and prevent much
needless illness.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Obesity increases the risk of heart diseases, diabetes,
hypertension and other chronic illnesses.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">It is a growing crisis in New York City and sugary drinks
are a leading cause of the obesity epidemic, says a city <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0/index.jsp?pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2012b%2Fpr273-12.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1">statement</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Nearly 60 per cent of the city’s adults are overweight or
obese, as are 40 per cent of the city’s public elementary school students. One
in eight adult New Yorkers now has Type 2 diabetes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Annually, 5,800 New Yorkers are losing their lives to
obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Nearly 10 per cent of the nation’s health care bill is tied
to obesity-related illnesses such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and
hypertension, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Health experts believe that colas are high in calories,
cheap, served in large sizes and have no nutritional value.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Not all New Yorkers are happy at the ban, though. They hate
being told what to do!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">A <i>New York Times</i></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"> poll last
month showed that six in 10 New Yorkers opposed the restrictions. Some have
likened the ban to Prohibition, others have called the clamp an affront to
personal liberty and some others have accused Bloomberg of over-reacting and
turning New York into a ‘nanny’ state!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://www.andrewsvictor.blogspot.com/2012/09/michael-bloomberg-modern-day-don-quixote.html">Is Bloomberg a modern-day Don Quixote?<o:p></o:p></a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Fuelling the opposition are the restaurant, the soft-drinks
industry and major theater chains.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">A group called New Yorkers for Beverage Choices claims to
have gathered more than 250,000 signatures on petitions and is examining
legislative and legal challenges to the ban.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“This is not the end,” said Eliot Hoff, a spokesman for the
group, after the vote. “We are exploring legal options, and all other avenues
available to us.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">When Bloomberg’s proposal was up for public comments, the
Board of Health received 38,000 comments of which 32,000 were in favour.
However, it also received a petition opposing the ban with 90,000 names on it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Theatre chains like the AMC and Regal mounted a massive
public relations campaign, displaying banners and posters and airing
commercials arguing that New Yorkers should be allowed to make their own drink
choices.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">However, the last word must certainly go to Dr. Deepthiman
Gowda, an internist who teaches at Columbia University and a member of the New
York City Board of Health, who said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“(The initiative) is a small step but a bold step and an
important one.”</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><i>What more do you think New York should do to cut down the obesity rates? Please leave your comments below.</i></span></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-2969349785146745942012-09-12T18:13:00.000-07:002012-09-20T05:41:16.129-07:00New item on McDonald's menu: Calorie count!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">McDonald's, the world's largest and most popular fast-food chain, has announced that, starting as early as next week, it will start listing calorie information on its menus in nearly 14,000 restaurants and drive-thrus across the United States.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This welcome move comes on the eve of a crucial </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://andrewsvictor.blogspot.com/2012/06/battle-lines-drawn-in-new-york-large.html">vote</a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> on New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's controversial proposal to ban super-sized colas at local restaurants and, more pertinently, ahead of the introduction of a national health law that will mandate restaurants, with 20 or more locations, to mention calories and other nutrition details on their menus.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The state of California and cities like New York already require restaurants to clearly list calorie information on the menus but many major chains have ignored the call, in the absence of legislation and threat of fines.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Requiring to post calorie counts of Big Macs and french fries is one of many measures US officials are contemplating as they seek to combat the burgeoning obesity crisis.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The problems of overweight people and obesity have worsened sharply in the US since the 1980s with the result that America is today called one of the fattest nations on earth – two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese as are a third of the children.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity increases the risk of heart diseases, diabetes, hypertension and other chronic illnesses.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">McDonald's has been vilified for refusing to assess the </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://andrewsvictor.blogspot.com/2012/05/do-happy-meals-lead-to-obese-children.html">impact</a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> of its foods on childhood obesity.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">McDonald’s has responded to any criticism by claiming that it has incorporated changes to its menu, introducing more fruits and vegetables, reducing the French fry portion by more than half and including apples in Happy Meals for children.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">issued</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> two proposed <a href="http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/ucm248732.htm">regulations</a> that would ensure calorie labeling on menus and menu boards in chain restaurants, retail food establishments, and vending machines with 20 or more locations.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But the million-dollar question is: Does calorie labeling help diners make informed choices?</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">No, according to a New York University </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://ldihealtheconomist.com/he000001.shtml">study</a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> which found that menu labeling, which came into force in March 2011, has had no impact on consumers' food choices. Even 18 months after the rule took effect, there's no discernible </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><a href="http://www.newsday.com/opinion/viewsday-1.3683911/akst-a-little-welcome-nannyism-as-mcdonalds-starts-posting-calorie-counts-1.3997115">change</a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> in the food habits.</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Taste almost always triumphed over calories!</span></div>
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Do you think McDonald's has done the right thing, or is there something more it can do? Please leave your comments below.</span></i></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-34951089767475558142012-09-06T14:38:00.000-07:002012-09-16T01:43:22.733-07:00Migraines do not lead to weight gain<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It's long been thought that women who have migraines run a greater risk of becoming overweight as compared to women who are not afflicted by this debilitating illness.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Migraines are recurring and severe headaches that may also include nausea, vomiting, dizziness, eyesight changes and and sensitivity to light and noise.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 20px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Image: </span><a href="http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/" style="color: #3db2d5; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">FreeDigitalPhotos.net</span></a></span></td></tr>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">They are widespread among women and severe migraine attacks have been classified by the </span></span><a href="http://www.who.int/mental_health/management/who_atlas_headache_disorders.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">World Health Organization</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> as among the most disabling illnesses, comparable to dementia, quadriplegia and active psychosis.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Up to now, it was thought that migraines could contribute to weight gain indirectly – with, for instance, frequent or severe headaches keeping a person from exercising regularly.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">However, an international </span></span><a href="http://cep.sagepub.com/content/early/2012/08/02/0333102412455708"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">study</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> has now found "no consistent association between migraine and incident overweight, obesity or relevant weight gain".</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The current study, published in the journal Cephalalgia, looked at data from 19,162 participants in the Women's Health Study who were aged 45 or older, and of normal weight, when the research began. A total of 3,483 women reported incidences of migraines.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"After 12.9 years of follow-up, 7,916 incident overweight and 730 incident obesity cases occurred," says the study.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">But the likelihood of becoming obese was no greater among women with a history of migraines, and the risk of being overweight was only slightly higher.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Researchers also found that women who had migraines daily to weekly were at no greater risk of becoming overweight or obese that those who had migraine attacks only a few times a year.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">However, the study did not look at the opposite scenario – whether overweight or obese women are at increased risk of migraines or severe headaches.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Several studies have indicated a strong association between obesity and increased migraine frequency with some even suggesting that weight contributed to developing migraines in the first place.</span></span></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-83134042070898069362012-09-06T02:32:00.002-07:002012-09-16T01:42:58.882-07:00Being fat and fit<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity is no bar to being healthy, a new </span><a href="http://www.sc.edu/news/newsarticle.php?nid=4574#.UEhnbs319QM"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">study</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> reveals.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It seeks to dispel the notion that being fat or overweight means you
are not physically fit.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Researchers, who studied data from 43,625 people in the United
States, conclude that some obese people are ‘metabolically healthy’.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">These people showed no greater risk of developing or dying from
cardiovascular disease or cancer than people who were of normal weight.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However, it is important to remember that being ‘metabolically
healthy’ means that you have no high blood pressure, high cholesterol or raised blood
sugar, and that you are getting enough exercise.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The findings, following the study at the University of South
Carolina, are published in the </span><a href="http://eurheartj.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2012/08/27/eurheartj.ehs174.abstract"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">European
Heart Journal</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“Current knowledge on the prognosis of metabolically healthy but
obese phenotype is limited due to the exclusive use of the body mass index to
define obesity and the lack of information on cardio-respiratory fitness,” says
the study.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">According to the </span><a href="http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs311/en/"><span style="color: #1924d6; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">World Health
Organisation</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, someone who has a body mass index equal to or greater
than 25 is overweight and equal to or greater than 30 is obese.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><a href="http://www.bmi-calculator.net/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Calculate your body mass
index.</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Researchers sought to test the following hypotheses:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">metabolically healthy but obese individuals have a higher fitness
level than their metabolically abnormal and obese peers;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">after accounting for fitness, metabolically healthy but obese
phenotype is a benign condition, in terms of cardiovascular disease and
mortality.</span></li>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Fitness was assessed by a maximal exercise test on a treadmill and body fat percentage by hydrostatic weighing or skinfolds.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />Metabolically healthy was considered if meeting 0 or 1 of the criteria for metabolic syndrome.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />More than a third of the participants in the study were obese. Of these 18,500, half were assessed as metabolically healthy.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />These people, who did not suffer from health problems such as diabetes, high cholesterol or high blood pressure, were generally more fit and exercised more than other obese people.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />The risk of these people developing or dying from cardiovascular disease or cancer was the same as those of people of normal weight and half of metabolically less fit obese people.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />Lead author of the study Dr. Francisco Ortega, currently a research associate affiliated to the Department of Physical Activity and Sport, University of Granada in Spain, said the findings show that getting more exercise can keep you healthier, even if you are overweight.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">"The research highlights once again the important role of physical fitness as a health marker."</span></div>
Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-3570142990091337872012-09-04T14:41:00.000-07:002012-09-16T01:41:54.287-07:00Is organic food healthier than conventional food?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Not really! That is, if you compare the nutritional benefits. Considering that sometimes you may have to pay as much as twice what conventional food costs.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The only benefit that organic food has over conventionally grown produce is that it may reduce your exposure to pesticide residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria. And even that is marginal – since pesticide levels found in conventionally grown produce were found to be within safety limits.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Bursting the myth that organic food is healthier than the conventional alternative is a </span></span><a href="http://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=1355685"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">paper</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> published in the September 4 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"There isn't much difference between organic and conventional foods, if you're an adult making a decision based solely on your health," said Dr Dena Bravata, a senior research affiliate with Stanford University's Centre for Health Policy and senior author of the paper.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"People choose to buy organic foods for many different reasons. One of them is perceived health benefits," added Crystal Smith-Spangler, who led the team of researchers from the university and Veteran Affairs Palo Alto Health Care.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">More than 200 studies were reviewed, comparing either the health of people who consumed organic or conventional foods or nutrient and contaminant levels in unprocessed foods such as fruits, vegetables, grains, milk, eggs, chicken, pork and meat.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Key findings:</span></span></div>
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<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">No significant differences between populations by food type for allergic reactions;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Two studies reported significantly lower urinary pesticide levels among children consuming organic versus conventional foods;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Biomarker and nutrient levels in serum, urine, breast milk and semen in adults did not show clinically meaningful differences;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Phosphorus levels were significantly higher than in conventional foods, although this difference is not clinically significant;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Organic produce had a 30 per cent lower risk of containing detectable pesticide levels;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">E-coli contamination risk did not differ between organic and conventional foods;</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Bacterial contamination of retail chicken and pork was common but not related to farming methods. But when bacteria did lurk in chicken and pork, germs in non-organic meats had a 33 per cent higher risk of being resistant to multiple antibiotics.</span></li>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"The published literature lacks strong evidence that organic foods are significantly more nutritious than conventional foods," the research team concluded. "Consumption of organic foods may reduce exposure to pesticide residues and antibiotic-resistant bacteria."</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Organic products have soared in popularity in the United States, with sales skyrocketing from $3.6 billion in 1997 to $31.4 billion in 2011. Today, organic foods account for 4.2 per cent of retail food sales, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This is because of a general perception that organic foods are safer and healthier. And this may be true, to a point.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">USDA standards stipulated that organic farms avoid the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, hormones and antibiotics. The regulations also require organic livestock to have access to pastures during grazing season.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The US Organic Trade Association was quick to capitalize on some of the findings with its executive director and CEO, saying on its </span></span><a href="http://www.organicnewsroom.com/2012/09/stanford_research_confirms_hea.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">website</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">: "Consumers seeking to minimize their exposure to pesticide residues will find that foods bearing the USDA Organic label are the gold standard."</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"And, because organic livestock practices forbid the use of antibiotics, including the routine use of low level antibiotics for growth, organic meat contains less antibiotic-resistance bacteria."</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">However, sounding a word of caution, some nutrition experts have called for more research to fully explore the potential health and safety differences between organic and conventional foods, saying it was premature to say organic foods are not any healthier than non-organic foods.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"Right now I think it's all based on anecdotal evidence," said Chensheng Lu, who studies environmental health and exposure at the Harvard School of Public Health.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"If I was a smart consumer, I would choose food that has no pesticides. I think that's the best way to protect your health."</span></span></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-14069225174351307082012-07-13T06:36:00.000-07:002012-07-13T06:36:49.645-07:00Being fat doesn’t make kids dumb<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;">Obesity has been blamed for a lot of things – some justified, others
not so.</span><br />
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Of course, from a health point of view there is no denying that obesity
is a risk factor for a host of undesirable conditions: high blood pressure,
heart disease, stroke, gall bladder disease, breast cancer, prostate cancer,
colon cancer and type 2 diabetes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">But what is not socially acceptable is that most often obese people are
made the butt of jokes, and children are especially more susceptible to jibes,
bullying at school and ostracism.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">To make matters worse for kids, previous studies have shown that
children who are heavier are less likely to do well at school – probably due to
the combined effects of bullying and health problems.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">But … hang on! A new <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120712224626.htm">study</a>
now suggests that obesity is not to be blamed for poor grades at school.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“We sought to test whether obesity directly hinders performance due to
bullying or health problems, or whether kids who are obese do less well because
of other factors that are associated with both obesity and lower exam results,
such as coming from a disadvantaged family,” says Dr Stephanie von Hinke
Kessler Scholder from the University of York.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAQwje9Sh2vZCuzDB1rIE2rsZEkN1ZrcYpEDSwJQ6iVcAkZz27hgJ-hGvCvt3AWvPnUAn6J2rcwqcDOhqfgIs2wApO_H9HuV2cmaX22hWPm8q287gleToGw-A1l4Ff3UV82jkvwyuVabz/s1600/F1.large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzAQwje9Sh2vZCuzDB1rIE2rsZEkN1ZrcYpEDSwJQ6iVcAkZz27hgJ-hGvCvt3AWvPnUAn6J2rcwqcDOhqfgIs2wApO_H9HuV2cmaX22hWPm8q287gleToGw-A1l4Ff3UV82jkvwyuVabz/s400/F1.large.jpg" width="81" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">The <a href="http://www.esrc.ac.uk/news-and-events/press-releases/21966/obese-kids-as-bright-as-thinner-peers.aspx">research</a>
funded by the Economic and Social Research Council combined statistical methods
with genetic information and concluded that being overweight had nothing to do
with not doing well at school.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Researchers studied data on almost 4,000 members of the <a href="http://ije.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2012/04/14/ije.dys064.full#F1">90’s
Birth Cohort Study</a>. The data included the children’s DNA. According to a
report, the researchers combined the latest developments from genetic
epidemiology with statistical methodologies in economic and econometric
research.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Using two carefully chosen ‘genetic markers’, the team was able to
identify children with a slightly higher genetic pre-disposition to obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“Based on a simple correlation between children’s obesity as measured
by their fat mass and their exam results, we found that heavier children did so
slightly rose in school,” says Dr Scholder.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“But, when we used children’s genetic markers to account for
potentially other factors, we found no evidence that obesity casually affects
exam results.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“So, we conclude that obesity is not a major factor affecting
children’s education outcomes.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">These findings suggest that the previously found negative relationship
between weight and education performance is driven by factors that affect both
weight and educational attainment. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">The finding that obesity is not a cause of poor grades is, the
researchers suggest, a positive thing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“Clearly there are reasons why there are differences in educational
outcomes but our research shows that obesity is not one of them,” says Dr
Scholder.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-8085073245236232542012-07-05T07:35:00.001-07:002012-09-16T01:40:53.913-07:00When obesity is good for you!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #292929; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 15px;">Now here's a modern-day, medical conundrum: Obesity may actually be good for you – if you are a heart patient!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It may sound like something straight out of Ripley's Believe it or Not! but researchers in the United States have found that though being overweight and obese are known risk factors for developing heart disease and heart failure, once the disease has manifest itself, being overweight may provide some protective benefits!!</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">It's the classic "obesity paradox": A slim waist and normal weight usually associated with better health may not be good for heart failure patients, according to a new </span></span><span style="color: #0068cf; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">study</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> by the University of California and Los Angeles.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="color: #292929; font: 18.0px Helvetica; line-height: 15.0px; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"Heart failure may prove to be one of the few health conditions where extra weight may prove to be protective," says senior author Dr. Tamara Horwich, an assistant professor of cardiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC10oq6iViSNHmrpI0olIdiRkr9JMZLQ7dIUuScArGtzIpBrowTCc4rCPmChZ6VN8xqEcR4R3RkrhjQuFgEcJf71hbloQvmlcZaP59c38UGvbdmir6vVnY9PdSD8MWsaElPPdsFppPikyT/s1600/bookimagecr007.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC10oq6iViSNHmrpI0olIdiRkr9JMZLQ7dIUuScArGtzIpBrowTCc4rCPmChZ6VN8xqEcR4R3RkrhjQuFgEcJf71hbloQvmlcZaP59c38UGvbdmir6vVnY9PdSD8MWsaElPPdsFppPikyT/s200/bookimagecr007.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.heartfailure-info.com/2009/landing.php?gid=CR007&a=a">Medifocus Guidebook on<br /> Congestive Heart Failure</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Researchers found that in both men and women with advanced heart failure, obesity and a higher waist circumference put them at significantly less risk for adverse health outcomes.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The findings are published in the July issue of the </span></span><a href="http://www.ajconline.org/article/S0002-9149%2812%2900853-3/abstract"><span style="color: #0068cf; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">American Journal of Cardiology</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Heart failure affects 5.8 million people, including 2.5 million women. Nearly one-half to two-thirds of heart failure patients are either overweight or obese.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Women and men are known to have differences in body composition and body-fat distribution, and this study is one of the first to specifically assess the impact of body mass index and waist circumference on women and compare it with men.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"The study provides us with more insight about how both genders of heart failure patients may be impacted by the obesity paradox," adds Dr Horwich.</span></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">For the study, researchers analyzed data on advanced heart failure patients treated at UCLA Medical Center from 1983 to 2011.</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #292929; font: 18.0px Helvetica; line-height: 15.0px; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The two-year study involved 2,718 patients who had their BMI measured at the beginning of heart failure treatment and 469 patients who had their waist circumference measured at the beginning of the treatment.</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #292929; font: 18.0px Helvetica; line-height: 15.0px; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">At the follow-up, researchers found that in men, a high waist circumference and high BMI were associated with event-free survival from adverse outcomes like death, the need for a heart transplant, or the need for ventricular assist device placement.</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #292929; font: 18.0px Helvetica; line-height: 15.0px; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Women with a higher BMI also had better outcomes than their normal-weight counterparts, and women with a high waist circumference also tended toward improved outcomes.</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #292929; font: 18.0px Helvetica; line-height: 15.0px; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Incidentally, in January a <a href="http://www.bccresearch.com/report/devices-congestive-heart-failure-market-hlc095a.html?tab=highlight&highlightKeyword=congestive+heart+failure+market+devices">report</a> said that the global market for congestive heart failure devices was worth $3.1 billion in 2010. The following year it reached $3.4 billion and is expected to reach $5.9 billion by 2016.</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #292929; font: 18.0px Helvetica; line-height: 15.0px; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In the United States alone, in 2010 the market was worth $1.6 billion – nearly 52.5 per cent – and is expected to reach $3.2 billion in 2016. For Europe the figures were $936 million in 2010 and forecast to increase to $1 billion by 2016, as the following graph shows:</span></span></div>
<div style="color: #292929; font: 18.0px Helvetica; line-height: 15.0px; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" height="194" src="http://www.bccresearch.com/public/tiny_mce/plugins/advimage/upload/HLC095A/1324632283_HLC095A%200.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="TOTAL GLOBAL MARKET FOR CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE DEVICES, 2010-2016" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: BCC Research. Email: editor@bccresearch,com<br />
Global Markets for Devices for Treating Congestive Heart Failure (HLC095A)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: small;"></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-43621023209932007312012-07-03T17:26:00.000-07:002012-07-03T17:26:50.896-07:00Cancer group seeks obesity study<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has really set the
cat among the pigeons – by proposing, in May, to limit the sale of soft drinks to
16 fluid ounces in restaurants, movie theaters and other public venues!</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The latest to jump on the anti-obesity bandwagon is the
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, which has urged the Surgeon
General of the United States for a sweeping study of the impact of
sugar-sweetened beverages on consumer health.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It has emphasized the scientific evidence linking a third of all cancer deaths to poor diet and lack of exercise – two behaviors also associated strongly with obesity.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6gdAHJ-oSDXddgsLFw4aaZeZi1iAFKd_KB1ji95N-abUQOrrUGDeTb7t6-bb6vwdRmWrQvUuxxa-6gA6Km8ThLxNll__R5_QApvkh1B_ASodQkLp9cW2DsoM59aW5X4si9lr7ERyHwfVW/s1600/acscan-web-logo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6gdAHJ-oSDXddgsLFw4aaZeZi1iAFKd_KB1ji95N-abUQOrrUGDeTb7t6-bb6vwdRmWrQvUuxxa-6gA6Km8ThLxNll__R5_QApvkh1B_ASodQkLp9cW2DsoM59aW5X4si9lr7ERyHwfVW/s200/acscan-web-logo.png" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Such a study “could have a major impact on the public’s
consciousness and perhaps begin to change the direction of public behavior in
their choices of food and drinks”, says the lobby group’s president Christopher
W. Hansen in a </span><a href="http://www.acscan.org/content/media-center/acs-can-requests-surgeon-generals-report-on-sugar-sweetened-beverages/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">letter</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen
Sebelius.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“We know there is a direct link between excessive
consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and obesity, and the adverse health
effect can be profound.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity has become a talking point in America after it was
found that two-thirds of the people are overweight or obese and health costs are
spiraling.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #262626; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity accounts for $190 billion in annual
medical costs in the United States – or almost 21 per cent of the total,
according to a </span><a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120409103247.htm"><span style="color: #121de3;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">study</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">.</span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Sugary drinks have become the latest target in the fight
against burgeoning obesity after the American Medical Association declared that
46 per cent of the nation’s intake of added sugars comes from these beverages.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Also supporting Bloomberg’s point of view was the National
Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine, which has called for more policies
to reduce the over-consumption of sugary drinks.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The beverage industry is, as expected, not happy.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In response to the letter, Karen Hanretty, a spokeswoman
for the American Beverage Association, said: “We already have studies from the
federal government and independent third parties that demonstrate soft drinks
are not a unique or significant contributor to obesity.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However, Dick Woodruff, vice-president of federal affairs of the Cancer Action Network, says the group is seeking an unbiased review of all available science.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">"There is an obesity epidemic. One in three cancer deaths are due to nutrition and physical activities, including overweight and obesity," he tells <a href="http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/07/03/usa-obesity-soda-cancer-idINL2E8I3AO120120703">Reuters</a>.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But, as Hansen points out: “There seems to be a consensus
about the problem and the cause, but what is lacking is an articulate,
science-based and comprehensive national plan of action.”</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">He is hoping for a repeat of the landmark 1964 report by the Surgeon General first revealing to the American public the dangers of tobacco consumption and which led to a drastic reduction in smoking.</span></span></div>
</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-17971612983704248672012-07-03T01:36:00.000-07:002012-07-03T01:37:08.617-07:00Scientists discover control mechanism for obesity<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">This from </span></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><a href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1211314/1/.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Channelnewsasia.com</span></a></span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Scientists from the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology
and the Singapore Bio-imaging Consortium today announced the path-breaking
discovery of the mechanism that controls obesity, atherosclerosis and,
potentially, cancer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The findings were published in the journal, <i>Cell
Metabolism</i>, and may help doctors in the treatment of obesity and
atherosclerosis.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Atherosclerosis is a progressive disease of the large
arteries that can lead to many cardiovascular diseases and along with obesity
is blamed for more than a third of deaths in the Western world.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity and atherosclerosis are accompanied by the
accumulation of lipid droplets in fat cells and foam cells, respectively.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Foam cells can rupture, damage blood vessels and worsen
atherosclerosis.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The team of scientists found that mice deficient in a
particular gene, even when fed a high-fat diet, were resistant to obesity and
atherosclerosis by preventing the accumulation of lipid droplets.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Dr. Dmitry Bulavin, senior principal investigator at the
Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology and lead author of the paper, says: “We
are building on this research to investigate if the same mechanism could also
control tumor progression and hence potentially unlock new treatments in
cancer.”</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-38670967912051218812012-07-02T06:17:00.001-07:002012-07-02T06:17:56.176-07:00Cola companies fight back over NYC plan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The multi-billion-dollar beverage industry in the United States has fired the first salvo in its fight against New York City's plan to ban the sale of large colas, according to a </span></span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/02/nyregion/in-fight-against-nyc-soda-ban-industry-focuses-on-personal-choice.html?ref=health"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">report</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> in <i>The New York Times</i> newspaper.</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In May, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg had tabled a proposal to ban the sale of large colas and other sugary drinks at restaurants, movie theaters and street carts, in a major push to combat rising obesity.</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">If approved, the first-of-its-kind ban on any cup or bottle of sweetened drink larger than 16 fluid ounces could come into effect as soon as March next year.</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The expected, aggressive action by the big soda companies has come in the form of a coalition called </span></span><a href="http://nycbeveragechoices.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">New Yorkers for Beverage Choices</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> which will co-ordinate public relations efforts in the campaign to fight Bloomberg's proposed plan.</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The campaign, being led by the Washington-based American Beverage Association, includes lobbyists meeting mayoral candidates and New York City Council members, New Yorkers being urged to sign petitions and Facebook and Twitter pages telling readers to "say no to a #sodaban".</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The association also distributed a '</span></span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2012/07/02/nyregion/02soda-doc.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">fact sheet'</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> to New York City Council members, detailing data showing calories from sugar-sweetened beverages declining even as obesity figures keep going up.</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"Food is the No. 1 source of added sugars, not sugar-sweetened beverages," says the document, insisting that calories from soda and other sugary drinks form a small fraction of the American diet.</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">However, NYC officials are also doing their bit to raise awareness, spending almost $3 million since 2009 over advertisements showing a link between sodas and obesity.</span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The day of reckoning in this battle between federal officials and big industry is July 24 when the New York Board of Health, which must approve the proposed restrictions, plans a public hearing on the proposal.</span></span></div>
</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-42135099529234691222012-06-30T21:22:00.000-07:002012-06-30T21:22:20.586-07:00Eating out and obesity<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;">Restaurants across the world need to be more transparent in
helping diners make informed meal decisions while eating out, a global survey
has found.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">It’s not that consumers are not aware of healthier options
but they need that extra push to opt for foods that are nutritionally
beneficial, or at least not harmful. Poor levels of information were cited as a
significant barrier to leading a healthier lifestyle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">This can be achieved by the food services industry
providing more information about the foods they offer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFwwWYTU8IyINL1cn3U6sJvWo7eRK_JxxAWvw54blqK038rRgC1MrH4fGj1cEI2SFxQXicBuGzfP-4cP4ZSYw-S00wHsEqjBuJUxqeizgJsARBV-yCerDj83FhoXX_qiWTmLGGgeVJem23/s1600/mediabase_34054_media_src_516_kopie_0220x0000_1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFwwWYTU8IyINL1cn3U6sJvWo7eRK_JxxAWvw54blqK038rRgC1MrH4fGj1cEI2SFxQXicBuGzfP-4cP4ZSYw-S00wHsEqjBuJUxqeizgJsARBV-yCerDj83FhoXX_qiWTmLGGgeVJem23/s1600/mediabase_34054_media_src_516_kopie_0220x0000_1.png" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">The biannual 2011 Unilever Food Solutions <a href="http://www.unileverfoodsolutions.com/company/media-center/world-menu-report">World
Menu Report</a>, aimed at measuring people’s attitudes and behaviors towards
eating out, polled consumers in seven countries – the United States, United
Kingdom, China Germany, Russia, Brazil and Turkey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">The study, titled “What’s in Your Food?”, found that as
people become more health conscious there is a rise in concern regarding the
nutritional values of the food they eat.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“Eating habits have changed dramatically and rapidly over
the past few decades, largely as a result of more choices, larger portions and
increased access to fast foods,” says the survey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Though the report does not mention obesity, it is an issue
of growing concern today with the easy availability of fast food and
convenience foods.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally with at
least 2.8 million people dying each year as a result of being either overweight
or obese, according to the <a href="http://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/EN_WHS2012_Brochure.pdf">World
Health Organisation.</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Being overweight or obese raises the risks of coronary
heart disease, ischaemic stroke, type 2 diabetes mellitus and some common
cancers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Between 1980 and 2008, obesity has doubled worldwide. By
2008, 10 per cent of men and 14 per cent of women (half a billion people) in
the world were obese, compared with 5 per cent of men and 8 per cent of women
in 1980.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">The World Menu Report found that people are demanding the
right to enjoy food that is healthy but still delicious.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Those polled mostly wanted to know about fat, calorie
content, additives and preservatives. Also, in the West people wanted to know
more about salt content while in China people demanded more information about
the vitamins and proteins in their food.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Key findings of the report:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;">In all countries, there is a need for more information – 9
out of 10 people demand truth about food when eating out</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;">Nutritional information could help people make healthier
choices</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia;">Food labels including low fat and calorie content would be
welcome</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">Gaby Vreeken, President Marketing, Unilever Food Solutions,
says: “We believe that all of us in the food service industry have a responsibility
to tackle the global obesity crisis.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“The insights from this major new study show that the
challenges of encouraging healthier diets can be addressed with small changes
to existing menus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-weight: normal;">“In essence, it’s no more than a nudge to help guests choose
a healthier option. Small steps can have an enormous impact on the health of
diners across the world and help to tackle rising obesity levels.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<!--EndFragment-->
</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-44951749760645589132012-06-28T05:02:00.001-07:002012-06-28T13:02:44.676-07:00Will Belviq help US' 'war on obesity' ?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The battle of the bulge in the United States is getting
more earnest with federal authorities now opening a new frontier in their fight
against a burgeoning crisis.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The Food and Drug Administration has given its nod to Arena
Pharmaceutical’s Belviq, generically known as lorcaserin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It is the first new prescription drug for long-term weight
loss approved in 13 years, after Roche’s Xenical in 1999.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9uJ7HWzTjZIdc1FnKLTppnpWKzoehO8Kb9yJi0_vKzn1Etv0fx78L0sYIXpQiOaBBkfUrKHFF61Tm1E0wFKPGpRxlysJsqmxqWLTeaiL_ADxM63GIkvvIXINthbWCH9YIQWYLDK9pJRyL/s1600/Belviq.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9uJ7HWzTjZIdc1FnKLTppnpWKzoehO8Kb9yJi0_vKzn1Etv0fx78L0sYIXpQiOaBBkfUrKHFF61Tm1E0wFKPGpRxlysJsqmxqWLTeaiL_ADxM63GIkvvIXINthbWCH9YIQWYLDK9pJRyL/s200/Belviq.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Belviq ... new weapon against obesity</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Belviq is meant for adults who are obese (with a body mass
index of 30 or greater) or overweight (with a BMI of 27 or greater) and have at
least one medical complication, like diabetes or high cholesterol.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Arena and its partner Eisai Inc. of Woodcliff Lake, New
Jersey expect to launch the drug early next year.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Belviq acts on chemicals in the brain and reduces appetite
thereby boosting feelings of satiety and fullness.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Doctors believe that diet and exercise are either not
religiously adhered to, not producing the expected results or are not enough to
treat obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity Society President Patrick O’Neil welcomes Belviq’s
approval. He should – he was the lead researcher on several studies of the
drug!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But will Belviq bear expected results? Consider the
following:</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Belviq was rejected in 2010 after scientists voiced
concerns after the drug formed breast tumors in rats;</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Clinical trials show Belviq only achieving modest weight
loss – an average patient lost just 3 to 3.7 per cent of the starting body
weight over a year;</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Vivus Inc.’s Qnexa, on the other hand, is thought to lead
to an average weight loss of 11 per cent – so why Belviq first?</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Side effects of Belviq include depression, migraine and
memory lapses;</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">FDA-approved Xenical is seldom prescribed today because of
unpleasant digestive side effects and modest weight loss;</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Analysts are also skeptical that Belviq will also go down
the same road as other unpopular anti-obesity and diet pills.</span></li>
</ul>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The approval of Belviq comes close on the heels of a
recommendation by the US Preventive Services Task Force that doctors should
screen the weight and height for all patients to check for obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The federal health advisory panel also suggests that
patients considered obese should be referred to intensive diet and exercise
programs, if necessary.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-left: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijwZLYUIgYZ2uuAtmf-iVNo1a1R_4uynoR56mPSaG52gvWHC7c_SnKvdlhbVHasmOSowkxGw4-8c-T38DiEW9JGKQwmV77lQsBDeD9ZPMYt04OBvw66nsLafcntu8Zskfv3b5k-NJjGfWE/s1600/obese.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijwZLYUIgYZ2uuAtmf-iVNo1a1R_4uynoR56mPSaG52gvWHC7c_SnKvdlhbVHasmOSowkxGw4-8c-T38DiEW9JGKQwmV77lQsBDeD9ZPMYt04OBvw66nsLafcntu8Zskfv3b5k-NJjGfWE/s200/obese.jpg" title="Free photo courtesy FreeDigitalPhotos.net" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy: <a href="http://FreeDigitalPhotos.net/">FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">According to latest available statistics more than a third
of adults in the United States are obese with the past couple of decades
witnessing a dramatic rise in the obesity rate.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has already taken up
the cudgels by proposing to ban super-sized coals in restaurants, theatres and
public places as part of a drive to fight obesity.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Desperate times call for desperate measures but one wonders if,
instead of such radical steps, wouldn’t a greater emphasis on education and
awareness about the issue bear better results?</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-88803686821476789882012-06-22T02:43:00.001-07:002012-06-23T13:38:55.342-07:00The world is getting fatter!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity
is a worldwide problem with a </span><a href="http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/12/439/abstract"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">study</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">
suggesting that pressure on dwindling resources will increase as more and more
people keep getting fatter.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">According
to the World Health Organization’s </span><a href="http://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/EN_WHS2012_Brochure.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">World
Health Statistics 2012</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">, one in six adults is obese.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Key
findings from the report:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Worldwide,
2.8 million people die each year as a result of being either overweight or
obese</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">By
2008, 10 per cent of men and 14 per cent of women (half a billion people) in
the world were obese, compared with 5 per cent of men and 8 per cent of women
in 1980.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">WHO’s
Region of the Americas has the highest percentage of overweight and obese
people (62 per cent overweight in both sexes, and 26 per cent obese) and the
South-East Asia Region has the lowest (14 per cent overweight in both sexes and
3 per cent obese).</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">No
wonder governments have started considering measures to regulate high-fat or
high-calorie foods.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">In
fact, some have already begun to embrace taxes and other regulation on foods
that contribute to weight gain.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Denmark
imposed a tax in 2011 on foods containing more than 2.3 per cent saturated fats
– lifting the costs of butter by 30 per cent and a bag of chips by 8 per cent.
In 2010, the country had raised excise taxes on chocolate, ice cream, sugary
drinks and candy by 25 per cent.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Hungary,
in 2011, started taxing prepackaged foods high in sugar, salt or caffeine –
including carbonated sugary drinks, cookies, jams and instant soups.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Finland,
in 2011, introduced a tax on sweets, chocolates and ice cream, and raised its
existing excise tax on soft drinks.</span></li>
</ul>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Belgium,
Ireland, Romania, Italy and the United Kingdom have considered similar measures
as obesity rates among their citizens surge.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2352150262193881959.post-40022973000167507412012-06-22T02:01:00.000-07:002012-06-22T02:01:41.072-07:00Diabetes doctors back soda ban plan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">New
York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s proposal to put a cap on soda portions has
been backed by a group of doctors in the United States.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">A
majority of Americans oppose the plan, considering it an unwelcome government
intervention in their daily diets.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However,
doctors who are treating diabetes patients believe that the state should do
more to protect people from a food industry that seems bent on feeding them
even bigger and, mostly, unhealthy, portions.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">By
latest count, more than two-thirds of the adults in the United States are
either overweight or obese; excess weight contributes to health problems from
diabetes to hypertension.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Obesity
accounts for $190 billion in annual medical costs in the United States – or
almost 21 per cent of the total, according to a recent </span><a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120409103247.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">study</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">On
an average, obese individuals incur $2,741 higher medical bills each year than
other people do.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Sugary
drinks have become the latest target in the fight against burgeoning obesity in
the United States because the American Medical Association has estimated that
46 per cent of the nation’s intake of added sugars came from beverages.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It
also believes that increasing taxes on sugar-sweetened beverages to a penny per
ounce would lead to a 5 per cent drop in the prevalence of people who are
overweight and obese, and cut medical costs by $17 billion within a decade.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Bloomberg’s
large soda ban plan, tabled earlier this month, has found favor with healthcare
professionals and experts who believe that sugar drinks only provide a lot of
useless calories – with neither fat nor protein to counter that.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However,
Coca-Cola Co has called the Bloomberg proposal an insult to New Yorkers.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The
American Beverage Association, which represents the company as well as PepsiCo
Inc and other soda makers, is fighting the measure.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">New
York City’s Board of Health is expected to vote on the measure by September and
if approved, the regulations would take effect in March.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">However,
a court challenge looms.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Opponents,
including a coalition of the beverage association, the National Restaurant
Association, the National Association of Theatre Owners and others, are
considering their options.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US" style="color: #333333; font-weight: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">“We’re
watching developments, but I can’t tell you at this point what we will do” in
terms of legal or other strategy, said Gary Klein, general counsel of the
theater owners group.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>Andrews Victorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06806746337579439498noreply@blogger.com0