Jan
02
2016
A report from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Scientists have uncovered a pathway in mice that allows white fat — a contributor to obesity and type 2 diabetes — to burn calories as if it were brown fat or muscle.
The body uses white fat to store extra energy. Too much white fat (obesity) increases the risk of type 2 diabetes and other diseases. Brown fat, in contrast, generates heat to maintain body temperature and, like muscle, has lots of calorie-burning mitochondria.
Brown fat is found in small mammals like rodents throughout their lives. Humans have it at birth, but we lose it as we age. Researchers once thought that our brown fat was essentially nonexistent by adulthood. Recent studies found that not only do adults have brown fat but it also may play an important role in weight control. Boosting the activity of brown fat, or converting white fat to brown fat, could be potential strategies for fighting obesity.
A team of NIH researchers led by Dr. Sushil G. Rane of NIH’s National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) were studying a protein called TGF-beta. TGF-beta and its related factors are known to control the development, growth and function of many different cell types. Blood levels of TGF-beta have been linked to obesity in both mice and humans. In previous work, the team found that the TGF-beta pathway plays ...
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Nov
29
2015
Overweight and obesity: the basics, just the facts.....
Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980.
In 2014, more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, were overweight. Of these over 600 million were obese.
39% of adults aged 18 years and over were overweight in 2014, and 13% were obese.
More than one-third (34.9% or 78.6 million) of U.S. adults are obese.
Most of the world's population live in countries where overweight and obesity kills more people than underweight.
42 million children under the age of 5 were overweight or obese in 2013.
Obesity is preventable. Obesity-related conditions include heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer, some of the leading causes of preventable death
The estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the U.S. was $147 billion in 2008 U.S. dollars; the medical costs for people who are obese were $1,429 higher than those of normal weight.
Overweight and obesity: definitions
Overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health.
Body mass index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height that is commonly used to classify overweight and obesity in adults. It is defined as a person's weight in kilograms divided by the square of his height in meters (kg/m2).
The WHO definition is:
a BMI greater than or equal to 25 is overweight
a BMI greater than or equal to 30 is obesity.
BMI provides the most useful population-level measure of overweight ...
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May
10
2014
Childhood Obesity Facts
Childhood obesity rates remain high. Overall, obesity among our nation’s young people, aged 2 to 19 years, has not changed significantly since 2003-2004 and remains at about 17 percent.
• Approximately 17% (or 12.5 million) of children and adolescents aged 2—19 years are obese.
• The prevalence of obesity among children aged 2 to 5 years decreased significantly from 13.9% in 2003-2004 to 8.4% in 2011-2012.
• There are significant racial and age disparities in obesity prevalence among children and adolescents. In 2011-2012, obesity prevalence was higher among Hispanics (22.4%) and non-Hispanic black youth (20.2%) than non-Hispanic white youth (14.1%). The prevalence of obesity was lower in non-Hispanic Asian youth (8.6%) than in youth who were non-Hispanic white, non-Hispanic black or Hispanic.
• In 2011-2012, 8.4% of 2- to 5-year-olds were obese compared with 17.7% of 6- to 11-year-olds and 20.5% of 12- to 19-year-olds.
Note: In children and adolescents aged 2 to 19 years, obesity was defined as a body mass index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile of the sex-specific CDC BMI-for-age growth charts.
Obesity and extreme obesity rates decline among low-income preschool children
• Obesity and extreme obesity among U.S. low-income, preschool-aged children went down for the first time in recent years, according to a CDC study.
• From 2003 through 2010, the prevalence of obesity decreased slightly from 15.21% to 14.94%. Similarly, the prevalence of extreme obesity decreased from 2.22% to 2.07%.
• However, from 1998 through 2003, ...
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May
01
2014
NATIONAL PHYSICAL FITNESS AND SPORTS MONTH, 2014
- - - - - - -
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
Sports keep children healthy, teach them to work as part of a team, and help them develop the discipline to achieve their goals. During National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, we encourage America's sons and daughters to get active and challenge everyone to join the movement for a happier, fitter Nation.
For 4 years, First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! initiative has worked with community and faith leaders, educators, health care professionals, and businesses to give our children a healthy start and empower schools to build active environments. My Administration launched the Presidential Youth Fitness Program, replacing the old Physical Fitness Test to put a stronger emphasis on students' health. We also created the new Presidential Active Lifestyle Award, which encourages all Americans to commit to eating right and getting regular exercise. Because everyone should have the chance to get active, the President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition is expanding I Can Do It, You Can Do It! -- a program that creates more opportunities for Americans with disabilities to participate in fitness and sports. For more information or to learn how you can get involved, visitwww.LetsMove.gov and www.Fitness.gov.
By leading more active lifestyles, we can invest in our futures and encourage our children to do the same. This month, ...
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Mar
07
2014
From a World Health Organization (WHO) Report:
Free sugars contribute to the overall energy density of diets.
Ensuring energy balance is critical to maintaining healthy body weight and
ensuring optimal nutrient intake.
There is increasing concern that consumption of free sugars, particularly
in the form of sugar-sweetened beverages, may result in both reduced
intake of foods containing more nutritionally adequate calories and an
increase in total caloric intake, leading to an unhealthy diet, weight gain
and increased risk of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs).
Also of great concern is the role free sugars play in the development of
dental diseases, particularly dental caries. Dental diseases are the most
prevalent NCDs globally and though great improvements in prevention
and treatment have occurred in the last decades, dental diseases
continue to cause pain, anxiety, functional limitation and social handicap
through tooth loss, for large numbers of people worldwide. The treatment
of dental diseases is expensive—costing between 5 and 10% of health
budgets in industrialised countries—and would exceed the financial
resources available for the whole of health care for children in the
majority of lower-income countries.
The objective of this guideline is to provide recommendations on the
consumption of free sugars to reduce the risk of NCDs in adults and
children, with a particular focus on the prevention and control of weight
gain and dental caries. When finalized, the recommendations in this
guideline can be used by program managers and policy planners to
assess current intake of free sugars relative to a benchmark and develop
measures to decrease intake of ...
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Jun
10
2012
Obesity is the Second Leading Cause of Preventable Premature Death, Killing 5,800 New Yorkers Annually, and is the Only Major Public Health Issue in America that is Getting Worse!
The Mayor’s Task Force on Obesity has proposed initiatives – including limiting the size of sugary drinks, significant contributors to the epidemic – with the goal of reducing the percent of obese adults by 10 percent and children by 15 percent over the next five years. Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx is at the center of the obesity epidemic, where obesity and diabetes rates are the highest in the city. The Mayor was joined by Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer, Montefiore Medical Center President and CEO Dr. Steve Safyer, Montefiore Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer and Pediatrics Chair Dr. Philip Ozuah, Director of Montefiore School Health Program Dr. David Appel, Director of Montefiore B'N Fit Program Jessica Rieder, Chairman of the Montefiore Department of Family and Social Medicine and Director of Community Health and Wellness Doctor Peter Selwyn, President of the New York Health and Hospitals Corporation Alan Aviles, HealthFirst President and CEO Pat Wang, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Carter Strickland, Food Policy Coordinator Kim Kessler and Department of Education Deputy Chancellor for Operations Kathleen Grimm.
One in Three Adult New Yorkers Has Diabetes or Pre-Diabetes
“In New York City nearly 60 percent of ...
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Jun
03
2012
Here are some interesting, shocking and very real statistics and definitions about obesity that you should know. Data is taken from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), World Health Organization (WHO), Let’s Move (Letsmove.gov), National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and from Canada, the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS).
In 2007–2009, the prevalence of obesity in Canada was 24.1%, over 10 percentage points lower than in the United States (34.4%). The prevalence of obesity is significantly higher among U.S. adults than among their Canadian counterparts.
Percent of adults age 20 years and over who are obese: 33.9% (2007-2008)
Percent of adults age 20 years and over who are overweight (and not obese): 34.4% (2007-2008)
Percent of adolescents age 12-19 years who are obese: 18.1% (2007-2008)
Percent of children age 6-11 years who are obese: 19.6% (2007-2008)
Percent of children age 2-5 years who are obese: 10.4% (2007-2008)
An adult who has a BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight.
An adult who has a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese.
Body mass index (BMI) is a measure used to determine childhood overweight and obesity. It is calculated using a child's weight and height. BMI does not measure body fat directly, but it is a reasonable indicator of body fatness for most children and teens.
Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980.
In 2008, more than 1.4 billion adults, 20 and older, were overweight. Of ...
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May
21
2012
Our Overweight Teenagers Are At Risk For Serious Health Problems
Okay, so this does not come as a surprise. More than half of the overweight teens (ages 12 through 19) in the United States (and probably the world) have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and high blood sugar and this places them at a very high risk for heart attacks and many other serious heart problems. In fact, according to the study published in the journal Pediatrics (May 21, 2012), “the percentage of adolescents who were diagnosed with diabetes or pre-diabetes, went from 9% to 21%.” Much more needs to be done to get our kids back on the healthy track. Even more needs to be done to identify teens with potential health risks. Bottom line: have your kids get a check up at your medical provider. If they are obese, overweight or even just a bit over their BMI, make sure you get the blood sugar (glucose), cholesterol and blood pressure checked also.
Regular Eating Times Are Important In A Healthy Diet
It seems that eating at a regular interval is very important to maintaining a healthy weight. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies found that “regular eating times and extending the daily fasting period may override the adverse health effects of a high-fat diet and prevent obesity, diabetes and liver disease in mice.” According to senior author Satchidananda ...
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Jan
13
2012
Okay my friends, I don’t want to be the “I told you” type but I did! The “you’re fat” tax is coming soon. So you ask, what in the world is a “fat tax”? I am glad you asked. As we all are aware, obesity is growing at an alarming rate. Most of us are already overweight and some of us are way overweight-yes face it we are obese. Come on, take a look at your waist line. Look down there now. You can see it as plain as day. Yes, say it with me, I am overweight. Good-that’s a start. You have tried dieting, exercising and nothing seems to work. Well, our government seems to think that it is now up to our elected public officials to help correct an epidemic. How, you may ask? How does the government respond to issues that threaten public safety-by making new laws and regulations and yes, you know it, it’s on the tip of your tongue-yes, taxes! Of course, taxes-a penalty for this indiscretion. Only this time, the indiscretion is being overweight. As many friends of mine point out, when injuries and fatal accidents as a result of car crashes became major issues, wearing seatbelts was advised. However this advisory didn’t help. So the next step was a law and regulation that made it mandatory for everyone to buckle-up. And it’s working. ...
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Dec
12
2011
DON’T EAT WHEN YOU ARE NOT HUNGRY!
We are all guilty of eating when we are not really hungry. Some call it stress, while others say they just need to have something to keep them busy. Others say they don’t know why they are eating-they just eat and eat and eat. Is it due to the TV commercial for that juicy burger or oven hot pizza? How about just sitting and watching television. Have you worn out the path to the kitchen?Whatever the reason is, it's not hunger that is stimulating this “extra” eating. And this “extra” eating piles on the calories, lots of them! In between snacks and non hunger related snacking made up of carbs and fats are responsible for a large amount of the overweight and obesity we are seeing. So how do we change this persistent habit? A new study by a group of researchers at the University of Minnesota led by Kerri Boutelle, Ph.D. and published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, demonstrates that by improving the responses to the clues of truly being hungry and decreasing the responses to non hunger related eating, children can be trained to respond better to hunger and less to other stimuli (e.g. television commercials focusing on food). Boutelle and her group were also able to train children to understand body clues better and to respond better to being satiated ...
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