More calories per bite may up diabetes risk

Eating a diet full of energy-dense foods, those that have a higher number of calories per volume, may increase a person’s risk of developing diabetes. Researchers from the Institute of Metabolic Science in Cambridge, England, found that those who ate the most energy-dense diets had a 60 percent higher risk of developing diabetes compared to those who ate the least energy-dense diets. They said in the journal Diabetes Care that the energy density of foods played a role in developing diabetes regardless of the person’s weight or total calorie or fat intake.

Eating breakfast helps women stay slim

Another study having to do with energy density of foods, this time from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found that people who eat breakfast tend to eat lower energy-density foods throughout the day compared to people who skip breakfast. Women who ate breakfast also had lower body mass index measurements on average than women who didn’t eat breakfast, but the same result was not seen for men. And as the energy density of foods consumed at breakfast increased, so did energy density of food consumed throughout the day as well as fat consumption. Men who ate more energy-dense foods at breakfast had higher BMIs than others, while women who didn’t eat breakfast and had high energy-density diets had higher BMI.

Maintenance diets may not prevent regain

No matter what kind of diet you follow to try to maintain a weight loss, it’s unlikely to be effective if you don’t combine it with exercise. Researchers in Denmark put dieters who had lost more than 8 percent of their body weights on diets with a range of fat allowances, including one that emphasized monounsaturated fats like those in olive oil. All of the participants, regardless of diet, gained weight over six months, ranging from 4.8 pounds for the low-fat group to 8.3 pounds for the control group. The report, in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggests that calories in and calories out is the most important factor for weight maintenance, regardless of diet type.

Calcium and D don’t lower blood pressure

We know that getting enough calcium and vitamin D is vital for our bones, but taking the supplements for seven years did not help people lower their blood pressure or reduce the risk of high blood pressure. The study, from HealthPartners Research Foundation in Minneapolis, looked at using supplements in postmenopausal women over the age of 50, leading researchers to say the supplements might be effective in younger women who didn’t already have high blood pressure (almost half of those in the study had high blood pressure when it started).

Pet food tainted with salmonella sickened 79

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a report on tainted pet food that has made at least 79 people sick and may still be in homes even though the factory that produced it has closed. The pet food produced by Mars Petcare U.S. at a plant in Pennsylvania was tainted with salmonella, and it has mostly sickened children, who may have put the dry food in their mouths. The food was sold under brands such as Special Kitty, Pedigree and Member’s Mark (the full list is on the Mars website) and was recalled in September. The plant closed on October 1. The CDC says it’s possible for any dry food to be contaminated with salmonella, and that people should always wash their hands after touching it and keep it away from infants.

Pfizer stops development of weight loss drug

Finally, yesterday we told you about the end of human trials for the weight loss drug Accomplia, and it turns out Pfizer has also stopped research on its own anti-obesity drug that was in the same class as Accomplia. The drugs both target the endocannabinoid system, which is thought to affect appetite, but users of the drugs have reported increased psychological problems. Pfizer’s drug was still in development.

(By Sarah E. White for CalorieLab Calorie Counter News)

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This entry was posted on Friday, November 7th, 2008 and is filed under Body mass index, Diabetes, Diet pills, drugs, supplements and devices, Food safety, Nibbles: diet news shorts, Nutrition, Weight maintenance. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. Permalink.