Sugar Is Definitely Toxic

It’s been a while since this has come up but now a brand new study confirms sugar being something you’d better stay clear off:

Sugar Is Definitely Toxic, a New Study Says

That’s what scientists have concluded from a first-of-its-kind diet study involving overweight kids

Fat was the food villain these past few decades but sugar is quickly muscling in to take its place. As rates of sugar-related disorders such as diabetes, obesity and heart disease climb, many experts believe that when Americans rid themselves of fat, they simply replaced it with sugar in all its forms.

But proving that the rise of the chronic diseases was actually linked to higher sugar consumption is a challenge. Dr. Robert Lustig, from the department of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco, who has made a name for himself publishing books and research addressing the question of sugar’s effects on the body, wanted clearer answers. Now, in a paper published Tuesday, he and his colleagues believe they have come up with the definitive evidence that sugar, as Lustig says, “is toxic.”

In most lab studies, the doses of sugar that scientists test are quite high; they want to see what the effect is quickly and, depending on the research, they may not have time to wait to study the more gradual effects that might emerge. And in studies where people reduce the amount of sugar they eat, for instance, those people end up eating fewer calories overall, so it’s difficult to know whether any changes are due to the removal of sugar or to the drop in calories.

Lustig and his colleagues think they’ve produced the “hard and fast data that sugar is toxic irrespective of its calories and irrespective of weight.”

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WHO: Hot dogs, bacon and other processed meats cause cancer

Wow, so happy I’m eating just 2 steaks per month and not having  any of these hot dogs or bacon..

That being said I still have quite a lot of charcuterie prepared by Weight Watcher’s so I guess I’d better cut that out as well..

Here’s that Washington Post article:

A research division of the World Health Organization announced Monday that bacon, sausage and other processed meats cause cancer and that red meat probably does, too.

The report by the influential group stakes out one of the most aggressive stances against meat taken by a major health organization, and it is expected to face stiff criticism in the United States.

The WHO findings were drafted by a panel of 22 international experts who reviewed decades of research on the link between red meat, processed meats and cancer. The panel reviewed animal experiments, studies of human diet and health, and cell processes that could explain how red meat might cause cancer.

But the panel’s decision was not unanimous, and by raising lethal concerns about a food that anchors countless American meals, it will be controversial.

The $95 billion U.S. beef industry has been preparing for months to mount a response, and some scientists, including some unaffiliated with the meat industry, have questioned whether the evidence is substantial enough to draw the strong conclusions that the WHO panel did.

In reaching its conclusion, the panel sought to quantify the risks, and compared to carcinogens such as cigarettes, the magnitude of the danger appears small, experts said. The WHO panel cited studies suggesting that an additional 3.5 ounces of red meat everyday raises the risk of colorectal cancer by 17 percent; eating an additional 1.8 ounces of processed meat daily raises the risk by 18 percent, according to the research cited.

“For an individual, the risk of developing colorectal cancer because of their consumption of processed meat remains small, but this risk increases with the amount of meat consumed,” says Kurt Straif, an official with the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, which produced the report. “In view of the large number of people who consume processed meat, the global impact on cancer incidence is of public health importance.”

About 34,000 cancer deaths a year worldwide are attributable to diets high in processed meats, according to figures cited by the panel…

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Diet that mimics fasting appears to slow aging

Oh no, yet another diet? Well possibly, a brand new study shows some very promising outcome so keep reading…

Want to lose abdominal fat, get smarter and live longer? New research led by USC’s Valter Longo shows that periodically adopting a diet that mimics the effects of fasting may yield a wide range of health benefits.

In a new study, Longo and his colleagues show that cycles of a four-day low-calorie diet that mimics fasting (FMD) cut visceral belly fat and elevated the number of progenitor and stem cells in several organs of old mice — including the brain, where it boosted neural regeneration and improved learning and memory.

The mouse tests were part of a three-tiered study on periodic fasting’s effects — testing yeast, mice and humans — to be published by Cell Metabolism on June 18.
Fasting’s lifelong effects

Mice, which have relatively short life spans, provided details about fasting’s lifelong effects. Yeast, which are simpler organisms, allowed Longo to uncover the biological mechanisms that fasting triggers at a cellular level. And a pilot study in humans found evidence that the mouse and yeast studies were, indeed, applicable to humans.

Bimonthly cycles that lasted four days of an FMD which started at middle age extended life span, reduced the incidence of cancer, boosted the immune system, reduced inflammatory diseases, slowed bone mineral density loss and improved the cognitive abilities of older mice tracked in the study. The total monthly calorie intake was the same for the FMD and control diet groups, indicating that the effects were not the result of an overall dietary restriction.

In a pilot human trial, three cycles of a similar diet given to 19 subjects once a month for five days decreased risk factors and biomarkers for aging, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer with no major adverse side effects, according to Longo.

“Strict fasting is hard for people to stick to, and it can also be dangerous, so we developed a complex diet that triggers the same effects in the body,” said Longo, Edna M. Jones Professor of Biogerontology at the USC Davis School of Gerontology and director of the USC Longevity Institute. Longo has a joint appointment at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. “I’ve personally tried both, and the fasting mimicking diet is a lot easier and also a lot safer.”

The diet slashed the individual’s caloric intake down to 34 to 54 percent of normal, with a specific composition of proteins, carbohydrates, fats and micronutrients. It decreased amounts of the hormone IGF-I, which is required during development to grow, but it is a promoter of aging and has been linked to cancer susceptibility. It also increased the amount of the hormone IGFBP-, and reduced biomarkers/risk factors linked to diabetes and cardiovascular disease, including glucose, trunk fat and C-reactive protein without negatively affecting muscle and bone mass…

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30 minutes of exercise a day is not enough

Well here’s an article that might serve as a wake-up call for you too, meaning that if you don’t exercise at all or think (like me) walking around the block for 15 minutes will keep you in good condition you should definitely read about the new study which is referred to in the Washington Post article here below:

If you’re among of the millions of Americans who dutifully carve out 30 minutes a day for the moderate-intensity exercise recommended by experts based on the idea that you’re doing all you can for your heart, you’re in for some disappointing news.

A new analysis published Monday in the journal Circulation finds that that amount of activity may not be good enough.

For the paper, researchers reviewed 12 studies involving 370,460 men and women with varying levels of physical activity. Over a mean follow-up time of 15 years, this group experienced 20,203 heart failure events. Each of the participants self-reported their daily activities, allowing the team to estimate the amount of exercise they were doing.

They found that those following the 30-minutes-a-day guidelines issued by the American Heart Association had “modest reductions” in heart failure risk compared to those who did not work out at all.

But those who exercised twice and four times as much had “a substantial risk reduction” of 20 percent and 35 percent, respectively.

The findings challenge the notion of a 30-minutes-a-day magic number for exercise. Instead, research found that physical activity and heart failure may be what they called “dose dependent,” meaning that higher levels of physical activity appeared to be linked to a lower risk of heart failure. That association appeared to hold across age groups, gender and race.

Jarett D. Berry, senior author of the study and an associate professor at University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, said the study shows that physicians and health policymakers should consider making stronger recommendations for greater amounts of physical activity to prevent heart failure.

Read on by clicking this link

How to Cancel Out the Bad Effects of Sitting All Day

Working from home on my computer is probably the reason I’m sitting behind my desk far more than I probably should, that being said I do get up every hour or so to walk around the apartment and I even try to force myself to go out once a day to walk around the block for 15 minutes or so. How about you?

Well here’s a story that just appeared in TIME magazine that I recommend you read about a new study on this very subject that was published recently:

Finally, some good news for those of us who sit for a living

Sitting is basically the new smoking.

An ever-growing body of research is showing that being sedentary and sitting for long periods of time are linked to poor health consequences, including a laundry list of risks for conditions ranging from obesity to heart disease. Even exercising doesn’t make up for the negative health effects of being stuck in your seat.

But before you beg your boss for a standing desk, a new study suggests that moving a little throughout the day—also known as fidgeting—can actually counteract the problems that come with sitting for extended periods of time.

The new study, published Wednesday in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found that women who sat for long periods of time have a lower mortality rate if they considered themselves moderately to very fidgety, compared to women who said they only fidgeted occasionally. Women who sat for long periods of time without fidgeting had an increased risk of death that wasn’t seen among other groups. Perhaps most surprisingly of all, the researchers didn’t find a difference in mortality risk between women who sat more versus those who were more active—as long as the sitters were fidgety.

The data came from surveys of 14,000 women from ages 35 to 69 living in the U.K., and the women were followed for an average of 12 years. “The current study…provides important information that though longer time spent sitting may have negative consequences, simple behaviors may have the potential to offset this,” the study authors write in the report…

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Research shows passive smoking raises risk of type 2 diabetes

Just when you thought things couldn’t possibly get worse with regard to the effects of smoking or passive smoking a new study published by the Lancet journal shows passive smoking actually increases risk of  getting diabetes type 2, you can read an excerpt of the story here:

The Things That Happen to Your Body When You Give Up Dairy

I don’t know whether you are still sing dairy products, I personally stopped consuming any dairy related products several years ago and feel a lot better ever since.

I suggest you read the following story to get a good idea of the benefits of doing so:

7 Things That Happen to Your Body When You Give Up Dairy

File this under things you probably never thought you could do. Give up the tantalizing mouthfeel of smoked gouda melted over juicy summer tomatoes in a sandwich? Forgo fresh mozzarella cradled in the sensual embrace of balsamic and basil? Nix crispy nachos swimming in a whirlpool of cheddar, scallions and tomatoes?

As it turns out, slashing dairy from your diet has numerous health benefits, from improving digestion to lowering your risk of chronic disease. Not to mention dropping weight fast by eliminating the calories and bad fats that dairy can pack. Read on to find out what giving up dairy can do for you and your waistline.

Your digestion will improve

Scary stat alert: Between 60 to 90 percent of the population suffers from lactose intolerance, a gastrointestinal condition in which the body is unable to easily digest lactose, a type of naturally occurring sugar in dairy. Yet countless Americans endure the resulting discomfort anyway. “When you give up dairy, watch your digestion improve,” says Julieanna Hever, MS, RD, CPT, a plant-based dietitian, and author of The Vegiterranean Diet and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition. “It can reduce bloating, gas, constipation, and other digestive responses. Most people in different cultures stop producing lactase — the enzyme required to digest dairy — in adulthood.” We are, after all, the only species that drinks another species’ milk. So is it all that surprising that we have problems digesting dairy?

Your bowels will benefit

All ears if you have IBS. “Those suffering from IBS are often recommended to attempt a FODMAP (Fermentable Oligo- Di- Monosaccharide and Polyols) elimination diet,” explains Kayleen St. John, RD, a nutritionist at New York City’s Natural Gourmet Institute, a health supportive-culinary school. “This would include eliminating all fermentable carbohydrate sources for a period of time including lactose, which is a highly fermentable carbohydrate and considered a FODMAP.”..

Read more at this link

Google’s ambitious life sciences plans

Just when you thought Google couldn’t get involved in yet another market they announced some serious ambition concerning the healthcare market and so here’s an excerpt of that story which appeared in Forbes magazine yesterday:

Google is pumping vast amounts of cash into its cutting-edge life sciences plans , turning a secretive unit based on smart contact lenses into a high powered, expert company.

The newly announced business will be entirely focused on the billions of dollars of annual revenues on offer from helping patients with a range of major health issues, from diabetes, Parkinson’s, cancer and heart disease to the general quest to increase comfortable life span.

The split is part of Google’s Alphabet reshuffle that has seen the clearer separation of activities such as advertising and self driving cars.

At the head of the new health unit is Andy Conrad, who has an extensive nanotechnology and molecular biology background, and who was head of life sciences at the former Google X research division.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin, never one to miss out on a big business opportunity, is determined for the company to position itself at the forefront of the immensely lucrative health tech market in several key areas.

Some 387 million people globally live with diabetes and 10 million live with Parkinson’s . Around 14 million new cancer cases are diagnosed each year, and over 17 million people die annually from heart disease. Supplying the technology to help patients in these areas is seen as both important for society and as a big potential market.

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Why you should consider taking a cold shower

Are you one of those heroic people that actually are already taking cold showers in the morning?

Well I certainly am not but after reading the article which follows I am actually considering testing it to see how I will feel.

Why a Cold Shower May Be More Beneficial for Health than a Warm One

When you’re stressed or just finished up a hard workout, jumping into a warm shower probably seems only natural. The warm water promotes blood flow to your skin, helping to soothe tired, achy muscles and helping you to relax. However, there may be good reason to turn the faucet to cold when you shower,both after a workout and on an intermittent basis.

Exposure to cold temperatures via cold water and ice baths, otherwise known as cold water immersion or “cryotherapy,” is a popular technique among amateur and professional athletes, but it may offer health-boosting benefits for virtually everyone.

Why Take a Cold Shower After Exercise?

Cold works by lowering the damaged tissue’s temperature and locally constricting blood vessels.vUsing targeted cold therapy, such as an ice pack, immediately after an injury helps prevent bruising and swelling from the waste and fluid build-up.vCold also helps numb nerve endings, providing you with instant, localized pain relief.

On a whole-body scale, immersing yourself in a cold tub of water brings down your heart rate and increases your circulation, minimizing inflammation and helping you recover faster.In fact, cold-water baths appear to be significantly more effective than rest in relieving delayed-onset muscle soreness, which typically occurs one to four days after exercise or other physical activity.

In one study, after analyzing 17 trials involving over 360 people who either rested or immersed themselves in cold water after resistance training, cycling or running, researchers found the cold-water baths were much more effective in relieving sore muscles one to four days after exercise.ivJust how cold does the water need to be?

In this case, most of the studies involved a water temperature of 10-15 degrees C (50-59 degrees F), in which participants stayed for about 24 minutes. Some of the trials involved colder temperatures or “contrast immersion,” which means alternating between cold and warm water.

This study did not show a significant benefit compared to rest for contrast immersion, but some experts do believe that alternating hot and cold water helps drive oxygen and nutrients to your internal organs, while encouraging detoxification. Research also shows it may help reduce pain and speed recovery by decreasing blood lactate concentration.ii

Click here for the rest of this article

Coffee Is Good For Your Brain

Are you a coffee drinker? and what about you taking care of your brain health? you could already be exercising your brain with well known brain games like lumiosity but now another study confirms once again that drinking coffee could be really good for your brain aswell:

I know by now news on coffee research is a little hard to swallow, considering how often new studies come out with contradictory conclusions. But don’t give up on coffee science just yet — a theme has emerged from the more credible studies, and the latest study in the dogpile is a worthy example.

So let’s get right to the point: according to the latest study, drinking a consistent, moderate amount of coffee each day significantly reduces the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a precursor to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

hot coffee

The research team evaluated 1,445 people, ages 65-84, participating in the Italian Longitudinal Study on Aging, a population-based sample. They found that people who kept their daily coffee intake steady at one cup a day were in the best mental shape compared to others with more erratic coffee habits. Here’s the full breakdown:

People who increased their coffee consumption over time to more than a cup a day (in other words, they were at some point one-cup drinkers and gradually inflated their habit) had twice the rate of MCI as people who reduced their habit to one or less cups a day.

Those who increased their habit also had a one and a half times higher rate of MCI than people with a steady one-cup-a-day routine.

People who consistently drank one to two cups a day had a lower rate of MCI than people who rarely or never consumed coffee…

Read more at this link:https://onforb.es/1IOLapd