fitness news from credible sources

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Following are news items from credible sources that are of interest to Recovering Fat Persons. Some are linked, others you can search out on Google.

“Visceral fat” accumulates quickly around organs and deeper in the body than subcutaneous fat (which lies under the skin), according to Duke University medical researchers. The five year study found that “months of regular moderate exercise can prevent the buildup of visceral fat, while vigorous exercise can significantly reduce such fat. The most striking result was how bad the sedentary people got over eight months. This finding emphasizes the high cost of continued physical inactivity for sedentary, overweight adults.” Duke cardiologist Dr. William Kraus said “Get out and do something. Don’t sit. Being sedentary is very bad for your health. Reported June 2003 Chicago Tribune.

The evidence is piling up that fatty food may actually be addictive. Recent research in fact shows that high-calorie and high fat meals actually distort the body’s hormonal signals that tell it when the body has ‘had enough’ food or has high enough fat levels. This is no joke for Recovering Fat Persons, as even a single high-fat splurge can make continued healthy eating more difficult (as if health recovery weren’t difficult enough already!) Reported in 01 February 2003 New Scientist.

Susan Jebb, head of Britain’s Medical Research Council’s Nutrition Unit in Cambridge, says “Higher amounts of rapidly absorbed carbohydrate, including sugar and refined starches, have adverse metabolic effects, including increasing serum insulin and triglycerides, and reducing the level of beneficial cholesterol. In our large epidemiological studies, we have seen higher intakes of these carbohydrates are associated with greater risks of coronary heart disease and diabetes. (The American Sugar Institute is lobbying congress to stop supporting the World Health Organization, over WHO’s recommendation that no more than ten percent of total dietary calories come from sugar. In statements cribbed from tobacco-company memos of the ‘80’s, the Institute says “Taxpayers dollars should not be used to support misguided, non-science-based reports which do not add to the health and well-being of Americans, much less the rest of the world.”) Reported in 03 May New Scientist.

Whey protein and creatine combined with strength training actually do help build strength, according to a study at Victoria University in Melbourne Australia. Researcher Paul Cribb found that whey protein alone was helpful, but when combined with creatine showed significant results of interest to athletes and the elderly alike. Science News 26 April 2002.

Fasting may be healthy according to a study by Mark P. Mattson at the National Institute on Aging. Mice who fasted periodically lived as long as mice whose caloric intake was restricted by 40 percent, a significant finding. The same mice appeared to be more resistant to the kind of brain damage characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, and (of interest to RFP’s) had lower insulin levels than normally fed mice, which would make obesity and diabetes less likely. The theory is that the periodic cellular stress of fasting stretches the metabolic range of the cell in a way analogous to to exercise to muscles. [comment: it makes sense that occasional fasting would be healthy given that all vertebrates evolved to handle a variable food supply. Obviously it would be a bad strategy for someone with an eating disorder, though.] Reported in Online Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences April 2003 www.pnas.org.

The FDA Food Pyramid needs reworking, as it excludes beneficial fats and includes harmful refined carbohydrates, say Walter C. Willett, chair of Harvard School of Public Health department of nutrition, and Meir J. Stampfer, head of the same school's department of epidemiology. Olive, nut, and fish oils are OK, saturated fats are still bad, and ‘trans-fats’ have ‘no place in a healthy diet.’ Especially to be avoided for their association with type-2 diabetes, obesity, and heart disease, are refined carbohydrates: white bread, pasta, white rice, and potatoes. Reported in January 2003 Scientific American