The report presents a mixed picture. Over the past 25 years, there have been notable improvements in child well-being in the group of countries examined in this report: steady decline in child mortality, overall reduction in adolescent suicide and increase in school completion rates. But the last five years have …
It is not just the chocolate bars and the potato chips, childhood obesity has its roots in variants of three pre-disposing genes, a study conducted among 3,000 city school children has found. The study was conducted by researchers of AIIMS and Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB) on students …
Epidemiological studies emphasize the possible role of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in obesity and the metabolic syndrome. These pollutants are stored in adipose tissue (AT). The aim of the paper was to study the effects of POPs on human adipose cells and rodent AT.
Delhi-based NGO Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has alleged that leading food manufacturers are guilty of “large scale misbranding and misinformation” by claiming that their food products contain zero trans fats even though tests show heavy doses of it. Most popular “junk foods contain very high levels of trans …
Several cancers linked to obesity and a sedentary lifestyle rose every year from 1999 through 2008, even as improved screening and a sharp decline in the number of smokers have helped push down the rate of new cancer diagnoses overall across the U.S., according to a report released Wednesday. Rates …
Replacement of caloric beverages with noncaloric beverages may be a simple strategy for promoting modest weight reduction; however, the effectiveness of this strategy is not known. The authors compared the replacement of caloric beverages with water or diet beverages (DBs) as a method of weight loss over 6 mo in …
Junk food term refers to fast foods which are easy to make and quick to consume. They are zero in nutritional value and often high in fat, salt, sugar, and/or calories. Common junk foods include salted snack foods, fried fast food, and carbonated drinks. Junk Food has become a major …
Mediator, a drug licensed for use by diabetics that became widely prescribed in France as a slimming aid, "probably" caused at least 1,300 deaths before it was withdrawn, a study published on Thursday said. Mahmoud Zureik of the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), who co-led the probe, …
Obesity has risen steadily in the United States over the past 150 years, with a marked uptick in recent decades. In the United States today more than 35% of adults and nearly 17% of children aged 2–19 years are obese. Obesity plagues people not just in the United States but …
Exposure to high concentrations of persistent organochlorines may cause fetal toxicity, but the evidence at low exposure levels is limited. Large studies with substantial exposure contrasts and appropriate exposure assessment are warranted. Within the framework of the EU (European Union) ENRIECO (ENvironmental Health Risks in European Birth Cohorts) and EU …
The vast majority of American middle schools and high schools sell what are known as ‘‘competitive foods,’’ such as soft drinks, candy bars, and chips, to children. The relationship between consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks and snacks and childhood obesity is well established, but it remains unknown whether competitive food sales …
Several studies have raised the suspicion that the body mass index (BMI) cut-off for overweight as defined by the WHO may not adequately reflect the actual overweight status. The present study looked at the relationship between BMI and body fat per cent (BF %) / health risks (hypertension and type …
The study examined the validity of simple and novel measures of generalized obesity- [body mass index (BMI, kg/m 2 ), fat mass index (FMI, kg/m 2 ), and body fat percent (BF%)] and central obesity- [waist circumference (WC, cm), waist-hip ratio (WHR), and waist-to-height ratio (WC/ht ratio)] against BF% and …
The US House of Representatives dealt a blow to childhood obesity warriors by passing a bill that abandons proposals that threatened to end the reign of pizza and French fries on federally funded school lunch menus. The scuttled changes, which would have stripped pizza’s status as a vegetable and limited …
Ruth Loos and colleagues report findings from a meta-analysis of multiple studies examining the extent to which physical activity attenuates effects of a specific gene variant, FTO, on obesity in adults and children. They report a fairly substantial attenuation by physical activity on the effects of this genetic variant on …
FOR generations scientists have tirelessly been looking for a cure to what appears to be the enemy from within—cancer. Though tremendous progress has been made and multiple avenues of treatment made available, it is apparent that there is never going to be a single golden bullet to cure cancer because …
This atlas on cardiovascular disease prevention and control documents the magnitude of the problem, using global cardiovascular mortality and morbidity data. It demonstrates the inequities in access to protection, exposure to risk, and access to care as the cause of major inequalities between countries and populations in the occurrence and …
Shaving off extra pounds might help asthmatic kids prevent flareups of the disease, according to a study that found obese children have a more difficult time controlling their symptoms. The work is the first to show that even after taking race and social factors into account, heavier kids use more …
The growth of a child is a mirror of his or her health. It is also a mirror of the health of the nation. With the advent of industrialization and food security, industrialized countries witnessed a marked 'secular trend' in the physical development of children, with increases in height, weight …
