Americans losing confidence in healthcare

Good news! Awareness, at last. At least among some. More info, here.

Americans are steadily losing confidence in their ability to get healthcare and pay for it, despite the passage of healthcare reform legislation, according to a survey published on Wednesday.

The Thomson Reuters Consumer Healthcare Sentiment Index found that confidence lost three percentage points from a baseline of 100 in December to 97 in March.

"Strikingly, Americans expect the situation to worsen significantly in the next three months," said Gary Pickens, chief research officer at Thomson Reuters.

"The thing I thought was interesting was ... the level of sentiment about future expectations worsened more. The future outlook seems to be causing the people we interviewed angst."

Thomson Reuters interviews more than 100,000 U.S. households annually via telephone surveys about healthcare behaviors, attitudes and utilization. This particular index is based in a subset of 3,000 people, representative of the nation as a whole, interviewed every month.

The survey finds steady erosion in confidence.

"I think it may have something to do with the reform legislation," Pickens said in a telephone interview. "Getting legislation through hasn't reassured Americans," he added. "People are being unclear about what it means for them."

Pickens said his team is now breaking down the survey by age, political affiliation and other factors to try to get more detail on who, precisely, is losing confidence the most.

"What we saw last summer was a big difference by political party," he said. Republicans strongly opposed healthcare reform.

Pickens predicts older Americans may be among the most worried. "I think I would have angst because of the prospect of significant cost cuts, cutbacks in federal programs including Medicare," he said.

But are the confidence losers smart enough to protect themselves?

Here is what it will take:

1. Fitness
2. Anabolics

Exposure To Fast Food Influences Our Everyday Psychology And Behavior

Apparently exposure to fast foods gave these people s**t for brains.

Fast food is not only bad for your body, but may also harm your bank account.

Eating habits have shifted dramatically over the last few decades - fast food has become a multibillion dollar industry that has widespread influence on what and how we eat. The original idea behind fast food is to increase efficiency, allowing people to quickly finish a meal so they can move on to other matters. Researchers at the Rotman School of Management, however, have found that the mere exposure to fast food and related symbols can make people impatient, increasing preference for time saving products, and reducing willingness to save...

In one experiment, the researchers flashed fast food symbols, such as the golden arch of McDonald's, on a computer screen for a few milliseconds, so quick that participants couldn't consciously identify what they saw. They found that this unconscious exposure increased participants' reading speed in a subsequent task compared to those in a control condition, even when there was no advantage to finishing sooner. In another study, participants who recalled a time when they eat at a food restaurant subsequently preferred time-saving products - such as two-in-one shampoo - over regular products. A final experiment found people exposed to fast food logos exhibited greater reluctance for saving - choose a smaller immediate payment rather than opting for a much larger delayed payment.

As if the "preference for time saving products" would never have existed without fast food.

As if paying bills on time is bad.

As if reading more quickly is bad - at least they read well enough to do it quickly. Maybe fast foods improve reading skills.

As if superior time management is a bad thing.

These researchers are friggin' nuts and this crap research is a good example of how the feeding frenzy against fast foods has spawned stupid studies.

Shut up!

Morons.

Erectile Dysfunction and Increased Dangers of Cardiovascular Disease

Two words: Anabolic Clinic (sm)

Research presented at the European Congress of Endocrinology shows for the first time that men with erectile dysfunction and low testosterone have a higher than normal risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. Further work from the same research group shows that obesity is also associated with an impairment of blood flow to the penis, which in turn is also associated with cardiovascular disease in men with erectile dysfunction.

The protective effects of testosterone on the heart have been known since the 1940s. See here.

Thank the current administration, especially JoBi, for making anabolic steroids generally unavailable.

Americans Increasingly Concerned About The Amount Of Sodium In Their Diets, But Consumption Of Low Sodium/Sodium-Free Foods Steadily Declining

No surprise here.

As food manufacturers, health organizations, and government turn their attentions to helping Americans reduce the amount of sodium in their diets, market research company, The NPD Group, reports that there is a gap between consumers' concerns about the amount of sodium in their diets and their consumption of low-sodium and sodium-free foods. Although the level of sodium concern is not as high as two decades ago, concern has risen in recent years, but the number consuming low-sodium/sodium-free foods has steadily decreased, according to NPD's National Eating Trends®, which has continually tracked Americans' eating behaviors for the last 30 years.

"In my 30 years of observing Americans eating behaviors, there is often a gap between what consumers say and what they do," says Harry Balzer, chief industry analyst at The NPD Group and author of Eating Patterns in America. "It's easier to aspire to a positive behavior than to actually do it."

Duh.

Yet another reason not to pay for the liars who cause themselves diseases of choice.

Nearly Half of Adults Have High Blood Pressure, High Cholesterol or Diabetes

Well, what do you expect when the nation's leading authorities on diet, health and fitness are AdipOprah and her stable of IMHO cons?

Nearly half of adults in the United States have chronic conditions that could lead to heart disease, the leading cause of death among American adults, according to a CDC report released Monday.

Apparently, some of the public gets what it deserves.

The rest of us do not deserve to have to pay for their gross and obvious stupidity and diseases of choice.

Study adds evidence that bone drugs work, are safe

They're good again. They were bad before.

A new study gives reassuring news about the safety of Fosamax and Reclast, bone-building drugs taken by millions of American women. It found that long-term use does not significantly raise the risk of a rare type of fracture near the hip.

On balance, these drugs prevent far more fractures than any they may cause when used to treat the bone-thinning disease osteoporosis, said the study's leader, Dr. Dennis Black of the University of California, San Francisco.

Well, kinda.

They "prevent far more fractures than any they may cause."

Why "cause" them at all?

Low testosterone tied to frailty in older men

Two words - Anabolic Clinic (sm)

Older men with relatively low testosterone levels may be at greater risk of frailty than those with higher levels of the hormone, new research suggests.

In a study of more than 3,600 Australian men age 70 and older, researchers found that those with lower-than-average testosterone levels were more likely to be frail or to develop frailty over the next several years.

The findings, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, add to evidence connecting testosterone loss to health problems in older men. But the question of what, if anything, to do about it remains open.

"It's too early to recommend testosterone therapy at this stage," lead researcher Zoe Hyde, of the University of Western Australia in Perth, told Reuters Health in an email.

No, it's not. See here.

Testosterone helps men maintain their bone density, muscle mass and strength, and red blood cell production.

Not completely true.

It also does so for women, too. See here.

In fact, the benefits of anabolic steroids for women have been known for almost 3/4 of a century.

I am still absolutely committed to fitness as the only real preventive medicine.

The problem is that with aging, fitness efforts are stymied from hormonal decline.

If you are 40 years of age or older, to get the most from a fitness program, reverse or prevent some illnesses and maintain independence into an older age, consider taking anabolic steroids.

Full disclosure: I do not take steroids because I either have no indication or I have an absolute or relative contraindication. Likewise, I would not prescribe anabolics to a patient of mine if he or she had no indication or an absolute or relative contraindication

USDA To Highlight Obama Administration Efforts To Improve School Meals

The Sack and the First Cow conspiring to kill our kids.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA will be holding a series of school nutrition events throughout the country to highlight the Obama Administration's efforts to improve school meals as Congress considers reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act. USDA leaders will outline a number of steps to reduce hunger and improve the health and nutrition of our nation's children.

"With childhood hunger and obesity on the rise we owe it to our child to ensure our nutrition programs address these challenges," said Vilsack. "The President and First Lady have asked the American people to join in this effort not only for our children, but for the future of our country. And this year presents an unprecedented opportunity to improve the health and well being of our children when Congress considers legislation to improve the Child Nutrition Act."

You almost got to love that "childhood hunger and obesity on the rise" are in the same sentence.

Guess they are so hungry, they have to overeat.

Consumers Buy Healthier Foods For Themselves

This hopeful article proves the rampant altruism worldwide. Since people buy "healthy" foods for themselves and people are getting fatter and fatter, i.e., unhealthier, the only explanation can be that others, Good Samaritans, are treating much of the world to food.

Feel like Mom is pushing dessert? According to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, consumers choose foods that are less healthy when they are purchasing for others.

In a series of studies on food choice, author Juliano Laran (University of Miami) discovered that consumers exert more self-control when they make choices for themselves.

It is apparently better to give than receive.

Elevated Hazardous Pollutants In The Environment From Commercial Cooking

Eat it raw.

As you stroll down restaurant row and catch the wonderful aroma of food - steaks, burgers, and grilled veggies - keep this in mind: You may be in an air pollution zone. Scientists in Minnesota are reporting that commercial cooking is a surprisingly large source of a range of air pollutants that could pose risks to human health and the environment. They discussed the topic at the 239th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Deborah Gross, Ph.D., pointed out that commercial food cooking is a known source of air pollutants, including gases and tiny solid particles - as is cooking in the home. "While that mouth-watering smell may whet our appetites, it comes from the emission of smoke from the cooking process into the air that we breathe," Gross said. Research conducted in the U.S. during the past decade has shown that cooking is by far the largest source of respirable particles generated in the home, as well. "Exposure to high concentrations of these particles is common."

Another way food kills.

There is just no escape.

Healthy Food Makes Consumers Feel Hungrier When Choices Are Limited

Bummer.

If we don't have a choice in the matter, eating something that's considered healthy might simply lead us to feel hungry and eat something else, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.

Authors Stacey Finkelstein and Ayelet Fishbach (both University of Chicago) examined external controls in the domain of healthy eating -- such as marketers who only offer shoppers healthy food samples or consumers who eat healthy meals in a cafeteria that only offers healthy alternatives.

"In the presence of external controls, people who eat healthily feel that they have made sufficient progress on their health goals," the authors write. "Then, they switch to the conflicting goal to satisfy their appetite: they express hunger and seek food."...

"People who were given a food sample described as healthy rated they were hungrier than those who were given the same sample framed as tasty and delicious," the authors write. "Those who freely chose the food sample were equally hungry. Thus, only those who were given the healthy food sample (imposed consumption) became hungrier."

The answer?

Fat people want "unhealthy" food as a choice.

Well, you do not need to eat "healthy" foods to lose weight.

This is good news since:

a. There are no "healthy" foods and
b. Only the Calories you eat make a difference.

If you want to learn how to lose weight eating the foods you are currently eating, go here.

And to do it with "fast foods," go here.

Study Connects Workplace Turmoil, Stress and Obesity

An article filled with crap.

A new study that provides a snapshot of a typical American workplace observed that chronic job stress and lack of physical activity are strongly associated with being overweight or obese.

How so?

Over and over, Fernandez's team heard the same story from the upstate workers: After spending the day sitting in stressful meetings or at their computers, they looked forward to going home and "vegging out" in front of the TV. Anecdotally, researchers also discovered that when pink slips were circulating, the snacks highest in fats and calories would disappear quickest from the vending machines. Some workers said they did not take the time to eat well or exercise at lunch because they were fearful of repercussions from leaving their desks for too long.

Well, duh.

Sit around eating and what do you expect?

And the "pink slip" - leave the desk for too long stuff?

More than likely it is a brown "red herring," if you know what I mean.

The kind of thing lazy, fat excusinators say to pollsters.

If you are fat and think that working our will help - do it on your own time away from work.

After all, you live with yourself outside of work, too.

And all the diseases of choice you either give or will give yourself don't punch a clock.

Here is more researcher crap.

"In a poor economy, companies should take care of the people who survive layoffs and end up staying in stressful jobs," Fernandez said. "It is important to focus on strengthening wellness programs to provide good nutrition, ways to deal with job demands, and more opportunities for physical activity that are built into the regular workday without penalty."

Workplace wellness programs will almost never work as they are tainted by the same fallacious foundation as other primarily weight loss programs.

To learn how to create a workplace wellness program with a chance of succeeding, go here.

This is interesting, though.

Unexpectedly, researchers also found that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables did little to offset the effect of chronic job stress on weight gain among the employees, who were mostly sedentary.

More evidence that it is not about "healthy" foods, which are non-existent.

Although there is healthy eating.

Bottom line, this whole research effort is another way of proving that fatsos are crybaby, nanny-staters who want the rest of us to cater to their lack of self-control.

Health Behaviors May Account for Substantial Portion of Social Inequality in Risk of Death

It is not the socioeconomic factors. It is the personal behavior factors.

An analysis of nearly 25 years of data for about 10,000 civil servants in London finds an association between socioeconomic position and risk of death, with much of this relation accounted for by health behaviors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, diet and physical activity, according to a new study.

"The difference between the baseline only and repeated assessments of health behaviors was mostly due to an increased explanatory power of diet, physical activity, and alcohol consumption. The role of smoking, the strongest mediator in these analyses, did not change when using baseline or repeat assessments," the researchers write.

"This study suggests that health behaviors explain a substantial part of social inequalities in mortality and demonstrates the importance of taking into account changes over time in health behaviors when examining their role in social inequalities."

Yup.

Community Involvement Important In Fight Against Childhood Obesity

But communities are filled with fatsos.

Community support of school obesity prevention programs is critical to achieving a significant decrease in obesity among children, according to researchers at the Michael & Susan Dell Center for Advancement of Healthy Living, which is part of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

The blind leading the blind.

Won't work.

Seaweed to Tackle Rising Tide of Obesity

Calling for "Kelp!"

Seaweed could hold the key to tackling obesity after it was found it reduces fat uptake by more than 75 per cent, new research has shown.

Now the team at Newcastle University are adding seaweed fibre to bread to see if they can develop foods that help you lose weight while you eat them.

A team of scientists led by Dr Iain Brownlee and Prof Jeff Pearson have found that dietary fibre in one of the world's largest commercially-used seaweed could reduce the amount of fat absorbed by the body by around 75 per cent...

"Obesity is an ever-growing problem and many people find it difficult to stick to diet and exercise plans in order to lose weight," explained Dr Brownlee.

"Alginates not only have great potential for weight management -- adding them to food also has the added advantage of boosting overall fibre content."

They are right about one thing:

This whole approach will end-up generating more crap.

China becomes world's new diabetes capital

Another victory for Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).

China now has more people with diabetes than any other country, a new report shows, making it clear that the nation's soaring economic growth is taking a toll on public health.

According to the report, more than 92 million adults in China have diabetes, and nearly 150 million more are well on their way to developing it. The disease is more common in people with large waistlines and in those who live in cities, the report indicates.

"For every person in the world with HIV there are three people in China with diabetes," said David Whiting, an epidemiologist with the International Diabetes Federation, who was not involved in the research.

The Federation projected last year that some 435 million people would have diabetes by 2030. "With this new study, we're going to have to rerun our estimate," Whiting told Reuters Health...

The prevalence is twice as high as estimates suggested by previous studies, which did not use World Health Organization-recommended tests to diagnose diabetes, and is similar to US numbers. It would place China far ahead of India, whose estimated 50 million diabetics lands it a dubious second place in terms of the total number of people with diabetes.

If TCM were so good, then why isn't it preventing this?

'Cause it ain't so good.

Mortality Rate in Older Adults Persistently Increased 5- to 8-Fold After Hip Fracture

Three words: fitness; Anabolic Clinic.

All-cause mortality rate in older adults is increased 5- to 8-fold 3 months after hip fracture and persists with time, according to the results of a meta-analysis reported in the March 15 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.

"Although an increased risk for death after hip fracture is well established, whether this excess mortality persists over time is unclear," write Patrick Haentjens, MD, PhD, from the Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel in Jette, and colleagues. "We summarize longitudinal evidence about the magnitude and duration of excess mortality after hip fracture in older men and women."

Save life and independence.

Get fit. Take anabolic substances.

Obese Kids as Young as Three Have Raised CRP

More nutritional child abuse.

A new study has found that abnormal levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and two other inflammatory markers are associated with increasing weight in children, starting at a young age...

"We found this is a remarkably consistent story, and it starts as young as age three, something that was surprising to us," senior author Dr Eliana M Perrin (University of North Carolina School of Medicine) told heartwire . "But whether this portends increased cardiac risk down the road, we don't know. We also don't know if the effects are cumulative or whether they are reversible with weight loss or lifestyle changes. More research is needed."

Perrin says although other studies have shown a link between abnormal CRP levels and obesity in children, this is, to her knowledge, the first to look at multiple inflammatory markers in children at such a young age and from a large representative US sample.

Too Soon to Recommend CRP Testing in Kids

"This should stimulate our efforts at prevention," she says. "It tells us there is reason to be concerned about overweight at a very young age. As we start to see this epidemic progress, we are starting to realize more and more the health effects of obesity at a young age, and not just what it portends for adult obesity."

Fat parents have fat kids.

Kudos, fatsos.

School lunches called a national security threat

Right idea, wrong culprit.

School lunches have been called many things, but a group of retired military officers is giving them a new label: national security threat.

That's not a reference to the mystery meat served up in the cafeteria line either. The retired officers are saying that school lunches have helped make the nation's young people so fat that fewer of them can meet the military's physical fitness standards, and recruitment is in jeopardy.

A new report being released Tuesday says more than 9 million young adults, or 27 percent of all Americans ages 17 to 24, are too overweight to join the military. Now, the officers are advocating for passage of a wide-ranging nutrition bill that aims to make the nation's school lunches healthier.

It has almost nothing to do with school lunches.

It has almost everything to do with what is consumed outside of school.

The best "solution" that these military morons can muster is the old tried and failed:

Today, the group is urging Congress to eliminate junk food and high-calorie beverages from schools, put more money into the school lunch program and develop new strategies that help children develop healthier habits.

These military people are deserving of a court martial for being stupid.

Clearly, their brains are AWOL.

Well, at least they are out of the military.

Cholesterol, Diabetes Medications Top List of Prescription Drug Expenses for Medicare Recipients

Mostly the drugs of the fat.

Medicare beneficiaries 65 years of age and older spend more on drugs to control diabetes and lower cholesterol than any other prescription medications, according to a statistical brief published in February by the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

According to Expenditures for the Top Five Therapeutic Classes of Outpatient Prescription Drugs, Medicare Beneficiaries, Age 65 and Older, nearly one quarter of all prescription drugs purchased by this population in 2007 were metabolic agents. Such medications are used primarily to manage diabetes and cholesterol and may also be indicated for weight control..

Kudos, fatsos.

Obesity Gene, Carried by More Than a Third of the US Population, Leads to Brain Tissue Loss

At last, the genetic connection to overweight/obesity - fat people simply don't have enough brains to either not gain weight or lose weight.

Three years ago, geneticists reported the startling discovery that nearly half of all people in the U.S. with European ancestry carry a variant of the fat mass and obesity associated (FTO) gene, which causes them to gain weight -- from three to seven pounds, on average -- but worse, puts them at risk for obesity.

Now, UCLA researchers have found that the same gene allele, which is also carried by roughly one-quarter of U.S. Hispanics, 15 percent of African Americans and 15 percent of Asian Americans, may have another deleterious effect.

Reporting in the early online edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, senior study author Paul Thompson, a UCLA professor of neurology; lead authors April Ho and Jason Stein, graduate students in Thompson's lab; and colleagues found that the FTO variant is also associated with a loss of brain tissue. This puts more than a third of the U.S. population at risk for a variety of diseases, such as Alzheimer's.

Using magnetic resonance imaging, the researchers generated three-dimensional "maps" of brain volume differences in 206 healthy elderly subjects drawn from 58 sites in the U.S. as part of the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, a large, five-year study aimed at better understanding factors that help the brain resist disease as it ages.

They found that there was consistently less tissue in the brains of those who carry the FTO allele, compared with non-carriers. Individuals with the "bad" version of the FTO gene had an average of 8 percent less tissue in the frontal lobes, the "command center" of the brain, and 12 percent less in the occipital lobes, areas in the back of the brain responsible for vision and perception. Further, the brain differences could not be directly attributed to other obesity-related factors such as cholesterol levels, diabetes or high blood pressure.

This is all it takes to "defeat" the alleged effects of this gene:

"Half of the world carries this dangerous gene. But a healthy lifestyle will counteract the risk of brain loss, whether you carry the gene or not. So it's vital to boost your brain health by being physically active and eating a balanced diet," he said.

And if the fat are too severely stupid to do the little it takes, then there is no more need to waste money trying to save the stupid from themselves.

Because it can never work.

Besides, stupid is not a medical problem.

Sick care reform - solved.

The stupidity of The First Cow's childhood obesity plan - explained.

Role modelette, Michellesie "The First Fatty" Obama:

Higher Physical Activity Levels Strongly Linked to Lower Levels of Depression in Older Adults

Get fit, be happy.

Higher levels of physical activity objectively measured by an accelerometer are strongly associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms and a lower prevalence of depressive disorders, according to an analysis of the 2005 to 2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination cohort and presented here at the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry 2010 Annual Meeting.

The sooner the better.

Few US Studies Compare One Drug to Another: Report

Then what are they comparing?

Comparing medical treatments to find the best and the cheapest may be a pillar of U.S. healthcare reform efforts, but very little such research is being done, according to a report published on Tuesday.

Most of the so-called comparative effectiveness research is done at academic institutions or by other noncommercial enterprises, and less than 20% examines the safety of treatments, researchers reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"Most of the comparative effectiveness studies we reviewed simply tested whether medication 'x' is better than medication 'y,' rather than addressing fundamental questions such as: How can we use this medication more effectively? When is this medication better than surgery? Which among two effective approaches is the safest?" said Dr. Danny McCormick of Harvard Medical School in Boston, who led the study.

It's still better to be fit than sick for drugs.

Meat And Colorectal Cancer Risk: Scientists Suggest Potential Mechanisms

Nitrates/nitrites are bad again.

Scientists in the US who undertook a large study to investigate what biological mechanisms might be behind the already established link between colorectal cancer and consumption of red and processed meat, confirmed that such a link exists and suggested the main players are three compounds: heme iron, nitrate/nitrite, and heterocyclic amines.

Interesting, since they were good here and here.

Still think they have any idea what a "healthy" food is?

Obesity Boot Camps Not The Answer; But Gym Class Is.

Yes and no - will not work.

(BTW, note the apparent spelling change in the researcher's name - Wray to Rhea - in this piece. Presumably they were as diligent in vetting this release before approving its publication, as they were in formulating their position. Rhea appears to be the correct spelling.)

Obesity boot camps are not the answer to the nation's waistline problem, says Deborah J. Wray, associate professor in the department of kinesiology at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth.

"Many programs have developed out of a desire to take advantage of the money that can be made from the obesity epidemic," she writes in the March 2010 issue of the Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance. "Many of these camps are designed to get kids in shape in a six-to 10-week period, but they are short-term fixes, just like diets."

"Short-term camps will not work in the long term. It takes at least six months of continual practice to create a behavior change."

The thing that will work is physical education class in school, she says, provided that it is taught correctly. Increasingly, however, physical education is not taught at all...

Rhea notes that in the last four years, 47,447 potential U.S. Army recruits flunked their physicals because they were overweight, according to Defense Department figures. Spokesmen for firefighters and police departments also have complained about obesity problems among candidates.

She also cites a 2006 CDC study showing that over a 20-year span the prevalence of obesity increased from five to 12 percent in two-to five-year-olds, from 6.5 percent to 17 percent in six-to-11 year-olds, and from five to 18 percent in 12-to-19 year-olds.

Problems, problems, problems.

Most 2-5 year-olds are not in school, so they cannot be reached by gym classes.

Even if they could reach kids in the schools, it is not the "at least six months of continual practice to create a behavior change" that will make the real difference.

It is the parents who must encourage a culture of fitness at home and not overfeed their kids which will in a matter of seconds to minutes, undo hours of physical activity.

Clearly, it is true that "boot camps" are no solution. They are the equivalent of "quick weight loss diets," for which the other term is "failure."

But this emphasis on school gym classes will fail.

Just like the emphasis on learning in school will fail when the parents do not make their kids do homework and do it well.

Only parental accountability has a chance for success.

In the past year, however, three key voices have joined the fight against obesity and Dr. Rhea hopes their efforts will help slim down America. One is the US. Army. A second is the National Football League. The third is first lady Michelle Obama.

This is more than crap.

The NFL.

The Army.

The First Cow, role modelette, Michellesie "The First Fatty" Obama:

New Survey Finds Out What Americans Are Really Paying Attention To When Choosing Foods

Not at all about what "Americans Are Really Paying Attention To When Choosing Foods."

Americans recognize things need to change in the grocery aisle, and they support Uncle Sam's efforts to overhaul what is included in their food and on the packages. The majority also believe they are individually responsible for making the right food choices to avoid obesity, but will readily accept the government's help to be successful, according to a new survey by FoodMinds.

"In light of all the recent attention around food labeling and nutrition guidance programs, we wanted to get a sense of what the consumer actually thought," said Grant Prentice, FoodMinds' director of Strategic Insights. "We heard clearly they believe things need to change - and that it makes sense for the government to lead that charge."

Really?

Nah.

CMACE Publishes Information On Obesity In Pregnancy

Widespread (no pun intended, see below) nutritional child abuse.

The Centre for Maternal and Child Enquiries (CMACE) reveals results from a survey on NHS maternity provision for obese women and publishes guidelines at a conference today.

In 2008, CMACE undertook a survey of maternity service provision for women with obesity on the NHS as part of their national programme on obesity in pregnancy. Survey responses were received from 320 (88%) of the 364 maternity units in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Crown Dependencies. Responses were received from 98% and 96% of obstetric and freestanding midwifery units respectively (see note 1).

Key findings

- The majority of maternity units routinely provide care to women with obesity. 220 (100%) of the responding obstetric units...

That would be 100%.

Terrible.

An example of a widespread:

New Omega-3 Preparation Protects Against Bowel Polyps

More hype - the study did not show that this stuff made any difference in developing disease.

A new preparation of an omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid found naturally in fish, offers hope for thousands of patients at risk of developing an inherited form of bowel cancer, a new study shows.

A team of investigators, led by Professor Mark Hull from the University of Leeds, studied patients diagnosed with a rare inherited condition called FAP (familial adenomatous polyposis), thought to be responsible for about one in every 100 bowel cancers.

Scientists observed a significant reduction in the size and number of pre-cancerous growths, known as polyps, during a six month trial of the omega-3 preparation.

Now Professor Hull and his team say that further research is needed to find out if this new agent, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) could help prevent the non-hereditary form of bowel cancer, which is the third most common cancer in the UK, diagnosed in around 37,000 people each year.

We'll see.

Until then, if you are a believer, try this Omega-3 delivery system...

Fish up the Butt

Only in America...

It seems that this guy had been experimenting with an unusual method of seeking autoerotic gratification - namely, by inserting a live fish into his butt.

What he hadn't counted on was the fish's scales acting, in effect, like one of those sets of driveway spikes that allow you to drive over them one way but puncture your tyres if you try to go the other way.

In his pain and panic, he dialed 911. The EMT arrived, surveyed the situation, and said, "Son, you gotta learn to chew your food better."

Setback for cervical cancer test hopes

All the screening, all the possible waste.

Testing for human papillomavirus during cervical screening does not help doctors identify women at risk of cancer, a study suggests.

A positive HPV test does not accurately predict which women need an urgent follow-up, say doctors.

Each year, millions of UK women have a cervical screening test as part of the national programme.

Still think they have any idea what they are doing?

FDA issues warning for high doses of Zocor

This drug has been around for a while and they are still finding new hazards. Just as they will find more with the IMHO malpractice known as diet drugs.

Patients on the highest approved dose of the cholesterol-lowering drug Zocor may be at increased risk of muscle injury, U.S. regulators warned on Friday.

Made by Merck & Co and sold under the brand name Zocor, simvastatin is also sold in combination with ezetimibe as Vytorin, and in combination with niacin as Abbott Laboratories Simcor, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said in a statement. Simvastatin also is available as a single-ingredient generic medication.

The FDA said its review of simvastatin is part of an ongoing effort to evaluate the risk of statin-associated muscle injury.

"Although muscle injury... is a known side effect with all statins, the warning highlights the greater risk of developing muscle injury, including rhabdomyolysis, for patients when they are prescribed and use higher doses of this drug," the agency said in a statement.

The warning follows an FDA review of new information on the risk of muscle injury from clinical trials, studies, adverse event reports and prescription use data, the FDA said.

The FDA said it was also reviewing data from a clinical trial which studied cardiovascular disease in patients prescribed 80 milligrams of simvastatin compared to those on 20 milligrams.

Rhabdomyolysis is the most serious form of muscle disease and can lead to severe kidney damage, kidney failure, and sometimes death, the agency said.

Oops.

China battling with lifestyle-related diseases

If TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) were so good, wouldn't it prevent these problems?

Chronic diseases such as strokes, cancer, and respiratory and heart conditions are China's biggest health problem, the health minister said on Friday, urging citizens to change lifestyle habits...

"Chronic diseases make up the first four and have to do with lifestyle and are a huge financial burden. They make up 80 percent of mortality and health expenditure," he said.

China's total mortality figure was 8.49 million in 2005, of which 22.2 percent was due to strokes. Cancer made up 22.1 percent, followed by respiratory diseases at 15.8 percent and cardiac diseases at 14.7 percent.

To reverse the threat from such chronic lifestyle diseases, China is putting in place primary prevention programmes to promote health education and mass screening for diseases like diabetes and hypertension, Chen said.

What no acupuncture and herbs?

Even the Chinese need to get fit.

Many Avandia defenders have drug co. ties: study

Just lose the weight and avoid the Type 2, i.e., fat person, diabetes.

Virtually all of the experts who wrote favorably about troubled diabetes drug Avandia had financial ties to drug makers, a finding that shows the need for reform of such relationships, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.

A team at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, combed through more than 200 scientific studies and commentaries that offered positive opinions about Avandia after a May 2007 study suggested the drug significantly increased the risk of heart attacks.

They found that 94 percent of the authors who defended the drug -- known generically as rosiglitazone and made by GlaxoSmithKline Plc's -- had ties to drug companies, and nearly half had financial ties that presented a conflict of interest.

Really.

Routine "recess" a hit at White House obesity summit

More from the s**t-for-brains First Fatty, Michellesie "The Cow" Obama.

A doctor's endorsement of frequent recess breaks - and not just for kids - drew an appreciative response from experts meeting at a White House summit on childhood obesity on Friday.

Dozens of child advocates, public policy experts and doctors gathered to brainstorm ideas for first lady Michelle Obama's campaign to wipe out childhood obesity in a generation.

An interagency task force reviewing U.S. programs and policies on child nutrition and physical activity is due to report to President Barack Obama within the next month.

The summit participants were asked to come up with three to five recommendations for the task force to consider taking to the president.

Healthier foods in corporate cafeterias and linking public transportation to grocery store access were among the early suggestions.

"Healthy foods"?

As in ones that prevent cancer?

Like vegetables?

Oh, they don't?

Oops.

There are no "healthy foods." There is only healthy eating.

Here is more from the morons, apparently selected by the First Fatty as experts:

"We have great meetings with lots of healthy refreshments now, compared to 20 years ago when we would only have unhealthy refreshments, or 30 years ago when people would have been smoking in this room," said Dr. Toni Yancey of University of California Los Angeles.

And are we fatter now than 20 and 30 years ago?

Duh.

The experts' advice and guidance would help the task force develop measurable benchmarks for fighting childhood obesity, Michelle Obama said at the start of the session.

The United States spends $150 billion a year to treat obesity-related conditions. The costs are projected to almost double over the next decade and will account for a fifth of overall healthcare spending, White House budget director Peter Orszag said.

Besides direct healthcare costs and lost productivity, Orszag said the magnitude of obesity-associated health risk may not be fully appreciated.

Let us hope we get saved from these experts.

Or all is lost.

Role model:





Role modelette, Michellesie "The First Fatty" Obama:

Herb shows no added benefits for women's bones

Say it ain't so.

Exercise may help older women maintain their bone density, but adding the supplement black cohosh to the routine does not bring any extra benefits, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that among 128 postmenopausal women they studied for one year, those who were randomly assigned to regularly exercise generally maintained their bone density. In contrast, women who were assigned to a "wellness" group that got only light, infrequent exercise showed a decline in their bone density, on average.

But while exercise appeared to help women hang on to their bone mass, the herb black cohosh showed no added effects. Among exercisers, those who were randomly assigned to take the supplement each day showed no bone-density advantage after one year.

Black cohosh extracts are marketed as a "natural" form of hormone replacement therapy and most commonly used to treat hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause. Some lab research, but not all, suggests the herb may have estrogen-like activity in the body.

Still think they have any idea what an effective supplement really is?

ACC: The Agony of Long-Distance Runners -- Coronary Plaque

Oops. A group of asymptomatic runners vs. a group of persons suspected of heart disease and, according to the conventional wisdom, the "sick" people win.

A group of elite long-distance runners had less body fat, better lipid profiles, and better heart rates than people being tested for cardiac disease, but, paradoxically, the runners had more calcified plaque in their heart arteries, according to a study reported here.

Investigators performed computed tomography angiography on 25 people who had run at least one marathon a year since 1985, according to senior author Robert Schwartz, MD, of the Minneapolis Heart Institute and Foundation. They compared the athletes with 23 control patients who were undergoing the same scan for symptomatic or suspected heart abnormalities...

"You have to consider that these runners may be in a constant state of inflammation, and that may be why we are seeing more plaque," added the elder Schwartz.

He said the researchers, who originally set out to compare their results with European studies using electron beam CT, sent letters to elite runners identified as having completed at least one marathon race in each of the last 25 years. "All the runners we contacted agreed to be in the study," he noted.

The investigators also identified a control group of 23 men who were undergoing coronary CT angiography for clinical reasons, typically for elevated risk factors or abnormal or/inconclusive stress tests.

The participants underwent 64-slice computed tomography angiography and were compared for blood pressure, heart rate, and serum lipids. The scan data were analyzed using commercial plaque characterization software for calcified and noncalcified plaque and calcium score.

No one is sure exactly what the plaque findings mean.

Yep.

Still think they have any idea what they are talking about?

Mediterranean diet tied to fertility treatment success

If the diet is so darned good, then why do the women need fertility treatment?

Women who closely adhere to a Mediterranean-style diet rich in vegetables, vegetable oils and fish may have a higher likelihood of becoming pregnant after infertility treatment, a new study suggests.

Researchers in the Netherlands found that among 161 couples undergoing fertility treatment at their center, women whose eating habits most closely matched the traditional Mediterranean diet were 40 percent more likely to become pregnant than those with the least Mediterranean-like diets.

The study, reported in the journal Fertility and Sterility, does not prove that the diet itself boosts the success of fertility treatment.

The study was "observational" -- where the researchers asked couples about their usual diets, separated them into groups based on their diet patterns, then followed the groups' outcomes after fertility treatment. Such studies cannot prove cause-and-effect.

Drivel.

Maternity services for obese women 'not good enough'

Wrong.

Maternity services for obese women are not good enough and may be putting mothers-to-be at risk, experts warn.

The Centre for Maternal and Child Enquiries said units were short of basic equipment like extra-wide operating tables and beds.

Obese mothers-to-be are "not good enough" to be parents.

Note that "basic equipment" includes "extra-wide operating tables and beds."

Adding Heart Healthy Omega-3s To US Diet

Frankenfood.

A new heart-healthy, essential omega-3 fatty acid is about to improve an American pantry staple: soybean oil. The new scientific advance will move biotechnology onto the average consumer's daily radar. U.S. soybean farmers are also using biotechnology to deliver positive environmental impacts and increase production to feed a growing world population.

Increased Omega-3 Crops on Horizon

Recently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a notice confirming that increased omega-3 soybean oil can be used in foods and beverages. Pending similar clearance from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, farmers can plant these new soybeans. The oil will lend itself well to a wide range of food products such as yogurts, salad dressings, breakfast cereals, baked goods, nut products and soups.

Omega-3s are known to protect the heart, and may also play a role in cancer prevention and brain health. While fish oil is the preferred current source of omega-3s, many Americans do not consume the recommended levels.

Soybeans with fins.

Watch out for the bones.

BTW, who is promoting this stuff?

United Soybean Board

'nuff said.

Surprising Findings About Hepatitis C and Insulin Resistance

Another reason to be fit and not trust the "experts."

We have known for several years that Hepatitis C, a common cause of liver cirrhosis and cancer, also makes people three to four times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes.

In studying the insulin resistance of 29 people with Hepatitis C, Australian researchers have confirmed that they have high insulin resistance, a precursor to diabetes. However, almost all insulin resistance occurs in muscle, with little or none in the liver, a very surprising finding given that Hepatitis C is a liver disease...

"Contrary to all expectations, not only did we find no significant insulin resistance in the liver of the patients in the study, half of them suffered from a strain of Hepatitis C that causes about three times the normal level of fat to accumulate in the liver," said Professor Chisholm.

This is the issue.

You do not want your researchers to be "surprised" "contrary to all expectations."

This is the research equivalent to "Whoops" in the operating room.

And suggests that they or their predecessors may have been in error.

It certainly says that we/they do not really know what is going on.

It also certainly says that the mechanisms proposed for outcomes are no more than theories/hypotheses.

It is better to rely on what is known.

We do know that fit people, as a group, tend to be "healthier."

This has proven itself to be reliable decade after decade.

Get or remain fit and leave the fantasizing to others.

This is a much better action plan.

Tests for genes don't predict breast cancer better

Expired shelf life alert! Genetic Holy Grail goes down.

Studying genes linked to breast cancer may someday lead to better treatments, but they do little to improve a doctor's ability to predict who is likely to develop a tumor, researchers reported on Wednesday.

Their study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that testing for 10 errant bits of genetic code linked to breast cancer was no better for screening than asking old-fashioned questions involving a woman's conventional risk factors. These include family history, age of fertility and age when a first child was born.

Unless you are an idiot, do not expect a genetic "cure" or any genetic help for your fatosity.

If you are an idiot - expect it, then - but it will not come.

New Surveys From Stop Obesity Alliance Show Primary Care Doctors And Patients See Shared Role In Weight Loss, But Ask, Now What?

A fair question.

Primary care physicians agree they have a role in addressing obesity, but say they do not have the right weight management resources. Obese or heavier adults take responsibility for weight loss, but adults who need to lose weight may lack information about effective weight loss methods and strategies. These findings and others come from new research commissioned and released today by the Strategies to Overcome and Prevent (STOP) Obesity Alliance, a project operating out of the Department of Health Policy at The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services.

In a national survey of 290 primary care physicians conducted by Harris Interactive® by mail between September 1 and December 21, 2009, 89 percent of primary care physicians believe it is their responsibility to help overweight or obese patients lose weight, but 72 percent of those surveyed also said that no one in their practice has been trained to deal with weight-related issues...

"Patients are frustrated from previous failed weight loss attempts and need realistic definitions of success that focus on health...

But training them in the party line to weight loss will result in repeated failure. (see here, here and here.)

The real hope for success is to separate the sick care system from weight loss and give people a fighting chance to succeed.

Oxygen Supply To Unborn Baby Reduced By Obesity And Passive Smoking

More early nutritional child abuse.

Babies born to mothers with obesity and exposed to passive smoking are more likely to have health problems than others. This conclusion is based on evidence of elevated levels of nucleated red blood cells in the umbilical cord reported in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health...

Critically, the team says, fetal development during the last half of pregnancy depends on maternal metabolic adjustments detected by placental hormones and the subsequent oxygen and nutrient supply. If these are compromised, through obesity issues or exposure to tobacco smoke, then serious problems can occur.

Kudos, fatsos.

Exercise Produces Hormone Changes That May Cut Breast Cancer Risk

The choice - physical activity cutting breast cancer risk or cutting off your breast(s).

A year-long aerobic exercise program for sedentary postmenopausal women produced hormone changes that may reduce the risk of breast cancer, researchers say.

"Exercise is a healthy, noninvasive, inexpensive and achievable lifestyle factor that can be used to reduce cancer risk," lead author Dr. Christine M. Friedenreich from Alberta Health Services, Canada, told Reuters Health by email. "Unlike some other options, e.g., chemoprevention, there are no harmful side effects and the benefits are considerable for many other chronic diseases as well."

In a randomized trial...in the Journal of Oncology, Dr. Friedenreich and her colleagues examined the effect of an aerobic exercise intervention on circulating estradiol, estrone, sex hormone-binding globulin, androstenedione, and testosterone levels in 320 women, ages 50 to 74.

The exercise program involved at least 45 minutes of aerobic exercise 5 days a week. In the control group, women merely maintained their usual level of activity.

Women in the intervention group exercised for a mean of 3.6 sessions per week for an average of 178.4 minutes/week. At 12 months, the exercisers had significant reductions in estradiol and free estradiol compared to controls, and significant increases in sex hormone-binding globulin.

Do you really need to think about it?

Avoiding The Aisles At The Grocery Store Can Help Keep Off Unwanted Pounds

Brilliant. Now what is it about not buying food that can lead to weight loss?

Shopping the perimeter of your local grocery store and avoiding the aisles will give you a head start on fighting the battle of the bulge..

.If you simply cannot avoid going down the aisles, it's important to be aware of food labels and find foods with the fewest amount of ingredients -- three to four instead of 6 to 8.

Great advice, great solution, folks.

That'll work.

In a pig's eye. That would be in Aisle 12.

Better yet, walk the perimeter of the food store and never enter it.

Lifestyle And Diet Still Best Ways To Help Prevent Type 2 Diabetes

You mean a pill or surgery is not best? Bummer. Type 2 diabetes is fat person diabetes.

Researchers looking at whether using a drug that lowers blood pressure (Valsartan) or a drug that lowers blood glucose levels (Nateglinide) could prevent Type 2 diabetes from developing found no great difference in the number of people who went on to develop the condition when prescribed either drug compared with the people who were prescribed a dummy pill.

The drugs were also not successful in preventing heart attacks and strokes, which are complications of Type 2 diabetes. All the people taking part in the study had high blood glucose levels.

Estimated seven million at risk

"There are an estimated seven million people in the UK who are at high risk of Type 2 diabetes secondary to raised blood glucose levels," said Dr Victoria King, Research Manager at Diabetes UK.

Up to 15 times more risk of diabetes

"These people are up to fifteen times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes and potentially serious complications such as heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness and amputation."

Healthy lifestyle best way to prevent Type 2 diabetes

"Unfortunately there is unlikely to be a quick and easy route to prevent Type 2 diabetes and that a healthy balanced lifestyle with a good diet and physical activity levels are the best preventative methods.

"Fitness is the only real preventive medicine. (tm)"

Obstructive Sleep Apnea a Risk Factor for Life-Threatening Complications After Total Joint Arthroplasty

Fix a joint and die. Seems reasonable.

Patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are at high risk of developing serious complications after hip or knee replacement surgery, according to a new study presented here at the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons 2010 Annual Meeting.

"These patients have higher rates of acute renal failure, as well as low oxygen blood levels and longer hospitalization after surgery," said lead researcher Javad Parvizi, MD, professor of orthopaedic surgery at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Guess who gets OSA:



and

Five-a-day has little impact on cancer, study finds

Shelf life - expired!

Eating more fruit and vegetables has only a modest effect on protecting against cancer, a study into the link between diet and disease has found.

The study of 500,000 Europeans joins a growing body of evidence undermining the high hopes that pushing "five-a-day" might slash Western cancer rates.

The international team of researchers estimates only around 2.5% of cancers could be averted by increasing intake...

In 1990, the World Health Organization recommended that everyone consume at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day to prevent cancer and other chronic diseases.

The advice has formed a central plank of public health campaigns in many developed countries. It has been promoted in the UK since 2003 and in the US for nearly two decades.

But research has failed to substantiate the suggestion that as many as 50% of cancers could be prevented by boosting the public's consumption of fruit and vegetables.

This latest study, which analysed recruits from 10 countries to the highly-regarded European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition, confirms that the association between fruit and vegetable intake and reduced cancer risk is indeed weak.

And even that weak association may be overblown.

But writing in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, they said they could not rule out that even the small reduction in cancer risk seen was down to the fact that the kind of people who ate more fruit and vegetables lived healthier lives in many other respects too.

And even the conclusion of this study isn't new.

In an accompanying editorial, Professor Walter Willet of Harvard University said the research strongly confirmed the findings of other studies, showing "that any association of intake and fruits and vegetables with risk of cancer is weak at best".

So what does work?

But while the links between diet and cancer remain unclear, obesity is now seen as an established risk factor.

Clearly, at least, Calories in vs. Calories out to reach a BMI of between 18.5 and 24.9.

How you get there still remains to matter little, at best.

Study: High-fat diets raise stroke risk in women

High-fat diets lead to thigh-fat women, i.e., fatsettes (like the one pictured below).

A moment on the lips, forever on the hips? A bad figure is hardly the worst of it. Eating a lot of fat, especially the kind that's in cookies and pastries, can significantly raise the risk of stroke for women over 50, a large new study finds.

We already know that diets rich in fat, particularly artery-clogging trans fat, are bad for the heart and the waistline.

The new study is the largest to look at stroke risk in women and across all types of fat. It showed a clear trend: Those who ate the most fat had a 44 percent higher risk of the most common type of stroke compared to those who ate the least.

"It's a tremendous increase that is potentially avoidable," said Dr. Emil Matarese, stroke chief at St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, Penn. "What's bad for the heart is bad for the brain."

Kudos, fatsos.

Obesity-Cancer Link Investigated

Just as in the dictionary, cancer follows Calories. And in a related issue, see the following post.

The link between obesity and disease has been well documented. There's evidence now that obesity and cancer have a strong link, as they've shown in the United States at least 90,000 cancer deaths a year can be attributed to obesity.

Good choice, fatsos.

Study Finds The Cost of Cancer Care Is Skyrocketing

Kudos, fatsos. See post above.

USA Today: "The cost of cancer treatment is 'skyrocketing' — both for individual patients and the nation, a new analysis shows. From 1990 to 2008, spending on cancer care soared to more than $90 billion from $27 billion...

The Seattle Times / Bloomberg: "The rising cost of cancer research and care, which helped reduce death rates by 16 percent over 40 years, is straining the U.S. health system and needs to be restrained, commentators said in a special edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association...

HealthDay News: "New chemotherapy agents for metastatic colon cancer improve patient survival but are costly, says a new study. Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta analyzed data from 4,665 patients, aged 66 and older, diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer between 1995 and 2005. Compared to those who received older chemotherapy agents, patients who received one or more of the six chemotherapy agents approved in the United States between 1996 and 2004 lived an average of 6.8 months longer. That increase in survival was associated with a lifetime cost increase of $37,100, which equates to $66,200 per year of life gained."

You are costing the USA too much.

Your diseases of choice are not worth it.

Bacon Or Bagels? Higher Fat At Breakfast May Be Healthier Than You Think

Well, this won't confuse the picture.

The age-old maxim "Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper" may in fact be the best advice to follow to prevent metabolic syndrome, according to a new University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) study.

Metabolic syndrome is characterized by abdominal obesity, high triglycerides, insulin resistance and other cardiovascular disease-risk factors.

The study, published online March 30 in the International Journal of Obesity, examined the influence exerted by the type of foods and specific timing of intake on the development of metabolic syndrome characteristics in mice. The UAB research revealed that mice fed a meal higher in fat after waking had normal metabolic profiles. In contrast, mice that ate a more carbohydrate-rich diet in the morning and consumed a high-fat meal at the end of the day saw increased weight gain, adiposity, glucose intolerance and other markers of the metabolic syndrome.

Still think they have any idea about what is going on?

The bottom line: shut out the noise, go here and learn how to control Calories in vs. Calories out.

That is the only way to lose weight.

Period.

No matter the source of the Calories.

Weight-Loss Surgery Can Lead To Psychological Distress

A lose-lose for those unwilling to lose.

People who have gastric band surgery to lose weight are at risk of low self-esteem, relationship problems and being dissatisfied with their body image, according to new research being presented at the Diabetes UK Annual Professional Conference (APC).

Researchers from the University of the West of England and Southmead Hospital, Bristol, followed 25 patients aged from 30 to 58 years and recorded their experience 12 months after receiving a post-laparoscopic gastric banding operation. 64 per cent of the participants had Type 2 diabetes.

Health benefits versus negative psychological effects

Although the people who took part in the study reported significant health benefits such as improved blood glucose levels and lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels, they also found that living with the gastric band had a strong, negative psychological impact on their daily lives.

The majority reported that having a gastric band was as hard as having to diet and that losing the opportunity to eat as a coping strategy left them struggling to cope with distressing life events.

Too bad, fatsos.

But take heart, the operation has a really good chance of failing over time and you will be fat and happy again.

Treating Vitamin D Deficiency Significantly Reduces Heart Disease Risk

Bad day for the cure du jour. See post below.

Preventing and treating heart disease in some patients could be as simple as supplementing their diet with extra vitamin D, according to two new studies at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Murray, Utah.

Researchers at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute last fall demonstrated the link between vitamin D deficiency and increased risk for coronary artery disease. These new studies show that treating vitamin D deficiency with supplements may help to prevent or reduce a person's risk for cardiovascular disease and a host of other chronic conditions. They also establish what level of vitamin D further enhances that risk reduction.

Read the next post.

Still think they have any idea what they are talking about?

Vitamin D Levels Have Different Effects On Atherosclerosis In Blacks And Whites

Bad day for the cure du jour. See post above.

Vitamin D is quickly becoming the "go-to" remedy for treating a wide range of illnesses, from osteoporosis to atherosclerosis. However, new evidence from a Wake Forest University School of Medicine study suggests that supplementing vitamin D in those with low levels may have different effects based on patient race and, in black individuals, the supplement could actually do harm.

The study is the first to show a positive relationship between calcified plaque in large arteries, a measure of atherosclerosis or "hardening of the arteries," and circulating vitamin D levels in black patients. It appears in the March issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Read the preceding post.

Still think they have any idea what they are talking about?

New Research Indicates A Massive Underdiagnosis Of Obesity When Using Body Mass Index (BMI)

What is most important here is that we are fatter than we think.

A retrospective analysis of 1,234 Americans indicated a substantial underdiagnosis of obesity when Body Mass Index (BMI) was used compared to the Dual Engergy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) scan. This analysis will be released on Friday, April 23, 2010 at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 19th Annual Meeting & Clinical Congress in Boston.

To date, no large-scale comparison has been made between BMI and DEXA, a direct measure of percentage body fat. A team of physicians and scientists from PATH Foundation NY reviewed the medical records of 1,234 patients from 2003 to 2009 to obtain BMI (from height and weight) and percentage body fat (from Hologic DEXA). Subjects were classified as obese or non-obese based on the American Bariatric Society's classification of obesity, which is a BMI of 30 or higher or a percent body fat of 25 or higher in males and percent body fat of 30 or higher in females.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) traditionally consider an adult with a BMI between 25 and 29.9 as overweight while an adult with a BMI of 30 or higher is considered obese.

"Extrapolating our data on a global scale, it is very likely that obesity is a much bigger epidemic than the 300 million people acknowledged by the World Health Organization (WHO)," Eric Braverman, MD, a primary author of the study said.

BMI remains the best tool we have for determining overweight/obesity since, among other benefits, it is available to everybody.

Apparently, if it has a fault, it is not inaccuracy leading to over-diagnosis. It is under-diagnosing.

By pooh-poohing BMI, the researchers are promoting another way to generate moolah for the sick care industry by making what is available to all of us seem bad.

High Weight Associated With Risk of Colorectal Tumors Without Microsatellite Instability

NASA for your ass-a.

The increased risk of colorectal cancer associated with obesity may be largely restricted to tumors that have no or low microsatellite instability (MSI)..

Tres apropos, since fat people think the world revolves around them.

Don't skip over the part where fatsos have an increased risk of colorectal cancer.

Kudos, ass-hos.

Tackling Childhood Obesity With Get Up, Get Out And Go!

Must be talking about taking laxatives for weight loss while camping.

Getting children involved in finding ways to become more physically active can not only make them more aware of local recreational opportunities, but can even help increase their own physical activity.

That's the result of a study examining the role of seven national parks in contributing to the health of today's youth. The study was conducted by researchers from a variety of disciplines at North Carolina State University and other U.S. universities and funded by the National Park Service.

The researchers developed pilot programs aimed at increasing the awareness of health benefits from participating in recreational activities at national parks and increasing physical activity by park visitors.

Good luck with that.

Mice Overriding Fear Of Pain For Chocolate Fix

Guess what fat chocoholics?

Ever get a buzz from eating chocolate? A study published in the open access journal BMC Neuroscience has shown that chocolate-craving mice are ready to tolerate electric shocks to get their fix.

You have a murine brain.

Obese 3-Year-Olds Show Early Warning Signs for Future Heart Disease

Fat parents have fat kids.

A study by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers found that obese children as young as 3 years old have elevated levels of C-reactive protein, a marker of inflammation that in adults is considered an early warning sign for possible future heart disease.

In addition, the study found elevated levels of two other inflammatory markers -- the ratio of ferritin/transferrin saturation (F/T) and the absolute neutrophil count (ANC) -- in obese children. Elevated F/T levels started at age 6 and elevated ANC levels were found starting at age 9.

"These findings were a surprise to us," said lead author Asheley Cockrell Skinner, Ph.D., an assistant professor of pediatrics in the UNC School of Medicine. "We're seeing a relationship between weight status and elevated inflammatory markers much earlier than we expected."

"Most adults understand that being overweight or obese isn't good for them," Skinner said. "But not as many people realize that it may be unhealthy for young children to be overweight."

Kudos, fatsos.

Child abusers.

Better to Start Metformin Early

Remarkable candor from Big Sick Care.

Type 2 diabetes is fat person diabetes.

For newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes, waiting until lifestyle measures fail before starting metformin may jeopardize the long-term efficacy of the drug, a large clinical database analysis showed.

Simply put, the default position appears to be that "lifestyle measures" will fail when it comes to fat people caring enough about themselves to fix their self-induced Type 2 diabetes.

This is probably correct given that fatsos have developed Type 2 diabetes as a disease of choice, have demonstrated poor impulse control, i.e., self-control and get the rest of us to pay for their caloric irresponsibility.

The Pig Is Clever Like A Fox

Oprah's participation in the weight loss debate is an Orwellian nightmare - the pig is in charge.

Well, the pig is clever like a fox.

Just in time to rollout the new version of the book she co-wrote with Bob Greene, AdipOprah, an IMHO whore-for-the-money and clear threat to people's health, devoted the cover and cover story of her O(bese), The AdipOprah magazine, to her weight woes.

In typical fatso style she basically blames her alleged mere 40-pound weight gain on her poor, defenseless, thyroid gland (again).

She is clearly spewing the slop in which she rolls.

The rollout of her “updated and revised” book together with the rollout of her personal story about why she cannot get the rolls out of her belly are an interesting coincidence.

I will bet, it was not “updated and revised” to tell people it is crap and that she and Bob are liars.

Personally, IMHO, it is nothing more than another attempt by a crooked person to rip-off money from desperate people. (According to the bovine billionaire herself, there are "more than 2.4 million" of them who read the magazine. Add to that the people who watch her TV show, listen to her radio programming, watch her TV network and visit her website and you have an awful lot of impressionable people being fooled.)

What she is talking about this 2008 holiday season is, IMHO, nothing more than another attempt at thievery. This is not new for them as Bob and Oprah, IMHO, have a history of using lies and falsified images to scam the public.

(IMHO, Oprah with Bob are every bit as crooked as Oprah is with her other boys, Mehmet and Michael, David and Jorge.)

Despite the fact that the IMHO whore-for-the-money admits that she was gaining weight beginning "in February 2007," she was too greedy to recuse herself from promoting the diet scheme concocted by her and Bob, instead averring how well it worked for her. Even to this day.

I just pulled this (12-14-08) from their diet website. The website is copyright, 2007. The hardcover edition of the book came out December 26, 2006. The paperback edition came out December 26, 2007. The "I" is fatso "O":

I lost weight in stages. First I became active, and I still work out even though I really hate it, but I know if I don’t I will end up 200 pounds again. Then I started working on my eating. I stopped eating past 7:30 at night. When Bob told me it would make a big difference in my weight, I resisted. I thought it was going to be too hard. But I was surprised to find that it wasn’t; even more surprised when it turned out to be one of the most effective changes I made.

I’ve now taken most of the bad foods out of my diet and replaced them with good. I eat smaller portions and I eat healthy foods as a way of life, not a diet to go on and off.

Liar.

And the picture used on the website to promote the diet is:

Double liar.

(Here are real images of Oprah on her/Bob's diet.

Triple liar.)

Which is the same picture (the background was changed) she and Bob used to rip people off in 2008, on their website:

Quadruple liar.

And other places on the web:



Quintuple liar.

And at a "discount":



Sextuple liar.

And they promoted her and still promote her (12-24-08) as a "success" on their diet (enlarge the image if you have to or just click on it to get to the page):

Septuple liar.

Scummy Oprah and Bob are all talk about integrity as if it means something to them. This is from the complaint to the FTC about Bob and Oprah and their false and deceptive advertising:

"As will be seen in Exhibits A, B and M, there is much made of 'truth' and 'truthfulness' by both Mr. Greene and Ms. Winfrey. Likewise, they speak of accepting responsibility for one’s actions. In fact, 'truthfulness' and 'responsibility' appear in the General Index on pages 272 and 271, respectively, in the hardcover edition.

I submit that in the FTC’s taking of its responsibility it has the opportunity to not only protect consumers from what I contend (and what I posit a reasonable consumer would contend if he/she were aware of them) are clearly false and deceptive advertising practices, but also to provide Ms. Winfrey and Mr. Greene with opportunities to accept responsibility for and the consequences of their dishonesty and untruthfulness."

You can check out the Exhibits here.

Here is their chance to stop the talk and do the walk, which, incidentally, Oprah claims is a big part of the fatso "cure":

"All you have to do is work out harder and eat less! Get your 10,000 steps in!"

What to do?

Give back all the money they took under clearly false pretenses (plus interest earned and any damages), apologize to the world, do some jail time for being the IMHO crooks they are, shut their mouths for good (and the mouths of Oprah's other experts), stop publishing/writing on topics at which they are failures, slither off into the sunset and just go away for good.

That is integrity.

Incidentally, there is one truth among all this drivel of hers.

"All you have to do is…eat less!"

If this means fewer Calories in than out, then she is right.

And what is most important is that you do not need their sh**ty book in order to do that.

Complain to the FTC about her, Bob, Mehmet, Michael, David and Jorge, so it will get these IMHO parasites out from the broadcast media.

The sooner the better. Stop them before they harm again.

You can make a difference.

Oprah and Bob Greene Scamming The Public - Again

The headline links to the Oprahcide or Death By Oprah website.

This link will take you to the Jail For Oprah website where you will find FTC complaints filed re:

Oprah and Bob and

Oprah and her diet expert's books and

Oprah, Jorge Cruise and David Katz.

Here is a picture of Bob and an Oprah that never existed in reality:



I am clear that, IMHO, Oprah and Bob are two of the leaders in the nutritional homicide movement. There are others, like Mehmet Oz, IMHO.

But what is so grossly apparently dishonest, is the Photoshopped image of AdipOprah.

Her entry into the fitness/weight loss domain is like the book Animal Farm.

The pig is in charge.

She claims to be all about integrity, but it is clear to me that she is a dishonest person who has a profit-motivated integrity of convenience that is basically the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help her Photoshop.

This is how Oprah really looks.

Big and fat and with chinny chin chins.

And big thighs and fat ass.

To see more images of AdipOprah and how she really looks following Bob's and Oprah's Best Life Diet, go:

here

here

here

here

here

here

The images above cover the period of time from around the release of their book, December 26, 2006, until just about the present.



But when you are a whore for the money, well, truth in extra-large packaging goes out the door.

However, "Sale Pricing" does not.

Here is a new "deal" Bob and The Killer Queen of Daytime TV are offering.



One look at the real Oprah - same faked image.

One look at the real Oprah - same doomed to fail advice.

One look at the real Oprah - same guaranteed to make you poorer and them richer scam.

This is how The Best Life Diet is described at amazon.com:

"From the bestselling author of Get With the Program! and Bob Greene's Total Body Makeover comes The Best Life Diet, a lifetime plan for losing weight and keeping it off. Bob Greene helped Oprah achieve her dramatic weight loss, and he can help you too. You'll eat the same delicious food that Oprah enjoys, and, just like Oprah, you'll have Bob to encourage you at every step."

Just like he did for Oprah! (see images and image links above, in case you have forgotten how good Bob is and/or how fat Oprah is)

Shame on her.

She should be ashamed but I suspect she is not.

If she ever had an ounce of shame, it has likely been replaced by pounds of fat.

In Oprah's own words:

"Excerpt from The Best Life Diet (sic) - by Oprah Winfrey

You cannot ever live the life of your dreams without coming face to face with the truth. Every unwanted pound creates another layer of lies."

Right.

And Oprah is the multi-layered liar.

Laughing all the way to the bank with your money.

To find out more about what I believe is going on, read the FTC complaint filed regarding her and Bob. It is available here.