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Chocolate’s Effect On Your Health: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

Eating a lot of chocolate was associated with a 37% reduction in cardiovascular disease and a 29% reduction in stroke compared eating less, researchers reported. But, people are trending toward record obesity by the year 2030, which is a cardiometabolic risk in its own right.

Chocolate Melting by peter pearson via Flickr and a Creative Commons license

Willie Wonka’s factory wasn’t the only risky place for those with a sweet tooth.

In the first study, to evaluate the association of chocolate with the risk of developing cardiometabolic disorders, researchers performed a meta-analysis of randomized trials, six cohort and one cross-sectional, which reported the association between chocolate and the risk of cardiovascular disease (coronary heart disease and stroke), diabetes, and metabolic syndrome for about 114,000 people.

Because the studies reported chocolate consumption differently, researchers Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*

Weight Gain Associated With Years Following Marriage And Divorce

Women gain weight after marriage and men after divorce, especially among those over 30, likely the result of “weight shock” to people’s routines in physical activity and diet, sociologists reported.

The research, led by a sociology doctoral student at The Ohio State University, was presented at a roundtable on Marriage and Family at the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association. They used data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth ’79, a nationally representative sample of men and women ages 14 to 22 in 1979. The same people were surveyed every year up to 1994 and every other year since then, reported a press release.

Data on more than 10,000 people surveyed from 1986 to 2008 was used to determine Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*

Drug Shown To Protect Obese Mice From The Diseases Of Obesity

I usually choose not to write about the “new new scientific thing” that gets picked up by the press,  because early research is usually not reproducible and good science takes a long time to validate as true.  But since we know that mice and rats that are kept on low-calorie diets live 30% longer (and healthier) than their fat cohorts, I was interested in a new research compound, SRT-1720,  that was shown to protect obese mice from diseases of obesity.  Fat mice lived 44% longer if they were given this drug.

The “designer” drug works by Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at EverythingHealth*

Antioxidant Potential: Spices Shown To Reduce Triglycerides

Spice_Bazaar by jefield via Flickr and a Creative Commons licenseThe Mediterranean diet has a new competitor, the spicy diet. Antioxidant spices may reduce the triglyceride response of a high-fat meal by 30% compared to the same meal without them, concluded a study.

The antioxidant potential of spices stems from their phenolic compounds, the authors wrote. Also, some spices increase the blood plasma concentrations of others, and spices are typically eaten as blends, making them good targets to study. Turmeric, cinnamon, rosemary, oregano, black pepper, cloves, garlic powder and paprika were on the short list that researchers examined.

The study compared results in Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*

Study Shows That Processed And Unprocessed Meats Pose A Diabetes Risk

Red Meat! by ThisParticularGreg via Flickr and a Creative Commons license

There’s a strong association between daily servings of red meat, especially processed meat, and a nearly 20% increased risk of type 2 diabetes, researchers found.

Replacing red meat with healthier proteins, such as low-fat dairy, nuts, or whole grains, can significantly lower the risk, according to a study was published online at the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Researchers reviewed questionnaire responses from 37,083 men followed for 20 years in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, from 79,570 women followed for 28 years in the Nurses’ Health Study I, and from 87,504 women followed for 14 years in the Nurses’ Health Study II. Diet was assessed by validated food-frequency questionnaires, and data were updated every four years. Diabetes was confirmed Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*

Latest Interviews

The Surprising Economic Burden Of ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)

If you can read this you need to download a more recent browser It is estimated that as many as million U.S. adults have ADHD Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder A recent research study publication-pending suggests that the economic burden of ADHD on America could be as high as billion annually. I…

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Is The Adderall Shortage A Harbinger Of Future Drug Supply Problems?

If you can read this you need to download a more recent browser Today most- if not all- Doctor’s offices are strained by the shortage of some prescription medication or vaccine. A month ago President Obama signed his executive order directing the FDA to take steps to reduce drug shortages…

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Latest Book Reviews

Book Review: The First Step To Improve Health Care Is A Close Examination Of How It’s Delivered

My friend and former Chair of the CFAH Board of Trustees Doug Kamerow has written a book that I think you will like. Besides being a mensch and witty as heck Doug is a family doctor and a preventive medicine specialist. In his new book Dissecting American Health Care Commentaries…

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“Your Medical Mind” Explores Factors That Influence A Patient’s Medical Decisions

Recently I had a conversation with Shannon Brownlee the widely respected science journalist and acting director of the Health Policy Program at the New America Foundation about whether men should continue to have access to the PSA test for prostate cancer screening despite the overwhelming evidence that it extends few…

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Book Review: Food Truths, Food Lies

Food Truths Food Lies written by family physician Eric Marcotte M.D. may be the most refreshingly evidence-based diet book of the decade. You will not find a single mention of super-foods magical berries or supplement must-haves in the entire book. What you will find is the cold hard truth about…

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