Opinion As an NHS dietitian, I know this is not a healthy approach to food

Thursday, 12th December 2019, 12:09 pm

Updated Thursday, 12th December 2019, 1:50 pm

Nutrition is not as simple as calorie content. Oversimplifying it is dangerous

Food is so much more than its calorie content. It should be enjoyed, balanced and taste good.

Labelling food with how much walking or running it equates to, as proposed on Wednesday, will further damage society's relationship with food, demonising calories and promoting compensatory exercise. All, while not taking into account the calories required for our bodies to survive.

Calories are a measure of the energy our bodies need to function. It is wrong and potentially damaging to imply that each calorie consumed needs to be "burnt off". We use 60 to 75 per cent of our daily calories at rest, known as our basal metabolic rate. This can vary hugely from person to person and is affected by a multitude of factors including body composition, gender and health.

Exercise is framed here as a punishment for eating (Photo: Henning Kaiser/DPA/AFP/Getty)

We need these calories to perform basic functions like breathing, digestion, and temperature regulation. Being encouraged to use every calorie consumed - which I believe this physical activity calorie equivalent (PACE) food labelling would insinuate - is wrong and dangerous.

Beat, the eating disorders charity, estimates 1.25 million people in the UK have an eating disorder. Exercise is a common compensatory behaviour seen in patients with eating disorders and this proposal has the potential to trigger and hinder their recovery. I would even go as far to say that this calorie demonising labelling could increase the prevalence of disorders such as orthorexia - an unhealthy obsession with eating "pure food".

As an NHS dietitian, I consider having a healthy relationship with food to be the most important element of a balanced diet. A low-calorie diet does not equal a healthy or balanced one and focussing purely on the calorie content of food disregards its value from other important nutrients including protein, fibre, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals.

I spend most of my time helping patients find ways to increase the nutritional value of their diet, often by choosing calorie-dense foods to help ensure they are getting enough energy for their body to efficiently function and recover. A healthy diet is not one size fits all and PACE labelling could increase feelings of guilt and punishment around foods high in calories.

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The study behind this labelling recommendation found that when foods were displayed with exercise, fewer calories were selected when compared to comparative food labelling methods. There are many flaws to the practical application of this studies results.

The study did not look at long term results of this labelling method, consider the effect of PACE labelling on the participants relationship with food, assess if this had any effect on physical activity level, or measure participant weight changes. So it seems like a stretch to imply that this labelling method can improve health.

Exercise is framed here as a punishment for eating. We all know exercising is beneficial for health, it should be something that we enjoy and encouraged for all its great benefits for physical and mental health, not something to make up for food consumption or to shrink our bodies.

It is also misleading as an 18-year-old girl will not use the same amount of calories running for 20 minutes as a 50-year-old 100kg man. Furthermore, the PACE labelling method completely excludes anyone unable to walk or run. If this method was to be widely used it discriminates against anyone with mobility problems.

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Obesity is a complex issue affected by an individuals socioeconomic status, food environment, genetics, and education.

Ultimately, increased numbers of specialist health professionals, including psychologists and dietitians, and improved access to these services by the patients are whats required to support this issue.

Eloise Garbutt is an NHS dietitian.

See the article here:
Labelling food with exercise to 'burn it off' could increase obesity and eating disorders - inews

Edith Cowan University researchers have found that a chronic disease affecting up to 80 per cent of overweight people may be causing an iron deficiency that simply leaves them too tired to get off the couch.

Fatty liver disease affects about one in three Australians and is often associated with being overweight or obese. If left untreated, it can lead to liver cirrhosis, liver cancer and increase the risk of a heart attack.

But the remedy to lose weight through diet or exercise is often difficult to achieve for affected individuals.

In other words, it may not be laziness but lack of iron which is important for energy production that is stopping people with non-alcoholic liver disease from addressing their condition.

This research indicates that people with the condition may be physiologically incapable of exercise due to iron not being available for the body to use normally, which is very similar to the effects observed in people who have a true iron deficiency.

The new research, under the direction of lead researcher Professor John Olynyk, will help guide future treatment for people with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

The body is like a car

ECU researchers measured the cardiovascular fitness of 848 17-year-old West Australians enrolled in the well known Raine Study and found that those with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease had lower physical work capacity independent of their weight.,

This reduced physical work capacity was also strongly related to parameters suggesting that iron is not being made available to the body for normal metabolism.

Professor John Olynyk said the study showed that people with non-alcoholic-fatty-liver disease had lower cardiovascular fitness, which was likely caused by a functional iron deficiency.

We know that an iron deficiency can cause lethargy and fatigue, making it harder for people to exercise, he said.

What is likely happening is that non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is impeding the bodys ability to provide adequate iron into the blood to fuel processes such as energy and blood cell production.

To use an analogy, if you imagine the body as a car and iron as its fuel, what is likely happening is that there is plenty of iron, or fuel in the tank, but the non-alcoholic fatty liver disease has caused the fuel line to shrink, so theres not enough fuel can get to the engine.

Diet before exercise

Professor Olynyk said the findings were useful for guiding the treatment of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

The main treatment is lifestyle change aimed at reducing weight, primarily achieved through exercise and a modified diet, he said.

In particular, there is evidence published by other investigators in the field that the Mediterranean diet can reduce the severity of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. This is because it is high in foods like fruit and vegetables and whole grains, which have anti-inflammatory properties.

This research shows that it may be more effective to first focus on new ways to improve the availability of iron to the body, enabling diet and physical activity to have better and more sustained effects on weight and the severity of their non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Read the original here:
Diet, Not Exercise, May Be Key to Addressing Our Biggest Cause of Liver Disease - Global Health News Wire

The year is drawing to a close, and with that comes a wrap ofthe fitness and diet choices that ruled the web and influenced our health decisions for 12 months. To find out which workouts and diets shined bright in 2019, Google studied an aggregation of trillions of searches on its platform and combined it with data from Google Trends. The result? The top trending searches that had a high spike in traffic over a sustained period in 2019.

Popular favorites like the keto ultra diet and plank exercises made Googles Year in Search report along with newer breakout trends like the Dr. Sebi diet. Whether weight loss is at the top of your 2020 goals or youre exercising for the first time, check out the popular workout and diet searches from 2019.

Working Out While Traveling: How You Can Do a Total-Body Workout in Your Hotel Room

Workouts that saw a spike in 2019 were medicine ball workouts, flat stomach workouts, mirror workouts, the Bikini Body Guide workout andbody groove workouts a workout routine that relies on dance moves to help exercisers burn off calories.Bungee workouts, plank exercises and themanduu exercisea concept that uses electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) for a custom exercise experience also topped the list.Theone punch man workout, an anime-inspired workout, was also among the most searched work out terms.

A few diet regimens also saw a search increasein 2019. The intermittent fasting diet, 1200 calories diet, keto ultra diet and the GOLO diet were all common searches. The Dubrow diet, Sirtfood diet, endomorph diet,Dr. Sebi diet, Noom diet and the no carbs no sugar diet were also included in Google's list. Before embarking on any popular diet though you should be warned,many popular diets with have hidden side effects.

Read more from the original source:
The Top Trending Diet and Exercise Searches of 2019 - Yahoo Lifestyle

Andre Drummond is a lot of man: 610 and 279 pounds, to be more precise. Those measurements guarantee that the 26-year-old Detroit Pistons center isnt going to blend in with the masses while walking down the street, playing Top Golf, or bowling (the latter two are some of his favorite off-the-court activities), but hes mostly cool with that. Case and point: His Today With Dre series on Overtime, in which he allowed cameras to document the full extent of his comings and goings, including his musical-minded pursuits. The series shows hes a defensive menace whos just as unfazed by an incoming dunk attempt as he is the prospect of spitting bars at a venue. My music is a little bit of everythingR&B, hip-hop, EDM, he says. I have a bunch of songs that Ill get out sooner or later.

Like his Overtime series, Drummonds admitted beer-a-day habit has also piqued the Internets interest of late. But I wanted to find out what really gives him his pre-game fuel, so we chatted prior to him catching a flight to Chicago. Given Drummonds stature, you wouldnt be off-base assuming he eats enough to feed a family of four at every meal. As it turns out, however, the current league-leader in rebounds is only swallowing up boards at a proficient rate.

GQ: Youve been in the NBA for eight seasons now. Whats the best piece of advice youve been given about staying healthy since you started?

Andre Drummond: Its all about icing, stretching, the things you eat, the time you go to sleep, and the pregame preparation. I like to eat a lot of fruit and starchy things to give myself more energy before games. But its the off-the-court things, like how Im taking care of my body, that are most important.

What time do you usually get up in the morning?

Im up around 8 or 8:30. But if were talking about the morning after a game, then Im up much later, like 12ish. I try to get eight or nine hours of sleep a night, and if I dont, Ill make sure to take a nap.

Whats your breakfast routine?

I work directly with my personal chef on my breakfast and making sure I have enough fats and proteins to perform without overindulging. In the morning, Ill drink some water, and then its usually an omelet with some potatoes and veggies. Ill go for any vegetables except zucchini, really. I hate that stuff. Ive also cut out red meat and processed foods, which means that I dont eat steak or anything crazy like that. I feel a lot better since Ive done that. My diet is now a lot of fish and leafy green vegetables, except I dont like tilapia.

Are you a coffee person?

I drink coffee a lot before my games. I take it with cream and sugar.

Okay, so after the coffee, what happens?

Well my meals and overall food intake are pretty low, because I dont want to eat too heavy. Some days its just a bunch of fruit, plus the omelet with potatoes and veggies in it. Ill maybe have a cup of tea. I also take fish oil and vitamin D supplements. The natural sugar in the fruit plus some coffee before go-time acts as a natural pre-workout. I also usually drink Essentia Water and my chef makes his amazing homemade peanut butter chocolate chip protein bars. That's pretty much it. The last thing I want is to feel like Im weighed down on the court.

It sounds like youre not too big on lunches.

It really just depends on the day. Same for if I eat after the game, which depends on whether my adrenaline is still pumping. I definitely wont eat right away when were done playing. Usually my post-game meal is something like pasta to get the carbs back that Im missing. Over the past year, I completed a few physical tests to figure out what works best for my body, and I got leaner and stronger in the process. Ive tried a ton of different diets, but this has been one of my best seasons yet.

Has anyone ever told you that youre not eating enough?

I know what works for my body. I have a chef and we have a team nutritionist who helps us figure things out. When I wake up in the morning, the food stuff is all done. I just go down to the kitchen and grab it.

I read recently that you drink a beer every day. Whats the deal with that?

I went through a phase where I did that to make sure that I was getting in the calories I needed. If I drink a beer, its usually a Miller Lite or Corona. Sometimes, that one beer would get me to the right place, and especially in the summer, its nice. Now its not always the same routine.

You mentioned drinking water in the morning. How much are you consuming throughout the day?

I probably drink about a gallon-and-a-half a day. Im the guy thats carrying a jug with me everywhere I go.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Real-Life Diet is a series in which GQ talks to athletes, celebrities, and everyone in between about their diets and exercise routines: what's worked, what hasn't, and where they're still improving. Keep in mind, what works for them might not necessarily be healthy for you.

The Real-Life Diet of Gunnar Peterson, Trainer to the Los Angeles Lakers and Other Assorted Stars

Peterson wakes up at 3:45 a.m. so he can squeeze in his own workout before training clients like the Kardashians and Kate Beckinsale.

Originally Appeared on GQ

See more here:
The Real-Life Diet of Andre Drummond, Whose Offseason Routine Featured a Beer a Day - Yahoo Lifestyle

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How a decade of major discoveries has dramatically changed how we think about conception.

On July 24, 2003, Robert G. Edwards, a physiologist who pioneered the in vitro fertilization technique, made the following remark: I wanted to find out exactly who was in charge, whether it was God himself or whether it was scientists in the laboratory, adding, It was us.

Since the first I.V.F. baby was born in 1978 25 years before Dr. Edwards made that statement and 32 years before he would win the Nobel Prize in Medicine for developing the technique the seemingly supernatural ability to unite sperm and eggs outside the body and implant them directly into the womb has been heralded as the most remarkable achievement in fertility to date. Its allowed millions of babies to be born that otherwise would not have been born; I think its been revolutionary, said Dr. Mindy Christianson, M.D., medical director of the Johns Hopkins Fertility Center.

Now, as this decade comes to a close, what kinds of major advancements in fertility science have we seen since 2010? While were still a far cry from a future in which a woman can analyze her egg reserve with the tap of a smartphone, or in which a man can get a running tally of his sperm count with the flick of a smartwatch, the past 10 years have been no less remarkable than decades past. Here are some of the biggest breakthroughs in fertility since 2010.

Scientists have been able to easily freeze embryos and sperm for decades, but it wasnt until 2012 that egg freezing went from an experimental procedure to a promising insurance policy for thousands of women in the United States, including cancer patients, single women and those who want or need to delay having children. The ability to successfully freeze eggs over the last 10 years has been one of the bigger, if not the biggest, achievement, Dr. Christianson said.

This is largely because of the development of a flash-freezing technique called vitrification. Previously, human eggs which are the largest cells in the human body and hold a lot of water were challenging to freeze because ice crystals would develop and damage the cell. But with vitrification, experts can freeze the cells so quickly that ice crystals dont have a chance to form.

[Wait, is that another ad for egg freezing?]

I.V.F. is expensive, not to mention emotionally and physically taxing. Its important, then, that providers select the best and most competent embryos from the petri dish in the lab to implant into the womb. While experts have for more than 10 years been able to scan the genetic material of these rudimentary cells for signs that they might fail to implant or result in miscarriage or birth defects, genetic testing of embryos has become more mainstream, affordable and reliable in the past decade.

When I was still in training seven or eight years ago, Dr. Christianson said, it was cost-prohibitive for most patients to do genetic testing of their embryos. Today, she said, companies charge per embryo, making it much more affordable.

Another advancement that has allowed providers to select the most robust embryos to implant: the ability to grow them in the lab until they reach what is called the blastocyst stage (which occurs five or six days after fertilization). If an embryo is healthy enough to survive until this stage outside the body, the thinking goes, it has a higher chance of sticking around after implantation. Such advances in selecting the best embryos have also allowed providers to transfer just one, rather than multiple, embryos into the womb at a time, reducing the risk of twins or more and thereby reducing risk in the pregnancy.

With the right embryo, most women will have a very high chance of live birth, and were able to decrease that risk of multiples, Dr. Christianson said. So I think thats one of the revolutionary breakthroughs.

[Read more about I.V.F. and what it costs.]

Before the 2010s, the only parenting options for women who didnt have a uterus or who couldnt carry a pregnancy were adoption or surrogacy. But in 2013, doctors in Sweden made history after a 35-year-old patient, who had had a uterus from a 61-year-old woman transplanted, gave birth to a healthy boy. In 2016, doctors in Brazil advanced the technique even further, announcing that a 32-year-old woman had given birth with a uterus that had been transplanted from a deceased donor.

While these breakthroughs are huge for reproductive science, Dr. Christianson said, uterine transplants are also expensive. Its the only transplant we know of that is for a one-time use to make a baby and then you dont need the transplant anymore, she said. So while this procedure is revolutionary for the right type of patient, it most likely wont become mainstream.

One of the biggest achievements for male infertility, said Dr. Peter Schlegel, M.D., urologist in chief at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center and president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, has been in the treatment of those with severe infertility. Particularly in men who produce little to no sperm, he said, or who had previously been rendered sterile because of treatments like chemotherapy.

A technique called micro-TESE which was developed in the late 1990s, improved in the 2000s and more popularized in the past decade, Dr. Schlegel said involves identifying areas of the testicle that have the best sperm production and microsurgically removing those sperm for use with assisted reproductive technologies like I.V.F.

A lot of those men are now considered treatable, Dr. Schlegel said, whereas before, our understanding of how and whether you could treat them was pretty limited.

[What to know about male infertility.]

Intrauterine devices have had a decidedly rocky past. The first known IUD-like device for humans, developed in 1909, reportedly involved inserting a ring made of silkworm gut seriously into the uterus. Since then, IUDs have advanced from silkworm rings wrapped entirely in silver (which, surprise, turned womens gums blackish-blue) to countless variations of loops, coils and plastic Ts. In the 1970s, the Dalkon Shield IUD was infamously pulled from the market after its poor design increased womens risk of infection and infertility. But in the late 1980s and early 2000s, the IUD regained popularity with the Food and Drug Administrations approval of the copper ParaGard and levonorgestrel-releasing Mirena.

It wasnt until 12 years later, in 2013, that the F.D.A. approved the next IUD, the Skyla, which is a low-dose hormonal option. In 2015 and 2016, the agency approved even lower-dose options the Liletta and the Kyleena. These IUDS have really revolutionized contraception because theyre highly effective and they are very well tolerated, Dr. Christianson said.

They are also valuable therapies for women with certain conditions, like heavy uterine bleeding, which in the past was mainly treated by performing a hysterectomy. Less women are undergoing hysterectomies because their symptoms can be treated with an IUD, Dr. Christianson said.

For women who cant freeze their eggs, like prepubescent girls or women who suddenly need cancer treatment, ovarian tissue freezing has offered a chance for them to preserve their ovaries for later reimplantation and use. The procedure has been available for about 20 years, Dr. Christianson said, but within the past 10 years, there have been several advances in the technique and more live births as a result.

Because most people who have frozen ovarian tissue havent needed to use it yet, the procedure is still considered experimental. Hopefully at some point the experimental label will be lifted, Dr. Christianson said.

Its perhaps not surprising that diet, sleep and exercise play a role in fertility. And while scientists are still in the early stages of sussing out how the food we eat and the sleep and exercise we get translate to prolificacy, recent albeit limited evidence is offering more clues.

A 2018 review from scientists from Harvard University, for instance, found that folic acid, vitamin B-12, omega-3 fatty acids and a Mediterranean diet were linked with better fertility in women, while unhealthy diets, like those high in trans fats, red and processed meats, added sugars and sugar-sweetened beverages, were associated with worse fertility. In men, similarly, researchers have found that those who follow healthy diets tend to have better fertility, while those with diets high in saturated and trans fats are worse off.

There is also budding evidence about how exercise and sleep affect virility in men, Dr. Schlegel said and some of the results seem counterintuitive. Moderate exercise, for instance, seems to be beneficial, but when those men exercise more vigorously such as by cycling for more than five hours per week, he said their sperm counts can be reduced by nearly half. Men who get six to eight hours of sleep per night tend to have better sperm production and fertility than those who get more or less, Dr. Schlegel said.

While many of these studies are promising, most are based on observational data, Dr. Schlegel said, so its not yet clear why researchers are seeing such associations, or whether changes to diet, sleep and exercise can really alter your fertility in the first place.

[Does stress actually affect fertility?]

For the bulk of the past century, fertile and pregnant women have been excluded from most clinical trials over fears of potential harms to future or current pregnancies. But as a result, there is a huge gap in knowledge about how safe and effective certain drugs are for women in general (case in point, the thalidomide debacle of the 1950s and 1960s).

More recently, there has been a major push for better representation of women in medical research.

For womens health in general, I think that this is a breakthrough, Dr. Christianson said. When we look at cardiology studies and other types of studies, a lot of times theres been more men than women. So I think focusing studies on women has been revolutionary for womens health.

While the textbook signs and symptoms of pre-eclampsia have been well understood high blood pressure, protein in the urine, swelling, headache, trouble breathing and more scientists still dont understand what causes the condition, and diagnosing it and predicting those who will develop it are challenging. Similarly, the most effective treatment for pre-eclampsia is also the least satisfying one delivery.

But research in recent years has helped improve our understanding of how the condition progresses in the body, said Dr. Ananth Karumanchi, M.D., a professor of medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. And that research has led to development of the first blood test which has been widely used abroad that can accurately diagnose the condition in women who have pre-eclampsia. While the test has not yet been approved in the United States, Dr. Karumanchi said that its development was a big deal because it might lead to new therapies for pre-eclampsia within the next decade.

The definition of pre-eclampsia was revised in 2014, based on new evidence, to capture women who have the condition but who dont have only the classic signs, like high blood pressure and protein in their urine. Now, for instance, it is well understood that some women may have only organ problems, such as with their liver or kidneys, before high blood pressure and protein in the urine set in.

New research has also offered clues on how women who are high risk might thwart the condition completely. A double-blind, placebo-controlled trial published in 2017, for example, found that taking 150 milligrams of aspirin daily from 11 to 14 weeks of pregnancy through the 36th week could reduce the chances of developing pre-eclampsia. Though because high doses of aspirin can also be associated with certain risks to a pregnancy, like pregnancy loss or certain birth defects, you should never start taking it without consulting your doctor.

In the past, a cervical cancer diagnosis might have meant the end of your ability to conceive, because standard treatment was to remove all or part of the uterus. But recent advances in fertility-conserving surgeries have given cancer patients more options. A procedure called a trachelectomy, for instance, which has been around for decades but has become more commonly used in recent years, allows doctors to remove only the cervix in patients who have cervical cancer. And as a result, shes able to preserve her uterus for future pregnancy, Dr. Christianson said.

Similarly, there has been a push in recent years to treat endometrial cancer more conservatively, Dr. Christianson said, by trying hormonal therapies before removing the uterus.

Julia Calderone is a senior staff editor for NYT Parenting. Follow her @juliacalderone.

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NYT Parenting provides guidance and support to new and expecting parents. We publish evidence-based guides and developmental milestones backed by the journalistic rigor of The New York Times. Our reporting helps you make decisions for your family, and our essays tell personal stories about all the ways you can become a parent and live a full life with children.

Continued here:
10 Years of Fertility Advances - NYT Parenting - NYT Parenting

Nearly a fifth of the nations youngestuninsured children live in Texas, a stark reminder that the state has some of the most restrictive policies in the nation governing healthcare benefits for its most vulnerable residents.

More than 8% of Texan children under the age of 6 are not insured, according to a report released Wednesday by Georgetown University researchers. Thats almost double the national rate.

The report is not surprising. A similar report, released in October, found that Texas had the highest uninsured rate in the nation among all children up to age 18.

Still, Elisabeth Wright Burak, one of the report's authors, called the study's results very sobering, citing the recent reversal in a decade-long trend of falling uninsured rates.

Texas' increasing rate of uninsured small children mirrors a national trend, which has policy experts like Burak worried. The last few years have been a period of strong economic expansion, when more people would typically seek health insurance.

But since 2016, Texas' uninsured rate among young children increased by a percentage point.

They already have a lot of uninsured kids, and theyre going in the wrong direction, Burak said, referring to states like Texas during a webcast announcing the report.Medicaid enrollment has been linked to a variety of better outcomes later in life, from financial security to college completion, she added.

Only Alaska has a higher uninsured rate among children under age 6, a consequence of that states large population of indigenous people, who are far more likely to be uninsured. Texas problem, however, can be traced directly to decisions by state policymakers.

Whether children are insured depends on their parents. Those who can't afford it often obtain coverage through government programs like Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program, and participation by parents in these programs has been linked to a variety of better outcomes for their children later in life, from financial security to college completion, Burak said.

Texas is one of 14 states where policymakers have elected to not accept federal funding to expand Medicaid coverage to more low-income families. Young children are more likely to be covered in states that have adopted the Medicaid expansion,Burakadded.

The crisis disproportionately impacts Hispanic families. Nearly 15% of Hispanic minors in Texas are uninsured, according to a separate report by the Georgetown researchers.

The Trump administration recently published changes to the "public charge" rule this year, which would allow immigration officials to consider enrollment in Medicaid when reviewing applications for green cards. The changes were blocked by federal judges after several states filed suit, but two of those injunctions have been lifted in recent weeks, paving the way for an eventual implementation of the rule change.

Around a quarter of Texas children have at least one parent who is not a citizen, according to theCenter for Public Policy Priorities, an Austin-based policy institute. The latest numbers on low insurance rates among Hispanic children reinforce reports of the impending rule's "chilling effect." Immigrants, reports say, are forgoing lawful benefits out of fear of later being denied citizenship.

The state has put up other roadblocks as well. According to research by the center, participation in the state's Medicaid and CHIP programs has dropped in recent years, a result of cuts in outreach funding and new rules that add extensive red tape to the programs' enrollment process.

The cost of paying for care of the uninsured ultimately falls on taxpayers. In 2018 alone, the Parkland Health and Hospital System gave out more than $1 billion in un-reimbursed care. A third of its budget comes from local property taxes.

The hospital stations social workers and financial counselors in its maternity wards to assist uninsured mothers in accessing benefits, saidBart Ensley, the hospital's director of patient access.

"We try to do what we can to help," he said.The hospital is expanding pediatric care to community clinics across the Dallas area to make follow-up appointments more convenient.

David Murphy, a researcher at the think tank Child Trends, explained to the Observer earlier this year how a lack of health insurance can create mounting problems for young kids, from irregular visits to the pediatrician to missed immunizations.

When children don't have that regular check-in with a pediatrician or family practice provider, issues around sleep, diet, exercise those kinds of things that are really important to stay healthy and to do well in school those can suffer, he said.

Lucas Manfield is an editorial fellow at the Observer. He's a former software developer and a recent graduate of Columbia Journalism School.

Go here to read the rest:
More and More Very Young Children Across the Nation Lack Health Insurance. Guess How Texas Fares. - Dallas Observer

2. Drink lots of water

What would party season be without a festive tipple or two? Dont deny yourself that glass of bubbly - or the deluxe hot chocolate with lashings of cream - but do remember to regularly drink water.

Drinking plenty of water not only suppresses appetite; it also boosts your metabolism, helping you to digest the festive treats faster and more efficiently, Virtue said.

3. Optimise your workout

If youre particularly short on time over the Christmas season, plan a more intensive workout to get the most of your workout window, suggested Virtue.

Try VIIT (variable intensity interval training) to target all the muscles in your body, as well as the various energy systems; this will improve strength and endurance, while burning more calories.

Whatever your preferred exercise is, there are ways to increase your gains in a shorter workout time.

For example, when practicing yoga, intersperse your poses with quick blasts of cardio, or practice poses whilst holding weights for extra burn. If you prefer strength-training, try increasing your weights - this will induce muscle fatigue faster, shortening your workout time, said Virtue.

See original here:
Fitness: Five expert tips for staying in shape over the festive season - Express

Diabetes can be reversed in just 4 MONTHS through a combination of drugs, exercising and a healthy diet

Diabetes can be reversed in just four months by intensive medical treatment, new research shows.

Despite being considered a condition that cant be cured, scientists have managed to dispel the myth.

In the latest clinical trial, a combination of pills, insulin, diet and exercise allowed 40 per cent of type of type 2 patients to enter remission.

The results could shift the paradigm of treatment away from one that simply manages blood sugar levels.

Study Dr Natalia McInnes, of McMaster University, Canada said: The findings support the notion that type 2 diabetes can be reversed.

The research might shift the paradigm of treating diabetes from simply controlling glucose to an approach where we induce remission and then monitor patients for any signs of relapse.

The idea of reversing the disease is very appealing to individuals with diabetes. It motivates them to make significant lifestyle changes and to achieve normal glucose levels with the help of medications.

This likely gives pancreas a rest and decreases fat stores in the body, which in turn improves insulin production and effectiveness.

As the condition progresses, sufferers often need to maintain a healthy diet, exercise and a combination of medications to manage it.

But the researchers wanted to test other possible methods and so divided 83 sufferers of the condition into three separate groups.

Trendy gluten-free diets may increase the risk of developing diabetes, a study warned last week.

Scientists said those who have low levels of gluten in their diet had a 13 percent higher risk of developing type 2 than those with higher levels.

Harvard researchers looked at the gluten intake for almost 200,000 participants in three long-term health studies,

The eating plan is advocated by celebrities such as actress Gwyneth Paltrow and Victoria Beckham.

Two were given an intensive intervention with a personalised exercise plan and cut their calorie intake by 750 a day.

Half underwent the lifestyle changes for eight weeks, while the rest were treated for four months.

The control group received the standard lifestyle advice given to all patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

After the treatment finished, both sets of participants stopped taking their diabetes medications to test the effects.

Three months after the intervention, 11 out of 27 people in the four month treatment plan met the criteria for remission.

Only four out of the 28 in the control group ticked the same boxes, according to the study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

Sufferers undergoing the eight week plan fared slightly better, with six out of the 28 entering remission.

Maggie Meer, organiser of the Diabetes Professional Care conference said: This study, whilst showing significant positive results, also shows that what is missing in the real world is a focus on patients as individuals.

This study gives proof that reversal is possible and touches on the need for flexibility in how patients are put onto a programme.

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Diabetes can be reversed in just 4 MONTHS - Stock Daily Dish

Alison Hammond is an English showbiz presenter who appears on the daytime TV show, This Morning. The bubbly host shot to fame after appearing on the third series of Big Brother and has since taken part on shows including Im a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! and Strictly Come Dancing. Alison has recently slimmed down - did she follow a diet plan?

This week, Alison has been giving This Morning viewers all the latest news from Im A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here!.

In a recent post, she shared a snap of her on the set of the This Morning showing off her new slim frame.

The presenter looked trim in a black and white outfit and fans were quick to praise her weight loss.

One wrote: You are an inspiration I can see the results of WW.

READ MORE: Weight loss: One woman lost a remarkable six stone with this plan - what did she eat?

Looking good WW suiting u, another fan added.

In April this year, Alison was announced as an ambassador for Weight Watchers, now WW, and embarked on a fitness journey.

By using the programme, she changed her diet plan and exercise routine which helped her start to slim down.

Speaking of the company, she said: My WW journey is focused on getting healthier for myself. I feel rubbish when I dont eat properly or exercise and WW helps me with what I eat and do.

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"I want my journey to empower others to think about making changes to their lifestyle to become the best version of themselves."

The presenter will often share clips of her working out in the gym as part of her new healthy lifestyle.

In the clips, it appears Alison likes to stay trim by focusing on weight exercises with her personal trainer.

She wrote: Train with Ali. Trainers and clients who train together stay together. Smashing it.

A similar post was captioned: Come train with me and @ellisgatfield , are you ready babes ?

Lets do this . Trainer and client who train together stay together !! #fitness #wellbeing

Alison has struggled with her weight over the years and previously opened up about dieting.

In 2016, she told Bella magazine: Its the one thing in my life that I feel like I cant achieve. When you get really big like me, you dont see any light at the end of the tunnel.

I need to do it in small stages. If I just try and live healthily and drink lots of water, the weight loss will come.

If I lose one or two stone, its not going to be obvious to anybody, but Ill feel better in myself.

Those who follow the WW plan focus on creating healthy habits including weight loss, maintenance, fitness and mindset.

Since joining the programme, fans have been able to see the showbiz host has slimmed down with diet and exercise.

She will regularly share pictures of her working out online showing she has kept up the gym workouts.

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Alison Hammond weight loss: How did she slim down? This Morning star followed this plan - Express

Dan Buettner, a continent-trekking cyclist and storyteller, figured out that the world consisted of at least five "Blue Zones," in the early 2000s. That's when he made the term, which was first coined by the European demographers Michel Poulain and Gianni Pes, a household phrase in a best-selling cover story for National Geographic.

In this handful of hidden corners scattered across the globe, he discovered that people were sailing past the 100-year mark with surprising frequency, and often avoiding dementia.

People residing in these Blue Zones are outliving us because they have figured out what others have not, according to Buettner. They consistently eat a healthful diet, and they also move around about every 20 minutes or so during each day.

But he says it took him years after that initial discovery to figure out exactly why the rest of us are getting the simple diet and exercise formula so wrong.

"People start thinking that the entrance way to a healthier lifestyle for most Americans is through their mouths," he told Insider. "But the core tenant of Blue Zones, and it took me about 10 years to realize what I'm about to tell you, none of them have better discipline, better diets, better individual responsibility, they don't have better genes than us."

Instead, "they live a long time because longevity happens to them," Buettner said.

The homegrown, plant-based diets of the Blue Zones residents are only about half of the longevity equation, Buettner estimates. The rest is about making healthy choices the easiest ones by turning them into instinctual rituals of daily life that people don't have to think about or use willpower to fight for.

Namely, Blue Zones residents found in Sardinia, Italy; Okinawa, Japan; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Ikaria, Greece; and Loma Linda, California move consistently through each day, live with purpose, and do it all with a little help from their friends.

Buettner has successfully trialed this holistic approach in cities and towns across the US, with stunning success. In 2009, he piloted his first "Blue Zones Project" in Albert Lea, Minnesota. The goal was to reverse-engineer it into a Midwestern Blue Zone.

"If you want to live longer and be healthier, don't try to change your behaviors, because that never lasts for the long run," he said. "Think about changing your environment."

For Albert Lea, that meant the town of roughly 18,000 people was pushed to do more daily movement, with citywide changes that turned healthful actions into the simplest choices.

The city added 10 miles of sidewalks and bike lanes for its residents, and local businesses made it easier to pick and eat healthy food. People started walking more and creating their own strolling groups that hit the streets together, collectively shedding 4 tons of weight (an average of 2.6 pounds per person). Smoking went down by 4% during the first five years of the program.

"When I started four years ago, I had high cholesterol and high blood pressure," Albert Lea City Council Member Al Brooks told MinnPost in 2015, saying he started walking 2.5 miles a day since the city turned into a Blue Zone. "My cholesterol is lower, my blood pressure is 116/70, and I lost 15 pounds."

Buettner has now consulted with dozens of other "Blue Zone Project" cities around the US that are trying his "ecosystem approach" to health and longevity, and saving millions of dollars in health insurance costs in the process.

The city of Fort Worth, Texas, for example, reduced its smoking rate 6% after partnering with Buettner in 2013. Fort Worth now saves an estimated $268 million annually as a result of that one action alone.That figure doesn't even account for the tens of millions of dollars in other health care costs saved because of Blue Zone-inspired programs in the city.

But making it a habit to ditch smoking and move around throughout the day doesn't mean you should neglect eating the crunchy vegetables, beans, fresh herbs, and oils that are so popular in the Blue Zones. Instead, Buettner's eating advice aligns with what nutrition experts and dietitians consistently recommend.

He suggests formulating your diet around plants, including plenty of complex carbohydrates (like beans and whole grains) and making convenience snack foods, desserts, and trips to fast food joints the exception, not the norm.

"When it comes to longevity, there's no short term fix," Buettner said."There's no pill or supplement or hormone. If you're not going to do something for years or decades, don't even bother with it."

Buettner's new "Blue Zones Kitchen" cookbook is filled with vegetarian recipes from each of the five Blue Zones, but he says you don't have to buy his tome to try out the eating technique. Instead, find "five or 10 recipes that you love." Then make those foods, along with some consistent, regular movement at home, an integral part of your daily routine. You can even get lazy and skip the gym.

"The secret to eating for 100 is to find the plant-based foods, heavy with beans and grains and vegetables, and learn how to like 'em," he said.

Update: A previous version of this story mentioned Belgian professor Michel Poulainas the inventor of the phrase "Blue Zone." His work was done in partnership with Italian biochemist and demographer Gianni Pes, whose name we've now included.

Original post:
The man who unlocked the world's secret to living to age 100 says you can skip the gym - INSIDER