As many as 100,000 cases of cancer could be prevented in the U.S. each year if Americans get rid of their excess body fat.
That’s according to estimates released by the American Institute for Cancer Research. The estimates suggest that heart disease, diabetes, and joint problems aren’t the only illnesses in which rampant obesity is causing havoc.
The group says overweight and obesity could be the cause of more than 6% of all the estimated 1.6 million cancer cases diagnosed in the U.S. each year. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by admin | Posted in Cancer | Posted on 09-11-2009
Duke University researchers in mice have found that obesity alone cannot lead to osteoarthritis, a progressive musculoskeletal disorder that is characterized by loss of joint cartilage.
The researchers studied leptin-deficient mice to determine the role of obesity in developing knee osteoarthritis (OA).
In their opinion, obesity caused by a leptin deficiency would result in a higher incidence of knee OA.
Mice with a disruption of leptin signalling showed a 3-fold increase in body mass and 10-fold increase in body fat, but surprisingly did not display effects of knee OA.
The researchers compared leptin-deficient and leptin receptor-deficient female mice with wild-type mice to further understand the role this deficiency may play in increasing risk of knee OA. Read the rest of this entry »
Nearly half of patients who completed 56 weeks of treatment with Orexigen Therapeutics Inc’s experimental obesity treatment, Contrave, lost at least 10 percent of their weight in a late-stage study and the drug also appeared to help cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
The drug demonstrated an even greater improvement in non- weight loss measures in patients considered to be at high risk of heart disease, according to data released on Saturday.
Orexigen released top-line data in July from a trio of Phase III trials showing Contrave met its primary goal of at least 5 percent weight loss compared with a placebo. Read the rest of this entry »
When Kathy Perusse had weight-loss surgery and shed 120 pounds, she may have done more than make her own life easier.
She went on to have two daughters, and she may have boosted their chances of avoiding becoming obese, like her two older children are.
That’s the implication of research suggesting that something in an obese woman‘s womb can program her fetus toward becoming a fat child and adult. It’s not about simply passing along genes that promote obesity; it’s some sort of still-mysterious signal. Read the rest of this entry »
It’s becoming less common for diabetics to lose their vision, according to a new study.
Researchers in Wisconsin followed nearly 1,000 type-1 diabetics between 1980 and 2007. They found that visual impairment is less common among those diagnosed after 1970, according to Reuters. The results also took into account age, blood pressure and other factors that can affect sight in diabetics.
They say better blood sugar control and improved treatment of diabetes-related eye disorders are preventing more cases of visual impairment than in previous years. Read the rest of this entry »
A new report suggests sugary,calorie-packed drinks are making some Americans fatter.
Researchers from the Center for Public Health Advocacy and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research interviewed 42,000 Californians of all ages for the study.
They found that 24 percent of adults drink one or more non-diet sodas a day. They say those people are 27 percent more likely to be overweight than those who do not drink soda.
The results for children were even worse – with 41 percent of kids between the ages of two and 11, and 62 percent of adolescents (between the ages of 12 and 17), drinking at least one sugar-sweetened drink a day. Read the rest of this entry »
