Bananas are as beneficial as sports drinks, study suggests. Bananas have long been a favorite source of energy for endurance and recreational athletes. Bananas are a rich source of potassium and other nutrients, and are easy for cyclists, runners or hikers to carry. Research conducted at Appalachian State University's Human Performance Lab in the Kannapolis-based North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC) has revealed additional benefits.
"We wanted to see which was more beneficial when consumed during intense cycling -- bananas or a carbohydrate sports drink," said Dr. David C. "We found that not only was performance the same whether bananas or sports drinks were consumed, there were several advantages to consuming bananas," he said. The bananas provided the cyclists with antioxidants not found in sports drinks as well as a greater nutritional boost, including fiber, potassium and Vitamin B6, the study showed. "Bananas come prepackaged with fiber, nutrients and antioxidants," said Nieman, adding the research translates to any exercise. The BMJ's Amazing Shock and Awe Assault on Sport Drink Science. Wow.
Wow, WOw, WOW! What words would you use to describe a situation where one of the world's most prominent medical journal publishes, not just one article critical of a specific category of food, but seven such articles, and where those articles come to the conclusion that the food is being marketing on the basis of food industry funded hype and collusion? I'd use the words, "Thank You"! You'll definitely hear about it in the news today as the British Medical Journal has 7 incendiary pieces that are highly critical of sport and energy drinks, their Big Food parents and the researchers that are conflicted by them. The first piece, Research: The evidence underpinning sports performance products: a systematic assessment has researchers analyzing sport drink advertising and identifying an astonishing 431 performance enhancing claims for 104 different products.
"84% were judged to be at high risk of bias", while only 3 were deemed to be of high quality and of low risk of bias. If coffee perks you up, you need to STOP drinking it. Scientists differ on the effects of caffeine, but a new study reveals that...Coffee-drinkers aren't more alert than their caffeine-free counterpartsWhat's more, regular consumption of tea and coffee leads to dependency By Kate Wighton Published: 21:37 GMT, 17 June 2013 | Updated: 07:19 GMT, 18 June 2013 Every morning, millions of people perform an essential daily ritual - having their first cup of tea or coffee. It concentrates the mind and acts as a pick-me-up. Or does it? The latest research suggests that familiar buzz doesn't so much as give us a lift, but fights the caffeine withdrawal symptoms - fatigue, mental fogginess and a dull headache - that have kicked in since our last cup.
Indeed, experts suggest that this morning ritual is actually a sign of mass drug dependency. Shaking the habitual: Many can't start the day without a cup of tea or coffee, but it's been proven that caffeine doesn't actually jump start your brain 'They just don't function normally without the drug on board. The Truth About Aspartame and Your Health. 7 Foods You Should Never Eat. Food scientists are shedding light on items loaded with toxins and chemicals--and simple swaps for a cleaner diet and supersized health. Clean eating means choosing fruits, vegetables, and meats that are raised, grown, and sold with minimal processing. Often they're organic, and rarely (if ever) should they contain additives. But in some cases, the methods of today's food producers are neither clean nor sustainable. The result is damage to our health, the environment, or both.
So we decided to take a fresh look at food through the eyes of the people who spend their lives uncovering what's safe--or not--to eat. 1. The problem: The resin linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that has been linked to ailments ranging from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. The solution: Choose tomatoes in glass bottles (which do not need resin linings), such as the brands Bionaturae and Coluccio. Pile Your Plate with These 25 Nutrition Superstars 2. 3. 4. Dieting? Study challenges notion that a calorie is just a calorie. A new study published June 26 in the Journal of American Medical Association challenges the notion that "a calorie is a calorie. " The study, led by Cara Ebbeling, PhD, associate director and David Ludwig, MD, director of the New Balance Foundation Obesity Prevention Center Boston Children's Hospital, finds diets that reduce the surge in blood sugar after a meal--either low-glycemic index or very-low carbohydrate-may be preferable to a low-fat diet for those trying to achieve lasting weight loss.
Furthermore, the study finds that the low-glycemic index diet had similar metabolic benefits to the very low-carb diet without negative effects of stress and inflammation as seen by participants consuming the very low-carb diet. Weight re-gain is often attributed to a decline in motivation or adherence to diet and exercise, but biology also plays an important role. After weight loss, the rate at which people burn calories (known as energy expenditure) decreases, reflecting slower metabolism. More protein, less refined starch important for dieting, large study shows. Researchers at the Faculty of Life Sciences (LIFE), University of Copenhagen, can now unveil the results of the world's largest diet study: If you want to lose weight, you should maintain a diet that is high in proteins with more lean meat, low-fat dairy products and beans and fewer finely refined starch calories such as white bread and white rice. With this diet, most people can also eat until they are full without counting calories and without gaining weight.
Finally, the extensive study concludes that the official dietary recommendations are not sufficient for preventing obesity. The large-scale random study called Diogenes has investigated the optimum diet composition for preventing and treating obesity. The results were recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The five diet types The design comprised the following five diet types: A high-protein, low-GI diet works best The children's study Proteins and low-GI foods ad libitum -- the way ahead About glycemic index. Junk food inflames fatty tissue more than lard. UNC-CHAPEL HILL (US) — A diet based on US junk food may result in more obesity-induced inflammation than a diet high in animal fat, according to a new study.
The study analyzed inflammatory responses in rats fed different diets: control diets, a lard-based high-fat diet, and a “cafeteria junk-food” diet consisting of nutrient-poor snacks such as salami, chocolate, cookies, and chips. “The diet that consisted of human junk food caused the most inflammation and dramatic metabolic changes,” says Liza Makowski, assistant professor of nutrition at the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health and the study’s senior author.
A junk-food diet contains many ingredients associated with increased risk for coronary artery disease, stroke, and Type 2 diabetes, including saturated fat, trans-fats, sodium, and cholesterol. The diet also is low in protective nutrients such as fiber. “Biomarkers revealed in our study could be useful in future studies,” says Makowski.
Trans Fats Linked With Aggression, Study Finds. Feeling crabby? Maybe you should put the onion rings down. According to a new study in the journal PLoS ONE, there may be a link between eating dietary trans fatty acids -- known as trans fats, and found in foods from French fries to some cake mixes -- and being irritable and aggressive. "If the association between trans fats and aggressive behavior proves to be causal, this adds further rationale to recommendations to avoid eating trans fats, or including them in foods provided at institutions like schools and prisons," study researcher Dr. Beatrice Golomb, M.D., Ph.D., an associate professor at the University of California San Diego department of medicine, said in a statement.
That's because "the detrimental effects of trans fats may extend beyond the person who consumes them to affect others," she added. For the study, Golomb and colleagues examined the dietary information of 945 men and women, and also conducted behavioral assessments on them. French Fries Eh -- doesn't sound so bad.
More trans fat consumption linked to greater aggression, researchers find. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have shown -- by each of a range of measures, in men and women of all ages, in Caucasians and minorities -- that consumption of dietary trans fatty acids (dTFAs) is associated with irritability and aggression. The study of nearly 1,000 men and women provides the first evidence linking dTFAs with adverse behaviors that impacted others, ranging from impatience to overt aggression. The research, led by Beatrice Golomb, MD, PhD, associate professor in the UC San Diego Department of Medicine, has been published online by PLoS ONE.
Dietary trans fatty acids are primarily products of hydrogenation, which makes unsaturated oils solid at room temperature. They are present at high levels in margarines, shortenings and prepared foods. Adverse health effects of dTFAs have been identified in lipid levels, metabolic function, insulin resistance, oxidation, inflammation, and cardiac health.
Organic. Vitamins. Sugar. Gluten. Fasting. Dairy. Potatoes reduce blood pressure in people with obesity and high blood pressure. The potato's stereotype as a fattening food for health-conscious folks to avoid is getting another revision as scientists report that just a couple servings of spuds a day reduces blood pressure almost as much as oatmeal without causing weight gain. Scientists reported on the research, done on a group of overweight people with high blood pressure, at the 242nd National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), being held in Denver the week of August 29.
But don't reach for the catsup, vinegar or mayonnaise. The research was not done with French fries, America's favorite potato, but with potatoes cooked without oil in a microwave oven. Although researchers used purple potatoes, they believe that red-skin potatoes and white potatoes may have similar effects. "The potato, more than perhaps any other vegetable, has an undeserved bad reputation that has led many health-conscious people to ban them from their diet," said Joe Vinson, Ph.D., who headed the research. Eggs: Forget high cholesterol warnings, they're healthier than ever.
By Sophie Borland Updated: 10:39 GMT, 14 February 2011 Good egg: The high cholesterol content which previously made eggs a health risk is now much lower compared to ten years ago If you're eyeing up your breakfast options and fancy going to work on an egg, there’s no need to hold back. For after years of telling us to shun them as an everyday food, the health police now say that eggs have become better for us. The cholesterol content of eggs – which was previously believed to be a health risk – is now much lower compared with ten years ago, a study suggests. Eggs also contain more vitamin D, which helps protect the bones, preventing diseases such as osteoporosis and rickets.
The reason eggs have become more nutritious over the past decade is that hens are no longer fed bone meal, which was banned in the Nineties following the BSE crisis, the researchers claim. Two years ago Canadian researchers claimed that eggs actually helped lower blood pressure. Caloriegallery.com home. Sports Are 80 Percent Mental: Just Pretend Those Carrots Are Cheese Fries. What Does 300 Calories Really Look Like? Wonder what 300 calories looks like? 300 calories look drastically different when you're eating in instead of dining out. Choosing healthier, more nutritious foods--at home and away--means you can eat much more food and still lose weight.
Check out these 18 meal comparisons to see for yourself, share forward this story to your friends! Breakfast: 300-Calorie Meals & Portions Here are three morning meals that each weigh in at 300 calories. Healthy and quick homemade meals (left column) pack whole grains, fresh fruit, and protein--a filling combination that will keep you fuller longer. You could only eat a fraction of the comparable restaurant meals (right column) for the same number of calories. Get more healthy breakfast ideas here. Be sure to "Pin" this for future reference and click to the next page for lunch options. It's Time to End the War on Salt. Eating Under the Influence (EUI): 7 Dietary Dangers of Drinking Alcohol. Contributor: “Dr. J” Dr. J offers his irreverent, slightly irrelevant, but possibly useful opinions on health and fitness.
A Florida surgeon and fitness freak with a black belt in karate, he runs 50 miles a week and flies a Cherokee Arrow 200. (CC) davidgsteadman/Flickr With the joys of the holidays and the recent New Year’s celebration, have you by chance found yourself caught by that speed-binging trap for that shameful behavior of Eating Under the Influence (EUI)? If so, you are not alone in being issued a citation for that risky transgression of EUI! Sure, you may have great, or not so great, memories from your former wild and crazy days when your EUI-stimulated creativity allowed you to invent some memorable, early-morning meals like cookie soup or Twinkies in chocolate syrup, followed by a round of Tortilla chips covered with cinnamon, dunked in the melted ice cream du noir.
Calories in Alcohol There are 7 calories in each gram of alcohol. Drinking Alcohol… Makes you hungry. Summary. Link Between Alcohol And Cancer Explained: Alcohol Activates Cellular Changes That Make Tumor Cells Spread. Alcohol consumption has long been linked to cancer and its spread, but the underlying mechanism has never been clear. Now, researchers at Rush University Medical Center have identified a cellular pathway that may explain the link. In a study published in a recent issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, the researchers found that alcohol stimulates what is called the epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition, in which run-of-the-mill cancer cells morph into a more aggressive form and begin to spread throughout the body. "Our data are the first to show that alcohol turns on certain signals inside a cell that are involved in this critical transition," said Christopher Forsyth, PhD, assistant professor of medicine and biochemistry at Rush University Medical Center and lead author of the study.
The epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition is a hot area of research right now, implicated in the process whereby cancer cells become metastatic. Study: Exercise Won't Cure Obesity. Physical activity has many proven benefits. It strengthens bones and muscles, improves mental health and mood, lowers blood pressure, improves cholesterol levels and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, breast cancer and colon cancer. Exercise is also good for your brain. It may not be a cure-all for obesity, however. Though better nutrition coupled with exercise has long been the favored prescription for losing weight and avoiding obesity, a new study suggests diet actually plays the key role.
Researchers from Loyola University Health System and other centers compared African American women in metropolitan Chicago with women in rural Nigeria. Researchers had expected to find that the slimmer Nigerian women would be more physically active. "Decreased physical activity may not be the primary driver of the obesity epidemic," said Loyola nutritionist Amy Luke, a member of the study team. Burn more, eat more The benefits to overall health are clear. Diet differences.