Many people wonder why they’re not losing weight when they follow a strict diet and exercise routine. One possible reason is that what look like healthy options aren’t what they seem.
- By Elisa Lottor
In a modern diet, we eat many foods that are not good for us. Because of the ease of preparing processed foods, we are eating a lot of unhealthy fats and by doing this we are actually causing a lot of our own health problems. Food can be directly linked to many different diseases. Therefore, it’s essential that we watch what we eat and how we eat it.
By now you’ve probably heard that eating too much red and processed meat is bad for you. Not only is it associated with increased rates of coronary heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes, but there is also convincing evidence that red and processed meat can cause cancer.
- By Jane Parker
One of the targets of the UK government’s new health strategy is salt. Your body needs salt to function normally, but an excess leads to raised blood pressure and an increase in the risk of stroke and heart disease.
- By James Brown
Our ability to live a long life is influenced by a combination of our genes and our environment. In studies that involve identical twins, scientists have estimated that no more than 30% of this influence comes from our genes, meaning that the largest group of factors that control how long a person lives is their environment.
Scientists have discovered that hosts starve their microbial denizens of nutrients, essentially forcing the microbes in our guts to do our bidding.
- By Catriona May
Two recent studies shed light on which women are most at risk of developing dementia, and how we can prevent or delay the disease early.
When we hear the word “obesity”, the words “crisis” or “epidemic” often follow. And as being overweight, obese and eating an unhealthy diet are leading contributors to disease, evidence is mounting that “tackling obesity” should be a political priority.
In the wake of cannabis legalization in Canada, a team of scientists has delivered encouraging news for chronic pain sufferers by pinpointing the effective dose of marijuana plant extract cannabidiol for safe pain relief without the typical “high” or euphoria that THC produces.
- By Tim Spector
Organic food is an over-hyped and overpriced fad, according to many people. But a recently published study which followed nearly 69,000 French people over four and a half years seems to indicate there is a link between eating organic foods and a lower cancer risk.
- By James Cronin
With suspicion surrounding staples such as eggs and the humble potato, along with the reconsideration of fats as not so bad, and the belated demonisation of the same sugars which were once marketed as beneficial – it’s no wonder consumers are becoming apprehensive about following advice on what they should, or should not put on their plates.
It’s easy to see where the claim that activated charcoal can detoxify the body comes from: it is used in emergency medicine to reduce the toxic load when someone has consumed poison or overdosed on medication. Charcoal binds to poison in the gastrointestinal tract and stops it from being absorbed into the bloodstream. The toxins are then passed out of the body in the stool. However...
The number of adults currently using e-cigarettes in the UK is close to 2.9m, many of whom will have turned to the devices to quit smoking. While certainly they may help people kick the habit, there is a big problem with e-cigarettes: we don’t actually know for certain whether they are safe or not.
New research finds an association between some popular heartburn treatments and iron deficiency. Heartburn is a symptom of gastroesophageal reflux, which hydrochloric acid rising into the throat causes. This condition affects more than two million Australians. Many people take medications that suppress acid secretion to treat it.
Edible wild greens could help improve food security, boost public health and make communities more resilient to disaster. Edible wild greens are consumed globally, particularly during food shortages, and many are used medicinally in teas, poultices and supplements.
Chewing gum may be an effective delivery system for some vitamins, according the new research. Nearly 15 percent of all chewing gum varieties sold promise to provide health-enhancing supplements to users, so researchers studied whether two vitamin-supplemented products were effective at delivering vitamins to the body.
Many people believe that low-fat dairy products are healthier than high-fat dairy products. Indeed, many public health guidelines recommend low-fat dairy over high-fat dairy.
- By Jim Dryden
Drinking a daily glass of wine for health reasons may not be so healthy after all, a new study suggests.
Sleep has become widely recognised as playing a really important role in our overall health and wellness – alongside diet, stress management and exercise. Recently, researchers have been learning more about how poor sleep influences our dietary choices, as well as how diet influences sleep quality.
More than a quarter of commercial honey brands have potentially been watered down with sugar cane, corn syrup or other products, according to our new analysis of 95 products from local food markets and supermarket shelves.
We’ve known for a long time that certain patients in the intensive care unit recover faster and have better clinical outcomes if they receive enough nutrition.
It is well known that eating a balanced diet is of vital importance for maintaining good health and well-being. It is also one of the great social pleasures of life. Yet, far too many young people in prisons are consuming a poor diet, lacking in nutrition.
If you’ve ever tried to lose weight, you’ve probably heard that crash dieting isn’t the best way to go about it. Although you may lose lots of weight initially, you won’t be able to keep the weight off and may even end up being heavier than you were before. But our latest research suggests that this isn’t always the case.