In a new study, Valter Longo and his colleagues show that cycles of a four-day low-calorie diet that mimics fasting (FMD) cut visceral belly fat and elevated the number of progenitor and stem cells in several organs of old mice—including the brain, where it boosted neural regeneration and improved learning and memory.
Some like it hot, some like it iced, and some just don’t like it at all. Until recently, coffee was on the list of habits to break if you really wanted to be healthy.
The demand for bottled water it seems is booming. Canadean, a market research company specialising in the beverage industry recently reported the remarkable growth in global sales of bottled water. With an average annual growth of 6% since 2008 it looks as though water will, for the first time, overtake sales of soft drinks by 1.3% this year.
Elevated blood sugar can rapidly increase levels of amyloid beta, a key component of brain plaques in Alzheimer’s patients, a new study shows. The buildup of plaques is thought to be an early driver of the complex set of changes that Alzheimer’s causes in the brain.
Have you ever wondered what those food additive numbers in the ingredients list on your food packaging meant and what they were really doing to your body? A recent study suggests emulsifiers – detergent-like food additives found in a variety of processed foods have the potential to damage the intestinal barrier, leading to inflammation and increasing our risk of chronic disease.
Can organic farmers use Roundup® ? I get that question a lot. Society has been told and, it seems, really believes, that as crop chemicals go, nothing could be safer. But that's just it, using nothing is safer.
In the United States, we live in a nation where hunger and obesity go hand in hand. More than 17 million US households struggle to put food on the table, and when they do, it’s often high in fat and sugar because healthy options are scarce in low-income neighborhoods.
In a study published last week, researchers at Harvard University examined 21 brands of dietary supplements containing an herbal stimulant called Acacia rigidula. More than half of the brands analyzed contained an untested amphetamine isomer called ?-methylphenylethylamine (BMPEA).
A nutrient in garlic may offer the brain cells protection against aging and disease, according to new research. “Most people think of it as a ‘superfood,’ because garlic’s sulfur-containing compounds are known as an excellent source of antioxidant and anti-inflammatory protection."
Fasting is something that human beings have practiced throughout history, often out of circumstance rather than choice. Intermittent fasting (also called alternate day fasting) has become a popular diet. In most versions of intermittent fasting, people fast or eat very little a few days each week and then eat normal amounts during the remaining days.
TFPPublic discussions about obesity can fall prey to false dichotomies in portraying complex relations among weight, eating, activity and disease risk. Applying the logic of false dichotomies, obesity is either caused by individuals eating too much, or an environment that promotes weight-gain. It’s either a disease or the result of gluttony.
The trendy Paleo Diet draws inspiration from how people lived during the Paleolithic or Stone Age that ran from roughly 2.6 million to 10,000 years ago. It encourages practitioners to give up the fruits of modern culinary progress – such as dairy, agricultural products and processed foods – and start living a pseudo-hunter-gatherer lifestyle, something like Lon Chaney Jr. in the film One Million BC.
Whether man-made sources of mercury are contributing to the mercury levels in open-ocean fish has been the subject of hot debate for many years. My colleagues Carl Lamborg, Marty Horgan and I analyzed data from over the past 50 years and found that mercury levels in Pacific yellowfin tuna, often marketed as ahi tuna, is increasing at 3.8% per year. The results were reported earlier this month in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.
The prevailing notion about obesity is that if we just work out harder and eat a little bit better, then perhaps the obesity trend will subside in a few years. However, the key to really making a difference is food – the number of calories we eat is the most important factor in obesity.
Government nutrition guidelines recommend a high carbohydrate diet regardless of the ample evidence of the health risks it promotes. Yet, chronic diseases and obesity rates have risen in correlation with a reduced intake of dietary fat. While science has moved on, nutritional advice lags behind.
Do you eat only when you’re actually hungry? Many of us eat even when our bodies don’t need food. Just the thought of food entices us to eat. We think about food when we see other people eating, when we pass a favorite fast-food restaurant, when we see a scrumptious snack near the check-out at a convenience store.
Broccoli is frequently touted as a food that can help prevent cancer, but a compound found in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables also may treat it.
A diet containing a moderate amount of fat and one avocado may help lower “bad” cholesterol. This, in turn, could reduce the risk of heart disease, say researchers.
Enzymes are essential for proper functioning of our body. They are found in all living plant and animal matter. Their primary job is to maintain balanced body functions, digest food, and aid in the repair of tissue. What types of enzymes do you need? Choosing the...
Obesity and weight loss has become an obsession, such as with anorexia, bulimia, constant dieting and bingeing, when the issue of weight is clearly out of perspective. While weight control is a feminist issue, it is also a health issue. Obesity can endanger the internal organs through ...
Contrary to what Juan Ponce de Leon thought when he searched for it in the 16th century, the fountain of youth is made of anti-oxidants, not water, and it's a lot easier to find than the famed explorer thought. Research on aging from the University of Florida shows that anti-oxidants slow down aging process...
Saw Palmetto Berries is an herb which is needed in the U.S. today. The average male over age 50 may suffer from a variety of reproductive ailments, such as prostate problems, low back pain, and diminishing sexual vitality — this herb can help in alleviating some, if not all, of these symptoms. Likewise, women who may experience...
Garlic is among the oldest and most versatile of the documented natural remedies. When Hippocrates, the father of diagnostic medicine, was busy noting which treatments worked for the Greek people he treated, he listed garlic. A total of twenty-two ancient Egyptian remedies were found to use garlic, as noted in the Ebers Papyrus dating from the sixteenth century B.C.E.