Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/NfVWDem4eU4/
Monday, 31 January 2011
Drug assistance programs for insured patients? A conversation with AccessMED (transcript)
This is a transcript of my recent podcast interview with AccessMED. David Williams: This is David E. Williams, co-founder of MedPharma Partners and author of the Health Business Blog. I?m speaking today with Scott Dulitz, VP and General Manager of AccessMED and Rick Ford, Director of Reimbursement Consulting. AccessMED is a patient access and drug [...]
What Is the Russian Fitness Method?
The former USSR was a formidable entity when it came to sporting prowess, and for the longest time it seemed as though the Russians would brook no resistance when it came to medals and awards. Even today, the Russians are a sporting nation with an enviable record of producing winning athletes. The stress placed on [...]
Source: http://www.fitnesshealthzone.com/fitness/what-is-the-russian-fitness-method/
Adapt or Die: Health Care Reform?s Tag Line
There?s a movie coming in April called ?Hanna.? Looks like a mashup of the Bourne Identify, Ender?s Game, and Blade Runner. Or maybe not. What caught my eye when I saw the ad for this movie in the Los Angeles Times Sunday was it?s tag line: ?Adapt or Die.? I don?t know how well ?Adapt [...]
Source: http://alankatz.wordpress.com/2011/01/16/adapt-or-die-health-care-reforms-tag-line/
Relieving Your Stress Via Aromatherapy: 1
Stress ? it is something that you, I, your neighbors and your best friend all deal with.� There is not a person on the planet that does not feel stress at some point in their life.� Did you know that there are actually unique and natural ways that you can relieve your stress?� Aromatherapy is [...]
Source: http://yourbodyyourtemple.net/health/relieving-your-stress-via-aromatherapy-1/
Effective Arm Workouts For Women
Gone are the days when women have to confine themselves inside the comforts of their homes. Inasmuch as women of today have become more liberated, they have already embraced things which were known only to men, bodybuilding among others. Just as men can have stronger and muscled arms, women can make theirs just as stronger [...]
Source: http://www.fitnesshealthzone.com/exercises/effective-arm-workouts-for-women/
Sunday, 30 January 2011
Breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories a day
Breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories a day, according to a recent New York State Department of Health campaign.As per the campaign and a recent study published in the American Journal of Medicine, this weight-loss boost can translate into other health benefits including a reduced risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
The New York DOH launched the 1.6 million dollars public health education campaign last week to educate new mothers on the health benefits of breast-feeding, reports the New York Daily News. At least 75 pc of babies today are breast-fed for some period of time compared with 60 pc 15 years ago, according to the U.S. News and World Report.
While the physicians behind the campaign say new mothers should continue to breast-feed for a year or longer, many choose not to nurse beyond six months, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Tags : breastfeeding diet,breastfeeding and alcohol,breastfeeding tips,breastfeeding positions
Source: http://www.aboutthehealth.com/2010/09/breastfeeding-can-burn-up-to-500.html
Obesity as a Symptom
Calories in equal calories burned plus calories stored. That?s the simple formula that alleges to summarize why Americans are fat and growing fatter. It?s the energy balance equation. It dominates how scientists as well as the general public thinks about the relationship between food and body fat. It is deeply flawed. How could this be? [...]
Source: http://www.yourownhealthandfitness.org/blogs/2010/11/23/obesity-as-a-symptom/
Sunblock That Takes the Heat
There are few things that can ruin a much-needed vacation, but sunburn is definitely one of them (take it from ultra-pale, quick-to-burn me, who?s managed to go from pasty white to bright red everywhere from Antigua to Boston ? yes, Boston). So as I started packing my bags for a week-long trip to the tropics, I jumped at the chance to try out Scape SPF 50+ sunblock.
Let?s start with the lotion (4 oz. for $14.99): I?m sensitive to smells, and I?ve slathered on my fair share of stinky sunscreens, but this one didn?t offend me (granted, it wasn?t a welcome coconut or citrus scent, but the odor was neutral). It wasn?t greasy, either, another fault I usually find with sunblock. The white lotion quickly disappeared as I rubbed it into my skin (though it was hard to conceal on my husband?s stubbly face ? he should?ve used the face stick, but more on that in a moment!). The issue with the fast-vanishing lotion is that it was easy to miss spots on my skin ? and I paid dearly for this in the form of a stripe of sunburn on my stomach that?s still pink two weeks after the rays first got to me. Full disclosure: I tend to prefer colored sunscreens (I know, I know ? those are supposed to be for kids) that stay colored for a while so I know what areas I still need to cover with sunblock.
Back to this sunscreen. It claimed to be waterproof and sweatproof. I did plenty of swimming and sweating while I wore it, and it seemed to withstand both. But at SPF 50+, I thought I wouldn?t need to reapply while I lounged (mostly in the shade) by the pool. The parts of me not covered by the umbrella started to turn pink after a few hours, so if you?re pale like me, be prepared to slather it on again halfway through the day.
I also used the face stick sunblock ($11.99). Its major draw is that it supposedly won?t get into your eyes, even if you sweat. I must have applied the stick a bit too close to my eyes on day one because I felt the sting. I kept it above my eyebrows after that and didn?t have any problems. The face stick is a little greasy, which is why my husband preferred to use the lotion on his face, but I don?t think women who are used to wearing facial moisturizer will mind the feeling. The stick is also clear, so I liked that there were no white spots on my face. Again, the issue with invisible sunscreen is that you?re likely to miss spots. Plus, the face stick is flat on the surface, so, just as straight-across razors don?t always shave off hairs on your rounded knees, the face stick won?t always protect spots on the curves of your face. I?m sporting a bit of a Rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer look as a result.
Lastly, I skipped my regular cherry Chapstick in favor of Scape's Athlete Lip Balm ($3.50), which has vitamin E, aloe, and antioxidants that are supposed to moisturize. It seems to have worked ? my lips were extra smooth that week, despite the harsh Aruba winds. One downside: I was conscious not to lick my lips, but I still got a taste of the lip balm, which was kind of nasty and chemical-y (unlike my cherry Chapstick).
I would use these all again, but I?d ask someone more thorough than me to make sure every spot of my skin is covered!
Meredith Bodgas, Associate Editor at What to Expect
Let?s start with the lotion (4 oz. for $14.99): I?m sensitive to smells, and I?ve slathered on my fair share of stinky sunscreens, but this one didn?t offend me (granted, it wasn?t a welcome coconut or citrus scent, but the odor was neutral). It wasn?t greasy, either, another fault I usually find with sunblock. The white lotion quickly disappeared as I rubbed it into my skin (though it was hard to conceal on my husband?s stubbly face ? he should?ve used the face stick, but more on that in a moment!). The issue with the fast-vanishing lotion is that it was easy to miss spots on my skin ? and I paid dearly for this in the form of a stripe of sunburn on my stomach that?s still pink two weeks after the rays first got to me. Full disclosure: I tend to prefer colored sunscreens (I know, I know ? those are supposed to be for kids) that stay colored for a while so I know what areas I still need to cover with sunblock. Back to this sunscreen. It claimed to be waterproof and sweatproof. I did plenty of swimming and sweating while I wore it, and it seemed to withstand both. But at SPF 50+, I thought I wouldn?t need to reapply while I lounged (mostly in the shade) by the pool. The parts of me not covered by the umbrella started to turn pink after a few hours, so if you?re pale like me, be prepared to slather it on again halfway through the day.
I also used the face stick sunblock ($11.99). Its major draw is that it supposedly won?t get into your eyes, even if you sweat. I must have applied the stick a bit too close to my eyes on day one because I felt the sting. I kept it above my eyebrows after that and didn?t have any problems. The face stick is a little greasy, which is why my husband preferred to use the lotion on his face, but I don?t think women who are used to wearing facial moisturizer will mind the feeling. The stick is also clear, so I liked that there were no white spots on my face. Again, the issue with invisible sunscreen is that you?re likely to miss spots. Plus, the face stick is flat on the surface, so, just as straight-across razors don?t always shave off hairs on your rounded knees, the face stick won?t always protect spots on the curves of your face. I?m sporting a bit of a Rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer look as a result.
Lastly, I skipped my regular cherry Chapstick in favor of Scape's Athlete Lip Balm ($3.50), which has vitamin E, aloe, and antioxidants that are supposed to moisturize. It seems to have worked ? my lips were extra smooth that week, despite the harsh Aruba winds. One downside: I was conscious not to lick my lips, but I still got a taste of the lip balm, which was kind of nasty and chemical-y (unlike my cherry Chapstick).
I would use these all again, but I?d ask someone more thorough than me to make sure every spot of my skin is covered!
Meredith Bodgas, Associate Editor at What to Expect
Source: http://www.everydayhealth.com/blogs/health-beauty-reviews/sunblock-that-takes-the-heat
Can You 'Buzz' Away the Signs of Aging?
I've been told I have nice skin, and while I'm happy to accept the compliment, the fact is I haven't done anything much to keep it that way. My usual routine is a mild cleanser plus some drugstore moisturizer ? and I'm good to go. But as I move through my 40s, I'm noticing a few faint lines on my forehead that I could swear weren't there just a few short years ago. So I was excited to test out the new "Naturally Ageless" anti-aging skin care line from Burt's Bees.
What's in this stuff? Burt's Bees is known for their natural products, and this new line is no different. Chief among the touted ingredients is pomegranate extract, which the manufacturer claims is an antioxidant that protects the skin. The package insert states that pomegranate is used to help prevent the signs of aging (like my pesky lines), but the other components can help "address" those signs. These include para cress, a type of herb, and Mexican wild yam, which is purported to have qualities similar to that of natural estrogen. Borage and evening primrose oil, which contains a natural form of an essential fatty acid called GLA, is supposed to increase firmness and is included in the Naturally Ageless Intensive Repairing Serum.
In addition to the serum, I tried a range of these products, including the Naturally Ageless Line Diminishing Day Lotion, Skin Firming Night Cr�me, and Line Smoothing Eye Cr�me. The day lotion had a thin, sticky quality when I applied it after my morning shower. While the night cr�me had a bit of that same tacky feel, it absorbed well after a few minutes, and my skin was soft and moisturized when I woke up in the morning. The eye cr�me and serum went on smoothly, but also sat on top of the skin after being rubbed in. One thing they all had in common ? the smell. I've liked other pomegranate-scented products, but I found the fruity fragrance in these to be very strong and slightly offputting ? reminiscent of a bowl of Froot Loops or a glass of punch.
So here's the million-dollar question: Did they work? After a month of trying out different combinations of these products, I haven't noticed any diminishing of my lines. While the moisturizing properties were good, it's hard to say over the long term whether they will stop any future wrinkles from developing. If you're used to having a sunscreen in your daily moisturizer, be advised that there's none in the day lotion, so you'll need to apply that separately (a real time-suck on a busy morning). But the real deal breaker for me is the fruity odor ? it's enough to keep me from using any of the Naturally Aging products on a regular basis.
Amy Solomon, Everyday Health Senior Editor
What's in this stuff? Burt's Bees is known for their natural products, and this new line is no different. Chief among the touted ingredients is pomegranate extract, which the manufacturer claims is an antioxidant that protects the skin. The package insert states that pomegranate is used to help prevent the signs of aging (like my pesky lines), but the other components can help "address" those signs. These include para cress, a type of herb, and Mexican wild yam, which is purported to have qualities similar to that of natural estrogen. Borage and evening primrose oil, which contains a natural form of an essential fatty acid called GLA, is supposed to increase firmness and is included in the Naturally Ageless Intensive Repairing Serum.
In addition to the serum, I tried a range of these products, including the Naturally Ageless Line Diminishing Day Lotion, Skin Firming Night Cr�me, and Line Smoothing Eye Cr�me. The day lotion had a thin, sticky quality when I applied it after my morning shower. While the night cr�me had a bit of that same tacky feel, it absorbed well after a few minutes, and my skin was soft and moisturized when I woke up in the morning. The eye cr�me and serum went on smoothly, but also sat on top of the skin after being rubbed in. One thing they all had in common ? the smell. I've liked other pomegranate-scented products, but I found the fruity fragrance in these to be very strong and slightly offputting ? reminiscent of a bowl of Froot Loops or a glass of punch.
So here's the million-dollar question: Did they work? After a month of trying out different combinations of these products, I haven't noticed any diminishing of my lines. While the moisturizing properties were good, it's hard to say over the long term whether they will stop any future wrinkles from developing. If you're used to having a sunscreen in your daily moisturizer, be advised that there's none in the day lotion, so you'll need to apply that separately (a real time-suck on a busy morning). But the real deal breaker for me is the fruity odor ? it's enough to keep me from using any of the Naturally Aging products on a regular basis.
Amy Solomon, Everyday Health Senior Editor
Source: http://www.everydayhealth.com/blogs/health-beauty-reviews/can-you-buzz-away-the-signs-of-aging
Breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories a day
Breastfeeding can burn up to 500 calories a day, according to a recent New York State Department of Health campaign.As per the campaign and a recent study published in the American Journal of Medicine, this weight-loss boost can translate into other health benefits including a reduced risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
The New York DOH launched the 1.6 million dollars public health education campaign last week to educate new mothers on the health benefits of breast-feeding, reports the New York Daily News. At least 75 pc of babies today are breast-fed for some period of time compared with 60 pc 15 years ago, according to the U.S. News and World Report.
While the physicians behind the campaign say new mothers should continue to breast-feed for a year or longer, many choose not to nurse beyond six months, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Tags : breastfeeding diet,breastfeeding and alcohol,breastfeeding tips,breastfeeding positions
Source: http://www.aboutthehealth.com/2010/09/breastfeeding-can-burn-up-to-500.html
Saturday, 29 January 2011
Lactic Acid in the Scalp
I read the item about hair foliclle damage because of lactic acid secretions on the scalp. Well, I was told the same thing, and given a lotion to neutralize the acid. I can confirm this situation does occur when subject to unpresidented levels of stress. When i say stress, stress at such a level [...]
Source: http://www.baldingblog.com/2011/01/27/lactic-acid-in-the-scalp/
Using Turmeric & The Benefits: 2
Now that we have talked about exactly what Turmeric is and what properties it has in it, let?s talk about how you can use Turmeric in order to treat some of those cuts and wounds that you might be experiencing.� One thing that you should know is that Turmeric is a natural antiseptic and what [...]
Source: http://yourbodyyourtemple.net/health/using-turmeric-the-benefits-2/
Radiologists pull out the long knives
Radiologists get awfully worked up when other specialists (like cardiologists and orthopedists) get into the lucrative advanced imaging business. In the past it really hasn’t mattered that much because there’s been plenty of imaging work to go around and the pie continued to balloon. Now that cost control and radiation exposure are firmly on the [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/0H7E2S1NtW4/
Genital Herpes Risk Factors
Genital herpes is most commonly spread by genital-to-genital or oral-to-genital contact. Risk factors for genital herpes include a history of prior sexually transmitted disease, multiple sexual partners, early age for first sexual intercourse and also poor socioeconomic status. Herpes simplex virus can be transferred when it is present on the skin or mucosa of one person and another person makes direct skin-to-skin contact with the live virus. It is frequently transmitted by infected persons who are unaware that they are infected. The main cause of genital herpes is HSV-2 virus but in recent years, the cases of genital herpes caused by HSV-1 have increased significantly. Oral sex can pass on [...]
Source: http://www.allhealthsite.com/genital-herpes-risk-factors.html
Friday, 28 January 2011
Black Raspberries in Season
Fresh black raspberries: awesome gluten-free treat!
I just started picking the ripening black raspberries a few days ago here at our home in Northeast Ohio, where we were lucky enough to have purchased a property that has these wild black raspberries plants growing nearly all around its perimeter.
After just 10 minutes of picking, I secured the first quart of these fresh black raspberries, which were quickly rinsed off, bagged, and put into the fridge for later. They did not last long though, as they make a wonderful gluten-free snack that is full of flavor, antioxidants, and fiber too. And, fresh = best.
The pace of the black raspberries ripening as they become fully in-season should increase now, and I am looking forward to a bountiful harvest. Last year, we were able to collect well over 6 quarts before the season ended, and they held up nicely in the fridge (and we froze some for later too).
The plants seem to spread like wildfire from birds redistributing seeds. This year there are new black raspberry bushes growing up around the deck outside our living room, and they were not there last year. And, there are bushes lining the edge of the nearby field. At this pace, there should gallons coming over the next few years. Excellent!
One thing I look forward too once enough berries have been collected is a favorite gluten-free dessert: black raspberry pie! mmmmmm! Counting down as the pie baking date approaches!
Source: http://gluten-free-blog.blogspot.com/2010/06/black-raspberries-in-season.html
In the News - Canadian Class Action Suit Against Merck
Snippet from the article:
A class action was filed today in the Supreme Court of British Columbia by Vancouver resident, Michael Miller, against Merck Frosst Canada and its affiliated companies. The lawsuit has been brought on behalf of Canadian men who used Propecia or Proscar and suffered continuing sexual dysfunction.
Propecia and Proscar are prescribed as a [...]
A class action was filed today in the Supreme Court of British Columbia by Vancouver resident, Michael Miller, against Merck Frosst Canada and its affiliated companies. The lawsuit has been brought on behalf of Canadian men who used Propecia or Proscar and suffered continuing sexual dysfunction.
Propecia and Proscar are prescribed as a [...]
Source: http://www.baldingblog.com/2011/01/27/in-the-news-canadian-class-action-suit-against-merck/
Another reason to avoid excessive mammography screening
Researchers have now discovered what regular people already know: waiting for the results of a biopsy can be extremely stressful. The radiologists are holding their annual conclave (RSNA) in Chicago now, and heard a presentation on the stress topic. From MedPage Today: Waiting for a diagnosis — and for the procedure that will provide that [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/-H3IpYkI7Q4/
Thursday, 27 January 2011
Can the media handle the health care news?
I enjoy reading Drew Altman’s Pulling It Together column, an easy that usually contains something of interest. Yesterday’s piece (Repeal) was a straightforward summary of the issues surrounding the House’s move to overturn the Affordable Care Act. He emphasized two points he said are often overlooked. The first is that the public is split on [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/Qv5O0euG25g/
Makeup Must-Haves for the Busy Mom
As the resident new mom here at Everyday Health, I?m officially in a rush 24/7. There?s no time to sleep, I eat on the run, and makeup? Please. I barely have time to shower and run a comb through my hair in the morning, much less put on a face full of makeup. If I get out of the house with mascara and lip gloss on these days, I count it as a major victory. And as much as I love makeup, I?d just about given up on using anything that would make me look more ?done.?
Now I?m on the lookout for beauty products that are portable, easy to apply, and make me look, well, more awake, I appreciate anything I can toss in my purse and apply on the go (in the elevator, on the subway?come on, admit it, you?ve done it too!). Philosophy?s The Color of Grace makeup line fits the bill. I?m toting around two of their sleek, silver compacts: The first is the Eyelighting Shadow Duo ($22) in Heaven (a perfect taupy beige) and Earth (a cool shade of brown). I use Earth on my entire lid, then dab Heaven under my eyebrow and near my nose for an eye-brightening, yes-I-had-eight-hours-of-sleep effect. The second compact holds Angel Kiss Lip Gloss, a creamy gloss with serious staying power. Pretty Please is a rosy pink shade that goes on much sheerer than it looks in the compact. Universally flattering, Pretty Please works well on its own or layered on top of lipstick.
Both compacts are reflective enough on the outside to work as a mirror in a pinch, but there?s a proper mirror inside the lids as well. The only downside? There?s no room for applicators in either compact, which is fine for the lip gloss (you can just swirl around a finger and dab it on), but using the eyeshadow can be trickier. In a serious pinch, you can use clean fingers to apply, but a proper shadow brush would yield a much neater result.
When I?m really in need of a makeup pick-me-up, I break out the Heavenly Light Pink Illuminator ($28), a highlighter with a hint of shimmer that can be used sparingly to make cheekbones pop or dotted all over your face for a refreshed, luminous glow. The flow-through applicator can be a bit tricky to master; practice at home before you give it a try on the fly. And you may want to stash the Illuminator in a makeup bag?if your purse is anything like the jumbled mess mine is, that little cap will work its way off and you?ll get pink smudges all over the contents inside.
All products are available at Philosophy.com, and at Sephora and Nordstrom stores.
Melissa Johnson, Everyday Health Senior Editor
Source: http://www.everydayhealth.com/blogs/health-beauty-reviews/makeup-musthaves-for-the-busy-mom
Paleolithic Diet Clinical Trials, Part V
Dr. Staffan Lindeberg's group has published a new paleolithic diet paper in the journal Nutrition and Metabolism, titled "A Paleolithic Diet is More Satiating per Calorie than a Mediterranean-like Diet in Individuals with Ischemic Heart Disease" (1).
The data in this paper are from the same intervention as his group's 2007 paper in Diabetologia (2). To review the results of this paper, 12 weeks of a Paleolithic-style diet caused impressive fat loss and improvement in glucose tolerance, compared to 12 weeks of a Mediterranean-style diet, in volunteers with pre-diabetes or diabetes and ischemic heart disease. Participants who started off with diabetes ended up without it. A Paleolithic diet excludes grains, dairy, legumes and any other category of food that was not a major human food source prior to agriculture. I commented on this study a while back (3, 4).
One of the most intriguing findings in his 2007 study was the low calorie intake of the Paleolithic group. Despite receiving no instruction to reduce calorie intake, the Paleolithic group only ate 1,388 calories per day, compared to 1,823 calories per day for the Mediterranean group*. That's a remarkably low ad libitum calorie intake in the former (and a fairly low intake in the latter as well).
With such a low calorie intake over 12 weeks, you might think the Paleolithic group was starving. Fortunately, the authors had the foresight to measure satiety, or fullness, in both groups during the intervention. They found that satiety was almost identical in the two groups, despite the 24% lower calorie intake of the Paleolithic group. In other words, the Paleolithic group was just as full as the Mediterranean group, despite a considerably lower intake of calories. This implies to me that the body fat "set point" decreased, allowing a reduced calorie intake while body fat stores were burned to make up the calorie deficit. I suspect it also decreased somewhat in the Mediterranean group, although we can't know for sure because we don't have baseline satiety data for comparison.
There are a few possible explanations for this result. The first is that the Paleolithic group was eating more protein, a highly satiating macronutrient. However, given the fact that absolute protein intake was scarcely different between groups, I think this is unlikely to explain the reduced calorie intake.
A second possibility is that certain potentially damaging Neolithic foods (e.g., wheat and refined sugar) interfere with leptin signaling**, and removing them lowers fat mass by allowing leptin to function correctly. Dr. Lindeberg and colleagues authored a hypothesis paper on this topic in 2005 (5).
A third possibility is that a major dietary change of any kind lowers the body fat setpoint and reduces calorie intake for a certain period of time. In support of this hypothesis, both low-carbohydrate and low-fat diet trials show that overweight people spontaneously eat fewer calories when instructed to modify their diets in either direction (6, 7). More extreme changes may cause a larger decrease in calorie intake and fat mass, as evidenced by the results of low-fat vegan diet trials (8, 9). Chris Voigt's potato diet also falls into this category (10, 11). I think there may be something about changing food-related sensory cues that alters the defended level of fat mass. A similar idea is the basis of Seth Roberts' book The Shangri-La Diet.
If I had to guess, I would think the second and third possibilities contributed to the finding that Paleolithic dieters lost more fat without feeling hungry over the 12 week diet period.
*Intakes were determined using 4-day weighed food records.
**Leptin is a hormone produced by body fat that reduces food intake and increases energy expenditure by acting in the brain. The more fat a person carries, the more leptin they produce, and hypothetically this should keep body fat in a narrow window by this form of "negative feedback". Clearly, that's not the whole story, otherwise obesity wouldn't exist. A leading hypothesis is that resistance to the hormone leptin causes this feedback loop to defend a higher level of fat mass.
The data in this paper are from the same intervention as his group's 2007 paper in Diabetologia (2). To review the results of this paper, 12 weeks of a Paleolithic-style diet caused impressive fat loss and improvement in glucose tolerance, compared to 12 weeks of a Mediterranean-style diet, in volunteers with pre-diabetes or diabetes and ischemic heart disease. Participants who started off with diabetes ended up without it. A Paleolithic diet excludes grains, dairy, legumes and any other category of food that was not a major human food source prior to agriculture. I commented on this study a while back (3, 4).
One of the most intriguing findings in his 2007 study was the low calorie intake of the Paleolithic group. Despite receiving no instruction to reduce calorie intake, the Paleolithic group only ate 1,388 calories per day, compared to 1,823 calories per day for the Mediterranean group*. That's a remarkably low ad libitum calorie intake in the former (and a fairly low intake in the latter as well).
With such a low calorie intake over 12 weeks, you might think the Paleolithic group was starving. Fortunately, the authors had the foresight to measure satiety, or fullness, in both groups during the intervention. They found that satiety was almost identical in the two groups, despite the 24% lower calorie intake of the Paleolithic group. In other words, the Paleolithic group was just as full as the Mediterranean group, despite a considerably lower intake of calories. This implies to me that the body fat "set point" decreased, allowing a reduced calorie intake while body fat stores were burned to make up the calorie deficit. I suspect it also decreased somewhat in the Mediterranean group, although we can't know for sure because we don't have baseline satiety data for comparison.
There are a few possible explanations for this result. The first is that the Paleolithic group was eating more protein, a highly satiating macronutrient. However, given the fact that absolute protein intake was scarcely different between groups, I think this is unlikely to explain the reduced calorie intake.
A second possibility is that certain potentially damaging Neolithic foods (e.g., wheat and refined sugar) interfere with leptin signaling**, and removing them lowers fat mass by allowing leptin to function correctly. Dr. Lindeberg and colleagues authored a hypothesis paper on this topic in 2005 (5).
A third possibility is that a major dietary change of any kind lowers the body fat setpoint and reduces calorie intake for a certain period of time. In support of this hypothesis, both low-carbohydrate and low-fat diet trials show that overweight people spontaneously eat fewer calories when instructed to modify their diets in either direction (6, 7). More extreme changes may cause a larger decrease in calorie intake and fat mass, as evidenced by the results of low-fat vegan diet trials (8, 9). Chris Voigt's potato diet also falls into this category (10, 11). I think there may be something about changing food-related sensory cues that alters the defended level of fat mass. A similar idea is the basis of Seth Roberts' book The Shangri-La Diet.
If I had to guess, I would think the second and third possibilities contributed to the finding that Paleolithic dieters lost more fat without feeling hungry over the 12 week diet period.
*Intakes were determined using 4-day weighed food records.
**Leptin is a hormone produced by body fat that reduces food intake and increases energy expenditure by acting in the brain. The more fat a person carries, the more leptin they produce, and hypothetically this should keep body fat in a narrow window by this form of "negative feedback". Clearly, that's not the whole story, otherwise obesity wouldn't exist. A leading hypothesis is that resistance to the hormone leptin causes this feedback loop to defend a higher level of fat mass.
Source: http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2011/01/paleolithic-diet-clinical-trials-part-v.html
Natural Black Eye Treatments: 1
All right guys, so I am going to share something personal with you ? I fell down the stairs this past weekend.� Sunday, I took a tumble down on top of a bunch of laundry and I definitely bruised not just my hand, thigh, calf and head but I bruised my eye.� When I woke [...]
Source: http://yourbodyyourtemple.net/health/natural-black-eye-treatments-1/
know health from feet
Says face is your mirror, which can be guessed for everything but medical science according to the individual's health information from the feet can be taken. They believe the foot to identify signals arising from various diseases can be detected in time, so the leg stay healthy, keep you healthy.
Cold feet fall
Cold feet fall can be caused by Thyroid. Women over 40 years of age mean having cold feet at the thyroid gland to be active. Body Temperature of women than men are low.
Feet ejaculation
Foot care not to correct many diseases you may have, therefore their right care is extremely important. Little care can keep you away from big trouble. Most pregnant women complain of leg keeps exploding or burning. Feet ejaculation happens because of not doing exercise in the right way or shortage of water in the body. You say that again - once in the body of calcium, potassium or magnesium deficiency may be. To avoid this diet needs to be balance. As far as possible, more and more water you drink. Fruit juice or similar liquid Juice should take. Calcium deficiency can also take calcium tablets Ta, but you only have to take care of your health.
Calcium deficiency
Nails of the feet short of substances present in the body can be traced. No problem, often the body is a sign of lack. Nails to be white are a sign of calcium deficiency. Yellowish nail is a sign of lack of hemoglobin. It may change shape of the nails and start breaking even.
Feet numbness
If the foot has to numb or something like stinging needles realized it could be signs of Damage peripheral nervous system. Due to diabetes or more of the drug could be like reason of that. Carelessness may take the form of negligence bigger. It is recommended to diagnose with the physician in order to avoid any further trouble.
Remember
- Do proper exercises to keep feet healthy.
- Drink more and more water or fruit Juices.
- Take calcium tablets to be lack of calcium.
- Always wear shocks.
- Do not go barefoot anywhere.
- Always use foot crack cream and apply them.
Read on such health tips to keep healthier life.
Cold feet fall
Cold feet fall can be caused by Thyroid. Women over 40 years of age mean having cold feet at the thyroid gland to be active. Body Temperature of women than men are low.
Feet ejaculation
Foot care not to correct many diseases you may have, therefore their right care is extremely important. Little care can keep you away from big trouble. Most pregnant women complain of leg keeps exploding or burning. Feet ejaculation happens because of not doing exercise in the right way or shortage of water in the body. You say that again - once in the body of calcium, potassium or magnesium deficiency may be. To avoid this diet needs to be balance. As far as possible, more and more water you drink. Fruit juice or similar liquid Juice should take. Calcium deficiency can also take calcium tablets Ta, but you only have to take care of your health.
Calcium deficiency
Nails of the feet short of substances present in the body can be traced. No problem, often the body is a sign of lack. Nails to be white are a sign of calcium deficiency. Yellowish nail is a sign of lack of hemoglobin. It may change shape of the nails and start breaking even.
Feet numbness
If the foot has to numb or something like stinging needles realized it could be signs of Damage peripheral nervous system. Due to diabetes or more of the drug could be like reason of that. Carelessness may take the form of negligence bigger. It is recommended to diagnose with the physician in order to avoid any further trouble.
Remember
- Do proper exercises to keep feet healthy.
- Drink more and more water or fruit Juices.
- Take calcium tablets to be lack of calcium.
- Always wear shocks.
- Do not go barefoot anywhere.
- Always use foot crack cream and apply them.
Read on such health tips to keep healthier life.
Source: http://www.healthblog.co.cc/2010/11/know-health-from-feet.html
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
When Public Policy Meets Reality
A short (less humorous) version of an old joke goes: an engineer, a priest and an economist are stranded on a desert island with just a can of beans. They?ll starve if they can?t open the can. The engineer proposes a solution involving situating the can among rocks in such a way as to heat [...]
Source: http://alankatz.wordpress.com/2011/01/20/when-public-policy-meets-reality/
Can the group buying craze work in health care? A discussion with Groupon
Groupon is the leader in the oh-so-hot group buying business. It emails a deal a day to its subscribers in cities across the country. Many of the deals are big discounts on restaurants, bars and recreation aimed at young urban women. Not really my demographic. But then I saw a headline in the Baltimore Sun [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/l_BHHNX0ITk/
Health Industry Group Purchasing Association head discusses GPOs (transcript)
This is the transcript of my recent podcast interview with Curtis Rooney of the Health Industry Group Purchasing Association. David E. Williams: This is David Williams, co-founder of MedPharma Partners and author of the Health Business Blog.� I?m speaking today with Curtis Rooney, he is President of the Health Industry Group Purchasing Association, which represents [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/y3TD3lYW9L4/
Increasing Propecia Dose ? Should I Take Half Early and Half Late in the Day?
Great information given by you and your staff. I know sometimes patients have been put on a higher dosage of propecia after years of being on the medication due to loss of effectiveness. If you were to go from a quarter pill to half a pill would it be better to take two quaters at [...]
Obesity and drink cause liver disease
Binge drinking and obesity are contributing to a steep rise in deaths from liver disease. The number of deaths from damaged, diseased and worn-out livers has gone up by 60 per cent in just a decade in Britain.
Liver disease, including cancer, claimed 9,719 lives in Britain in 2008 alone, up from 6,058 10 years earlier, a report by the All-Party Parliamentary Hepatology Group said, according to the Daily Mail.
Alcohol is 75 per cent cheaper now than in 1980. Heavy drinking can inflame the liver, causing jaundice and leading to comas and even death. Long-term, excessive drinking can also cause cirrhosis, which destroys normal liver tissue and is replaced by scar tissue. The number of cases has increased 10-fold in recent decades.
Doctors have warned that the alcohol-induced problem, usually found in older adults, is now being diagnosed in teenagers. Liver cancer is also on the rise. Although it is relatively common for cancers to spread to the liver, few cancers started there until recently.
Don Shenker of the charity Alcohol Concern, which is calling for high-strength beers and ciders to be taxed more heavily, said the combination of cheap alcohol and round-the-clock drinking, had fueled a surge in drink-related deaths.
Many young people take advantage of cheap supermarket alcohol, then go out later and stay out later. So their overall alcohol consumption has gone up, he said.
Hepatitis C is also contributing to the surge in liver deaths. Many of today's deaths are from infections caught in the 1970s and 80s, before blood transfusions were screened for the virus.
Tags : liver disease symptoms,fatty liver disease,alcoholic liver disease,liver disease in dogs,end stage liver disease,symptoms of liver disease,signs of liver disease,chronic liver disease,liver disease in cats,canine liver disease
Liver disease, including cancer, claimed 9,719 lives in Britain in 2008 alone, up from 6,058 10 years earlier, a report by the All-Party Parliamentary Hepatology Group said, according to the Daily Mail.
Alcohol is 75 per cent cheaper now than in 1980. Heavy drinking can inflame the liver, causing jaundice and leading to comas and even death. Long-term, excessive drinking can also cause cirrhosis, which destroys normal liver tissue and is replaced by scar tissue. The number of cases has increased 10-fold in recent decades.
Doctors have warned that the alcohol-induced problem, usually found in older adults, is now being diagnosed in teenagers. Liver cancer is also on the rise. Although it is relatively common for cancers to spread to the liver, few cancers started there until recently.Don Shenker of the charity Alcohol Concern, which is calling for high-strength beers and ciders to be taxed more heavily, said the combination of cheap alcohol and round-the-clock drinking, had fueled a surge in drink-related deaths.
Many young people take advantage of cheap supermarket alcohol, then go out later and stay out later. So their overall alcohol consumption has gone up, he said.
Hepatitis C is also contributing to the surge in liver deaths. Many of today's deaths are from infections caught in the 1970s and 80s, before blood transfusions were screened for the virus.
Tags : liver disease symptoms,fatty liver disease,alcoholic liver disease,liver disease in dogs,end stage liver disease,symptoms of liver disease,signs of liver disease,chronic liver disease,liver disease in cats,canine liver disease
Source: http://www.aboutthehealth.com/2010/10/obesity-and-drink-cause-liver-disease.html
Tuesday, 25 January 2011
Genital Herpes Risk Factors
Genital herpes is most commonly spread by genital-to-genital or oral-to-genital contact. Risk factors for genital herpes include a history of prior sexually transmitted disease, multiple sexual partners, early age for first sexual intercourse and also poor socioeconomic status. Herpes simplex virus can be transferred when it is present on the skin or mucosa of one person and another person makes direct skin-to-skin contact with the live virus. It is frequently transmitted by infected persons who are unaware that they are infected. The main cause of genital herpes is HSV-2 virus but in recent years, the cases of genital herpes caused by HSV-1 have increased significantly. Oral sex can pass on [...]
Source: http://www.allhealthsite.com/genital-herpes-risk-factors.html
Do You Book Club?
I know, I know — the first rule of Book Club is, don’t use Book Club as a verb! But seriously, I never thought I’d say this: I joined a book club. A sit-around-in-someone’s-living-room-sipping-brandy-discussing-Jonathan-Franzen book club. For years, I didn’t see the point; I had spent four years talking about books with groups of people [...]
Black Raspberries in Season
Fresh black raspberries: awesome gluten-free treat!
I just started picking the ripening black raspberries a few days ago here at our home in Northeast Ohio, where we were lucky enough to have purchased a property that has these wild black raspberries plants growing nearly all around its perimeter.
After just 10 minutes of picking, I secured the first quart of these fresh black raspberries, which were quickly rinsed off, bagged, and put into the fridge for later. They did not last long though, as they make a wonderful gluten-free snack that is full of flavor, antioxidants, and fiber too. And, fresh = best.
The pace of the black raspberries ripening as they become fully in-season should increase now, and I am looking forward to a bountiful harvest. Last year, we were able to collect well over 6 quarts before the season ended, and they held up nicely in the fridge (and we froze some for later too).
The plants seem to spread like wildfire from birds redistributing seeds. This year there are new black raspberry bushes growing up around the deck outside our living room, and they were not there last year. And, there are bushes lining the edge of the nearby field. At this pace, there should gallons coming over the next few years. Excellent!
One thing I look forward too once enough berries have been collected is a favorite gluten-free dessert: black raspberry pie! mmmmmm! Counting down as the pie baking date approaches!
Source: http://gluten-free-blog.blogspot.com/2010/06/black-raspberries-in-season.html
Monday, 24 January 2011
Quest Diagnostics CMO Jon Cohen discusses new Gazelle mobile app
Leading lab company Quest Diagnostics just released the Gazelle app for iPhone and Blackberry, which enables people to see, store, and share their Quest lab results. Quest will provide patients with access to their results 48 hours after releasing them to the ordering physician –at least in the 33 states and DC where it’s legal [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/N1iuJ_cCobM/
High cholesterol-it can be dangerous
Cholesterol is an important sub-type of fat. It is required for the functioning of all the vital organ systems and various body metabolisms related to macro and micro-elements. Cholesterol and other lipid sub-fractions are important for human beings and they cannot be cut down to the lowest limit of zero in the diet as well as in the blood levels of an individual.
We don't usually worry too much about the risk of heart disease until a person is in middle age. Adults as young as 20 need to pay attention to their cholesterol, because unhealthy levels may already be damaging their arteries. High cholesterol at a young age leads to heart attacks, strokes or paralysis and pancreatic.
Causes
- Strong genetic/family history of heart disease
- Associated diabetes mellitus, hypertension
- Bad eating habits
- Excess alcohol consumption
- Overweight (lowers HDL-high-density lipoprotein and may raise LDL - low-density lipoprotein)
- Lack of regular exercise (raises LDL and lowers HDL)
- Smoking (may lower HDL by as much as 15 per cent)
- Stress levels (stress can elevate cholesterol levels).
Prevention
- Preference to protein-centric diet (derive only 30 per cent calories from fat)
- Eat more fiber-containing food.
- Consume fresh fruits.
- Intake of more fluids or water.
- Avoid consumption of bakery products, deep fried items, high-carbohydrate content foods (sweets), red meat, egg yolk, excess alcohol, excess consumption of oil and ghee products, milk products such as butter, paneer, etc, junk food items such as pasta, pizza and burgers in regular meals.
Tags : high cholesterol diet,high cholesterol foods,high cholesterol symptoms,high cholesterol levels,causes of high cholesterol,high cholesterol medication,high cholesterol food list,symptoms of high cholesterol,high cholesterol in children,signs of high cholesterol
We don't usually worry too much about the risk of heart disease until a person is in middle age. Adults as young as 20 need to pay attention to their cholesterol, because unhealthy levels may already be damaging their arteries. High cholesterol at a young age leads to heart attacks, strokes or paralysis and pancreatic.
Causes- Strong genetic/family history of heart disease
- Associated diabetes mellitus, hypertension
- Bad eating habits
- Excess alcohol consumption
- Overweight (lowers HDL-high-density lipoprotein and may raise LDL - low-density lipoprotein)
- Lack of regular exercise (raises LDL and lowers HDL)
- Smoking (may lower HDL by as much as 15 per cent)
- Stress levels (stress can elevate cholesterol levels).
Prevention
- Preference to protein-centric diet (derive only 30 per cent calories from fat)
- Eat more fiber-containing food.
- Consume fresh fruits.
- Intake of more fluids or water.
- Avoid consumption of bakery products, deep fried items, high-carbohydrate content foods (sweets), red meat, egg yolk, excess alcohol, excess consumption of oil and ghee products, milk products such as butter, paneer, etc, junk food items such as pasta, pizza and burgers in regular meals.
Tags : high cholesterol diet,high cholesterol foods,high cholesterol symptoms,high cholesterol levels,causes of high cholesterol,high cholesterol medication,high cholesterol food list,symptoms of high cholesterol,high cholesterol in children,signs of high cholesterol
Source: http://www.aboutthehealth.com/2010/10/high-cholesterol-it-can-be-dangerous.html
When Public Policy Meets Reality
A short (less humorous) version of an old joke goes: an engineer, a priest and an economist are stranded on a desert island with just a can of beans. They?ll starve if they can?t open the can. The engineer proposes a solution involving situating the can among rocks in such a way as to heat [...]
Source: http://alankatz.wordpress.com/2011/01/20/when-public-policy-meets-reality/
Sunday, 23 January 2011
More Life Means More Illness
Life expectancy has been increasing. This is taken as a sign of better health. That?s a mistake. A recent study suggests why. Published in the Journal of Gerontology, the study by Eileen Crimmins and Hiram Beltr�n-S�nchez found that while life expectancy increased over the decade from 1996 to 2006, so did the number of years [...]
Source: http://www.yourownhealthandfitness.org/blogs/2010/12/21/more-life-means-more-illness/
Kozy Shack Gluten-Free Chocolate Pudding Review
I almost always cook gluten-free pudding from scratch (chocolate pudding being my favorite) using the recipe right out of our cookbook. But, on occasion (like when going to the grocery store hungry!) the convenience of a pre-made chocolate pudding is appealing, and during the last trip to the store, I actually found this Kozy Shack brand gluten-free chocolate pudding that I gave in and purchased.
The deciding factors for the purchase: clearly labeled "gluten-free" on the back, and the ingredient list was not too far from "homemade" (the only difference being the addition of carrageenan; a thickener / gum). Aside from that, it is just what you might expect in a chocolate pudding recipe: milk, sugar, tapioca starch, cocoa, salt, and natural flavorings. I had other pudding options to look over in the store at the same time, and the "competition" (that lost out) all suffered from a variety of issues like not being labeled gluten-free, or being full of artificial stuff, or even more gums and thickeners, etc. Kozy Shack passed my first test, and now it just had to make it home for the taste-test...
Taste and Texture
This pudding is really, really good! The thickness/consistency is nearly perfect: it is not too thick (not over-gummed!), but instead it is in my opinion just right - the thickness that a good pudding should present with. Kozy Shack is definitely satisfying with a smooth and creamy texture, and plenty of chocolate flavor from ample amounts of cocoa. It tastes natural from start to finish - no chemical/artificial taste or aftertaste like some other puddings I have encountered in the past. This Kozy Shack chocolate pudding is quite similar to a homemade gluten-free chocolate pudding in both taste and texture, but without the effort of cooking yourself.
The container I found was 22-ounces in size, which is to yield about 6 servings of 1/2 cup each, and 140 calories each. Well, this is where my only problem comes in: I consider this container to be about two servings -- one for me, and one for my wife :) We both really loved the pudding, and it definitely did not last long. We could use the excuse of "getting our calcium and protein" in our gluten-free diet perhaps, but the fact is, it just really tasted great and made for a nice dessert / snack.
I give this Kozy Shack gluten-free dessert a definitely-positive recommendation. Now, I look forward to trying their OTHER desserts / snacks, which include tapioca pudding, flan, and some others - including sugar-free varieties and soy-pudding varieties (presumably targeting dairy-free diets). I checked the Kozy Shack web site to see what their gluten-statement is, and it says:
I like being able to quickly locate that type of Celiac-friendly information, both on the web, and on the physical products... now I need to track down that flan of theirs to evaluate - and in two varieties! Yum!Is Kozy Shack gluten-free?
Kozy Shack puddings, flans, and gels are gluten-free.
Source: http://gluten-free-blog.blogspot.com/2009/11/kozy-shack-gluten-free-chocolate.html
Black Raspberries in Season
Fresh black raspberries: awesome gluten-free treat!
I just started picking the ripening black raspberries a few days ago here at our home in Northeast Ohio, where we were lucky enough to have purchased a property that has these wild black raspberries plants growing nearly all around its perimeter.
After just 10 minutes of picking, I secured the first quart of these fresh black raspberries, which were quickly rinsed off, bagged, and put into the fridge for later. They did not last long though, as they make a wonderful gluten-free snack that is full of flavor, antioxidants, and fiber too. And, fresh = best.
The pace of the black raspberries ripening as they become fully in-season should increase now, and I am looking forward to a bountiful harvest. Last year, we were able to collect well over 6 quarts before the season ended, and they held up nicely in the fridge (and we froze some for later too).
The plants seem to spread like wildfire from birds redistributing seeds. This year there are new black raspberry bushes growing up around the deck outside our living room, and they were not there last year. And, there are bushes lining the edge of the nearby field. At this pace, there should gallons coming over the next few years. Excellent!
One thing I look forward too once enough berries have been collected is a favorite gluten-free dessert: black raspberry pie! mmmmmm! Counting down as the pie baking date approaches!
Source: http://gluten-free-blog.blogspot.com/2010/06/black-raspberries-in-season.html
Senate Finds Health Care Reform Compromise Hard to Find
Congress is in its lame-duck session. One might think that with the mid-term election completed lawmakers might have a simpler time cleaning up some of the less controversial provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. (?Less controversial? is a relative term, of course. There?s so little agreement on the politics and public policy [...]
Source: http://alankatz.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/senate-finds-health-care-reform-compromise-hard-to-find/
Saturday, 22 January 2011
Potato Diet Interpretation
If you read my post on December 16th, you know that Chris Voigt saw remarkable fat loss and improvements in health markers as a result of two months of eating almost nothing but potatoes. This has left many people scratching their heads, because potatoes are not generally viewed as a healthy food. This is partially due to the fact that potatoes are very rich in carbohydrate, which also happens to be a quickly digested type, resulting in a high glycemic index. The glycemic index refers to the degree to which a particular food increases blood glucose when it's eaten, and I've questioned the relevance of this concept to health outcomes in the past (1, 2, 3). I think Mr. Voigt's results once again argue against the importance of the glycemic index as a diet-health concept.
It's often pointed out that potatoes are low in vitamins and minerals compared to vegetables on a per-calorie basis, but I think it's a misleading comparison because potatoes are much more calorie-dense than most vegetables. Potatoes compare favorably to other starchy staples such as bread, rice and taro.
Over the course of two months, Mr. Voigt lost 21 pounds. No one knows exactly how much of that weight came out of fat and how much out of lean mass, but the fact that he reported a decrease in waist and neck circumference indicates that most of it probably came out of fat. Previous long-term potato feeding experiments have indicated that it's possible to maintain an athletic muscle mass on the amount of protein in whole potatoes alone (4). So yes, Mr. Voigt lost fat on a very high-carbohydrate diet (75-80% carbohydrate, up to 440g per day).
On to the most interesting question: why did he lose fat? Losing fat requires that energy leaving the body exceed energy entering the body. But as Gary Taubes would say, that's obvious but it doesn't get us anywhere. In the first three weeks of his diet, Mr. Voigt estimates that he was only eating 1,600 calories per day. Aha! That's why he lost weight! Well, yes. But let's look into this more deeply. Mr. Voigt was not deliberately restricting his calorie intake at all, and he did not intend this as a weight loss diet. In my interview, I asked him if he was hungry during the diet. He said that he was not hungry, and that he ate to appetite during this period, realizing only after three weeks that he was not eating nearly enough calories to maintain his weight*. I also asked him how his energy level was, and he said repeatedly that it was very good, perhaps even better than usual. Those were not idle questions.
Calorie restriction causes a predictable physiological response in humans that includes hunger and decreased energy. It's the starvation response, and it's powerful in both lean and overweight people, as anyone knows who has tried to lose fat by decreasing calorie intake alone. The fact that he didn't experience hunger or fatigue implies that his body did not think it was starving. Why would that be?
I believe Mr. Voigt's diet lowered his fat mass 'setpoint'. In other words, for whatever reason, the diet made his body 'want' to be leaner that it already was. His body began releasing stored fat that it considered excess, and therefore he had to eat less food to complete his energy needs. You see this same phenomenon very clearly in rodent feeding studies. Changes in diet composition/quality can cause dramatic shifts in the fat mass setpoint (5, 6). Mr. Voigt's appetite would eventually have returned to normal once he had stabilized at a lower body fat mass, just as rodents do.
Rodent studies have made it clear that diet composition has a massive effect on the level of fat mass that the body will 'defend' against changes in calorie intake (5, 6). Human studies have shown similar effects from changes in diet composition/quality. For example, in controlled diet trials, low-carbohydrate dieters spontaneously reduce their calorie intake quite significantly and lose body fat, without being asked to restrict calories (7). In Dr. Staffan Lindeberg's Paleolithic diet trials, participants lost a remarkable amount of fat, yet a recent publication from his group shows that the satiety (fullness) level of the Paleolithic group was not different from a non-Paleolithic comparison group despite a considerably lower calorie intake over 12 weeks (8, 9). I'll discuss this important new paper soon. Together, this suggests that diet composition/quality can have a dominant impact on the fat mass setpoint.
One possibility is that cutting the wheat, sugar, most vegetable oil and other processed food out of Mr. Voigt's diet was responsible for the fat loss. I think that's likely to have contributed. Many people find, for example, that they lose fat simply by eliminating wheat from their diet.
Another possibility that I've been exploring recently is that changes in palatability (pleasantness of flavor) influence the fat mass setpoint. There is evidence in rodents that it does, although it's not entirely consistent. For example, rats will become massively obese if you provide them with chocolate flavored Ensure (a meal replacement drink), but not with vanilla or strawberry Ensure (10). They will defend their elevated fat mass against calorie restriction (i.e. they show a physiological starvation response when you try to bring them down to a lower weight by feeding them less chocolate Ensure) while they're eating chocolate Ensure, but as soon as you put them back on unpurified rodent pellets, they will lose fat and defend the lower fat mass. Giving them food in liquid or paste form often causes obesity, while the same food in solid pellet form will not. Eating nothing but potatoes is obviously a diet with a low overall palatability.
So I think that both a change in diet composition/quality and a decrease in palatability probably contributed to a decrease in Mr. Voigt's fat mass setpoint, which allowed him to lose fat mass without triggering a starvation response (hunger, fatigue).
The rest of his improvements in health markers were partially due to the fat loss, including his decreased fasting glucose, decreased triglycerides, and presumably increased insulin sensitivity. They may also have been partially due to a lack of industrial food and increased intake of certain micronutrients such as magnesium.
One of the most striking changes was in his calculated LDL cholesterol ("bad" cholesterol), which decreased by 41%, putting him in a range that's more typical of healthy non-industrial cultures including hunter-gatherers. Yet hunter-gatherers didn't eat nothing but potatoes, often didn't eat much starch, and in some cases had a high intake of fat and saturated fat, so what gives? It's possible that a reduced saturated fat intake had an impact on his LDL, given the relatively short timescale of the diet. But I think there's something mysterious about this setpoint mechanism that has a much broader impact on metabolism than is generally appreciated. For example, calorie restriction in humans has a massive impact on LDL, much larger than the impact of saturated fat (11). And in any case, the latter appears to be a short-term phenomenon (12). It's just beginning to be appreciated that energy balance control systems in the brain influence cholesterol metabolism.
Mr. Voigt's digestion appeared to be just fine on his potato diet, even though he generally ate the skins. This makes me even more skeptical of the idea that potato glycoalkaloids in common potato varieties are a health concern, especially if you were to eliminate most of the glycoalkaloids by peeling.
I asked Mr. Voigt about what foods he was craving during the diet to get an idea of whether he was experiencing any major deficiencies. The fact that Mr. Voigt did not mention craving meat or other high-protein foods reinforces the fact that potatoes are a reasonable source of complete protein. The only thing he craved was crunchy/juicy food, which I'm not sure how to interpret.
He also stopped snoring during the diet, and began again immediately upon resuming his normal diet, perhaps indicating that his potato diet reduced airway inflammation. This could be due to avoiding food allergies and irritants (wheat anyone?) and also fat loss.
Overall, a very informative experiment! Enjoy your potatoes.
*Until the last 5.5 weeks, when he deliberately stuffed himself beyond his appetite because his rapid weight loss worried him. Yet, even with deliberate overfeeding up to his estimated calorie requirement of 2,200 calories per day, he continued to lose weight. He probably was not quite reaching his calorie goal, or his requirement is higher than he thought.
It's often pointed out that potatoes are low in vitamins and minerals compared to vegetables on a per-calorie basis, but I think it's a misleading comparison because potatoes are much more calorie-dense than most vegetables. Potatoes compare favorably to other starchy staples such as bread, rice and taro.
Over the course of two months, Mr. Voigt lost 21 pounds. No one knows exactly how much of that weight came out of fat and how much out of lean mass, but the fact that he reported a decrease in waist and neck circumference indicates that most of it probably came out of fat. Previous long-term potato feeding experiments have indicated that it's possible to maintain an athletic muscle mass on the amount of protein in whole potatoes alone (4). So yes, Mr. Voigt lost fat on a very high-carbohydrate diet (75-80% carbohydrate, up to 440g per day).
On to the most interesting question: why did he lose fat? Losing fat requires that energy leaving the body exceed energy entering the body. But as Gary Taubes would say, that's obvious but it doesn't get us anywhere. In the first three weeks of his diet, Mr. Voigt estimates that he was only eating 1,600 calories per day. Aha! That's why he lost weight! Well, yes. But let's look into this more deeply. Mr. Voigt was not deliberately restricting his calorie intake at all, and he did not intend this as a weight loss diet. In my interview, I asked him if he was hungry during the diet. He said that he was not hungry, and that he ate to appetite during this period, realizing only after three weeks that he was not eating nearly enough calories to maintain his weight*. I also asked him how his energy level was, and he said repeatedly that it was very good, perhaps even better than usual. Those were not idle questions.
Calorie restriction causes a predictable physiological response in humans that includes hunger and decreased energy. It's the starvation response, and it's powerful in both lean and overweight people, as anyone knows who has tried to lose fat by decreasing calorie intake alone. The fact that he didn't experience hunger or fatigue implies that his body did not think it was starving. Why would that be?
I believe Mr. Voigt's diet lowered his fat mass 'setpoint'. In other words, for whatever reason, the diet made his body 'want' to be leaner that it already was. His body began releasing stored fat that it considered excess, and therefore he had to eat less food to complete his energy needs. You see this same phenomenon very clearly in rodent feeding studies. Changes in diet composition/quality can cause dramatic shifts in the fat mass setpoint (5, 6). Mr. Voigt's appetite would eventually have returned to normal once he had stabilized at a lower body fat mass, just as rodents do.
Rodent studies have made it clear that diet composition has a massive effect on the level of fat mass that the body will 'defend' against changes in calorie intake (5, 6). Human studies have shown similar effects from changes in diet composition/quality. For example, in controlled diet trials, low-carbohydrate dieters spontaneously reduce their calorie intake quite significantly and lose body fat, without being asked to restrict calories (7). In Dr. Staffan Lindeberg's Paleolithic diet trials, participants lost a remarkable amount of fat, yet a recent publication from his group shows that the satiety (fullness) level of the Paleolithic group was not different from a non-Paleolithic comparison group despite a considerably lower calorie intake over 12 weeks (8, 9). I'll discuss this important new paper soon. Together, this suggests that diet composition/quality can have a dominant impact on the fat mass setpoint.
One possibility is that cutting the wheat, sugar, most vegetable oil and other processed food out of Mr. Voigt's diet was responsible for the fat loss. I think that's likely to have contributed. Many people find, for example, that they lose fat simply by eliminating wheat from their diet.
Another possibility that I've been exploring recently is that changes in palatability (pleasantness of flavor) influence the fat mass setpoint. There is evidence in rodents that it does, although it's not entirely consistent. For example, rats will become massively obese if you provide them with chocolate flavored Ensure (a meal replacement drink), but not with vanilla or strawberry Ensure (10). They will defend their elevated fat mass against calorie restriction (i.e. they show a physiological starvation response when you try to bring them down to a lower weight by feeding them less chocolate Ensure) while they're eating chocolate Ensure, but as soon as you put them back on unpurified rodent pellets, they will lose fat and defend the lower fat mass. Giving them food in liquid or paste form often causes obesity, while the same food in solid pellet form will not. Eating nothing but potatoes is obviously a diet with a low overall palatability.
So I think that both a change in diet composition/quality and a decrease in palatability probably contributed to a decrease in Mr. Voigt's fat mass setpoint, which allowed him to lose fat mass without triggering a starvation response (hunger, fatigue).
The rest of his improvements in health markers were partially due to the fat loss, including his decreased fasting glucose, decreased triglycerides, and presumably increased insulin sensitivity. They may also have been partially due to a lack of industrial food and increased intake of certain micronutrients such as magnesium.
One of the most striking changes was in his calculated LDL cholesterol ("bad" cholesterol), which decreased by 41%, putting him in a range that's more typical of healthy non-industrial cultures including hunter-gatherers. Yet hunter-gatherers didn't eat nothing but potatoes, often didn't eat much starch, and in some cases had a high intake of fat and saturated fat, so what gives? It's possible that a reduced saturated fat intake had an impact on his LDL, given the relatively short timescale of the diet. But I think there's something mysterious about this setpoint mechanism that has a much broader impact on metabolism than is generally appreciated. For example, calorie restriction in humans has a massive impact on LDL, much larger than the impact of saturated fat (11). And in any case, the latter appears to be a short-term phenomenon (12). It's just beginning to be appreciated that energy balance control systems in the brain influence cholesterol metabolism.
Mr. Voigt's digestion appeared to be just fine on his potato diet, even though he generally ate the skins. This makes me even more skeptical of the idea that potato glycoalkaloids in common potato varieties are a health concern, especially if you were to eliminate most of the glycoalkaloids by peeling.
I asked Mr. Voigt about what foods he was craving during the diet to get an idea of whether he was experiencing any major deficiencies. The fact that Mr. Voigt did not mention craving meat or other high-protein foods reinforces the fact that potatoes are a reasonable source of complete protein. The only thing he craved was crunchy/juicy food, which I'm not sure how to interpret.
He also stopped snoring during the diet, and began again immediately upon resuming his normal diet, perhaps indicating that his potato diet reduced airway inflammation. This could be due to avoiding food allergies and irritants (wheat anyone?) and also fat loss.
Overall, a very informative experiment! Enjoy your potatoes.
*Until the last 5.5 weeks, when he deliberately stuffed himself beyond his appetite because his rapid weight loss worried him. Yet, even with deliberate overfeeding up to his estimated calorie requirement of 2,200 calories per day, he continued to lose weight. He probably was not quite reaching his calorie goal, or his requirement is higher than he thought.
Source: http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/2010/12/potato-diet-interpretation.html
Health Affairs prints my letter on treatment guidelines
A biased survey about public perception of treatment guidelines prompted me to write my first ever letter to Health Affairs, which has just been published. (It’s a subscription only journal so you might not be able to view it.) I was surprised by the article, which indicated that the public found arguments against treatment guidelines [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/-iwNKp4Wby8/
Saying no to mammo
This month’s Narrative Matters in Health Affairs (Why I Don’t Get Mammograms) is among the best I’ve read. Author Veneta Mason is a late 50s nurse practitioner whose sister died from breast cancer. Yet she’s consciously decided not to get mammograms anymore because she doesn’t believe early detection makes successful treatment more likely or extends [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HealthBusinessBlog/~3/U8-NoPS3G9s/
Raising Awareness and Healing Skin
Breast cancer walks and runs are widespread, and landmark buildings worldwide ? like the Empire State Building and the Tower of London ? are decked out in pink in support of those with the disease. Check out a football game on Sunday and you?ll notice that even burly NFL players have their pink gear on.
Many companies will also be donating a portion of their proceeds to breast cancer charities over the next few weeks. Among them is Pomega5, a skincare line that uses biodynamic botanicals and Omega 5 oils to treat skin imperfections. During October and November, Pomega5 will donate 10% of proceeds from sales of all its products to the California-based To Celebrate Life Breast Cancer Foundation.
As the daughter of a breast cancer survivor, I?ll admit I favor companies that support this cause, but I was able to test one of their products with an open-mind. According to their website, Pomega5?s Healing Cream is formulated to soothe and moisturize dry, damaged skin with a combination of Omega oils and shea butter.
Sounds like a winner, doesn?t it?
I applied the cream twice a day to the dry patches of skin on my hands, elbows, and legs. It isn?t heavy like most lotions, and it blends in quickly and smoothly. Within a week, I noticed an improvement in my skin. My hands were softer, my elbows weren?t as rough, and my legs felt silky.
Based on my results and the product reviews on their site, it seems like Pomega5 has hit it out of the park with this one? although I do have one gripe.
This 1.7 fl oz bottle of Healing Cream is being sold for $70! Seems like a hefty price for such a small bottle. As someone who has struggled with problematic skin ? and has spent a ton of money trying to treat it ? I am always frustrated by the cost of good skincare products. We all have a right to beautiful skin, but we shouldn?t have to break the bank for it.
While I applaud Pomega5 for their support of breast cancer, I am disappointed in the price of their products. As a result, I?ll stick to the economy-size lotion I buy in drug stores for $6.99. I may not have perfect skin, but at least I have some cash in my pocket.
Kellie Clark, Everyday Health Production Editor
Source: http://www.everydayhealth.com/blogs/health-beauty-reviews/raising-awareness-and-healing-skin
Makeup Must-Haves for the Busy Mom
As the resident new mom here at Everyday Health, I?m officially in a rush 24/7. There?s no time to sleep, I eat on the run, and makeup? Please. I barely have time to shower and run a comb through my hair in the morning, much less put on a face full of makeup. If I get out of the house with mascara and lip gloss on these days, I count it as a major victory. And as much as I love makeup, I?d just about given up on using anything that would make me look more ?done.?Now I?m on the lookout for beauty products that are portable, easy to apply, and make me look, well, more awake, I appreciate anything I can toss in my purse and apply on the go (in the elevator, on the subway?come on, admit it, you?ve done it too!). Philosophy?s The Color of Grace makeup line fits the bill. I?m toting around two of their sleek, silver compacts: The first is the Eyelighting Shadow Duo ($22) in Heaven (a perfect taupy beige) and Earth (a cool shade of brown). I use Earth on my entire lid, then dab Heaven under my eyebrow and near my nose for an eye-brightening, yes-I-had-eight-hours-of-sleep effect. The second compact holds Angel Kiss Lip Gloss, a creamy gloss with serious staying power. Pretty Please is a rosy pink shade that goes on much sheerer than it looks in the compact. Universally flattering, Pretty Please works well on its own or layered on top of lipstick.
Both compacts are reflective enough on the outside to work as a mirror in a pinch, but there?s a proper mirror inside the lids as well. The only downside? There?s no room for applicators in either compact, which is fine for the lip gloss (you can just swirl around a finger and dab it on), but using the eyeshadow can be trickier. In a serious pinch, you can use clean fingers to apply, but a proper shadow brush would yield a much neater result.
When I?m really in need of a makeup pick-me-up, I break out the Heavenly Light Pink Illuminator ($28), a highlighter with a hint of shimmer that can be used sparingly to make cheekbones pop or dotted all over your face for a refreshed, luminous glow. The flow-through applicator can be a bit tricky to master; practice at home before you give it a try on the fly. And you may want to stash the Illuminator in a makeup bag?if your purse is anything like the jumbled mess mine is, that little cap will work its way off and you?ll get pink smudges all over the contents inside.
All products are available at Philosophy.com, and at Sephora and Nordstrom stores.
Melissa Johnson, Everyday Health Senior Editor
Source: http://www.everydayhealth.com/blogs/health-beauty-reviews/makeup-musthaves-for-the-busy-mom
Friday, 21 January 2011
Exchanges Need Brokers
I?m at the National Congress on Health Insurance Reform meeting in Washington, DC. One of the speakers today was Shawn Nowicki of HealthPass and the Northeast Business Group on Health. They run an exchange for small businesses in the greater New York City area. Mr. Nowicki offered some real-world, practical advice to policy makers at [...]
Source: http://alankatz.wordpress.com/2011/01/19/exchanges-need-brokers/
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