Time to overhaul AIDS strategies for gays - study

"A staff member holds a packet containing a free condom in the HIV department of Taipei City Hospital in Taipei. Three decades of safe-sex messages to gays have failed to stem the spread of HIV among a population at greater risk of the AIDS virus than heterosexuals, experts warned in The Lancet on Friday. (AFP Photo/Sam Yeh)" title

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Why current strategies for fighting obesity are not working

ScienceDaily (July 3, 2012) — As the United States confronts the growing epidemic of obesity among children and adults, a team of University of Colorado School of Medicine obesity researchers concludes that what the nation needs is a new battle plan -- one that replaces the emphasis on widespread food restriction and weight loss with an emphasis on helping people achieve "energy balance" at a healthy body weight.

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In a paper published in the July 3 issue of the journal Circulation, James O. Hill, PhD. and colleagues at the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center take on the debate over whether excessive food intake or insufficient physical activity cause obesity, using the lens of energy balance -- which combines food intake, energy expended through physical activity and energy (fat) storage -- to advance the concept of a "regulated zone," where the mechanisms by which the body establishes energy balance are managed to overcome the body's natural defenses towards preserving existing body weight. This is accomplished by strategies that match food and beverage intake to a higher level of energy expenditure than is typical in America today, enabling the biological system that regulates body weight to work more effectively. Additional support for this concept comes from many studies showing that higher levels of physical activity are associated with low weight gain whereas comparatively low levels of activity are linked to high weight gain over time.

"A healthy body weight is best maintained with a higher level of physical activity than is typical today and with an energy intake that matches," explained Hill, professor of pediatrics and medicine and executive director of the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and the lead author of the paper. "We are not going to reduce obesity by focusing only on reducing food intake. Without increasing physical activity in the population we are simply promoting unsustainable levels of food restriction. This strategy hasn't worked so far and it is not likely to work in the future.

As Dr. Hill explains, "What we are really talking about is changing the message from 'Eat Less, Move More" to 'Move More, Eat Smarter.' "

The authors argue that preventing excessive weight gain is a more achievable goal than treating obesity once it is present. Here, the researchers stress that reducing calorie intake by 100 calories a day would prevent weight gain in 90 percent of the adult population and is achievable through small increases in physical activity and small changes in food intake.

People who have a low level of physical activity have trouble achieving energy balance because they must constantly use food restriction to match energy intake to a low level of energy expenditure. Constant food restriction is difficult to maintain long-term and when it cannot be maintained, the result is positive energy balance (when the calories consumed are greater than the calories expended) and an increase in body mass, of which 60 percent to 80 percent is usually body fat. The increasing body mass elevates energy expenditure and helps reestablish energy balance. In fact, the researchers speculate that becoming obese may be the only way to achieve energy balance when living a sedentary lifestyle in a food-abundant environment.

Using an exhaustive review of the energy balance literature as the basis, the researchers also refuted the popular theory that escalating obesity rates can be attributed exclusively to two factors -- the change in the American diet and the rise in overall energy intake without a compensatory increase in energy expenditure. Using rough estimates of increases in food intake and decreases in physical activity from 1971 to 2000, the researchers calculated that were it not for the physiological processes that produce energy balance, American adults would have experienced a 30 to 80 fold increase in weight gain during that period, which demonstrates why it is not realistic to attribute obesity solely to caloric intake or physical activity levels. In fact, energy expenditure has dropped dramatically over the past century as our lives now require much less physical activity just to get through the day. The authors argue that this drop in energy expenditure was a necessary prerequisite for the current obesity problem, which necessitates adding a greater level of physical activity back into our modern lives.

"Addressing obesity requires attention to both food intake and physical activity, said co-author John Peters, PhD., assistant director of the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center. "Strategies that focus on either alone will not likely work."

In addition, the researchers conclude that food restriction alone is not effective in reducing obesity, explaining that although caloric restriction produces weight loss, this process triggers hunger and the body's natural defense to preserve existing body weight, which leads to a lower resting metabolic rate and notable changes in how the body burns calories. As a result, energy requirements after weight loss can be reduced from 170 to 250 calories for a 10 percent weight loss and from 325 to 480 calories for a 20 percent weight loss. These findings provide insight concerning weight loss plateau and the common occurrence of regaining weight after completing a weight loss regimen.

Recognizing that energy balance is a new concept for to the public, the researchers call for educational efforts and new information tools that will teach Americans about energy balance and how food and physical activity choices affect energy balance.

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U.S. Report Outlines Strategies to Prevent Obesity

HealthDay – 4 hrs ago TUESDAY, May 8 (HealthDay News) -- The United States' progress against the battle of the bulge has been slow, but certain strategies could speed obesity prevention efforts, a new report concludes.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) on Tuesday outlined five recommendations with the greatest potential to prevent obesity.

Those recommendations come not a moment too soon: On Monday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released startling statistics on obesity that predicted 42 percent (or 32 million more people) of the American population would be obese by 2030, while 11 percent would be severely obese. The price tag for the associated health care costs: $550 billion.

The IOM strategies include: integrating physical activity into people's daily lives; making healthy food and beverage choices available everywhere; changing marketing about nutrition and physical activity; using schools to promote healthy weight; and urging employers and health care professionals to support healthy lifestyles.

The committee that wrote the report assessed more than 800 obesity-prevention recommendations and identified those that could be used together most effectively to accelerate obesity prevention.

Specific strategies include:

Requiring at least 60 minutes per day of physical education and activity in schools.Creating industry-wide guidelines regarding which foods and beverages can be marketed to children and how the marketing should be done.Taking full advantage of doctors' influence to promote obesity prevention among patients.Increasing the availability of lower-calorie, healthier children's meals in restaurants.

"As the trends show, people have a very tough time achieving healthy weights when inactive lifestyles are the norm, and inexpensive, high-calorie foods and drinks are readily available 24 hours a day," report committee chairman Dan Glickman, former secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said in an IOM news release.

"Individuals and groups can't solve this complex problem alone, and that's why we recommend changes that can work together at the societal level and reinforce one another's impact to speed our progress," added Glickman, who also is executive director of congressional programs at the Aspen Institute, an international nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C.

The IOM report was released as part of the CDC's Weight of the Nation conference in Washington, D.C.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explains how to achieve a healthy weight.

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Dieters Share Success Strategies

HealthDay – 1 hr 22 mins ago TUESDAY, April 10 (HealthDay News) -- Many obese Americans who try to lose weight are successful, at least short-term, using traditional methods, according to a new study.

Researchers who evaluated the strategies of more than 1,500 successful obese dieters found that eating less fat, exercising more, taking prescription diet pills and joining a commercial weight-loss program led dieters to lose from 5 percent to 10 percent or more of their body weight.

Just as important as picking a strategy for losing weight is a dieter's commitment to the approach, whatever it is, said lead investigator Dr. Jacinda Nicklas, a clinical research fellow at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School in Boston.

"Any of these strategies takes a certain degree of investment -- cutting back on calories, exercising on a regular basis, going to the doctor to get a prescription weight-loss drug, joining a program," she said.

More than a third of Americans are obese. While many obese people may think attempting to lose weight is futile, Nicklas said her study suggests that is not true. And for an obese person, weight loss of 5 to 10 percent can produce health benefits, such as lower blood pressure, she said.

The study, published online April 10 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, looked at a nationally representative sample from the 2001 to 2006 U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. This ongoing survey collects information about health, health behavior and other data.

The survey takers computed the participants' body mass index (BMI), based on their reported height and weight. BMI is a measurement of size used to calculate weight categories, from underweight to obese. The team focused on the data from those with a BMI of 30 or above, considered obese.

Respondents were asked if they had tried to lose weight and, if so, how they tried to do so.

Of more than 4,000 obese respondents, more than 2,500 said they had tried to lose weight in the last year. Of these, about 1,000 (40 percent) said they had lost 5 percent or more of their body weight. More than 500 (20 percent) said they had lost 10 percent or more.

"For the 5 percent weight loss, people said they used one or more of these strategies -- eating less fat, exercising more and using prescription weight-loss drugs," Nicklas said. "For the 10 percent loss, it was any one or more of those and also joining a commercial weight-loss program."

Other methods, such as liquid diets, nonprescription diet pills or fad diets, were unsuccessful, the researchers said.

"Something advertised over the Internet that seems quick and easy may seem to be an easier way to lose weight but we don't have any evidence that those methods work," Nicklas said.

The study has limitations, however, she said. Height and weight were self-reported, and there is no follow-up data on whether the dieters kept off the pounds.

The results do offer some hope, said Dr. Jennifer Marks, a professor of medicine at the University of Miami Diabetes Research Institute, who is familiar with the study.

The message is, "Weight can come off," she said.

Of those surveyed who were obese and trying to lose weight, about 70 percent were white, so the findings may not apply as much to other ethnicities, she said.

For her patients trying to lose weight, Marks said she advises them to consider the possible strategies and to the one or two that seem "least onerous to you."

With her own patients, Nicklas has noticed yet another strategy used by some successful dieters who want to maintain the loss. They take on a new ''persona." For instance, some become triathletes who are eager to maintain that new image.

These people seem to maintain the loss better, she has observed.

More information

For more about weight control, visit the U.S. National Institutes of Health.

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Fat Loss Strategies

April 2, 2012 by admin

A growing body of international research from podiatrists and fitness experts say we would have fewer injuries if we were barefoot more of the time. Not only that, we would truly access increased sensory perception, improved posture and fortify muscles, core, and feet.

The machine is user friendly and you can create a new program at each exercise session. The hand grips of the trainers are specially designed and they are very comfortable to feel. Diversity to the workout can be achieved due the presence of the adjustable incline.

The upside is you could actually hold whatever it was you were buying, try it on if it was a shoe or clothing, and even take it for a quick spin if it was a bike or car. These days, the computer-and things like leasing and the rent to own process-have changed things a bit for consumers.

Now, they really are not any different than you and the things that they do on a day to day basis may be a little different with scheduling time. They work just like you do but in a different occupation, with long hours and an impossible schedule sometimes.

With all the different types of training and their various advantages, circuit training is getting a lot of attention since its main focus is to have an ‘all in one’ effect. Circuit training not only has the right ingredients for a good work out, but also is an excellent first step to get into the word of fitness.

One critic writes of Rodney White’s work, “The most amazing aspect of this work is that it isn’t created on a computer but on a canvas instead. I’m amazed by these wonderful typographical beauties. The retro feeling, grunch effect and nice color combinations make them really stand out. Most of his work contains meaningful messages. Rodney also uses different materials and techniques, mainly acrylic.

The workplace isn’t just a location where people come together in the common pursuit of commerce and profits. It’s also a Petri dish for growing a deadly crop of big, bald-faced lies. Any competitive environment where performance dictates success and advancement is a potential breeding ground for mendacity.

Keep the house a little warmer in summer and a little cooler in winter. Take the bus to work once in awhile, or better yet, ride your bike. Carpool. Use less toilet paper. Choose reusable cloth towels instead of paper towels. Simple things like this won’t cause an immediate, drastic change in your life, but will add up to a healthier planet.

Reviews from satisfied customers are one of the best ways to establish credibility and increase your arrivals and profits. They provide an unbiased recommendation that builds your credibility. There’s a huge difference between your telling a potential customer how great you are and someone else doing it-someone who has willingly paid for your services.

Weight Loss

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