Body Weekly - January 2012 Archives

Ulcer-causing bacteria baffled by mucus (1/31/2012)

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have discovered how certain polymers -- like those found in human mucus and saliva -- make it significantly more difficult for ulcer-causing bacteria to coordinate. The findings raise many new questions about the relationship between the individual and group behaviors of bacteria. The study also suggests that human mucus, saliva, and other biological fluid barriers may have evolved to disrupt the ability of harmful bacteria to coordinate. ...> Full Article

If doughnuts could talk they'd tell you to take the elevator instead of the stairs (1/30/2012)

Humanizing a brand can influence consumer behavior in a healthy or unhealthy direction -- depending on how they envision the brand, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. ...> Full Article

Using contrasting colors to reduce serving sizes and lose weight (1/29/2012)

Choosing the right size and color of your bowls and plates could help you eat less, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. ...> Full Article

'Fat, Fate and Disease' (1/28/2012)

'Why are we losing the war against obesity and chronic disease?' This is the simple question Peter Gluckman and Mark Hanson ask, exploring the dominant myth that the exploding epidemic of obesity, heart disease, and diabetes can be tackled by focusing on adult life styles. ...> Full Article

Receptor for tasting fat identified in humans (1/27/2012)

Why do we like fatty foods so much? We can blame our taste buds. In the first study to identify a human receptor that can taste fat, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report that our tongues recognize and have an affinity for fat and that variations in a gene can make people more or less sensitive to the taste of fat in foods. ...> Full Article

First step toward treatment for painful flat feet (1/26/2012)

A team led by the University of East Anglia has made an advance in understanding the causes of adult-acquired flat feet -- a painful condition particularly affecting middle-aged women. ...> Full Article

How protein networks stabilize muscle fibers: Same mechanism as for DNA (1/26/2012)

The same mechanism that stabilizes the DNA in the cell nucleus is also important for the structure and function of vertebrate muscle cells. This has been established by RUB researchers in cooperation with American and German colleagues. An enzyme attaches a methyl group to the protein Hsp90, which then forms a complex with the muscle protein titin. When the researchers disrupted this protein network through genetic manipulation in zebrafish the muscle structure partly disintegrated. ...> Full Article

Researchers look at effects of 2 common sweeteners on the body (1/25/2012)

With growing concern that excessive levels of fructose may pose a great health risk ? causing high blood pressure, kidney disease and diabetes ? researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, along with their colleagues at the University of Florida, set out to see if two common sweeteners in western diets differ in their effects on the body in the first few hours after ingestion. ...> Full Article

A diet rich in slowly digested carbs reduces markers of inflammation in overweight and obese adults (1/25/2012)

Among overweight and obese adults, a diet rich in slowly digested carbohydrates, such as whole grains, legumes and other high-fiber foods, significantly reduces markers of inflammation associated with chronic disease, according to a new study by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Such a "low-glycemic-load" diet, which does not cause blood-glucose levels to spike, also increases a hormone that helps regulate the metabolism of fat and sugar. ...> Full Article

Mass media and health: Well-informed people eat better (1/24/2012)

Television, newspaper and the Internet, when used to get information, may turn out to be of help for health. It is the conclusion of a study conducted by the Research Laboratories at the Fondazione di Ricerca e Cura "Giovanni Paolo II" in Campobasso which analyzed data from a sample of more than 1,000 people from the largest Moli-sani Project, the epidemiological study that recruited 25,000 subjects in Molise, a southern region of Italy. ...> Full Article

Diet counts: Iron intake in teen years can impact brain in later life (1/23/2012)

Researchers at UCLA have found that a lack of iron in the diet during the teenage years can have a negative impact on the brain years later, making the brain more susceptible to such disorders as Alzheimer's. Further, the researchers have identified a common set of genes that influence both iron and brain structure. ...> Full Article

Scientists identify gene crucial to normal development of lungs and brain (1/22/2012)

Scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have identified a gene that tells cells to develop multiple cilia, tiny hair-like structures that move fluids through the lungs and brain. The finding may help scientists generate new therapies that use stem cells to replace damaged tissues in the lung and other organs. ...> Full Article

Young women often fail to spot their weight gain (1/21/2012)

In a study published online and in the March issue of the Journal of Women's Health, University of Texas Medical Branch researchers found that a significant number of women evaluated at six-month intervals did not recognize recent gains in weight. Self-perception of weight gain appears to be significantly influenced by race, ethnicity and contraceptive methods. ...> Full Article

Omega-3 fatty acids could prevent and treat nerve damage, research suggests (1/20/2012)

Research from Queen Mary, University of London suggests that omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in fish oil, have the potential to protect nerves from injury and help them to regenerate. ...> Full Article

Increase dietary fiber, decrease disease (1/19/2012)

We should all be eating more dietary fiber to improve our health -- that's the message from a health review by scientists in India. Writing in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health, the team offers fruit, vegetables, whole-grain foods, such as muesli and porridge, beans and pulses, as readily available foods rich in dietary fiber. ...> Full Article

70 percent of Europeans suffer from low vitamin D levels (1/18/2012)

A group of experts has prepared a report on vitamin D supplementation for menopausal women after it was revealed that Europeans have suffered an alarming decrease in their levels of this vitamin. In their opinion, the ideal would be to maintain blood levels above 30 ng/ml. Vitamin D is essential to the immune system and processes such as calcium absorption. ...> Full Article

Treatment of psoriasis gets new hope (1/17/2012)

Researchers at Linkoeping University in Sweden are now launching a plan to effectively treat psoriasis. The study focuses on the psoriasin protein. ...> Full Article

Would you stop eating out to lose weight? (1/16/2012)

Going out to eat has become a major part of our culture. Frequently eating out and consuming high-calorie foods in large portions at restaurants can contribute to excess calorie intake and weight gain. However, a study in the January/February 2012 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior demonstrates that individuals can eat out and still lose weight. ...> Full Article

Scientists map the frontiers of vision (1/15/2012)

Pioneering vision study in mice will help revolutionize the study of brain function and mental disease. ...> Full Article

Exercise in a pill may protect against extreme heat sensitivity (1/14/2012)

A molecule identified by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine may reduce the threat of heat-induced death in people with a genetic sensitivity to the ill effects of high temperatures. ...> Full Article

Researcher discovers new gene that regulates body weight (1/13/2012)

While studying a brain protein related to the involuntary body movements that are side effects of drugs used to treat Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia, a URI pharmacy professor discovered that the protein also plays a role in regulating body weight. ...> Full Article

Exercise is good for your waistline - But it's a writing exercise (1/12/2012)

Is losing weight as simple as doing a 15-minute writing exercise? In a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, women who wrote about their most important values, like close relationships, music, or religion, lost more weight over the next few months than women who did not have that experience. ...> Full Article

When overeating, calories, not protein, contribute to increase in body fat (1/11/2012)

In a study conducted among 25 healthy individuals living in a controlled setting who were randomized to overconsumption of different levels of protein diets, those consuming the low-protein diet had less weight gain compared to those consuming normal and high protein diets, and calories alone, and not protein appeared to contribute to an increase in body fat, according to a study in the Jan. 4 issue of JAMA. ...> Full Article

Scientists link dietary DHA to male fertility (1/11/2012)

A University of Illinois study reports that a certain omega-3 fatty acid is necessary to construct the arch that turns a round, immature sperm cell into a pointy-headed super swimmer with an extra long tail. The study shows that docosahexaenoic acid is essential in fusing the building blocks of the acrosome together. The acrosome is critical in fertilization because it houses, organizes, and concentrates a variety of enzymes that sperm use to penetrate an egg. ...> Full Article

Dried licorice root fights the bacteria that cause tooth decay and gum disease (1/10/2012)

Scientists are reporting identification of two substances in licorice -- used extensively in Chinese traditional medicine -- that kill the major bacteria responsible for tooth decay and gum disease, the leading causes of tooth loss in children and adults. In a study in ACS' Journal of Natural Products, they say that these substances could have a role in treating and preventing tooth decay and gum disease. ...> Full Article

Couch potato or elite athlete? A happy medium keeps colds at bay! (1/9/2012)

Battling colds and doing (or pledging to do) more exercise are familiar activities for most of us in January. But different levels of exercise can actually significantly increase or decrease your chances of catching a respiratory infection, says Professor Mike Gleeson from Loughborough University. ...> Full Article

Chinese herbal medicine may provide novel treatment for alcohol abuse (1/9/2012)

UCLA researchers have identified how a component of an ancient Chinese herbal anti-hangover medicine called dihydromyricetin, isolated from the plant Hovenia, counteracts acute alcohol intoxication and withdrawal symptoms. The research team determined that dihydromyricetin may provide a molecular target and cellular mechanism to counteract alcohol intoxication and dependence, leading to new therapeutic treatments. ...> Full Article

A firmer understanding of muscle fibrosis (1/8/2012)

Researchers describe how increased production of a microRNA promotes progressive muscle deterioration in a mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, according to a study published online on Jan. 2 in the Journal of Cell Biology. ...> Full Article

How work tells muscles to grow (1/7/2012)

We take it for granted, but the fact that our muscles grow when we work them makes them rather unique. Now, researchers have identified a key ingredient needed for that bulking up to take place. A factor produced in working muscle fibers apparently tells surrounding muscle stem cell "higher ups" that it's time to multiply and join in, according to a study in the January Cell Metabolism, a Cell Press journal. ...> Full Article

Sexual satisfaction in women increases with age (1/6/2012)

A new study of sexually active older women has found that sexual satisfaction in women increases with age and those not engaging in sex are satisfied with their sex lives. A majority of study participants report frequent arousal and orgasm that continue into old age, despite low sexual desire. The study appears in the January issue of the American Journal of Medicine. ...> Full Article

Diet patterns may keep brain from shrinking (1/5/2012)

People with diets high in several vitamins or in omega 3 fatty acids are less likely to have the brain shrinkage associated with Alzheimer's disease than people whose diets are not high in those nutrients, according to a new study published in the Dec. 28, 2011, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. ...> Full Article

Having a cow can be a heart healthy choice (1/4/2012)

Lean beef can contribute to a heart-healthy diet in the same way lean white meats can, according to nutritional scientists. ...> Full Article

Some 'low-gluten' beer contains high levels of gluten (1/3/2012)

Beer tested in a new study, including some brands labeled "low-gluten," contains levels of hordein, the form of gluten present in barley, that could cause symptoms in patients with celiac disease, the autoimmune condition treated with a life-long gluten-free diet, scientists are reporting. The study, which weighs in on a controversy over the gluten content of beer, appears in ACS' Journal of Proteome Research. ...> Full Article

Scientists identify an innate function of vitamin E (1/2/2012)

It's rubbed on the skin to reduce signs of aging and consumed by athletes to improve endurance but scientists now have the first evidence of one of vitamin E's normal body functions. The powerful antioxidant found in most foods helps repair tears in the plasma membranes that protect cells from outside forces and screen what enters and exits, Georgia Health Sciences University researchers report in the journal Nature Communications. ...> Full Article

Turn down the iPod to save your hearing (1/2/2012)

Professor Chava Muchnick of Tel Aviv University has published a study that clearly demonstrates that harmful music-listening habits among teens could result in hearing problems much earlier than expected from natural aging. She recommends that both schools and parents provide early education on hearing health to stem the risk. ...> Full Article

Unhealthy eating: a new form of occupational hazard? (1/1/2012)

The poor diet of shift workers should be considered a new occupational health hazard, according to an editorial published in this month's PLoS Medicine. The editorial draws on previous work published in the journal, which showed an association between an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and rotating patterns of shift work in US nurses. ...> Full Article

First aid after tick bites (1/1/2012)

They come out in the spring, and each year they spread further - the ticks. Thirty percent of them transmit borrelia pathogens, the causative agent of Lyme borreliosis that can damage joints and organs. The disease often goes undetected. In the future, a new type of gel is intended to prevent an infection - if applied after a tick bite. ...> Full Article