Diet & Weight Loss Archive

Long-awaited results from a nearly 10-year trial exploring the effect of changes in diet and exercise among people with diabetes weren’t what most people expected. The Look AHEAD trial found that intensive efforts to lose weight by eating less and exercising more didn’t provide any more protection against heart disease—a common co-traveler with diabetes—than standard diabetes support and education. The spin from some media reports is that weight loss doesn’t reduce heart disease risk among people with type 2 diabetes, but I think that’s the wrong interpretation. The results of the Look AHEAD trial don’t contradict the value of lifestyle changes. People in the intensive change group improved their blood sugar with fewer drugs, saving an estimated $600 per year, they were also less likely to have developed chronic kidney disease and less self-reported vision problems. The Look AHEAD results reinforce for me that diabetes care needs to be tailored to the individual.

City dwellers often think of rural America as a throwback to past “good old days.” But when it comes to obesity and diabetes, people living outside urban areas offer a frightening glimpse of the future. While more than 8% of Americans now have diabetes, in some rural counties 20% of the residents have diabetes. Those counties also tend to have high rates of obesity. Barriers to healthy living contribute to both obesity and diabetes. So does lack of primary care physicians. One answer may be greater reliance on community health workers—lay people trained to provide diabetes education and outreach. In Birmingham, Alabama, the Cities for Life program has doctors refer people with diabetes to “patient navigators” who help them find local resources such as nearby exercise classes or mobile farmers’ markets.

The Mediterranean diet has been getting a lot of press as being the very best for health. But there’s another diet that appears to be equally good: a vegetarian diet. A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that people who ate a vegetarian diet were 12% less likely to have died over the course of the five-year study than nonvegetarians. The benefits were especially good for men, who had a significant reduction in heart disease. This study underscores the idea that meat consumption influences long-term health, and not in a good way. Should you consider ditching the Mediterranean diet and becoming a vegetarian instead? Either one is healthier than the typical American diet, so it’s really a matter of personal choice.

Losing weight, strengthening muscles, and increasing flexibility may help you stave off joint replacement.

You may be putting off a doctor visit to address knee or hip osteoarthritis because you believe it will end with joint replacement surgery, but that's not always the case. "Exercise and weight loss are actually the first line of defense," says Dr. Eric Berkson, director of the Sports Performance Center at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital. "It may help prevent the pain and prevent surgery."

Quitting smoking is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, despite subsequent weight gain. Researchers say quitters who gain a few pounds still have about a 50% lower cardiovascular disease risk than smokers, even if they have diabetes.

Aging and a family history can increase the risk for a stroke, but women can lower it by managing factors that are under their control-such as diet, exercise, blood pressure, smoking, and diabetes.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s revelation yesterday that he had secretly undergone weight-loss surgery back in February shouldn’t come as a big surprise. He has been publicly (and privately) struggling with his weight for years and fits the profile of a good candidate for this kind of operation. In general, weight-loss surgery is appropriate for people with a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or higher, as well as for those with a BMI of 35 to 39.9 and a severe, treatment-resistant medical condition such as diabetes, heart disease, and sleep apnea, who had tried to lose weight other ways. Christie had a BMI of at least 41. He also acknowledged trying to lose weight many times, using different weight loss programs. He underwent laparoscopic gastric banding, also known as lap banding. There are also two other types of weight-loss surgery, gastric bypass and the gastric sleeve procedure.

Adding more protein to the diet and cutting back on carbohydrates, especially highly processed carbs, is an eating strategy adopted by a growing number of people. A new study in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior found that 43% of women surveyed are using the practice of eating more protein to prevent weight gain, and this strategy was associated with weight loss. It isn’t necessary to eliminate all carbohydrates and focus only on protein. Such an eating strategy may have a short-term payoff for weight loss, but it may also come with some long-term risks. Tips for getting a healthful mix of nutrients include adding the healthful trio of fat, fiber, and protein to each meal; avoiding highly processed foods; and choosing the most healthful sources of protein, such as fish, poultry, eggs, beans, legumes, nuts, tofu, and low-fat or non-fat dairy products.

Easy steps to help you make the switch to this heart-healthy eating plan.

Are you sick of cutting carbs and counting calories? Then you might be happy to know that one of the best diets—especially for protecting your heart—is the Mediterranean eating plan. Heavy on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, nuts, and olive oil, this diet emphasizes smarter food choices, not deprivation.

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