Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 6/26/13.  You should consult your doctor if you are taking any medications.

Breastfeeding Boosts Ability to Climb Social Ladder - Science Daily, 6/25/13 - "children who had been breastfed were consistently more likely to have climbed the social ladder than those who had not been breastfed ... Breastfeeding increased the odds of upwards mobility by 24% and reduced the odds of downward mobility by around 20% for both groups ... breastfeeding enhances brain development, which boosts intellect, which in turn increases upwards social mobility. Breastfed children also showed fewer signs of stress"

CVD Reduced With Metformin, Higher With Rosiglitazone - Medscape, 6/24/13 - "In 29 different studies, metformin was associated with a 10% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular events, with the drug associated with a 10% reduction in the risk of heart failure in seven studies and a 12% reduction in the risk of MI in nine studies. In contrast, rosiglitazone was associated with a 21% increased risk of cardiovascular events in 25 studies, a 27% increased risk of heart failure in 13 studies, and a 17% increased risk of MI in 21 studies"

Iron Deficiency Linked to Psychiatric Disorders in Kids - Medscape, 6/24/13 - "Children and adolescents with iron deficiency anemia (IDA) are at increased risk for psychiatric disorders, including depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, and autism ... should check the iron level in those children and adolescents with psychiatric disorders ... Iron plays a key role in brain development, including myelination of white matter and the development and functioning of the different neurotransmitter systems, including the dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin systems ... There is well-documented evidence in the literature that IDA has a significant influence on cognitive development, intelligence, and developmental delay ... Odds Ratio ... Bipolar disorder ... 5.80"

U-shaped curve revealed for association between fish consumption and atrial fibrillation - Science Daily, 6/24/13 - "The study found a U-shaped association between consumption of marine n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA) and the risk of developing AF, with people who have both low and high intakes found to suffer more from AF than those with median intakes. The lowest risk of AF was found in those who consumed around 0.63 g marine n-3 PUFA per day, which corresponds to around two servings of fatty (oily) fish per week ... Earlier studies have reported that regular consumption of fish can exert beneficial effects in preventing the development of AF. Notably, in the Cardiovascular Health study², which included 4,815 participants, a 28% lower risk of AF was observed among people who consumed fish one to four times per week compared with those who ate fish less than once per month. However, such observed associations have not been confirmed in all cohort studies" - Note:  I wouldn't go by one study plus that's just one disease.

Findings emphasize importance of vitamin D in pregnancy - Science Daily, 6/22/13 - "While current studies suggest that around a fifth (19 per cent) of a newborn baby's supply or deficiency of vitamin D comes directly from its mother, experts from Kingston's School of Life Sciences have discovered that the figure is, in fact, almost three times as high at 56 per cent ... focused on 120 samples taken from 60 Greek mothers and their babies ... Although the Mediterranean nation enjoys more hours of sunshine than the United Kingdom, the research revealed that many of the mothers had low levels of vitamin D ... the type of vitamin D commonly measured in blood tests was not as reliable an indicator of vitamin D activity as other strands. They went on to discover that two epimer forms, previously thought to be unimportant, influenced levels in babies" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Thirdhand smoke causes DNA damage - Science Daily, 6/20/13 - "has found for the first time that thirdhand smoke -- the noxious residue that clings to virtually all surfaces long after the secondhand smoke from a cigarette has cleared out -- causes significant genetic damage in human cells ... Tobacco-specific nitrosamines, some of the chemical compounds in thirdhand smoke, are among the most potent carcinogens there are. They stay on surfaces, and when those surfaces are clothing or carpets, the danger to children is especially serious ... thirdhand smoke can cause both DNA strand breaks and oxidative DNA damage, which can lead to gene mutation ... it can still be detected in dust and surfaces of apartments more than two months after smokers moved out. Common cleaning methods such as vacuuming, wiping and ventilation have not proven effective in lowering nicotine contamination"

Dietary fructose causes liver damage in animal model - Science Daily, 6/19/13 - "The big question for the researchers was what caused the liver damage. Was it because the animals got fat from eating too much, or was it something else? ... To answer that question, this study was designed to prevent weight gain. Ten middle-aged, normal weight monkeys who had never eaten fructose were divided into two groups based on comparable body shapes and waist circumference. Over six weeks, one group was fed a calorie-controlled diet consisting of 24 percent fructose, while the control group was fed a calorie-controlled diet with only a negligible amount of fructose, approximately 0.5 percent ... Both diets had the same amount of fat, carbohydrate and protein, but the sources were different ... high-fructose group's diet was made from flour, butter, pork fat, eggs and fructose (the main ingredient in corn syrup), similar to what many people eat, while the control group's diet was made from healthy complex carbohydrates and soy protein ... What surprised us the most was how quickly the liver was affected and how extensive the damage was, especially without weight gain as a factor"

HPV Vaccines Working Despite Limited Use - ABC News, 6/19/13 - "The HPV infection rate among girls between the ages of 14 and 19 dropped by 56 percent with the arrival of the vaccines Cervarix and Gardasil ... The CDC urges boys to get vaccinated against HPV ... While a single dose of the HPV vaccines was found to cut the risk of HPV infection by 82 percent, clinical trials suggest the protection rises to 96 percent with all three doses"

L-thyroxine Dampens Renal Function Decline in CKD With SCH - Medscape, 6/19/13 - "In patients with stage 2 to 4 chronic kidney disease (CKD) and subclinical hypothyroidism (SCH), thyroid hormone replacement therapy (THRT) with L-thyroxine appeared to dampen the rate of decline in renal function ... studied 113 patients with stable CKD who were treated at their center with L-thyroxine for subclinical hypothyroidism and who had data for at least 24 months before and after THRT ... mean age of 63, and 32% were men ... The patients received L-thyroxine (Synthyroid, Bukwang Pharmacy) at a dose needed to normalize serum TSH levels. The usual starting dose was 25 µg/day and was increased as needed until the patient attained a normal serum TSH level ... On average, before the patients received THRT, eGFR declined by 4.31 mL/min/1.73 m2 each year, but after they received THRT, this slowed significantly, to a decline of 1.08 mL/min/1.73 m2 each year" - Note:  I throw studies like this in because it would make sense that it might also reduce the decline in kidney function with normal aging.

Tea and Coffee Lower Blood Pressure - Medscape, 6/18/13 - "After adjustments that included these and other potential confounding variables, both coffee and tea consumption was associated with a significant reduction in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as other variables" - See the table.  For coffee, no coffee was 127.9 for none, 1 - 4 cups was 126.7 and > 4 cups was 125.5 on the systolic.

Skipping Breakfast May Raise Diabetes Risk - WebMD, 6/18/13 - "The new study included only nine women. Their average age was 29, and all were overweight or obese ... measured their levels of insulin and blood sugar on two different days after the women ate lunch. On one day, they had eaten breakfast; on the other day, they had skipped it ... the women's insulin and glucose levels after lunch were much higher on the day they skipped breakfast than on the day they ate it ... There was a 28 percent increase in the insulin response and a 12 percent increase in the glucose response after skipping breakfast"

Getting enough sleep could help prevent type 2 diabetes - Science Daily, 5/18/13 - "studied 19 non-diabetic men, with an average age of 28.6 years, who for six months or longer (average, 5.1 years) self-reported inadequate sleep during the workweek. On average, the men received only 6.2 hours of sleep each work night. But they regularly caught up on their sleep on the weekends, sleeping an extra 37.4 percent, or 2.3 hours, per night ... When the men slept 10 hours a night on each of three nights of catch-up sleep, their insulin sensitivity was much better than when they had persistent sleep restriction, the scientists found. Their insulin resistance test score also improved (decreased) with sleep extension"

Herbal Extract Boosts Fruit Fly Lifespan by Nearly 25 Percent - Science Daily, 6/18/13 - "Rhodiola works in a manner completely unrelated to dietary restriction and affects different molecular pathways ... Rhodiola can act even in individuals who are already long-lived and healthy. This is quite unlike resveratrol, which appears to only act in overfed or unhealthy individuals ... Not only did Rhodiola improve lifespan an average of 24 percent in both sexes and multiple strains of flies, but it also delayed the loss of physical performance in flies as they aged and even extended the lives of old flies ... Rhodiola has already shown possible health benefits in humans, such as decreasing fatigue, anxiety and depression; boosting mood, memory and stamina; and preventing altitude sickness" - See Rhodiola rosea at Amazon.com.

Cutting Back on Red Meat May Lower Risk for Type 2 Diabetes - Medscape, 6/18/13 - "Reducing red-meat consumption by more than half a serving per day over a 4-year follow-up did not confer a reduced risk for incident type 2 diabetes in the subsequent 4 years, but it was associated with a 14% reduced risk during a 12- to 16-year follow-up"

Abstracts from this week's Doctor's Guide Nutrition/Dietetics plus abstracts from my RSS feeds (Click here for the journals, the PubMed ones at the top):

Effects of synbiotic food consumption on metabolic status of diabetic patients: A double-blind randomized cross-over controlled clinical trial - Clin Nutr. 2013 Jun 7 - "This randomized double-blinded cross-over controlled clinical trial was performed among 62 diabetic patients aged 35-70 y. After a 2-wk run-in period, subjects were randomly assigned to consume either a synbiotic (n = 62) or control food (n = 62) for 6 weeks ... The synbiotic food consisted of a probiotic viable and heat-resistant Lactobacillus sporogenes (1 × 107 CFU), 0.04 g inulin (HPX) as prebiotic with 0.38 g isomalt, 0.36 g sorbitol and 0.05 g stevia as sweetener per 1 g. Control food (the same substance without probiotic bacteria and prebiotic inulin) was packed in identical 9-gram packages. Patients were asked to consume the synbiotic and control foods three times a day ... In conclusion, consumption of a synbiotic food for 6 weeks among diabetic patients had significant effects on serum insulin, hs-CRP, uric acid and plasma total GSH levels" - Note:  I not sure whether they are talking about probiotic supplements added to the food or something like yogurt.  See probiotic products at Amazon.com and my yogurt recipe at the top of my Yogurt Page.

Low vitamin D status is an independent predictor of increased frailty and all-cause mortality in older men: the Health In Men Study - J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2013 Jun 20 - "4203 older men aged 70-88 years in Perth, Western Australia ... After a mean period of 5.3 years, the adjusted odds ratio of being frail at follow-up for men with low vitamin D and having zero deficit at baseline (FRAIL scale = 0) was 1.56 (95% CI 1.07 to 2.27). Low vitamin D also predicted all-cause mortality over a period of up to 9.2 years (hazards ratio 1.20, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.42), independent of baseline frailty and other covariates" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Effects of long-chain PUFA supplementation in infant formula on cognitive function in later childhood - Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Jun 19 - "Infants were randomly assigned to receive formula containing either docosahexaenoic acid and arachidonic acid or no LC-PUFAs for a period of 4 mo. A reference breastfed group was also included. In a follow-up conducted at age 6 y, children received assessments of intelligence quotient (IQ), attention control (Day-Night Test), and speed of processing on the Matching Familiar Figures Test (MFFT) ... IQ scores of children who were fed a formula containing either LC-PUFAs or no LC-PUFAs did not differ at age 6 y. However, children who received LC-PUFAs were faster at processing information compared with children who received unsupplemented formula. Variation in the dietary supply of LC-PUFAs in the first months of life may have long-term consequences for the development of some cognitive functions in later childhood" - See Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.

• Arachidonic acid - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - "Arachidonic acid (AA, sometimes ARA) is a polyunsaturated omega-6 fatty acid 20:4(ω-6). It is the counterpart to the saturated arachidic acid found in peanut oil"

Coffee and Tea Consumption Are Inversely Associated with Mortality in a Multiethnic Urban Population - J Nutr. 2013 Jun 19 - "mean follow-up of 11 y ... Coffee consumption was inversely associated with all-cause mortality [for each additional cup/d, HR = 0.93 (95% CI: 0.88, 0.99); P = 0.02]. Caffeinated coffee was inversely associated with all-cause mortality, driven by a strong protection among those who drank ≥4 cups/d. An inverse dose-response relationship between tea and all-cause mortality was suggested [for each additional cup/d, HR = 0.91 (95% CI: 0.84, 0.99); P = 0.01]. Coffee consumption ≥4/d was protective against nonvascular death [vs. <1/mo, HR = 0.57 (95% CI: 0.33, 0.97)] and tea consumption ≥2/d was protective against nonvascular death [HR = 0.63 (95% CI: 0.41, 0.95)] and cancer [HR = 0.33 (95% CI: 0.14, 0.80)]. There was a strong inverse association between coffee and vascular-related mortality among Hispanics only"

Effect of green tea on reward learning in healthy individuals: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study - Nutr J. 2013 Jun 18;12(1):84 - "Seventy-four healthy subjects participated in a double-blind, randomized placebo-controlled study with oral administration of green tea or placebo for 5weeks. We used the monetary incentive delay task to evaluate the reward learning by measurement of the response to reward trial or no-reward trial. We compared the reaction time of reward responsiveness between green tea and placebo treatment. Furthermore, we selected Montgomery-Asberg depression rating scale (MADRS) and 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD-17) to estimate the depressive symptoms in these two groups ... The results showed chronic treatment of green tea increased reward learning compared with placebo by decreasing the reaction time in monetary incentive delay task. Moreover, participants treated with green tea showed reduced scores measured in MADRS and HRSD-17 compared with participants treated with placebo" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.

Evaluation of Human Papillomavirus Antibodies and Risk of Subsequent Head and Neck Cancer - J Clin Oncol. 2013 Jun 17 - "HPV16 E6 seropositivity was present more than 10 years before diagnosis of oropharyngeal cancers"

Neat Tech Stuff / "How To's": A couple weeks ago I posted about yogurt taking different times to make because of how close the culture is to the expiration date (close to expiration = weaker culture = more time to incubate). I thought that a pH meter might be the way to go. It worked. 4.3 is about where you want to be: http://www.qclscientific.com/pdfs/Apps Notes/pH of Yogurt.pdf Neewer New Mini Digital Pen Type PH Meter PH-009 I Multimeter Tester Hydro Radlux 4 Watt LED Light Bulb Cool White (25 Watt Replacement, 300 Lumen) - 5,500 Kelvin (for bathroom vanity lights) with a color rendering index of 82.  They also have a four pack. Hubbell Building Automation LightHAWK LHIRS1I Digital Infrared Occupancy Sensor with Manual Override, Ivory - Nearly all motion sensors will not work with CFL's or LED because they require a small current to pass through them which is enough to cause a flicker in CFL's and LED's.  This has "No minimum load requirement".  The ones that work with CFL's and LED's are hard to find and then you have to do a lot or research to see what it does plus they are expensive ($69 while I'm writing this).  The LHIRS is a motion on/off, not like most occupancy sensors which is confusing.  With most occupancy sensors you have to manually turn it on when you enter the room then it goes off automatically when you leave the room.  Some clarify and call it a vacancy swith.  With this switch, when you walk into the room it switches the LED's or CFL's on automatically and when you leave the room it switches them off automatically after a preset time interval.  Reminds me of that scene in Avatar where they wall down the huge tree limb and the lights light their path.  It also has a manual override.  I've had three for years and I even removed the cover to get the right model number to be sure.  eBay has it also at this writing: LHIRS switch for $57 with the shipping. Watt Stopper - Legrand WN-100-120-W - 0-500 Watts - Occupancy Sensor Wall Switch w/ Night Light - White - Another brand that does the same thing for the same price.  It's from 1000bulbs though and I had a real hassle with them on returning something once and I nearly never return anything.  I'll never order from them again. Leviton IPS02-1LW Single Pole Wide View Motion Activated Light Control, White - I got an email from Home Depot touting this switch for LED's and CFL's and found it at Amazon but it got really bad reviews from both the Home Depot website and the Amazon website.  For one thing, it doesn't have manual override.  Only $20, Lutron MS-OPS2-WH Maestro 250 Watt Single Pole Occupancy Sensor Switch, White - This one works with CFL's and LED's and it sounds like it does everything the $69 one above does and it's only $20.  I'm going to try one.  Seems like there's always a catch when something is that much cheaper.  Click here for the programming instructions.  Click here for the installation instructions. Enerlites WOS-W Passive Infrared Single Pole Wall Switch Occupancy Sensor, White - Also has 4.5 stars.  I like it better because it's easier to see if you are in manual override.

Health Focus (a href="../fpweightcontrol.html">Weight Management):

Popular Supplements:

• Coleus forskohlii / HCA / calcium / CLA / green tea / 5-HTP / fiber / chitosan / DHEA / GH-3

News & Research:

• Predictors of increased body weight and waist circumference for middle-aged adults - Public Health Nutr. 2013 May 1:1-11 - "Prospective cohort study, the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study (MCCS), with data at baseline (1990-1994) and wave 2 (2003-2007) ... Our findings indicate that promoting vigorous physical activity, encouraging a diet high in carbohydrate and fibre but low in fat and protein, and limiting alcohol intake could be promising approaches for preventing obesity in middle-aged adults"
• Protein-rich breakfasts prevent unhealthy snacking in the evening, study finds - Science Daily, 3/26/13 - "20 overweight or obese adolescent females ages 18-20 either skipped breakfast, consumed a high-protein breakfast consisting of eggs and lean beef, or ate a normal-protein breakfast of ready-to-eat cereal. Every breakfast consisted of 350 calories and was matched for dietary fat, fiber, sugar and energy density. The high-protein breakfast contained 35 grams of protein ... The consumption of the high-protein breakfast led to increased fullness or "satiety" along with reductions in brain activity that is responsible for controlling food cravings. The high-protein breakfast also reduced evening snacking on high-fat and high-sugar foods compared to when breakfast was skipped or when a normal protein, ready-to-eat cereal breakfast was consumed ...Study participants ate egg and beef-based foods such as burritos or egg-based waffles with applesauce and a beef sausage patty as part of a high-protein breakfast; Leidy also suggests eating plain Greek yogurt, cottage cheese or ground pork loin as alternatives to reach the 35 grams of protein"
• Chromium supplementation in overweight and obesity: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials - Obes Rev. 2013 Mar 18 - "Electronic searches were conducted in Medline, Embase, Amed and The Cochrane Library ... A meta-analysis of 11 studies showed a statistically significant difference in weight loss favouring chromium over placebo (mean difference (MD): -0.50 kg; 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.97, -0.03). There was a high statistical heterogeneity. Adverse events included watery stools, vertigo, headaches and urticaria. The evidence from available RCTs shows that chromium supplementation generates statistically significant reductions in body weight" - See chromium supplements at Amazon.com.
• Olive Oil Makes You Feel Full - Science Daily, 3/14/13 - "While it is true that they contain fewer calories, people tend to overcompensate by eating more if they do not feel full. Now a study has shown how "natural" oils and fats regulate the sensation of feeling full after eating, with olive oil leading the way ...Over a period of three months, the study participants ate 500 grams of low-fat yoghurt enriched with one of the four fats or oils every day -- as a supplement to their normal diet ... The olive oil group showed a higher concentration of the satiety hormone serotonin in their blood. Subjectively speaking, these participants also reported that they found the olive oil yoghurt very filling ... During the study period, no member of this group recorded an increase in their body fat percentage or their weight ... How long the feeling of satiety lasts after eating depends on a number of factors, but blood sugar level is particularly significant. The faster it falls, that is to say, the faster the somatic cells absorb glucose from the blood, the sooner the person will start to feel hungry again"
• Lose fat faster before breakfast - Science Daily, 1/25/13 - "those who had exercised in the morning did not consume additional calories or experience increased appetite during the day to compensate for their earlier activity ... They also found that those who had exercised in a fasted state burned almost 20% more fat compared to those who had consumed breakfast before their workout. This means that performing exercise on an empty stomach provides the most desirable outcome for fat loss"
• Carbs at night can help you lose weight - Today Health, 1/20/13 - "In the study, researchers split 78 Israeli police officers into two groups and placed them on nearly identical 6-month-long low-calorie diets (1,300 to 1,500 calories a day) eating equal amount of carbs, protein, and fat throughout the day. The only difference: Half of the officers ate the majority of their carbs at night while the other half ate them throughout the day. At the start and end of the study, researchers analyzed blood hormone levels while the cops recorded their hunger levels ... Nighttime carb eaters lost 27 percent more body fat than people on the standard diet. Surprisingly, they also felt 13.7 percent fuller at the end of the study than the beginning, while regular dieters were hungrier. What's more, the level of inflammatory hormones -- which can lead to heart disease and cancer -- in the nighttime group's blood decreased by 27.8 percent compared to only 5.8 percent in the standard dieters" - Note:  So maybe carbs at night and eggs in the morning might be a strategy:
  • Eggs at Breakfast May Delay Hunger - WebMD, 5/11/12 - "researchers tracked 20 overweight or obese people, giving them either a breakfast containing eggs or cold cereal for one week. Although the breakfasts offered different protein foods, the meals themselves were equally matched in terms of calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fat ... people who had eggs in the morning felt fuller before lunch, and they also ate less food from the buffet compared to those who had cereal. Egg eaters also had lower levels of ghrelin and higher amounts of PYY3-36 during the three hours between breakfast and lunch. This suggests they felt less hungry and more satisfied between meals ... Long-term weight loss trials to compare the manipulation of protein quality without increasing protein quantity should be explored"
• Higher-protein diet for weight management in young overweight women: a 12 month randomised controlled trial - Diabetes Obes Metab. 2012 Dec 26 - "This randomised controlled trial compared the efficacy of two iso-energetically restricted (5600kJ) diets (HP: 32% protein, 41% carbohydrate, 25% fat or HC: 20, 58, 21% respectively) in 71 (HP:n=36; HC:n=35) young healthy women (18-25y; BMI≥27.5kg/m(2) ) for weight (kg; percent weight loss), body composition, metabolic and iron changes assessed at baseline, six and 12 months ... No significant between-diet differences were observed at 12 months. Biochemistry remained within normal ranges with HP showing superior preservation of ferritin at six months (HP:53(40-66); HC:46(30-61)µg/L; p=0.029). Both diets supported clinically meaningful weight loss with HP tending to be more effective in the medium-term"
• Aerobic exercise trumps resistance training for weight and fat loss - Science Daily, 12/15/12 - "Participants were randomly assigned to one of three exercise training groups: resistance training (three days per week of weight lifting, three sets per day, 8-12 repetitions per set), aerobic training (approximately 12 miles per week), or aerobic plus resistance training (three days a week, three set per day, 8-12 repetitions per set for resistance training, plus approximately 12 miles per week of aerobic exercise) ... The groups assigned to aerobic training and aerobic plus resistance training lost more weight than those who did just resistance training. The resistance training group actually gained weight due to an increase in lean body mass ... The combination exercise group, while requiring double the time commitment, provided a mixed result. The regimen helped participants lose weight and fat mass, but did not significantly reduce body mass nor fat mass over aerobic training alone. This group did notice the largest decrease in waist circumference, which may be attributed to the amount of time participants spent exercising ... Balancing time commitments against health benefits, our study suggests that aerobic exercise is the best option for reducing fat mass and body mass"
• Low fat diet is key to a slimmer figure, study suggests - Science Daily, 12/6/12 - "Exchanging fatty foods for lower fat alternatives will help people shift around three-and-a-half pounds -- without any other form of dieting. People taking part in trials also saw their waist-lines become slimmer, and levels of bad cholesterol decrease ... The results show that eating less fat reduces body weight by 1.6kg, BMI by 0.56kg/m² and waist circumference by 0.5cm. All these effects were in trials in which weight loss was not the intended outcome, suggesting that they occur in people with normal diets. The weight loss happened quickly and was maintained over at least seven years"
• Could high insulin make you fat? Mouse study says yes - Science Daily, 12/4/12 - "When we eat too much, obesity may develop as a result of chronically high insulin levels, not the other way around ... The new study helps to solve this chicken-or-the-egg dilemma by showing that animals with persistently lower insulin stay trim even as they indulge themselves on a high-fat, all-you-can-eat buffet ... the researchers produced mice that varied only in their fasting blood insulin levels. When presented with high-fat food, those with one copy and lower fasting insulin were completely protected from obesity even without any loss of appetite. They also enjoyed lower levels of inflammation and less fat in their livers, too ... the researchers produced mice that varied only in their fasting blood insulin levels. When presented with high-fat food, those with one copy and lower fasting insulin were completely protected from obesity even without any loss of appetite. They also enjoyed lower levels of inflammation and less fat in their livers, too"
• Changes in bread consumption and 4-year changes in adiposity in Spanish subjects at high cardiovascular risk - Br J Nutr. 2012 Dec 3:1-10 - "We analysed 2213 participants at high risk for CVD from the PREvención con DIeta MEDiterránea (PREDIMED) trial to assess the association between changes in the consumption of bread and weight and waist circumference gain over time. Dietary habits were assessed with validated FFQ at baseline and repeatedly every year during 4 years of follow-up ... The present results showed that over 4 years, participants in the highest quartile of change in white bread intake gained 0.76 kg [1.7 pounds] more than those in the lowest quartile (P for trend = 0.003) and 1.28 cm [0.5 inches] more than those in the lowest quartile (P for trend < 0.001) ... The present results suggest that reducing white bread, but not whole-grain bread consumption, within a Mediterranean-style food pattern setting is associated with lower gains in weight and abdominal fat"
• New research: Limiting carbs to dinner-time increases satiety, reduces risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease - Science Daily, 11/11/12 - "randomly assigned 78 police officers to either the experimental diet (carbohydrates at dinner) or a control weight loss diet (carbohydrates throughout the day). 63 subjects finished the six-month program ... researchers examined the experimental diet's effect on the secretion of three hormones: leptin, considered to be the satiety hormone, whose level in the blood is usually low during the day and high during the night; ghrelin, considered the hunger hormone, whose level in the blood is usually high during the day and low during the night; and adiponectin, considered the link between obesity, insulin resistance and the metabolic syndrome, whose curve is low and flat in obese people ... the innovative dietary manipulation led to changes in daylight hormonal profiles in favor of the dieters: the satiety hormone leptin's secretion curve became convex during daylight hours with a nadir in the late day; the hunger hormone ghrelin's secretion curve became concave, peaking only in the evening hours; and the curve of adiponectin, considered the link between obesity, insulin resistance and the metabolic syndrome, was elevated. At the same time this dietary pattern led to lower hunger scores, and better anthropometric (weight, abdominal circumference and body fat), biochemical (blood sugar, blood lipids) and inflammatory outcomes compared to the control group"
• Effect of green tea (camellia sinensis) consumption on the components of metabolic syndrome in elderly - J Nutr Health Aging. 2012;16(9):738-42 - "The consumption of green tea was effective in inducing weight loss, reducing BMI and waist circumference in the elderly with MS" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Soups increase satiety through delayed gastric emptying yet increased glycaemic response - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2012 Oct 24 - "A total of 12 volunteers were tested on three occasions after a solid meal, chunky soup or smooth soup test meal for gastric emptying (GE) ... glycaemic response (GR) ... The smooth soup had the greatest GR (87.0+/-49.5 mmol/l/min), followed by the chunky soup (65.4+/-48.0 mmol/l/min), with the solid meal having the lowest GR (61.6+/-36.8 mmol/l/min). Volunteers were fuller after the smooth soup compared with solid meal (P=0.034). The smooth soup induced greater fullness compared with the solid meal because of a combination of delayed GE leading to feelings of gastric distension and rapid accessibility of nutrients causing a greater glycaemic response" - Note:  I was flipping through the channels a couple weeks ago and on one of the major networks was a dietician recommending soup as a major contribution to satiety.
• Regulation of brown adipose tissue development and white fat reduction by L-arginine - Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2012 Nov;15(6):529-38 - "Brown adipose tissue (BAT), which is present in humans, plays an important role in oxidation of fatty acids and glucose ... L-arginine increases mammalian BAT growth and development via mechanisms involving gene expression, nitric oxide signaling, and protein synthesis. This enhances the oxidation of energy substrates and, thus, reduces white fat accretion in the body. L-arginine holds great promise in preventing and treating obesity in humans" - See L-arginine products at Amazon.com.
• Effect of DHEA-S on Metabolic Syndrome in Obese Women: Abstract and Introduction - Medscape, 10/12/12 - "Dehydroepiandrosterone-sulphate replacement produced weight loss in the obese women studied. Moreover, waist circumference, glucose and systolic and diastolic blood pressure, among other metabolic syndrome parameters, improved in the postmenopausal group, who showed a significant reduction in the total metabolic syndrome score (P < 0.05). In contrast, in premenopausal women, the effect of DHEA-S was limited to obesity parameters, and no effect was observed on metabolic syndrome components. No significant changes were evident in the placebo group" - See DHEA at Amazon.com.
• Apple peel compound boosts brown fat, reduces obesity in mice - Science Daily, 6/20/12 - "The findings suggest that the substance known as ursolic acid reduces obesity and its associated health problems by increasing the amount of muscle and brown fat, two tissues recognized for their calorie-burning properties ... In this study, we tested ursolic acid in mice on a high-fat diet -- a mouse model of obesity and metabolic syndrome. Once again, ursolic acid increased skeletal muscle. Interestingly, it also reduced obesity, pre-diabetes and fatty liver disease ... Since muscle is very good at burning calories, the increased muscle in ursolic acid-treated mice may be sufficient to explain how ursolic acid reduces obesity. However, we were surprised to find that ursolic acid also increased brown fat, a fantastic calorie burner. This increase in brown fat may also help protect against obesity" - See ursolic acid at Amazon.com.
• Eggs at Breakfast May Delay Hunger - WebMD, 5/11/12 - "researchers tracked 20 overweight or obese people, giving them either a breakfast containing eggs or cold cereal for one week. Although the breakfasts offered different protein foods, the meals themselves were equally matched in terms of calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fat ... people who had eggs in the morning felt fuller before lunch, and they also ate less food from the buffet compared to those who had cereal. Egg eaters also had lower levels of ghrelin and higher amounts of PYY3-36 during the three hours between breakfast and lunch. This suggests they felt less hungry and more satisfied between meals ... Long-term weight loss trials to compare the manipulation of protein quality without increasing protein quantity should be explored" - Note:  I fully agree.  I just seems very easy to keep my weight in check when I have eggs for breakfast.
• Metformin-based treatment for obesity-related hypertension: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial - J Hypertens. 2012 Apr 19 - "metformin (500 mg once per day) or placebo ... At 24 weeks, metformin compared with placebo did not have significant effects on blood pressure, blood glucose, high-density or low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, but it did reduce total serum cholesterol (0.27mmol/l, P = 0.038). Metformin also significantly reduced weight (-0.7 kg, P = 0.006), BMI (-0.2 kg/m, P = 0.024), waist circumference (-0.9 cm, P = 0.008), and both subcutaneous (-6.1��cm, P = 0.043) and visceral adiposity (-5.4 cm, P = 0.028) as measured by computed tomography, and lowered serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels (-0.6 mg/dl, P < 0.001). There was no significant difference in adverse events" - See metformin at The Antiaging Store.
• Potential method to control obesity: Red wine, fruit compound could help block fat cell formation - Science Daily, 4/4/12 - "A compound found in red wine, grapes and other fruits, and similar in structure to resveratrol, is able to block cellular processes that allow fat cells to develop, opening a door to a potential method to control obesity ... the compound piceatannol blocks an immature fat cell's ability to develop and grow ... piceatannol binds to insulin receptors of immature fat cells in the first stage of adipogenesis, blocking insulin's ability to control cell cycles and activate genes that carry out further stages of fat cell formation. Piceatannol essentially blocks the pathways necessary for immature fat cells to mature and grow" - See grape seed extract at Amazon.com.
• Coffee Bean Extract Linked to Weight Loss - ABC News, 3/27/12 - "Researchers gave up to 1,050 milligrams of green coffee bean extract to 16 overweight adults in their 20s and monitored their diet, exercise regimen, weight, heart rate and blood pressure for 22 weeks. Without changing their diet or exercise, study subjects lost roughly 10.5 percent — an average of 17 pounds – in overall body weight. No harmful side effects were noted ... How green coffee bean extract contributes to weight loss is unclear. But Vinson theorizes a chemical in the unroasted bean called chlorogenic acid could be responsible" - See green coffee bean extract at Amazon.com.
• Clinical trial supports CLA’s weight management in obese Chinese - Nutra USA, 2/17/12 - "Twelve weeks of supplementation produced an average 0.7 kg decrease in body weight and an average decrease in total body fat of 0.6 kg ... milk supplemented with CLA (3.4 g/d for 12 wk) ... used the Tonalin branded ingredient from BASF" - [Abstract] - See conjugated linoleic acid at Amazon.com.
• Lack of sleep makes your brain hungry - Science Daily, 1/18/12 - "a specific brain region that contributes to a person's appetite sensation is more activated in response to food images after one night of sleep loss than after one night of normal sleep. Poor sleep habits can therefore affect people's risk of becoming overweight in the long run"
• Diet Plans That Work - US News Best Diets - US News and World Report, 1/4/12 - "Best Diets Overall ... DASH Diet ... TLC Diet ... Best Weight-Loss Diets ... Weight Watchers ... Best Diabetes Diets ... Biggest Loser Diet ... Biggest Loser Diet ... DASH Diet ... Best Heart-Healthy Diets ... Ornish Diet ... TLC Diet"
• Evaluation of the usefulness of a low-calorie diet with or without bread in the treatment of overweight/obesity - Clin Nutr. 2011 Dec 30 - "The aim of this study was to compare two nutrition strategies (with or without bread) designed to promote weight loss in overweight/obese women ... 104 women completed the study (48.4 +/- 9 years, 29.8 +/- 3.5 kg/m(2)). Anthropometric and biochemical markers improved after the intervention without significant differences between groups. BREAD group significantly increased total cereal consumption (3.2 +/- 1.3 to 3.7 +/- 0.5 servings/day, P < 0.05) and the percentage of energy from carbohydrates (41.2 +/- 6.4 vs. 45.9 +/- 5.0% P < 0.001) and reduced fat (39.0 +/- 6.6 vs. 32.7 +/- 5.1% P < 0.001). In contrast, NO BREAD group increased the discrepancy with recommended consumption. NO BREAD group had the most dropouts (21.3% vs. 6.6%, P < 0.05) ... The bread inclusion in a low-calorie diet designed for weight loss favoured a better evolution of dietetic parameters and greater compliance with the diet with fewer dropouts"
• Diferential Effect of Oral Dehydroepiandrosterone-Sulphate on Metabolic Syndrome Features in Pre- and Postmenopausal Obese Women - Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2011 Dec 2 - "To analyze the effect in obese pre- and postmenopausal women of a daily dose of 100 mg Dehydroepiandrosterone-sulphate (DHEA-S) provided over a period of 3 months as replacement therapy against Metabolic-Syndrome ... DHEA-S replacement produced weight loss in the obese women studied. Moreover, waist-circumference, glucose and systolic and diastolic blood pressure, among other Metabolic-Syndrome parameters, improved in the postmenopausal group, who showed a significant reduction in the total Metabolic-Syndrome Score (P<0.05). In contrast, in premenopausal women, the effect of DHEA-S was limited to obesity parameters and no effect was observed on Metabolic-Syndrome components. No significant changes were evident in the placebo group. Conclusions:  An oral dose of DHEA-S is useful for weight loss. In obese postmenopausal women the hormone significantly improves plasma biochemical levels and anthropometric characteristics, leading to a better metabolic profile, which highlights the usefulness of this therapy against Metabolic-Syndrome in this group of women" - See DHEA at Amazon.com.
• Korean Red Ginseng (Panax ginseng) Improves Insulin Sensitivity in High Fat Fed Sprague-Dawley Rats - Phytother Res. 2011 Oct 28 - "Many studies have documented that ginseng has antidiabetic and antiobesity effects, but the mechanism of the effects has not been elucidated. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of Korean red ginseng (KRG, Panax ginseng) and investigate the mechanism of antidiabetic and antiobesity effects in obese insulin resistant animal models. Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were divided into three groups: a control group (group I) fed a normal diet, another group (group II) fed only high fat diet (HFD) and a third group (group III) fed HFD with KRG (200 mg/kg, oral) for 18 weeks ... A significant weight reduction, especially fat mass reduction, was observed in the KRG treated group. Increased insulin sensitivity was found in the KRG treated group. We observed increased insulin signalling, increased phosphorylation of IR, IRS-1, Akt, and membranous GLUT4 in muscle by Western blotting assay. In conclusion, KRG may have antidiabetic and antiobesity effects due to partly increased insulin sensitivity by increased adipokine and partly enhanced insulin signalling" - See ginseng at Amazon.com.
• Watching Your Protein May Be Key to Weight Control - WebMD, 10/12/11 - "men and women fed a 10% protein diet ate 12% more calories over four days than they did on a 15% protein diet ... When protein in the diet goes too low, ''We keep eating in an attempt to attain our target level of protein," ... As the protein declined to 10%, the men and women tended to eat more carbohydrates and fat-containing food, boosting the risk for weight gain. But Gosby found that increasing the protein from 15% to 25% didn't seem to make any difference in total calories eaten ... Aiming at 15%-25% of total energy intake as protein seems about right for a moderately active person" - [Science Daily]
• Green tea helps mice keep off extra pounds - Science Daily, 10/4/11 - "in the current online version of Obesity, fed two groups of mice a high-fat diet. Mice that were fed Epigallocatechin-3-gallate -- EGCG -- a compound found in most green teas, along with a high-fat diet, gained weight 45 percent more slowly than the control group of mice eating the same diet without EGCG ... In addition to lower weight gain, the mice fed the green tea supplement showed a nearly 30 percent increase in fecal lipids, suggesting that the EGCG was limiting fat absorption ... A person would need to drink ten cups of green tea each day to match the amount of EGCG used in the study" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Soluble fiber may help shed 1.5kg in 12 weeks: Roquette study - Nutra USA, 9/16/11 - "One hundred and twenty overweight men were randomly assigned to consume fruit juice supplemented with 17 grams of either Nutriose or maltodextrin (control) for 12 weeks. The participants consumed the juice twice a day to provide a daily dose of 34 grams ... men who drank the Nutriose beverage had an average body weight loss of 1.5 kg, an average body mass index (BMI) reduction of 0.5 kg/m2, and lost an average of 0.3% of their body fat percentage, compared with the control group ... In addition, men who drank the Nutriose-supplemented drink reported less hunger across the study period, compared with men in the control group"[Abstract] - Note:  1.5 kg = 3.3 lbs - See Jarrow Formulas, Fiber Perfect at Amazon.com (It contains the Nutriose).
• Foods rich in protein, dairy products help dieters preserve muscle and lose belly fat - Science Daily, 8/29/11 - "a higher-protein, lower-carbohydrate energy-restricted diet has a major positive impact on body composition, trimming belly fat and increasing lean muscle, particularly when the proteins come from dairy products ... compared three groups of overweight and obese, but otherwise healthy, premenopausal women. Each consumed either low, medium or high amounts of dairy foods coupled with higher or lower amounts of protein and carbohydrates ... there were identical total weight losses among the groups, but the higher-protein, high-dairy group experienced greater whole-body fat and abdomen fat losses, greater lean mass gains and greater increases in strength ... One hundred per cent of the weight lost in the higher-protein, high-dairy group was fat. And the participants gained muscle mass, which is a major change in body composition ... the lower-protein, low-dairy group lost about a pound and half of muscle whereas the lower-protein, medium dairy group lost almost no muscle. In marked contrast, the higher-protein, high-dairy group actually gained a pound and half of muscle, representing a three-pound difference between the low- and high-dairy groups ... On top of the muscle mass differences, the higher-protein, high-dairy group lost twice as much belly fat than the lower-protein, low-dairy group ... These women also got fitter and stronger" - See my yogurt recipe on my yogurt page.
• Eating protein throughout the day preserves muscle and physical function in dieting postmenopausal women, study suggests - Science Daily, 8/10/11 - "higher protein intake during weight loss can offset negative effects on muscle mass by maintaining more muscle relative to the amount of weight lost. Women who ate more protein lost 3.9 percent more weight and had a relative gain of 5.8 percent more thigh muscle volume than woman who did not ... 31 healthy, postmenopausal obese women were divided into two groups. Each group followed a 1,400-calorie weight-loss diet based on USDA's My Pyramid, but one group received a powdered whey protein supplement in the morning and again in the afternoon or evening; the other received a placebo that contained carbohydrates ... We hypothesize that more vigorous exercise -- in particular, resistance training -- would preserve even more muscle" - See whey protein at Amazon.com or try the yogurt recipe at the top of my yogurt page.
• Masticating 40 times per bite is key to weight loss, study says - The Daily, 7/31/11 - "People who chewed 40 times ended up consuming 12 percent fewer calories, according to researchers at Harbin Medical University in China ... If the average person cut his calorie intake by 12 percent, he would lose nearly 25 pounds in one year ... Chewing more was associated with lower blood levels of ghrelin, a hormone that stimulates appetite, as well as higher levels of CCK, a hormone believed to reduce appetite"
• Is lost lean mass from intentional weight loss recovered during weight regain in postmenopausal women? - Am J Clin Nutr. 2011 Jul 27 - "All body mass and composition variables were lower immediately after weight loss than at baseline (all P < 0.05). More fat than lean mass was lost with weight loss, which resulted in body-composition changes favoring a lower percentage of body fat and a higher lean-to-fat mass ratio (P < 0.001). Considerable interindividual variability in weight regain was noted (CV = 1.07). In women who regained ≥2 kg body weight, a decreasing trend in the lean-to-fat mass ratio was observed, which indicated greater fat mass accretion than lean mass accretion (P < 0.001). Specifically, for every 1 kg fat lost during the weight-loss intervention, 0.26 kg lean tissue was lost; for every 1 kg fat regained over the following year, only 0.12 kg lean tissue was regained ... Although not all postmenopausal women who intentionally lose weight will regain it within 1 y, the data suggest that fat mass is regained to a greater degree than is lean mass in those who do experience some weight regain"
• Increased Consumption of Dairy Foods and Protein during Diet- and Exercise-Induced Weight Loss Promotes Fat Mass Loss and Lean Mass Gain in Overweight and Obese Premenopausal Women - J Nutr. 2011 Jul 20 - "Weight loss can have substantial health benefits for overweight or obese persons; however, the ratio of fat:lean tissue loss may be more important. We aimed to determine how daily exercise (resistance and/or aerobic) and a hypoenergetic diet varying in protein and calcium content from dairy foods would affect the composition of weight lost in otherwise healthy, premenopausal, overweight, and obese women. Ninety participants were randomized to 3 groups (n = 30/group): high protein, high dairy (HPHD), adequate protein, medium dairy (APMD), and adequate protein, low dairy (APLD) differing in the quantity of total dietary protein and dairy food-source protein consumed: 30 and 15%, 15 and 7.5%, or 15 and <2% of energy, respectively. Body composition was measured by DXA at 0, 8, and 16 wk and MRI (n = 39) to assess visceral adipose tissue (VAT) volume at 0 and 16 wk. All groups lost body weight (P < 0.05) and fat (P < 0.01); however, fat loss during wk 8-16 was greater in the HPHD group than in the APMD and APLD groups (P < 0.05). The HPHD group gained lean tissue with a greater increase during 8-16 wk than the APMD group, which maintained lean mass and the APLD group, which lost lean mass (P < 0.05). The HPHD group also lost more VAT as assessed by MRI (P < 0.05) and trunk fat as assessed by DXA (P < 0.005) than the APLD group. The reduction in VAT in all groups was correlated with intakes of calcium (r = 0.40; P < 0.05) and protein (r = 0.32; P < 0.05). Therefore, diet- and exercise-induced weight loss with higher protein and increased dairy product intakes promotes more favorable body composition changes in women characterized by greater total and visceral fat loss and lean mass gain" - Note:  See the yogurt recipe on my yogurt page.
• Whey Protein May Be Helpful for Weight Loss - WebMD, 7/15/11 - "Researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Human Nutrition Research Center randomly assigned 90 overweight and obese middle-aged adults to one of three groups. The first group was asked to add protein drinks made with whey to their normal diets, the second group drank protein drinks made with soy protein, and the third group drank carbohydrate drinks ... the drinks, which were drunk twice daily, at breakfast and dinner, had the same number of calories: 200. They also all had had 52 grams per packet, for a daily total of 104 grams of added protein or carbs ... After six months, people drinking the carbohydrate shakes had gained a little bit of weight, about 2 pounds, which appeared to be mainly added fat ... People drinking the soy shakes had stayed about the same weight as where they started ... But people drinking the whey protein had lost a little bit of weight and body fat, about 2 pounds. Additionally, while the other groups saw little change in the size of their waists, the whey protein group lost about an inch around the middle ... a couple of things may help to explain the weight and fat loss seen with whey protein ... People in the whey protein group had significantly lower blood levels of the hormone ghrelin than people eating the soy protein or carbohydrate ... And though researchers really can't explain why this happened or what it means, they found that people drinking the whey protein had cut back on their carbohydrate intake by the end of the study, even though they weren't eating fewer total calories and didn't know what kind of supplement they were getting ... researchers advise picking a whey product that is also low in calories and fat" - See whey protein at Amazon.com.
• Waistlines in people, glucose levels in mice hint at sweeteners' effects: Related studies point to the illusion of the artificial - Science Daily, 6/27/11 - "In the constant battle to lose inches or at least stay the same, we reach for the diet soda. Two studies presented June 25 and 27 at the American Diabetes Association's Scientific Sessions in San Diego suggest this might be self-defeating behavior ... diet soft drink consumption is associated with increased waist circumference in humans, and a second study that found aspartame raised fasting glucose (blood sugar) in diabetes-prone mice ... The average follow-up time was 9.5 years ... Diet soft drink users, as a group, experienced 70 percent greater increases in waist circumference compared with non-users. Frequent users, who said they consumed two or more diet sodas a day, experienced waist circumference increases that were 500 percent greater than those of non-users ... In the related project ... One group of the mice ate chow to which both aspartame and corn oil were added; the other group ate chow with the corn oil added but not the aspartame. After three months on this high-fat diet, the mice in the aspartame group showed elevated fasting glucose levels but equal or diminished insulin levels, consistent with early declines in pancreatic beta-cell function"
• Fat substitutes linked to weight gain: Rats on high-fat diet gained more weight after eating low-calorie potato chips made with fat substitutes - Science Daily, 6/20/11 - "Half of the rats in each group also were fed Pringles potato chips that are high in fat and calories. The remaining rats in each group were fed high-calorie Pringles chips on some days and low-calorie Pringles Light chips on other days. The Pringles Light chips are made with olestra, a synthetic fat substitute that has zero calories and passes through the body undigested ... For rats on the high-fat diet, the group that ate both types of potato chips consumed more food, gained more weight and developed more fatty tissue than the rats that ate only the high-calorie chips. The fat rats also didn't lose the extra weight even after the potato chips were removed from their diet. "Based on this data, a diet that is low in fat and calories might be a better strategy for weight loss than using fat substitutes," ... Food with a sweet or fatty taste usually indicates a large number of calories, and the taste triggers various responses by the body, including salivation, hormonal secretions and metabolic reactions. Fat substitutes can interfere with that relationship when the body expects to receive a large burst of calories but is fooled by a fat substitute ... Swithers and Davidson have reported similar findings in previous rat studies that showed saccharin and other artificial sweeteners also can promote weight gain and increased body fat"
• Cut down on 'carbs' to reduce body fat, study authors say - Science Daily, 6/5/11 - "Subjects received either a standard lower-fat diet or a diet with a modest reduction in carbohydrates, or "carbs," but slightly higher in fat than the standard diet. The moderately carb-restricted diet contained foods that had a relatively low glycemic index, a measure of the extent to which the food raises blood glucose levels. This diet consisted of 43 percent calories from carbohydrates and 39 percent calories from fat, whereas the standard diet contained 55 percent of calories from carbohydrates and 27 percent from fat. Protein made up the other 18 percent of each diet ... After the weight maintenance phase, subjects who consumed the moderately carb-restricted diet had 11 percent less deep abdominal fat than those who ate the standard diet. However, when the researchers analyzed results by race, they found it was exclusive to whites. Whites have more deep abdominal fat than Blacks even when matched for body weight or percent body fat, and may benefit from loss of this metabolically harmful depot"
• Healthy gut flora could prevent obesity, rat study suggests - Science Daily, 5/25/11 - "Poor gut flora is believed to trigger obesity. In the same way, healthy gut flora could reduce the risk. This has shown to be the case in tests on rats. Daily intake of a lactic acid bacteria, which has been given the name Lactobacillus plantarum HEAL19, appears to be able to prevent obesity and reduce the body's low-level inflammation ... Rats who were given this specific lactic acid bacterium from their time in the uterus up to adult age put on significantly less weight than other rats. Both groups ate the same amount of high-energy food ... A third group of rats were given the inflammation-causing Escherichia coli bacteria in their drinking water, in addition to the same high-energy food as the other rats. The E. coli supplement led to changes in gut flora and increased body fat ... A healthy gut flora at an early stage appears to play a part in children's wellbeing later in life"
• Eat a protein-rich breakfast to reduce food cravings, prevent overeating later, researcher finds - Science Daily, 5/19/11 - "eating a healthy breakfast, especially one high in protein, increases satiety and reduces hunger throughout the day. In addition, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) the researchers found that eating a protein-rich breakfast reduces the brain signals controlling food motivation and reward-driven eating behavior ... These findings suggest that a protein-rich breakfast might be an effective strategy to improve appetite control and prevent overeating in young people"
• Citrus extracts show energy burning potential, without side effects: Study - Nutra USA, 5/17/11 - "consumption of 100 mg hesperidin, 50 mg p-synephrine (from bitter orange), and 600 mg naringin increased the resting metabolic rate by about 18 percent ... If one assumes that the product was taken twice a day for one year, the theoretical increase in calorie consumption would amount to over 31 pounds ... None of the treatment groups exhibited changes in heart rate or blood pressure relative to the control group, nor there were no differences in self-reported ratings of 10 symptoms between the treatment groups and the control group ... the thermogenic effect of p-synephrine may be increased by naringin and hesperidin via an enhancement in the production of the expression of adiponectin, a hormone released from fat cells, which plays an important role in the regulation of insulin sensitivity and energy" - [Abstract]
• Breakfast frequency inversely associated with BMI and body fatness in Hong Kong Chinese children aged 9-18 years - "The prevalence of obesity among breakfast skippers, semi-skippers and non-skippers was, respectively, 9.8, 10.6 and 3.8 % (P < 0.001) for primary school students and 3.9, 3.1 and 2.4 % (P < 0.001) for secondary school students. The 12 % of Hong Kong children aged 9-18 years who skipped breakfast had higher BMI, BMI z-scores and percentage of body fat (PBF) than their counterparts. The dose effects of breakfast frequency (unstandardised regression coefficient, P < 0.001) on BMI and PBF were, respectively, - 0.125 kg/m2 and - 0.219 % for boys and - 0.165 kg/m2 and - 0.353 % for girls, adjusting for physical activity per additional breakfast meal per week. Further study is recommended to elucidate whether regular breakfast consumption may have a role in the prevention of childhood obesity" - Note:  I don't know what the problem is with the "." in the actual abstract instead of the "." but I fixed it so it wouldn't be so confusing.
• Green tea shows body weight and fat benefits: Rat study - Nutra USA, 3/30/11 - "Rats consuming green tea along with a high fat diet gained less body weight and accumulated less fat than animals not supplemented with tea, says a new study ... Consuming the equivalent of five to eight cups of green tea a day was associated with a 5.6 percent decrease in body weight gain, and a 17.8 percent decrease in fat accumulation over eight weeks" - [Abstract] - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Green tea aqueous extract reduces visceral fat and decreases protein availability in rats fed with a high-fat diet - Nutr Res. 2011 Feb;31(2):157-64 - "Green tea is associated with beneficial health effects mainly because of its body fat-reducing and hypocholesterolemic activities, but an effective dose without pronounced influence on protein availability is unknown. The objective of this study was to examine the hypothesis that green tea aqueous extract (GTAE) depending on dose improves cardiovascular risk indicators such as body weight, visceral fat content, and atherogenic index of plasma and does not have unfavorable effect on protein availability in rats fed with a high-fat diet. The rats fed with a high-fat diet enriched with 1.1 and 2.0% GTAE for 8 weeks had significantly (P < .05) lower atherogenic index (in both groups, about 14.3%). Only administration of 2.0% GTAE significantly (P < .05) decreased body weight gain (5.6%) and prevented visceral fat accumulation (17.8%) in rats. However, considerably (P < .05), reduction in the digestion of protein (but not fat) was observed in both GTAE groups (1.1% GTAE: 82.6% +/- 1.8%; 2.0% GTAE: 84.3% +/- 0.8%) when compared to the control (93.3% +/- 1.5%). It was concluded that GTAE may have preventive effects on the accumulation of visceral fat but only in higher doses. Although both doses improved cardiovascular risk indicators, they, in addition, significantly inhibited protein digestion" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Resveratrol may be useful tool for reducing body fat - Science Daily, 3/4/11 - "This thesis shows, on the one hand, the results obtained after treatment with CLA in hamsters subjected to energy restriction and, on the other, the effect of resveratrol on accumulated fat and lipolytic activity in cell cultures of adipocytes of murinae and humans. The results obtained show that CLA does not foment weight or body fat loss, induced by an energy restriction diet. Neither does it induce greater lipolysis, nor improvement in serum parameters, in glucose homeostasis or insulin function to any greater extent than with the slimming diet itself. On the contrary, resveratrol reduces the accumulation of triglycerides, in part by activation of lipolysis, in both the adipocytes of mice and of humans ... For all these reasons, it can be concluded that, while CLA may not be a molecule useful in treating obesity, when resveratrol is included in hypocaloric diet, it could well be a useful tool for reducing body fat" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com and conjugated linoleic acid at Amazon.com.
• A protein-rich beverage consumed as a breakfast meal leads to weaker appetitive and dietary responses v. a protein-rich solid breakfast meal in adolescents - Br J Nutr. 2011 Feb 15:1-5 - "A total of fifteen adolescents (eight girls and seven boys; age 14 (sem 1) years, BMI percentile 79 (sem 4) %) randomly completed two testing days that included protein-rich (PR) breakfast meals (38 % of energy as protein, 48 (sem 2) g/meal) provided as a solid (S) or beverage (B). Breakfast was 24 % of estimated daily energy needs (2146 (sem 96) kJ/meal). Perceived appetite and satiety responses were collected over 5 h followed by an ad libitum lunch buffet. The PR-S meal led to greater reductions in 4 h postprandial appetite ( - 6221 (sem 1171) mm × 240 min) v. the PR-B meal ( - 3570 (sem 957) mm × 240 min; P < 0.05). When examining the data according to hourly responses, the PR-S meal led to greater reductions in appetite during postprandial hours 2, 3 and 4 v. the PR-B meal (all comparisons, P < 0.05). No differences in postprandial hourly or total (4 h) fullness were observed following the PR-S v. PR-B meals. The PR-S meal led to approximately 480 kJ less energy consumed at the ad libitum lunch buffet (1418 (sem 222) kJ) v. the PR-B meal (1900 (sem 326) kJ; P < 0.05). These data indicate that, although the food form of the PR breakfast meals had little, if any, effect on satiety, the appetitive responses were diminished and the subsequent food intake was greater when protein was consumed as a beverage v. a solid meal"
• Effects of Metformin on Body Weight and Body Composition in Obese Insulin-Resistant Children: A Randomized Clinical Trial - Diabetes. 2011 Jan 12 - "1,000 mg metformin (n = 53) or placebo (n = 47) twice daily for 6 months ...Children prescribed metformin had significantly greater decreases in BMI (difference -1.09 kg/m(2), CI -1.87 to -0.31, P = 0.006), body weight (difference -3.38 kg, CI -5.2 to -1.57, P < 0.001), BMI Z score (difference between metformin and placebo groups -0.07, CI -0.12 to -0.01, P = 0.02), and fat mass (difference -1.40 kg, CI -2.74 to -0.06, P = 0.04). Fasting plasma glucose (P = 0.007) and homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) insulin resistance index (P = 0.006) also improved more in metformin-treated children than in placebo-treated children. Gastrointestinal symptoms were significantly more prevalent in metformin-treated children, which limited maximal tolerated dosage in 17%. During the 6-month open-label phase, children treated previously with placebo decreased their BMI Z score; those treated continuously with metformin did not significantly change BMI Z score further. CONCLUSIONS Metformin had modest but favorable effects on body weight, body composition, and glucose homeostasis in obese insulin-resistant children participating in a low-intensity weight-reduction program" - Note: 3.38 kg equals 7.4 pounds.  See metformin at IAS.
• Low blood levels of vitamin D linked to chubbier kids, faster weight gain - Science Daily, 11/8/10 - "the kids with the lowest vitamin D levels at the beginning tended to gain weight faster than the kids with higher levels ... children with the lowest vitamin D levels had more drastic increases in central body fat measures ... Vitamin D deficiency was also linked to slower growth in height among girls but not boys" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• Eating mostly whole grains, few refined grains linked to lower body fat - Science Daily, 10/20/10 - "People who consume several servings of whole grains per day while limiting daily intake of refined grains appear to have less of a type of fat tissue thought to play a key role in triggering cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes ... Visceral Adipose Tissue ... VAT volume was approximately 10 % lower in adults who reported eating three or more daily servings of whole grains and who limited their intake of refined grains to less than one serving per day ... Visceral fat surrounds the intra-abdominal organs while subcutaneous fat is found just beneath the skin ... visceral fat is more closely tied to the development of metabolic syndrome ... participants who consumed, on average, three daily servings of whole grains but continued to eat many refined grains did not demonstrate lower VAT volume"
• Too much light at night at night may lead to obesity, study finds - Science Daily, 10/11/10 - "mice exposed to a relatively dim light at night over eight weeks had a body mass gain that was about 50 percent more than other mice that lived in a standard light-dark cycle ... Something about light at night was making the mice in our study want to eat at the wrong times to properly metabolize their food ... So how does light at night lead to changes in metabolism? The researchers believe the light could disrupt levels of the hormone melatonin, which is involved in metabolism. In addition, it may disrupt the expression of clock genes, which help control when animals feed and when they are active"
• Sleep loss limits fat loss - Science Daily, 10/4/10 - "When dieters got adequate sleep, however, more than half of the weight they lost was fat. When they cut back on their sleep, only one-fourth of their weight loss came from fat"
• Drink water to curb weight gain? Clinical trial confirms effectiveness of simple appetite control method - Science Daily, 8/23/10 - "We found in earlier studies that middle aged and older people who drank two cups of water right before eating a meal ate between 75 and 90 fewer calories during that meal. In this recent study, we found that over the course of 12 weeks, dieters who drank water before meals, three times per day, lost about 5 pounds more than dieters who did not increase their water intake"
• Green Tea Supplementation Affects Body Weight, Lipids, and Lipid Peroxidation in Obese Subjects with Metabolic Syndrome - J Am Coll Nutr. 2010 Feb;29(1):31-40 - "Green tea beverage consumption (4 cups/d) or extract supplementation (2 capsules/d) for 8 weeks significantly decreased body weight and BMI. Green tea beverage further lowered lipid peroxidation versus age- and gender-matched controls, suggesting the role of green tea flavonoids in improving features of metabolic syndrome in obese patients" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Lemurs lose weight with 'life-extending' supplement resveratrol - Science Daily, 6/22/10 - "The anti-obesity properties of resveratrol have been demonstrated for the first time in a primate ... lemurs eating a diet supplemented with the compound decreased their energy intake by 13% and increased their resting metabolic rate by 29% ... a four-week resveratrol supplementation was associated with a decrease in food intake and a reduction in seasonal body-mass gain. The response to resveratrol supplementation also involved significant changes in the animals' body temperatures" - [Nutra USA] - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.
• Probiotics may help fat and weight loss: Study - Nutra USA, 6/11/10 - "Twelve weeks of consuming a fermented milk product containing the Lactobacillus strain was associated with a 4.6 per cent reduction in abdominal fat, and a 3.3 per cent reduction in subcutaneous fat" - [Abstract]
  • See Yogourmet Electric Yogurt Maker - I've had a lot of yogurt makers over the years but this is the best one I've found.  I mix two cups of Nestle Nido Instant Dry Whole Milk (available at Amazon) with two cups of dry skim milk in a blender.  Lately I've been making it with Activa. I believe it's only sold flavored but I've been using the strawberry flavored Activa.  I put the milk powders in a blender then fill it with water and blend.  Then add one container of the Activa and blend fast one more time (not to kill the culture).  Then pour it into the jar and fill the jar to the top with additional water and leave it in the yoghurt maker for 13 hours.  I mix the finished product with Smucker's Strawberry Orchard's Finest.  If your worried about the BPA's from the plastic container, see Widemouth Clear Half Gallon Glass Jar (64oz) w/ White Metal Lid  at specialtybottles.com.
  • Activia by Dannon - "Specialists at Dannon® selected Bifidus Regularis��� for Activia® because it survives passage through the digestive tract, arriving in the colon as a living culture. Once there, it plays a beneficial role in your intestinal ecosystem"
• Regulation of abdominal adiposity by probiotics (Lactobacillus gasseri SBT2055) in adults with obese tendencies in a randomized controlled trial - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010 Jun;64(6):636-43 - "fermented milk (FM) ... In the active FM group, abdominal visceral and subcutaneous fat areas significantly (P<0.01) decreased from baseline by an average of 4.6% (mean (confidence interval): -5.8 (-10.0, -1.7) cm(2)) and 3.3% (-7.4 (-11.6, -3.1) cm(2)), respectively. Body weight and other measures also decreased significantly (P<0.001) as follows: body weight, 1.4% (-1.1 (-1.5, -0.7) kg); BMI, 1.5% (-0.4 (-0.5, -0.2) kg/m(2)); waist, 1.8% (-1.7 (-2.1, -1.4) cm); hip, 1.5% (-1.5 (-1.8, -1.1) cm). In the control group, by contrast, none of these parameters decreased significantly. High-molecular weight adiponectin in serum increased significantly (P<0.01) in the active and control groups by 12.7% (0.17 (0.07, 0.26) microg/ml) and 13.6% (0.23 (0.07, 0.38) microg/ml), respectively. CONCLUSION: The probiotic LG2055 showed lowering effects on abdominal adiposity, body weight and other measures, suggesting its beneficial influence on metabolic disorders"
• To burn more fat, don’t eat before workout - MSNBC, 6/3/10 - "cyclists who trained without eating burned significantly more fat than their counterparts who ate ... When you exercise (after fasting), your adrenaline is high and your insulin is low ... That ratio is favorable for your muscles to oxidize (break down) more fatty acids"
• New evidence that chili pepper ingredient fights fat - Science Daily, 6/2/10 - "The capsaicin-treated rats lost 8 percent of their body weight and showed changes in levels of at least 20 key proteins found in fat. The altered proteins work to break down fats. "These changes provide valuable new molecular insights into the mechanism of the antiobesity effects of capsaicin,"" - See capsaicin supplements at Amazon.com.
• Milk: Two glasses a day tones muscles, keeps the fat away in women, study shows - Science Daily, 5/26/10 - "Women who drink two large glasses of milk a day after their weight-lifting routine gained more muscle and lost more fat compared to women who drank sugar-based energy drinks ... The women who drank milk gained barely any weight because what they gained in lean muscle they balanced out with a loss in fat"
• Resveratrol regulates human adipocyte number and function in a Sirt1-dependent manner - Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 May 12 - "Taken together, our data suggest that resveratrol influences adipose tissue mass and function in a way that may positively interfere with the development of obesity-related comorbidities. Thus, our findings open up the new perspective that resveratrol-induced intracellular pathways could be a target for prevention or treatment of obesity-associated endocrine and metabolic adverse effects" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.
• Green tea extract effective for weight loss at low doses - Nutra USA, 4/9/10 - "during two hours after a meal, the low-dose EGCG supplementation was associated with a 33 per cent increase in fat oxidation. The high-dose EGCG supplementation produced a non-significant 20 per cent increase, compared to placebo. Caffeine alone was associated with a 34.5 per cent increase, compared with placebo, while the combined EGCG/ /caffeine supplement boosted fat oxidation by 49 per cent ... during two hours after a meal, the low-dose EGCG supplementation was associated with a 33 per cent increase in fat oxidation. The high-dose EGCG supplementation produced a non-significant 20 per cent increase, compared to placebo. Caffeine alone was associated with a 34.5 per cent increase, compared with placebo, while the combined EGCG/ /caffeine supplement boosted fat oxidation by 49 per cent. “There is no synergism of low EGCG and 200 mg caffeine,” " - [Abstract] - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Weight-loss supplement has potential to burn fair amount of calories - Science Daily, 2/2/10 - "the nutritional supplement called the tri-pepper blend, which contains black pepper, caffeine and a concentrated form of capsaicin -- the ingredient that makes red peppers hot. The OU study showed energy expenditures of three to six percent, results which are statistically significant enough to validate product weight-loss claims"
• Pomegranate oil-seaweed mix may improve liver health and waist size - Nutra USA, 1/25/10 - "Results showed that body weight was significantly reduced by an average of 5.5 kg in people in the NAFLD group and 4.9 kg in the normal liver function group. Women in the placebo group lost an average of 1.4 kilos. In addition, women with NAFLD experienced improvements in waist circumference, body and liver fat content, liver enzymes, and serum triglycerides" - [Abstract] - 5.5 kg is 12.1 pounds - See FucoThin at Amazon.com
• The effects of Xanthigen in the weight management of obese premenopausal women with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and normal liver fat - Diabetes Obes Metab. 2010 Jan;12(1):72-81 - "Xanthigen-600/2.4 mg (300 mg PSO + 300 mg brown seaweed extract containing 2.4 mg fucoxanthin) resulted in statistically significant reduction of body weight (5.5 +/- 1.4 kg NAFLD group and 4.9 +/- 1.2 kg NLF group, p < 0.05), waist circumference (NAFLD group only), body (3.5 +/- 1.9 kg NAFLD group, p < 0.001; 3.6 +/- 0.7 kg NLF group, p < 0.05) and liver fat content, liver enzymes (NAFLD group only), serum triglycerides and C-reactive protein. Weight loss and reduction in body and liver fat content occurred earlier in patients with NLF than in patients with NAFLD. Fucoxanthin (> 2.4 mg) and Xanthigen-400/1.6 mg (200 mg PSO + 200 mg brown seaweed extract containing 1.6 mg fucoxanthin) significantly increased REE in NAFLD subjects compared to placebo. CONCLUSIONS: Xanthigen promoted weight loss, reduced body and liver fat content, and improved liver function tests in obese non-diabetic women. Xanthigen and Fucoxanthin also increased REE. This product may be considered a promising food supplement in the management of obesity" - See FucoThin at Amazon.com
• Dietary Fiber May Help Prevent Body Weight, Waist Circumference Gain - Medscape, 1/6/10 - "There was an inverse association of total fiber intake with subsequent change in weight and in waist circumference. For each 10-g/day increase in total fiber intake, the pooled estimate was –39 g/year (95% confidence interval [CI], –71 to –7 g/year) for weight change and –0.08 cm/year (95% CI, –0.11 to –0.05 cm/year) for waist circumference change ... For each 10-g/day increase in fiber intake from cereals, there was a weight change of –77 g/year (95% CI, –127 to –26 g/year) and change in waist circumference of –0.10 cm/year (95% CI, –0.18 to –0.02 cm/year). Fruit and vegetable fiber was not associated with weight change. However, the association of fruit and vegetable fiber intake with change in waist circumference was similar to that seen for intake of total dietary fiber and cereal fiber"
• Another Cause of Obesity: The Bacteria in Your Gut? - Time Magazine, 11/12/09 - "When one group of mice was fed a typical Western diet, high in fat and sugars, they tended to gain weight and grow more Firmicutes gut bacteria and fewer Bacteroidetes. In mice given a low-fat, plant-based chow, the distribution of the two groups of bugs flipped and the animals remained lean. It's not clear whether the balance of gut bugs causes weight gain or is a result of it, but the findings suggest that a "gut profile" could potentially serve as a diagnostic tool for identifying who might have a propensity for obesity. If, for instance, your gut environment contains a preponderance of Firmicutes, then your body may be predisposed to digest calories in a way that leads to greater fat storage. In fact, in Gordon's earlier work with identical twins of different weights, he found that the obese twin tended to have more Firmicutes colonies than the leaner sibling ...factors like gut microbes, which scientists traditionally would not think of exerting influence on genes, may have a surprisingly powerful effect, changing how a body's genes would normally control the way it digest food and breaks it down into energy"
  • Gut microflora and obesity: Study highlights potential for pre-, probiotics - Nutra USA, 11/12/09 - "One approach could involve searching for nutritional interventions to modify specific gut microbial species. Dietary components (prebiotics) might be found that alter growth of specific microbial species capable of affecting host physiology, and the Turnbaugh model can be used to pinpoint these elements and decipher the mechanisms of the host-microbe collaboration"
• Eat Late, Put on Weight? - WebMD, 9/3/09 - "eating at the "wrong" time leads to more than twice as much weight gain, even when the overall calories consumed are the same as those eaten at appropriate time"
• Low-carb Diets Linked To Atherosclerosis And Impaired Blood Vessel Growth - Science Daily, 8/25/09 - "Even as low-carbohydrate/high-protein diets have proven successful at helping individuals rapidly lose weight, little is known about the diets' long-term effects on vascular health ... mice placed on a 12-week low carbohydrate/high-protein diet showed a significant increase in atherosclerosis, a buildup of plaque in the heart's arteries and a leading cause of heart attack and stroke ... our research suggests that, at least in animals, these diets could be having adverse cardiovascular effects that are not reflected in simple serum markers"
• Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin - Time Magazine, 8/9/09 - "Many obesity researchers now believe that very frequent, low-level physical activity — the kind humans did for tens of thousands of years before the leaf blower was invented — may actually work better for us than the occasional bouts of exercise you get as a gym rat ... You cannot sit still all day long and then have 30 minutes of exercise without producing stress on the muscles ... The muscles will ache, and you may not want to move after. But to burn calories, the muscle movements don't have to be extreme. It would be better to distribute the movements throughout the day"
• Omega-3 fatty acid supplements improve the cardiovascular risk profile of subjects with metabolic syndrome, including markers of inflammation and auto-immunity - Acta Cardiol. 2009 Jun;64(3):321-7 - "were given 1 gram of fish oil as a single capsule, containing 180 mg eicosapentaenoic acid and 120 mg docosahexaenoic acid daily for 6 months. Control subjects did not receive any supplementation over the same period. RESULTS: The study was completed by 47 subjects in the intervention group and 42 subjects in the control group. Treatment with omega 3 supplements was associated with a significant fall in body weight (P < 0.05), systolic blood pressures (P < 0.05), serum low density lipoprotein cholesterol (P < 0.05), and total cholesterol (P < 0.05), triglycerides (P < 0.05), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) (P < 0.01), and Hsp27 antibody titres (P < 0.05). No significant changes were observed in the control group. CONCLUSION: It appears that omega 3 improves the cardiovascular risk profile of subjects with metabolic syndrome, having effects on weight, systolic blood pressure, lipid profile and markers of inflammation and autoimmunity" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.
• High-carb diet could aid slimming: Study - Nutra USA, 7/20/09
• Two Dietary Oils, Two Sets Of Benefits For Older Women With Diabetes - Science Daily, 7/15/09 - "In the study, 16 weeks of supplementation with safflower oil reduced fat in the trunk area, lowered blood sugar and increased muscle tissue in the women participants ... Conjugated linoleic acid supplementation for the same length of time, on the other hand, reduced total body fat and lowered the women’s body mass index (BMI), a common health measure of weight relative to height" - See conjugated linoleic acid at Amazon.com.
• Citrus-derived Flavonoid Prevents Obesity, Study Suggests - Science Daily, 7/14/09 - "Naringenin corrected the elevations in triglyceride and cholesterol, prevented the development of insulin resistance and completely normalized glucose metabolism. The researchers found it worked by genetically reprogramming the liver to burn up excess fat, rather than store it ... Furthermore, the marked obesity that develops in these mice was completely prevented by naringenin ... These studies show naringenin, through its insulin-like properties, corrects many of the metabolic disturbances linked to insulin resistance and represents a promising therapeutic approach for metabolic syndrome" - See naringenin at Amazon.com.
• New Evidence That Vinegar May Be Natural Fat-fighter - Science Daily, 6/22/09 - "Their new study showed that laboratory mice fed a high-fat diet and given acetic acid developed significantly less body fat (up to 10 percent less) than other mice. Importantly, the new research adds evidence to the belief that acetic acid fights fat by turning on genes for fatty acid oxidation enzymes. The genes churn out proteins involved in breaking down fats, thus suppressing body fat accumulation in the body" - See apple cider vinegar at Amazon.com - 4.5 tablets equals about 3 tablespoons by my calculations.  I've been popping 4 of these with meals for years and more and more research keeps backing me up.
• Comparison of dietary conjugated linoleic acid with safflower oil on body composition in obese postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes mellitus - Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Jun 17 - "Supplementation with CLA reduced body mass index (BMI) (P = 0.0022) and total adipose mass (P = 0.0187) without altering lean mass. The effect of CLA in lowering BMI was detected during the last 8 wk of each 16-wk diet period. In contrast, SAF had no effect on BMI or total adipose mass but reduced trunk adipose mass (P = 0.0422) and increased lean mass (P = 0.0432). SAF also significantly lowered fasting glucose (P = 0.0343) and increased adiponectin (P = 0.0051). No differences were observed in dietary energy intake, total fat intake, and fat quality in either diet period for either intervention. CONCLUSIONS: Supplementation with CLA and SAF exerted different effects on BMI, total and trunk adipose mass, and lean tissue mass in obese postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes" - See conjugated linoleic acid at Amazon.com.
• Could vinegar be natural fat fighter? - Nutra USA, 6/18/09 - "fed mice a high-fat diet, with 50 per cent of energy coming from fat, and treated the animals with 1.5 per cent vinegar (high-dose group), 0.3 per cent vinegar (low-dose group), or water (control group) ... the researchers noted that that both vinegar groups produced reductions in fat mass of about 10 per cent, with no apparent dose-dependent effect, compared to the control mice ... The results of this study suggest that acetic acid suppresses body fat accumulation by increasing fatty oxidation and thermogenesis in the liver through PPAR-alpha" - [Abstract] - See vinegar supplements at Amazon.com.
• Acetic Acid Upregulates the Expression of Genes for Fatty Acid Oxidation Enzymes in Liver To Suppress Body Fat Accumulation - J Agric Food Chem. 2009 May 26 - "acetic acid (AcOH) ... AcOH suppresses accumulation of body fat and liver lipids by upregulation of genes for PPARalpha and fatty-acid-oxidation-related proteins by alpha2 AMPK mediation in the liver" - See apple cider vinegar at Amazon.com.
• Skip Breakfast, Get Fat - WebMD, 6/15/09 - "Forgoing the first meal of the day actually tricks your brain into thinking you want higher-calorie foods -- foods that can make you fat, or at least increase your risk for weight gain"
• Sleep Restriction Results In Weight Gain Despite Decreases In Appetite And Consumption - Science Daily, 6/8/09 - "in the presence of free access to food, sleep restricted subjects reported decrease in appetite, food cravings and food consumption; however, they gained weight over the course of the study. Thus, the finding suggests that energy intake exceeded energy expenditure during the sleep restriction ... Results indicate that people whose sleep was restricted experienced an average weight gain of 1.31 kilograms over the 11 days of the study"
• Compound In Turmeric Spice May Stall Spread Of Fat Tissue - Science Daily, 5/22/09 - "supplementing the animals’ high-fat diet with curcumin reduced body-weight gain and total body fat, even though food-intake was not affected, when compared to the nonsupplemented high-fat-diet group ... The curcumin-treated group also had less blood vessel growth in fat tissue. Blood glucose, triglyceride, fatty acid, cholesterol and liver fat levels also were lower" - See curcumin products at Amazon.com.
• Plasma n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids are negatively associated with obesity - Br J Nutr. 2009 May 19:1-5 - "Plasma fatty acid composition was determined by GC. BMI, waist circumference and hip circumference were inversely correlated with n-3 PUFA, EPA and DHA (P < 0.05 for all) in the obese group. Obese individuals had significantly lower plasma concentrations of total n-3 PUFA, compared with healthy-weight individuals (4.53 (sd 1.11) v. 5.25 (sd 1.43) %)" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.
• Turmeric Extract Suppresses Fat Tissue Growth In Rodent Models - Science Daily, 5/18/09 - "Curcumin, the major polyphenol found in turmeric, appears to reduce weight gain in mice and suppress the growth of fat tissue in mice and cell models" - See curcumin products at Amazon.com.
• Lose Weight With a Good Night's Sleep? - WebMD, 5/16/09 - "The average BMI for short sleepers was 28.3. That compares to an average BMI of 24.5 for long sleepers. The BMI range for normal weight is considered to be 18.5-24.9 and for overweight 25.0-29.9. BMI is calculated from a person's weight and height and is an indicator of body fat"
• Whole-Grain, Low-Calorie Diet Reduced Body Fat Compared With Refined-Wheat Low-Calorie Diet - Doctor's Guide, 5/14/09 - "Patients consuming whole-grain foods had a significantly larger drop in body fat percentage (assessed by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scanning) compared with patients who had eaten refined foods (-6.8% vs -4.8%; P = .03) ... Total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels rose by 5% in the refined-wheat group but remained unchanged in the wholemeal-wheat group"
• White Tea: Solution To Obesity Epidemic? - Science Daily, 5/7/09 - "After treating lab-cultured human pre-adipocytes with the tea extract, the authors found that fat incorporation during the genesis of new adipocytes was reduced ... The extract solution induced a decrease in the expression of genes associated with the growth of new fat cells, while also prompting existing adipocytes to break down the fat they contain ... It is less processed than the other teas and contains more of the ingredients thought to be active on human cells, such as methylxanthines (like caffeine) and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) – which the authors believe to be responsible for many of the anti-adipogenic effects demonstrated in their study" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Study In Pregnant Women Suggests Probiotics May Help Ward Off Obesity - Science Daily, 5/7/09 - "One year after giving birth, women were less likely to have the most dangerous kind of obesity if they had been given probiotics from the first trimester of pregnancy, found new research that suggests manipulating the balance of bacteria in the gut may help fight obesity ... Central obesity, where overall obesity is combined with a particularly fat belly, is considered especially unhealthy ... We found it in 25% of the women who had received the probiotics along with dietary counselling, compared with 43% in the women who received diet advice alone" - See probiotics at Amazon.com.
• Curcumin may cut body fat and weight gain: Mouse study - Nutra USA, 4/27/09 - "The curcumin suppression of angiogenesis in adipose tissue together with its effect on lipid metabolism in adipocytes may contribute to lower body fat and body weight gain ... Curcumin was also associated with significantly lower cholesterol levels and a reduction in the expression of peroxisome proliferators-activated receptor gamma (PPAR-gamma), a protein that plays a role in metabolic functions" - [Abstract] - See curcumin products at Amazon.com.
• Curcumin inhibits adipogenesis in 3T3-L1 adipocytes and angiogenesis and obesity in C57/BL mice - J Nutr. 2009 May;139(5):919-25 - "Supplementing the high-fat diet of mice with curcumin did not affect food intake but reduced body weight gain, adiposity, and microvessel density in adipose tissue, which coincided with reduced expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and its receptor VEGFR-2. Curcumin increased 5'AMP-activated protein kinase phosphorylation, reduced glycerol-3-phosphate acyl transferase-1, and increased carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1 expression, which led to increased oxidation and decreased fatty acid esterification ... Our findings suggest that dietary curcumin may have a potential benefit in preventing obesity" - See curcumin products at Amazon.com.
• Green Tea (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate Reduces Body Weight with Regulation of Multiple Genes Expression in Adipose Tissue of Diet-Induced Obese Mice - Ann Nutr Metab. 2009 Apr 22;54(2):151-157 - "Experimental diets supplemented with EGCG resulted in reduction of body weight and mass of various adipose tissues in a dose-dependent manner. EGCG diet also considerably lowered the levels of plasma triglyceride and liver lipid. In the epididymal white adipose tissue of EGCG diet-fed mice, the mRNA levels of adipogenic genes such as peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-gamma), CCAAT enhancer-binding protein-alpha (C/EBP-alpha), regulatory element-binding protein-1c (SREBP-1c), adipocyte fatty acid-binding protein (aP2), lipoprotein lipase (LPL) and fatty acid synthase (FAS) were significantly decreased. However, the mRNA levels of carnitine palmitoyl transferase-1 (CPT-1) and uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2), as well as lipolytic genes such as hormone sensitive lipase (HSL) and adipose triglyceride lipase (ATGL), were significantly increased ... These results suggest that green tea EGCG effectively reduces adipose tissue mass and ameliorates plasma lipid profiles in high-fat diet-induced obese mice. These effects might be at least partially mediated via regulation of the expression of multiple genes involved in adipogenesis, lipolysis, beta-oxidation and thermogenesis in white adipose tissue" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Low Glycemic Breakfast May Increase Benefits Of Working Out - Science Daily, 4/15/09 - "Overall, fat oxidation was higher in the LGI treatment than in the HGI treatment (P < 0.05) during the post-breakfast and exercise periods. Following lunch, fullness scores were higher in the LGI trial than in the HGI trial (P < 0.05). The authors concluded that consuming a LGI breakfast increases fat oxidation during subsequent exercise and improved satiety during recovery in sedentary females. As such, individuals trying to shed fat may consider choosing LGI foods eaten prior to when they exercise"
• Beverage Consumption A Bigger Factor In Weight, Study Shows - Science Daily, 4/2/09
• Grape polyphenols may protect against obesity: Study - Nutra USA, 3/18/09 - "animals fed a high-fat diet but supplemented with the grape seed extract had adiponectin levels 61 per cent higher than animals only fed the high fat diet. Adiponectin is a protein hormone linked to various metabolic processes, and levels are inversely related to body fat levels" - [Abstract] - See grape seed extract at Amazon.com.
• Chardonnay grape seed procyanidin extract supplementation prevents high-fat diet-induced obesity in hamsters by improving adipokine imbalance and oxidative stress markers - Mol Nutr Food Res. 2008 Nov 26 - "GSE prevented in part these effects, reducing insulinemia and leptinemia by 16.5 and 45%, respectively, whereas adiponectin level increased by 61% compared with obese controls. GSE lowered glycemia and HOMA-IR and strongly prevented cardiac production of superoxide by 74% and NAD(P)H oxidase expression by 30%. This is the first time that chronic consumption of grape phenolics is shown to reduce obesity development and related metabolic pathways including adipokine secretion and oxidative stress" - See grape seed extract at Amazon.com.
• Scientists Discover Why A Low GI Meal Makes You Feel Full - Science Daily, 3/18/09 - "Eating a meal with a low GI (glycaemic index) increases gut hormone production which leads to suppression of appetite and the feeling of fullness"
• Not Enough Vitamin D In The Diet Could Mean Too Much Fat On Adolescents - Science Daily, 3/16/09 - "A Medical College of Georgia study of more than 650 teens age 14-19 has found that those who reported higher vitamin D intakes had lower overall body fat and lower amounts of the fat in the abdomen, a type of fat known as visceral fat, which has been associated with health risks such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and hypertension" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• Citicoline affects appetite and cortico-limbic responses to images of high-calorie foods - Int J Eat Disord. 2009 Mar 3 - "Cytidine-5'-diphosphocholine (citicoline) has a variety of cognitive enhancing, neuroprotective, and neuroregenerative properties. In cocaine-addicted individuals, citicoline has been shown to increase brain dopamine levels and reduce cravings ... After 6 weeks, there was no significant change in weight status, although significant declines in appetite ratings were observed for the 2,000 mg/day group. The higher dose group also showed significant increases in functional brain responses to food stimuli within the amygdala, insula, and lateral orbitofrontal cortex. Increased activation in these regions correlated with declines in appetite ratings ...These preliminary findings suggest a potential usefulness of citicoline in modulating appetite, but further research is warranted" - See citicholine at Amazon.com.
• Arginine Discovery Could Help Fight Human Obesity - Science Daily, 2/12/09 - "arginine, an amino acid, reduces fat mass in diet-induced obese rats and could help fight human obesity ... dietary arginine supplementation shifts nutrient partitioning to promote skeletal-muscle gain ... The findings were published recently in the Journal of Nutrition ... arginine supplementation for a 12-week period decreased the body fat gains of low-fat and high-fat fed rats by 65 percent and 63 percent, respectively. The long-term arginine treatment did not have any adverse effects on either group ... funded by the American Heart Association" - See L-arginine products at Amazon.com.
• Green tea catechins linked to weight loss: Study - Nutra USA, 1/26/09 - "The subjects were randomly assigned to receive either 500ml per day of a beverage providing 625mg catechins, or a control beverage ... 12-week study period ... people in the catechin group were found to have lost more body weight compared to the control group ... both total abdominal fat area (P = 0.013) and abdominal subcutaneous fat area (P = 0.019) had decreased more in the catechin group" - [Abstract] - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Green tea catechin consumption enhances exercise-induced abdominal fat loss in overweight and obese adults - J Nutr. 2009 Feb;139(2):264-70 - "for 12 wk ... There was a trend (P = 0.079) toward greater loss of body weight in the catechin group compared with the control group ... Percentage changes in fat mass did not differ between the catechin [5.2 (-7.0, -3.4)] and control groups [-3.5 (-5.4, 1.6)] (P = 0.208). However, percentage changes in total abdominal fat area [-7.7 (-11.7, -3.8) vs. -0.3 (-4.4, 3.9); P = 0.013], subcutaneous abdominal fat area [-6.2 (-10.2, -2.2) vs. 0.8 (-3.3, 4.9); P = 0.019], and fasting serum triglycerides (TG) [-11.2 (-18.8, -3.6) vs. 1.9 (-5.9, 9.7); P = 0.023] were greater in the catechin group. These findings suggest that green tea catechin consumption enhances exercise-induced changes in abdominal fat and serum TG" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Mediterranean Diet Reduces Long-term Risk Of Subsequent Weight Gain And Obesity Among Adults - Science Daily, 1/22/09 - "increased fruit and vegetable intake was associated with significantly lower risk of a medium WG (3,41 kg) over 10 years among adults of a Spanish Mediterranean population. Dietary strategies to increase fruit and vegetable intake to prevent and control overweight and obesity should be promoted more vigorously"
• Dietary L-Arginine Supplementation Reduces White Fat Gain and Enhances Skeletal Muscle and Brown Fat Masses in Diet-Induced Obese Rats - J Nutr. 2008 Dec 23 - "l-arginine-HCl ... Despite similar energy intake, absolute weights of white fat pads increased by 98% in control rats over a 12-wk period but only by 35% in arginine-supplemented rats. The arginine treatment reduced the relative weights of white fat pads by 30% and enhanced those of soleus muscle by 13%, extensor digitorum longus muscle by 11%, and brown fat by 34% compared with control rats ... arginine treatment resulted in lower serum concentrations of leptin, glucose, triglycerides, urea, glutamine, and branched-chain amino acids, higher serum concentrations of nitric-oxide metabolites, and improvement in glucose tolerance. Thus, dietary arginine supplementation shifts nutrient partitioning to promote muscle over fat gain and may provide a useful treatment for improving the metabolic profile and reducing body white fat in diet-induced obese rats" - See Jarrow Formulas, Arginine 1000, 1000 mg, 100 Easy-Solv Tablets at iHerb.
• Treatment of white coat hypertension with metformin - Int Heart J. 2008 Nov;49(6):671-9 - "White coat hypertension (WCH) is most likely a disorder associated with metabolic syndrome ... Twenty-five cases (14.7%) stopped metformin therapy due to excessive anorexia. At the end of a 6-month period, there were highly significant differences between the two groups with respect to the prevalences of resolved WCH, hyperbetalipoproteinemia, hypertriglyceridemia, dyslipidemia, overweight and obesity, and decreased fasting plasma glucose below 110 mg/dL ... Thus, the management of WCH should not focus solely on the regulation of blood pressure with antihypertensive medications, but rather on the prevention of future excess weight and various associated disorders, and metformin alone is an effective therapeutic option, most likely due to its powerful inhibitory effect on appetite"
• Low-carb Diets Can Affect Dieters' Cognition Skills - Science Daily, 12/11/08 - "A new study from the psychology department at Tufts University shows that when dieters eliminate carbohydrates from their meals, they performed more poorly on memory-based tasks than when they reduce calories, but maintain carbohydrates. When carbohydrates were reintroduced, cognition skills returned to normal"
• Lack Of Vitamin D Causes Weight Gain And Stunts Growth In Girls - Science Daily, 12/11/08 - "The high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency in young people living in a sun-rich area was surprising," says study lead author, Richard Kremer, co-director of the Musculoskeletal Axis of the MUHC. "We found young women with vitamin D insufficiency were significantly heavier, with a higher body mass index and increased abdominal fat, than young women with normal levels" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• Adiponectin Is A Metabolic Link Between Obesity And Bone Mineral Density - Science Daily, 11/25/08 - "adiponectin, a protein secreted from adipocytes, is a metabolic link that can explain, in part, the known positive relationship between obesity and both bone mineral density and reduced susceptibility to fractures ... In summary, elevated circulating adiponectin was associated with lower bone mass and weaker bones in growing mice compared to control animals" - See my adiponectin page for ways to increase it. - Ben
• Vitamin D Insufficiency Linked to Increased Body Fat - Medscape, 11/10/08 - "The study sample consisted of 90 postpubertal women aged 16 to 22 years and living in California ... Insufficiency of 25(OH)D, defined as a serum level of 29 ng/mL or less, was present in approximately 59% of participants, and the remaining 41% had sufficient 25(OH)D levels, defined as a serum level of 30 ng/mL or more. Serum 25(OH)D levels were strongly negatively related to CT measures of visceral and subcutaneous fat and to DXA values of body fat" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• Drug 'tricks body to lose weight' - BBC News, 11/5/08 - "The drug SRT1720 - a chemical cousin of red wine extract resveratrol - targets the protein SIRT1, which is thought to combat ageing ... The French team from the University Louis Pasteur became interested in the SIRT1 protein after earlier studies showing resveratrol countered some effects of a high-calorie diet via SIRT1" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.
• Chronic Green Tea Consumption Decreases Body Mass, Induces Aromatase Expression, and Changes Proliferation and Apoptosis in Adult Male Rat Adipose Tissue - J Nutr. 2008 Nov;138(11):2156-2163 - "Green tea (GT) ... These results suggest new mechanisms for GT on body weight and highlight its potential benefit to prevent or treat obesity and the metabolic syndrome" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Fructose -- Found In High-fructose Corn Syrup, Sugar -- Sets Table For Weight Gain Without Warning - Science Daily, 10/16/08 - "Eating too much fructose can induce leptin resistance, a condition that can easily lead to becoming overweight when combined with a high-fat, high-calorie diet"
• MSG Use Is Linked to Obesity - New York Times, 8/25/08 - "After controlling for body mass index, smoking, physical activity and almost two dozen measures of daily nutrient intake, they found that the one-third of people who used the most MSG were almost three times as likely to be overweight — that is, to have a body mass index over 25 — as those who used none"
• Fructose May Make You Fatter - WebMD, 7/31/08 - "Fructose gets made into fat more quickly, and when that process is turned on there seems to be a signal that goes to the liver that says store all the other fats you are seeing"
• Metformin May Enhance Weight Loss in Female Adolescents - Medscape, 7/8/08 - "a significant decrease in body mass index was seen in females receiving metformin but not in those taking placebo. Sixty percent of participants who were metformin-adherent and who decreased food portion sizes had a decrease in body mass index of more than 5%" - See metformin at OffshoreRx1.com.
• 'Big Breakfast' Diet Helps Shed Pounds - WebMD, 6/17/08 - "Eating a 600-calorie breakfast rich in carbohydrates and protein helps dieters lose more weight long term than eating a modest breakfast and following a lower-carb eating plan ... In all, members of the big-breakfast group lost more than 21% of their body weight; low-carb group members lost 4.5%"

Abstracts:

• Hypovitaminosis D and incidence of obesity: a prospective study - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2013 Jun;67(6):680-2 - "In subjects who were non-obese (BMI <30 kg/m(2)) at the second evaluation, 25-hydroxyvitamin D values 17 ng/ml (42.5 nmol/l) were significantly associated with an increased risk of developing obesity in the next 4 years (OR=2.35, 95% CI: 1.03-5.4, P=0.040 after diverse adjustments). We conclude that vitamin D deficiency is associated with an increased risk of developing obesity" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• Effect of dietary resveratrol on the metabolic profile of nutrients in obese OLETF rats - Lipids Health Dis. 2013 Feb 4;12(1):8 - "the accumulation of abdominal white adipose tissues was markedly prevented in resveratrol diet-fed OLETF rats after 4 weeks of feeding ... Our study demonstrated that dietary resveratrol can prevent obesity through a change in the metabolic profile of nutrients in obese OLETF rats" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.
• Calcium plus vitamin D3 supplementation facilitated Fat loss in overweight and obese college students with very-low calcium consumption: a randomized controlled trial - Nutr J. 2013 Jan 8;12(1):8 - "to receive either an energy-restricted diet (-500 kcal/d) supplemented with 600 mg elemental calcium and 125 IU vitamin D3 or energy restriction alone for 12 weeks. Repeated measurements of variance were performed to evaluate the differences between groups for changes in body weight, BMI, body composition ... A significantly greater decrease in fat mass loss was observed in the calcium + D group (-2.8+/-1.3 vs.-1.8+/-1.3 kg; P=0.02) than in the control group, although there was no significant difference in body weight change (P>0.05) between groups. The calcium + D group also exhibited greater decrease in visceral fat mass and visceral fat area" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• A 12-week double-blind randomized clinical trial of vitamin D3 supplementation on body fat mass in healthy overweight and obese women - Nutr J. 2012 Sep 22;11(1):78 - "In a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial, seventy-seven participants (age 38+/-8.1 years, BMI 29.8+/-4.1 kg/m2) were randomly allocated into two groups: vitamin D (25 mug per day as cholecalciferol) and placebo (25 mug per day as lactose) for 12 weeks ... Among healthy overweight and obese women, increasing 25(OH) D concentrations by vitamin D3 supplementation led to body fat mass reduction" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.
• Beneficial effects of catechin-rich green tea and inulin on the body composition of overweight adults - Br J Nutr. 2011 Oct 28:1-6 - "The aim of the present study was to investigate whether the effect of catechin-rich green tea in combination with inulin affects body weight and fat mass in obese and overweight adults. A total of thirty subjects were divided into a control group and an experimental group who received 650 ml tea or catechin-rich green tea plus inulin. A reduction of body weight ( - 1.29 (sem 0.35) kg) and fat mass (0.82 (sem 0.27) kg) in the experimental group was found after 6 weeks, and no adverse effects were observed. After refraining from consumption for 2 weeks, sustained effects on body weight and fat mass were observed. We conclude that continuous intake of catechin-rich green tea in combination with inulin for at least 3 weeks may be beneficial for weight management" - Note: 1.29 kg is 2.8 pounds.  See inulin products at Amazon.com and green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Vitamin A Decreases Pre-receptor Amplification of Glucocorticoids in Obesity: Study on the Effect of Vitamin A on 11beta-Hydroxysteroid Dehydrogenase Type 1 Activity in Liver and Visceral Fat of WNIN/Ob Obese Rats - Nutr J. 2011 Jun 23;10(1):70 - "11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11beta-HSD1) catalyzes the conversion of inactive glucocorticoids to active glucocorticoids and its inhibition ameliorates obesity and metabolic syndrome. So far, no studies have reported the effect of dietary vitamin A on 11beta-HSD1 activity in visceral fat and liver under normal and obese conditions. Here, we studied the effect of chronic feeding of vitamin A-enriched diet (129mg/kg diet) on 11beta-HSD1 activity in liver and visceral fat of WNIN/Ob lean and obese rats ... Control groups received stock diet containing 2.6mg vitamin A/kg diet, where as experimental groups received diet containing 129mg vitamin A/Kg diet for 20 weeks ... Vitamin A supplementation significantly decreased body weight, visceral fat mass and 11beta-HSD1 activity in visceral fat of WNIN/Ob obese rats. Hepatic 11beta-HSD1 activity and gene expression were significantly reduced by vitamin A supplementation in both the phenotypes. CCAAT/enhancer binding protein alpha(C/EBPalpha), the main transcription factor essential for the expression of 11beta-HSD1, decreased in liver by vitamin A fed-obese rats, but not in lean rats. Liver X receptor alpha (LXR alpha), a nuclear transcription factor which is known to downregulate 11beta-HSD1 gene expression was significantly increased by vitamin A supplementation in both the phenotypes" - Note:  See my 11beta-HSD1 page.  11beta-HSD1 goes hand in hand with cortisol.
• Dietary supplementation of n-3 PUFA reduces weight gain and improves postprandial lipaemia and the associated inflammatory response in the obese JCR:LA-cp rat - Diabetes Obes Metab. 2009 Nov 16 - "n-3 PUFA treatment resulted in a significant improvement (i.e. decrease) in the postprandial response for triglyceride (45%) (p < 0.05), apoB48 (45%) (p < 0.03) and LBP (33%) (p < 0.05) compared to controls (measured as area under the clearance curve). In contrast, we observed a significant elevation in postprandial haptoglobin (165%) (p < 0.001) in obese rats supplemented with 10% n-3 PUFA. Treatment with 5% n-3 PUFA in the JCR:LA-cp obese animals resulted in a complementary decrease in total body weight gain (6%) (p < 0.001) and an increase (i.e. improvement) in adiponectin (33%) (p < 0.05) compared to controls, without a concomitant reduction in food intake" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.
• Effect of tea catechins on body fat accumulation in rats fed a normal diet - Biomed Res. 2008 Feb;29(1):27-32 - "The administration of 0.5% catechins decreased the accumulation of body fat and the serum levels of cholesterol and bile acids. These results indicate that tea catechins modulate lipid metabolism not only in obese subjects, but also in the non-obese" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Can EGCG Reduce Abdominal Fat in Obese Subjects? - J Am Coll Nutr. 2007 Aug;26(4):396S-402S - "heart rate (HR) ... Moderate consumption of EGCG can improve the health status of overweight individuals undergoing regular exercise by reducing HR and plasma glucose concentrations. Loss of body fat, however, may require a higher intake of EGCG, other catechins or addition of metabolic stimulants" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com, my favorite is green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• The effects of epigallocatechin-3-gallate on thermogenesis and fat oxidation in obese men: a pilot study - J Am Coll Nutr. 2007 Aug;26(4):389S-95S - "These findings suggest that EGCG alone has the potential to increase fat oxidation in men and may thereby contribute to the anti-obesity effects of green tea" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com, my favorite is green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• The influence of calcium consumption on weight and fat following 9 months of exercise in men and women - J Am Coll Nutr. 2007 Aug;26(4):350-5 - "Average calcium consumption was 987 +/- 389 mg/day for men and 786 +/- 276 mg/day for women. Weight change over the 9 months was -4.6 +/- 4.6 kg for men and 0.2 +/- 3.3 kg for women ... Weight and fat weight loss as a result of nine months of moderate intensity exercise may be improved by increased calcium consumption in men but was not observed in women" - Note:  4.6 kg is 10.14 lbs.
• Overweight Postmenopausal Women Lose Bone With Moderate Weight Reduction and 1 g/day Calcium Intake - J Bone Miner Res. 2005 Mar;20(3):455-63 - "Despite an intake of 1 g Ca/day, bone loss occurred at some sites because of weight loss. Calcium intake of 1.7 g/day will minimize bone loss during weight loss in postmenopausal overweight women"
• Effects of metformin on the body composition in subjects with risk factors for type 2 diabetes - Diabetes Obes Metab. 2005 Mar;7(2):189-92 - "In the metformin group, there was a decrease in fat weight from 25.9 +/- 9.4 to 20.8 +/- 9.2 kg, p < 0.01, an increase in lean weight from 57.05 +/- 13.6 to 61.9 +/- 16.5 kg, p < 0.01, an increase in basal metabolism from 1735 +/- 413 to 1878 +/- 505 calories/day, p < 0.05 and an increase in body water" - See metformin at IAS or OffshoreRx1.com.  Note:  That's a 19.7% decrease in fat (25.9-20.8)/25.9 = 19.7%, a 8.5% increase in lean weight (61.9-57.05)/57.05 = 8.5% and a 8.2% increase in basal metabolism (1878-1735)/1735 = 8.2%. - Ben
• Ingestion of a tea rich in catechins leads to a reduction in body fat and malondialdehyde-modified LDL in men - Am J Clin Nutr. 2005 Jan;81(1):122-9 - "Body weight, BMI, waist circumference, body fat mass, and subcutaneous fat area were significantly lower in the green tea extract group than in the control group" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.
• Efficacy and Safety of Ephedra and Ephedrine for Weight Loss and Athletic Performance - JAMA, 3/26/03 - "Ephedrine and ephedra promote modest short-term weight loss (0.9 kg/mo more than placebo) in clinical trials. There are no data regarding long-term weight loss, and evidence to support use of ephedra for athletic performance is insufficient. Use of ephedra or ephedrine and caffeine is associated with increased risk of psychiatric, autonomic, or gastrointestinal symptoms, and heart palpitations"
• The conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) isomer, t10c12-CLA, is inversely associated with changes in body weight and serum leptin in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus - J Nutr. 2003 Jan;133(1):257S-260S
• The effect of conjugated linoleic acid supplementation after weight loss on body weight regain, body composition, and resting metabolic rate in overweight subjects - Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2003 Jul;27(7):840-7 - "As a consequence of an increased regain of fat-free mass by CLA, resting metabolic rate was increased by CLA (LD 12.0+/-11.4%, HD 13.7+/-14.4%) compared to placebo ... In conclusion, the regain of fat-free mass was favorably, dose-independently affected by a 13-week consumption of 1.8 or 3.6 g CLA/day and consequently increased the resting metabolic rate. However, it did not result in improved body weight maintenance after weight loss" - See conjugated linoleic acid at Amazon.com.
• How much physical activity is enough to prevent unhealthy weight gain? - Obes Rev 2003 May;4(2):101-14 - "The following consensus statement was accepted unanimously. 'The current physical activity guideline for adults of 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity daily, preferably all days of the week, is of importance for limiting health risks for a number of chronic diseases including coronary heart disease and diabetes. However for preventing weight gain or regain this guideline is likely to be insufficient for many individuals in the current environment. There is compelling evidence that prevention of weight regain in formerly obese individuals requires 60-90 minutes of moderate intensity activity or lesser amounts of vigorous intensity activity. Although definitive data are lacking, it seems likely that moderate intensity activity of approximately 45 to 60 minutes per day, or 1.7 PAL (Physical Activity Level) is required to prevent the transition to overweight or obesity. For children, even more activity time is recommended. A good approach for many individuals to obtain the recommended level of physical activity is to reduce sedentary behaviour by incorporating more incidental and leisure-time activity into the daily routine"