COLUMBIA, Mo. — More than one-third of children in the United States ages 6 to 19 years old are overweight or obese. Over the past 30 years, the number of obese adolescents has more than quadrupled, which also has led to an increase in children diagnosed with diabetes. To combat this trend, Aneesh Tosh, M.D., adolescent medicine physician at University of Missouri Health Care and associate professor of clinical child health at the MU School of Medicine, recommends that sugary drinks be removed from adolescents’ diets.
“The sharp rise in childhood and adolescent obesity is alarming,” Tosh said. “Being overweight is the biggest risk factor for Type 2 diabetes. We want to prevent diabetes in adolescents to avoid the serious medical problems associated with the disease. One very important step to preventing these complications is to stop drinking sugary drinks.”
Through clinical experience and research, Tosh has found that eliminating sugar-sweetened beverages is the most significant lifestyle change that children and adolescents can make to lose weight and improve health. Sugary beverages can add up to 200 empty calories per serving to an adolescent’s diet that provide no nutritional benefits. Sugary beverages include juice, soda, sweet tea, sports drinks, energy drinks and coffee drinks, all of which can be high in calories.
“It is very important that a developing body gets plenty of water and milk,” Tosh said. “We realize those can get boring for some of our patients, so adding zero- or low-calorie flavorings to water is fine every once in a while.”
As adolescents progress toward adulthood, they become increasingly responsible for their own beverage choices. Many of the beverages adolescents have available at school, home and social gatherings contain significant amounts of sugar.
Sports drinks have become the drink of choice for many teenagers because they incorrectly assume the drinks are healthier than soda. Tosh said most children and adolescents, even when involved in athletics, do not actually need the electrolytes in sports drinks, and some of these sports drinks have more calories than regular soda. Energy drinks, which also are rising in popularity, not only contain sugar but also caffeine. Energy drinks can lead to other health problems, such as poor sleep, headaches and heart irregularities.
“It really is about education, because many parents and young patients just don’t realize how many calories there are in sugary drinks,” Tosh said. “My patients who cut sugary beverages are the ones losing weight. Conversely, I’ve found that patients who struggle to switch to water and milk are the ones who have not been successful in losing weight.”
One successful patient is Andrew Roberts. At age 13, Roberts weighed 307 pounds and was in and out of the hospital because of obesity-related health complications.
“It was not uncommon for me to drink 2 liters of soda a day,” said Roberts, who is now a 23-year-old personal trainer. “I lost 115 pounds in about a year and a half by cutting out sugary drinks, junk foods and sweets, and getting exercise.”
Roberts said it was easy to see where excess calories were coming from once Tosh had him keep a food log that included drinks.
“Limiting consumption of sugary drinks to once a week for special events rather than daily is a significant step toward healthy weight loss for many children and teens,” Tosh said. “When children and teens spend time hanging out with their friends — not just when they’re at school — it’s important that sugary drinks aren’t their go-to beverage.”
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About the MU School of Medicine
The MU School of Medicine has improved health, education and research in Missouri and beyond for more than 165 years. MU physicians treat patients from every county in the state, and more Missouri physicians received their medical degrees from MU than from any other university. For more information, visit http://medicine.missouri.edu/.
Highly Innovative Pipeline Could Transform Obesity Treatment Landscape, says GBI Research
NEW YORK (GBI Research), 8 October 2015
While the current obesity treatment market has a high level of unmet need, the therapeutic landscape could be transformed by a highly innovative and diverse pipeline that includes 248 products in active development, according to business intelligence provider GBI Research.
The company’s latest report* states that despite the current market’s clinical and regulatory challenges, the obesity pipeline is robust and contains a high level of diversity in both molecule types and molecular targets, with 39% of the pipeline products with disclosed molecular targets classified as first-in-class.
Angel Wong, Senior Analyst for GBI Research, says that while most pipeline products target gut hormone receptors, the remainder target a wide range of processes thought to be dysregulated in obesity, such as angiogenesis, insulin signaling, inflammation, fat absorption, lipid synthesis, and metabolism.
Wong comments: “The high level of innovation and diversity in molecular target in development is encouraging, with a number of these not only showing close alignment to the disease pathophysiology but also addressing multiple mechanisms underpinning the development of obesity.
“As obesity is a multifactorial disease, targeting multiple systems may potentially avoid compensatory mechanisms that lead to weight regain and achieve sustainable weight loss over the long term.”
The analyst adds that small molecules, accounting for 66% of the overall pipeline, are the dominant molecule type in all stages of development for obesity treatment. Biologic therapeutics, consisting largely of peptides, proteins, antibodies and vaccines, also feature prominently.
GBI Research’s report also states that the long-term treatment options for obesity remain sparse, including the dietary fat absorption inhibitor Xenical (orlistat), and appetite suppressants such as Qsymia (phentermine and topiramate extended release), Belviq (lorcaserin hydrochloride), and the two new market entrants Contrave (naltrexone and bupropion) and Saxenda (liraglutide rDNA origin).
Wong continues: “Prescription of these treatments is generally limited, primarily due to concerns over their long-term safety, with the past decade seeing a number of drug withdrawals in the market as a result of serious cardiovascular risks and psychiatric adverse reactions.
“The uptake of anti-obesity drugs has also been hindered by their modest efficacy in inducing sustained body weight reduction. All of these factors are driving efforts to address the significant unmet need for effective obesity therapeutics with favorable safety profiles,” the analyst concludes.
Did you know that you don’t necessarily have to pick up a weight to get a good workout in? Using your bodyweight can be just as tough and rewarding. Here are some of the best bodyweight exercises for your body parts:
Chest/Triceps
Very little needs to be said on this matter; everyone knows that the push-up is a great bodyweight exercise for your chest. The great thing about push-ups is that there’s room for alterations. You can drop your knees down if you’re unable to do a normal push-up. You can do clapping push-ups if you find normal ones too easy. You could even try one handed ones if you’re arong enough.
Also, you can alter the angle of your body to target different parts of the chest. Put your feet on a bench and do incline push-ups to target more of your upper chest.
Or, if you bring your hands in close and do a push-up, you’ll be targeting your triceps more. This is actually one of the best tricep exercises you can do.
Shoulders
For shoulders, you can do a variation of a push-up. It’s called the pike push up and starts off in the classic downward facing dog yoga pose. You then let your forehead drop close to the floor then push back upwards. It can be tricky to get the movement right, but when you do you really feel it in your delts.
Alternatively, you can do a handstand presses if you’re experienced and strong enough. Do your handstand up against a wall for safety and stability.
One of the best exercises you can do for your back is the pull-up. It’s a simple movement that involves grabbing a bar overhead and pulling yourself up off the ground.
Of course, pull-ups are a hard exercise to do, and not everyone can do them. If you can’t do a pull-up, or don’t have any way to do on in the home, do an inverted row instead. This is a much easier exercise to do, and you can alter the difficulty based on where you place your legs. If you’re in the gym, you just need access to a squat rack or smith machine to do this.
Biceps
Bodyweight exercises for the biceps are similar to the back. The best one is called a chin up. It’s like a pull up only you grab the bar with an underhand grip. Plus, you should focus on using your biceps to curl your chin up over the bar.
Likewise, you can do inverted chin curls, which are similar to the inverted row. But, you grab with the underhand grip and use your arms to curl your body up. This is an absolute killer, and your biceps will soon feel pumped.
Legs
The best bodyweight exercise for legs is squats. Doing loads of squat variations is a great idea to build leg strength without needing weights. You can do jump squats for an extra challenge, or one legged squat if you feel up to the challenge.
Another favourite bodyweight exercise is the lunge. There are many lunge variations that are fantastic for strengthening legs and building muscle.
Would you like to get in shape and turn your body into a fitness machine? Do you look at old movies starring Arnold Schwarzenegger with envy? Then now could be the best time to start working on your muscles. Most people don’t know where to begin, and so we’ve made some suggestions on this page. The basic rule of thumb is that you don’t want to push yourself too hard. You will cause an injury and set yourself back considerably. Start slow, and build on your routine when you feel more comfortable.
Join a local gym
It might sound obvious, but the best course of action usually involves joining a gym. The only issue is that many people struggle to find the motivation they need. That is why you should encourage a friend to come along for the sessions. Either that or you should pay for the services of a personal trainer. You will notice an improvement by the end of the first month if you train regularly. It’s a big commitment, but exercise is the only way to get your body in shape.
Try a self-defence class
There are lots of different self-defence classes you might like to choose. Some people like to stick with something traditional and popular like Karate. Judo is also a top choice for many folks who are just starting out. However, those of you who want to try something different might consider Krav Maga. The boss of IDF Training told us it is one of their most sought after classes. People come from all around the country to take part. The self-defence system was designed for the Israeli military, but it has become popular all over the world.
Buy weights and set them up at home
Those of you who are more interested in building muscles than getting fit should purchase some equipment. That is the best way of taking your training to the next level. Presuming you have a spare room in your home, you could create a personal gym. Make sure you have lots of weights and a decent bench so you can work out at times that are convenient for you. Again, asking a friend to come round and take part is a wise move. You will have someone there to help if you injure yourself, and they will provide much-needed encouragement.
Run every morning before work
It’s a good idea to go out running for half an hour before work. That is the best time of the day to get your fitness regime started. You don’t need to pay for access to a local track. Just jog around the streets in your area. Make sure you purchase appropriate running shoes, so you don’t damage your body. It might have been okay to run in school shoes when you were a child, but adults need more support. Your body is not as young as it used to be. Try to find shoes with memory foam soles for the most comfortable experience.
You should have enough ideas to get started right now. Maybe you should see how many press-ups you can do at the moment? Perform your new routine and then see how that number has increased in a few weeks. It’s important that you can tell how much difference your exercise is making. It could be wise to get hold of a pedometer too. That will give you a basic idea of how far you’re running.
Six Plant-Based Foods You Should Try Today
By Vanessa Chamberlin
The glorious thing about plant-based eating is that your grocery store or farmer’s market is full of an incredible array of foods, flavors, and textures that are just waiting to be discovered. Even a typical grocery store has a produce section that carries seasonal and ethnic foods that often get passed-over, but are convenient, inexpensive, and yummy.
If you’re stuck in a rut of getting the same lettuce-tomato-onion-type foods that you always get, take a walk! Look at some of the other plant-based foods and see how you can work them into your diet.
Not sure where to start? In the spirit of a number that signifies longevity, here are six plant-based foods I totally love that are healthy and tasty, but not part of the average diet. What are some delicious food discoveries you’ve made and put on your grocery list each week?
Jicama
Jicama, also known as a Mexican potato, is a big, heavy, brown fruit that really does look like a weird potato. The excellent thing about jicama is that it is very crisp and crunchy, but has a mild flavor like a cucumber. Jicama can be sliced and used with dips as an alternative to chips, eaten in sticks like any other crunchy veggie, or added to salads for a snappy texture without confusing the flavor profile. It’s a great summer side dish served with a spritz of lime juice and a dusting of chili powder if you’d like a little kick!
Bok Choy
In Asian cuisine, bok choy is a staple! For most of us, though, we’d never think to work bok choy into a dish, which is unfortunate because of how versatile and healthy this veggie is. Bok choy can be added to a salad, but it can also be eaten like you’d eat celery with a little hummus or nut butter. It can also be added to soups or stir-frys, or braised or grilled on its own, and given a little seasoning to become a brilliant side dish.
Pluots
Pluots are an incredible, juicy little snack that comes from mixing a plum with an apricot. They’re so good! Plums aren’t terribly uncommon, but not a lot of people are familiar with pluots. It’s a shame because they’re easy to carry in a lunch for you or for your children, they’re a little sweet with the benefits of both plums and apricots, and they’re another inexpensive fruit. They might be seasonal depending on where you live, but look for a fruit that’s a little smaller than a plum, and more yellow, in the plum area of your grocery store.
Rutabaga
Rutabaga is popular in some countries around the world, but it frequently gets forgotten in the US. With a little bit of a punch like a radish, rutabaga is an awesome root vegetable. If you like the spicy snap of it, it’s great to be eaten as a raw veggie. Others would enjoy rutabagas along with things like potatoes, parsnips, and squash in a cold-weather harvest stew!
Nopal/Cactus
A lot of people feel strange about eating cactus, but prickly pear cactus (also known as nopal) tastes great and is SO good for you! It can have positive effects on blood sugar and managing diabetes, and it can help lower cholesterol. I suggest buying it cleaned already because the spines can be difficult to deal with if you’re new to the food, but many average grocery stores (and I imagine every Mexican or Hispanic market) carry cleaned nopal ready to cook. Similar in texture to something like a green pepper, nopal is great in dishes like scrambled tofu, or really anything sautéed. It tastes like other green veggies (think green peppers or green beans) with just a little lemony tartness. It goes really well with spicy dishes.
Dandelion Greens
The wonderful world of leafy greens leaves us with plenty of options at pretty much every grocery store, but dandelion greens aren’t something most people eat every day. The green leaves are great in salads and slaws, but they can also be boiled like spinach or sautéed and seasoned. They’re just a little bitter, but fun to try, and you can even forage for them if you’re really up for an adventure!
When people tell me that they don’t do plant-based eating because they don’t want to limit themselves, I have to laugh. People limit themselves all the time! Even with great options and an endless menu of flavors and colors, most people fall into a routine of eating the same things all the time. This is your wake-up call to use plant-based eating as a way to EXPAND your diet, and bring in fantastic fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and beans that you otherwise never would have enjoyed.
Vanessa Chamberlin is a Certified Holistic Health Practitioner and Lifestyle Coach and author of The Fire-Driven Life: How to Ignite the Fire of Self-Worth, Health, and Happiness with a Plant-Based Diet. For more information, please visit, www.vanessachamberlin.com and connect with her on Twitter, @vkchamberlin.
Novel Marine Omega-3 is Inherently Higher in Brain-healthy DHA*
Marine raw ingredient manufacturer Oceania Pure recently announced the launch of two new Omega-3 sources with naturally higher DHA concentrations. ShoalFoods™ Skate Oil and ShoalFoods™ Calamari Oil are harvested off the coast of Argentina where the marine Omega-3 profiles are inherently optimal for brain health—no artificial adjustments needed.*
Off the Argentine coast, the Patagonian Shelf (or shoal) extends for 200 miles into the ocean, creating an expansive shallow-water biome. Here nutrient-rich polar currents and warmer currents from the equator converge; the shallow ecosystem receives substantial sunlight; and a massive phytoplankton bloom thrives year round. These factors interact to create an Omega-3 DHA phenomenon.
The plankton bloom has a unique Omega-3 profile and this, in turn, influences the Omega-3 content of every other organism in the region. That includes teeming populations of skate and calamari. Not only do these fish demonstrate unusual Omega-3 profiles, these normally deep sea species can be caught in relatively shallow waters. So there is no impact to sensitive deep ocean ecosystems when harvesting Argentine skate and calamari.
“We refer to our ShoalFoods™ products as Enlightened Omegas™ because of the sunlit region where they are harvested and because of their naturally superior brain health profile,” said Steven Leonard the CEO of Oceania Pure. “Most companies have to artificially concentrate their DHA. We don’t have to. These are brain-healthy ingredients as-is, in their whole omega nutrient form.”
ShoalFoods™ Skate Oil has a naturally occurring 20/9 DHA/EPA ratio, while the Calamari Oil provides 15/11 DHA/EPA.
The ShoalFoods™ line will be formally launched at Supply Side West in Las Vegas, October 5-9. Both the skate and calamari oils are available to brand manufacturers as raw ingredients. Additionally, Oceania Pure has developed ShoalFoods™ as a packaged brand concept that is also available for full purchase. Interested manufacturers are encouraged to visit Oceania Pure at SSW Booth #804.
(FDA DISCLAIMER) * These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
COLUMBIA, Mo. (Sept. 28, 2015) ― Across the country, many employees are seated at desks for the majority of an eight-hour workday. As technology creates an increase in sedentary lifestyles, the impact of sitting on vascular health is a rising concern. Now, researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine have found that when a person sits for six straight hours, vascular function is impaired — but by walking for just 10 minutes after a prolonged period of sitting, vascular health can be restored.
“It’s easy for all of us to be consumed by work and lose track of time, subjecting ourselves to prolonged periods of inactivity,” said Jaume Padilla, Ph.D., an assistant professor of nutrition and exercise physiology at the MU School of Medicine and lead author of the study. “However, our study found that when you sit for six straight hours, or the majority of an eight-hour work day, blood flow to your legs is greatly reduced. We also found that just 10 minutes of walking after sitting for an extended time reversed the detrimental consequences.”
During the study, the researchers compared the vascular function of 11 healthy young men before and after a period of prolonged sitting. The findings indicated that blood flow in the popliteal — an artery in the lower leg — was greatly reduced after sitting at a desk for six hours. Researchers then had the participants take a short walk, and found that 10 minutes of self-paced walking could restore the impaired vascular function and improve blood flow.
“When you have decreased blood flow, the friction of the flowing blood on the artery wall, called shear stress, is also reduced,” Padilla said. “Moderate levels of shear stress are good for arterial health, whereas low levels of shear stress appear to be detrimental and reduce the ability of the artery to dilate. Dilation is a sign of vascular health. The more the artery can dilate and respond to stimuli, the healthier it is.”
Many workplaces are sedentary environments, and the researchers said it’s important that people understand the effects of sitting on their vascular health. By breaking up desk time with a short walk, workers can offset the harm caused to vascular blood vessels.
“Studies have shown that sitting less can lead to better metabolic and cardiovascular health,” Padilla said. “However, more research is needed to determine if repeated periods of reduced vascular function with prolonged sitting lead to long-term vascular complications.”
The study, “Impact of Prolonged Sitting on Lower and Upper Limb Micro- and Macrovascular Dilator Function,” recently was published in Experimental Physiology, the peer-reviewed scientific journal of The Physiological Society. In addition to Padilla, the research team includes Robert Restaino and Seth Holwerda, graduate students in the MU School of Medicine Department of Medical Pharmacology and Physiology; Daniel Credeur, Ph.D., assistant professor of exercise science at the University of Southern Mississippi School of Kinesiology; and Paul Fadel, Ph.D., professor of kinesiology and director of clinical translational science at the University of Texas at Arlington College of Nursing and Health Innovation.
Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institutes of Health under the award number K01HL125503 and the American Physiological Society. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the funding agencies.
One of the most common questions that people often ask me is “how can I take my training to the next level?” and it’s a very valid concern. After all, it’s only natural that you want your hard work to produce the best results.
There’s no quick answer to this one, but you can get more from your workouts by taking heed of these tips below. Try them out now, and you should soon see far greater results in the gym and the mirror.
Mix Up Your Training Regime
If you’re finding that your routines aren’t getting the desired results, it could be down to two things. Firstly, you might not be working hard enough. Alternatively, it might be a case of your body become acclimatized to the current strategies.
Shocking the body into overdrive by mixing up your routines is one of the best upgrades you can make. Try hitting a high-intensity interval training program to drive your results to the next level. Meanwhile, attempting new sporting activities should keep exercise fun.
Making this change will make your workouts more exciting while the increased results will make them more fulfilling. You couldn’t ask for much more.
Improve Your Nutrition
Your training is crucial to gaining the best results. But every gym-goer should be aware that diet forms the foundation for everything you achieve.
While employing a positive diet will serve you well, you should also consider muscle building supplements. Adding these to your daily ritual won’t just give your body a natural boost. It will also help provide extra motivation to work out as regularly as your schedule allows.
Your body is a machine, and it won’t perform unless you give it the right fuel. Take care of this vital aspect, and you should be just fine.
Compared to other forms of leisurely activity, working out is pretty cheap. A monthly gym membership costs less than one night out down clubbing while clothing is pretty reasonably priced too. However, there’s no reason that you can’t treat yourself by embracing the latest technology and gadgets.
Running belts and other products can help push your workouts to the next level. Meanwhile, investing in these items should serve as a slight guilt trip that will encourage you to stay on track too.
Furthermore, there are plenty of mobile phone Apps to aid your workouts. Even if it’s only a music streaming service, you should embrace these facilities with open arms.
Team Up With A Buddy
One of the biggest struggles that many gym-goers face is motivation. Let’s face it, fitting exercise around a hectic schedule or work can be difficult. If you’ve found yourself taking one too many off days, it might be time to team up with a friend.
Working out with a friend brings many benefits and should help keep you on track. Better still, the social aspects will probably make working out more fun. Once you start to see this as a social event, as well as building a better body, you should find yourself skipping days on a far less frequent basis.
Ultimately, if you dedicate more hours to exercise, you’ll see better results. It’s as simple as that.
Covergirl Lashblast Fusion - Review
I recently got the opportunity to review Covergirl's Lashblast fusion mascara. The package arrived at my condo nicely boxed. To my surprise there was also coupons for a discount to share with whomever I chose. Firstly I took out the Lashblast fusion mascara and opened it from its easy to open package. I then tried it on. Wow. No clumping! Thats a bonus and I can definitely see the length difference and volume just by using it. I immediately loved it. But what sealed the deal is that I was able to train all of my clients for the rest of the day and do a full cardio session without losing any of the volume! Train It Right approved!
I shared the coupons with some of my clients and let them know I was reviewing the product and that I really liked it! They were happy to get the coupons! Over all we all won! Thank you covergirl and Bzzagent! I highly recommend this product if you are looking for a new mascara for your natural lashes.
I absolutely love what uber is doing #uberhungerto check out below what they are doing to help hunger in Toronto.
At Uber, we want to do our bit to help - and help in a way that only Uber can. That's why we've partnered with local restaurant The Goods, along with food rescue organization Second Harvest, to bring meals to those in need on what we're calling #UberHUNGERTO day.
Here's how we kicked it off:
Pay it forward by popping open your Uber app between 11am-2pmtoday on Friday, September 25th, to order a meal through UberEATS. We'll match your order and will ensure someone in need receives lunch.
This is not a one day thing. Uber is committed to aid hunger relief by donating any extra UberEATS meals to local food banks daily.
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