Knowledge Update

​​​London, July 20 (IANS) Home-cooked meals specifically made for infants and young children, are not always healthier than commercially available baby foods, new research suggests.

The findings indicated that home cooked meals, which are often perceived as the best option, usually exceed energy density and dietary fat recommendations.

Home cooked meals also provided 26 per cent more energy and 44 per cent more protein and total fat, including saturated fat, than commercial products.

"Unlike adult recommendations, which encourage reducing energy density and fats, it is important in infants that food is suitably energy dense in appropriately sized meals to aid growth and development," said Sharon A. Carstair from the University of Aberdeen in Britain.

In addition, home cooked meals were found to be around half the price of commercially available ready made meals.

While almost two-thirds (65 per cent) of commercial products met dietary recommendations on energy density, only just over a third of home cooked meals did so, and over half (52 per cent) exceeded the maximum range.

Home cooked meals contained more protein as well as included a greater variety of vegetables than ready-made meals, but commercial products contained a greater vegetable variety per meal, averaging three compared with two for home cooked recipes.

Ready-made meals are a convenient alternative, but any parent looking to provide their child with a varied diet, should probably not rely solely on ready-made meals, the researchers said.

"Dietary fats contribute essential fatty acids and fat soluble vitamins together with energy and sensory qualities, thus are vital for the growing child, however, excessive intakes may impact on childhood obesity and health," Carstair added.

For the study, the team compared the nutrient content, price, and food group variety of 278 ready-made savoury meals, 174 of which were organic, and 408 home cooked meals, made using recipes from 55 bestselling cookbooks designed for the diets of infants and young children.

While 16 per cent of the home cooked meals were poultry based compared with 27 per cent of the ready-made meals, nearly one in five (19 per cent) were seafood-based versus seven per cent of the ready-made meals.

On the other hand, a similar proportion (21 per cent) were meat based compared with 35 per cent of the commercial products and almost half (44 per cent) were vegetable based compared with around a third (31 per cent) of the ready-made meals.

However, "the high proportion of red meat-based meals and recipes and low seafood meals are of concern when dietary recommendations encourage an increase in oil-rich fish consumption and limitation of red and processed meats," said the paper published online in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood.​

​New York, July 19 (IANS) Regular brisk walking may be more effective than vigorous jogging for improving glucose control in individuals with pre-diabetes, a study says.

"When faced with the decision of trying to do weight loss, diet, and exercise versus exercise alone, the study indicates you can achieve nearly 80 per cent of the effect of doing all three with just a high amount of moderate-intensity exercise," said lead author William Kraus, Professor at Duke University School of Medicine in the US.

"We believe that one benefit of moderate-intensity exercise is that it burns off fat in the muscles, which relieves the block of glucose uptake by the muscles. That's important because muscle is the major place to store glucose after a meal," Kraus explained.

The study appeared online in the journal Diabetologia.

The findings are based on a randomised, six-month study of 150 participants, each of whom was designated as having pre-diabetes based on elevated fasting glucose levels.

Study participants were randomised into four groups.

The first group followed an intervention modeled after the Diabetes Prevention Programme (DPP), considered a gold standard, that aims to achieve a seven per cent body weight reduction over six months.

The programme requires cutting calories, eating a low-fat diet, and exercising. Study participants in this group adopted the diet changes, and performed moderate-intensity exercise equivalent to 7.5 miles of brisk walking in a week.

Other study participants were randomly assigned to receive exercise only, using different amounts and intensities: low-amount at moderate intensity (equivalent to walking briskly for 7.5 miles per week); high-amount at moderate intensity (equivalent to walking briskly for 11.5 miles per week); and high-amount at vigorous intensity (equivalent to jogging for 11.5 miles per week).

"We wanted to know how much of the effect of the DPP (Diabetes Prevention Programme) could be accomplished with exercise alone," Kraus said.

"And which intensity of exercise is better for controlling metabolism in individuals at risk for diabetes," Kraus noted.

On average, participants in the DPP group had the greatest benefit, with a nine percent improvement in oral glucose tolerance -- a key measure of how readily the body processes sugar and an indicator used to predict progression to diabetes.

One of the exercise-only groups came in a close second. Participants in the moderate-intensity, 11.5-mile group saw a seven per cent improvement in glucose tolerance on average.

The moderate-intensity, 7.5-mile group had a five per cent improvement on average.

The lowest improvement was seen among those in the vigorous-intensity, 11.5-mile group, with only a two per cent average improvement.​

​New York, July 15 (IANS) Dietary restriction or limited food intake without malnutrition has beneficial effects on longevity in species, including humans, a new study has found.

The study published in the journal PLoS Genetics reveals understanding on how dietary restriction leads to increase in lifespan and impacts autophagy in the intestine.

Autophagy which plays a role in lifespan extension involves breaking down of the cell's parts -- its protein-making, power-generating and transport systems into small molecules.

"In this study, we used the small roundworm C. elegans as a model to show that autophagy in the intestine is critical for lifespan extension," said Malene Hansen, Associate Professor at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute.

The researchers found that the gut of dietary-restricted worms has a higher rate of autophagy, which appears to improve fitness in multiple ways like preserving intestinal integrity and maintaining the animal's ability to move around.

“We found that blocking autophagy in their intestines significantly shortened their lifespans, showing that autophagy in this organ is key for longevity,” said Sara Gelino, Researcher at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute.

While normal worms' gut barriers become leaky as they get older, those of eat-2 type of worms remain intact. Preventing autophagy indicated that a non-leaky intestine is an important factor for long life, suggested the study.

The research team also observed that turning off autophagy in the intestine made the slow-eating, long-lived worms move around less.

The decrease in physical activity indicates that autophagy in one organ can have a major impact on other organs, in this case probably muscle or motor neurons, suggested the study.​

​New York, July 13 (IANS) Many diet plans are doomed from the start -- The reason being that dieters tend to adopt the wrong strategies, often planning to ditch their favourite foods and replace them with less-desirable options, new research has revealed.

A study published in the journal Psychology & Marketing says successful dieters focus on adding healthy foods and reveals that health-plan successes are determined by approach or avoidance strategies.

"Our research shows that instead of creating rules to avoid one's favourite treats, dieters should focus on eating healthy foods that they enjoy," said Meredith David, Assistant Professor at Baylor University in the US.

Dieters who restrict themselves from consuming the foods they love most may be setting themselves up for failure. Instead, they may be better off by allowing occasional "treats" and focusing attention on healthy foods, revealed the study.

The research conducted upon 542 participants hinged on a person's level of self-control.

"Our data reveals that individuals who are generally more successful at reaching their goals tend to develop more motivating plans regarding the inclusion of healthy, well-liked items and the exclusion of unhealthy items that are not one's favourites," added David.

The researchers found that the participants when asked to list specific rules that they might use to guide their food consumption, a large percentage of them listed restricting and avoiding certain foods.

This was particularly the case among low self-control individuals - those who generally have less success in reaching their goals.

When thinking of unhealthy foods to avoid as a part of a diet, low self-control individuals think of foods that they really like -- their favourite snacks, and most tempting items. High self-control individuals think of foods that they like but could reasonably forgo.

When thinking of healthy foods to eat as a part of a diet, low self-control individuals think of foods they do not like, such as those that they find highly unpalatable while high self-control individuals think of foods they enjoy eating.​

​Sydney, July 13 (IANS) Researchers have identified a complex network in the brain that has revealed why artificial sweeteners may not be the best way to slim down.

Artificial sweeteners are substitutes for sugar that provides a sweet taste like that of sugar while containing significantly less food energy.

According to the researchers, the brain system responds to artificially sweetened food by telling the animal it hasn't eaten enough energy, thus increasing the appetite and prompting them to actually eat more.

It senses and integrates the sweetness and energy content of food, said the study conducted on mice and fruit flies.

"After chronic exposure to a diet that contained the artificial sweetener sucralose, we saw that animals began eating a lot more," said lead researcher Greg Neely, Associate Professor at the University of Sydney in Australia.

"Artificial sweeteners can actually change how animals perceive the sweetness of their food, with a discrepancy between sweetness and energy levels prompting an increase in caloric consumption," Neely added.

The findings showed that inside the brain's reward centres, sweet sensation is integrated with energy content. When sweetness versus energy is out of balance for a period of time, the brain recalibrates and increases total calories consumed.

For the study, fruit flies were exposed to a diet laced with artificial sweetener for prolonged periods (more than five days). The flies were then found to consume 30 per cent more calories when they were then given naturally sweetened food.

The team also replicated the study using mice. The mice that consumed a sucralose-sweetened diet for seven days displayed a significant increase in food consumption, and the neuronal pathway involved was the same as in the fruit flies.

"The chronic consumption of the artificial sweetener actually increases the sweet intensity of real nutritive sugar which then increases the animal's overall motivation to eat more food," Neely stated in the work published in the journal Cell Metabolism.

Further, the artificial sweeteners were also found to promote hyperactivity, insomnia as well as decrease the sleep quality - behaviours consistent with a mild starvation or fasting state.

"The pathway discovered is part of a conserved starvation response that actually makes nutritious food taste better when you are starving," Neely noted.​

London, July 13 (IANS) Looking for ways to shed those extra kilos around your waistline? Worry not, according to a study, drinking water along with a meal can fill the stomach and signal the brain to stop eating.

The findings showed that the brain listens to the stomach during eating.

Drinking more water can alter messages from the stomach which can be interpreted as fullness by the brain.

Further, intake of water along with a meal can increase stomach distension, curb appetite in the short term as well as increase the regional brain activity.

This means anyone who is looking to lose weight or cut down on eating would benefit from a large drink with their meals.

For the study, the team collected data from 19 participants during two separate sessions with different consumption procedures.

In the experiment, participants drank a milk-shake on an empty stomach, which was followed by a small (50 mL) or large glass of water (350 mL).

The large glass of water doubled the content in the stomach compared to the small glass. Those who drank the large glass also felt less hungry and felt fuller.

The real time data of the brain, the stomach, and people's feelings of satiety was measured simultaneously during the meal.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) images were used to see how the different amounts of water affected stretching of the stomach -- the large glass of water doubled the stomach content compared to the small glass.

"Combining these types of measurements is difficult, because MRI scanners are usually set-up to perform only one type of scan," said lead author Guido Camps from Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

"We've been able to very quickly switch the scanner from one functionality to another to do this type of research," Camps added.

This new research approach can be used to investigate the interplay between satiety feelings, volume of the stomach and activity in the brain, the researchers suggested.

The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior, held in Portugal.

London, July 13 (IANS) Cycling, often marked as a recreational activity, can significantly reduce the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes (T2D), if used as a means of transport to work daily, suggests a research.

The findings showed that people who took up habitual cycling were at 20 per cent lower risk for T2D than non-cyclists.

"Because cycling can be included in everyday activities, it may be appealing to a large part of the population. This includes people who due to lack of time, would not otherwise have the resources to engage in physical activity," said Martin Rasmussen from the University of Southern Denmark.

Further, cycling can lower the risk of various chronic diseases not only in young people but also people who are in their middle age or are entering old age, the researcher said.

"We find it especially interesting that those who started cycling had a lower risk of Type 2 diabetes, given that the study population were men and women of middle and old age," Rasmussen added.

In addition, the risk of developing T2D appeared to decrease with the time spent in cycling per week.

For the study, the team included 24,623 men and 27,890 women from Denmark, between the ages of 50 and 65, and compared the association between self-reported recreational and commuter cycling habits with T2D incidence measured in the Danish National Diabetes Registry.

It seems beneficial to encourage adults of middle and old age to engage in commuter and recreational cycling to prevent the development of T2D in late adulthood, said the paper published in the journal PLOS Medicine.

​New York, July 12 (IANS) Water can be the potential secret weapon in the fight against the ever-burgeoning waistline, finds a study.

According to researchers, drinking water which contains no carbohydrates, fat or protein -- key factors for obesity -- may help avoid overeating and thus lead to a healthier weight.

"Staying hydrated is good for you no matter what, and our study suggests it may also be linked to maintaining a healthy weight," said lead author Tammy Chang, Assistant Professor at University of Michigan, in the US.

"Our findings suggest that hydration may deserve more attention when thinking about addressing obesity on a population level," Chang added.

The findings showed that people who are obese and have a higher body mass index (BMI) are more likely to be inadequately hydrated.

On the other, people with inadequately water content are also likely to be obese and have a higher BMI.

Staying hydrated by drinking water and eating more water-loaded fruits and vegetables can help with weight management, specially in obese individuals.

However, "the link between hydration and weight is not clear. Our study further explains this relationship on a population level using an objective measure of hydration," Chang noted.

In addition, people with higher BMIs, who are expected to have higher water needs might also demonstrate behaviours that lead to inadequate hydration, the researchers said.

For the study, published in Annals of Family Medicine journal, the team looked at a nationally representative sample of 9,528 adults. Roughly a third of the adults, who spanned ages 18 to 64, were inadequately hydrated.​

​July 12 (IANS) Pomegranates are found with a potential to boost muscle strength and help to counteract the ageing, say researchers.

The findings showed that when we drink the pomegranate juice, our body produces Urolithin A -- a molecule.

When this molecule gets transformed by microbes in the gut, it enables the muscle cells to protect themselves against ageing and also increases the muscle mass.

As we age, our cells increasingly struggle to recycle the mitochondria -- the powerhouse of the cells -- and are no longer able to carry out their vital function and thus gets accumulated in the cell.

This degradation affects the health of many tissues, including muscles, which gradually weaken over the years and leads to age-related various diseases.

Urolithin A has been found to re-establish the cell's ability to recycle the components of the defective mitochondria.

"It's the only known molecule that can relaunch the mitochondrial clean-up process, otherwise known as mitophagy," said Patrick Aebischer, President, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne -- a research institute in Switzerland.

"It's a completely natural substance, and its effect is powerful and measurable," Aebischer added.

For the study, the team tested their hypothesis on the nematode C.elegans - roundworm - which is considered elderly, after just 8-10 days.

The lifespan of worms exposed to urolithin A increased by more than 45 per cent compared with the control group.

In the rodent studies, older mice, around two years of age, exposed to urolithin A showed 42 per cent better endurance while running than equally old mice in the control group.

However, pomegranate itself doesn't contain the miracle molecule, but rather its precursor, the researchers said.

Depending on the species of animal and the flora present in the gut microbiome, the amount of urolithin A produced can vary widely.

For those without the right microbes in their guts, urolithin A are not produced, they noted.

"For urolithin A to be produced in our intestines, the bacteria must be able to break down what we're eating. When, via digestion, a substance is produced that is of benefit to us, natural selection favours both the bacteria involved and their host," explained Chris Rinsch, CEO of Amazentis -- a life sciences company in Switzerland.

Rinsch also said precursors to urolithin A are found not only in pomegranates, but also in smaller amounts in many nuts and berries.

The findings, published in the journal Nature Medicine, are under trail in humans.​

​London, July 11 (IANS) Apart from reducing the risk of cancer and heart attacks, consuming up to eight portions of more fruit and vegetables a day can substantially increase people's happiness levels in life, finds a new study.

"Eating fruit and vegetables apparently boosts our happiness far more quickly than it improves human health,” said Andrew Oswald, professor at the University of Warwick in London.

The findings showed that happiness increased incrementally for each extra daily portion of fruit and vegetables up to eight portions per day.

People who changed from almost no fruit and vegetables to eight portions of a day showed an increase in life satisfaction.

Usually people's motivation to eat healthy food is weakened by the fact that these were predictive of alterations in happiness and satisfaction later in life.

“However, well-being improvements from increased consumption of fruit and vegetables are closer to immediate," Oswald added.

Large positive psychological benefits were found within two years of an improved diet consisting of more fruit and vegetables, the researchers said.

"There is a psychological payoff now from fruit and vegetables -- not just a lower health risk decades later," noted Redzo Mujcic, researcher at University of Queensland in Australia.

The results could be used by health professionals to persuade people to consume more fruit and vegetables, particularly in the developed world where the typical citizen eats an unhealthy diet, said the paper to be published in the American Journal of Public Health.

For the study, the team followed food diaries of 12,385 randomly selected people.

The authors adjusted the effects on incident changes in happiness and life satisfaction for people's changing incomes and personal circumstances.