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Big surprise.  One in three people have not kept their New Year's resolutions.  I bet it's more like three out of three. But a new study says even people with the best of intentions to get heart-healthy in the new year become discouraged after just a handful of long runs or drop their gym memberships after a couple of sessions. Gretchen Wells, MD, PhD, director of women's heart health at the University of Kentucky's Gill Heart Institute, emphasizes in a new video to help people not to give up. "You reduce your risk of heart attack by 50% if you get 150 minutes of activity a week -- or 30 minutes for five out of seven days," Wells says at newswise.com. "That doesn't have to come with a gym membership or fancy, expensive equipment. A brisk walk can be just as effective in reducing heart attack risk." In fact, said Wells, even completing household chores like vacuuming or mowing the lawn can take up a significant chunk of that goal....

As if we needed yet one more reason to hate diets. A new study has found that "hunger neurons" promote negative feelings, according to newswise.com.  Great.  I feel negative enough about cutting out M&Ms, especially those new peanut butter ones. Weight loss )supposedly) occurs when the amount of energy consumed in the form of food is less than the amount of energy burned. This can be accomplished by eating less or exercising more. Though don't kid yourself.  I'm a fanatic exerciser and I still have to watch every bite I put in my mouth. With either approach, the goal is to create a caloric debt that will be resolved by burning stored carbohydrate, protein, or fat. But here's the deal: eating feels good and being hungry is uncomfortable . Behaviors that evolved as survival mechanisms to ensure that an animal feeds itself become inconvenient and potentially detrimental side effects in industrialized human populations where cardiovascular disease...

For a long time diet experts have told us to vary our food choices because eating too much of the same thing supposedly slowed weight loss down. Well now it turns out you can probably eat just about whatever you want, whether it's toast with jelly four times a day, spinach and kale (as if), or my favorite, pralines and cream. Of course, you have to eat everything in moderation, but now experts are finding that it's maybe not so important to vary our diets. Long a directive of Weight Watchers (which believes eating too much of the same thing inhibits your body's ability to drop that weight), now having diversity in your diet may not be so important. Now it seems doing that won't slow down your metabolism, as always thought. "Eat everything in moderation’ has been a long-standing dietary recommendation, but without much empiric supporting evidence in populations. We wanted to characterize new metrics of diet diversity and evaluate their association with m...

First it was rice.  Now it's red wine. Arsenic , anyone? According to a new study, arsenic is found in many red wines, even some in the metro New York region.   A new University of Washington study that tested 65 wines from America's top four wine-producing states — California, Washington, New York and Oregon — found all but one have arsenic levels that exceed what's allowed in drinking water. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency allows drinking water to contain no more than 10 parts per billion of arsenic. The wine samples ranged from 10 to 76 parts per billion, with an average of 24 parts per billion. But a companion study concluded that the likely health risks from that naturally-occurring toxic element depend on how many other foods and beverages known to be high in arsenic, such as apple juice, rice, or cereal bars, an individual person eats. Want to be really scared?  The highest risks from arsenic exposure stem from certain types of infant fo...

And yet one more cross for overweight people to bear. Not only are they often shunned and made fun of but now a new study has found that those who blog may be found less credible for readers seeking food advice. I guess it stands to reason.  Would you take driving advice from someone with DUIs?    The Cornell study revealed that when a blogger is overweight, as shown in the blogger’s photo, readers are far more skeptical of the information that blogger provides when compared with a thin blogger’s recommendations, even when the content is exactly the same, according to newswise.com. The findings are increasingly important as more than half of smartphone users report that they use their device to look up health-related information, making the Internet one of the top places people get informed about health issues. "When we dramatically increased the fat and calorie content, it had just as much impact as when we said the food was posted by a heavy person,”say...

It's something you learn right away at just about any weight loss control program. If you leave the chips out, you're going to want to eat them. Now a new study confirms it.  According to newswise.com, keeping foods visible throughout the house leads to obesity. The Ohio State University study focused primarily on determining whether the home environment – architectural features and food storage and availability – was associated with obesity, but also measured a number of psychological factors. While architectural features had no relationship to obesity status, several food-related findings did. People in the study who were obese kept more food visible throughout the house and generally ate less-healthy foods, such as sweets, than non-obese research participants. The two groups spent about the same amount of money on food and reported eating similar amounts of total calories, but non-obese participants spent less on fast food than did obese individuals. That...

Finally.  My dream come true. You can lose weight by eating chocolate.  Well, OK, maybe not exactly.  But a new study has found that chocolate is a rich source of bioactive compounds, particularly a group of molecules called flavonoids, plant compounds associated with several positive health impacts, according to newswise.com. Most diet experts agree it's not what you eat but how much you eat, and in what combinations.  I've been a Weight Watchers member, off and on, since high school and what I've learned is that you need to balance what you eat -- some fruit, some vegetables, some lean protein, some carbohydrates (like sweet potato and brown rice).  You can even eat popcorn! But teasing out the possible effects of the compounds in your diet, and how it may interact with various diet interventions, is rarely studied. It could be that simply consuming chocolate in combination with dietary interventions has no effect, or it could make such diets eve...

Figures.  I just finished writing about how weight loss devices don't help you lose weight.  And now experts are saying cell phones can do the trick. That's because cell phones can besiege you with reminder texts about losing weight and maintaining it.   I say "besiege" because that's the absolute last thing I would want from my phone.  (I barely tolerate the texts from my friends.) “In conjunction with reducing caloric intake and increasing physical activity, mobile messaging services could help to maintain and sustain weight loss over time,” says Tanika Kelly, associate professor of epidemiology at the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, who did a study on this.   “It reminds us to continue our good behaviors.” In the study, done in China (where, admittedly, not too many people are overweight), those who got weight loss reminders and encouragement over their phones lost 3 pounds more than those who did not.  That may...

 Diet.  Inflammation.  Cancer. There's a link.  A connection between inflammation and cancer has been found, and diet and nutrition contribute to not only colitis but colitis-associated colon cancer . Chronic inflammation appears to play a key role in the development of cancer, along with heart disease and diabetes. Now a new study presented today suggests that eating a diet high in sugar, saturated fats and others foods that promote inflammation increases the risk of premature death from any cause, including cancers of the gastrointestinal tract. A connection between inflammation and cancer has been recognized for over a hundred years, according to newswise.com.  This connection is particularly evident in colon carcinogenesis, because patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have a higher incidence of colon cancer than the general population. The Web site reports that a new study has found that there's increasing evidence that infl...

So you've given and added bananas to your breakfast. But guess what?  A new study says most adults need to double their fruit and vegetable intake. New research published in the September issue of the British Journal of Nutrition highlights a significant shortfall in fruit and vegetable consumption in people’s diets around the world, according to newswise.com. Research finds the majority of adults worldwide would have to at least double their current consumption of fruits and vegetables to meet the World Health Organization’s minimum recommendation of five servings (400 grams) per day. Additionally, the vast majority of adults worldwide – 60 to 87% across 13 geographic diet regions – are falling short of this recommendation and missing out on crucial nutrition and health benefits. The gap between the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables and what adults are actually eating also indicates that most adults worldwide are not receiving the quantity or variety of...

I t's that old saying?  If you don't like something, wait, and it will change?  Oh, wait.  That's the weather, and Mark Twain. But today it now applies to diet soda.  Wasn't it about a month ago that reports came out that diet soda made you, if not, gain weight, then not be able to lose it?  I think I wrote about it.  As much as I hate to give Fox News the credit, they reported that last year.   NOW a study says that diet soda will help you lose weight .  What? According to newswise.com, a new clinical trial says yes, diet sodas do help us lose weight.   My head is spinning. Cbsnews.com notes that the results contradict a number of other recent studies that indicated drinking diet soda may actually cause a person to gain weight. The new study, published in Obesity ,  randomly assigned study participants to one of two groups: those who were allowed to drink diet beverages, such as diet sodas, teas and flavored ...

You're not going to believe this.  An apple a day does not keep the doctor away.  Fatty foods don't cause cancer.  But coffee may have some minimal benefit in warding off the disease. All revealed at the American Association for Cancer Research's annual meeting, according to George Johnson of The New York Times. He reports that many of the supposed tried-and-true benefits of diet and illness just don't, well, hold water. He notes that in 1997 studies showed that " green vegetables helped ward off lung and stomach cancer. Colon and thyroid cancer might be avoided with broccoli, cabbage and brussels sprouts. Onions, tomatoes, garlic, carrots and citrus fruits all seemed to play important roles." But that was completely reversed in 2007. "The hypothesis that fatty foods are a direct cause of cancer  has also been crumbling , along with  the case for eating more fiber ," he adds . "The idea that red meat causes colon cancer is shrouded in ...

I never clip coupons , mostly because they're usually for Fritos or Gatorade or Cheezits, things I try not to buy.   Big chains use them to lure you into the store, offering discounts mostly on processed food and snacks, according to The Washington Post's Lenny Bernstein. "When researchers looked at  1,056 coupons available online for supermarkets nationwide  , they found that the largest share (25 percent) were for 'processed snack foods, candies and desserts,'" he notes.  Another 14 percent offered price breaks on prepared meals, 11 percent were for cereals, and 12 percent were for beverages, more than half of which were sodas, juices and energy or sports drinks. Just 3 percent offered discounts on vegetables, 1 percent were for unprocessed meats, and fewer than 1 percent provided breaks on fruit prices. And those fruits were canned, not fresh.   If stores make “the unhealthier option less expensive and easier to purchase, we can’t be surprised when [p...

Are you sick of reading about obesity?  I know I sometimes am.  But a new study has some startling, and frightening, facts about colon cancer and obesity. It says obesity primes the colon for cancer, as demonstrated in the study on mice. Obesity, rather than diet, causes changes in the colon that may lead to colorectal cancer, according to a study in mice, as reported by newswise.com. A large body of scientific literature says people who are obese are predisposed to a number of cancers, particularly colorectal cancer. Like many things, it all comes down to a gene.  “The obese mice exhibited molecular signals in their gut that led to the progression of cancer, but the NAG-1 mice didn’t have those same indicators,” says  Thomas Eling, Ph.D., a scientist at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). After a series of experiments, Eling and his team discovered that gene p atterns from obese...

Hmm.  Somebody should let Weight Watchers know.  For years it's been promoting drinking water -- and lots of it -- in order to lose weight. Now a new study says it doesn't help at all.  “There is very little evidence that drinking water promotes weight loss; it is one of those self-perpetuating myths,” said Beth Kitchin, Ph.D., R.D., assistant professor of nutrition sciences, tells newswise.com. “I’m not saying drinking water isn’t good; but only one study showed people who drank more water burned a few extra calories, and it was only a couple of extra calories a day.” Another myth? Kitchin says you don't need to drink 8 glasses of water a day. “Yes, people do need to get fluids; but it does not have to be water,” Kitchin said at newswise.com. “There’s no evidence that it melts away fat or makes you feel fuller, so if you don’t like water it’s OK.” While water remains the best hydrator, fluid replacement does not have to be in the form of water. You could als...

It could be.  A  new study has found that happier thoughts lead to healthier food. Sound a little crazy?  Well, researchers have discovered that mood and food are connected, and if you want to lose weight, think a happy thought. How many of us have stepped on the scale, been mortified, then felt anger and hatred for our shape course through our bodies? It's hard to think happy thoughts when you're heavy, I admit.  But  “people use food to either maintain a good mood or regain a good mood, and if you’re already in a good mood, you tend to eat more healthfully than if you’re in a bad mood,” said study author Brian Wansink a professor in Cornell’s Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, at newswise.com. Study authors note, "W hen people are in a good mood, things seem OK, and they can take a big-picture perspective. This kind of thinking allows people to focus on the more abstract aspects of food, including how healthy it is.” But is this really ...

According to the experts, we're changing how we eat .   Our priorities have shifted, they say. Some of us have jumped on the gluten-free wagon while others now snack over 50% of the time they eat, newswise.com notes.  Here are the facts as the Web site reports them:    1. In a single day, American’s typically eat and drink 14 different kinds of food and beverages from sandwiches, fruit, vegetables, carbonated soft drinks, milk, coffee, potatoes, salty snacks, juices, and ready-to-eat cereal (NPD, 2013). 2. The largest restaurant chains in America from highest grossing are McDonalds, Subway, Starbucks, Wendy’s,  Burger King, Taco Bell, Dunkin’ Donuts, Pizza Hut, KFC, and Chik-fil-A (Technomic, 2013).  3. Forty-five percent of Millennials and 24 percent of Boomers have adopted a special diet (e.g., gluten-free or vegan). One-third of all Millennials’ eating involve global cuisine; 56 percent of Millennials want something healthy for their next snack (H...

You may have already figured this out but diet soda may hurt you more than help you, when trying to lose weight. That's because  overweight and obese adults who drink diet beverages consume more calories from food than obese or overweight adults who drink regular soda or other sugary beverages, according to newswise.com. “Although overweight and obese adults who drink diet soda eat a comparable amount of total calories as heavier adults who drink sugary beverages, they consume significantly more calories from solid food at both meals and snacks,” said Sara Bleich, PhD, associate professor with the Bloomberg School’s Department of Health Policy and Management and lead author of a paper on the subject, at newswise.com. "Artificial sweeteners, which are present in high doses in diet soda, are associated with a greater activation of reward centers in the brain, thus altering the reward a person experiences from sweet tastes. In other words, among people who drink diet soda,...

Imagine this.  You don't have to give up supersizing to lose weight. Now, let's be clear.  We're not talking here about cheese fries and giant lattes, but splurging on a larger bag of baby carrots.  Seems consumers -- even those trying to eat healthy or lose weight -- are inevitably attracted, like moths to a flame, to anything boasting "supersized." “We know the health implications of a giant latte or supersized fries, so a little justification through feeling financially savvy and saving money makes us feel better about our decision and increases consumption,” newswise.com quotes Vanderbilt marketing researcher Kelly L. Haws. You see, we still want to feel we're getting our money's worth, even though we can't buy the fries or the lattes or the two pound bags of M&Ms for $5. But new research by Haws and co-author Karen Winterich found that consumers may be just as willing to buy healthy food if they feel they’re still getting a deal. “...

I can't remember when I started trying to lose weight -- I think it was somewhere around 5th grade.  (Actress Ginnifer Goodwin, now 32, beat me -- she joined Weight Watchers at 9).  But now we're finding that there can be emotional consequences from being put on a diet too early in life. According to Jen Weigel at the Chicago Tribune, the last thing people with children who are a little too pudgy should do is bug them about it.  She quotes a woman, who should know, whose mom was obsessed with her food intake, Karen Kataline, author of "Fatlash: Food Police & the Fear of Thin. "She had unresolved issues about weight and appearance and she wasn't happy with her own body." Kataline says that her mother was obsessed with her weight from infancy. Now mine didn't start quite that early, but almost since I can remember I, and a cousin, were teased about being overweight by our stringy, fast-metabolism siblings. Children as young as six and eight hat...