Hot MedFax

Duh. Thinking how many pounds that 12-oz bag of M&Ms is going to pad onto you may cause you to  reconsider. That's what new research is saying, according to newswise.com.  Turns out the idea that the brain can control eating behavior, and considering the long-term consequences of your food choices may help control food cravings. Two research studies have showed the way you think about food can have an impact on appetite, and many others on the relationship between the brain and eating behavior. Scientists at Brown University used functional MRI scans to watch participants' brains as they reviewed pictures of enticing foods, like pizza, French fries and ice cream. Through the scans researchers were able to evaluate different strategies to reduce the desire to eat. They found that thinking about the long-term negative impact of eating these foods may be an effective way to reduce appetite. "We found that simply thinking in a different way affects how t...

Antidepressants have helped millions feel better about their lives.  And now they may play an even bigger role in making us feel good.  They may prevent Alzheimer's. A new study has found that a  commonly prescribed antidepressant can reduce production of the main ingredient in Alzheimer’s brain plaques, according to new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of Pennsylvania. Stopping plaque buildup may halt the disastrous mental decline caused by the disorder. Newswise.com reports that this research  supports preliminary mouse studies that evaluated a variety of antidepressants. The scientists found that the antidepressant citalopram (or Celexa) stopped the growth of plaques in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease. And in young adults who were cognitively healthy, a single dose of the antidepressant lowered by 37 percent the production of amyloid beta, the primary ingredient in plaques. "Although the findings ...