Lower testosterone levels linked to low-fat diets

A January 2020 study by Department of Surgery, University of Chicago Medicine and colleagues from the Department of Urology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, and the Department of Surgery, NorthShore University Health System found that, "…men who adhered to a fat restrictive diet had lower serum testosterone than men on a nonrestrictive diet," but that, “… the clinical significance of small differences in serum T across diets is unclear."

In passing … some good foods for testosterone are oysters, egg yolk, shellfish, tuna, low-fat milk, fortified cereals, beans and beef.

Sleep Apnea and Tongue Fat

In a January 2020 study by the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania it was found,

• "Most clinicians, and even experts in the sleep apnea world, have not typically focused on fat in the tongue for treating sleep apnea.”

• “Now that we know tongue fat is a risk factor and that sleep apnea improves when tongue fat is reduced, we have established a unique therapeutic target that we've never had before.”

• "Primary care doctors, and perhaps even dentists, should be asking about snoring and sleepiness in all patients, even those who have a normal body mass index, as, based on our data, they may also be at risk for sleep apnea,"

Timing makes a difference when it comes to eating

A January 2020 study by the University of Virginia said that,

• "We've shown that dopamine signaling in the brain governs circadian biology and leads to consumption of energy-dense foods between meals and during odd hours," 

• "We evolved under pressures we no longer have … It is natural for our bodies as organisms to want to consume as much as possible, to store fat, because the body doesn't know when the next meal is coming.”

• "But, of course, food is now abundant, and our next meal is as close as the kitchen, or the nearest fast-food drive-through, or right here on our desk. Often, these foods are high in fats, sugars, and therefore calories, and that's why they taste good. It's easy to overconsume, and, over time, this takes a toll on our health."

• "This lights-on-all-the-time, eat-at-any-time lifestyle recasts eating patterns and affects how the body utilizes energy … It alters metabolism - as our study shows - and leads to obesity, which causes disease. We're learning that when we eat is just as important as how much we eat. A calorie is not just a calorie. Calories consumed between meals or at odd hours become stored as fat, and that is the recipe for poor health."

Fluid Intelligence, Age, Fat & Muscle

A December 2017 study by Iowa State University said,

"Chronological age doesn't seem to be a factor in fluid intelligence decreasing over time … It appears to be biological age, which here is the amount of fat and muscle."

"Further studies would be needed to see if people with less muscle mass and more fat mass are more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease, and what the role of the immune system is,"

."If you eat alright and do at least brisk walking some of the time, it might help you with mentally staying quick on your feet,"

Intermittent Fasting for Metabolic Syndrome

A November 2017 study by the University of California, San Diego found that,

“There is a critical window for intervention with metabolic syndrome. Once people become diabetic or are on multiple medications, such as insulin, it's very hard to reverse the disease process.

"Metabolism is closely linked with circadian rhythms, and knowing this, we were able to develop an intervention to help patients with metabolic syndrome without decreasing calories or increasing physical exercise."

"Time-restricted eating is a simple dietary intervention to incorporate, and we found that participants were able to keep the eating schedule,"

"Eating and drinking everything (except water) during a 10-hour window allows your body to rest and restore for 14 hours at night. Your body can also anticipate when you will eat, so it can prepare the body to optimize metabolism."

"Knowing how to optimize circadian rhythms could lead to a new treatment option for metabolic syndrome patients with life-altering diseases."

Coffee and Metabolic Syndrome

The medical term “metabolic syndrome” describes the combination of

• Diabetes,

• High Blood Pressure, and

• Obesity.

 Obesity is defined as having a BMI in the range 30-39.9.

Assistant Professor Giuseppe Grosso of the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee (ISIC) in a November 2019 study and Associate Professor Estefania Toledo reviewing the evidence in the SUN (Seguimiento University of Navarra) cohort study (n=22,000), found, “moderate coffee consumption [defined as drinking one to four cups daily] was associated with reduced risk of [metabolic syndrome] whilst higher intakes were not. This was reported for both regular and decaffeinated coffee.”

Traditional Chinese Medicine for Obesity

A November 2019 study published by the Chinese Academy of Science found that an extract from ginseng can act

• "as a novel anti-obesity probiotic, [Enterococcus faecalis] and [myristoleic acid which] can reduce adiposity via [brown adipose tissue] activation and beige fat formation,"

• "This study demonstrates the important role of [myristoleic acid] in reducing obesity and improving related metabolic syndrome, as well as its tremendous application prospects,"

Cholesterol: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

An August 2019 study by the University of Copenhagen concluded, in part, that, “the most important thing you yourself can do to achieve the lowest possible level of remnant cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood is to maintain a normal body weight.”

Eureka kindly explains, “The three kinds of cholesterol:

Remnant cholesterol = “ugly” cholesterol: the cholesterol content in triglyceride-rich lipoproteins or remnant particles. Elevated remnant cholesterol leads to cardiovascular disease.

LDL cholesterol = “bad” cholesterol: the cholesterol content in low-density lipoprotein (LDL). Elevated LDL cholesterol leads to cardiovascular disease.

HDL cholesterol = "good" cholesterol = innocent cholesterol: the cholesterol content in high-density lipoprotein (HDL). Levels of HDL cholesterol does not affect cardiovascular disease risk.”

Obesity and Lung Function

An October 2019 study by Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Perth, Western Australia, the University of Western and Australia European Respiratory Society studied, "the structure of the airways within our lungs and how these are altered in people with respiratory disease.”

Looking at samples of lung they, “spotted fatty tissue that had built up in the airway walls. We wanted to see if this accumulation was correlated with body weight."

The lead researcher said: "Being overweight or obese has already been linked to having asthma or having worse asthma symptoms. Researchers have suggested that the link might be explained by the direct pressure of excess weight on the lungs or by a general increase in inflammation created by excess weight.”

"This study suggests that another mechanism is also at play. We've found that excess fat accumulates in the airway walls where it takes up space and seems to increase inflammation within the lungs. We think this is causing a thickening of the airways that limits the flow of air in and out of the lungs, and that could at least partly explain an increase in asthma symptoms."

The team are looking for new ways to study and measure fatty tissue in the lungs. They want to confirm the relationship with respiratory disease and to find out whether the effect can be reversed by weight loss therapy.

Professor Thierry Troosters said, "This is an important finding on the relationship between body weight and respiratory disease because it shows how being overweight or obese might be making symptoms worse for people with asthma. This goes beyond the simple observation that patients with obesity need to breathe more with activity and exercise hence adding to their ventilatory burden. The observation points at true airway changes that are associated with obesity.”

Bedtime Snacks

An August 2019 study of women weight trainers, by Florida State University said,

• “For far too long, people have been led to believe that eating before bed causes metabolic disturbances and will make them gain fat … However, the data simply does not support this when the food we choose to eat before bed is protein-based and small in size."

• "In women who weight train, there are no differences in overnight local belly fat metabolism or whole-body fat burn whether you eat protein in the form of a protein shake during the day post-workout or at night presleep,"

• "So, essentially, you can eat protein before bed and not disturb fat metabolism."

• "There are such bad misconceptions about eating at night, that it will 'make me gain weight' or 'slow my metabolism,' …The research suggests that really only holds true if you're eating a ton of calories and they are carbohydrate- and/or fat-laden. There are so many potential beneficial effects of eating protein at night, and it will be extremely important to take all of this science to the community to try to change the outlook of these dietary habits."

Social Facilitation – Eating with Others

A September 2019 study by the University of Birmingham found,

"People want to convey positive impressions to strangers. Selecting small portions may provide a means of doing so and this may be why the social facilitation of eating is less pronounced amongst groups of strangers.

"Findings from previous research suggest that we often choose what (and how much) to eat based on the type of impression that we want to convey about ourselves. Evidence suggests that this may be particularly pronounced for women eating with men they wish to impress and for people with obesity who wish to avoid being judged for overeating."

"A solution to this tension may be to eat at least as much as others in the group - individual members match their behaviour to others, promoting a larger meal than might otherwise be eaten in the absence of this social competition."

"What we describe as 'social facilitation' can be seen as a natural by-product of social food sharing - a strategy that would have served a critical function in our ancestral environments. This also explains why it is more likely to occur in groups with individuals who are familiar with each other."

Diabetes Remission Through Weight Loss

A September 2019 study by the University of Cambridge said, “We've known for some time now that it's possible to send diabetes into remission using fairly drastic measures such as intensive weight loss programmes and extreme calorie restriction," .Dr Hajira Dambha-Miller also said, “These interventions can be very challenging to individuals and difficult to achieve. But, our results suggest that it may be possible to get rid of diabetes, for at least five years, with a more modest weight loss of 10%. This will be more motivating and hence more achievable for many people."

Professor Simon Griffin added: "This reinforces the importance of managing one's weight, which can be achieved through changes in diet and increasing physical activity. Type 2 diabetes, while a chronic disease, can lead to significant complications, but as our study shows, can be controlled and even reversed."

Nuts and Reduced Weight Gain

A July 2019 study finds, “increasing nut consumption by just half a serving (14 g or ½ oz) a day is linked to less weight gain and a lower risk of obesity.”

Glucose not the Driver for Diabetes and Obesity?

Inflammation mechanisms relating to diabetes type 2 and obesity may be linked to changes (from elevated fat derivatives or defects) in mitochondria and not glucose. Researchers said, "Aggressive blood glucose control to lower the risk of diabetic complications has been the goal for most people with Type 2 Diabetes for decades … Our data provide an explanation for why people with tight glucose control can nonetheless have disease progression."

August 2019 study by University of Kentucky.

Gut Bacteria – Obesity - Diabetes

An August 2019 study by Toronto General Hospital Research Institute and the Department of Pathology at University Health Network found that,

“during obesity, there are lower levels of a type of B cell in the gut that make an antibody called IgA [which] is naturally produced by our bodies and is crucial to regulating the bacteria that live in our gut. It acts as a defense mechanism that helps neutralize potentially dangerous bacteria that take advantage of changes to the environment, such as when we consume an imbalanced or fatty diet …”

“If we can boost these IgA B cells or their products, then we may be able to control the type of bacteria in the gut …”

“Especially the ones that are more likely to be linked to inflammation and ultimately insulin resistance. Going forward, this work could form the basis for new gut immune biomarkers or therapies for obesity and its complications, like insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes."