Fruit juice Consumption not related to Overweight in Children

Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, and Singapore (April 14, 2008) -- Despite studies that assert otherwise, 100% fruit juice consumption is not correlation to overweight in children, as per the authors of A Review of the Relationship Between 100% Fruit Juice Consumption and Weight in Children and Adolescents in the May/recent issue of the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine (AJLM), published by SAGE.



The statistics about overweight children are alarming. Over the past 20 years, there has been an increased prevalence of overweight and at-risk-for overweight in all ages and ethnic groups. In 2002, 10.3% of children 2-5 years of age were overweight, an increase from 7.2% in 1994. In males and females 12-17 years of age, waist circumference increased by 4.0% and 5.2%, respectively, between 1994 and 2004.

The article, authored by Carol E. ONeil, PhD, MPH, LDN, RD, Louisiana State University, and Theresa A. Nicklas, DrPH, USDA/ARS Childrens Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, examined 21 studies about a relationship between consumption of 100% fruit juice by children and adolescents and weight, and found there is no systematic association between consumption of 100% fruit juice and overweight in children or adolescents.

Health professionals and policy makers should be encouraged to objectively review the literature on all beverages and encourage consumption of healthful beverages including water, milk, and 100% fruit juice, as per the authors. The data support the consumption of 100% fruit juice in moderate amounts, and this may be an important strategy to help children meet the current recommendations for fruit.


The rising epidemic of overweight and obese children should be a cause for great concern amongst healthcare professionals and the public at large, said James M. Rippe, M.D., heart specialist and Editor in Chief of AJLM. The findings that the consumption of 100% juice by children and adolescents is not linked to overweight is very important since 100% fruit juices are nutrient dense and their consumption represents an excellent way to help children meet the dietary guidelines for Americans. The article by ONeil and Nicklas clears up misconceptions that a number of healthcare professionals and parents may have about this issue. Source

Start Losing Belly Fat

Caution on New Anti-Obesity Drug in Kids

Anti-obesity drugs that work by blocking brain molecules similar to those in marijuana could also interfere with neural development in young children, as per a new study from MITs Picower Institute for Learning and Memory.

Marijuana is known to be an appetite stimulant, and a new class of anti-obesity drugssuch as rimonabant (trade name Acomplia) developed by Sanofi-Aventis and awaiting approval for use in the United Stateswork by blocking brain receptors that bind to marijuana and other cannabinoids.



Marijuana, derived from the plant Cannabis sativa, contains special active compounds that are referred to collectively as cannabinoids. But other cannabinoids (endocannabinoids) are generated naturally inside the body.

The MIT study, which was done in mice, observed that blocking cannabinoid receptors could also suppress the adaptive rewiring of the brain necessary for neural development in children. The work is published in the May 8 issue of Neuron.

Our finding of a profound disruption of cortical plasticity in juvenile mice suggests caution is advised in the use of such compounds in children, wrote lead author Mark F. Bear, director of the Picower Institute and Picower Professor of Neuroscience.

The scientists investigated plasticitythe brains ability to change in response to experienceby temporarily depriving newborn mice of vision in one eye soon after birth. This well-known experiment induces a long-lasting loss of synapses that causes blindness in the covered eye, while synapses shift to the uncovered eye. How and where this synaptic shift occurs in the primary visual cortex has remained controversial.

Understanding the mechanism behind this phenomenon is key because the same brain mechanisms are used for normal development and may go awry in conditions that cause developmental delays in humans, and may reappear in old age and contribute to synaptic loss during Alzheimer's disease, Bear said.

In mice, the MIT scientists found, even one day of deprivation from one eye starts the shift to dominance of the uncovered eye. But injecting the mice with a cannabinoid receptor blocker halted the shift in certain brain regions, indicating that cannabinoids play a key role in early synaptic development.

Blocking cannabinoids receptors could thwart this developmental process, the scientists said. Source

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Low Carb Recipes

Sugar-Free Margaritas
From Laura Dolson,
Your Guide to Low Carb Diets.
Margaritas tend to be very high in sugar. Traditional ones have Triple Sec or Cointreau, both orange liqueurs with 5 grams of carb per tablespoon (16 grams per jigger).

Margaritas made with sweet and sour mix are usually worse, as 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) of sweet and sour mix has at least 17 grams of sugar, and sometimes more. Imagine how much sugar you're getting in one of those big margaritas! Yikes!

INGREDIENTS:

1 jigger (1.5 oz) tequila
2 Tablespoons (1 oz) lime juice - bottled more convenient, fresh tastes a lot better
1/4 cup (4 Tablespoons) water
1/4 teaspoon orange extract
1 Tablespoon's worth artificial sweetener (I like to use liquid, carb-free types)
Ice - small handful
Margarita salt or kosher salt

PREPARATION:

Wet the rim of the glass and dip into a small plate of salt.

Combine all ingredients. You can either serve it over ice (in Mexico I've usually been served it this way, but I can't say I've had extensive experience), or strained into the glass, or blended in a blender.

2 grams of carbohydrate using bottled lime juice, 2.5 for fresh.

Fight Belly Fat By Eating Whole Grains

Study Shows Whole-Grain Diet Good for the Waistline and the Heart

By Jennifer Warner
WebMD Medical News
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

A diet rich in whole grains may help fight your belly bulge while lowering the risk of heart disease.

A new study shows people who followed a weight loss program incorporating whole-grain breads, cereals, and other foods lost more body fat from the abdominal area than those who ate only refined grains like white bread and rice.

In addition, those on the whole-grain diet experienced a 38% drop in C-reactive protein (CRP), an indicator of inflammation in the body linked to heart disease.

Researchers say the results suggest that incorporating whole grains into weight loss plans may help burn fat as well as reduce the risk of heart disease.

The results appear in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Whole Grains vs. Refined Grains
In the study, Heather I. Katcher of Pennsylvania State University and colleagues divided 50 obese adults with metabolic syndrome into two groups. Metabolic syndrome is a collection of risk factors that increase risk for heart disease and diabetes.

Both groups were instructed to cut calories for 12 weeks. But one group was told to eat only whole-grain products while the other group was asked not to eat any whole-grain foods.

By the end of the study, both groups had lost weight, an average of 8 pounds among the whole-grain group and 11 pounds in the refined-grain group.

Both groups experienced a decrease in body fat, but the whole-grain group lost significantly more body fat from the abdominal region than the refined-grain group. Excessive fat around the midsection is linked to an increased risk of heart disease.

The whole-grain group experienced other benefits. For example, CRP levels dropped by 38% among those who followed a whole-grain diet. No decrease was found among the refined-grain group.

Those in the whole-grain group also increased their intake of dietary fiber and magnesium.

Sources of Whole Grain
Looking for food that is a good source of whole grain? Here are some examples of whole grains:

Whole wheat
Whole oats/oatmeal
Whole-grain corn
Popcorn
Brown rice
Whole rye
Whole-grain barley
Wild rice
Buckwheat
Triticale
Bulgur (cracked wheat)
Millet
Quinoa
Sorghum
You can add whole grains at meals and snacks:

Snack on ready-to-eat, whole-grain cereals such as toasted oat cereal.
Add whole-grain flour or oatmeal when making cookies or other baked treats.
Try a whole-grain snack chip, such as baked tortilla chips.
Popcorn, a whole grain, can be a healthy snack with little or no added salt and butter.
Whole Grains on Food Labels
When trying to select foods with whole grains, choose foods that name one of the following whole-grain ingredients first on the label's ingredient list:

Brown rice
Bulgur
Oatmeal
Whole-grain corn
Whole oats
Whole rye
Whole wheat
Wild rice
Foods labeled with the words "multi-grain," "stone-ground," "100% wheat," "cracked wheat," "seven-grain," or "bran" are usually not whole-grain products.

Color is not an indication of a whole grain. Bread can be brown because of molasses or other added ingredients. Read the ingredient list to see if it is a whole grain. Use the Nutrition Facts label and choose products with a higher % Daily Value (%DV) for fiber. The "%DV" for fiber is a good clue to the amount of whole grain in the product.