Free Republic

I have been doing an Atkins-ish diet for 2 years now. I was an obese 26 year old at 240 pounds and I am now a more respectable 28 year old at 165 pounds. I have not been able to move off induction phase as my tolerance for carbohydrate seems to be about 25 grams a day. After a year of following it religiously I substituted my bacon and eggs breakfast to a carbo-rich muesli (at my Doctor's advice) and was pleased to find that it didn't affect the weight loss. I have also kept up a regular exercise routine...

http://www.improbable.com/airchives/paperair/volume10/v10i6/opera-10-6.pdf

Women who are obese have less chance of being brainy, doctors claimed yesterday. Medics have found that too much fat can cause loss of brain tissue.The damage is to areas known as the temporal lobes, which control memory, speech and hearing. And the risk increases by 16 percent with every kilogram of excess weight.Obesity could even trigger dimentia in older women, researchers discovered in a 24 year old study of Sweden.Team leader Dr. Deborah Gustafson said: 'Fat is a risk for women. Other studies have reported similar things.'More than a third of people are overweight. Researchers say obesity creates an...

Carb-conscious Americans continued to flatten Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, as the onetime Wall Street darling yesterday posted a loss of $3 million in the third quarter. That bad news sent the stock reeling 16 percent — or to just above the $7 price of a dozen assorted sweet things. The struggling doughnut chain has lost more than 75 percent of its market value since last year as people have suddenly stayed away from the glazed treats in droves, and opted for healthier snacks. As a result, each Krispy Kreme store has seen $10,000 a week in revenue waddle out the...

The food pyramid is a three-sided polygon of lies. First, since it is almost exclusively presented in two dimensions, it is not technically a pyramid but a triangle. Second--and far more importantly, according to nutrition expert and author Danna Korn--the so-called food pyramid puts an abnormal emphasis on the consumption of wheat and wheat products, a diet that couldn't be less adapted to the human digestive system. Wheat, she insists, is the devil's food--even more than the delightful chocolate cake of the same name. Korn's campaign against wheat began 14 years ago when her son was diagnosed with celiac disease--a...

The Physics of Gluttony The obesity epidemic has a simple solution. If you want to lose weight, either eat less, or breathe more. By Richard A. Muller November 12, 2004 Physics can sometimes cut through the mess of complex problems with a simple conservation law. A year ago, in my column "The Physics Diet," I applied conservation of energy to the problem of obesity. I argued that exercise burns so few calories that it cannot be a major way of losing weight. But many people I have spoken to believe there is another benefit to exercise: it changes your metabolism....

[A] study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston... found no reduced risk of cancer among those who consumed at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. However, on the positive side, they found eating fruits and vegetables did lower the risk of developing heart disease.

Vitamin E may do "more harm than good" Vitamin E supplements, which millions take in the hope of longer, healthier lives, may do more harm than good, researchers have reported. In fact, people taking high doses of vitamin E may in some cases be more likely to die earlier, although the reasons are not clear, Dr. Edgar Miller of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, who led the study, said on Wednesday. (snip) Miller and colleagues re-analysed 19 studies of vitamin E and health between 1993 and 2004. The trials involved more than 136,000 mostly elderly patients in North America, Europe...

By PAM EASTON, Associated Press Writer HOUSTON - The NASA (news - web sites) turbojet notoriously known as the "vomit comet" for its use in training astronauts for weightlessness made its final flight Friday. Few among the two dozen seasoned passengers aboard got sick. "It's inevitable," test director John Yaniac said. NASA's "Weightless Wonder" KC-135, a four-engine turbojet, was more commonly used by researchers to conduct experiments in a zero-gravity environment. Yaniac proudly told those who attended a post-flight briefing that over the years, the plane's crew had cleaned up at least 285 gallons of vomit. "They are there to...

[Abstract:] It has been reported that one Ms. Sonya Thomas of Alexandria, VA, net wt 105 lbs, won the lobster speed-eating championship by eating 38 lobsters (9.76 lbs of meat) within 12 minutes. It is further mentioned that in the past she also won baked beans/pork (8.4 lbs in 2min 47sec) and hard-boiled eggs events (results not reported).

Like many physicians, Nick Yphantides regularly advises his patients to eat healthfully and get plenty of physical activity. Yphantides used to add: "Do what I say, not what I do." That's because in 2001, this then 35-year-old doctor weighed -- hold onto your belt -- 467 pounds. Not anymore. Dr. Nick, as his patients call him, has whittled himself down to 220 pounds, a much healthier weight for his 6-2 frame. Better, he's achieved that weight loss without surgery, although he is the first to underscore that his unusual regimen -- a combination of attending baseball games and using an...

Somerset-West - Rabbit roasts and bunny burgers could be the food of the future for poor South Africans, according to a team of researchers from the University of the Free State. In a paper released at the Agricultural Economics Association of SA conference which began in Somerset West on Tuesday, they said the animals were a cheap and easy-to-raise form of low-cholesterol protein. They also said blind taste tests they had conducted had shown people preferred it to beef. The researchers, led by dean of agricultural sciences Professor Herman van Schalkwyk, called for an "intensive information campaign" to create awareness...

Some cows are born bad, and some are born good -- and Cargill Inc. says it has found a way to tell the difference. The Minnetonka-based agribusiness giant said Monday it has developed a technique that genetically identifies cattle with the best chance of becoming a plump, juicy steak dinner rather than a so-so burger. Cargill's technology will allow the beef industry to better breed cattle with desirable genetic traits, including thickness and tenderness of meat, and to feed the animals accordingly. It also will allow food manufacturers to know exactly what kind of beef they are buying before an...

Nearly 100 fruit juice boxes containing liquid heroin were intercepted Wednesday in a shipment from Colombia, federal officials said. The juice boxes were part of a private shipment that wasn't destined for the United States food supply, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents said. The juice would be deadly if consumed. The 6-ounce boxes, labeled "Hit Fruit Drink," contained a total of 38 kilograms, or about 84 pounds, of heroin worth $1.7 million. Customs agents said the juice was initially bought from a grocery store in Colombia, then emptied and refilled with heroin. The shipment was relabeled and five pallets of...

I'll admit it. I'm a man of ample carriage. At this time every two years I and my fellow political hacks tend to, how shall I say this, bulk up? Sure, after the election we'll hop back on the treadmill and gobble down salads again. But for now the pressures of demanding clients, the stressful anticipation of the next poll, and the sleepless hours in editing suites and campaign headquarters will mean excessive corpulence for a few more weeks. It is a bipartisan problem. But what can we say? We suffer for our work. Sadly, too many of my compatriots...

It isn't often that a Securities and Exchange Commission chairman has the ability to unite against him -- his own White House, fellow GOP commissioners, leading financial lights in Congress and Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. But Bill Donaldson is nothing if not determined. The SEC chief has devoted much of the past year to promoting a new regulation that would force hedge fund advisers to register with his agency, despite opposition from just about anyone who knows a hurdle rate from a drawdown. Most recently, his staff conducted a short "comment" period on the rule when most of the...

By EMMA ROSS, AP Medical Writer LONDON - Dieters on the popular high-fat, low-carb Atkins approach lose just as much body fat as those on low-fat diets, but the annoying low-carb side effects could mean problems down the road, according to a scientist who reviewed five dozen diet studies. Danish obesity expert Dr. Arne Astrup, whose survey is published this week in The Lancet medical journal, concludes that headaches, muscle weakness and either diarrhea or constipation are reported more often by Atkins dieters than people on conventional diets. Those side effects may be signs that the eating plan isn't healthy...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The biggest U.S. weight loss companies are taking aim at the low-carb diet craze with new programs, products and marketing campaigns they hope will boost membership rolls and revitalize sales. High-protein, low-carb regimens like the Atkins and South Beach diets have generated a massive following among weight-conscious U.S. consumers in the last year, with 7 percent now following some kind of low-carb plan. As a result, the number of people buying into stalwart diet brands like Weight Watchers International Inc., Jenny Craig and Slim-Fast is down, and those companies are throwing their full weight behind efforts...

The controversial Atkins diet is to come under government scrutiny amid growing concern over obesity figures, it is reported. The investigation will be carried out by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (Nice). About 10m Britons are believed to be following a diet at any one time, a third of them choosing Atkins-style, high-protein regimes. Three-quarters of adults in the UK are reportedly overweight or obese. The Atkins diet involves eating lots of fat, meat and other high protein food while cutting out carbohydrates The team that will evaluate it will be made up of up to 20 doctors,...

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Food manufacturers who have stocked store shelves with low-carbohydrate versions of everything from spaghetti sauce to ice cream may find they are eating the costs themselves, as the low-carb fad peaks, analysts and industry observers said. Yahoo! Health Have questions about your health?Find answers here.   "It's typical that one rushes into the party just when the party is breaking up," said William Leach, food industry analyst at Neuberger Berman. Sales of low-carb branded foods surged $815 million, to $1.13 billion, in the 12 months ended June 13, according to market research firm Information Resources Inc. That...