If campaigns to promote more healthful eating are ineffective, how else might society address the obesity epidemic?

MailOnline reports that deportation is an option. (more…)

“Long John Silver’s Big Catch meal deserves to be buried 20,000 leagues under the sea,” said Michael F. Jacobson of the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). (more…)

During the annual meeting of the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology, in Lisbon, Portugal, researchers at Copenhagen University Hospital, in Denmark, reported for the first time that the dietary supplement coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) cut in half the death rate of patients suffering from advanced heart failure. (more…)

The NIH Committee on the Consequences of Sodium Reduction… reports it might be time to entertain second thoughts on the importance of salt restriction.

It was just a matter of time. (more…)

Cesium (or ceasium) chloride is promoted as a CAM cancer treatment based on the hypothesis referred to as “high pH cancer therapy.”

Researchers from Surrey Memorial Hospital, in British Columbia, reviewed the risk of developing a heart arrhythmia called torsades de pointes and cardiac arrest in people using this chemical as CAM treatment. (more…)

During EPI/NPAM 2013 — Epidemiology and Prevention/Nutrition, Physical Activity and Metabolism 2013 Scientific Sessions — researchers from Harvard School of Public Health, in Boston, reported that drinking large amounts of sugary beverages was associated with an increase in body-mass index (BMI), which in turn was linked with BMI-related deaths from diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer. (more…)

Few studies have examined differences in ischemic heart disease risk between vegetarians and nonvegetarians.

Now, researchers at the University of Oxford, in the UK fill that void. (more…)

In 2009, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reported that more than 13,000 emergency room visits were associated with energy drinks.

Now, The New York Times tells us, FDA reports the caffeine drink, 5-hour Energy, may have been involved in 13 deaths over the past four years.

There’s no absolute proof that these drinks were the sole cause of these events. And the makers of 5-Hour Energy and Monster Energy insist their products are safe and unrelated to the problems reported to the FDA.

Regardless. (more…)

Energy drinks are consumed by 30% to 50% of adolescents and young adults. The manufacturers claim they are safe.

Researchers at the University of Miami, in Florida reviewed the evidence and came to a different conclusion. (more…)

Khat (Catha edulis) is a shrub from northeast Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, with stimulant effects similar to but less intense than cocaine or methamphetamine.

Researchers at Hamad General Hospital, in Doha, Qatar, studied its effects in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) — a condition associated with insufficient blood flow to the heart.

As you read this summary it might be useful to consider that addicts can detox from drugs in New York.

(more…)

Research shows that coffee and caffeine are associated with increased blood pressure (acutely), (nor)epinephrine levels, arterial stiffness and impaired vasodilation.

But according to researchers in the US, drinking just the right amount may lower your risk for heart failure. (more…)

Vitamin D appears to affect many health outcomes.

An international group of researchers reviewed the literature to see if there’s an effect on mortality. (more…)

FDA is warning consumers that Reumofan Plus, marketed as a natural dietary supplement for pain relief and other serious conditions, contains several active pharmaceutical ingredients not listed on the label that could be harmful.

Here’s what we know. (more…)

This has nothing to do with taking a bath.

Researchers at the University of Florida College of Medicine, in Gainesville, tell us, “The abuse of psychoactive “bath salts” (PABS) has become commonplace, and patients with PABS overdoses are presenting to emergency departments with increasing frequency. (more…)

Psychosocial factors are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality, but the effects of psychosocial factor treatment on heart disease are uncertain.

Researchers at Uppsala University Hospital, in Sweden, studied the effects of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on the recurrence of cardiovascular disease. (more…)

A higher intake of fruits and vegetables is associated with a lower risk of ischemic heart disease (reduced blood supply to the heart muscle).

Researchers at the University of Oxford, in the UK, assessed the relation between fruit and vegetable intake and risk of death from ischemic heart disease in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)-Heart study. (more…)

Researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examined the relationship between 4 low-risk behaviors and mortality among a group of people in the United States. (more…)

Dietary advice is the basis of treatment of diabetes, but there’s uncertainty about the effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids.

Researchers at Uppsala University, in Sweden, compared the effects of diets rich in omega-3 or omega-6 fatty acids on glucose and lipoprotein metabolism in these patients. (more…)

Researchers in Spain assessed the association between eating fried foods and the risk of coronary heart disease. (more…)

Acute coronary syndrome refers to any condition brought on by sudden, reduced blood flow to the heart causing chest pain during a heart attack or chest pain at rest or doing light physical activity (unstable angina).

Researchers at Shanghai Jiaotong University, School of Medicine, in China, tested berberine’s effects on ACS patients following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) (aka angioplasty or stent placement). (more…)