It’s been shown in the US.

Now, researchers from Imperial College London and the InterAct consortium report an association with type 2 diabetes in Europeans who drink sugar-sweetened soft drinks. (more…)

Concern arises from the increased use of fructose and high-fructose corn syrup as a sweetener.

Researchers in Switzerland and Belgium reviewed the evidence.

Here’s what we know. (more…)

Metabolic syndrome is the name for a group of risk factors that occur together and increase the risk for coronary artery disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.

During the Endocrine Society meeting, researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City presented the results of a comparison of aerobic training (eg, walking) vs resistance training (eg, weights). (more…)

Researchers at Loma Linda University, in California, compared dietary patterns. (more…)

Researchers at Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, in Hershey, studied the response to including whole-grain foods in a hypocaloric (reduced by 500 kcal/day) diet. (more…)

A PubMed search of “blueberry” and “antioxidant” revealed 140 studies  — all based on the results of animal or laboratory studies.

This study is important because researchers at Oklahoma State University, in Stillwater, applied what we know from the lab to humans with the metabolic syndrome. (more…)

During the Endocrine Society’s Annual Meeting, Researchers from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Sinai Hospital, in Baltimore, Maryland, reported an association between vitamin D deficiency and type 2 diabetes. (more…)

Researcher from Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, in Baltimore, Maryland looked at the relationship between low vitamin D levels and the risk of having the metabolic syndrome.

Metabolic syndrome is a combination of medical disorders that increase the risk of developing heart disease and diabetes. (more…)

The article abstract is jargon-riddled, but an article in BeverageDaily.com “translates” the results into English. (more…)

Fifteen years after enrollment of more than 600 people between 18 and 30 years of age, researchers from the Department of Preventive Medicine at the Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago report that higher magnesium intake is associated with a lower risk of the metabolic syndrome.

The results are interesting, but what’s the action plan for the average person?

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In this study, dietary cod protein improved insulin sensitivity in insulin-resistant individuals. The researchers think it could help “prevent type 2 diabetes by reducing the metabolic complications related to insulin resistance.” (more…)

Yes, there’s an association. And it doesn’t seem to matter whether the soda pop you drink is “regular” or diet.

But can we rely on these findings? (more…)

Young adults with higher magnesium intake have a lower risk of developing the metabolic syndrome. This is the conclusion from an April 2006 article published in the journal Circulation.

Here are the details. (more…)

An article in the Archives of Internal Medicine reports that trancendental meditation (also known as TM) may alter the physiological response to stress and improve risk factors in patients with coronary heart disease. In this randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 16 weeks of TM or active control treatment (health education) resulted in improved blood pressure and insulin resistance (two components of the metabolic syndrome) among patients using TM.

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Here’s a series of quotes from the October (Volume 12, 2006) editorial in Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine that I think contrasts the points of view between alternative and mainstream medicine today. Is the alternative perspective too esoteric to be of practical value? Or is the mainstream approach (for chronic diabetes for example) destined to come up short? Or is the answer somewhere in the middle?

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In an earlier post, the positive effect of the Mediterranean diet on erectile dysfunction in men with the metabolic syndrome was discussed. Now, another positive study has appeared.

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Even as researchers debate its importance, the NIH has awarded an $8 million, five-year grant to evaluate the effects of plant extracts on the metabolic syndrome. Researchers from Rutgers University and the Pennington Biomedical Research Center will grow the plants, determine their active components, and conduct clinical trials.

Here’s some background on the metabolic syndrome and the growing controversy about its relevance.

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