The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point

Archive for the 'Metabolic Syndrome' Category

Increased risk of type 2 diabetes associated with sugar-sweetened drinks

Friday, April 26th, 2013

images-104x150It’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…)

Dietary fructose and the risk of metabolic diseases

Saturday, December 29th, 2012

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…)

Walking vs weights for the metabolic syndrome

Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

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…)

Vegetarian diet and the risk of the metabolic syndrome

Monday, April 11th, 2011

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

Benefits of a whole grain-enriched diet on cardiovascular risk

Monday, January 10th, 2011

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…)

Effect of blueberries on the metabolic syndrome

Friday, August 6th, 2010

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…)

Importance of vitamin D screening and supplementation in diabetes

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

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…)

Risk from low vitamin D levels during adolescence

Sunday, December 6th, 2009

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…)

Soft drinks reportedly not a cause of obesity in children

Monday, September 17th, 2007

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

Magnesium and the metabolic syndrome

Wednesday, September 5th, 2007

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?

(more…)

Cod protein improves insulin sensitivity

Wednesday, August 8th, 2007

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…)

Soft drinks and the risk of the metabolic syndrome

Tuesday, July 24th, 2007

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…)

Magnesium and the metabolic syndrome

Saturday, June 9th, 2007

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…)

Transcendental meditation for heart disease

Monday, October 23rd, 2006

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.

(more…)

A problem endemic to clinical medicine: treating the symptoms, not the cause

Monday, October 9th, 2006

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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More positive data on the Mediterranean diet for impotence

Monday, August 28th, 2006

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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Studying the effects of plant extracts on the metabolic syndrome

Wednesday, August 9th, 2006

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.

(more…)