A new report looking at the link between obesity and cardiovascular disease points to belly fat as the main culprit. Even if your BMI score (body mass index) indicates that you’re at a normal weight, you’re still not in the clear, say researchers. … [Read more]
Liposuction, a popular cosmetic procedure that removes fat from deposits beneath the skin, seems like an easy and painless way to remove belly, thigh and hip fat that can appear so suddenly at menopause and then never budge. But what happens when fat is suctioned out of the body? Can we assume that it’s gone forever? … [Read more]
When it comes to excess body fat, belly fat is the worst type for your health, according to researchers at the Mayo Clinic who studied the mechanisms of how body fat grows. Increased abdominal fat heightens the risk for metabolic disease, while fat expansion in the lower body seems to lower the risk. ”The cellular mechanisms are different,” explained Dr. Michael Jensen, an endocrinologist and lead author of the study. … [Read more]
Do taking hormones put women at greater risk for breast cancer? We’ve learned over the years that there’s no simple answer. Even the FDA, instead of banning the use of hormone therapy until proven safe, has equivocated by advising women to “take the smallest dose that works for the shortest amount of time.” Not that long ago, some researchers from the Women’s Health Initiative suggested that HRT could be safe to use if started early in Menopause – say, within five years of onset. Moreover, it could actually protect us from heart disease. Based on this widely reported “timing hypothesis,” many doctors told their patients that they were in the safe zone if they fell into that category of hormone users.
Fast forward to the latest research findings out of Britain. New information, published last Friday, from a large study of more than a million postmenopausal women, aged 50-64, suggested just the opposite. The findings showed that the risks for breast cancer from hormones “were greater among users of estrogen–progestin than estrogen-only formulations and if hormonal therapy started at around the time of menopause than later.” Those who started hormone therapy five years or more after menopause had little or no increased risk. … [Read more]
A research study, financed by the National Cancer Institute, has concluded that women who suffer from menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and insomnia, may have a substantially reduced risk of breast cancer. In fact, as reported in today’s New York Times, “women who had the most severe hot flashes, the kind that woke them up at night and left them drenched in sweat, had the lowest risk for developing the most common type of breast cancer -invasive ductal carcinoma -as well as invasive lobular cancer.”
As explained by the President of the North American Menopause Society, Dr. Stephen R. Goldstein, “estrogen deprivation causes hot flashes, and the lower your estrogen, the less likely you are to have breast cancer.”
The researchers were quick to remind the public that these findings are preliminary and more research needs to be done. But if you’re having a hard time coping with menopausal symptoms that are causing you sleepless nights and cranky days, you just might be one of the lucky ones.
At least an hour a day of moderate to intense exercise, such as brisk walking, bicycling or swimming, is necessary for women to prevent weight gain as they age. That’s the conclusion of a new study that was published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers at Harvard’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital followed 34,000 middle-aged women for 13 years: they were not dieting and were at a normal weight (their body mass index did not exceed 25) when they began the study. On average, these women gained about six pounds during the course of the study. But those who reported that they exercised 60 minutes daily were able to maintain their normal weight throughout the study. … [Read more]
Do you know that you don’t have to be overweight to have too much body fat? You can weigh in at what you think is your ideal range and normal body size, but still be considered obese and thus, at risk for future heart problems. This phenomenon of “normal weight obesity” is the focus of a report by the Mayo Clinic, whose authors estimate that as many as 30 million Americans fall into this category. An informative feature story about this appeared in the Wall Street Journal’s HeartBeat Column this week.
Apparently, what’s most critical in evaluating whether you’re really fit or just acceptable is not your BMI score, the traditional measure for obesity, but how much body fat you’re carrying around. … [Read more]
Do taking vitamin D and fish oil really lower the risk of cancer, heart disease, stroke and other illnesses as some research studies (and supplement manufacturers) have suggested? Beginning in January, researchers at Harvard University and Brigham and Women’s Hospital will begin a double-blind, placebo-controlled study, the gold standard of research, to find out. The new study, called VITAL (VITamin D and OmegA-e TriaL), funded by the National Institute of Health, will involve 20,000 men and women. If you qualify (women must be 65 years or older and have never had a heart attack, stroke or cancer) you can participate too.
For details about the study and eligibility to participate, visit the VITAL website.
If you’ve lost at least 30 pounds and maintained that loss for at least one year, you can participate in a research study that is investigating the characteristics of individuals who have succeeded at long-term weight loss. The National Weight Control Registry was started in 1994 and more than 5000 individuals have enrolled, making it the largest study of its kind. Participation requires filling out periodic questionnaires and annual surveys.
Interestingly, more than 80% of the registrants are women with an average age is 45. Registry members have lost an average of 66 pounds and kept it off for 5.5 years. Duration of successful weight loss has ranged from 1 year to 66 years! According to the registry data, here’s how they did it:
Even if you don’t qualify, you’ll be inspired by the weight loss success stories that are posted on the NWCR website.
If you’ve lost a significant amount of weight, what’s been your secret to success?
A recent pair of studies has concluded that Black Cohosh and Red Clover (shown in photo), commonly used by women to alleviate hot flashes, are safe to take — that is, they don’t have a negative impact on breast and uterine health. That’s the good news. The bad news? Neither botanical treatment worked as well as a placebo in reducing the number of hot flashes and night sweats that the research participants experienced daily over a 12 month period. What did work was the hormone therapy used in the study – in this case Prempro, a conjugated hormone product made by Wyeth. … [Read more]
There's a great line-up of speakers including Dr. Wayne Dyer, Cheryl Richardson and Dr. Lissa Rankin ("Owning Pink") at the next "I Can Do It" Ignite conference in San Jose, CA, March 17-18. Click here for details: I Can Do It IGNITE!
Quinoa isn't the only whole grain out there. This WSJ article describes seven of them. http://on.wsj.com/w5f8D6
For some people, Yoga can do more harm than good. Read this excerpt from “The Science of Yoga: The Risks and Rewards,” by William J. Broad, http://nyti.ms/wm6AHB
