Obesity Study: Overweight Men May Pass Obesity Traits to Kids



Children of overweight men are at greater risk of becoming obese, a Danish study suggests, Univision Salud reports. Danish researchers found "that sperm from normal weight and obese men differed in how some genes were turned 'on' or 'off.' And the differences were seen in gene regions linked to brain development and appetite control." This may explain why heavy dads often have heavy kids. "At a basic level, most people know that overweight parents often have overweight kids," said Anthony Comuzzie, a spokesman for the Obesity Society and a researcher at the Texas Biomedical Research Institute in San Antonio. For the study, the team of researchers analyzed the sperm of 13 lean men and 10 overweight men. "Our research could lead to changing behavior, particularly ...

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New Diabetes Cases On Decline For First Time in 25 Years



New diabetes cases continue to decline in the U.S. after decades of being on the rise. Among Latinos and African Americans, the drop has not been very significant, Univision Noticias reports. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows a drop of 20% between 2008 to 2014 of people newly diagnosed with diabetes. In 2014, 1.4 million were diagnosed compared to 1.7 million in 2008. But according to the CDC Latinos and African Americans continue to be “far more vulnerable.” In the Latino community the number of new cases “showed no consistent change among Latinos from 2009-2014.” Despite the recent progress, experts warn the battle against diabetes is far from over. Around 29 million people in the U.S. have diabetes and 86 million are ...

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Coca-Cola’s Chief Scientist Resigns



Rhona S. Applebaum, Coke’s chief scientist is stepping down after revelations that the soft drink giant tried to play down the role of coke products in the spread of obesity, New York Times reports. Data from SaludAmerica shows more than 39 percent of Latino children between the ages 2-19 are overweight or obese in the United States. As part of Coke’s strategy to influence research on the effects of sugary drinks on obesity, Applebaum helped establish a nonprofit group known as the Global Energy Balance Network. “The group’s members were university scientists who encouraged the public to focus on exercise and worry less about how calories from food and beverages contribute to obesity.” According to Coca-Cola the company did offer financial support to the group ...

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USDA Awards $2 Million for Nutrition Education and Obesity Research



The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded $2 million in grants recently to support research on nutrient education and obesity prevention for disadvantaged children and families. “Childhood obesity rates in America have tripled over the past three decades,” said NIFA Director Sonny Ramaswamy. “While we are beginning to see promising signs of progress with the epidemic leveling off in children, these grants will help evaluate and strengthen existing nutrition education and obesity prevention efforts to help ensure this progress continues.” Funding has been granted to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Utah State University in Logan, UT. The funding will help create two additional Regional Nutrition Education and ...

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WINNING VIDEO: App Brings Fitness to Your Fingertips!


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Can your phone = fitness? Yes, if you have the new Choose Healthier smartphone app, which geo-locates recreational facilities (parks, gyms, etc.) and real-time fitness opportunities (karate classes, Yoga groups, etc.) in Austin, Texas, thanks to IT'S TIME TEXAS and the Dell Children's Medical Center of Central Texas. Read their story or watch their winning video about the steps they took to plan, mobilize support for, design, and implement the free app, which can recognize a user’s current location and allows them to filter by type of physical activity, time/date and location, and share their favorites on social media—all to help people make healthier choices. The app also just won the Salud America! #SaludHeroes video voting contest! "We really want to add new features ...

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Obesity is on the Rise in the U.S.



Obesity is on the rise in the United States among adults and Latinos, according to a new study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), CBS News reports. The results come as a surprise after a decade of public-awareness campaigns and efforts to get Americans to watch their weight. According to the report by the CDC, the obesity rate of U.S. adults climbed to 38% from 32%, almost a decade ago. "This is a striking finding and suggests that a situation that was thought to be stable is getting worse", Dr. William Dietz, an obesity expert at George Washington University, told CBS News. But some experts warn that the study done by the CDC “may not have been representative of the nation as a whole.” The study was based on surveys conducted in 2013-2014 and ...

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Health Disparities Persist for Utah’s Latinos



According to a report from the Utah Department of Health, the health of Utah’s Latinos has shown little improvement in the last five years. Latinos in the state continue to show higher levels of obesity, infant mortality, and other negative health measures. According to a report from the Utah Department of Health, the health of Utah’s Latinos has shown little improvement in the last five years. Latinos in the state continue to show higher levels of obesity, infant mortality, and other negative health measures. “We didn’t seem to improve a whole lot in some of these measures that we’ve been needing to improve,” said the report’s lead author and health program specialist at the Utah Department of Health, Jake Fitisemanu. “Being an optimistic person and seeing the great ...

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New Report: Obesity rates higher in Latino children



A new report, The State of Obesity: Better Policies for a Healthier America, shows the rates of adult obesity among Latinos exceeded 35 percent in five states and 30 percent in 23 states. Top three states with highest adult obesity rates overall were reported as Arkansas, West Virginia and Mississippi. Highest rates of obesity were shown within the Midwest and South states, and show ethnic disparities in low-income Latinos and less-educated Americans. Many studies show Latino children live in areas where there is less access to healthy foods and less safe play areas. Latinos living in these areas need to be aware of obesity’s rising rates, as the report shows that more than one in ten children become obese as early as ages 2 to 5. Obesity rates of Latino children ages 2-19 ...

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Latino Parents Not Always Informed about Children’s Weight Problems



A new research study by UT Southwestern Medical Center has determined that one in five Latino parents aren’t told that they’re children are obese by the family pediatrician. The research noticed that, if language barriers exist between the doctor and patient, the topic of weight is not discussed. The UT Southwestern study made three crucial findings: language barriers impact that a child is overweight; many overweight Latino children and their parents aren’t told directly that the child is overweight; few Latino children and their parents receive weight-management advice. “During primary care visits with overweight children in which there is a language barrier, it is incredibly important to provide a trained medical interpreter or bilingual provider, and use a growth chart to ...

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