There is more than one way to skin a cat. And that strange and grotesque cliche happens to apply to your weight loss approach. There are many diets that will get you to your goal weight, but not all of them will also have the added benefit of improving your mood.
According to a new study, only low-fat diets will help with long-term mood improvement.
“This study looked at one factor, and prior studies haven’t focused on psychological factors,” says Dr. Ewald Horvath, interim chairman of psychiatry at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. “This is a great study focusing on something very important.”
While diet soda is a better choice than full-sugar drinks, they aren’t free of health risks. A new study has found that anything more than one diet soda a day may increase one’s risk of decreased kidney function.
The study was conducted by researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. They examined the effects of sodium and artificial sweeteners on kidney function among 3,256 women with a median age of 67. The women filled out a questionnaire about their soda drinking habits.
When the researchers compared the women’s kidney function, they found that 372 had a decline of 30 percent or more in kidney function. Further analysis revealed that the decline was associated with drinking two or more artificially sweetened soft drinks a day.
According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, about 11 percent of Americans did not get enough “sleep or rest” on any night in the past 30 days. A little more than 30 percent said they got enough rest or sleep every night in the last month.
A quarter of those surveyed who were unemployed said they didn’t get enough rest any night in the last 30 days.
The study seems to confirm the anecdotal belief that west coasters are more laid back than the east coast. Twelve of the 14 best-sleeping states were west of the Mississippi.
The report wasn’t very in depth, as they just asked people about their perception of how much sleep they got, not the actual hours.
Recent research conducted in the United Kingdom has shown that dietary choices can have a long term effect on your mental health. Researchers compared 3,486 civil servants in London based on surveys they completed about their eating habits and a follow-up survey on mood completed five years later. Participants were divided into two categories: the “whole food” group ate a diet rich in vegetables, fruits, and fish, while the “processed food” group ate a high percentage of sweetened desserts, fried foods, processed meat, refined grains, and high-fat dairy products. The research also took into account other habits that effect overall health such as exercise and smoking.
The link between what we eat and mental health: The participants in the “processed food” group were 58 percent more likely to develop depression, while those with a “whole foods” diet were 26 percent less likely to develop depression. Interestingly, the researchers were cautious to draw any specific conclusions based on these correlations.
Can there actually be a positive associated with obesity? While there are countless obesity-related health concerns, there just may be one positive – you are less likely to successfully commit suicide.
According to a new study at Harvard School of Public Health, there were about 12 suicides per 100,000 adults in 2004 and 2005. However, with every three percent increase in obesity in any given state, there were three fewer suicides per 100,000 adults. This even took into account the fact that states with higher rates of obesity also had higher rates of gun ownership, adults who smoke, and lower rates of household income.
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