A recent study has found that older people who have symptoms of depression are more likely to develop diabletes.

The study was published in the April 23 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine. Lead researcher Mercedes R. Carnethon said ‘Older adults who report high levels of depressive symptoms are more likely to develop diabetes over time than older adults who have lower depressive symptoms’.

The study included around 4,700 people over the age of 65 who were not diabetic in 1989 when the study started. The researchers scored symptoms of depression on a scale of zero to 30, and the rate of occurrence of diabetes was higher among those with a score of eight or more. Earlier studies have found a similar connection.

Carnethon postulated that there could be several causes for this relationship. ‘Individuals who are depressed may be less likely to engage in healthy physical activities that would protect against the development of diabetes. They may be less likely to sleep well, have healthy diets, all of which are risk factors for developing diabetes’

Other factors could also be involved. People with both diabetes and depression are likely to exhibit blood markers of inflammation like C-reactive protein, according to Carnethon. At this time, it’s impossible to draw a definite cause and effect link, and more research is needed to conclusively identify why this relationship exists.

Technorati Tags: diabetes research, depression, C-reactive protein, inflammation

A new study published in the May issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition finds that reducing the ‘energy density’ of your diet will help with weight loss. Energy density refers to the caloric content of foods. Items that contain a lot of bulk but relatively fewer calories per serving are foods considered to have a low energy density.

Barbara Rolls, a professor of nutritional science at Pennsylvania State University, said the take home message of the study is “Increase the water content of the foods you eat and decrease the fat content”. The study participants who ate the diet lowest in energy density lost the most weight and also got to eat 300 grams (10.5 ounces) more of food per day. Additionally, the nutritional value of the lower energy density diet was higher.

Excuse me, but do we really need a study to prove this? It is common sense (and should be common knowledge) that stuffing yourself with broccoli and celery would result in a lower calorie intake than a big meal of steak and potatoes. Of course, a broccoli and celery diet wouldn’t last long for most people, but it’s not about diets. It’s about a healthy lifestyle which will enable the attainment of a healthy weight. Lose the potatoes and have the steak and the broccoli. Make the steak organic or grass-fed beef and a reasonable serving size (not one of the humungous things you get in some restaurants), and you’ve got a healthy meal. Seems like we shouldn’t need a professor, or a study, to tell us that.

Technorati Tags: health, fitness, nutrition, diet, weight loss study, weight loss research, energy density, volumetrics