Category Archives: Obesity

Are Legumes Protective Of Cardiovascular Disease?

Posted on December 4, 2015 by Robert Barrington

Leguminous plants include the beans, lentils and peas. The leguminous plants produce seeds which are called pulses. Humans eat legumes including pulses and these provide high levels of many nutrients and are excellent sources of protein, starch and phytonutrients. Evidence … Continue reading →

Posted in Beans, Cardiovascular Disease, Fibre, Glycaemia, Metabolic Syndrome, Obesity, Pulses / Legumes | Comments Off on Are Legumes Protective Of Cardiovascular Disease?

More on Biochemical Individuality and Weight Gain

Posted on November 17, 2015 by Robert Barrington

Obesity is a highly complex phenomenon that is not fully understood. The traditional viewpoint, and one that is still enshrined in the mainstream today, is that weight gain is a simple case of eating too much food and performing too … Continue reading →

Posted in Genes, Obesity | Comments Off on More on Biochemical Individuality and Weight Gain

Fruit Juice And Insulin Resistance

Posted on November 1, 2015 by Robert Barrington

Fruit contains high amounts of sugars, particularly fructose and sucrose. Sucrose is a disaccharide made up of a molecule of glucose joined through a glycosidic bond to a molecule of fructose. Therefore fructose is the primary sugar in fruit, its … Continue reading →

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Is Industry Sponsored Soft Drink Research Biased?

Posted on September 22, 2015 by Robert Barrington

Funding for scientific research tends to come mainly from governmental bodies, charities or industry. In nutritional research, the food industry provides large numbers of grants to researchers for the investigation of all manner of food related matters. Obviously the food … Continue reading →

Posted in Fructose, Obesity, Soft Drinks, Sucrose, Sugar | Comments Off on Is Industry Sponsored Soft Drink Research Biased?

Vitamin D and Weight Loss

Posted on September 14, 2015 by Robert Barrington

The traditional role for vitamin D was one of allowing correct bone formation. In this regard, vitamin D deficiencies are associated with osteomalacia and rickets in adults and children, respectively. However, more recently the role for vitamin D in human … Continue reading →

Posted in 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D / Calcitriol, 25-hydroxyvitamin D, Insulin Resistance, Obesity, Vitamin D, Weight Loss | Comments Off on Vitamin D and Weight Loss

The Sodium to Potassium Ratio: Marker for A Low Quality Diet?

Posted on September 11, 2015 by Robert Barrington

The typical Western diet is a low quality diet consumed by many individuals in the developed nations of the Western Europe, North America and Australasia. In particular, the typical Western diet includes high amounts of refined and processed foods that … Continue reading →

Posted in Obesity, Potassium, Salt, Sodium, Western Diet | Comments Off on The Sodium to Potassium Ratio: Marker for A Low Quality Diet?

The Obesity Paradox

Posted on September 10, 2015 by Robert Barrington

Weight gain is generally associated with detrimental health outcomes. In particular, weight gain in the form of body fat increases the risk of a number of lifestyle diseases particularly cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, and can also increase the … Continue reading →

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Do The Obese Have A Fat Taste Dysfunction?

Posted on September 7, 2015 by Robert Barrington

Obesity is characterised by metabolic dysfunction. In particular the main physiological change that drives obesity is insulin resistance. Insulin resistance develops in response to a low quality diet high in refined and processed carbohydrate foods, particularly refined crystalline fructose. Secondary … Continue reading →

Posted in Linoleic Acid, Obesity, Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids, Taste, Weight Loss | Comments Off on Do The Obese Have A Fat Taste Dysfunction?

Obesity and Antioxidants: Why The Inverse Association?

Posted on August 24, 2015 by Robert Barrington

Obese individuals have lower circulating levels of certain nutrients compared to lean individuals. For example, it has been reported that the plasma hydroxyvitamin D levels of obese individuals are low compared to normal weight controls (here). In addition, it has … Continue reading →

Posted in Adipose Tissue, Antioxidant, Beta Carotene, Carotenoids, Obesity, Tocopherols, Vitamin E, Weight Loss | Comments Off on Obesity and Antioxidants: Why The Inverse Association?

More On Sleep and Obesity

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Robert Barrington

A shorter sleep duration is associated with an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The data shows that this association is particularly strong between disrupted sleep and obesity. The reasons for this association are not clear … Continue reading →

Posted in Energy Expenditure, Exercise, Obesity, Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR), Sleep | Comments Off on More On Sleep and Obesity