Living alone can kill healthy diets (PIC)

Loneliness can take a toll on your physical health as researchers have found that people who live alone tend to survive on unhealthy diets. The researchers also found that men living alone are more likely to have a poor diet than women. Inadequate cooking skills, no partner to go shopping with, increasing cost of food and lack of motivation to cook are among the major reasons for poor diet in people living alone. The findings showed people who live alone have a lower diversity of food intake and consumption of core food groups like fruits, vegetables and fish. Living alone may represent a barrier to healthy eating that is related to the cultural and social roles of food and cooking. A lack of motivation and enjoyment in cooking and/or eating alone often led to people preparing simple or ready-made meals lacking key nutrients. The study was published in the journal Nutrition Reviews.

Stand 6 hours to cut obesity risk

Standing for at least one-quarter of the day has been linked to lower odds of obesity says a study by the American Cancer Society. While sedentary behaviour (such as watching TV and commuting time) has been linked to negative health effects, it is unclear whether more time spent standing has protective health benefits. The study found that among men, standing a quarter of the time was linked to a 32 per cent reduced likelihood of obesity (body fat percentage). In women, standing a quarter, half, and three quarters of the time was associated with 35 per cent, 47 per cent and 57 per cent respective reductions in the likelihood of abdominal obesity (waist circumference). The study appears in Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

Drugs can help overcome workout laziness

A recent research says that drugs can help lazy people with their keep-fit classes. A University of Kent endurance expert has advocated the use of psychoactive drugs to encourage sedentary people to exercise. Together with lack of time, physical exertion is one of the main perceived barriers to exercise. The expert suggests that reducing perception of effort during exercise using caffeine or other psychoactive drugs (e.g. methylphenidate and modafinil) could help many people stick to their fitness plans. Whilst acknowledging that this is both drastic and controversial, the expert says finding a way that makes people with very low motivation to do even moderate exercise, like walking, could be particularly useful. The study is published in the journal Sports Medicine.

Low blood sugar risks your heart

A recent study has suggested a potential connection between low blood sugar and cardiovascular problems. The researchers examined the effects of hypoglycemia on cardiovascular autonomic control. There was a clear change in the body's responses to cardiovascular stress. These findings suggest a specific way as to how the cardiovascular system is compromised during episodes of hypoglycaemia. Hypoglycemia or low blood sugar occurs most often in diabetics who must inject insulin periodically to lower sugar levels. It also may occur in patients taking pills for diabetes that cause the body to make more insulin. During the study, scientists were able to show that during hypoglycemia, there was a clear derangement in the body's response to changes in blood pressure and heart rate. The study is published by the journal Diabetes.

Fizzy pop risking your heart

Researchers have warned that drinking just over one can of sugary drink a day can raise your risk of heart failure by 23 per cent. A further analysis, excluding people diagnosed with heart failure in the first five years, showed the link still held true. The study only involved older white men and the findings may not be applicable to younger age groups, women or certain ethnic groups. People who drink a lot of sweetened drinks often have a poor diet overall, which is more of a determinant of ill-health than any one component. The study appears in the journal Heart.

Alzheimer's should be treated separately

Experts say that Alzheimer's is probably a collection of diseases and it should be treated separately with a variety of different approaches. Neurodegenerative diseases are incurable and debilitating conditions that result in degeneration or death of cells in the nervous system. Conditions such as prion disorders (the most famous of which is "Mad Cow Disease"), Alzheimer's Disease and Parkinson's Disease share two key features: these emerge as a result of aberrant protein folding and aggregation and their onset is late in life. These maladies emerge either sporadically or as familial, mutation-linked illnesses (certain prion disease can be also infectious). Since neurodegenerative disorders stem from aberrant protein folding, researchers postulated that an aging-associated decline in the activity of proteins that assist other proteins to fold properly, may be one mechanism that exposes the elderly to neurodegeneration. This study shows that the development of distinct neurodegenerative disorders stems from a similar mechanism. More importantly, it indicates that Alzheimer's disease can emanate from more than one mechanism, suggesting that it is actually a collection of diseases that should be classified. The study appears in EMBO Journal. — Agencies