Discover the Science of Health
A new study by Aetna’s Innovation Labs and GNS Healthcare uses “big data” analytics to predict patients at risk for metabolic syndrome. Their results show that lowering waist size and blood glucose have the largest health benefits and cause the biggest reduction in medical costs. Regular doctor visits and medication adherence reduces the one-year probability of having metabolic syndrome in nearly 90% of people.
Teenagers who don’t eat a good breakfast are more likely to be obese and have high blood sugar in adulthood. That’s the result of a recent study published in the journal Public Health Nutrition.
High cholesterol causes cardiovascular disease. Eggs are high in cholesterol; a large egg contains about 210mg of the stuff, which is concentrated in the yolk. The American Heart Association has recommended that people limit their daily cholesterol consumption to less than 300mg to maintain heart health [1]. Thus, it would seem that we should eat fewer eggs, or at least fewer egg yolks, to prevent cardiovascular disease. Right?
Two recent research studies contribute to the growing body of evidence that the population of microbes residing in our intestines plays vital roles in our health. One is a meta-analysis of studies done to determine if taking probiotics alongside antibiotics can alleviate antibiotic associated diarrhea; results are reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association [1]. The other evaluated the effects of red wine on the different species of bacteria in the gut; it appears in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition [2].
