Browse the evidence

Aerobic or mind-body exercise performed at moderate intensity for 3-5 sessions per week over 4-16 weeks significantly reduces depressive symptoms in adults with major depressive disorder, with efficacy comparable to pharmacotherapy.

For adults with depression, aim for 3-5 sessions of moderate-intensity aerobic (e.g., brisk walking, cycling) or mind-body (e.g., yoga, tai chi) exercise per week, lasting 45-60 minutes, for at least 12 weeks. Supervision, either in a group or individually, is recommended to boost adherence. This approach is clinically effective, comparable to medication, and avoids drug side effects.

Exercise reduces depressive symptoms through multiple physiological mechanisms including increased BDNF, reduced neuroinflammation (IL-6, CRP), and improved neuroplasticity, alongside psychological benefits like increased self-esteem and social support.

Understanding that exercise works through both brain chemistry (BDNF, inflammation) and psychology (self-esteem) can help patients appreciate its value beyond just 'feeling good' in the moment.

Increasing the daily quantity and frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption leads to a dose-response improvement in mental well-being (GHQ-12) and subjective life satisfaction, independent of time-invariant confounders.

To boost your mental well-being, aim to increase both how many portions of fruits and vegetables you eat on days you consume them, and how many days per week you eat them. You do not need to reach a specific 'magic number' like five portions; the study shows a linear, dose-response benefit where even small increases in quantity and frequency correlate with higher mental well-being scores over time.

To maximize relative muscular effort (RME) and mechanical loading of the knee extensors during squats, practitioners must use deep squat depths (greater than 105 degrees of knee flexion) rather than increasing barbell load, as load has minimal effect on knee extensor RME.

If your goal is to build strong, large quadriceps, stop obsessing over how much weight is on the bar. Focus on squatting deep—specifically, going beyond parallel (past 105 degrees of knee bend). The study shows that simply adding weight to a shallow or parallel squat does little to stimulate the knee extensors. You can use lighter weights and still get a massive stimulus by ensuring you hit that deep range of motion. Conversely, if you want to target your glutes and calves, you need to use heavier loads, even if you squat shallower.

Interrupting prolonged sitting with brief bouts of light-intensity walking or simple resistance activity significantly lowers systolic and diastolic blood pressure, with effects being more pronounced in individuals with hypertension or prehypertension.

If you have high blood pressure or are at risk, do not just sit for hours. Every 20-30 minutes, stand up and move for 2-3 minutes. You don't need to go for a walk; simple exercises like calf raises, half-squats, or gluteal squeezes done right at your desk work effectively to lower blood pressure. This is especially important if you are overweight or have hypertension, as the blood pressure-lowering effect is stronger in these groups.

Ingesting 5 mg caffeine per kg body weight via coffee one hour before endurance exercise improves time trial performance to the same extent as ingesting the same dose of pure anhydrous caffeine.

If you consume coffee before endurance exercise, ensure you get approximately 5 mg of caffeine per kg of body weight about one hour before starting. This amount provides a performance boost comparable to taking pure caffeine supplements, without the need for capsules.

High-intensity resistance training (above 60% 1RM) reverses muscle atrophy and functional decline in frail, institutionalized elderly individuals (ages 87-96).

If you are an elderly individual, especially if you live in a care facility or feel frail, high-intensity resistance training (lifting weights at 60-100% of your maximum capacity) can significantly increase your muscle strength and size, even in your 90s. This leads to better functional status and independence. You do not need to be young or fit to start; the key is the intensity of the stimulus, not your current fitness level.

High-intensity resistance training improves bone mineral density (BMD) at the femoral neck and lumbar spine in post-menopausal women, reducing osteoporotic fracture risk.

Post-menopausal women can protect their bone density by engaging in high-intensity resistance training twice a week. This not only helps maintain bone mineral density at key sites like the spine and hip but also improves balance and strength, which are crucial for preventing falls and fractures.

Eccentric resistance training produces greater neuromuscular adaptations (strength, power, hypertrophy) than concentric or traditional resistance training due to supramaximal force production and specific morphological changes.

Incorporate eccentric emphasis into your training to maximize strength and power. Use heavy loads or fast lengthening velocities for optimal results. Manage muscle soreness through proper planning and exposure.

Protein supplementation alone does not increase muscle strength; resistance training is an absolute prerequisite for protein to exert a synergistic effect on strength gains.

Do not expect muscle strength gains from protein supplements alone. If you are not lifting weights, increasing your protein intake will not make you stronger. Protein only amplifies the strength gains generated by resistance training.

In older adults (70-79 years), higher muscle strength (quadriceps and grip) is strongly associated with lower all-cause mortality, whereas higher muscle mass (lean mass or cross-sectional area) is not independently associated with mortality.

For older adults, prioritizing strength training (lifting heavy weights) is more critical for longevity than trying to maximize muscle size. Focus on increasing force production (grip and leg strength) rather than just aesthetics or size. This applies even if you are not building significant muscle mass.

An unhealthful plant-based diet (high in refined grains, sugary beverages, potatoes, and sweets) is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

Avoid labeling your diet as 'plant-based' if it relies heavily on refined grains, sugary beverages, potatoes, and sweets. These foods are linked to a higher risk of type 2 diabetes, even if you don't eat meat. Focus on whole, unprocessed plant foods to get the benefits.

Low-load resistance exercise performed to volitional failure stimulates myofibrillar protein synthesis for a longer duration (sustained at 24 hours) compared to high-load resistance exercise, despite similar acute (4-hour) stimulation.

If you cannot lift heavy weights due to joint issues or equipment limitations, you can still stimulate muscle growth by using lighter weights (e.g., 30% of your max) and performing enough reps to reach failure. While heavy weights might spike muscle building signals faster in the first few hours, light weights keep those signals active much longer (up to 24 hours), potentially making them equally or more effective for long-term muscle gain.

Higher consumption of yogurt is associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, whereas total dairy consumption and other individual dairy types (milk, cheese, ice cream) are not appreciably associated with incidence of type 2 diabetes.

If you are looking to lower your risk of type 2 diabetes through diet, focusing on yogurt consumption may be beneficial, as higher intake is consistently linked to a reduced risk. However, increasing your overall intake of dairy products (milk, cheese, ice cream) does not appear to offer the same protective benefit and may not be necessary for diabetes prevention. You do not need to eliminate other dairy, but yogurt should be your primary dairy focus for metabolic health.

Daily butter consumption (approx. 14g) is associated with a small but statistically significant increase in all-cause mortality, while showing no significant association with cardiovascular disease or stroke, and a modest inverse association with type 2 diabetes incidence.

If you eat about one tablespoon of butter a day, current evidence suggests it will not increase your risk of heart disease or stroke, and may even be linked to a slightly lower risk of type 2 diabetes. However, it is associated with a very small (1%) increase in overall mortality risk. You do not need to eliminate butter, but you also shouldn't rely on it as a health food; prioritize overall dietary patterns over single ingredients.

Anthropometric prediction equations using age, race, height, weight, and waist circumference provide a valid, high-accuracy estimate of lean body mass and fat mass, significantly outperforming BMI in predicting obesity-related biomarkers.

Stop relying solely on BMI to judge your health or body composition. You can get a highly accurate estimate of your lean and fat mass using simple measurements: height, weight, waist circumference, age, and race. This method is as effective as expensive scans for predicting metabolic health risks like cholesterol and blood sugar, making it a practical tool for anyone.

For resistance-trained individuals, training to failure may provide a significant advantage for muscle hypertrophy compared to non-failure training.

If you are an experienced lifter who has plateaued, incorporating sets to failure may help break through stagnation and stimulate additional hypertrophy. For beginners or untrained individuals, stopping short of failure is sufficient and likely more sustainable.

Dietary interventions produce observable changes in gut microbiome composition within days, whereas microbiome-mediated effects on host phenotypes or biomarkers require interventions lasting weeks to months.

If you change your diet, your gut bacteria will likely adapt within a few days. However, do not expect to feel health benefits or see changes in blood markers immediately. You need to maintain the dietary change for several weeks or months to see the downstream health effects driven by those microbial changes.

Microbiome responses to dietary interventions are highly personalized, meaning the same diet can produce different microbial and metabolic outcomes in different individuals based on their baseline microbiome composition.

Standard dietary advice may not work for everyone because your gut bacteria are unique. If a specific diet (like high fiber) doesn't improve your health markers, it might be due to your baseline microbiome. Future personalized nutrition may involve testing your microbiome to predict which foods will work for you.

Ultra-processed foods contribute disproportionately to daily energy intake in high-income countries, often exceeding 50% of total calories.

Be aware that in many high-income countries, more than half of the calories consumed come from ultra-processed foods. Reducing this proportion is a key public health goal.

An increase in ABSI over time (rising ABSI) is associated with higher mortality risk, whereas a decrease or stability in ABSI is associated with lower risk, even when controlling for baseline ABSI.

Monitor how your Body Shape Index (ABSI) changes over time, not just its current value. If your ABSI is increasing, your mortality risk is rising, even if your baseline ABSI was moderate. Conversely, a decreasing or stable ABSI is associated with lower risk. This dynamic measure may be more informative than tracking BMI changes alone.

Suboptimal intake of specific dietary factors (nuts/seeds, seafood omega-3, processed meats, whole grains, vegetables, fruits, SSBs, sodium, red meat, polyunsaturated fats) accounts for 18.2% of total cardiometabolic disease costs in the US, totaling $50.4 billion annually.

Focus on increasing intake of nuts, seeds, and seafood omega-3s, and reducing processed meats, sodium, and sugar-sweetened beverages. These changes have the highest potential to reduce cardiometabolic disease risk and associated healthcare costs.

Training with low muscle glycogen availability augments the activation of signaling proteins and the resulting phenotypic adaptations for mitochondrial biogenesis compared to training with normal glycogen.

If you want to maximize mitochondrial growth, you can try training with lower muscle glycogen. This might mean doing your workout before eating a large carb-heavy meal, or doing a second session later in the day when glycogen is depleted. This state of 'low fuel' signals your body to build more mitochondria more aggressively than when you are fully fueled. However, this may reduce your performance output during the workout itself.

Adherence to a Mediterranean diet prevents long-term weight gain and abdominal obesity in individuals who are normal weight at baseline, but does not reverse existing overweight or obesity.

If you are currently a healthy weight, adopting a Mediterranean diet pattern is a strong strategy to prevent future weight gain and belly fat accumulation. However, if you are currently overweight or obese, this diet pattern alone is unlikely to result in significant weight loss or BMI normalization; you likely need to combine it with other interventions like caloric restriction or increased physical activity.