Browse the evidence

Fish oil (n-3 LCPUFA) supplementation lowers serum triglyceride (TAG) concentrations compared to monounsaturated fat (MUFA) sources.

If you have high triglycerides, consider adding fish oil supplements (0.7-6 g/day of n-3 LCPUFA). This is likely to lower your triglyceride levels more effectively than replacing fats with olive oil (MUFA) alone.

Women with PCOS have a significantly higher prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) compared to women without PCOS, with the magnitude of risk varying by ethnicity.

If you have PCOS, you are at a significantly higher risk for pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes than women without PCOS, regardless of your weight. You should undergo regular screening (like an OGTT) as recommended by your doctor, rather than waiting for symptoms to appear.

Fermented dairy products can alleviate lactose intolerance symptoms by degrading lactose through the action of lactase produced by lactic acid bacteria.

If you are lactose intolerant, try eating yogurt or kefir. The bacteria in these foods break down most of the lactose, making them easier to digest than regular milk. Start with small amounts to see how your body reacts.

Former smokers have a significantly higher risk of obesity compared to current smokers, with risk increasing based on the amount and duration of previous smoking, though this risk decreases over time since quitting.

If you have quit smoking, you are at a higher risk of obesity than if you were still smoking, especially if you were a heavy smoker. This risk decreases the longer you have been quit, normalizing after about 30 years. Plan for weight management support when you quit.

Consumption of animal-source foods (ASF) by children aged 6-23 months in low- and middle-income countries significantly reduces stunting and improves cognitive development compared to plant-based or starch-heavy diets.

If you live in a region where stunting is common and diets rely heavily on starches, introducing small amounts of animal-source foods (like eggs, milk, or fish) to young children is one of the most effective ways to prevent stunting and support brain development. This is not about overconsumption, but about filling critical nutrient gaps that plant-based diets often miss.

Calibration equations that incorporate body mass index, age, and ethnicity into food frequency questionnaire, 4-day food record, or 24-hour dietary recall data substantially improve the accuracy of energy and protein consumption estimates compared to using self-report data alone.

If you are using self-reported diet data (like food diaries or questionnaires) to study health outcomes, do not trust the raw numbers. They systematically underestimate intake, especially in higher BMI individuals. You must apply calibration equations that adjust for BMI, age, and ethnicity to get accurate energy and protein estimates. Without this step, your study results will likely be biased and misleading.

Longer duration of obesity is independently associated with increased all-cause and cause-specific mortality, with risk increasing significantly for every additional 2 years of obesity duration.

If you have been obese for a long time, your risk of dying from any cause, heart disease, or cancer is higher than someone who has never been obese, even if your current weight is normal. This risk accumulates over time. The best strategy is to achieve and maintain a healthy weight as early as possible to minimize the total years lived with obesity.

Consumption of strawberries (approx. 50g freeze-dried powder or 500g fresh daily) significantly attenuates postprandial inflammatory responses (CRP, IL-6) and improves insulin sensitivity in overweight adults.

Include strawberries in your meals, especially those high in carbs. Eating about 10g of freeze-dried strawberry powder (or a standard serving of fresh berries) with your meal can significantly blunt the inflammatory spike and insulin response that typically follows eating.

Regular strawberry consumption (approx. 500g fresh or equivalent extract) improves lipid profiles by reducing LDL and triglycerides, and enhances antioxidant status in healthy and hypertensive populations.

Eat 500g of strawberries daily (roughly 3-4 cups of fresh berries) to support heart health. This dose has been shown to lower bad cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides while boosting your body's natural antioxidant defenses within a month.

Insulin reduces whole-body protein breakdown (proteolysis) in a dose-dependent manner in healthy postabsorptive men, primarily by suppressing the release of leucine from body protein stores.

In the fasted state, your body's insulin levels act as a switch to stop muscle breakdown. Higher insulin levels (within physiological ranges) more effectively suppress protein breakdown. This is why maintaining some level of insulin (e.g., via protein intake) can help preserve muscle mass during fasting or caloric deficits.

High baseline total cholesterol (TC) is significantly associated with an increased risk of myocardial infarction (MI) in men, whereas associations for LDL-C, triglycerides, and total CVD events disappear after adjusting for confounders like diet and BMI.

For middle-aged men, monitoring Total Cholesterol (TC) is crucial for predicting heart attack risk, potentially more so than LDL-C alone when other health factors are considered. Ensure your TC is managed through a balanced diet and lifestyle, as high levels are strongly linked to myocardial infarction in this demographic.

Fish oil and Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA) supplementation (2.0-2.2 g/day EPA and 1.5 g/day DHA) can help preserve skeletal muscle and reduce intramuscular adipose tissue in cancer patients, particularly those with advanced lung or pancreatic cancer.

Cancer patients, especially those with lung or pancreatic cancer, may benefit from fish oil supplements providing 2-2.2g of EPA and 1.5g of DHA daily. This can help preserve muscle mass and reduce harmful intramuscular fat during chemotherapy.

High baseline consumption of extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) is associated with a significantly reduced risk of major cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction, stroke, or cardiovascular death) in individuals at high cardiovascular risk.

If you are at high risk for heart disease, incorporating extra-virgin olive oil into your daily diet (aiming for roughly 3-4 tablespoons or more per day if possible, as seen in the highest benefit group) is associated with a significantly lower risk of heart attacks and strokes. Ensure you are using extra-virgin quality to get the protective polyphenols, as refined olive oil did not show the same benefit.

High consumption of total olive oil is associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular mortality, but not cancer or all-cause mortality.

Eating more olive oil (especially extra-virgin) can significantly lower your risk of dying from heart-related causes. However, do not expect it to prevent cancer or extend your overall lifespan beyond cardiovascular benefits. It is a specific, powerful tool for heart health, not a general 'life extension' pill.

High cardiorespiratory fitness does not completely eliminate the increased mortality risk associated with high body fatness (obesity).

Do not assume that being physically active cancels out the health risks of being overweight. While fitness is beneficial, maintaining a healthy body weight is also critical for minimizing mortality risk. Aim for both regular exercise and a healthy body composition.

Low cardiorespiratory fitness is a stronger predictor of mortality than high body fatness (obesity) when analyzed independently.

Focus on improving your cardiorespiratory fitness (e.g., through aerobic exercise) as it may be a more powerful predictor of longevity than body weight alone. However, maintaining a healthy weight is still important.

High levels of sedentary behavior (prolonged sitting or television viewing) are independently associated with an increased risk of developing colorectal, endometrial, ovarian, and prostate cancer, as well as increased cancer mortality in women.

If you have a desk job or spend significant time watching TV, try to break up long periods of sitting. Stand up, walk, or move frequently. This is important for cancer risk reduction regardless of whether you exercise regularly, as sitting triggers unique biological risks like metabolic dysfunction and inflammation.

A rapid shift in the Chinese diet toward higher fat and animal product intake, coupled with decreased physical activity, has caused a significant increase in obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases (DR-NCDs).

As economies develop, diets tend to shift toward more fat and animal products, and physical activity often decreases. This combination leads to higher rates of obesity and chronic diseases. To maintain health, it is crucial to monitor dietary fat intake and maintain physical activity levels, especially as food availability increases.

Severe testosterone deficiency in young men causes marked decreases in whole-body protein synthesis and fat-free mass, alongside increased adiposity and decreased muscle strength, independent of changes in systemic GH or IGF-I production.

For young men, maintaining normal testosterone levels is critical for preserving muscle mass and preventing fat gain. If testosterone drops significantly (e.g., due to medical treatment or pathology), you will lose muscle and gain fat even if your growth hormone levels remain normal. This is not just about 'energy balance'; the hormone directly alters how your body processes protein and fat.

Athletes participating in sports that emphasize leanness, weight classes, or aesthetic evaluation have a significantly higher prevalence of eating disorders and disordered eating behaviors compared to non-athletes and athletes in other sports.

If you compete in a sport where judges or opponents value low body weight (gymnastics, rowing, wrestling, distance running), your risk for developing an eating disorder is significantly higher than the general population. Proactively screen for disordered behaviors, not just weight. Focus on performance health and fueling rather than just leanness.

The DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for Anorexia Nervosa, specifically the removal of amenorrhea as a required criterion and the shift from '85% of ideal body weight' to 'significantly low weight', improve diagnostic accuracy for athletes, particularly females, males, and adolescents.

Do not use BMI or menstrual status to rule out Anorexia Nervosa in athletes. If an athlete exhibits significantly low weight, intense fear of weight gain, and body image disturbance, they may have AN even if their periods are regular or their BMI is 'normal'. Use the DSM-5 criteria which focus on health impact rather than rigid weight numbers.

Men with type 2 diabetes have a significantly higher prevalence of obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) compared to the general population, with diabetes acting as an independent risk factor even after controlling for BMI.

If you have type 2 diabetes and experience daytime fatigue or snoring, ask your doctor about screening for sleep apnoea. This condition is much more common in your demographic than in the general population and may not be detected by BMI alone. Treating OSA (e.g., with CPAP) can improve sleep quality and potentially cardiovascular health.

Female skeletal muscle exhibits greater fatigue resistance than male skeletal muscle when subjected to equivalent high-intensity exercise dosages, primarily due to a higher proportion of type I muscle fibers and greater oxidative capacity.

When prescribing high-intensity exercise, recognize that women may sustain effort longer or recover faster from fatigue than men at the same relative intensity. This is due to their muscle composition favoring oxidative metabolism. Training programs should account for this by potentially adjusting recovery periods or intensity progression based on individual fatigue markers rather than assuming male-centric norms.

Females have a higher Critical Power (CP) relative to single-limb isometric exercise intensity compared to males, but CP is similar between sexes during whole-body exercise when normalized to maximum capacity.

For whole-body exercises like cycling or running, men and women have similar Critical Power relative to their maximum capacity. However, for single-limb tasks, women may have a higher threshold for fatigue. Use metabolic thresholds (like CP) to prescribe intensity rather than fixed percentages of maximums to ensure accurate comparison and training loads.