Browse the evidence

Nuts improve endothelial function and reduce LDL oxidation resistance compared to diets high in saturated fats.

Eat nuts regularly to improve blood vessel health. The unsaturated fats in nuts make LDL particles more resistant to oxidation, and other components like L-arginine help improve how blood vessels function, reducing cardiovascular risk.

Non-Hispanic Asian adults in the US experienced significant increases in all measured adiposity metrics (BMI, waist circumference, body fat percentage) and lean mass between 2011 and 2018.

Non-Hispanic Asian adults are experiencing rising adiposity. Monitor body fat percentage and waist circumference, as standard BMI may underestimate health risks. Consider adopting lower BMI cutoffs (≥27.5) for obesity classification if advised by a healthcare provider.

Chronic sleep restriction (4-5 hours/night) and total sleep deprivation cause insulin resistance and impaired glucose tolerance in healthy adults, mimicking Type 2 Diabetes pathophysiology.

Prioritize 7-8 hours of sleep nightly. Chronic restriction to 4-5 hours impairs insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance, increasing Type 2 Diabetes risk. This is not just about feeling tired; it is a direct metabolic stressor.

Circadian misalignment from shift work or forced desynchronization causes insulin resistance and impaired glucose tolerance, independent of total sleep time.

If you work shifts, try to eat during your 'day' (even if it's night) and sleep during your 'night' (even if it's day). Aligning food intake with your internal clock reduces insulin resistance.

A single dose of inorganic nitrate (12.9 mmol) improves exercise capacity in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) by increasing peak oxygen uptake and cardiac output, without improving exercise efficiency.

If you have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, taking a specific dose of inorganic nitrate (found in beetroot juice) before exercise can help you breathe better and move more oxygen to your muscles during intense activity. However, it does not make your body more efficient at using that oxygen, and you must avoid antibacterial mouthwash to ensure the supplement works.

Environmental interventions that reduce the availability or increase the price of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) significantly decrease SSB consumption and sales.

To reduce sugar-sweetened beverage intake, change the environment rather than relying on willpower. Make healthy drinks (water, diet) the default and easy to find, while making SSBs harder to find or more expensive. This works for individuals (home delivery of water) and communities (school policies, store promotions).

Adolescent sleep deprivation (less than 8.5 hours of weeknight sleep) and excessive daytime sleepiness are significantly associated with decreased academic performance (lower grades, tardiness) and reduced extracurricular activity participation.

If you are an adolescent or a parent of one, recognize that feeling sleepy in the morning is often biological, not just behavioral. Teens need roughly 8.5 hours of sleep. If school starts early, this is biologically difficult due to a natural shift in body clock (sleep phase delay). Prioritize sleep duration and consider later school start times as a structural solution to improve grades and mood, rather than just blaming the teen for 'poor sleep hygiene'.

Asian American women have significantly higher visceral adipose tissue (VAT) than European American women when adjusted for age and total body fat, particularly in those over 30 years old.

If you are an Asian woman, standard weight or waist size guidelines may underestimate your health risk. Even if you are not obese by BMI standards, you may have higher levels of dangerous visceral fat, especially as you age past 30. Focus on metabolic health markers and body composition rather than just scale weight.

Type 2 diabetes acts as a coronary heart disease (CHD) equivalent, conferring a risk of myocardial infarction in diabetic patients without prior history that is equal to or greater than that of nondiabetic patients with prior myocardial infarction.

If you have Type 2 Diabetes, your risk of a heart attack is considered as high as someone who has already had one, even if you feel fine. This means you must aggressively manage blood pressure, cholesterol, and insulin resistance, not just blood sugar, to protect your heart.

Insulin resistance is a primary driver of cardiovascular disease in Type 2 Diabetes, often outweighing the direct impact of hyperglycemia on coronary heart disease risk.

For Type 2 Diabetes, managing insulin resistance (through lifestyle, weight management, and specific medications) is likely more critical for preventing heart attacks than focusing solely on lowering blood sugar levels.

Pre-diabetes (Impaired Fasting Glucose and Impaired Glucose Tolerance) is associated with a twofold higher risk of cardiovascular events compared to normoglycemic subjects, driven by insulin resistance and clustering of risk factors.

If you have pre-diabetes, your risk of a heart event is already double that of someone with normal blood sugar. You should address insulin resistance and lifestyle factors immediately, rather than waiting for a diabetes diagnosis.

Asian populations have a higher risk of metabolic disorders (diabetes, CVD) at lower BMI levels compared to Western populations due to higher body fat percentage and central adiposity for a given BMI.

For Asian individuals, use lower BMI cutoffs (e.g., overweight ≥ 23 kg/m2, obesity ≥ 25 kg/m2) and measure waist circumference to accurately assess metabolic risk, as standard BMI may underestimate risk.

Higher gut microbial alpha diversity (Shannon index and richness) and a higher abundance of specific butyrate-producing bacterial taxa are associated with lower insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and a lower prevalence of type 2 diabetes.

Maintaining a diverse gut microbiome, particularly one rich in butyrate-producing bacteria, is linked to better insulin sensitivity and a lower risk of Type 2 Diabetes. While this study is observational, it suggests that dietary strategies supporting microbial diversity (often associated with high-fiber, plant-rich diets) may support metabolic health.

Dietary habits are the dominant factor explaining inter-individual variation in the plasma metabolome, accounting for more variance than genetics or the gut microbiome for the majority of metabolites.

Your diet has a significantly larger impact on your blood metabolite levels than your genetics or gut bacteria do for most metabolic markers. Focusing on food quality and specific food items (like coffee or fish) can directly alter your metabolic profile more effectively than trying to change your genetic makeup.

Plasma metabolite levels can accurately predict an individual's diet quality score, reflecting the relationship between diet and disease.

You can use blood metabolite profiles to objectively assess your diet quality, providing a more accurate picture than self-reported food surveys alone.

Bariatric surgery is the most effective long-term treatment for obesity, providing durable weight loss and resolution of comorbidities where conventional lifestyle and pharmacological interventions fail.

If you have a BMI over 40, or over 35 with health issues like diabetes or high blood pressure, and standard diet and exercise efforts haven't worked, bariatric surgery is the most effective option for lasting weight loss and fixing related health problems. It involves surgery that either restricts stomach size or alters digestion, and requires lifelong vitamin monitoring.

Bariatric surgery significantly reduces overall mortality in obese patients, including those with and without diabetes, compared to non-surgical management.

For severely obese individuals, surgery not only helps lose weight but also significantly extends life expectancy by reducing the risk of death from obesity-related causes like heart disease and diabetes, often more so than non-surgical management.

Bariatric surgery, particularly malabsorptive and mixed procedures like Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and biliopancreatic diversion, leads to significant resolution or improvement of type 2 diabetes, often independent of or preceding significant weight loss.

Surgery can put type 2 diabetes into remission for many patients, sometimes before significant weight loss occurs, due to hormonal changes in the gut.

Ultrasound-measured muscle thickness (MT) is a valid and reliable proxy for MRI-measured anatomical cross-sectional area (ACSA) at a specific site (mid-thigh) following resistance training, but it does not accurately predict changes in total muscle volume (VOL) due to regional hypertrophy.

If you are tracking muscle growth using ultrasound, measure muscle thickness at the mid-thigh (50% of femur length). It is a reliable indicator of local muscle area growth after 12 weeks of resistance training. However, do not assume this thickness increase equals a proportional increase in your total leg volume, as muscles grow unevenly (regionally).

Low-GI breakfasts can produce a 'second-meal effect' that significantly reduces post-prandial glycaemia and insulinaemia at a subsequent lunch, provided the breakfast induces a prolonged absorptive phase.

Choose low-GI breakfasts that are likely to have a 'second-meal effect,' such as those based on spaghetti or barley. These can help control blood sugar at lunch. Avoid low-GI foods that do not trigger this effect, like white bread with vinegar, even if they are technically low-GI.

Physical activity reduces the risk of colon cancer (especially in men) and breast cancer (especially in post-menopausal women), with consistent evidence for lung and endometrial cancers.

Regular physical activity is a proven way to reduce your risk of several cancers, including colon cancer (especially for men) and breast cancer (especially for post-menopausal women). It also reduces the risk of lung and endometrial cancers. Make activity a regular part of your life.

Moderate to moderately vigorous physical activity significantly reduces the risk of heart attacks in middle-aged men without pre-existing ischaemic heart disease, whereas vigorous activity may increase this risk.

For heart health, aim for moderate to moderately vigorous activity, such as brisk walking, cycling, or frequent recreational tasks. You do not need to engage in strenuous sports to gain significant protection against heart attacks. In fact, sticking to moderate levels may be safer and more effective than pushing into vigorous exertion, which was associated with higher risk in this group.

Supplementation with olive leaf extract (51.1 mg oleuropein and 9.7 mg hydroxytyrosol daily) for 12 weeks significantly improves insulin sensitivity and pancreatic beta-cell responsiveness in overweight middle-aged men.

If you are an overweight man between 35 and 55 years old, taking olive leaf extract containing roughly 51 mg of oleuropein and 10 mg of hydroxytyrosol daily for 12 weeks may improve your body's ability to use insulin and manage blood sugar. This benefit was observed when participants maintained their usual diet and exercise habits, suggesting the supplement itself drives the change. It is not a substitute for medical advice but may offer a beneficial adjunct for metabolic health.

Core circadian clock genes (specifically Cry1, Cry2, Bmal1, Npas2, and Per1/Per2) regulate sleep homeostasis by modulating the buildup and dissipation of sleep pressure, as evidenced by altered EEG delta power and sleep duration in knockout models.

Your body's internal clock genes (like PER and CRY) don't just tell time; they track how long you've been awake. This tracking mechanism directly influences sleep pressure (measured by EEG delta power). To optimize sleep homeostasis, maintain consistent sleep-wake times to align with these molecular rhythms, as disruptions can alter how quickly sleep pressure builds up and dissipates.