Browse the evidence

Curcumin reduces oxidative stress and inflammation in Type 2 Diabetes patients, as evidenced by reduced levels of Malondialdehyde (MDA) and C-Reactive Protein (CRP).

Curcumin helps lower the body's inflammation and oxidative stress, which are key drivers of diabetes complications. This supports overall health and may complement your standard treatment.

Obesity-associated health risks (such as type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease) are not determined solely by body mass index (BMI) or total fat mass, but are critically governed by the location of fat deposition (visceral vs. subcutaneous) and genetic variations in adipokine secretion (e.g., adiponectin).

Do not rely on BMI alone to assess your health risks. Focus on waist circumference and metabolic markers (like blood sugar and lipids) because your genetic makeup and where you store fat (belly vs. hips) determine your actual risk for diabetes and heart disease, not just your total weight.

Truncal obesity (measured by waist/thigh circumference ratio) is significantly correlated with insulin resistance in females but not in males, independent of total body fat percentage.

For women, where fat is stored (truncal vs. lower body) matters for insulin resistance, even if total weight is the same. For men, total body fat percentage is a better predictor than fat distribution.

Adopting low glycaemic index (GI) or low glycaemic load (GL) dietary patterns results in small but clinically significant improvements in glycaemic control (HbA1c) and cardiometabolic risk factors (lipids, inflammation, adiposity) for adults with moderately controlled type 1 and type 2 diabetes, even when concurrent with standard pharmacotherapy.

If you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, switching to a low GI or GL diet can help lower your HbA1c and improve cholesterol and inflammation, even if you are already taking diabetes medication. You don't need to change everything at once; focus on replacing high-GI carbohydrates (like white bread and sugary drinks) with lower-GI options (like legumes and whole grains). This approach is safe, effective, and works alongside your current treatment plan to help you reach your health goals.

Adequate dietary calcium intake is essential for acquiring peak bone mass (PBM) during growth, and insufficient intake during childhood and adolescence leads to low bone mineral density, increasing the risk of osteoporosis and fractures in later life.

Ensure you consume enough calcium, especially during your teenage years and early adulthood, to build strong bones. If you don't eat dairy, look for calcium-fortified foods like cereals or plant-based milks, and consider soy products which are bioavailable sources of calcium. For postmenopausal women, maintaining adequate calcium intake can help slow age-related bone loss.

The bioavailability of calcium varies significantly by food source; while milk products offer ~30% bioavailability, spinach is poor (~5%) due to oxalic acid, whereas soya beans are bioavailable (30-40%) despite containing oxalic and phytic acids.

Don't just count milligrams; consider where they come from. Milk and fortified cereals are good sources. Spinach has calcium but it's poorly absorbed. If you eat soy, you are getting a bioavailable form of calcium, similar to milk.

Ultra-processed foods are significantly more energy-dense, less nutrient-dense, and cheaper per calorie than unprocessed foods, creating an economic incentive for overconsumption.

Ultra-processed foods are engineered to be cheap, energy-dense, and nutrient-poor. This combination makes them highly palatable and economically attractive, driving overconsumption. To improve diet quality, prioritize unprocessed foods which, while more expensive per calorie, offer better nutrient density and lower energy density, helping to regulate caloric intake.

The weight loss and metabolic benefits of Resistant Starch are mediated by an increase in Bifidobacterium adolescentis, which alters bile acid profiles (increasing GDCA/TDCA) and reduces lipid absorption.

The benefits of resistant starch depend on your gut bacteria. If you lack Bifidobacterium adolescentis, you may not see the same weight loss or metabolic improvements. Consistency is key to fostering these specific bacteria.

Insulin resistance is a major cardiovascular risk factor in subjects without diabetes and serves as a key link between MAFLD/NASH and cardiovascular disease.

Even if you do not have diabetes, insulin resistance associated with fatty liver disease significantly increases your risk of heart disease. Addressing insulin sensitivity through lifestyle changes is crucial for cardiovascular health, regardless of your diabetes status.

Early-life undernutrition (intrauterine or infant stunting) permanently alters metabolic programming, significantly increasing the risk of obesity, insulin resistance, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease in adulthood, particularly when followed by a nutrition transition involving energy-dense diets.

For individuals in resource-limited settings or those with a history of childhood stunting, standard weight-loss advice may be insufficient. Prevention of early-life malnutrition is critical. For adults with this history, interventions must address both dietary quality (micronutrients) and energy balance, recognizing a higher biological susceptibility to metabolic disease.

Among men maintaining optimal levels of four healthy lifestyle behaviors (BMI <25, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, smoking abstinence, and high-quality diet), moderate alcohol consumption (5.0 to 29.9 g/d) is associated with a significantly lower risk of myocardial infarction compared to abstinence.

If you are a man who already maintains a healthy weight, exercises regularly, doesn't smoke, and eats a high-quality diet, drinking moderately (up to about 2 drinks per day) is associated with a lower risk of heart attack compared to not drinking at all. This suggests moderate drinking can complement a healthy lifestyle rather than contradict it, though absolute risk reduction is small in this low-risk group.

Prolonged (12 months) and intense endurance exercise training reduces myocardial ischemia at a given workload in patients with coronary artery disease by increasing the double-product threshold for ST-segment depression.

For CAD patients, standard cardiac rehab often involves mild, intermittent exercise. To see improvements in how much stress your heart can handle before showing signs of ischemia (ST depression), you need a program that is both long (at least 12 months) and progressively intense (reaching 70-90% of your max capacity). This specific type of training raises the threshold for ischemia, meaning your heart can work harder before showing distress signals.

Infusion of beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) decreases whole-body leucine oxidation and increases fractional mixed skeletal muscle protein synthesis in humans without altering total protein breakdown (leucine flux).

Infusing beta-hydroxybutyrate (a ketone body) reduces the amount of amino acids your body burns for energy and directs more of them into building muscle protein. This happens without changing how much muscle tissue is broken down overall. The effect is specific to the ketone itself, not just the alkalinity of the blood, suggesting that elevated ketones naturally help preserve muscle mass during metabolic stress.

High total polyphenol intake (specifically stilbenes and lignans) is associated with a significant reduction in all-cause mortality in high cardiovascular risk individuals.

To potentially lower mortality risk, aim for a diet high in polyphenol-rich foods, particularly those containing stilbenes (found in grapes, olive oil) and lignans (found in seeds, whole grains). This is most relevant if you are at high risk for cardiovascular disease. The study suggests a threshold effect, meaning benefits may appear once intake exceeds a certain level, rather than increasing linearly.

High intake of stilbenes and lignans is significantly associated with reduced all-cause mortality, whereas flavonoids and phenolic acids show no significant association.

While total polyphenol intake is beneficial, the mortality benefit appears driven specifically by stilbenes and lignans. Prioritize foods rich in these specific compounds, such as red wine (stilbenes), olive oil (stilbenes), flaxseeds, and whole grains (lignans), over generic 'polyphenol' supplements.

The body defends against energy imbalance by adaptively adjusting energy expenditure (specifically Basal Metabolic Rate and physical activity efficiency), meaning weight loss from caloric restriction or exercise is slower and less than predicted by simple linear energy density calculations.

Do not expect weight loss to be linear. When you cut calories or increase exercise, your body will lower its metabolic rate and activity efficiency to conserve energy. This means you will lose less weight than a simple '3500 calories = 1 lb fat' calculation predicts. Patience and consistency are required because your body actively resists the change.

Brown adipose tissue (BAT) is prevalent in adult humans and its activity increases energy expenditure through cold-induced thermogenesis, providing a potential therapeutic target for obesity.

Adults retain brown fat, primarily in the neck and collarbone area, which burns calories to generate heat. While you cannot 'exercise' it directly, exposing yourself to cold (e.g., cold showers, cooler room temperatures) can activate this tissue, slightly increasing your daily energy expenditure. This is not a weight-loss cure-all, but it is a biological mechanism that exists in most adults, contrary to old beliefs.

Adiponectin levels are inversely correlated with visceral fat mass and insulin resistance, and low levels are associated with increased cardiovascular risk.

Adiponectin is a beneficial hormone that improves insulin sensitivity and protects heart health. Its levels tend to be lower in people with high visceral fat. While you cannot directly 'take' adiponectin, lifestyle changes like exercise and weight loss can help increase your body's natural production of it.

Spontaneous physical activity (SPA) and non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) are significant contributors to energy expenditure, regulated by hypothalamic nuclei such as the lateral hypothalamus (LH) and arcuate nucleus (ARC).

Increase your daily movement through small, spontaneous actions (fidgeting, standing, walking) known as NEAT. This can account for 10-20% of your daily calorie burn. Try to break up long periods of sitting with brief movements to support your metabolism.

Testosterone administration increases muscle strength and mass by enhancing protein synthesis and promoting satellite cell-mediated myonuclear accretion.

Testosterone significantly boosts muscle growth and strength by increasing protein synthesis and adding new nuclei to muscle fibers via satellite cells. This effect is dose-dependent and more pronounced in type I fibers. While effective for enhancement, it carries significant health risks and is banned in sports.

Training with low muscle glycogen increases fat oxidation and muscle-derived triacylglycerol oxidation in well-trained cyclists without improving time trial performance compared to high glycogen training.

If you are a well-trained cyclist, you can train with low muscle glycogen (by doing two sessions close together without eating between them) to improve your body's ability to burn fat. However, this will not make you faster in time trials compared to training with full glycogen, and you will likely have to ride at a lower intensity during high-intensity intervals. This strategy is useful for metabolic flexibility but not for maximizing speed or power output.

Caloric restriction (CR) is the only intervention shown to increase health span and decrease the risk of age-related diseases in nonhuman primates.

Caloric restriction, specifically a 15% reduction in calories, has been shown to slow metabolic aging and reduce oxidative damage in humans over a 2-year period. It is the only intervention proven to extend health span in nonhuman primates. However, adherence is difficult, leading to interest in mimetics and fasting-mimicking diets.

Lean NAFLD is a distinct phenotype characterized by visceral adiposity and metabolic abnormalities despite normal BMI, and it carries similar cardio-metabolic risks to obese NAFLD.

Being lean does not protect you from fatty liver. If you have visceral fat (belly fat) despite a normal weight, you are at risk for NAFLD and its complications. Focus on reducing visceral fat through exercise and diet, and get screened if you have risk factors like family history or metabolic issues.

Psychological stress induced by pandemic lockdown measures is significantly associated with an increased likelihood of engaging in binge eating and dietary restriction behaviors among university students.

If you are experiencing high stress from lockdown or isolation, be aware that your risk of binge eating or restrictive dieting increases. This is a common reaction to stress and negative affect, not a character flaw. Focus on maintaining social connections and managing stress through non-food means to mitigate this risk.