Facts

Investment firm Merrill Lynch reports that more than 50 companies could benefit. Drug producers, the food sector, diet and related products, and the sport apparel and equipment sectors will benefit the most. A CDC-funded study said that about one-third of American adults are obese and another one-third overweight. The percentage …

A new Commonwealth Fund report shows that US women are in much worse shape, healthcare-wise, than women in 10 nations that have universal healthcare. Even insured American women are more likely to go without needed healthcare because of the cost and difficulty paying medical bills. Published online July 13, 2012 

Researchers found that a food portion cut into multiple, bite-sized pieces looks larger and elicits greater satiation than the same portion presented as a single, large piece, even if the two have the same caloric value. They gave 301 college students a bagel uncut or cut into quarters. Twenty minutes …

Psychiatrists who enjoyed free deep-sea fishing and golf at educational forums sponsored by drug maker GlaxoSmithKline more than a decade ago could have hardly known at the time that they were witnessing history. In 2012, however, what happened at those meetings is clear. Federal prosecutors have announced that GSK has …

University of British Columbia scientists have successfully reversed diabetes in mice using stem cells, paving the way for a breakthrough treatment for diabetes. The research by Timothy Kieffer, a professor in the Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, is the first to show that human stem cell transplants can successfully …

According to a new study, only 30%-50% of US physicians regularly provide counseling on physical activity to their patients, and providers are uncertain about the effectiveness of their counseling, feeling they can only provide general advice about the importance of physical activity due to their lack of training in health …

Pioglitazone (Actos) and rosiglitazone (Avandia) appear to substantially boost risk of macular edema in type 2 diabetes, an observational study found. Incidence of diabetic macular edema was 1.3% at 1 year on a thiazolidinedione (TZD) compared with just 0.2% among type 2 diabetes patients not on one of those agents. …

Four basic tastes were thought to exist (sweet, sour, salty and bitter) and in 2002, receptors were confirmed for “umami” (first proposed by a Japanese chemist in 1908 and described as meatiness or savoriness) which was accepted as a fifth. But could fat be a sixth taste? Studies are increasingly …

Berries such as blueberries and strawberries are high in anthocyanidins, a type of flavonoid antioxidant, which has been shown in previous studies to improve cognition. Analyzed data collected in the Nurses’ Health Study found that women who consumed 2 or more servings of strawberries and blueberries each week experienced a …

More than 7,500 physicians and clinicians are involved in a spirited debate over the sensibility of legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes. Eleven percent of survey participants said they support legalization without reservation and 44% are supportive with reservations; 15% are outright opposed to legalization. While there is sentiment among participating …