KEEP BUT DO NOT DISPLAY

In-store promotion and nutrition information on the front label of food packaging helps shoppers make healthier choices, U.S. researchers say. When a tag was put on the grocery store shelf showing that a product had the Heart Check mark indicating a heart-healthy food, sales increased 1.5 percent to 6.7 percent. …

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 …

Although gastric bypass surgery reverses type 2 diabetes in a large percentage of obese patients, the disease recurs in about 21% of them within three to five years. The study’s lead author, Yessica Ramos, MD, an internal medicine resident at Mayo Clinic Arizona in Scottsdale, stated that, “The recurrence rate …

Secondhand smoke exposure may lead to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and obesity in adults. The survey was conducted from 2001 to 2006, and questioned over 6,300 adults. The study concluded those exposed to secondhand smoke had a higher rate of type 2 diabetes and a higher BMI. …

FDA Approves New Weight-Loss Drug The oral weight-loss drug lorcaserin hydrochloride (Belviq) has been approved as an adjunct to diet and exercise in obese patients as well as in those who are overweight and have at least one other weight-related disorder such as hypertension. See this week’s Item #2, FDA …

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 …

Childhood obesity affects math performance in school, as well as social skills and wellbeing, according to new research from the University of Missouri. Researchers looked at data from over 6,000 children enrolled in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort, which gathered information from children beginning in kindergarten and followed them …

The amount of plaque in the arterial beds can help stratify high-risk diabetes better than traditional risk factors. Calculating a coronary artery calcium score in patients with type 2 diabetes might help identify those who are at greater risk of adverse cardiovascular outcomes, according to Subhashish Agarwal, MD, from Wake …

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. …

Omega-3 fatty acids did not reduce the rate of cardiovascular events in high-risk patients with prediabetes or diabetes followed for half a dozen years, the randomized ORIGIN trial found. Cardiovascular deaths occurred among 9.1% and 9.3% of those randomized to n-3 fatty acids or placebo, respectively. N Engl J Med 2012