PROTIME-FITNESS HOLISTIC HEALTH AND WELLNESS

  WHY JET LAG DISORDER IN NIGHT SHIFT WORKERS FOSTERS BRAIN CHANGES AND WEIGHT GAIN         Scientists have uncovered why night shift work is associated with changes in appetite in a new University of Bristol-led study .  The findings, published in  Communications Biology,  could help the millions of people who work through the night and struggle with weight gain. Scientists from Bristol and the University of Occupational and Environmental Health in Japan sought to understand how 'circadian misalignment' -- a phenomenon commonly associated with 'jet lag' whereby the body's biological clock is disrupted -- affects the hormones responsible for regulating appetite. Prevalent in night shift workers, in this new study, the international team reveals how circadian misalignment can profoundly alter the brain's regulation of hormones controlling hunger to the detriment of metabolic health. The team focused on glucocorticoid hormones in the adrenal gland, ...

  RED MEAT CONSUMPTION MAY INCREASE RISKS FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES Replacing red meat with plant-based protein sources may reduce the risk of diabetes and provide environmental benefits.         People who eat just two servings of red meat per week may have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes compared to people who eat fewer servings, and the risk increases with greater consumption, according to a new study led by researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. They also found that replacing red meat with healthy plant-based protein sources, such as nuts and legumes or modest amounts of dairy foods, was associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. The study was published on Thursday, October 19, in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. "Our findings strongly support dietary guidelines that recommend limiting the consumption of red meat, and this applies to both processed and unprocessed red meat," said first author Xiao Gu, a postd...

  HEATED YOGA MAY HELP WITH DEPRESSION Findings suggest that sessions of just once a week provide benefits. :         In a randomized controlled clinical trial of adults with moderate-to-severe depression, those who participated in heated yoga sessions experienced significantly more significant reductions in depressive symptoms than a control group. The trial results, led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), a founding member of Mass General Brigham (MGB), and published in the  Journal of Clinical Psychiatry , indicate that heated yoga could be a viable treatment option for patients with depression. In the eight-week trial, 80 participants were randomized into two groups: one that received 90-minute Bikram yoga practiced in a 105°F room and a second group placed on a waitlist (waitlist participants completed the yoga intervention after their waitlist period). A total of 33 participants in the yoga group and 32 in the waitlist group were...

  ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS AND FOOD ADDICTION         Researchers from the United States, Brazil, and Spain, including scientists with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, published an analysis in a special edition of the British Medical Journal with a timely and controversial recommendation: It's time for an international shift in the way we think about ultra-processed food. "There is converging and consistent support for the validity and clinical relevance of food addiction," said Ashley Gearhardt, the article's corresponding author and a psychology professor at the University of Michigan. "By acknowledging that certain types of processed foods have the properties of addictive substances, we may be able to help improve global health." While people can give up smoking, drinking, or gambling, they can't stop eating, said co-author Alexandra DiFeliceantonio, assistant professor at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. The challenge, and the o...

  TYPE-2 DIABETES MAY SHORTEN LIFE EXPECTANCY BY UP TO 14 YEARS         An individual diagnosed with type 2 diabetes at age 30 years could see their life expectancy fall by as much as 14 years, an international team of researchers has warned. Even people who do not develop the condition until later in life -- with a diagnosis at age 50 years -- could see their life expectancy fall by up to six years, an analysis of data from 19 high-income countries found. The researchers say the findings, published in  The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology , highlight the urgent need to develop and implement interventions that prevent or delay the onset of diabetes, significantly as the prevalence of diabetes among younger adults is rising globally. Increasing levels of obesity, poor diet, and increased sedentary behavior are driving a rapid rise in the number of cases of type 2 diabetes worldwide. In 2021, 537 million adults were estimated to have diabetes worldwide, wi...

  PLANT-DERIVED NUTRIENTS AFFECT THE BRAIN AND GUT CONNECTION Study tests link in overweight adults         Prebiotics are used to foster the colonization of beneficial bacteria in the gut. These indigestible dietary fibers are found in plant-derived foods such as onions, leeks, artichokes, wheat, and bananas and in high concentrations in chicory root. They support gut health by promoting the growth and activity of beneficial gut bacteria. Researchers have now investigated whether specific prebiotics can influence brain function by improving communication between the gut microbiome and the brain. The interventional study led by the University of Leipzig Medical Center indicates that consumption of high-dose dietary prebiotics reduces reward-related brain activation in response to high-calorie food stimuli. "The results suggest a potential link between gut health and brain function, in this case, food decision-making," says PD Dr Veronica Witte, co-author of the ...

  PSYCHEDELIC DRUGS: IMPROVE DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY         One treatment each of two psychedelic drugs lowered depression and anxiety and improved cognitive functioning in a sample of U.S. Special Operations Forces veterans who sought care at a clinic in Mexico, according to a new analysis of the participants' charts. The treatment included a combination of ibogaine hydrochloride, derived from the West African shrub iboga, and 5-MeO-DMT, a psychedelic substance secreted by the Colorado River toad. Both are designated as Schedule I drugs under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act. In addition to relieving symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the combined treatment also alleviated cognitive impairment linked to traumatic brain injury -- which stood out to researchers from Ohio State University who led the chart-review analysis. Many special operations forces veterans seeking treatment for complex psychiatric symptoms do not respond to more traditional...

  BLACK MEN  EARLY-ONSET PROSTATE CANCER RISK FACTORS         A study involving Duke Health researchers found that a family history of cancer and genetic variants that might be inherited are significant risk factors for Black men diagnosed with early-onset prostate cancer. Kathleen Cooney, M.D., chair of the Duke Department of Medicine, is the senior author of the study appearing online in the journal  JCO Precision Oncology . Genetic studies usually recruit non-Hispanic white men despite data showing that Black men are disproportionately affected by prostate cancer and more than twice as likely to die from the disease as their white counterparts. Researchers looked to address this health disparity by identifying genetic variants in Black patients diagnosed with early-onset prostate cancer. They sequenced the germline DNA of 743 Black men diagnosed with prostate cancer at 62 or younger. This is DNA found in the men's sperm cells, containing genetic cha...