More evidence based reasons to keep the pounds off...

Three recent studies link obesity to diabetes and a higher chance of prostate cancer in men, hypertension and sleep apnea in women and lastly overall mental decline in both sexes.

• The Urology journal study of 2000 obese men with type 2 diabetes were 4 times as likely to develop high-grade prostate cancer. See the 8/16 article at FoodConsumer.  
• Swedish researchers published a study in the European Respiratory Journal that looked at 400 women.  Half of the women showed signs of obstructive sleep apnea (OBS). In the women with hypertension, 80% had OBS and of the obese women in the group, 84% had OBS. See article in HealthDay News
• The journal of Neurology recently reported a study of 6,400 British civil servants and found that  obese people were more likely to experience a faster mental decline than their non-obese peers. If those with obesity also has metabolic syndrome their risk was even higher.  See the 8/20 article in HealthDay News.

New USPSTF Guidelines on Healthy Lifestyle for Cardiovascular Risk Prevention

The recommendation is for clinicians to selectively counsel patients about healthy lifestyle choices (specifically those at highest risk for CVD) rather than routinely on every patient as the USPSTF has  found sufficient evidence that medium- to high-intensity counseling has a small net benefit on health behaviors and outcomes in adults without CVD, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or diabetes.
 

Virginia A. Moyer, MD, MPH; and on behalf of the U.S. Preventive Services TaskForce

Behavioral Counseling Interventions to Promote a Healthful Diet and Physical Activity for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention in Adults: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement.   Annals of Internal Medicine. Published online June 25, 2012. 

The "Let's Move!" Initiative has created a new website for cities to help them share best practices and program information for curbing obesity.  See the Philadelphia Inquirer article from July 19, 2012 

For more information on Let's Move -Cities, Towns and Countries click here!