Washington, Feb 10 : First Lady Michelle Obama stepped into the limelight Tuesday to lead a campaign that will seek ways of reducing childhood obesity, which affects nearly one third of children in the US.

The new public awareness campaign marks one of the highest-profile policy assignments yet for the first lady since President Barack Obama took office in January last year.

Washington, Jan 13 : People who are obese may be at an increased risk of developing the most common type of kidney cancer, according to a new study.

The most common type is known as clear-cell renal cell cancer (RCC) because when seen under a microscope, the cells that make up this type of cancer appear very pale or clear. It is one of the most lethal types of kidney cancer.

Washington, Dec 2 : In what could be called as a new approach to combat obesity, scientists have revealed that brown adipose tissue in the body can ''burn'' fat.

The researchers found that unlike white fat pads, brown tissue contains loads of mitochondria, miniature power stations, which among other things can burn up fat.

In doing this, they normally generate a voltage similar to that of a battery, which then provides energy for cellular processes.

Washington, November 25 : Obesity can increase risk among people with HIV, according to a new study.

The study has shown that antiretroviral therapy may not be as effective on obese HIV patients as it is with people of normal weight.

Researchers from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, who conducted the study, insisted that the immune systems among obese people with HIV do not respond as well as it does among normal weight people with HIV.

The latest technique to shed extra pounds is to eat chocolates. It may sound silly but it is true that a new chocolate, with high antioxidant properties that can help in losing weight by suppressing hunger has been developed.

The scientists from Spanish manufacturer Cocoa Bio have developed a new kind of chocolate, called Lola, which not only helps in controlling hunger but it also helps in digestion. Moreover it does not contain any cholesterol increasing substances.

Washington, Nov 18 : A new research has shown that some obese people misperceive that their body size is normal and think they don’t need to lose weight.

In the study of 5,893 people, researchers found that 8 percent of the 2,056 who were obese said they were satisfied with their body size or felt they could gain weight.

“Almost one in 10 obese individuals are satisfied with their body size and didn’t perceive that they need to lose weight,” said Tiffany Powell, M. D., lead author of the study and a cardiology fellow at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.

Washington, Sep 29 : In a study on mice, Duke University researchers have found that obesity alone cannot lead to osteoarthritis, a progressive musculoskeletal disorder that is characterized by loss of joint cartilage.

The researchers studied leptin-deficient mice to determine the role of obesity in developing knee osteoarthritis (OA).

In their opinion, obesity caused by a leptin deficiency would result in a higher incidence of knee OA.

London, Oct 22: A new study has revealed that the combination of eating quickly and eating until full trebles the risk of being overweight.

With the increased availability of inexpensive food in larger portions, fast food, and fewer families eating together and eating while distracted eating behaviours are changing, and this may be contributing to the obesity epidemic.

London, October 20 (ANI): A team of American scientists has undertaken a new research project to find out how people will react upon being told that they are genetically susceptible to a particular condition, such as obesity.

The 20-year-study of 10,000 people is aimed at watching whether people will change their lifestyles after knowing about their genetic fate or simply ignore it.

Washington, Oct 18 : A new study from University of Granada suggests that interleukin-6, a molecule found to be high in obese people and diabetics, can act as potential treatment for prevention of the conditions.

London, Oct 18 : Being obese can raise illness risk as it negatively impacts body''s internal chemistry, a new research has shown.

Researchers from United States found that levels of white blood cells were highest in men who were unfit and overweight. White blood cells are key to fighting infection, but high levels can be a sign of inflammation, which is linked to coronary heart disease.

Washington, October 16: Experiments on rats have shown that eating too much fructose, common sweetener found in many foods, increases the risk of leptin resistance, a condition that can lead to obesity when paired with a high-fat, high-calorie diet.

Researchers at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville, who led the experiments, described leptin as a hormone that plays a role in helping the body to balance food intake with energy expenditure, and leptin resistance as a condition when the body stops responding to it.

Washington, Oct 11 : A daily dose of one hour of moderate exercise for children recommended by health experts may not be enough to tackle the rising problem of childhood obesity, suggests a group of researchers.

Conducted by researchers from the Peninsula Medical School in Plymouth, UK, the EarlyBird study has followed the development of over 200 children in Plymouth born in
1995 and 1996.

Washington, Oct 6 : Researchers at the Duke Diet and Fitness Center have found that even a little exercise goes a long way toward helping severely obese individuals, improve their quality of life and complete important daily tasks.

The findings are based on a pre-program assessment where patients reported, on average, just under one hour of exercise per week, individuals who were more active reported better overall-quality of life.

Washington, Oct 1 : Obese patients with specific genetic makeup have an enhanced response to a weight loss drug, while others who lack the factors lose little or no weight, says a new study.

Conducted by Mayo Clinic researchers, it was a randomised, double blind, placebo-controlled study based on the drug sibutramine.

In the study, the researchers measured the impact of two different dosage levels of sibutramine (10 or 15 mg daily) combined with behavioural therapy for 12 weeks in 181 overweight or obese participants.

Melbourne, Oct 1 : The advertising industry has denied that food adverts are leading to childhood obesity epidemic.

There is no link between food adverts and childhood obesity, according to the advertising industry.

At a federal Parliamentary inquiry into obesity in Australia held in Brisbane, MPs were also told that advertising standards prohibited food being advertised as ‘healthy’ in Australia.

Melbourne, Sept 29: The current system of Body Mass Index (BMI) is biased among young children, and may categorize tall pre-pubescent children as overweight or obese, according to a new study.

An Australian study into children's health and lifestyles has found that tall pre-pubescent children are being incorrectly classified as overweight or obese.

Washington, September 27: A study on five American women suggests that even one bout of exercise can help overweight people improve their metabolic health, and prevent obesity-related complications like diabetes.

Washington, September 19: Experiments on mice conducted at UT Southwestern Medical Center suggest that immature fat cells may play a crucial role in treating obesity.

The researchers have discovered that such cells lurk in the walls of the blood vessels that nourish fatty tissue, just waiting for excess calories to help them grow into the adult monsters responsible for packing on the extra pounds.

While scientists have long known immature fat cells are located near blood vessels, this is the first time a study has shown exactly where they exist.

Washington, Aug 30: Though there is a strong link between obesity and asthma, inflammation is not the condition's long-suspected mediator, according to a group of researchers.

London, Aug 20: Greed, not laziness, is to be blamed for the soaring obesity rates throughout the world, says a new research.

The study has shown that people are doing just as much physical activity as they did in the early 1980s.

Bochum, Germany - Medicine alone will not help a diabetes 2 patient lose weight. A nutrition plan, plus a routine of endurance and strength training, is the key.

Unless they lose weight, diabetes 2 patients run a higher risk of accompanying diseases like high blood pressure or cardiovascular problems, according to the German Diabetes Association.

London, Aug. 16 : Social service teams in Britain have been tasked with the responsibility of taking obese kids away from their parents if the latter do not take steps to keep them within their age-specific weights.

Washington, Aug 16: Eating mushrooms in large quantities can help prevent or treat obesity, says a new study.

According to the study, which was led by Dr. Cheskin, suggests that increasing intake of low-energy density foods, specifically mushrooms, in place of high-energy-density foods, like lean ground beef, is a strategy for preventing or treating obesity.

To reach the conclusions, study participants were randomly chosen to receive either beef or mushroom lunch entrees over four days – lasagna, napoleon, sloppy Joe and chili.

Washington, Aug 5: People who are obese with asthma may carry a specific trait that causes them to have poorer asthma control than their slim counterparts, suggests a new research.