Washington, March 7 : An Oregon State University researcher, who reviewed the evidence surrounding hundreds of weight loss supplements, has said that no research evidence exists that any single product results in significant weight loss and many have detrimental health benefits.

A few products, including green tea, fiber and low-fat dairy supplements, can have a modest weight loss benefit of 3-4 pounds (2 kilos), but it is important to know that most of these supplements were tested as part of a reduced calorie diet.

"For most people, unless you alter your diet and get daily exercise, no supplement is going to have a big impact," said Melinda Manore of Oregon State University.

Manore looked at supplements that fell into four categories: products such as chitosan that block absorption of fat or carbohydrates, stimulants such as caffeine or ephedra that increase metabolism, products such as conjugated linoleic acid that claim to change the body composition by decreasing fat, and appetite suppressants such as soluble fibers.

She found that many products had no randomized clinical trials examining their effectiveness, and most of the research studies did not include exercise.

Most of the products showed less than a two-pound weight loss benefit compared to the placebo groups.

"I don't know how you eliminate exercise from the equation. The data is very strong that exercise is crucial to not only losing weight and preserving muscle mass, but keeping the weight off," Manore said.

Manore, professor of nutrition and exercise sciences at OSU, is on the Science Board for the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. Her research is focused on the interaction of nutrition and exercise on health and performance.

"What people want is to lose weight and maintain or increase lean tissue mass," Manore said.

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Weight loss supplements 'not effective'

Washington, March 7 (IANS) Weight loss supplements are not really effective in helping you shed weight and may have unpleasant or serious side-effects.

Melinda Manore, from Oregon State University, reviewing evidence surrounding hundreds of weight loss supplements, concluded that no single product results in significant weight loss and many have side-effects.

"What people want is to lose weight and maintain or increase lean tissue mass," Manore said. "There is no evidence that any one supplement does this. And some have side effects ranging from the unpleasant, such as bloating and gas, to very serious issues such as strokes and heart problems."

A few products, including green tea, fibre and low-fat dairy supplements, can have a modest weight loss benefit of three to four pounds, but it is important to know that most of these supplements were tested as part of a reduced calorie diet, the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism reports.

"For most people, unless you alter your diet and get daily exercise, no supplement is going to have a big impact," said Manore, according to an Oregon statement.

Manore looked at supplements that fell into four categories: products such as chitosan that block absorption of fat or carbohydrates, stimulants such as caffeine or ephedra that increase metabolism, products such as conjugated linoleic acid that claim to change the body composition by decreasing fat, and appetite suppressants such as soluble fibres.

She found that many products had no randomized clinical trials examining their effectiveness, and most of the research studies did not include exercise. Most of the products showed less than a two-pound weight loss benefit compared to the placebo groups.

"I don't know how you eliminate exercise from the equation. The data is very strong that exercise is crucial to not only losing weight and preserving muscle mass, but keeping the weight off," said Manore, professor of nutrition and exercise sciences at Oregon.

Manore said the key to weight loss is to eat whole grains, fruits, vegetables and lean meats, reduce calorie intake of high-fat foods, and to keep moving.

"Adding fiber, calcium, protein and drinking green tea can help," Manore said. "But none of these will have much effect unless you exercise and eat fruits and vegetables," Manroe added.

Continued here:
Weight loss supplements are no good

March 7, 2012

After studying weight loss supplements and the body of evidence surrounding them, an Oregon State University researcher has found that no single product is proven 100 percent effective. In fact, many can be harmful to your health.

Melinda Manore posted her study online in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism.

Manore is the professor of nutrition and exercise sciences at Oregon State University, and is a member of the Science Board for the Presidents Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition. Manore found that some of the products she researched, such as green tea, fiber, and low-fat dairy supplements, did achieve a small weight loss benefit of no more than 4 pounds. However, Manore warns that it is important to remember that these products may have been effective because they were used in tandem with a reduced calorie diet.

For most people, unless you alter your diet and get daily exercise, no supplement is going to have a big impact, Manore said.

The supplements studied fell into four categories: products such as chitosan that block absorption of fat or carbohydrates, stimulants such as caffeine or ephedra that increase metabolism, products such as conjugated linoleic acid that claim to change the body composition by decreasing fat, and appetite suppressants such as soluble fibers.

In her research, she found that clinical trials examining the supplements effectiveness were not randomized. Furthermore, the research studies for many of these supplements did not include a daily exercise regimen as a part of the trial. In fact, the majority of the products showed less than a 2 pound weight loss when compared to the placebo.

Manores research focuses on the effects of nutrition and exercise on health and performance.

In her study, Manore said What people want is to lose weight and maintain or increase lean tissue mass. There is no evidence that any one supplement does this. And some have side effects ranging from the unpleasant, such as bloating and gas, to very serious issues such as strokes and heart problems.

Manore suggests the old fashioned method of healthy diet and exercise as a means to lose weight, rather than taking supplements to build muscle or shed pounds.

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Magic Weight Loss Pill Doesn’t Exist, Most Supplements Are Ineffective.

Camille Tirzah could practically live in the blue jeans she wore a little more than five years ago when she weighed 232 pounds.

But the Ocean Ridge resident lost the excess weight and kept it off. Her story was featured on the cover of People magazine, and now she's advising and encouraging others as a weight loss coach and certified nutrition specialist for Personal Physician Care, 4800 Linton Blvd.

Once a pre-diabetic patient herself, Tirzah is focusing on patients who are diabetic and are looking for weight management programs.

The success stories have been gratifying.

"One patient's endocrinologist has almost taken him off of his medications. He has been a diabetic for years, and in three months, he is experiencing an almost reversal of diabetic condition," Tirzah said. "It's doctor-supervised, individual-customized, not one-size-fits-all."

Tirzah focuses on body mass index and healthy eating.

"There are no quick fixes to losing weight," she said. "But over a very short amount of time, patients will feel the satisfaction of improved overall health, appearance and vitality."

Founded by Dr. David Neuman, Personal Physician Care is one of the largest primary care practices in Delray Beach, with seven doctors, two-dozen exam rooms, a doctor-supervised weight-loss program and an aesthetics center.

Tirzah and Personal Physician Care have recently partnered with Pharmanex, a nutritional and dietary supplement company, to bring the BioPhotonic Scanner and the LifePak Nano daily supplement package to the practice. Every weight loss patient is monitored via hand palm checks and given a Skin Carotenoid Score. The score quantifies antioxidant activity in the body.

The scanner gives patients a score of between 10,000 and 50,000 tissue carotenoid concentrations. The score is logged via a keychain card that accesses a computer program.

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Weight loss coach looks to help others follow her lead

Weight-loss supplements advertised as fat blockers, appetite suppressants or body-composition changers usually have little effect especially over the long term and may even harm you, according to a new U.S. study.

Of the hundreds of products reviewed by Oregon State University researcher Melinda Manore, many were scrutinized in randomized clinical trials to prove their effectiveness, and only a few products such as green tea, fibre and low-fat dairy supplements resulted in a modest weight loss compared to placebo groups.

Manore, whose study was published in Tuesday's online International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, also notes that most of the supplements that had any weight-loss benefit were also tested as part of a reduced-calorie diet, meaning purchasing such products usually amounted to a waste of money.

"There is no strong research evidence indicating that one specific supplement will produce significant weight loss, especially long term," her study concludes. "Some foods or supplements may complement a healthy lifestyle to produce small weight losses and/or prevent weight gain over time."

"For most people, unless you alter your diet and get daily exercise, no supplement is going to have a big impact," Manore, a professor of nutrition and exercise sciences who is on the science board for the President's Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition, said in a release.

In the U.S., weight-loss supplements are a $2.4-billion-a-year industry. The overall weight-loss industry in Canada and the U.S. is estimated to be worth $44 billion US.

Health Canada notes that an increasing number of Canadians are using health products for weight loss, including prescription drugs and natural health products. However, since 2007, Health Canada has issued warnings involving at least 170 weight-loss products, including the supplement Hydroxycut, which in the U.S. has been linked to at least a dozen cases of liver toxicity and one death.

Although some weight-loss supplements may provide benefits when used properly as part of a weight management program, misuse can pose serious health risks, Health Canada warns. It urges anyone considering use of weight-loss products especially people under age 18, pregnant or breastfeeding women, or those who have any medical conditions or serious diseases such as heart problems, high blood pressure or diabetes to discuss any potential risks with a health-care practitioner.

The supplements examined in Manore's study fell into these categories:

Chitosan, which blocks absorption of fat or carbohydrates.

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Weight-loss supplements deemed a waste of money

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -03/07/12)- Today DietBet.com, an online social dieting game that gives players the opportunity to compete to lose weight, announced several members of All Pro Eating will pull a dietary 180 and participate in a dietbet. This out-of-ordinary weight-loss challenge kicks-off with a "last supper" competitive eating contest of gigantic New York style pizza slices followed immediately by a weigh-in at the perfect location for such an event, Ripley's Believe It or Not! Times Square Odditorium, located at 234 West 42nd Street, on Friday, March 9 at 11:30 am.

The public is invited to cheer on the eaters as they bulk up before embarking on their four-week weight loss competition. Hopefully the competitors -- and the scales -- can handle getting a little cheese grease and tomato sauce on them from the 32" Koronet pizzas. The eating contest will be immediately followed by the official weigh-in to kick off the dietbet.

Players who reach their goal of dropping four percent of their starting weight in four weeks will split a $1,000 pot. Trained to do nothing but consume everything in front of them as quickly as possible, these men-turned-eating-machines will think twice before competing over the next month in wing-offs, hot dog races, taco triathlons, and milkshake marathons.

Members of All Pro Eating participating in the competition include:

The Champ, The Cannon, and Sisco-Kid will be competing live at Ripley's Odditorium on 42nd Street, while the others will be weighing in remotely. Ripley's Believe It or Not! Times Square's own Greg Dubin, known as the "Great Dubini," will emcee the fattening festivities.

"Competitive eaters going on diets, giant slices of pizza -- you know we're excited to host DietBet's event," said Michael Hirsch, president/general manager of Ripley's Believe It or Not! Times Square. "At Ripley's, we celebrate the unexpected and can't wait to watch this group of pro-eaters in their last meal before starting such an unbelievable feat."

DietBet injects fun, competition, and social collaboration into Americans' seemingly never-ending quest to shed extra weight. Players use the DietBet message boards to offer both encouragement and trash talk. Getting into the spirit, Will "The Champ" Millender recently shipped a case of Twinkies to Todd "The Hungry Genius" Greenwald.

"I've been in all kinds of eating competitions and this is one of the most unusual," said Jammin' Joseph Larue. "Getting professional eaters to lose weight... it's like asking fish to walk or librarians to scream."

"We relish the opportunity to watch these expert eaters tackle a different kind of food-related competition. We're curious to see what they do to fill the time. Maybe Joel 'The Cannon' will get into Words With Friends," said Jamie Rosen, DietBet's founder. "Traditionally, 'diet' has been viewed as a four-letter word and we're proving that with DietBet, weight-loss can actually be fun."

About DietBetDietBet is an online social dieting game that gives players the opportunity to win money through weight-loss competitions. Dietbetters play with friends and co-workers and put money into a pot; whoever reaches the goal by the end of four weeks wins the pot (or splits it). It's motivation through friendly competition, with real rewards. Founded by Jamie Rosen and launched in December of 2011, DietBet makes losing weight fun. Find DietBet on Facebook and Twitter.

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Professional Eaters Devour Giant Pizzas, Then Go on Diet

UpdatedMar 7, 2012 4:15 PM ET

Amar'e Stoudemire began a weight-loss program 10 days ago in an attempt to shed 15 pounds, and the results were evident Tuesday night.

The Knicks forward told the New York Post he has already dropped about 10 pounds in 10 days, getting down to 250 pounds from 260. Stoudemire said the goal is to get to 245 pounds.

He looked quicker and more explosive Tuesday, racking up 26 points and seven rebounds and hitting 10 of 18 shots. Stoudemire was the lone starter to play with the second unit that staged a fourth-quarter comeback in the 95-85 loss to the Mavericks.

Stoudemire came to camp bulked up and appeared slower to the rim, prompting the medical staff to decide on implementing a weight-loss program.

"Sometimes you have to understand what it takes to get better," Stoudemire said. "I had an offseason where I picked up a lot of muscle. Ten pounds of muscle. Now I'm going to get back to my normal self of attacking the rim."

Stoudemire blamed a back injury suffered during last spring's playoff loss to Boston and the ensuing six months of rehab for putting him out of rhythm.

He credited his high metabolism with helping him drop the weight quickly, adding, "I changed eating habits and am doing wind sprints after practice."

The 29-year-old is averaging 17 points per game this season, down more than six from last year, and he failed to make the All-Star team for the first time since 2006 when he was injured.

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Stoudemire uses program to lose weight

Posted: Wednesday, March 7, 2012 12:15 am | Updated: 9:24 am, Wed Mar 7, 2012.

How to obtain rapid weight loss safely and not create nutrition deficiencies.

In my previous editorials on weight loss, Part I and Part II, I discussed the following:

1. Weight loss is not natural; our physiology favors fat storage, not fat loss. The mere act of losing weight, skipping meals, decreasing our food intake and hyperinsulinemia (too much insulin) all either signal our bodies that we are in famine, or cause the enzymes that control fat burning or fat storage to favor fat storage.

2. Losing weight most often is really losing lean tissues such as muscle, organ tissues and hormones, as well as fat, which slows our metabolism and sets us up for fat storage as well as is dangerous. This is one reason why 95 percent of those who lose weight will gain it back.

I also discussed how ultimately it is a dysfunctional pancreas that causes too much insulin to be released in our bodies, leading to insulin resistance (type II diabetes), high cholesterol, high blood pressure and central obesity (abdominal girth greater than 40 inches in males and 35 inches in females). These are known as the "deadly quartet," metabolic syndrome or Syndrome X which has skyrocketed in the past 30 years. (Even though my waist was a size 34, my abdominal girth measured 39.5 inches just prior to Thanksgiving 2009 and I am sure it exceeded that following the holidays. I believe in walking the walk if I talk the talk so I went on the Ideal Protein diet Dec. 27 and lost 25 pounds within six weeks!)

So what is it that causes a dysfunctional pancreas? It is the typical North American diet, grossly disproportional in its share of saturated fats and sugars such as in breads, cereals, muffins, cakes, pastries, pasta, rice, corn, fast foods and surprisingly diet soda, that has caused this cascade of physiologic events and a host of other related conditions including several types of cancers, sleep apnea, arthritis, gout, stroke, heart disease, etc. And once on the medications prescribed for these conditions we are told that we will be on them for life. We are told that we must lose weight to prevent or maybe reverse these conditions. If we are even told how to lose weight we are usually led to these three ways:

1) Eat less

2) Eat a balanced (healthy) diet

3) Exercise

See more here:
The Skinny on Weight Loss: Part III

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) March 07, 2012

Diet Doc Weight Loss announces the a new addition to the Diet Doc comprehensive, weight loss program incorporating the best of all diets into a doctor-supervised weight loss program.

Diet Doc Weight Loss offers personalized weight loss for each person. This is based on a thorough evaluation of their health history, taking into consideration age, gender and lifestyle preferences. The weight loss doctor will individualize a diet for every person. This allows the dieters to realize maximum daily weight loss.

Many weight loss programs only offer one aspect of a program, which dilutes the overall diet into one that is either restrictive, leaves the person feeling hungry and tired. Other programs or weight loss clinics fail to recognize that not everyone is created equal, and fail to offer a personalized program for each person. It's also said that not every diet program will offer the extra help, such as prescription appetite suppressants or prescription grade B12.

The Diet Doc Weight Loss Program encourages people to eat organic when possible, and remove refined sugar, table salt (sea salt is preferred) and carbohydrates. People can eat a variety of foods, including Diet Doc's weight loss entrees, shakes and weight loss oil.

The fad diets out there lack a full comprehensive program, including extra help with appetite suppressants or personalized diet programs by weight loss doctors. These fad diets include: Ayurvedic diet, Doctor Oz diet, Fresh diet, Snooki weight loss, Paul Deen, Jennifer Hudson and the hundreds of weight loss and diet pills. just recommend basically what is common sense, by eating whole, organic foods in less quantity. Diet Doc Dieters report that they need help, either with why their body hasn't worked properly with losing weight in the past, or with prescription, safe appetite control. This is where Diet Doc leads the pack.

Fast weight loss is what Diet Doc prides themselves with. By incorporating major components of the diets that work, including the Mediterranean diet, Atkins diet and personalizing with experienced weight loss doctors, nurses and nutritionists, and using medication that helps people curb appetite and more, people report losing up to 1 pound per day and keeping it off!

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Diet Doc Weight Loss Announces New Addition of Appetite Suppressants and More to their Doctor-Supervised Weight Loss ...

The controversy surrounding the hCG diet has recently prompted a number of hCG-related myths to surface including a misconception that the very-low calorie diet is what is stimulating weight loss, not the hCG itself. In order to educate consumers of the truth about hCG, hCG Blog responds to the myth that the 500 calorie hCG weight loss diet alone promotes fat loss.

(PRWEB) March 07, 2012

"A myth has recently surfaced claiming that anyone consuming a 500 calorie a day diet for 21-40 days would lose massive amounts of weight, but this is simply not the case," explains owner of hCG Blog, Wendy Miles. "If a person were to consume a very-low calorie diet for two or more week, his body would enter into starvation mode and his metabolic rate would drop significantly."

In order to lose weight with hCG, the dieter must both use hCG drops or injections and adhere to the hCG diet plan. If one were to follow this type of very-low calorie diet without taking hCG, his metabolism would start to slow down and little weight would be lost. Fact of the matter is many people simply do not understand how drastically reducing food intake affects the body.

Research demonstrates that while one to three days of starvation can actually boost the basal metabolic rate, prolonged calorie reduction actually lowers it this explains why losing a significant amount of weight using the hCG diet alone is virtually impossible. The hCG is necessary to release stored body fat to supply the body with energy and sustenance in order to prevent any type of metabolic decrease.

Editor's Notes: hCGBlog.com was founded to help provide answers and support for both those on the hCG diet and others who are simply interested in learning about weight loss with hCG.

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Wendy Miles hCG Blog 1-800-365-1129 Email Information

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hCG Blog Responds to Popular hCG Weight Loss Myth