Intermittent fasting is a way of losing weight that favours flexibility over calorie counting. It restricts the time you are allowed to eat, which reduces calorie intake by limiting opportunities to eat. Thats the theory, at least.

A popular version of intermittent fasting is the 5:2 diet, which involves eating a very low-calorie diet (about a quarter of usual calorie intake) for two days each week and unrestricted eating on the other five days. This approach has worked well for some people, but not everyone. In our latest study, we found that people cheat on their intermittent fasting diet, without realising it.

Conducted over three days, the study aimed to find out how eating and physical activity changed around a period of calorie restriction.

A group of male participants completed two trials. On the first trial day, they were told they would have a very low-calorie diet (about 700 calories) the following day. Throughout the rest of the day, we tracked how much the participants ate and we assessed their hunger before and after each meal. Their physical activity was also monitored throughout the day.

The next day, participants ate the very low-calorie diet, and we monitored their physical activity. The morning after completing the low-calorie diet day, we measured their food intake at an unrestricted breakfast and assessed their hunger before and after the meal.

Each participant also completed a control trial that followed the same method. During the control trial, participants ate a typical diet (about 2,800 calories) instead of a very low-calorie diet.

We found that participants ate 6% more on the first day of the study and 14% more at the unrestricted breakfast on the low-calorie diet trial. This was despite hunger levels before and after each meal being similar to the control trial. This suggests participants ate more because they knew food intake would be restricted the following day, rather than because they felt hungrier.

Physical activity was also 11% lower the day before eating the low-calorie diet, and 18% lower while eating the low-calorie diet.

Interestingly, low-intensity physical activity, such as washing the dishes, which tends to be spontaneous behaviour rather than consciously planned activities, was the most affected component of physical activity. We found changes in eating and physical activity behaviour occur before, during and after a day of low-calorie dieting. These behavioural changes reduce the likelihood of intermittent fasting leading to weight loss.

For a diet to lead to weight loss, calories burned must exceed calories consumed to produce a calorie deficit. Intermittent fasting diets assume that the large calorie deficit produced by fasting or very low-calorie dieting is not recovered during the unrestricted period, so the calorie deficit is preserved. But our study shows that eating a little more and reducing spontaneous physical activity may be enough to recover almost half of this calorie deficit. The calorie deficit may also be reduced further at subsequent meals after a very low-calorie diet day.

Earlier studies support our findings. Skipping breakfast for six weeks was shown to reduce physical activity and increase calorie intake at later meals. This was enough to fully compensate for calories skipped at breakfast. This raises the question: is fasting or severe calorie restriction worth the sacrifice?

Weight loss from any diet is always likely to be lower than expected. Compensatory mechanisms defend against a calorie deficit far more strongly than a calorie surplus. In scientific studies of intermittent fasting, participants are often guided by a dietitian on how many calories they should eat on the unrestricted days. Even with this support, participants in these studies still lose less weight than would be expected if the calorie deficit had been fully preserved.

Our study highlights what and when compensatory behaviours occur. This information can be used to improve the effectiveness of intermittent fasting diets. Being more mindful when eating before and after a period of calorie restriction and incorporating exercise into diet plans, could help increase the likelihood of intermittent fasting leading to weight loss.

Intermittent fasting is not a miracle diet, but some people may benefit from its flexibility, and with a few minor adjustments, it could be even more effective.

If youd like to take part in our next study, exploring pre-lockdown and during-lockdown exercise and nutrition habits, please click on this link. You must be 18 years or older and have taken part in regular physical activity before the lockdown.

Visit link:
Intermittent fasting: if you're struggling to lose weight, this might be why - The Conversation UK

Data unequivocally shows that being obese and/or having diet-related diseases is responsible for 90 percent of non-age-related hospitalizations from COVID-19.

Weve all read countless articles saying were pitted in a war against the coronavirus. We question the frequent use of war and battle when referring to disease mitigation, but if we accept these military terms, wed like to add collaborator to the discussion.

An example: In WWII, the German advance was aided by French collaborators who smoothed the way into their country by identifying weaknesses in French defenses.

In todays America, junk, processed and fast food, along with soda, are relentlessly hawked by corporations to an increasingly obese public. In other words, the excess calories, sugar, salt and fat that were eating and drinking are slowly killing us.

Now, theyre also lending a helping hand to COVID-19the new enemy.

The U.S. military, for whom words like war and battle are not metaphors, as they are above, is handicapped by the obesity epidemic. They have stated their current pool of potential recruits are so unhealthy, due to obesity and heart disease, that fitness standards were lowered in order to fill their ranks. A 2018 study, Unhealthy and Unprepared, concluded that overweight youth are having an impact on the militarys ability to maintain effectiveness. Currently one-third of 17- to 24-year-olds are ineligible to join because of their weight.

Data unequivocally shows that being obese and/or having diet-related diseases, such as hypertension, diabetes or heart disease, or the conditions that flow from these like kidney failure, is responsible for 90 percent of non-age-related hospitalizations from COVID-19. So, if it isnt bad enough that diabetes leads to amputations, blindness and dialysis, it also is a highly correlated factor for virus-related deaths.

Aside from the heartbreak of increased vulnerability to COVID-19, theres a crippling economic cost. In a truly scandalous situation, America now spends 21 percent of its health care dollars on obesity-related diseases.

A main one of which is the aforementioned diabetes. According to the American Diabetic Association, a third of Americans are either diabetic or prediabetic. The national cost of treatment in 2017 was more than $327 billion, up 26 percent from $245 billion in 2012.

According to the CDC, Chronic disease accounts for approximately 75 percent of the nations aggregate health care spending. In terms of public insurance, treatment ofchronic diseaseconstitutes an even larger proportion of spending96 cents per dollar for Medicare.

Even prominent bankers, not traditionally focused on issues beyond profit and loss, have raised the alarm. The May 3 Bank of America Global Research Paper on predicted post-COVID economic trends, states, [P]ublic health is the new national wealth. Stakeholders will increasingly focus on health-related ESG metrics; governments will come to appreciate health more as an economic resource.

Its not often that bankers and health care officials are on the same page, but in this case, they are. The National Association of Chronic Disease Directors has issued this statement: As the United States seeks ways to regain our economic footing and rebuild prosperity, all should be reminded of the simple but immensely important fact that the nations collective health bears both an economic and human cost. Poor health of a population can exert tremendous force on employment rates, interest costs and other tangible factors that ultimately affect the ability to maintain a strong global economic position.

Its not like we havent been warned. Medical experts have been trying to get us to wake up and smell the roasted vegetables and whole grains for years.

Sadly, however, when Michelle Obama championed her Lets Move initiative, which included a healthy diet for school children, she was ridiculed by conservatives and libertarians as pushing the nanny state. They were fine with pepperoni pizza, sloppy Joes and soda being on the menu. Recently, TVs Bizarre Foods host, Andrew Zimmern, in a video interview, decried the role the American diet is playing in COVID-19 morbidity. Too bad we didnt listen to the First Lady.

One explanation as to why we allow ourselves and our children to eat so poorly is hyperbolic discounting, our inability to see the long-term consequences of our short-term behavior. For example, if smoking caused cancer the next day, a lot less people would smoke. Its the same with food choices. The immediate pleasure of sugary sodas outweighs the possibly of dialysis a decade later.

Why would we steadfastly deny the obvious? Marion Nestle, Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health, Emerita, at New York University and author of Food Politics, Soda Politics, The Unsavory Truth and many other books, told Worth, The coronavirus pandemic poignantly illustrates why we need food systems devoted as much or more to public health as they are to profit. Profit-making is what drives food companies to push junk foods on us as hard as they can and to lobby government to make sure they can do so with impunitywhat happens to human health be damned. If the pandemic teaches us anything, it is that we need a government that supports public health over corporate health.

Until public policy steps in, nonprofits, such as Wholesome Wave, are helping. Through their efforts with both nonprofits and corporations, fruits and vegetables have been made available to low-income Americans.

When the current crisis moderates and we catch our collective breaths, it will be a good time to look into what food is doing to make our society so health-compromised, so susceptible to new threats. From farmer to consumer, we cannot afford to continue weaponizing our diet against ourselves. Instead, we need our food policies to keep us safe. Business as usual should no longer apply. We must clearly see that allowing agribusiness to profit as they have takes a financial and human toll on all of us.

An indispensable guide to finance, investing and entrepreneurship.

Read more here:
Obesity and COVID-19: Americas Diet Takes Its Toll - Worth

Corn and wheat grains, and their co-products, are the most widely used sources of energy in swine diets. However, these feedstuffs contain phytate and fiber that reduce nutrient utilization. Undesirable effects of phytate and fiber can be alleviated through dietary supplementation of phytase and fiber-degrading enzymes. The most abundant types of fiber in wheat and corn are arabinoxylans that are composed of xylans (a sugar that creates the backbone of arabinoxylans) and arabinose units (the sugars that link to and create branches off the xylan backbone).

The enzymes that breakdown xylans are known as xylanases, whereas those which break down the arabinose branches are known as arabinofuranosidases (debranching enzymes). While xylanase and arabinofuranosidase act on different substrates, their combined supplementation efficiently degrades arabinoxylans, making each enzyme group more effective and valuable in simple and complex diets.

In swine production, supplementing corn- or wheat-based diets with xylanase has reported positive effects. However, there is a lack of information on the combined effects of xylanase and arabinofuranosidase on the nutrient utilization in pigs fed corn-wheat-based diets.

A study at South Dakota State University evaluated the effects of supplementing a multi-enzyme product (xylanase, glucanase, arabinofuranosidase and phytase; supplied by Adisseo France SAS) on the growth performance, bone strength and nutrient digestibility of growing pigs fed corn-wheat-wheat bran-based diets that were low in nutrient density. Criteria measured included average daily gain, average daily feed intake, gain-to-feed ratio, bone strength (femur ash) and nutrient digestibility (apparent total tract digestibility of energy and phosphorus).

A total of 276 pigs with initial body weight of 34 kilograms were housed in 45 pens of six or seven pigs, blocked by gender and weight, and fed five diets (nine pens per diet). Diets consisted of a positive control and two negative controls (NC1 and NC2) that were supplemented without or with the MEP. The MEP supplied at least 1,800, 1,244, 6,600 and 1,000 units of xylanase, -glucanase, arabinofuranosidase and phytase per kilogram of diet, respectively. The PC diet was adequate in all nutrients, and had greater digestible P content than NC1 or NC2 diet by 0.134 percentage points (Table 1).

Table 1: Ingredient and calculated chemical composition of the basal diets

Additionally, the PC diet had a higher net energy and standardized ileal digestible amino acid content than the NC1 diet (74 kilocalories per kilogram; 3% SIDAA) and NC2 diet (124 kcal/kg; 5% SIDAA). The diets were fed in four phases based on bodyweight; Phase 1: 34-50 kg, Phase 2: 50-75 kg, Phase 3: 75-100 kg, and Phase 4: 100-120 kg. Nutrient digestibility and bone mineralization were determined at the end of Phase 1.

For the overall study period (34-120 kg bodyweight), pigs fed the PC and NC1 diets did not differ in ADG and ADFI (Table 2); however, pigs fed the PC diet had greater ADG and G:F than those fed the NC2 diet. Pigs fed the PC diet had greater bone ash content and ATTD of P than those fed the NC1 diet. The ATTD of energy for the PC diet was greater than that for the NC1 or NC2 diet.

Table 2: Effect of dietary treatment on growth performance and nutrient digestibility

Supplementing the MEP did not affect ADG for pigs fed the NC1 diet, but it increased the ADG for pigs fed the NC2 diet by 5.09%. Supplementing the NC1 and the NC2 diet with the MEP increased G:F, bone ash content and ATTD of energy and P. The ADG, bone ash content and ATTD of energy and P for the MEP-supplemented diets were similar to the PC diet. Thus, net energy, SIDAA and P can be lowered by about 5% in MEP-supplemented diets without negative effects on growth performance and bone strength of pigs.

Sources: Kevin Jerez-Bogota, Maamer Jlali, Pierre Cozannet, Aurlie Preynat and Tofuko Woyengo, who are solely responsible for the information provided, and wholly own the information. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.

Visit link:
Target fiber and phytate in corn and wheat to improve pig performance - National Hog Farmer

High blood pressure is a common condition that affects more than a quarter of all adults in the UK. But, you could lower your risk of developing hypertension by eating an apple everyday, it's been claimed.

High blood pressure - which is also known as hypertension - puts extra stress on blood vessels and vital organs.

The condition could lead to some deadly complications, including strokes and heart attacks.

It could be caused by eating an unhealthy diet, or by not doing enough exercise.

You could lower your chances of high blood pressure by regularly eating apples, it's been revealed.

READ MORE: High blood pressure - condition raises the risk of this disorder

"Certain foods are particularly good to eat if you have hypertension and can significantly lower your risk of experiencing a heart attack or stroke, Dr Brewer told Express Health.

"When it comes to blood pressure, studies involving over 187,000 health professionals showed that those who ate four or more apples a week had significantly lower blood pressures than those who ate less than one a month, on average.

"Its important to eat the peel, as this contains antioxidants with blood-pressure lowering actions that are similar to those of ACE inhibitor drugs.

"You can grate the flesh and mix with lemon juice [to prevent browning] and add to salads, coleslaw and Bircher muesli. Dried apple rings and apple crisps also make tasty snacks."

Originally posted here:
High blood pressure - the 25p fruit that could prevent deadly symptoms of hypertension - Express

His last appearance in the gala of awards of a well-known mens magazine represents the test of that Kate Beckinsale have given with the elixir of eternal youth. To its 45 years, the actress retains the same figure -if not even more toned with which it became world famous thanks to his role in the movie Pearl Harbour. This statuesque body allowed him to defend a dress from Julien Macdonald in which the multiple air -leg, neck, back it became an option only suitable for those who feel very sure of themselves and Beckinsale is. Not in vain, in their day-to-day training and healthy eating are always present as she recounts the portal Inquisitr and is that, for to maintain a flat belly year after year the british dont believe in miracles and work hard to achieve it.

I do circuit training interspersed with sessions of brutal cardio, routines, as crazy as over a treadmill without a motor. That part is a torture I love yoga and its what I used to do normally. However, the hard training has been a big difference in my life, admits Kate. The moral that is drawn from the new approach fitness of the star is to get a few measurements sculptural that challenge -and overcome the passage of time, the sweat t-shirt is not only recommended, but obligatory: I wake up, I take the breakfast and after workout.

In fact, your account of Instagram acts as a witness of the spartan training sessions to which it is subjected the interpreter, and also what it is that you enjoy yoga in your day-to-day, a discipline known for its ability to control the levels of stress that combines physical exercise with meditation: Sports is basically a natural antidepressant, ensures. Dr. Reed, a pediatrician and contributor to HELLO!, corroborated when explains to overcome episodes of stress to make physical exercise an intense, sometimes grueling, practice a sport and compete are appropriate activities.

To finish, the food plays an essential role if you want to achieve effective results. The interpreter knows that and, although in his day declared himself a vegetarian, has evolved to include chicken and fish in your diet, relying on vegetables and salads to accompany your dishes, and avoid alcohol at all costs even when she attends social events. A style of life with physical care as one of the fundamental pillars and head of the actress is kept equal to that of twenty years ago.

Read this article:
Flat belly 45 with the training and diet of Kate Beckinsale - Play Crazy Game

In 2015, it all came together. Tim Betar, aka TimTheTatman, was able quit his day job and transition to playing video games for a living.

To be fair, he wasnt just playing the gameshe was streaming them, usually for tens of thousands of fans, providing a running commentary of his exploits. His streams began in earnest in 2012, but those first years werent as lucrative, and they required some expert-level time management. (He estimates he was working 70-plus hour weeks between his normal job and his streaming.) After making the switch to gaming full-time, TimTheTatman amassed more and more and more followers across platforms; his meteoric rise timed out perfectly with the meteoric rise of Twitch, the go-to streaming service for gamers and, really, anyone doing anything. He now has millions of followers across platforms.

Theres no guide on how to stream video games for a living, nor is it easy to work from home every day, as many are learning during the COVID-19 crisis. Over the last handful of years, Tim has experienced his own ups and downs as hes establishedand then attempted to maintaina healthy lifestyle while also staring at a screen all day. Mostly, he makes sure to always leave the house in the morning for a Starbucks coffee run.

GQ called up TimTheTatman, whos currently streaming lots of Call of Duty: Warzone, to talk about working from home without losing your mind (relatable!), and how he feels healthier than ever after an on-again, off-again weight-loss journey.

GQ: How did you figure out a healthy structure as you progressed to streaming for hours and hours every day?

TimTheTatman: When I was working a full-time job and doing this on the side, I was basically working like 70 hours a week. I was younger and didnt have a ton of obligations, so it was doable. Once I started streaming full-time, I had to change that. Ive always been a big advocate of streamers taking a couple days off. I always make sure I can take like, two days a week to relax and reset. Not many streamers do that, surprisingly. A lot of them are younger, and play and play and playI get it to an extent, because I used to do that too.

Do you have any sort of working-at-home rituals based around your streaming schedule? I think lots of people are trying to figure out their working-at-home rituals right now.

I have a daily regimen, especially for when I wake up. Before the pandemic happened, I would go to Starbucks and grab my coffee, almost like my own little work commute, even though Im just going to get coffee and then going back home [laughs]. It is pretty easy to sit in your bed all day, but Im a new father, so thats basically impossible for me, since my son wakes me up every day. Ill get up and have my routine with him now.

So you have to force yourself into a routine a bit?

Yeah, totally. When I first started doing this, it was really easy to be like, Im just going to sleep in. Whos gonna tell me otherwise? I was and am my own boss. I really had to force myself into forming habits around my day, which made things a lot better.

Do you have anything that you do to separate your job from your daily life when youre working from home? Theres got to be some sort of mental switch that you flip when you go from streaming for lots of people to relaxing, right?

Before I had this job, I would go to work and come home to play games to relax. So sometimes Ill play games on streams for the majority of the day, and then to wind down, Ill sit back and play some more games at night [laughs]. My audience really loves first-person shooters and battle royales, games that are more fast-paced. They dont like World of Warcraft or similar games as much since theyre more low-key. Sometimes at night, Ill finish streaming for eight hours, and be like, Alright, see ya guys later! Ill put my son to bed, and then play some World of Warcraft. Its kind of hard to explain to my wife and difficult to justify in general.

See original here:
The Real-Life Diet of TimTheTatman, Who's Intermittent Fasting and Trying to Stay Healthy - GQ