Adults referred to the commercial weight loss programme Weight Watchers shed twice as much weight as people who received standard care over a 12-month period, according to a study published Thursday. In clinical trials, researchers led by Susan Jebb of the UK Medical Research Council assessed 772 overweight and obese adults in Australia, Germany, and Britain. About half the patients received a year's standard care, while the other half were given … full story

NEW YORK: Anybody who's smoked marijuana knows about "the munchies," that desire to eat everything within reach. But a study from France has found that, surprisingly, pot smokers are actually less likely than non-smokers to pack on weight. Using data covering more than 50,000 U.S. adults, researchers headed by Yann Le Strat, a psychiatrist at the Louis-Mourier Hospital in Colombes, France, found that roughly 14 percent to 17 percent of the people … full story

Some brain cells are naturally protected against a stroke – and now we know why. Jack Mellor at the University of Bristol, UK, exposed slices of rats' hippocampi to the low-oxygen conditions typical of a stroke. Neurons in the hippocampi known to resist stroke damage acted differently from a population of vulnerable cells: they removed receptors for the neurotransmitter glutamate from their cell surface, reducing their sensitivity to the chemical. … full story

Something as simple as sitting for long periods in one posture daily is fraught with grave risks, especially for women. Such women are two to three times more likely to develop a life-threatening blood clot in their lungs than more active women, according to a new study. This is the first study to prove that a sedentary lifestyle increases your risk of developing a pulmonary embolism – a common cause of heart disease. Pulmonary embolism develops … full story

Liposuction if fraught with unwanted consequences that can turn other parts of a patient’s body fatter. Even as the fat will not return to the areas of the body where it was removed from, usually the thighs, lower abdomen and buttocks, it will reappear elsewhere, typically around the shoulders, arms and upper abdomen, according to US researchers, the Daily Mail reports. Liposuction is a simple but crude surgical process which literally sucks the … full story

Patients with HIV infection without a prior history of coronary heart disease may be at a higher risk of developing heart failure. “Heavy alcohol consumption, which is more prevalent among HIV-infected people, is also an established risk factor for heart failure,” the study authors write. Adeel A. Butt from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and colleagues analyzed data from HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected veterans enrolled in the … full story

Carrots can halt the progression of breast cancer in the early stages of the disease, a study says. The retinoic acid, which is contained in carrot, also rejuvenates the skin and a weak version of it is used in anti-wrinkle face creams, express.co.uk reported. The study has shown that retinoic acid reverses early changes in cells that lead to breast cancer. The chemical affects cell growth, proliferation and survival. The results were presented … full story

Consuming food items rich in fibre, like fruits, vegetables and whole-grain products, especially as a young adult, is likely to confer a lifetime of protection against heart risk, researchers say. A new study found that adults aged between 20 and 59 years with the highest fibre intake had a significantly lower estimated lifetime risk for heart disease compared to those with the lowest fibre intake. This is the first known study to show the influence … full story

Children born to pregnant women who have been smoking in the first three months of their pregnancy may suffer from heart defects, a study has found. The study conducted by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has found that women who smoke in the first trimester face a 20 to 70 percent greater likelihood that a baby would be born with congenital heart defects. Congenital heart defects are the most common type of birth defects, … full story

Boys seem to get a greater kick out of caffeine than girls, according to the results of a double-blind study. Boys also credited caffeine with having a positive effect on their athletic performance, not so girls. The study, conducted by Jennifer L. Temple, neurobiologist and assistant professor of nutrition sciences at the University at Buffalo in the US, is the first to show how genders respond to caffeine consumption. “We are hoping that our … full story