Low carbohydrate diets are currently being promoted as an effective treatment for weight reduction. The most popular, the Atkins’ diet, is a worldwide bestseller with over 10 million book copies sold (the earliest being Dr Atkins’ New Diet Revolution). Two randomised clinical trials in obese patients have shown effective weight loss at six months on the Atkins’ diet compared with a low fat calo...

BACKGROUND Neuropeptide Y is a key peptide affecting adiposity and has been related to obesity risk. However, little is known about the role of NPY variations in diet-induced change in adiposity. OBJECTIVE The objective was to examine the effects of NPY variant rs16147 on central obesity and abdominal fat distribution in response to dietary interventions. DESIGN We genotyped a functional NP...

The aim of this study was to assess whether the recently developed Diet Quality Index-International (DQI-I) was useful to evaluate the diet quality of a young Mediterranean population. A cross-sectional nutritional survey was carried out in southern Spain (Granada-Andalucia) from 2002 to 2005. Dietary information (24 h recall and FFQ) and socio-demographic and lifestyle data were collected from...

The National Weight Control Registry (NWCR) consists of over 4800 individuals who have been successful in long-term weight loss maintenance. The purpose of establishing the NWCR was to identify the common characteristics of those who succeed in long-term weight loss maintenance. We found very little similarity in how these individuals lost weight but some common behaviors in how they are keepin...

OBJECTIVE This study investigated the associations of nutrition concerns, demographics, universalism (community oriented) values, perceived control over personal health and food buying, and perceived influence over the food system with intentions to purchase low fat, sugar and salt (LFSS) food products. METHODS A national online survey of 2204 Australian consumers administered in November 201...

Potassium is an essential element of living organisms that is found almost exclusively in the intracellular fluid compartment. The assumed constant ratio of total body potassium (TBK) to fat-free mass (FFM) is a cornerstone of the TBK method of estimating total body fat. Although the TBK-to-FFM (TBK/FFM) ratio has been assumed constant, a large range of individual and group values is recognized...

PURPOSE To compare the physical fitness levels of recruits entering the U.S. Army in 1998 to those entering in 1978 and 1983. METHODS In 1998, 182 men and 168 women were tested before beginning basic training at Fort Jackson, SC. The measurements were 1) skin-fold estimation of percent body fat (%BF); 2) maximum oxygen uptake by treadmill running (VO2max); and 3) upper-body (UB), lower-body (...