Fitness Factoids: Volume 24
Marijuana May Lowe
r The Risk Of Diabetes
New research published in the American Journal of Medicine has found that marijuana may have a number of health benefits that haven’t been previously explored. The latest research was conducted by a team at the Harvard Medical School who found that marijuana appears to have the ability to control blood sugar. The study tracked 4,600 men and women from 2005-2010 and found that marijuana users had 16% lower levels of fasting insulin compared to non-users. Marijuana users also had higher levels of HDL cholesterol and on average had a 1.5in smaller waist than former users or non-users.
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/05/23/health/time-marijuana-diabetes/index.html?iid=article_sidebar
Gluten Free Di
ets Reduce Weight And Fat Gain
According to a study published in The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry eliminating gluten from our diets can reduce weight and fat gain without reducing calories. The study was conducted by the department of Biochemistry and Immunology of Minas Gerais Federal University in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. In the study researchers split mice into two groups; group one ate a high fat diet that also contained 4.5% gluten, while group two ate a diet of the same caloric value, but their diets did not contain gluten. After examining the data researchers concluded that the group of mice who did not eat gluten had lower bodyweight, lower fat mass, and improved glucose metabolism.
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/355712
EPA Improves Ins
ulin Sensitivity And Blood Glucose Levels
A new study published in The Singapore Medical Journal has found that the omega-3 fatty acid EPA has the ability to improve insulin sensitivity and lower blood glucose levels in diabetics. A research team from Tehran University of Medical Sciences placed 26 men and 41 women who all had diabetes on either 2000mg of EPA, or a corn oil placebo for twelve weeks. Prior to beginning the study blood samples were taken to analyze hemoglobin A1c, fasting plasma glucose, and fasting serum insulin. At the conclusion of the study new samples were taken which revealed an 11% decrease in plasma glucose, an 8% decrease in hemoglobin, and a 3% reduction in serum insulin for the group that received EPA. Researchers speculate that the anti-inflammatory effects of omega -3 fatty acids may be the cause of the improved insulin sensitivity.
Sleep Deprivation Linked to Cravings
A study published in the journal Nature Communications shows the impact that getting a good night’s sleep can have on our decision making the following day. Researchers at UC Berkley scanned the brains of 23 participants after a normal healthy night’s sleep, and then scanned them again after a night of restless sleep. They found that sleep deprived brains show impaired activity in the frontal lobe, the area that regulates complex decision making, and an increase in centers of the brain that respond to rewards. "What we have discovered is that high-level brain regions required for complex judgments and decisions become blunted by a lack of sleep, while more primal brain structures that control motivation and desire are amplified," said Matthew Walker, a UC Berkeley professor.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130806145542.htm
Chocolate Improves 
Blood Flow To The Brain
Harvard Medical School recently conducted a study that was published in the journal Neurology in which they tested the effect that consuming flavonol rich chocolates had on the brain. The study was comprised of 60 elderly participants who had previously been diagnosed with impaired blood flow to the brain. The participants were then split into two groups. Group one drank two cups of antioxidant flavonol rich hot cocoa per day, and the other group drank two cups of cocoa that contained low levels of flavonols. After thirty days researchers found that both groups had an 8.3% increases in blood flow to the brain. Researchers noted that memory and thinking skills are linked to blood flow to different areas of the brain, a process known as neurovascular coupling. This study suggests that chocolate’s benefits to improving blood flow to the brain are irrelevant to its flavonol content.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/07/chocolate-brain-blood-flow-thinking-skills_n_3721880.html
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