Diet

Scientists at Germany’s University Hospital Bonn have turned their attention to salt's impacts on the human immune system, finding that a diet too heavy on sodium chloride can “significantly weaken” our natural defenses against bacterial infections.

Researchers have discovered how intermittent fasting influences metabolic pathways in the liver, offering insights into how fasting can confer certain health benefits and hypothesizing specific drugs could mimic these effects without needing to fast.

According to some studies, people who are overweight or obese are at an increased risk of cognitive decline in old age. There may be hope, however, as a new study suggests that eating an avocado each day may help such folks maintain mental focus.

A study is suggesting low-calorie sweeteners can disrupt metabolic processes, but only when consumed with carbohydrates. The research hopes to reconcile conflicting studies investigating links between low-calorie sweeteners and metabolic disorders.

Two new studies are offering insights into diet, gut bacteria, and health. One finds a Mediterranean diet can reconfigure gut bacteria to promote healthy aging, while another finds gut bacteria producing a metabolite that increases heart disease risk.

A study is suggesting people with high self-control regarding what they eat are likely to consume more food if they touch it directly with their hands. The findings reveal food can taste better when we touch it as opposed to eating it with utensils.

A study is suggesting alterations to a dairy cow’s diet can result in milk lower in saturated fat and a clinical trial in humans demonstrates these natural “healthier” dairy products may lead to positive heart health effects.

A new study from Yale University is suggesting the popular ketogenic diet may be only beneficial in short doses. The results from a mouse study reveal the initial metabolic and weight loss benefits from the diet may shift to harmful in the long-term.

A new study has examined the relationship between telomere length and intake of milk with different fat concentrations, suggesting there is a link between consumption of low-fat variants and longer telomeres that can equate to several years of aging.

Researchers may have found a way to reduce the amount of fat absorbed by the body. Mixing food with specially engineered tiny silica particles has been seen to reduce the body's energy absorption of high-fat foods, and human trials are now underway.

The autoimmune disorder celiac disease is thought to result largely from genetic predisposition, but environmental factors also play a part. Now, researchers have found evidence that exposure to certain bacteria may be one of these external factors.

A new review article has examined an array of current research on intermittent fasting, from animal studies to human clinical trials, clarifying different regimes while outlining a variety of health benefits the eating strategies can confer in humans.