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Health Officials Issue Revised Pregnancy Weight-Gain Guidelines For Obese Women
The Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council on Thursday issued revised U.S. weight-gain guidelines for obese pregnant women, in response to rising levels of obesity in the country and growing evidence that weight gain can cause health problems for women and their infants, the New York Times reports. The revision, which is the first since 1990, recommends that obese women -- those with a body mass index of 30 or more -- limit their weight gain to 11 to 20 pounds over nine months. The 1990 pregnancy guidelines did not specifically address weight gain for obese women, telling them instead to follow the recommendations for overweight women. According to health officials, the changes to the recommendations for obese women were required to keep up with the changing weight patterns among women in the U.S. The New York Times reports that about 27% of women of childbearing age are considered obese, while 55% fall into the categories of overweight or obese.The recommendations for women with BMIs of less than 30 did not change. They call for overweight women -- those with a BMI of 25 to 29.9 -- to gain 15 to 25 pounds over nine months, while underweight women -- with BMIs of less than 18.5 -- should gain 28 to 40 pounds, and normal-weight women -- with BMIs of 18.6 to 24.9 -- should gain 25 to 35 pounds (Parker-Pope, New York Times, 5/29).Time reports that pregnant women who do not gain enough weight face a higher risk of stunted fetal growth and preterm delivery. However, it is more common for women to gain too much weight, placing them at higher risk for conditions like gestational diabetes and high blood pressure. In addition, their infants are at increased risk of being born earlier, larger and by cesarean section. Time reports that excessive weight gain can increase a woman"s risk of postpartum obesity and elevate risks of heart disease and stroke because most women do not lose extra pounds gained during pregnancy. Many studies also have suggested that a woman"s gestational weight can predict potential weight problems in her offspring (Kingsbury, Time, 5/28).The committee that developed and issued the revision said that the existing guidelines were essentially on target but that women and their physicians need to work harder to help women reach a normal weight before pregnancy and avoid gaining too much weight during pregnancy, according to the Los Angeles Times (Roan, Los Angeles Times, 5/29). The guidelines also recommend more nutrition and exercise counseling during pregnancy, advising physicians or midwives to consult dieticians to shape a woman"s care regardless of her initial weight, the AP/Yahoo! News reports (Neergaard, AP/Yahoo! News, 5/28). The Los Angeles Times reports that health care professionals are expected to recognize and implement some of the recommendations; however, it is not mandatory to do so.Several experts on maternal obesity and child health expressed disappointment with the guidelines, arguing that obese women should gain little to no weight during pregnancy, according to the Los Angeles Times. They also argue the new guidelines do not do enough to address obesity before pregnancy. Maxine Hayes, state health officer for the Washington State Department of Health, said, "If we wait for every woman to be advised about weight gain after they become pregnant, it"s too late. It puts women and their babies on a trajectory that is unhealthy" (Los Angeles Times, 5/29).
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Cancer Research UK Aims For Positive End To 'Bad Day'
THIS month, Cancer Research UK is set to unveil a brand new national television ad campaign to raise awareness and increase donations for vital research into cancer.
News of the day
DFG Establishes Nine New Collaborative Research Centers
Effective 1 July 2009, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) will establish nine new Collaborative Research Centres. This decision has just been made by the responsible Grants Committee of the DFG at its spring session in Bonn. The new centres will initially be funded for four years with a total of 73.6 million euros. In addition to this, the DFG will also provide 20 percent overhead funding for each centre for indirect costs incurred by the research projects.
Nutrition

Cooking Carrots Whole Preserves More Anti-Cancer Properties, Study

A new study by UK scientists showed that cooking carrots whole preserves their anti-cancer properties better than cooking them sliced or diced. The study was the work Dr Kirsten Brandt and researcher Ahlam Rashed at the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne and is being presented today at the NutrEvent nutrition and health conference that is taking place in Lille, France. Brandt and colleagues found that carrots boiled before cutting had 25 per cent more of the anti-cancer chemical falcarinol than those that were cut up before boiling. They also found uncut cooked carrots had higher concentrations of the naturally occurring sugars that give them their distinctive flavour. Brandt, who is based at the School of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development and the Human Nutrition Research Centre at Newcastle University said that: "Chopping up your carrots increases the surface area so more of the nutrients leach out into the water while they are being cooked." "By cooking them whole and chopping them up afterwards you are locking in both taste and nutrients so the carrot is better for you all round," she added. Working with colleagues at the University of Southern Denmark, Brandt and her team at Newcastle discovered the health properites of falcarinol in carrots four years ago. They showed that feeding rats a diet containing either raw carrots or isolated falcarinol reduced their risk of developing tumors by one third compared with rats in a control group. Since then the researchers have been looking at the health benefits of raw and cooked carrots, comparing different varieties of the vegetable, and how their properties change with heat. They found that cooking a carrot kills its cells so they can"t hold water and this increases the concentration of falcarinol. But heat also softens the walls of the cells so sugar, vitamin C and other compounds such as falcarinol leach out more readily. Cutting the carrot into pieces before boiling increases the surface area which allows more of the nutrients to leach out of the cell walls into the boiling water. The scientists also asked 100 people to wear a blindfold and compare the taste of carrots that had been cut before cooking and carrots that had been cut after cooking. More than 80 per cent said the carrots that were cut after cooking tasted better. Brandt said: We all want to try to improve our health and diet by getting the right nutrients and eating our five-a-day." "All you need is a bigger saucepan," she added. However, while the taste trial may have shown an overwhelming vote in favour of cutting after boiling, some experts are not convinced that whether you cut them before or after cooking has any effect on the anti-cancer properties of carrots. Dr Kat Arney, of the charity Cancer Research UK told BBC News that it was eating a healthy balanced diet "rich in a range of fruit and vegetables" that mattered most in reducing cancer risk, and not any one food in particular. s: Newcastle University, BBC News. Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD Copyright: Medical News Today Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today


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