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Blood sugar spikes linked to higher risk of Alzheimer's disease
A new study led by researchers from the University of Liverpool has found that spikes in blood sugar after meals may increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Whilst research has long suggested that hyperglycaemia, diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus and insulin resistance strongly relate to worse brain health, specifically increasing the risk of cognitive decline and dementias, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood.
However, the results of this study found that people with higher post-meal blood sugar (postprandial hyperglycaemia) had a 69% greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.
Experts express concerns over the health and environmental impacts of the new US Dietary Recommendations
The new food pyramid introduced in US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans places animal-based proteins, high in saturated fats, above plant-based proteins, raising alarm bells among health and environmental experts.
This reconfigured food pyramid is in line with Kennedy’s previous messaging that he will recommend increasing saturated fat in US diets as part of the “Make America healthy again” movement.
However, experts were pleased with some guidelines, such as the emphasis on eating protein and minimally processed foods, while reducing sugar.
Cancer charity to expand nutrition lessons after trial cut NHS waiting lists
Many people with cancer find that the disease or their treatment changes the taste of their food, dulls their appetite or leads to them losing weight.
Maggie’s cancer centres have been advising patients about food in a partnership with the Royal Marsden NHS foundation trust in London since 2020. It plans to extend its dietary support to anyone attending its 27 centres in Great Britain.
This is amid growing awareness of how good nutrition can help cancer patients cope with and recover from the disease and the effects of chemotherapy or radiotherapy.
Scientists have engineered a new sugar they claim tastes like the real deal without so many downsides
Scientists at Tufts have found a way to turn common glucose into a rare sugar they say tastes almost exactly like table sugar, but with fewer downsides.
Using engineered bacteria as microscopic factories, the team can now produce the sugar, called tagatose, efficiently and cheaply, achieving yields much higher than current methods.
Tagatose delivers nearly the same sweetness as sugar with significantly fewer calories, minimal impact on blood sugar and even potential benefits for oral and gut health
NHS releases guidance on wrap-around care for the use of Mounjaro in primary care
When Mounjaro is prescribed for weight management, the NICE Technology Appraisal TA1026 and MHRA product licence confirm that structured wraparound care is a required treatment component.
The new information is structured into:
Essential elements of wraparound care
Dual-approach delivery
Appendix: Clinical and behavioural support – roles and responsibilities
Further resources
People who come off slimming jabs may regain weight four times faster than dieters
In a recent systematic review and meta-analysis, researchers found that people who came off weight-loss injections regained their lost weight four times faster than those who stopped conventional dieting and exercising.
The research, published in the British Medical Journal, suggests overweight people shed large amounts when using weight loss jabs (about a fifth of their body weight) but once they quit, regain 0.8 kg every month on average. That means they tend to return to their pre-treatment weight in a year and a half.
This evidence cautions against short-term use, emphasises the need for further research into cost-effective strategies for long-term weight control, and reinforces the importance of primary prevention.
The government has been urged to make nutrition labels on the front of food packaging mandatory
Which? called on the Government to make the change after research by the group found shoppers prefer traffic light labelling.
According to Which?, the system is used inconsistently. It claims some shops don't include traffic light labelling, or provide it without colour coding.
In the research, shoppers also said these labels could be better with more prominent placement and increased size, suggesting that with improvement, they could be even more helpful.
Traffic light labelling on food packaging was introduced in 2013. The system is not currently mandatory in the UK, although it is voluntarily used by major manufacturers and retailers.
Three NHS trusts still using fax machines, Streeting confesses
Health Secretary Wes Streeting had made it his personal mission to banish the fax, pledging to Radio 5 Live in October 2024 that he would phase them out of the health service within a year.
Now he has returned with an update. Streeting has told the BBC he is now working to move away from the outdated technology with three institutions - Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust and Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust.
This follows after Conservative health secretary Matt Hancock banned the NHS from buying new faxes in December 2018 and ordered a complete phase-out by April 2020.