Trans fats, those partially hydrogenated oils that raise bad cholesterol, are no longer popular with restaurants and supermarkets, a new study says. Read the full story

As childhood obesity rates continue to rise nationwide, one northern California county has taken action by banning toy giveaways with fast food meals for kids. Read the full story

Calorie counts will soon be listed on fast food menus throughout the country.  The change comes as a result of the fight against obesity and was included in the health care bill passed earlier this month. Read the full story

Junk food alters the brain’s chemistry much like heroine or cocaine, according to a new study, meaning high-fat fare may be just as addictive. Read the full story

Two new studies indicate that food manufacturers are using the same marketing strategies as the tobacco industry once did to get consumers hooked on unhealthy products. Read the full story

Fast Food is Fun!

In 2001, the National Health Interview Survey in Taiwan examined the level of happiness of more than 2300 children ages 2-12, then correlated this data with the amount of junk food the children ate.  The kids ate french fries, pizza and hamburgers, washed down by plenty of soda and other sugary drinks, and, unsurprisingly, got fat as a result: 25% of the kids in the survey sample were overweight or obese.

What was a surprise was how little the extra weight mattered to them. Only 19% of the children surveyed reported feeling unhappy, sad or depressed.

The survey was the subject of a recent study led by doctors at National Taiwan University and the University of Arkansas. The results of their study, which were published in the Journal of Happiness Studies found that children who ate fast-food and drank soft drinks were more likely to be overweight, but they were also less likely to be miserable about it.

Although the authors of the study offered no opinion on why a Happy Meal really can make kids happy, they did opine that programs aimed at tackling childhood obesity are more likely to work if they aim to replace the fun of eating tasty junk food with other kinds of fun.

Get the latest updates on research related to the treatment of obesity and related health issues, and lifestyle tips for keeping the pounds off post-op, each week on WLS News!

In the February 27, 2009, edition of WLS News, we’ll look at the relationship between belly fat and migraines, report on how junk food is affecting our teens’ health, and check on the up-sizing of kids’ clothing as a result of rising childhood obesity rates. We’ll also find out which foods can keep your liver healthy, and new research linking obesity during pregnancy with increased birth defects. Plus, WLS Journeys host Yvonne McCarthy will report in with one of her favorite websites for WLS information and support. Click below to tune into this week’s newscast!

Organizations mentioned in this week’s news:

• Migraine Research Foundation
  
• Drexel University College of Medicine
  
• National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey
  
• University of Barcelona
  
• Beth Zuber-Beckwith (Registered Dietician)
• UCLA Center for Health Policy Research
• California Health Interview Survey
• Fruit & Veggies Matter (CDC website)
• The Skinny Online (WLS blog by Lisa Sargese)
• Bariatric Girl (Yvonne McCarthy’s WLS support site)
• Journal of the American Medical Association
• Newcastle University (United Kingdom)
• National Childrenswear Survey
• Select Research (U.K. research agency)
• Bariatric Advantage (nutritional supplements)

Fast Food Format Failure for Fitness

Here’s a shocker…kids tend to eat what their parents eat. A crack team of researchers at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research has determined that teens are more likely to eat a healthy diet if their parents do. On the other hand, kids whose elders favor a fast food diet are more likely to be junk food junkies themselves.

According to the California Health Interview Survey – a recent quiz of thousands of California teenagers – 43% of West Coast teens eat fast food every day, but only 38% eat their “daily five” – which are the five or more daily servings of fruits and vegetables that nutritionists recommend.
Researchers admit that the zillions of fast food restaurants in Southern California help lure many youngsters away from a healthy diet – but they say that parents can counter the siren song of hamburger-hawking clowns and fried-fish pirates by setting a good dietary example for their kids.
In short:  parents should eat the things they want their kids to eat, and avoid stuff they want their kids to avoid.

Modeling healthy eating habits, and giving them increased access to fruits, vegetables and other healthy fare, can go a long way toward helping teens make smarter food choices themselves.