Latest news with #health risks
Vogue
a day ago
- Health
- Vogue
4 Foods to Eat Before a Run
If you run, you've probably experienced occasional digestive discomfort. At best, this annoying little side effect can limit your performance. At worst, it can become so intolerable that it forces you to abandon your run altogether. In severe cases, it can even present health risks. 'Gastrointestinal problems are common, especially in endurance athletes, and often impair performance or subsequent recovery,' notes an analysis published in Sports Med. 'Generally, studies suggest that 30–50% of athletes experience such complaints.' No fun at all. Luckily, there are certain foods that can help mitigate the effect—and optimize your performance. Read on to find out exactly what you should be eating before you hit the road for max results. Running and digestion Here's what's going on to cause the upset: When the body exerts physical effort, it redirects blood to the muscles in order to supply them with as much oxygen as possible. This redistribution reduces blood flow to the digestive system, disrupting its function. This can happen during any intense physical activity, and is the reason that most of us were told not to swim right after eating as children. But running is also a high-impact sport, which creates a bit of a double whammy—literally. Each step against the ground results in a shockwave of vibrations that travels up the legs to the body's digestive organs, creating discomfort and cramping. The role of diet and timing Nutrition is the cornerstone of fitness—and for runners, timing is everything. To give the body adequate time to digest before a run, here's a good rule of thumb: Wait two to three hours after a meal, and 30-60 minutes after a snack. Avoid foods that are high in fat, protein, and fiber—all of which are extra difficult and time-consuming to digest. Just as some foods can make digestion difficult before a run, other foods can optimize energy and boost performance. A good pre-run meal or snack should include easy-to-digest carbohydrates to support the body and boost performance, as well as protein to help stabilize blood sugar. 'Appropriate nutritional choices can reduce the risk of gastrointestinal discomfort during exercise by ensuring rapid gastric emptying and the absorption of water and nutrients and by maintaining adequate perfusion of the splanchnic vasculature [abdominal nerves],' the aforementioned review notes.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Artificial sweetener in Diet Coke and chewing gum could trigger early puberty
Children who consume artificial sweeteners found in Diet Coke and chewing gum may be at higher risk of reaching puberty earlier, researchers have said. Commonly-used sweeteners including aspartame, which are also added to light yogurts as a sugar alternative, have long been linked to certain cancers and heart issues. But now, Taiwanese experts have found high levels of the additives could also trigger central precocious puberty where the first signs of puberty emerge far earlier than normal, typically before the age of eight in girls and nine in boys. Higher consumption of 'added sugars', meaning those above the natural content of a food or drink item, was also linked with an earlier puberty. Experts said the study, which was one of the first of its kind, showed how sweeteners had a 'surprising and powerful impact' on children's development. Previous studies have warned that starting puberty at a very young age may increase the risk of other health conditions including depression, diabetes and cancers. Dr Yang-Ching Chen, is a co-author of the study, and an expert in nutrition and health sciences at Taipei Medical University She said: 'This study is one of the first to connect modern dietary habits - specifically sweetener intake - with both genetic factors and early puberty development in a large, real-world cohort. 'It also highlights gender differences in how sweeteners affect boys and girls, adding an important layer to our understanding of individualized health risks.' In the study, the scientists assessed 1,407 Taiwanese teens, who answered diet questionnaires and took urine tests, and discovered 481 had undergone early puberty. They found the artificial sweetener sucralose showed a stronger link with early puberty in boys, while aspartame, glycyrrhizin and regular added sugars showed a stronger link in girls. Experts also found the risk was most pronounced in those who already had a genetic predisposition towards an earlier puberty. The study was presented at ENDO 2025, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in San Francisco, and has yet to be published in full. But common limitations of diet studies include the fact eating habits are often self-reported. Sucralose is made from normal sucrose table sugar but is chemically altered so the body doesn't process it as a carbohydrate, meaning that it contains no calories. It is the main ingredient in the Canderel sweetener. Glycyrrhizin, on the other hand, comes from liquorice roots and is a natural sweetener. Previous research from the same team found that some sweeteners can affect the release of puberty-related hormones. They said the chemicals were having this effect by influencing the function of cells in the brain or by altering the make-up of bacteria in the gut. Concerns about the impact artificial sweeteners, which are added a plethora of products to make them TAST sweet with fewer calories, could be having health, including its cardiovascular impact, have circulated for years. But critics highlight such studies are only observational, meaning they are unable to prove artificial sweeteners are the culprit and cannot rule out other external factors being to blame. Fears have also been raised about links between artificial sweeteners and cancer. These worries were heightened in 2023 after the World Health Organisation controversially classified the artificial sweetener aspartame, found in drinks like Diet Coke, as 'possibly carcinogenic to humans'. However, the UN agency ruled it only posed a risk to those who consumed massive amounts and that a 155lb adult could safely drink about 14 cans a day. A growing body of research also suggests that girls who go through puberty at earlier ages could be at risk for health issues later in life. One 2023 U.S. study found that girls who started their period before the age of 13 were at a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and suffering strokes in adulthood than their peers who began menstruating later. Another found that girls who started their periods at early ages were at an increased risk of breast cancer. Experts have put the surge in girls starting puberty younger down to the ongoing obesity crisis, with fat cells containing hormonal properties triggering puberty at a younger age.
CBC
5 days ago
- Health
- CBC
Researcher says N.W.T. officials taking right steps after school lead investigation
A health professor who studies lead exposure in Canada says he's confident that the N.W.T. government is responding appropriately to a recent investigation into lead in the drinking water at two Yellowknife schools — and that the priority must be to reduce any ongoing risks. Earlier this week the N.W.T.'s education minister said her department is committed to implementing the recommendations made by an independent investigator who looked into how the territory responded to the discovery of lead in drinking water at École William McDonald Middle School and Range Lake North School. Bruce Lanphear is a professor in the department of health sciences at Simon Fraser University whose research focuses on toxic chemicals and children's health. He said Yellowknife school officials reached out to him to talk about the investigation and he spoke with them on Tuesday. "What I came away with from my meeting this morning was that they are taking all the necessary steps," Lanphear said on Tuesday afternoon. "They've got a longer-term strategy to make sure that all the sources are mitigated, and that's really what we want them to do now." In a statement this week, Education Minister Caitlin Cleveland said the investigation confirmed "warning signs were missed, key test results weren't escalated quickly enough and communication between departments and with the public was inconsistent." Lanphear acknowledged the public concern around the issue. "Parents are understandably concerned, understandably angry… This should have been dealt with 20 years ago," he said. Based on the lead levels detected at the Yellowknife schools, Lanphear agrees with the N.W.T.'s chief public health officer that blood lead levels in students and staff would likely not be above the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's level of concern, which is 3.5 micrograms per decilitre (µg/dL) for children. However, Lanphear said even low-level exposure to lead can have effects. Health Canada also says that health effects have been associated with blood lead levels as low as 1 to 2 μg/dL, though it acknowledges "uncertainty associated with effects observed at these levels." Lanphear says another group at higher risk from lead exposure is pregnant women. His research has found that blood lead levels of 1 μg/dL were associated with a 50 per cent increase in preterm birth. He says blood testing can be done but there's nothing to do in response to elevated blood lead levels other than reducing further exposure. "The main thing is to stop it from continuing to happen," he said. Past and future testing In 2019, Health Canada updated its guideline for lead in drinking water — cutting the acceptable concentration of the metal in half, from 10 µg/L to 5 µg/L. The N.W.T. government was looking into doing its own testing for lead in school water around the same time, but plans for that testing fell through. Agata Gutkowska, manager of public affairs and communications for the territory's environment department, says it came down to costs. "At the time, the water testing program included elements beyond lead. This broader scope increased the overall estimated cost — exceeding $100,000 — which contributed to the decision not to proceed at that time," said Gutkowska. The N.W.T. government has committed to annual testing of school water going forward, but the cost of that is still being determined. Gutkowska said the cost will depend on things like the number of water outlets and where a school is located. She said the goal is to develop a program that is sustainable for the long term. The program scope will be determined by a steering committee made up of senior officials from the territory's health, environment, and infrastructure departments, as well as YK Education District No. 1. Gutkowski said some operational staff who were involved in the initial testing initiative will continue to support future work. "As the program is formalized under the oversight of the steering committee, roles and responsibilities are being clarified to support a more structured and sustainable approach." Future testing will take place at schools across the territory including St. Patrick High School in Yellowknife, which was flagged for retesting since its results were below, but close to, the maximum acceptable level for lead in drinking water.
