With age and conditions such as heart failure, it's not uncommon for individuals to experience muscle wasting. Physical activity appears to be key to reversing that trend while also reducing inflammation. Researchers found that regardless of age, patients who exercised more experienced less muscle wasting as their bodies became conditioned to handle more physical activity. Exercise regularly to slow muscle wasting. Stephan Gielen , MD, lead co-author and deputy director of cardiology at the University Hospital at Martin-Luther-University of Halle in Germany, said that many docto...

Of course you adore your adorably chubby little toddler, but you do know how much of that chubbiness is normal or whether your child might actually be overweight? Many moms don't. A recent study found that the vast majority of mothers whose toddlers were overweight had a different perception of their little ones and could not correctly identify an image representing their baby's body size. Ask your doctor if your toddler is a healthy weight. Erin Hager, PhD, of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, led the study of 281 pairs of moms and their toddlers, with an average a...

When it comes to feeding babies, it's not just what you feed your child but how you feed your child. Even breastmilk in a bottle affects weight gain differently than milk directly from the breast. A recent study has found that infants fed only by bottle gained more weight each month than if they were only breastfed, regardless of whether the bottle had breastmilk or another food. Breastfeeding is better than bottle - when possible. Lead author Ruowei Li, PhD, a researcher at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesi...

The electronic babysitter may do more than keep your child occupied. Too much TV watching may also be contributing to your child's unhealthy eating habits. A recent study found a link between the amount of TV a child watches and a higher likelihood of having poor eating habits, like skipping breakfast, eating sweets or fast foods, or drinking more sweetened drinks. Give your child healthy options for TV snacking. Leah Lipsky , PhD, and Ronald Iannotti , PhD, of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in Bethesda, Md . studied patterns ...

Though most recommended nutrients for pregnant women are included in prenatal vitamins, others should be gained through diet, such as the nutrient choline . A recent study reveals that a higher intake of choline during the last part of a woman's pregnancy reduces their baby's stress levels, and this reduction, along with other changes noted, may play a part in reducing later disease risk. Eat plenty of vegetables and protein foods during your pregnancy. Marie Caudill , an associate professor of nutritional sciences at Cornell University, and Cornell graduate student Xinyin Jian...

Changing characteristics of people in the last century in the western world have had some unlikely effects. Rising levels of gastric cancer, for example, caused one researcher to examine whether obesity could be the cause. A group from North Ireland's Queen's University Belfast published an overall analysis of obesity and digestive tract cancers, looking at cancers both in the stomach and throat. Ask your doctor about how to get started on long term, effective weight loss. Researchers concluded that absolutely obesity indicated higher chances of both forms of cancer, but surpris...

For patients with heart disease, a heart rehabilitation program may do more than better their physical health. Such programs also appear to work by promoting healthy lifestyle decisions.

Looking to improve your heart health whether you are healthy or already suffer from cardiovascular disease? It may be as simple as regular fish consumption, particularly oily varieties such as salmon.

If you're old enough, you'll appreciate the tagline for Bryl-creem - "a little dab'll do ya " The concept is easy - just takes a little to look great. And this idea works with weight, too  - particularly for postmenopausal women. Take off a dab or two and you'll see and feel a difference.

Being diagnosed with diabetes is not a death sentence. While there is no cure for the condition, there are treatments that can prevent and delay the complications of diabetes, even in elderly people.