Is TikTok right? Can adding a teaspoon of cinnamon to your coffee help you burnĀ fat?
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Cinnamon has been long used around the world in both sweet and savoury dishes and drinks.
But a new TikTok trend claims adding a teaspoon of cinnamon to your daily coffee (and some cocoa to make it more palatable) for one week can help you burn fat. Is there any truth to this?
Not all cinnamon is the same
There are two types of cinnamon, both of which come from grinding the bark of the cinnamomum tree and may include several naturally occurring active ingredients.
Cassia cinnamon is the most common type available in grocery stores. It has a bitter taste and contains higher levels of one of the active ingredient cinnamaldehyde, a compound that gives cinnamon its flavour and odour. About 95% of cassia cinnamon is cinnamaldehyde.
The other is Ceylon cinnamon, which tastes sweeter. It contains about 50-60% cinnamaldehyde.
Does cinnamon burn fat? What does the research say?
A review of 35 studies examined whether consuming cinnamon could affect waist circumference, which is linked to increased body fat levels. It found cinnamon doses below 1.5 grams per day (around half a teaspoon) decreased waist circumference by 1.68cm. However, consuming more than 1.5g/day did not have a significant effect.
A meta-analysis of 21 clinical trials with 1,480 total participants found cinnamon also reduced body mass index (BMI) by 0.40kg/mĀ² and body weight by 0.92kg. But it did not change the participantsā composition of fat or lean mass.
Another umbrella review, which included all the meta-analyses, found a small effect of cinnamon on weight loss. Participants lost an average of 0.67kg and reduced their BMI by 0.45kg/mĀ².
So overall, the weight loss we see from these high-quality studies is very small, ranging anywhere from two to six months and mostly with no change in body composition.
The studies included people with different diseases, and most were from the Middle East and/or the Indian subcontinent. So we canāt be certain we would see this effect in people with other health profiles and in other countries. They were also conducted over different lengths of time from two to six months.
The supplements were different, depending on the study. Some had the active ingredient extracted from cinnamon, others used cinnamon powder. Doses varied from 0.36g to 10g per day.
They also used the two different types of cinnamon ā but none of the studies used cinnamon from the grocery store.
How could cinnamon result in small amounts of weight loss?
There are several possible mechanisms.
It appears to allow blood glucose (sugar) to enter the bodyās cells more quickly. This lowers blood glucose levels and can make insulin work more effectively.
It also seems to improve the way we break down fat when we need it for energy.
Finally, it may make us feel fuller for longer by slowing down how quickly the food is released from our stomach into the small intestine.
What are the risks?
Cinnamon is generally regarded as safe when used as a spice in cooking and food.
However, in recent months the United States and Australia have issued health alerts about the level of lead and other heavy metals in some cinnamon preparations.
Lead enters as a contaminant during growth (from the environment) and in harvesting. In some cases, it has been suggested there may have been intentional contamination.
Some people can have side effects from cinnamon, including gastrointestinal pain and allergic reactions.
One of the active ingredients, coumarin, can be toxic for some peopleās livers. This has prompted the European Food Authority to set a limit of 0.1mg/kg of body weight.
Cassia cinnamon contains up to 1% of coumarin, and the Ceylon variety contains much less, 0.004%. So for people weighing above 60kg, 2 teaspoons (6g) of cassia cinnamon would bring them over the safe limit.
What about the coffee and cocoa?
Many people may think coffee can also help us lose weight. However there isnāt good evidence to support this yet.
An observational study found drinking one cup of regular coffee was linked to a reduction in weight that is gained over four years, but by a very small amount: an average of 0.12kg.
Good-quality cocoa and dark chocolate have also been shown to reduce weight. But again, the weight loss was small (between 0.2 and 0.4kg) and only after consuming it for four to eight weeks.
So what does this all mean?
Using cinnamon may have a very small effect on weight, but itās unlikely to deliver meaningful weight loss without other lifestyle adjustments.
We also need to remember these trials used products that differ from the cinnamon we buy in the shops. How we store and how long we keep cinnamon might also impact or degrade the active ingredients.
And consuming more isnāt going to provide additional benefit. In fact, it could increase your risk of side effects.
So if you enjoy the taste of cinnamon in your coffee, continue to add it, but given its strong taste, youāre likely to only want to add a little.
And no matter how much weād like this to be true, we certainly wonāt gain any fat-loss benefits by consuming cinnamon on doughnuts or in buns, due to their high kilojoule count.
If you want to lose weight, there are evidence-backed approaches that wonāt spoil your morning coffee.
Evangeline Mantzioris, Program Director of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Accredited Practising Dietitian, University of South Australia
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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How influencers and content creators discuss birth control on social media: What research shows
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News articles in recent weeks have documented the spread of misinformation about hormonal birth control methods on popular social media platforms like TikTok, YouTube and X, formerly called Twitter. Influencers with large and small followings are sharing unsubstantiated claims about the side effects of contraceptives, while directly or indirectly encouraging others to stop using them.
This trend has not escaped researchers, who for several years have been investigating what people who can get pregnant are posting on social media platforms about hormonal and non-hormonal birth control methods. Understanding the drivers of these trends is important because they have implications for policy and patient care, according to researchers. Some worry that during the post-Dobbs era, when there are continued strikes against reproductive rights in the U.S., misinformation about birth control on social media could have a negative influence on contraceptive preferences — potentially leading to more unwanted pregnancies.
More than 90% of women of reproductive age have used at least one contraceptive method, according to a 2023 report by the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics. However, the report also finds that the use of male condoms and withdrawal methods increased between 2006 and 2019, while the use of the birth control pill decreased. Non-hormonal contraception methods, including condoms, spermicides, withdrawal and menstrual cycle tracking, are 10% or less effective than hormonal contraceptives. The only exceptions are surgical sterilization and the copper intrauterine device.
To be sure, not all birth control-related content posted on social media platforms is negative, studies show. Health care professionals are sharing educational material with a high rate of engagement and non-health care professional users share their positive experiences with the birth control methods they use.
But as you will see in the studies curated below, researchers also find that social media users, including influencers, share inaccurate information about hormonal contraceptives on various social media platforms, discuss their discontinuation of birth control in favor of non-hormonal methods and engage in unsubstantiated fear-mongering of hormonal contraceptives.
Researchers also have learned that the content posted on social media platforms has changed in tone over time, mirroring the shift in the national political discourse.
In a 2021 study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, researchers analyzed more than 800,000 English-language tweets mentioning at least one contraceptive method between March 2006, when Twitter was founded, and December 2019. They coded the sentiment of tweets as positive, neutral or negative.
āWhat we found over time was that the number of neutral tweets went down for each and every one of the birth control methods, and people became more polarized with regards to how they talk on these social media platforms over those 13 years,ā says study co-author Dr. Deborah Bartz, an OB-GYN at Brigham and Womenās Hospital with expertise in complex family planning and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School.
In a February 2024 commentary in the Journal of Womenās Health, University of Delaware researchers Emily Pfender and Leah Fowler argue that ongoing dialogue about contraception on social media provides āa glimpse into public sentiment about available optionsā to people who can get pregnant.
The authors also note that misinformation and disinformation about hormonal contraception may have a larger effect on health disparities, especially among historically marginalized groups who may already mistrust the medical establishment.
āThis may contribute to unintended pregnancy and delayed care, further widening health disparities and hindering progress toward equitable reproductive health outcomes,ā Pfender and Fowler write.
Side effects
There are known side effects to hormonal birth control methods, including headaches, nausea, sore breasts and spotting. Most are mild and disappear with continued use or with switching to another method. Among hormonal contraceptives, only the Depo-Provera injection has been linked with weight gain, studies show.
But some social media influencers have spread false claims about the potential side effects of hormonal birth control methods, ranging from infertility to abortion to unattractiveness. Despite these false claims, physicians and professional organizations such as the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists find todayās contraceptive options safe and very effective.
āTheyāre about the most low-risk prescription that I give,ā says Dr. Megana Dwarakanath, an adolescent medicine physician in Pittsburgh. āI always joke that if something goes wrong in someoneās life, theyāre within the reproductive years, it always gets blamed on birth control.ā
Dwarakanath says her young patients are most worried about two side effects: weight gain and mood. āThose are the things that they will almost always attribute to their birth control at a time that their bodies are also changing very rapidly,ā she says. āThings like mental health diagnoses or personality disorders also tend to crop up during the time young people have started or have been on birth control.ā
Most research on the link between oral contraceptives and cancer risk comes from observational studies, according to the National Cancer Institute. Overall, the studies have consistently shown that the risks of breast and cervical cancer are slightly increased for women who use oral contraceptives, whereas the risk of endometrial, ovarian and colorectal cancers are reduced.
The use of hormonal birth control has also been associated with an increase in the risk of developing blood clots, studies show. But that risk is not universal for everyone who takes hormonal birth control. This risk is higher for women 35 and older, those who smoke, are very overweight or have a history of cardiovascular disease. Overall, 3 to 9 out of 10,000 women who take the pill are at risk of developing blood clots within a given year. The risk for women who donāt take the pill is 1 to 5 out of 10,000.
There is no association between the pill and mood disorders, according to a large body of research, including a 2021 cohort study of nearly 740,000 young women.
Itās worth noting the dearth of research into womenās reproductive health due to chronic underfunding of womenās health research. An analysis of funding by the U.S. National Institutes of Health finds that in nearly three-quarters of the cases where a disease affects mainly one gender, the instituteās funding pattern favored males. Either the disease affected more women and was underfunded, or the disease affected more men and was overfunded, according to the 2021 study published in the Journal of Womenās Health.
Aside from underfunding, conducting robust research into the long-term effects of birth control is complex.
āHistorically, people havenāt felt that itās ethically OK to randomize people to birth control methods in large part because the outcome of unintended pregnancy is greater,ā for people who are given the placebo, Bartz says.
Research on birth control misinformation on social media
Social media use is widespread among young adults. More than 90% of Americans between 18 and 29 reported ever using YouTube, while 78% said they had used Instagram, 62% used TikTok and 42% used Twitter, according to a 2023 survey of 5,733 U.S. adults by Pew Research Center.
These years overlap with the demographic of people who are most likely to use birth control. And because the use of contraceptives is less stigmatized today, people are more likely to talk with one another about their questions and concerns or share that information online.
In addition to investigating the general landscape of social media posts about birth control, researchers are also interested in the type of content influencers, who typically have 20,000 or more followers, post, because of their persuasive power over their audiences.
āWhen influencers disclose personal experiences and beliefs about various topics, audience members tend to form similar attitudes especially when they feel connected to the influencer,ā Pfender and M. Marie Devlin write in a 2023 study published in the journal Health Communication.
Below we have curated several studies published in recent years documenting the spread of birth control misinformation on social media. The roundup is followed by a quick reference guide on female contraceptives and their actual potential side effects.
Contraceptive Content Shared on Social Media: An Analysis of Twitter
Melody Huang, et al. Contraception and Reproductive Medicine, February 2024.The study: The authors explore how contraceptive information is shared on X and understand how those posts affect womenās decisions. They analyze a random 1% of publicly available English-language tweets about reversible prescription contraceptive methods, from January 2014 and December 2019. The 4,434 analyzed tweets included at least 200 tweets per birth control method — IUDs, implants, the pill, patch and ring.
The findings: 26.7% of tweets about contraceptive methods discussed decision-making and 20.5% discussed side effects, especially the side effects of IUDs and the depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA or Depo-Provera) shot. Discussions about the pill, patch or ring prompted more discussions on logistics and adherence. About 6% of tweets explicitly requested information. Tweets about IUDs were most popular in terms of likes.
More importantly, 50.6% of the tweets were posted by contraceptive users, while only 6% came from official health or news sources. Tweets from news or journalistic sources were more frequent than tweets from a health care professional or organization.
Some tweets contained misinformation represented as facts, such as the unsubstantiated claim that IUDs can cause fertility issues. Others were outwardly misogynistic, shaming women and claiming that they wouldnāt be able to have kids because of using hormonal birth control.
One takeaway: āWhile Twitter may provide valuable insight, with more tweets being created by personal contraceptive users than official healthcare sources, the available information may vary in reliability. Asking patients about information from social media can help reaffirm to patients the importance of social networks in contraceptive decision-making while also addressing misconceptions to improve contraceptive counseling,ā the authors write.
What Do Social Media Influencers Say About Birth Control? A Content Analysis of YouTube Vlogs About Birth Control
Emily J. Pfender and M. Marie Devlin. Health Communication, January 2023.The study: To explore what social media influencers shared on YouTube about their experiences with hormonal and non-hormonal methods of birth control, the researchers analyzed 50 vlogs posted between December 2019 and December 2021. Most of the 50 influencers were categorized on YouTube as Lifestyle (72%) and Fitness (16%). They had between 20,000 and 2.2 million subscribers each.
The findings: In total, 74% of the influencers talked about discontinuing hormonal birth control. About 44% said the main reason they were discontinuing birth control was to be more natural, while 32% said they wanted to improve their mental health and 20% were concerned about weight gain.
Forty percent of influencers mentioned using non-hormonal birth control methods such as menstrual cycle tracking, condoms, non-hormonal IUDs and the pull-out method. Twenty percent reported switching from hormonal to non-hormonal methods.
One takeaway: āOur content analysis revealed that discontinuation of hormonal birth control is commonly discussed among [social media influencers] on YouTube and sexual health information from influencers might not provide accurate educational information and toolsā¦ this is especially concerning given that social media is young adultsā primary tool for sexual health information. Future research is needed to understand the effects of SMI birth control content on sexual health behaviors,ā the authors write.
Hormonal Contraceptive Side Effects and Nonhormonal Alternatives on TikTok: A Content Analysis
Emily J. Pfender, Kate Tsiandoulas, Stephanie R. Morain and Leah R. Fowler. Health Promotion Practice, January 2024.The study: The authors analyzed the content of 100 TikTok videos that used the hashtags #birthcontrolsideeffects and #nonhormonalcontraception. Their goal was to understand the types of content about side effects of hormonal and non-hormonal contraceptives on TikTok.
The findings: The videos averaged about 1 minute and garnered an average of 27,795 likes, 251 comments and 623 shares. For #birthcontrolsideeffects, 80% of the audience was 18 to 24 years old and videos with that hashtag had 43 million views worldwide as of July 7, 2023.
Thirty-two percent of the videos were by regular users (non-influencers), 26 by clinicians, 13% by health coaches and 2% by companies. Only 3% had a sponsorship disclosure and 6% included a medical disclaimer, that the person was not a doctor or was not providing medical advice.
Most of the 100 videos (71%) mentioned hormonal contraception. Among them 51% discussed unspecific hormonal contraceptives, 31% talked about the pill and 11% about hormonal IUDs. Four of the 71 creators explicitly recommended against using hormonal contraceptives.
Claims about hormonal contraceptives were mostly based on personal experience. About 25% of the creators cited no basis for their claims, 23% included outside evidence, including unspecified studies or information from the FDA insert, and 11% used a combination of personal and outside evidence.
Almost half (49%) mentioned discontinuing their hormonal contraception, with negative side effects cited as the most common reason.
The creators talked about mental health issues, weight gain, headaches, and less common risks of various cancers or chronic illness, change in personality and blood clots. They were less likely to mention the positive aspects of birth control.
About 52% of videos mentioned non-hormonal contraception, including copper IUDs and cycle tracking.
Nine of the 100 creators expressed feeling dismissed, pressured, gaslit or insufficiently informed about contraception by medical providers.
One takeaway: āOur findings support earlier work suggesting social media may fuel āhormonophobia,ā or negative framing and scaremongering about hormonal contraception and that this phobia is largely driven by claims of personal experience rather than scientific evidence,ā the authors write. āWithin these hashtag categories, TikTok creators frame their provider interactions negatively. Many indicate feeling ignored or upset after medical appointments, not sufficiently informed about contraceptive options, and pressured to use hormonal contraceptives. This finding aligns with previous social media research and among the general population, suggesting opportunities for improvements in contraceptive counseling.ā
Popular Contraception Videos on TikTok: An Assessment of Content Topics
Rachel E. Stoddard, et al. Contraception, January 2024.The study: Researchers analyzed 700 English-language TikTok videos related to hormonal contraception, with a total of 1.2 billion views and 1.5 million comments, posted between October 2019 and December 2021. Their aim was to explore the types of contraception content on TikTok and to understand how the platform influences the information patients take into birth control counseling visits.
The findings: More than half of the videos (52%) were about patient experiences and how to use contraceptives. Other common topics included side effects (35%) and pregnancy (39%).
Only 19% of the videos were created by health care professionals, including midwives, physician assistants and medical doctors, although those videos garnered 41% of the total views, indicating higher engagement. While 93% of health care providers shared educational content, 23% of non-health care providers shared educational content.
One takeaway: āOur findings show an exceptional opportunity for education around contraception for young reproductive-aged individuals, given the accessibility and popularity of these videos. This may also extend to other topics around sex education and family planning, including sexually transmitted infection prevention and treatment and procuring abortion care,ā the authors write.
TikTok, #IUD, and User Experience With Intrauterine Devices Reported on Social Media
Jenny Wu, EsmƩ Trahair, Megan Happ and Jonas Swartz. Obstetrics & Gynecology, January 2023.The study: Researchers used a web-scraping application to collect the top 100 TikTok videos tagged #IUD on April 6, 2022, based on views, comments, likes and shares. Their aim was to understand the perspectives and experiences of people with IUDs shared on TikTok. The videos had a total of 471 million views, 32 million likes and 1 million shares. Their average length was 33 seconds.
The findings: Some 89% of the creators identified as female and nearly 90% were from the United States; 37% were health care professionals; and 78% were 21 years or older.
Video types included patientsā own experiences with IUD removal (32%), educational (30%) and humorous (25%). More videos (38%) had a negative tone compared with 19% with a positive tone. The videos that portrayed negative user experiences emphasized pain and distrust of health care professionals.
Half of the videos were very accurate, while nearly a quarter were inaccurate (the authors did not use the term misinformation).
One takeaway: āThe most liked #IUD videos on TikTok portray negative experiences related to pain and informed consent. Awareness of this content can help health care professionals shape education given the high prevalence of TikTok use among patients,ā the authors write. āTikTok differs from other platforms because users primarily engage with an algorithmically curated feed individualized to the user’s interests and demographics.ā
Types of female birth control
Most female hormonal contraceptives contain the synthetic version of natural female hormones estrogen and progesterone. They affect womenās hormone levels, preventing mature eggs from being released by the ovaries, a process thatās known as ovulation, hence, preventing a possible pregnancy.
Of the two hormones, progesterone (called progestin in synthetic form) is primarily responsible for preventing pregnancy. In addition to playing a role in preventing ovulation, progesterone inhibits sperm from penetrating through the cervix. Estrogen inhibits the development of follicles in the ovaries.
The information below is sourced from the CDC, the National Library of Medicine, the Cleveland Clinic and the Mayo Clinic.
Intrauterine contraception
Also called Long-Acting Reversible Contraception, or LARC, this method works by thickening the cervical mucus so the sperm canāt reach an egg. There are two types of IUDs: hormonal and non-hormonal.
- Levonorgestrel intrauterine system is a T-shaped device thatās placed inside the uterus by a doctor. It releases a small amount of progestin daily to prevent pregnancy. It can stay in place for 3 to 8 years. Its failure rate is 0.1% to 0.4%.
- Copper T intrauterine device is also T-shaped and is placed inside the uterus by a doctor. It does not contain hormones and can stay in place for up to 10 years. Its failure rate is 0.8%.
- Side effects: Copper IUDs may cause more painful and heavy periods, while progestin IUDs may cause irregular bleeding. In the very rare cases of pregnancy while having an IUD, thereās a greater chance of an ectopic pregnancy, which is when a fertilized egg grows outside of the uterus.
Hormonal methods
- The implant is a single, thin rod thatās inserted under the skin of the upper arm. It releases progestin over 3 years. Its failure rate is 0.1%, making it the most effective form of contraception available.
- Side effects: The most common side effect of an implant is irregular bleeding.
- The injection Depo-Provera or āshotā or āDepoā delivers progestin in the buttocks or arms every three months at the doctorās office. Its failure rate is 4%.
- Side effects: The shot may cause irregular bleeding. The shot is also the only contraceptive that may cause weight gain. It may also be more difficult to predict when fertility returns once the shot is stopped.
- Combined oral contraceptives or āthe pillā contain estrogen and progestin. Theyāre prescribed by a doctor. The pill has to be taken at the same time daily. The pill is not recommended for people who are older than 35 and smoke, have a history of blood clots or breast cancer. Its failure rate is 7%. Among women aged 15 to 44 who use contraception, about 25% use the pill.
- The skin patch is worn on the lower abdomen, buttocks or upper body, releasing progestin and estrogen. It is prescribed by a doctor. A new patch is used once a week for three weeks. No patch is worn for the fourth week. Its failure rate is 7%.
- Hormonal vaginal contraceptive ring releases progestin and estrogen. Itās placed inside the vagina. It is worn for three weeks and taken out on the fourth week. Its typical failure rate is 7%.
- Side effects: Contraceptives with estrogen, including the pill, the patch and the ring, increase the risk of developing blood clots.
- Progestin-only pill or āmini-pillā only has progestin and is prescribed by a doctor. It has to be taken daily at the same time. It may be a good option for women who canāt take estrogen. Its typical failure rate is 7%.
- Opill is the first over-the-counter daily oral contraceptive in the U.S., approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2023. Opill only has progestin and like other birth control pills, it has to be taken at the same time every day. It should not be used by those who have or have had breast cancer. Its failure rate is 7%.
- Side effects: The most common side effect of progestin-only pills is irregular bleeding, although the bleeding tends to be light.
Non-hormonal birth control methods include using barriers such as a diaphragm or sponge, condoms and spermicides, withdrawal, and menstrual cycle tracking. Emergency contraception, including emergency contraception pills (the morning-after pill), is not a regular method of birth control.
Additional research studies to consider
Population Attitudes Toward Contraceptive Methods Over Time on a Social Media Platform
Allison A. Merz, et al. American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, December 2020.Social Media and the Intrauterine Device: A YouTube Content Analysis
Brian T. Nguyen and Allison J. Allen. BMJ Sexual and Reproductive Health, November 2017.This article first appeared on The Journalist’s Resource and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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What is lipoprotein(a) cholesterol, or Lp(a)? And can you lowerĀ yours?
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Most people know about āgoodā and ābadā cholesterol. But few realise there is another type called lipoprotein(a). It can raise the risk of heart attacks and strokes, even in people who do everything right.
This lesser-known cholesterol particle, often written as Lp(a), is gaining increasing attention from researchers and drug companies.
Lp(a) isnāt included in routine cholesterol tests and thereās currently little we can do about it. That may now be changing.
Maskot/Getty Images What is lipoprotein(a)?
Lipoprotein(a) is a cholesterol that carries lipoprotein ā particles made of fats and proteins ā in your blood. Itās structurally similar to LDL (low-density lipoprotein, or ābadā cholesterol), but with an additional protein attached called apolipoprotein(a).
This extra protein component seems to make Lp(a) more likely to contribute to the build-up of fatty deposits in arteries. It may also promote blood clotting. Together, these processes increase the likelihood of cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke).
Large-scale studies and international guidelines now recognise Lp(a) as a risk factor for heart disease and stroke.
What determines your Lp(a) levels?
Unlike most other cholesterol measures, Lp(a) is largely determined by genetics.
Around 70-90% of variation in Lp(a) levels is inherited. This is driven mainly by differences in the LPA gene, which controls the structure of apolipoprotein(a).
Because of this strong genetic control, Lp(a) levels are usually set early in life and remain relatively stable over time, with little influence from diet, exercise or body weight.
There are some smaller influences. Levels can vary by sex, ethnicity and hormonal changes, and may be slightly affected by factors such as menopause or kidney disease.
How does it affect your risk?
A growing body of research shows higher Lp(a) levels are associated with an increased risk of heart attacks, strokes and aortic valve disease.
Importantly, the relationship appears continuous. In long-term studies, cardiovascular risk rises step by step as Lp(a) levels increase.
Lp(a) also adds to overall risk. For example, someone with high LDL cholesterol and high Lp(a) is likely to be at higher risk than someone with elevated LDL cholesterol alone.
For people with higher Lp(a) levels, cardiovascular risk rises mainly when inflammation is elevated.
This helps explain why some people develop cardiovascular disease despite otherwise favourable risk profiles.
Can you lower lipoprotein(a)?
There are currently few options to lower Lp(a).
Lifestyle changes that improve heart health, such as eating well, being physically active and not smoking, remain essential. But they have minimal effect on Lp(a) itself.
Most commonly used cholesterol-lowering medications, including statins, do not reduce Lp(a). In some cases, statins may even increase Lp(a) slightly. Despite this, statins still reduce overall cardiovascular risk and remain a cornerstone of treatment.
Some newer drugs, such as PCSK9 inhibitors, can lower Lp(a), but typically only by a modest amount of around 15ā30%.
Several drug companies, including Novartis, Amgen and Eli Lilly, are racing to develop treatments that specifically lower Lp(a). These new medicines work very differently from statins. Instead of helping the body clear cholesterol from the blood, they use a āgene silencingā approach that reduces how much Lp(a) the liver makes in the first place.
This means it switches off production of cholesterol rather than trying to remove what is already there.
In early clinical trials, these drugs have lowered Lp(a) levels by 80ā90%, far more than existing treatments. This is why Lp(a) is suddenly getting attention.
If upcoming trials show these large reductions also lead to fewer heart attacks and strokes, it could change how cardiovascular risk is assessed and treated, especially for people whose risk is driven largely by genetics rather than lifestyle.
Should you get tested?
Lp(a) is not included in standard cholesterol tests. A specific blood test is required.
Medicare doesnāt cover these blood tests, so if your doctor orders one youāll have to pay out of pocket ā around A$25 to $80 ā plus any costs associated with the consultation.
International guidelines now recommend measuring Lp(a) at least once in adulthood, particularly for people with a family history of early heart disease or unexplained cardiovascular risk.
Because levels are largely genetically determined and stable, a single measurement is often considered sufficient for most people.
What should you focus on?
Learning you have high Lp(a) can feel frustrating, especially given the limited options to lower it directly.
But itās important to see Lp(a) as one part of your overall cardiovascular risk.
There are still many factors you can influence to lower your overall risk, and particularly your LDL cholesterol. These include:
- LDL (bad) cholesterol
- blood pressure
- smoking
- physical activity
- diet quality
- managing conditions such as diabetes
For people with elevated Lp(a), managing these factors may be even more important.
What happens next?
Research into Lp(a) is moving quickly. If current clinical trials show targeted therapies reduce cardiovascular events, testing and treatment may become more common.
For now, awareness is an important first step.
If you are concerned about your cardiovascular risk, it may be worth discussing Lp(a) testing with your doctor, especially if you have a strong family history of heart disease.
At the same time, the broader message to maximise heart health through healthy behaviours remains unchanged. Even as new risk factors emerge, the foundations of good heart health are still the things we can control.
Lauren Ball, Professor of Community Health and Wellbeing, The University of Queensland and Kirsten Adlard, Honorary Research Fellow, The University of Queensland
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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The Well Plated Cookbook ā by Erin Clarke
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Clarkeās focus here is on what she calls āstealthy healthyā, with the idea of dishes that feel indulgent while being great for the health.
The recipes, of which there are well over 100, are indeed delicious and easy to make without being oversimplified, and since she encourages the use of in-season ingredients, many recipes come with a āmarket swapsā substitution guide, to make each recipe seasonal.
The book is largely not vegetarian, let alone vegan, but the required substitutions will be second-nature to any seasoned vegetarian or vegan. Indeed, āskip the meat sometimesā is one of the advices she offers near the beginning of the book, in the category of tips to make things even healthier.
Bottom line: if you want to add dishes to your repertoire that are great for entertaining and still super-healthy, this book will be a fine addition to your collection.
Click here to check out The Well Plated Cookbook, and get cooking!
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Donāt throw it out! How to cook using ingredients too good toĀ waste
10almonds is reader-supported. We may, at no cost to you, receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.
Australians are feeling the pressure of rising grocery prices. At the same time, we throw away huge amounts of perfectly edible food every year.
Some food spoils before we can use it. But we waste plenty of food by throwing away parts of ingredients we simply donāt think to use.
Many of these leftovers are nutritious, tasty and surprisingly versatile. So using more of what you already buy can help stretch your grocery budget further while reducing waste.
Louis Hansel/Unsplash Here are some everyday ingredients people often throw away, along with tips for how to use them.
Broccoli stems and leek tops
Many people trim off broccoli stems and only eat the florets, but you can eat the stems and leaves too.
To use the stems, peel away the tougher outer layer and slice the tender part inside.
The leaves can contain even higher levels of beneficial plant compounds than the florets, making them a nutritious addition to meals. You can use them in salads or sautƩ them like other leafy greens.
Try a broccoli stem and red pepper slaw, a broccoli leaf salad, crispy parmesan broccoli stem fries, or broccoli stem pesto.
When a recipe calls for leeks, it usually directs you to use only the white and light green parts, often suggesting you discard the tough, dark green tops. But these dark green tops are nutritious, containing natural plant compounds that support health. This includes compounds linked to reducing inflammation, protecting cells and fighting bacteria.
There are many simple ways to use leek tops. You can add them to leek and potato soup, or include them in dishes such as caramelised leek pasta. Adding them to vegetable or chicken stock adds depth of flavour.
Herb stems
Herb stems are often overlooked and thrown away, yet can be just as flavourful as the leaves. You can finely chop soft stems from herbs such as coriander, parsley and dill to add to curries, soups, sauces, marinades and dressings. Choose stems that are fresh and tender for the best flavour.
Woody stems from herbs such as rosemary, thyme and basil may be too tough or bitter to eat, but you can still use them. Soak in water to soften them, then add to smoked meat or fish to infuse flavour. You can use woody stems as skewers for grilling.
Even after herb leaves have wilted, you can still often use the stems. Rinse, dry and seal them in a bag before storing them in the freezer. You can chop them straight from frozen and add them to soups, stews and curries.
Chicken carcasses and crispy skins
A roast chicken, whether store-bought or home-cooked, can stretch far beyond a single meal.
Simmer the leftover carcass with vegetables and herbs to make a rich stock for soups, risottos and casseroles. You can also use chicken bones to make broth, forming the base of dishes such as pho, ramen or a simple noodle soup.
Chicken skin is another often-discarded ingredient. Cook it until crisp to use as a savoury garnish for soups, salads or grain bowls. Because it is high in saturated fat itās best enjoyed in moderation.
Fish skin can also be transformed into a crispy topping when baked or pan-fried, adding texture to dishes such as rice bowls or salads.
The liquid in bean cans has a name ā aquafaba
The liquid inside canned chickpeas or beans is called aquafaba. It contains starches and proteins that allow it to function like egg whites in cooking.
Aquafaba is often used in vegan baking to replace eggs. While itās not particularly high in protein, it can be whipped into meringues, fluffy pancakes, chocolate mousse and mayonnaise.
You can also use it to help thicken soups and stews.
Stale bread and crusts still have plenty of life
Bread is one of the most commonly wasted foods in Australian households, but it doesnāt have to be.
You can use stale bread in meals such as strata (a baked egg dish) or other savoury egg bakes.
Fry or bake torn pieces of stale bread to make croutons for soups and salads. You can also use torn pieces in dishes such as panzanella ā an Italian bread salad including tomatoes and fresh herbs.
Make breadcrumbs from stale bread and crusts to coat schnitzels and eggplant parmigiana, or to sprinkle on pasta for extra texture.
You can also use stale bread in sweet dishes, such as chocolate and banana French toast or bread and butter pudding.
One important caveat
If food smells off, is mouldy beyond a small removable spot, or has been left at unsafe temperatures, itās safest to throw it away.
The aim is not to encourage risky eating. Itās about recognising that many parts of foods we routinely discard are still nutritious, safe and useful.
Lauren Ball, Professor of Community Health and Wellbeing, The University of Queensland and Emily Burch, Accredited Practising Dietitian and Lecturer, Southern Cross University
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Caffeine & Exercise… In The Heat?
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Caffeine is generally considered a performance-enhancing drug that’s (for most people) safe, legal, not even banned in sports competitions, and even somewhat encouraged by sports scientists.
See: International society of sports nutrition position stand: caffeine and exercise performance
Depending on the rate at which you metabolize caffeine (there are genes for this), the effects will come/go earlier/later, but as a general rule of thumb, caffeine should work within about 20 minutes, and will peak in effect 1ā2 hours after consumption:
Nutrition Supplements to Stimulate Lipolysis: A Review in Relation to Endurance Exercise Capacity
We covered this and more, in more detail, here:
What To Eat, Take, And Do Before A Workout
So, does hot weather change this?
It is reasonable to wonder whether it’s really a good idea to take a vasoconstrictive stimulant in conditions when your body is under threat of overheating if it’s not already.
Most of the time for most people, the benefits of caffeine outweigh the risks: Caffeine: Cognitive Enhancer Or Brain-Wrecker?
We may also wonder about “isn’t caffeine dehydrating?” and the answer is that it is diuretic (so you will pee more). Now, even if you are not peeing while you are working out (and let us for the sake of science assume that you are not), this is still somewhat an issue, since fluids that have been dispatched by your kidneys to your bladder cannot be reclaimed directly from there; at that point, it’s already gone in every way that matters.
However, when the body is overheating (even if subclinically, i.e. not to the extent of being a medical crisis, but just “the room is warm” or “the weather is hot today” or “we’ve worked up a sweat due to exercise”), then the body is sending little or no fluid to the bladder, because the kidneys “know” that the water is needed to cool down the bodyāhence the sweating. Which means if you’re sweating, then whether or not you took a diuretic shouldn’t make a big difference as your body won’t usually prepare to pee it out if you’re already sweating it out (unless you are overhydrated, which is rarer but perfectly possibleāagain, not an issue though, because this is your homeostatic system doing exactly the job it’s supposed to do to keep your body well).
See also: Things Many People Forget When It Comes To Hydration
And for that matter: When To Take Electrolytes (And When We Shouldnāt!)
Researchers (Dr. Akira Katagiri et al.) studied whether caffeine taken during exercise improves performance in heat without worsening physiological strain.
And the answer is… Yes it does:
- The starting position: they noted that pre-exercise caffeine can impair performance in hot conditions due to hyperthermia, excessive breathing, and reduced brain blood flow.
- Their hypothesis: in-exercise caffeine intake will delay peak blood caffeine levels, potentially enhancing late-stage performance and minimizing adverse effects.
- How they tested it: the participants exercised in 35Ā°C (95Ā°F) heat, first at moderate intensity, then at high intensity until exhaustion, after ingesting a high dose of caffeine (5āÆmg/kg) or placebo, 5 minutes into the session. Then the intervention and control groups switched places (randomized controlled double-blind crossover).
- Did it help? Yes, when consumed during exercise, caffeine levels rose slowly, improving endurance in later high-intensity activity and reducing perceived exertion.
- Did it hurt? No (with one caveat*), as it didn’t worsen overheating-induced overbreathing or result in further reduced brain blood flow.
*The caveat: while performance improved, caffeine led to slightly higher cardiorespiratory and temperature strain… At the very end of exercise. In other words, you remember when we said that it improved endurance? That means that it improved the duration before exhaustion, which means that the slightly higher cardiorespiratory and temperature strain occurred after the time point at which the non-caffeine group had met exhaustion and stopped exercising.
You can find the paper itself here: In-Exercise Caffeine Improves Exercise Performance in the Heat Without Exacerbating Hyperventilation and Brain Hypoperfusion
Before you grab your workout clothes and an energy drink, though, do also consider that sometimes exercise is best deferred whether or not you have caffeine.
See: Sun, Sea, And Sudden Killers To Avoid: Stay Safe From Heat Exhaustion & Heatstroke!
Want to take it further?
For the most empoweringly refreshing workout drink, check out the science for how:
Beetroot Juice & Caffeine Work Better Than Either Alone
Enjoy!
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Never Too Old?
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Age Limits On Exercise?
In Tuesdayās newsletter, we asked you your opinion on whether we should exercise less as we get older, and got the above-depicted, below-described, set of responses:
- About 42% said āNo, we must keep pushing ourselves, to keep our youthā
- About 29% said āOnly to the extent necessary due to chronic conditions etcā
- About 29% said āYes, we should keep gently moving but otherwise take it easierā
One subscriber who voted for āNo, we must keep pushing ourselves, to keep our youthā wrote to add:
āI’m 71 and I push myself. I’m not as fast or strong as I used to be but, I feel great when I push myself instead of going through the motions. I listen to my body!ā
~ 10almonds subscriber
One subscriber who voted for āOnly to the extent necessary due to chronic conditions etcā wrote to add:
āItās never too late to get stronger. Important to keep your strength and balance. I am a Silver Sneakers instructor and I see first hand how helpful regular exercise is for seniors.ā
~ 10almonds subscriber
One subscriber who voted to say āYes, we should keep gently moving but otherwise take it easierā wrote to add:
āKeep moving but be considerate and respectful of your aging body. It’s a time to find balance in life and not put yourself into a positon to damage youself by competing with decades younger folks (unless you want to) – it will take much longer to bounce back.ā
~ 10almonds subscriber
These will be important, because weāll come back to them at the end.
So what does the science say?
Endurance exercise is for young people only: True or False?
False! With proper training, age is no barrier to serious endurance exercise.
Hereās a study that looked at marathon-runners of various ages, and found thatā¦
- the majority of middle-aged and elderly athletes have training histories of less than seven years of running
- there are virtually no relevant running time differences (p<0.01) per age in marathon finishers from 20 to 55 years
- after 55 years, running times did increase on average, but not consistently (i.e. there were still older runners with comparable times to the younger age bracket)
The researchers took this as evidence of aging being indeed a biological process that can be sped up or slowed down by various lifestyle factors.
See also:
Age & Aging: What Can (And Canāt) We Do About It?
this covers the many aspects of biological aging (itās not one number, but many!) and how our various different biological ages are often not in sync with each other, and how we can optimize each of them that can be optimized
Resistance training is for young people only: True or False?
False! In fact, itās not only possible for older people, but is also associated with a reduction in all-cause mortality.
Specifically, those who reported strength-training at least once per week enjoyed longer lives than those who did not.
You may be thinking āis this just the horse-riding thing again, where correlation is not causation and itās just that healthier people (for other reasons) were able to do strength-training more, rather than the other way around?ā
ā¦which is a good think to think of, so well-spotted if you were thinking that!
But in this case no; the benefits remained when other things were controlled for:
āAdjusted for demographic variables, health behaviors and health conditions, a statistically significant effect on mortality remained.
Although the effects on cardiac and cancer mortality were no longer statistically significant, the data still pointed to a benefit.
Importantly, after the physical activity level was controlled for, people who reported strength exercises appeared to see a greater mortality benefit than those who reported physical activity alone.ā
See the study: Is strength training associated with mortality benefits? A 15 year cohort study of US older adults
And a pop-sci article about it: Strength training helps older adults live longer
Closing thoughts
As it happensā¦ All three of the subscribers we quoted all had excellent points!
Because in this case itās less a matter of āshouldā, and more a selection of options:
- We (most of us, at least) can gain/regain/maintain the kind of strength and fitness associated with much younger people, and we need not be afraid of exercising accordingly (assuming having worked up to such, not just going straight from couch to marathon, say).
- We must nevertheless be mindful of chronic conditions or even passing illnesses/injuries, but that goes for people of any age
- We also canāt argue against a āsafety firstā cautious approach to exercise. After all, sure, maybe we can run marathons at any age, but that doesnāt mean we have to. And sure, maybe we can train to lift heavy weights, but if weāre content to be able to carry the groceries or perhaps take our partnerās weight in the dance hall (or the bedroom!), then (if weāre also at least maintaining our bones and muscles at a healthy level) thatās good enough already.
Which prompts the question, what do you want to be able to do, now and years from now? Whatās important to you?
For inspiration, check out: Train For The Event Of Your Life!
Take care!
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