The American journal of clinical nutrition
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Recent discoveries, notably of the hormones leptin and adiponectin, have revised the notion that adipocytes are simply a storage depot for body energy. Instead, adipocytes are also endocrine organs, with multiple metabolic roles in regulating whole-body physiology. ⋯ Importantly, the adipocyte hormones leptin and adiponectin also activate AMPK; remarkably, the same pathway is activated by certain antidiabetic agents such as thiazolidinediones. Increasingly, our understanding of the adipocyte as an endocrine organ is leading to new insights into obesity and health.
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Thirty years have been added to the average life expectancy of Americans over the past century. It is a reasonable expectation that Americans will achieve an average life span of > or =100 y within this century. The most dramatic decreases in early-life and midlife mortality coincided with advances in medicine; curative medicine has played a lesser role. ⋯ The influence of nutrition on health status and morbidity supports primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of disease and intervention strategies at each point in the process. The objective of such a prevention-oriented model is to enable people to live well for longer, while minimizing chronic disability. Starting down the right path with appropriate nutrition and staying on it by eating well are important components of healthy aging.
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Body mass index (BMI) is the dominating weight-for-height index, but its validity as a body fat (BF) index has not been properly examined. ⋯ Our data suggest that W/H may be a more optimal weight-for-height index than is BMI, particularly at high body weights.