UF Health Podcasts

Mangoes are a sweet snack lauded by fruit lovers everywhere. But for those who might be missing out on the tropical treat to avoid spiking their blood sugar levels, there’s good news. New research shows that mangoes might actually help adults with prediabetes improve blood sugar regulation and reduce body fat.

In the study, participants were split into two groups: One group ate a fresh mango on a daily basis, while the other group received a low-sugar granola bar. Researchers focused on the two groups’ blood glucose levels, body fat and responses to insulin.

The results showed that the group who consumed mangoes, which typically contain about 32 grams of sugar, fared better in all areas than the group who ate granola bars, which had about 11 grams of sugar.

The researchers said this study helps illustrate how a food containing less sugar is not automatically the healthier choice. It’s not just about the sugar content, researchers explained — consumers should consider the food in its entirety. Fiber, vitamins and other nutrients are all factors at play that offer additional health benefits.

In fact, breakfast cereals with added sugar and even certain low-sugar snacks can actually increase the risk of diabetes for the 100 million adults in the U.S. with prediabetes.

Researchers explained that although this study focused on mangoes, the findings are consistent with studies involving other whole fruits. Other whole fruits might offer similar benefits.

So, if you are prediabetic, or simply health-conscious, reaching for a mango could be a step toward better blood sugar and body composition.

Sometimes good things come in small — and sweet — packages.

This week’s archived episode of Animal Airwaves Live focuses on your furry friend’s peepers! Dr. Bret Moore, a veterinary ophthalmology specialist, will share his expertise on recognizing and treating ocular conditions in pets. Dr. Moore will discuss why eye care and early detection is important for identifying early signs of disease, preventing vision loss, and maintaining your pet’s vision, eye health and overall quality of life. Learn about common signs of eye challenges, when to seek veterinary care and how prompt treatment can lead to better outcomes.

Saturated fat, present in delectable dishes like cheeseburgers, fries and milkshakes, boasts an ever-increasing nutritional rap sheet. Notably, it can negatively impact your cholesterol and increase your risk for heart disease.

Now, according to research from the University of North Carolina’s School of Medicine, the infamous lipid is tacking on another offense: meddling with your memory.

The study, published in Neuron, shows that a group of brain cells in the hippocampus, referred to as CCK interneurons, tip into overdrive after following a high-fat diet in mice. Saturated fat impairs the brain’s ability to receive sugar. After even a few days of this kind of eating, the hippocampus and its memory processing are disrupted.

Scientists were surprised by the speed at which the cells shifted their activity in response to a dip in glucose availability — and how this small change was enough to weaken memory.

Importantly, the study suggests junk food high in fat can quickly impact the brain, long before you notice weight gain or a doctor doles out a diabetes diagnosis. Longterm negative effects could include a higher risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases like dementia or Alzheimer’s.

In contrast, when brain glucose levels were restored, the overactive CCK neurons calmed down and memory problems began to subside. Dietary interventions like intermittent fasting just after a high-fat diet were enough to help the brain return to better memory functioning, scientists said.

Although in the long run, it might be easier to just decrease the amount of saturated fat we consume to begin with.

Perhaps it’s time for yoga to undergo a little bit of a cooldown — especially the sweltering hot variety.

If your goal is to improve your cardiovascular health, there are other types of exercise that outdo yoga in that department. High-intensity interval training is one. Strength training, Pilates and aerobic exercise are others. And hang onto your loose-fitting togs, because even Tai Chi, with its ever so slow, graceful movements and controlled breathing, works better to strengthen the heart.

A new study from researchers in India and the United Arab Emirates analyzed 10 studies of several types of physical activities and heart health in sedentary adults.

In one of the studies that delved into hot yoga, the researchers directly compared Bikram yoga practiced at 105 degrees Fahrenheit to the same routine performed in a 73-degree room. After 12 weeks, 54 sedentary adults, ranging in age from 40 to 60, saw similar outcomes regardless of temperature.

Neither group showed big changes in tests that measure how fast blood pressure waves travel through arteries.

One study found that Bikram [bi-kruhm] yoga offered some vascular improvements, but changes in participants’ blood vessel widening didn’t lead to less arterial stiffness, a key marker of heart health that occurs as we age.

The researchers note that their study is not meant to keep people away from yoga. Middle-aged and older people may see modest vascular benefits. And yoga offers advantages in other areas, like better balance, flexibility and stress relief.

But if you’re trying to exercise your way to better cardiovascular health, there are better ways to get there than posing like a cobra.

Here’s a nutritional treat you don’t have to go to the supermarket to buy. Just stroll through your yard.

It’s got six legs, hops and it’s more challenging to catch than a hamburger.

We are talking, of course, about grasshoppers.

A study recently published in the journal Food Science of Animal Products suggests that the common insect could improve sleep quality and hair health, and even lead to an improved love life.

This isn’t avant-garde scientific experimentation. With an ever-increasing world population, food shortages are a significant concern for the future. Grasshoppers are already a food source in some regions, including Africa and South America. At times, the price of grasshoppers has exceeded beef. Some consider the insect a delicacy.

In countries like Uganda and Kenya, grasshopper farming is a lucrative business.

The scientists in this study put rats on a grasshopper diet and compared them with control groups who were not fed the insects. The insect-munching rats saw improvement in several measures of health.

Their sleep patterns changed, with the rats getting an extra 12 hours a week of shut-eye. They maintained a healthier body weight. And researchers also recorded an astonishing improvement in hair quality. Nearly 95% of the rats had excellent hair health.

Just 5% of rats on a fishmeal diet and less than 1% on a no-protein diet boasted identical outstanding bobs.

And the hopper rats had sex more often.

What makes insect food attractive? Its small environmental footprint. It’s a sustainable food in a world threatened by climate change and crop loss.

And many people love their flavor, especially with a chili powder dip.

Forget what you think you know about gout.

Gout is a common form of arthritis that can cause sudden bouts of pain, strong enough to wake someone from a deep sleep. It causes inflammation, redness and tenderness in one or more joints and is caused by high levels of uric acid in the blood.

It’s most often associated with the big toe. But it can occur in other joints as well.

For ages, people have thought of gout as a product of a poor lifestyle, with everything from obesity to heavy drinking and rich foods implicated. The diagnosis often causes embarrassment.

A recent study, however, shows that genetics play the most important role in the condition.

An investigation published in Nature Genetics analyzed the genetic information of 2.6 million people around the world. Scientists say the data show that the diagnosis should not be stigmatized.

That’s because the study found that gout is a chronic disease rooted in our genes. While some lifestyle choices, like eating red meat, might trigger an attack, a person’s diet does not cause gout.

Researchers say the blame game with gout needs to end.

Among the genetic factors that strongly contribute to gout is an immune system primed to attack the crystals created by high uric acid levels.

The findings do more than help lift the stigma of gout. Identifying genes that play a part in the condition offers new potential avenues of treatment. One idea is to repurpose a drug prescribed for immune-related diseases.

Gout is well-documented in history. Beethoven, Ben Franklin and Queen Anne all had it. So, as those afflicted anticipate treatment, they are in good, historical company.

They were the inaugural American generation to start their morning with brightly colored breakfast cereal, or traipse to school with a Pop-Tart in hand. Generation X and ultraprocessed food grew up together.

Now, a study from the University of Michigan shows that 21% of Gen X women — and 10% of men — meet criteria for addiction to these products, which are inundated with extra salt, sugar and fat. This includes folks on the tail end of the Baby Boom generation, too.

These percentages are much higher than those of people who grew up 10 to 20 years earlier and first sampled ultraprocessed foods in adulthood. This cohort, ages 65 to 80, only saw 12% of women and 4% of men meet criteria for ultraprocessed food addiction.

The number crunching comes from a nationally representative batch of data surveying more than 2,000 older Americans on healthy aging.

The survey included questions about experiences with ultraprocessed foods and drinks, asking participants to identify cravings, unsuccessful attempts to decrease their consumption, withdrawal symptoms and avoiding social activities due to worries of overeating.

While they’re not substances viewed as traditionally addictive, like nicotine or alcohol, sweets, fast food and sugary beverages are still “rewarding.” Even weight-control foods, popular in the 1980s, could have solidified addictive eating patterns, researchers said.

The heft of ultraprocessed foods’ impact on these generations —particularly in women — could be explained by their exposure during key developmental windows.

And though access to these items isn’t limited by federal regulations, or by customer age, that doesn’t mean they might not require intervention.

There’s nothing like the Sunshine State: warm weather, sunshine, beautiful beaches, endless outdoor adventure, palm trees and tropical vegetation. But one popular cycad plant that thrives in Florida’s warm, humid climate – and is commonly used in yards and landscapes due to its exotic look – is the Sago Palm, and it happens to be highly toxic to pets of all species. Dr. Lauren Haire, an emergency and critical care specialist at UF Vet Med, will talk about the most common cycads in Florida, break down sago palm intoxication in pets, discuss symptoms and indications your pet may be experiencing sago palm poisoning, and detail steps to take if your animal is exposed to any part of a cycad or sago palm plant.

The flu can easily knock you off your feet and into your bed for a week. In the early stages, when you oh-so-badly want to believe the congested, feverish specter glaring back at you from the mirror is experiencing a bad cold, you may be inclined to take a flu test.

Nowadays, this involves a swab of your (likely) stuffy nose. One day? It could be piece of chewing gum.

Researchers have created a tiny molecular sensor that gives off an herbal, thyme-y flavor when it comes into contact with influenza.

A lower tech than the aforementioned swab, it relies on the patient’s sense of taste — and could even notify them of their illness before classic flu-like symptoms appear. So far, the sensor has been successfully tested in vials with human saliva from unlucky folks who had the flu, as well as on human and mouse cells.

In the future, scientists plan to integrate the technology into chewing gum or lozenges with a goal appreciated by those eyeing sneezing co-workers or suspiciously subdued children: to prevent presymptomatic transmission, especially for those in high-risk environments.

It could also help increase at-home screenings, saving folks a trip to the doctor.

According to the study, the team wanted to engineer something around a detector that people have inherent access to: their tongue.

While it might be some time before this option is winking at you from the checkout aisle of a grocery store, scientists are already planning their next steps, which include human clinical trials to confirm the sensor’s taste people with both pre- and postsymptomatic flu.

Some might even call that bit of news … mouthwatering.

Exercise. We all know it’s important. We all know it offers benefits for both physical and mental health.

In fact, the Department of Health and Human Services recommends that American adults should get at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity each week.

Still, many of us still struggle to find time for exercise in the hustle and bustle of our daily grind. And conventional knowledge has held that for exercise to really be effective, it should be done on a regular schedule, multiple times through the week.

A recent study is bucking the idea that one needs to exercise four to five times per week — or more — to see real benefits.

The study, which analyzed data from nearly 90,000 participants, showed that those who only exercise on weekends reaped similar health benefits as those who exercise more regularly.

Those who only exercised on weekends and those who exercised through the week both were at a lower risk for over 200 diseases compared with their more sedentary peers. Whether the weekend exercisers packed it all into one day or spread it over two days, if they reached the suggested 150 minutes in total, they got the benefits.

Among exercise’s benefits are lowered risk for cardiometabolic conditions, such as heart attack, stroke and diabetes. Not to mention a lower risk of cancer, depression and high blood pressure.

So don’t let the idea of a regular exercise routine become a hurdle to achieving good health. No matter how you hit the 150-minute mark of moderate intensity physical activity each week, you’ll be doing your best to stave off 200 diseases.

Weekend warriors, we salute you.