/oss/taxonomy/term/517/all en /oss/article/did-you-know-general-science/story-behind-21-grams <p>The April 1907 issue of American Medicine featured a paper by Dr. Duncan Macdougall describing his experiment whereby the beds of dying patients were placed on a sensitive balance. Believe it or not, he was trying to weigh the human soul! The paper was titled “Hypothesis Concerning Soul Substance Together with Experimental Evidence of The Existence of Such Substance.” Macdougall of Haverhill, Massachusetts placed six dying patients on the specially constructed balance and concluded that at the moment of death there was a loss in weight of about three quarters of an ounce, or 21 grams.</p> Wed, 19 Jun 2019 15:45:37 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7802 at /oss /oss/article/health-you-asked/can-you-be-obese-still-be-healthy <p>In medical speak we talk, not about being fat, but about overweight or obese. We define being overweight as having a Body Mass Index (BMI) over 25, and obesity as having a BMI over 30. Obesity is usually subdivided into Class 1 obesity (BMI 30-35), Class 2 obesity (BMI 35-40), and Class 3 obesity (BMI greater than 40). Class 3 obesity is usually labeled as severe obesity, and is sometimes unfortunately referred to by the public as “morbid obesity.”</p> Fri, 08 Feb 2019 17:00:00 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 7568 at /oss /oss/article/general-science-you-asked/why-are-there-so-many-different-body-types-among-people <p>While this question seems simple, it turns out there are a lot of complex processes behind your development of a particular body size or shape.</p> Thu, 23 Aug 2018 16:29:52 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 7320 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know/what-mass-kilogram-based <p>What is a kilogram? A seemingly easy question with a bizarre answer. The gram (1/1000th of a kilogram) is defined as the mass of one cubic centimetre of water at 0˚C, so it seems obvious that a kilogram would simply be the similar measurement of 1000 cubic centimetres of water. Stunningly, however, the kilogram is actually defined as the mass of the International Prototype of the Kilogram, a physical object that’s kept at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures in France.</p> Sun, 14 May 2017 02:30:56 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 2446 at /oss /oss/article/health/want-lose-weight-then-run-dont-walk-study <p style="text-align:justify"><a href="http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/?p=4728"><img alt="Runner" height="150" src="http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/files/2013/04/runner2-150x150.jpg" width="150" /></a>Need to lose weight? Running will help more than walking, according to new research.And to keep off those lost pounds, continue running, suggests Paul Williams, a staff scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, who compared weight loss and weight control in thousands of runners and walkers over six years.The same amount of exercise in adults with a body mass index over 28 (deemed overweight) resulted in 90 percent greater weight loss for runners compared to walkers, he found."Running is more effective than walking in preventing weight gain and achieving weight loss," he said. Both groups shed pounds, but the runners lost more, Williams found.That doesn't mean vigorous exercise is all you need to do to lose weight. "You do have to add dieting," he said. "Exercise is not by itself the most effective way."More than one-third of adults in the United States are obese, putting them at risk of serious health risks such as diabetes and heart disease.For the new study, published in the April issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, Williams evaluated changes in body mass index (BMI) of more than 32,000 runners and more than 15,000 walkers. (BMI is a calculation of body fat based on height and weight). <a href="http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/2013/04/09/want-to-lose-weight-then-run-dont-walk-study/">Read more</a></p> Tue, 09 Apr 2013 19:54:24 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1905 at /oss /oss/article/food-health/eating-less-and-living-more <p style="text-align:justify"><a href="http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/2013/04/29/eating-less-and-living-more/bagette/" rel="attachment wp-att-5117"><img alt="" height="150" src="http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/files/2013/04/bagette-150x150.jpg" width="150" /></a>They feast on croissants that ooze butter. They eat creamy cheeses and fat-filled pastries. Breakfast is pain-au-chocolat washed down with espresso. There is no oatmeal in sight. I suspect most of them have never heard of flaxseed. Yet, the French have the lowest death rate from heart disease in the European Union, and when we compare this rate to North America, well, there is no comparison. Our incidence of heart disease is double that of the French. Red wine consumption is the romanticized explanation that has been offered for this so-called “French paradox,” and there may indeed be something to that. Laboratory studies have shown that a compound in wine, called resveratrol, may reduce the risk associated with high cholesterol. But there is probably a better explanation as to why the French are protected. <a href="http://blogs.mcgill.ca/oss/2013/04/29/eating-less-and-living-more">Read more</a></p> Mon, 29 Apr 2013 22:30:23 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1927 at /oss /oss/article/health-nutrition-you-asked/african-mango-can-its-seeds-really-help-you-lose-weight <p>Obesity is one of North America’s greatest nutritional challenges and it is now creeping into the developing world as well, thanks to the export of our dietary habits. But maybe we can import a weapon from an another culture to help us in the battle against the bulge. That weapon is an extract of the seeds of Irvingia gabonensis, a West African fruit that goes by the common name of African mango.</p> Mon, 02 Apr 2012 16:16:29 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1687 at /oss