
Health Studies Hub
Your go-to source for daily breakdowns of the latest health, fitness, and nutrition research.
Keto Diet Slashes Metabolic Syndrome Health Risks.
In 2025, Jiping Chen and Jiawei Yao from Shandong University and Guangdong Vocational Academy of Art reviewed how the ketogenic diet (KD)—low-carb, high-fat—helps manage metabolic syndrome (MetS), a mix of high blood pressure, high sugar, big waist, high triglycerides (TG), and low good cholesterol (HDL). They looked at how KD boosts ketone bodies like β-hydroxybutyrate (β-BHB) to burn fat, improve insulin use, fix lipid levels, and cut swelling.
Intermittent Fasting Raises Heart Death Risk by 91%.
In 2024, researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University analyzed data from over 20,000 U.S. adults (average age 49) in the NHANES survey from 2003-2018, followed until 2019. They compared those eating in an 8-hour window (a common IF method) to those eating over 12-16 hours, adjusting for age, diet, and health factors.
4:3 Intermittent Fasting Curbs Hunger During Weight Loss.
In 2025, Matthew J. Breit and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus did a secondary look at a 12-month trial with 36 adults trying to lose weight. They compared two groups: one cut calories every day, the other did 4:3 intermittent fasting (normal eating 4 days, low calories 3 days). They tracked eating habits, hunger feelings, and hormones like ghrelin (hunger signal) and leptin (fullness signal) at start, 3 months, and 12 months using surveys and blood tests.
Olive Oil Reduces Weight Gain and Brain Inflammation By 30%.
In 2025, Lucas Santos and a team from Brazil studied Wistar rats fed a high-fat diet from weaning to mimic obesity. They split them into four groups: standard diet, standard diet with extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), high-fat diet, and high-fat diet with EVOO. They checked body weight, blood sugar, satiety, and brain inflammation markers in the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus.
Grass-Fed & Finished Beef Crushes Grain-Fed in Health Benefits.
In a 2019 study from Michigan State University, researchers surveyed grass-finished beef from 12 US farms, analyzing fatty acids, minerals, and vitamins. Farms used all-grass diets, leading to an average omega-6 to omega-3 ratio of 4.1, far better than typical grain-fed beef's 20:1 or higher.
Minimally Processed Foods Double Weight Loss.
In 2025, Samuel J. Dicken and a team from University College London ran a trial with 55 adults. They split people into two groups: one ate minimally processed foods like overnight oats or homemade spaghetti Bolognese for eight weeks, then switched to ultra-processed foods like breakfast bars or ready meals after a break.
Organic Food Isn’t Just About Pesticides—It Signals a Healthier Life.
A 2024 cross-sectional study in Nutrients by Havemann-Nies et al. analyzed nearly 10,000 German adults and found that those who regularly ate organic food had healthier diets overall—higher in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fiber, and lower in sugar, saturated fat, and ultra-processed foods.
Better Sleep May Help You Stay Strong as You Age—If Your Diet Backs It Up.
A 2025 study in Nutrients found that adults who slept longer and had better sleep quality also had stronger handgrip strength—but only when they consumed more protein and followed a higher-quality diet.