A new UCLA psychology study provides evidence that being overweight makes people tired and sedentary — not the other way around.

Life scientists led by UCLA’s Aaron Blaisdell placed 32 female rats on one of two diets for six months. The first, a standard rat’s diet, consisted of relatively unprocessed foods like ground corn and fish meal. The ingredients in the second were highly processed, of lower quality and included substantially more sugar — a proxy for a junk food diet.

After just three months, the researchers observed a significant difference in the amount of weight the rats had gained, with the 16 on the junk food diet having become noticeably fatter.

“One diet led to obesity, the other didn’t,” said Blaisdell, a professor of psychology in the UCLA College of Letters and Science and a member of UCLA’s Brain Research Institute.

The experiments the researchers performed, Blaisdell said, also suggest that fatigue may result from a junk food diet.

As part of the study, the rats were given a task in which they were required to press a lever to receive a food or water reward. The rats on the junk food diet demonstrated impaired performance, taking substantially longer breaks than the lean rats before returning to the task. In a 30-minute session, the overweight rats took breaks that were nearly twice as long as the lean ones.

Does a junk food diet make you lazy? UCLA psychology study offers answer | UCLA

Sales of the Arizona Diamondbacks’ $25 corn dog have been so brisk that the team’s concessionaires can’t wait for a week-long road trip that starts Friday so that they can prep enough to be ready for the team’s April 11-13 homestand against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Diamondbacks are selling the D-Bat — an 18-inch corn dog stuffed with cheddar cheese, jalapenos and bacon and served with fries — for $25.

The 18-inch corn dog, called the D-Bat, is stuffed with cheddar cheese, jalapenos and bacon and is served with a side of fries.

The corn dog became a social media star when the team announced the item two weeks ago. Team president and CEO Derrick Hall said at the time that he didn’t have any expectations, but Hall told ESPN.com on Wednesday that the item has been so successful, the team needs some catch-up time.

“We sold 300 on the first night,” Hall said. “And we only sold 100 last night because we ran out. We can’t make them fast enough. We have 100 ready for tonight and we’ll have 100 ready for tomorrow. And then when the team goes on the road, we’ll get to work to make more.”

On opening night, some fans waited nearly an hour to be able to buy a D-Bat, and Hall said that if sales remain as brisk as they are, the team will have to extend the sale of the corn dog beyond the two concession areas that are selling it now.

Supersized concession items by major league teams have garnered a lot of attention in the past couple of weeks. The Texas Rangers unveiled the “Choomongous,” two feet of Asian-spiced beef on a bun for $26, and the Chicago White Sox announced plans to sell a 3-pound, 12-scoop sundae in a full-size batting helmet for $17.

 
Fat Thanks to Rob K. for the tip!

Arizona Diamondbacks running out of supersized corn dogs – ESPN

Women who drink the most diet sodas may also be more likely to develop heart disease and even to die, according to a new study published Saturday.

Researchers found women who drank two or more diet drinks a day were 30 percent more likely to have a heart attack or other cardiovascular “event,” and 50 percent more likely to die, than women who rarely touch such drinks.

The findings, being presented at a meeting of the American College of Cardiology, don’t suggest that the drinks themselves are killers. But women who toss back too many diet sodas may be trying to make up for unhealthy habits, experts say.

“Our study suggests an association between higher diet drink consumption and mortality,” said Dr. Ankur Vyas, a cardiovascular disease expert at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinic, who led the study.

Diet drinks linked with heart disease, death