About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the future of humanity.
Nov 24, 2016...
New research offers insight into why it’s so difficult for dieters to maintain their weight loss. (Getty Images)
For those who have lost the same 10, 20 or 50 pounds not once but many times over, new research may help explain why yo-yo dieters so often fail to maintain their hard-won weight loss.
The community of microorganisms that inhabit the gut are a key culprit, experiments in mice suggest. After being altered by obesity, this collection of bacteria, viruses and protozoa — collectively known as the gut microbiome — subverts any effort to keep lost weight off. Instead, it seems to encourage the body to regain lost weight by storing more calories as fat, and it does so in ways that exaggerate the body’s unhealthy metabolic response to weight gain.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/in-the-news/new-worlds-veggies-also-have-cholesterol/
Apr 30, 2017...
Vegetables: cucumbers and tomatoes. (photo credit:AMY SPIRO)
Many people eat green vegetables to lower their cholesterol levels, but contrary to common belief, most plants are not cholesterol-free. As reported recently in Nature Plants, researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science have now deciphered the biochemical reactions responsible for the plants’ cholesterol production. These findings may make it possible to engineer plant species so as to obtain biochemical compounds that are derived from cholesterol.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/in-the-news/could-your-healthy-diet-make-me-fat/
Nov 28, 2015...
Marie Mirgaine
Some people eat as little fat as possible to lose weight and stay healthy, while others avoid carbohydrates. A vegan diet (with no animal products) and the paleo diet (with lots) both have enthusiastic devotees. One popular diet encourages intermittent fasting, another frequent small meals. Who’s right?
Perhaps they all are, according to the new field of “personalized nutrition.”
Oct 29, 2014... Dr. Eran Elinav is a medical doctor as well as a scientist, which makes him ideal to conduct research on gut microbiota and how they impact our health. Dr. Elinav's groundbreaking work to date includes being able to determine how our individual bodies will react to specific foods. His research has tremendous potential for improving our everyday lives, making us fitter, healthier, and happier.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/using-science-to-feed-the-world/
Mar 19, 2019...
We humans are overrunning our planet and its limited resources, with no end in sight: the UN says that “roughly 83 million people” are born each year, adding another billion in just the next 20 years. Our current population of 7.6 billion alone is already putting a tremendous strain on Earth’s limited water, energy, land, and other resources.
And now, for the third year in a row, there has been a rise in world hunger. The U.N. says that “821 million people – one in nine – still go to bed on an empty stomach each night. Even more – one in three – suffer from some form of malnutrition.” These statistics are concerning for reasons beyond the human suffering; for example, malnourished children often have lifelong health problems and difficulty learning.
Nov 19, 2015...
The research was featured on the cover of the journal Cell
REHOVOT, ISRAEL—November 19, 2015—Which is more likely to raise blood sugar levels: sushi or ice cream? According to a Weizmann Institute of Science study reported in the November 19 issue of the journal Cell, the answer varies from one person to another. The study, which continuously monitored blood sugar levels in 800 people for a week, revealed that the bodily response to all foods was highly individual.
Mar 26, 2018...
It takes much more land to produce edible protein from pigs, cattle and chickens than it does to grow it from plants, according to new research. (Chuck Liddy / TNS)
More than 41 million Americans find themselves at risk of going hungry at some point during the year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. New research suggests the country could feed all 327 million Americans — plus roughly 390 million more — by focusing on plants
Sep 17, 2014...
Sweeteners alter the microbiome, the population of bacteria that is in the digestive system. Weizmann Institute of Science
Artificial sweeteners may disrupt the body’s ability to regulate blood sugar, causing metabolic changes that can be a precursor to diabetes, researchers are reporting.
That is “the very same condition that we often aim to prevent” by consuming sweeteners instead of sugar, said Dr. Eran Elinav, an immunologist at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, at a news conference to discuss the findings.
Jun 10, 2015...
Bifidobacteria, a type of gut bacterium. Researchers believe that the different types of gut microbes found in individuals has a significant impact on how their bodies respond to food. Photograph: Phototake Inc./Alamy
Scientists have created bespoke diets using a computer algorithm that learns how individual bodies respond to different foods.
Researchers believe the tailored diets could help stem the rising tide of diabetes, heart disease and obesity, by personalising people’s daily meals and so helping them to adopt healthy eating habits.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/in-search-of-the-wild-fava-bean/
Dec 07, 2016...
14,000-year-old faba seeds contain clues to the timing of the plants’ domestication.
Like all food crops, the faba, or fava, bean – a nutritious part of the diets of many cultures – had a wild ancestor. Wild faba is presumed to be extinct, but Weizmann Institute of Science researchers have now identified 14,000-year-old remains of seeds that offer important clues as to the time and place that this plant grew naturally. Understanding the ecology of the wild plants’ environment and the evolution they underwent in the course of domestication is crucial to improving the biodiversity of the modern crop. The findings were reported in Scientific Reports.
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