Science Weekly - 27th June 2020

Holiday season must have arrived to the science world as we only had a handful of papers published last week in the field of nutrition, fitness and exercise science. The ones hat were published are quite intriguing though and may help personal trainers with a specific niche.

Here are the highlights:

• Blood pressure medicine in our food?
• What can your urine tell about your diet?
• Sugary drink tax can work dependent on the tax design.
  
• Seem that Marine training takes more mental fortitude than physical fitness.

Transgenic rice lowers blood pressure of hypertensive rats

In the future, taking your blood pressure medication could be as simple as eating a spoonful of rice. This 'treatment' could also have fewer side effects than current blood pressure medicines. As a first step, researchers have made transgenic rice that contains several anti-hypertensive peptides. When given to hypertensive rats, the rice lowered their blood pressure.

Source: American Chemical Society

Urine test reveals quality of your diet -- and whether it's the best fit for your body

Scientists have completed large-scale tests on a new type of five-minute urine test that measures the health of a person's diet, and produces an individual's unique urine 'fingerprint'.

Source: Imperial College London

Sugary drink tax models show health gains, cost reductions, but vary by tax design

A simulation model details how different taxing strategies for sodas and other sugary drinks could impact health gains linked to heart attacks, strokes and diabetes while also lowering health care costs in the US. Three types of taxation on sugary drinks lower healthcare costs, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes, but some -- such as taxing sugar content -- perform even better than taxing based on the volume of the beverage.

Source: American Heart Association

Marine training may take more mental than physical grit

A new study identifies psychological measures that may predict who is more likely to complete - or quit - a demanding marine training course.

Source: University of Southern California - Health Sciences