6 The Hampton Roads Messenger Health


Benefits of Moderate Weight Loss in People with Obesity


Volume 10 Number 7


March 2016


Federal Government Breaks Contracting Records


treras-Sweet, administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and a member of President Obama's Cabinet, was joined by Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to the President, Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez (D-NY-07), Ranking Member of the House Small Business Committee, Representative Judy Chu (D-CA-27) and Representative Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17) has announced that the federal government has surpassed its five percent contracting goal for Women-Owned Small Businesses (WOSB) for the first time in history.


"Meeting this goal means five


percent is no longer our ceiling but our foundation upon which to build," said Contreras-Sweet. "A recent


SBA-commissioned revealed study women-owned businesses Researchers investigated the


metabolic effects of progressive 5%, 10%, and 15% weight loss.


More than 1 in 3 Americans is


obese. Obesity is a risk factor for many diseases, including type 2 diabetes and heart disease. These health issues stem from a range of underlying metabolic abnormalities that affect the liver, pancreas, muscle, fat, and other tissues.


recommend


Most treatment guidelines that


people who are overweight


improvements


obese aim to lose 5% to 10% of their weight


triglycerides, and leptin, which are risk factors for heart disease and diabetes. They also showed improved function of insulin-secreting β cells, as well as the ability of fat, liver, and muscle tissue to respond to insulin.


Markers of inflammation are


elevated in people with obesity. The researchers, however, found no changes in systemic or fat tissue markers of inflammation with 5%


or At a Glance


to achieve in


health. A team led by Dr. Samuel Klein at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis set out to characterize the metabolic benefits when people with obesity lose 5% and more of their weight. The study was supported in part by NIH’s National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and other NIH components.


The scientists randomly assigned


40 sedentary people with obesity to maintain their body weight or to go on a diet to lose 5% of their body weight, followed by targets of 10% and 15%. Participants averaged 44 years of age with a body mass index (BMI) of 38 (average weight of about 235 pounds). The participants didn’t smoke or have diabetes. The findings appeared online on February 22, 2016, in Cell Metabolism.


People in the weight loss group consumed a low-calorie diet with 50-55% of energy as carbohydrate, 30% as fat, and 15-20% as protein. They were provided with weekly diet and behavioral education sessions.


Nineteen participants achieved the


initial target of 5% weight loss (average of 12 pounds) after about 3.5 months. The researchers found that


these


people had significantly decreased body fat, including abdominal fat and fat in the liver. They had decreased plasma levels of glucose, insulin,


• People with obesity who reduced their weight by 5% had improvements in metabolic function in many tissues, including fat, liver, and muscle.


• Further weight loss of 10 to 15% result- ed in some additional improvements.


weight loss. Nine of the participants reached


the subsequent targets, achieving about 11% weight loss (at about 7 months) and 16% loss (at about 10 months). The decreases in fat mass, plasma insulin, leptin, and triglyceride concentrations


continued in tandem


with the weight loss. These participants showed continued improvements in β cell function and in insulin sensitivity in muscle. Insulin sensitivity in liver and fat tissue, however, didn’t improve further with weight loss beyond 5%.


“Our findings demonstrate that


you get the biggest bang for your buck with 5% weight loss,” Klein says. “If you weigh 200 pounds, you will be doing yourself a favor if you can lose 10 pounds and keep it off. You don’t have to lose 50 pounds to get important health benefits.”


The study wasn’t designed to


determine whether these effects are sustained for longer periods of time. Further research will also be needed to determine whether people with diabetes have the same types and patterns of metabolic adaptations following progressive weight loss.


CDC.Gov


already employ eight million American workers, but when it comes to receiving contracts and capital, women are still under-represented. That's why the SBA has added 36 new industry categories where women can now compete for set-aside awards.


contracts and This will


sole-source dramatically


expand contracting opportunities for women-owned businesses, paving the way for new jobs and industries to be created."


Contracting accomplishments announced include:


billion of all federal small business eligible


In FY15, 5.05 percent or $17.8 contracting


awarded to WOSBs, the first time this benchmark has been reached.


The federal government


surpassed its 23 percent small business procurement goal for the third year in a row, awarding an all-time high of 25.75 percent, or $90.7 billion, in federal contracts to small businesses. These contracting funds support more than 537,000 jobs and significantly impact job creation, innovation, and community growth.


Federal contract dollars awarded dollars were business eligible


Career and Business Opportunities WASHINGTON - Maria Con-


to Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs) and Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDB) also reached historic highs. For the 4th consecutive year, the federal government exceeded the goal for SDVOSBs, achieving 3.93 percent or $13.8 billion of all federal small


dollars. SDBs received 10.06 percent or $35.4 billion of all small business eligible contracting dollars, the highest percentage in history.


SBA Mid-Atlantic Regional


Administrator Natalia Olson-Urtecho hailed the impact of WOSB's in her region as a major factor in the new standard.


"Due in part to its proximity to major government headquarters, the


Mid-Atlantic Region has the


largest portfolio," Olson-Urtecho said. "It's the work of these small business owners, SBA District Offices and our working partners which helped take our numbers over the threshold."


A recent report commissioned


by Contreras-Sweet showed WOSBs are underrepresented or substantially underrepresented in 113 North American Classification System (NAICS) groups. These findings will be used to expand opportunities for women-owned businesses and provide a broader range of industries for contracting officers to find eligible women-owned businesses.


In April 2013, WIPP, American


Express OPEN and the SBA partnered to launch ChallengeHER, a national initiative to help boost government contracting


opportunities


Procurement released later


Scorecard will for


women-owned small businesses. SBA's complete Annual


be this year. To learn


more about the Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contract Program, visit: www.sba. gov/wosb. For more information on ChallengeHER, visit: www.wipp.org/ ChallengeHER.


Small Business Event- MICC Fort Bragg Acquisition Forecast Open House


Solicitation Number: W91247ACQOPENHOUSE30MARCH2016 Agency: Department of the Army


Office: Army Contracting Command, MICC Location: MICC - Fort Bragg


The Mission and Installation Contracting Command MICC Center Fort Bragg plans to conduct an Acquisition Forecast Open House. The purpose of the FORECAST FORUM is to allow MICC Fort Bragg contracting officials and representatives from Fort Bragg to present their anticipated acquisition opportunities for FY 2016. Date: March 30, 2016 Time: 8:00 am to 12:00 pm. Event sign- in begins at 7:30 am Event will be held at the Cumberland Hall Auditorium located on the campus of Fayetteville Technical Community College, 2201 Hull Road, Fayetteville, NC 28302 There is no fee to attend but registration is required! Registration is limited to the first 275 registration received due to seating limitations.


This is an opportunity for Small Business, Disadvantaged Small Business, Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business, and HUB-Zone small business to learn about prime and subcontracting opportunities at Fort Bragg. It is also an opportunity to network with requiring activity personnel.


Please bring a current on page capability sheet and/or business card. This is not a pre-solicitation or pre-bid conference. This event is for informational purposes only. For Your convenience, Registration must be completed through this link: www. einvitations.afit.edu/inv/anim.cfm?i=278180&k=00664A087357


contracting


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