Move over Atkins. Step aside Scarsdale. The newest proven way to lose weight? Support public transport.

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University and the RAND Corporation studied the community of Charlotte, North Carolina, before and after a new light rail system for commuting was installed. The results surprised even the researchers.

Adults aren’t the only sugar addicts. Even many babies and toddlers are consuming more sugar than they should, according to a survey funded by the Centre for Science in the Public Interest Canada.

A whopping 53 percent of the food products targeted to babies and toddlers analyzed by a team led by University of Calgary professor Charlene Elliott get more than 20 percent of their calories from sugar. The foods included biscuits, cookies, fruit snacks, yogurts, cereals and snack bars. Some of the products marketed to the youngest consumers contained even more sugar than similar products marketed to adults.

If you want to boost athletic performance and overall vigor, get to bed early, suggests a new study.

Seven members of the Stanford University football team participated in the experiment, which was directed by Cheri Mah of the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory. All began the season showing signs of moderate fatigue and daytime sleepiness. For seven to eight weeks, they extended the amount of time they slept, aiming for a minimum of ten hours of shut-eye every night.

The benefits were dramatic.

Forget heart rate monitors and body fat measurements. The best gauge of fitness may be a tidy house.

NiCole Keith, an associate professor of physical education at Indiana University, set out to examine how physical activity is influenced by a range of factors for city-dwellers. Her study involved 998 people aged 49 to 65 living in St. Louis. She looked at the condition of sidewalks, the presence of outdoor lighting, and other environmental characteristics believed to affect an individual’s decision to be active. The result, she says “was not at all what we expected.” The interior condition of people’s houses turned out to be the only factor linked to their level of physical activity.