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Dining Out Can Doom a Diet – Lincoln Journal Star

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:42 pm

TUESDAY, March 7, 2017 (HealthDay News) -- Sticking to a diet is tough enough, but eating out with friends or family may up the odds of cheating by about 60 percent, a new study suggests.

"When you're in a restaurant, you're probably more vulnerable than you think you are," said study author Lora Burke, a professor of nursing at University of Pittsburgh.

"Whenever you're in a high-risk situation, you could easily eat beyond what you'd planned to," she added.

More than 70 percent of American adults over age 20 are overweight or obese, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And an estimated 45 million Americans diet each year, according to Boston Medical Center's Nutrition and Weight Management Center.

In the study, Burke and her colleagues estimated both the rate of diet temptations and the probability a lapse would follow based on dieters' location -- such as home, a restaurant or workplace -- as well as whether they were alone or with others.

The researchers had 150 adults use a smartphone app to report when they felt temptation, and whether or not they succumbed to that temptation. Ninety percent of the volunteers were women. Eighty percent were white.

The study participants' average body mass index (BMI) was 34, putting them in the obese category. BMI is a rough measure of a person's body fat calculated with weight and height measurements. A BMI of 18.5 to 24.9 is considered normal. From 25 to 29.9 is overweight, and a BMI of 30 or over is considered obese.

As an example, a 5-foot-4 woman weighing about 200 pounds, or a 5-foot-9 man weighing 230, both have a BMI of 34 (the study average), the researchers said.

Diet temptations were defined as eating a food or an amount of food inconsistent with a weight loss plan. Diet temptations occurred most often in a restaurant while eating with others or in sight of others who were eating, the study showed.

Temptations didn't occur as frequently in another person's home as in a restaurant. But there was still nearly a 65 percent likelihood of a diet lapse in someone else's house.

"They're probably paying more attention to the social situation and the conversation and not as much to what they're eating, so they eat more," said Penny Kris-Etherton. She's a registered dietician and professor of nutrition at Penn State University. She wasn't involved in the new research.

"I would never tell anybody not to go out and eat with friends," she added. "That's not the message -- friends are so important. But be mindful of what you're eating."

The odds of a diet lapse were lower in other locations, such as work (about 40 percent) and in a car (about 30 percent). But, the study participants cheated on their diets nearly half the time when alone as well.

Burke and Kris-Etherton both urged people to frame their healthier eating plans as a lifestyle rather than a diet. Changing that mindset, they agreed, can help ease the pressure to perfectly adhere to dietary goals.

"If you know you want to go out on Friday night, have less to eat on Thursday and Saturday," Burke suggested. "Bank your calories. You can take a break. It's about balance."

Mary Williams is a registered dietitian in the department of family and community medicine at Christiana Care Health System in Wilmington, Del. She noted that restaurant dining is more challenging for those aiming to cut calories when they don't arrive with a plan in mind.

"Many times people go into a restaurant and have never looked at the menu, so they don't have a game plan in mind," said Williams, who wasn't part of the new research. "I often tell our clients to review the menu beforehand so they have some idea of what to pick so they're not unduly influenced by everyone [else]."

Kris-Etherton said those trying to lose weight can still enjoy eating out with friends by making a few small tweaks that can save them from consuming too many calories.

"If everyone is ordering alcoholic beverages, don't order a Long Island iced tea, which can have 800 calories," she suggested. "Order a glass of wine or something with far fewer calories."

"Also, you don't need dessert, especially if you have an appetizer," Kris-Etherton added. "If everyone's ordering dessert, maybe split one and take a couple of bites."

The study was to be presented on Tuesday at an American Heart Association meeting in Portland, Ore. Research presented at scientific conferences typically hasn't been published or peer-reviewed, and results are considered preliminary.

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Dining Out Can Doom a Diet - Lincoln Journal Star

How Instagram fueled the Whole30 diet craze – Digiday

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:42 pm

When Rachael Gensons friend first told her about the Whole30 program in January, she quickly shrugged it off. After all, the Austin-based PR manager had been against fad diets her entire life. But barely six months later, she was scrolling through her Instagram feed when she decided to give it a go.

My biggest impetus was their highly engaged Instagram community, she said. I realized that it was less a typical diet and more an educational program on how to have a better relationship with food.

She is hardly alone. The Whole30 program has emerged as one of the foremost health crazes in recent years, consisting of a strict 30-day dietary reset, in which followers swear off dairy, grains, legumes, soy, alcohol, sugar, and any processed foods. It is not for the faint of heart or weak of impulse. If you havent heard about it at your gym, youve definitely seen it on Instagram with various versions of the hashtag #whole30 the program is as much about broadcasting your journey on social media as it is about following the diet.

Whole30 was started by Salt Lake City nutritionists Melissa Hartwig and Dallas Hartwig in 2009, but started gaining steam when its first book The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom was released in 2012. Since then, it has steadily elbowed into the crowded diet and fitness program market with an unconventional approach to digital marketing.

Instead of traditional channels, Whole30 has squarely focused on building its brand through user-generated content, a grassroots influencer approach and social media specifically Instagram.

We have never done any traditional advertising or had a marketing strategy. We didnt even do any A/B testing or paid posts until six months ago, said Melissa Hartwig, co-founder of Whole30. Its all been organic, social media, and especially Instagram has really helped propel the brand forward.

Instagram is undoubtedly its most important platform. The program has 1.3 million followers on its accounts @whole30, @whole30recipes and @whole30approved combined, with over 2.4 million photos tagged with the hashtag #whole30 itself (up from 1 million in August 2015). These different accounts under the brands umbrella is deliberate, said Hartwig, as it allows them to easily direct people where they want to go. Plus, cross-tagging the different accounts in posts also helps drive engagement on other profiles too.

Theyve done an exceptional job of understanding their audience and catering to their needs in terms of their content, said Melody Lowe, copywriter at agency Drumroll, who has done the program three times herself. It is very relatable, and getting support and comments from people on your posts is very encouraging.

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Another tactic is to engage its community on a grassroots level, providing followers with not only a forum to share Whole30-friendly meals and their meal-preparation processes but also actively responding to them. The brands @whole30recipes handle, for example, is a mosaic of user-generated content, through weekly takeovers from members of its community who share their own recipes and recipe hacks. In fact, the channel was created when the brand realized thats what the users were asking for, and Hartwig personally comments and engages with the followers regularly on it as well.

Our posts dont feature rich 20-somethings in their underwear. They are real people sharing their non-scale victories, she said. They like to engage with not just each other, but also us there are real people behind our channels, not nameless, faceless brands.

Its a strategy that has worked, according to Holly Thomas, editorial director at HZDG, because it has made the brand accessible to everyone, not just the big fish in terms of influencers. While many brands fear diluting their brand messages and hold their narratives very close to themselves when theyre starting out, Whole30 started highlighting their followers stories almost right off the bat.

They even regrammed one of my posts from when I did my first Whole30, she said. They made an effort to highlight anyone who was sharing something interesting, and I think that really endeared the brand and made it feel like it was for everyone.

Whole30 plans and recipes are available for free on its website, and the website is monetized through affiliate links with a few products and services, partner relationships with meal planning services and a paid newsletter subscription. While it does not carry outside branded ads on its website, Whole30 does have a partnership program which has also helped boost the brand, according to Hartwig.

The brand lets other brands use its trademark to market its products for a license fee. Its like a stamp of approval for products that fit within the diet, like, for instance, sparkling water brand Lacroix or non-dairy paleo coffee creamer Nutpods. Hartwig views herself as a budding entrepreneur and has personally invested in several of these health startups, including Nutpods and Kettle & Fire Bone Broth, a bone broth startup by two high schoolers. Moving forward, thats how she sees the Whole30 brand continue to grow.

Its not about the money or the reach; its about serving the Whole30 community, she said.

While its too early to say, it might be an effective strategy moving forward. Searches for Whole 30 were up 292 percent in 2016, and popular paleo staples like chicken bone broth and grass-fed ground beef were up 268 percent and 381 percent respectively, according to search data released by the online order and home delivery service Instacart. Instacart predicts that a growing number of brands will seek to qualify for the Whole 30 Approved label in 2017, following in the footsteps of brands like Fatworks Oils and Naked Bacon.

When we were starting out, our target audience was the relatively young, already fit and health-conscious community, said Hartwig. We are now looking to take things take to the next level. Our fastest growing demographic is those between the ages of 40 and 60 years.

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How Instagram fueled the Whole30 diet craze - Digiday

Ancient dental plaque tells tales of Neandertal diet and disease – Science News (blog)

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:42 pm

Dental plaque preserved in fossilized teeth confirms that Neandertals were flexible eaters and may have self-medicated with an ancient equivalent of aspirin.

DNA recovered from calcified plaque on teeth from four Neandertal individuals suggest that those from the grasslands around Beligums Spy cave ate woolly rhinoceros and wild sheep, while their counterparts from the forested El Sidron cave in Spain consumed a menu of moss, mushrooms and pine nuts.

The evidence bolsters an argument that Neandertals diets spanned the spectrum of carnivory and herbivory based on the resources available to them, Laura Weyrich, a microbiologist at the University of Adelaide in Australia, and her colleagues report March 8 in Nature.

The best-preserved Neandertal remains were from a young male from El Sidron whose teeth showed signs of an abscess. DNA from a diarrhea-inducing stomach bug and several gum disease pathogens turned up in his plaque. Genetic material from poplar trees, which contain the pain-killing aspirin ingredient salicylic acid, and a plant mold that makes the antibiotic penicillin hint that he may have used natural medication to ease his ailments.

The researchers were even able to extract an almost-complete genetic blueprint, or genome, for one ancient microbe, Methanobrevibacter oralis. At roughly 48,000 years old, its the oldest microbial genome sequenced, the researchers report.

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The vegan diet meatless masterpieces – STLtoday.com

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:42 pm

Some people become vegetarians because they love animals. Some, as comedian A. Whitney Brown put it, because they hate plants.

But vegans are committed. Not only do they not eat food that harms or kills animals, some dont even want food that inconveniences animals.

Like honey. Hardcore vegans will not eat honey because, as Noah Lewis of vegetus.org puts it, the simple fact is that the bees are enslaved. Similarly, some vegans will not eat sugar because, while it comes entirely from a plant, some sugar is whitened by using bone char, which comes from animals.

Although the vegan diet lacks in meat, dairy and egg products or because of it the diet can be better for you than that which the standard American eats. In 2009, the American Dietetic Association took the position that vegetarian and vegan diets reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes, and lead to lower cholesterol and blood pressure.

It can be healthy, but there are some things to watch out for when on a vegan diet: You have to make sure to get enough protein and vitamin B-12 and calcium, iodine, vitamin D, iron, zinc and n-3 fatty acids.

Fortunately, a well-balanced vegan diet provides all of these essential nutrients, though you may want to take vitamin B-12 supplements, just in case.

Still, cooking a well-balanced vegan diet can be difficult, at least if you want to stick to what most Americans think of as normal ingredients. Many vegan recipes attempt to re-create meatless versions of familiar meat-based dishes, and to do so they rely on such potentially off-putting ingredients as vegan chicken, egg replacers and nondairy cheese.

Other recipes use soy products such as tofu and tempeh for their protein, and it is one of these that I tried first in cooking a vegan diet for a day.

Mee Goreng, which is a type of stir-fried noodles, is popular street fare in the Philippines. When I have had it before, it always had meat in it, usually chicken or shrimp or both. But then I came upon a vegan recipe for it using tofu, and tofu fans are sure to be instantly hooked.

If they like spicy food, that is. As with a lot of street food, Mee Goreng usually packs a kick. If you want it milder, simply trim down or eliminate the amount you use of sambal oelek, the all-purpose Indonesian and Malaysian ground chili paste.

Also as is the case with much street food, Mee Goreng tends to be a little oily. The recipe calls for 5 tablespoons of oil for four to six servings; I got by with four tablespoons, but that is still a quarter cup of oil.

Do you need it? Yes. The oil brings the dish together, from the spicy sambal to the faintly bitter bok choy to the sweet sauce made from equal parts of soy sauce, brown sugar and molasses.

The tofu, which has the amazing ability to soak up all the flavors in which it is cooked, serves as a protein-rich punctuation to the meal.

For my next dish, I dispensed with the tofu and received my protein in the form of garbanzo beans, which are also known as chickpeas.

Indian-Style Vegetable Curry With Potatoes and Cauliflower (that name seems a little over-descriptive to me) is another spicy dish. I like spices; sue me. If less fiery food is more your style, you can use a mild curry powder (but I wouldnt use much less) and leave out the serrano chile.

This dish benefits greatly from the mutually complementary flavors of potato, cauliflower, garbanzo beans and curry. A bit of tomato paste and a cup of coconut milk make it deeply satisfying, yet it is so healthful that youll practically pat yourself on the back for eating it.

A weekly treasure trove of tastiness, featuring reviews from restaurant critic Ian Froeb and how-to videos by food writer Dan Neman.

It is the kind of dish that calls out for basmati rice; if you have it, use it.

Finally, I made a vegan version of one of the least vegan dishes I could think of, pancakes.

Pancakes pretty much need eggs, milk and butter. If you try to make them from just flour, water, sugar, salt, baking powder and a little oil, youll wind up with paste.

Yield: About 8 to 10 (6-inch) pancakes

Or so I thought. But then a colleague passed me a recipe for Vegan Pancakes that she swore was excellent. And she was right.

I dont know how this works. I dont understand how they hold together without becoming slightly sweetened hardtack. Im guessing the oil has something to do with it, but we are only talking about a single tablespoon for 10 smallish pancakes.

These vegan pancakes are fine the way they are, but I incorporated a couple of additions suggested by my colleague: I added two tablespoons of soy milk (almond milk would also do) and a teaspoon of vanilla, just to make the pancakes even better.

They are a perfect foil for maple syrup. And maple syrup doesnt inconvenience any animal.

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Gabourey Sidibe Gets Candid About Her Secret Weight-Loss Surgery: "I Wasn’t Cheating" – E! Online

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:41 pm

When Gabourey Sidibe decides to do something, she really goes for it.

The Empire star elected to have weight-loss surgery last year and has absolutely no regrets about doing it. Sidibe opens up about the big decision in her upcoming memoir, This Is Just My Face: Try Not to Stare, and to People.

"I just didn't want to worry," Sidibe, 33, tells the magazine of her decision to get laproscopic bariatric surgery after she and her older brother Ahmed, 34, were diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. "I truly didn't want to worry about all the effects that go along with diabetes. I genuinely [would] worry all the time about losing my toes."

Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic, razer Harrison/Getty Images

Sidibe rose to fame after appearing in the hit film Precious. Aware of her size, Sidibe tried to lose weight for 10 years before ultimately pursuing surgery in May 2016. The choice has completely changed the way she treats food. "My surgeon said they'd cut my stomach in half. This would limit my hunger and capacity to eat. My brain chemistry would change and I'd want to eat healthier," she writes in her memoir, which hits shelves in May, per People.

"I'll take it! My lifelong relationship with food had to change."

She also doesn't see her choice as an "easy way out."

"I wasn't cheating by getting it done," she says. "I wouldn't have been able to lose as much as I've lost without it."

Sidibe's relationship with her body and food has been tumultuous ever since she was a little girl. When her parents divorced, Sidibe started to suffer from depression, bulimia and anxiety. But after undergoing therapy, Sidibe learned to love herself.

"It has taken me years to realize that what I was born with is all beautiful," she writes. "I did not get this surgery to be beautiful. I did it so I can walk around comfortably in heels. I want to do a cartwheel. I want not to be in pain every time I walk up a flight of stairs."

Almost a year later, Sidibe continues to lose weight, but she's not willing to say a specific number. "I have a goal right now, and I'm almost there," she says. "And then once I've got it, I'll set another. But my starting weight and my goal weight, they're personal. If too many people are involved, I'll shut down."

That being said, she does not want to lose too much weight. "I admit it, I hope to God I don't get skinny," she writes in This Is Just My Face. "If I could lose enough to just be a little chubby, I'll be over the moon! Will I still be beautiful then? S--t. Probably. My beauty doesn't come from a mirror. It never will."

E! Online - Your source for entertainment news, celebrities, celeb news, and celebrity gossip. Check out the hottest fashion, photos, movies and TV shows!

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Gabourey Sidibe Gets Candid About Her Secret Weight-Loss Surgery: "I Wasn't Cheating" - E! Online

Weight gain on the rise, but fewer adults attempting weight loss – Medical News Today

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:41 pm

Although rates of overweight and obesity have risen over the past 30 years, fewer people are attempting to shed their excess weight. This is the conclusion of a new study recently published in JAMA.

Overweight and obesity affect around two thirds of adults in the United States, putting them at increased risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other chronic diseases.

A poor diet and lack of exercise are key contributors to weight gain, so it comes as no surprise that adopting a healthful diet and increasing physical activity can aid weight loss.

However, new research finds that, despite a significant rise in overweight and obesity since the late 1980s, the percentage of adults in the U.S. who are trying to lose weight has fallen.

Study co-author Dr. Jian Zhang, of Georgia Southern University, and colleagues reached their findings by analyzing data of 27,350 adults aged between 20 and 59 years who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.

All participants were overweight or obese. Overweight was defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 25 to under 30, while obese was defined as having a BMI of at least 30.

The researchers assessed the prevalence of overweight and obesity among participants across three different time periods: 1988-1994, 1999-2004, and 2009-2014.

Additionally, the team monitored any weight loss attempts among participants during each time period, determined by the question: "During the past 12 months, have you tried to lose weight?"

Results revealed that the prevalence of overweight and obesity rose by 13 percent, from 53 percent in 1988-1994 to 66 percent in 2009-2014.

However, over the same period, the researchers found that the percentage of people who attempted to lose weight decreased by 7 percent, from 56 percent in 1988-1994 to 49 percent in 2009-2014.

The team found that black women had the highest obesity prevalence, and they also saw the largest reduction in weight loss attempts, reducing from 66 percent in 1988-1994 to 55 percent in 2009-2014.

While the study is unable to pinpoint the reasons for the fall in weight loss attempts, the team speculates that it is down to increased social acceptance of higher body weights.

"Socially acceptable body weight is increasing. If more individuals who are overweight or obese are satisfied with their weight, fewer might be motivated to lose unhealthy weight," note the authors.

"The chronicity of obesity may also contribute," they add. "The longer adults live with obesity, the less they may be willing to attempt weight loss, in particular if they had attempted weight loss multiple times without success."

The team says that one limitation of the study is the fact that data were self-reported, making them subject to inaccuracy. Also, the study did not include elderly adults.

Learn how poor sleep habits might lead to weight gain for adults with a genetic obesity risk.

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Cardio vs. weights: What’s best for weight loss? – Story – WKBW – WKBW-TV

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:41 pm

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30-Minute Weight-Loss Workouts for Runners – Runner’s World

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:41 pm


Runner's World
30-Minute Weight-Loss Workouts for Runners
Runner's World
Steve asks: I'm hoping to lose weight, and I usually run easy for about 30 minutes at a time. Can you give me a few examples of workouts I could do in 30 minutes that burn more calories than just running easy? There are plenty of fun and effective ...

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30-Minute Weight-Loss Workouts for Runners - Runner's World

Eating with friends may hinder weight loss, study says – CBS News

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:41 pm

For most people, losing weight and keeping the pounds off is no easy feat. Research has shown in addition to diet and exercise, lots of other factors influence weight, including genetics, the amount of sleep a person gets, and certain medications.

Environmental and social factors can also play a role. New research looks at the impact of where a person eats, and found that for those trying to lose weight or keep it off, the temptation to overeat appears to be strongest when eating with others in social settings.

The study, presented at the American Heart Associations Epidemiology and Prevention/Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health 2017 Scientific Sessions, followed 150 people trying to lose weight or maintain weight loss for 12 months. Participants 90 percent of whom were women used smartphones and a custom-developed app to capture data on their eating habits as they moved through their daily lives. That process of documenting behaviors on the spot is called ecological momentary assessment.

This technology allows us to assess the person in their natural setting as opposed to bringing them into the research center, and also assesses in real time so you dont have to rely on recall, Lora E. Burke, Ph.D., M.P.H., study lead author and professor of nursing at the University of Pittsburgh, told CBS News.

The participants were aiming to limit calories to a specific number per day. Women in the study weighing less than 200 pounds were given a daily diet target of 1,200 calories, while men in that weight group had a target of 1,500 calories. For men and women weighing more than 200 pounds, the goal was 1,500 calories a day for women and 1,800 for men. Dieters tried to limit fat to about 25 percent of total calories.

In addition to reporting what they ate, they also made note of their surroundings and what their feelings were when they were tempted to eat something inconsistent with their diet plan. For example, they might note having a plate of French fries while out at a restaurant with friends, or eating several pieces of candy at the office.

The results showed that the chance of a diet lapse was about 60 percent when eating with others. Participants also had a 60 percent risk of overeating in a restaurant.

People were also more likely to lapse when they saw other people eating. By contrast, they had a greater chance of success at sticking to their diet plan when they ate alone although they still lapsed almost 50 percent of the time.

Burke, who has tested various interventions for weight loss for over 15 years, says such research is important to help improve public health.

One of the things Ive noticed is that when people are very successful with losing weight, after about six months you see many people start to regain weight, she said. Its very painful to watch this because of all the work people put in.

Nina Crowley, a bariatric surgery dietitian at the Medical University of South Carolina, says the results of the study did not surprise her.

I cant tell you how many of my patients are able to set their intentions for their eating habits for the week on Monday, and can eat as planned when they are at work or at home, but after sticking to their plan for so many days, most get to the weekend and are ready to be less structured, she told CBS News. Less structured often means eating out, and when you dont go in with a plan, this research shows that you are more likely to overeat.

However, there are steps people can take to help stick to a weight loss plan while still enjoying social activities like going to a bar or restaurant.

First, Crowley suggests you avoid thinking of a diet as something youre either on or off.

For these black and white thinkers, there is more temptation when you are out of your comfort zone and dont have the skills to manage high-risk situations, she said. Viewing weight loss maintenance in a more flexible way than the active weight loss phase can allow you to build in meals away from home in your plan.

If you indulge a bit, dont give in to catastrophic thinking that now your diet is blown its better to avoid the vicious dieting cycle of all or nothing thinking, Crowley says.

Also, planning your meals before eating out with friends can help you make healthier choices.

Crowley offers practical tips, such as making it a rule to look up the menu and nutrition facts online beforehand when you plan to eat out and not opening the menu when youre actually at the restaurant. Take the emotional part out of the decision-making, and then enjoy what you ordered and move on, she said.

Burke said future research should concentrate on developing new technological interventions to help people avoid temptation and stick to their eating plans.

Lets say someone is at a restaurant and tempted to eat cheesecake. Then theyd go on their phone and click something and then get a personalized message back motivating them to stick with their plan, she said. With the technology today, we can create individualized responses for where people are and when they need it.

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Eating with friends may hinder weight loss, study says - CBS News

10 years gone: No word of ex-FBI man lost in Iran on CIA job – WTOP

Posted: March 8, 2017 at 4:41 pm

Iran_Missing_American_88654 FILE- In this Tuesday, March 6, 2012 file photo, an FBI poster showing a composite image of former FBI agent Robert Levinson, right, of how he would look like now after five years in captivity, and an image, left, taken from the video, released by his kidnappers, in Washington during a news conference. Its been 10 years since former FBI agent Robert Levinson disappeared while in Iran on an unauthorized CIA mission and his family is still waiting for answers. His family tells The Associated Press they hope the new administration of President Donald Trump will do more to find him. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) Ten years after a former FBI agent working on an unauthorized CIA mission disappeared in Iran, his family hopes U.S. President Donald Trump will do something Americas last two presidents have been unable to achieve: Finally bring him home.

Robert Levinsons family told The Associated Press this week that Trumps background as a deal-making businessman and his harder line on Iran could be an asset in finally determining what happened to the investigator, whose 69th birthday is Friday.

They described the heartbreak of seeing other American prisoners in Iran freed while the mystery surrounding his disappearance remains. They also acknowledged the challenge of keeping his case in the public eye, as he now has been held captive longer than any American in history, if he remains alive.

We believe people can survive 10 years under any circumstances. In the worst places, people survive. We know Bob is alive, his wife, Christine Levinson, told the AP. Everyone else has gotten out of Iran, but Bob has been left behind every single time. Its now time for him to be returned home to his family.

Levinson disappeared from Irans Kish Island on March 9, 2007. For years, U.S. officials would only say that Levinson, a meticulous FBI investigator credited with busting Russian and Italian mobsters, was working for a private firm on his trip.

In December 2013, the AP revealed Levinson in fact had been on a mission for CIA analysts who had no authority to run spy operations. Levinsons family had received a $2.5 million annuity from the CIA in order to stop a lawsuit revealing details of his work, while the agency forced out three veteran analysts and disciplined seven others.

Since his disappearance, the only photos and video of Levinson emerged in 2010 and 2011. He appeared gaunt and bearded with long hair, and was wearing an orange jumpsuit similar to those worn by detainees at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo Bay.

The video, with a Pashtun wedding song popular in Afghanistan playing in the background, showed Levinson complaining of poor health. Levinsons family believes his diabetes and high blood pressure could be under control with his weight loss.

Im not as worried about his health, his son, Dan Levinson, said. I understand people thinking it being over 10 years and fearing the worst, but we dont believe that.

The FBI now offers a $5 million reward for information leading to Levinsons safe recovery and return.

Rumors have circulated for years, with one account claiming he was locked up in a Tehran prison run by Irans paramilitary Revolution Guard and U.S. officials suggesting he may not be in Iran at all. Dawud Salahuddin, an American fugitive living in Iran who is wanted for the assassination of a former Iranian diplomat in Maryland in 1980, is the last known person to have seen Levinson before his disappearance.

Iranian officials have been less than forthcoming. Former hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad suggested in an interview with the AP in 2010 that his country already had suspicions about Levinson before the nature of his trip became public knowledge.

Of course if it becomes clear what his goal was, or if he was indeed on a mission, then perhaps specific assistance can be given, Ahmadinejad said.

Levinsons family said theyve written letters to Irans Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and moderate President Hassan Rouhani with no response. Irans mission to the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment about Levinson.

That lack of response, even with the U.N.s Working Group on Arbitrary Detention issuing a report in January that held Iran responsible for addressing the situation of Mr. Levinson without any further delay, has the family believing Trumps harder line on Iran might finally force the country to release him.

We know if President Trump chooses (to be involved), hes a dealmaker. Thats what he does. Its going to require negotiating with the Iranians to get him out of there, Levinsons son Dan said. Hes very well-suited to be able to do this. Were hopeful for that.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer told reporters on Monday that the Trump administration was in contact with Levinsons family and said we continue to hold out hope that he could be safely returned from Iran.

Another White House official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case, said administration officials recently held a call with members of the Levinson family, who were assured that the case is a priority for the Trump administration. The Levinsons hope to meet personally with Trump in the coming months.

Well never, ever give up hope, his daughter, Stephanie Curry, said. Well never give up hope hes coming home to us.

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Associated Press writer Ken Thomas in Washington contributed to this report.

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Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/jongambrellap. His work can be found at http://apne.ws/2galNpz .

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10 years gone: No word of ex-FBI man lost in Iran on CIA job - WTOP


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