Shellfish Linked to Lower Risk of Diabetes
SHELLFISH LINKED TO LOWER RISK OF DIABETES
Researchers have found an association, for women only, between higher consumption of fish and reduced risk of diabetes type 2, as well as an association for both men and women, between higher consumption of shellfish and reduced risk of diabetes.
Previously, some experts had suggested that long-chain, polyunsaturated, omega-3 fatty acids, which are found mainly in fish, may be a factor in helping to prevent diabetes type 2, but this theory remains unresolved. This study reviewed the diets of 116,156 people and found that women in the highest fifth of fish consumption had an 11 percent reduced risk of diabetes, while men in the highest fifth of fish consumption showed a lower risk that was not statistically significant.
They also found that women in the highest fifth of shellfish consumption had a 14 percent reduced risk of diabetes, while men in the highest fifth of shellfish had an 18 percent lower risk. The team did not find a health risk linked to greater fish consumption. This just-released study will appear in a future issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. It is available online now at http://bit.ly/kla0Uw with subscription or access fee.
Another Benefit of Olive Oil
OLIVE OIL REDUCES RISK OF STROKE IN OLDER PERSONS
Scientists have found that older people who regularly consume olive oil both as cooking oil and as salad dressing have a 41 percent lower risk of having a stroke than those who never use olive oil.
The study followed 7,625 people aged 65 and over for five years. The team also looked at blood levels of oleic acid, a biological indicator of olive oil intake, and found that those in the highest third of blood levels had a 27 percent lower chance of having a stroke.
Previous research showed olive oil is linked to a reduced incidence of cardiovascular risk factors, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and high cholesterol. In these cases, and in the current study, there is insufficient proof that any component in olive oil affects these risks; it is possible, for instance, that olive oil makes other healthy food choices such as salads or cooked vegetables taste better, thus increasing consumption of healthier foods.
This study was released June 15, 2011 but will not appear in print until a future issue of the journal, Neurology. It is available online now at http://bit.ly/j9Cyym with subscription or fee.
What Wrinkles Say About Your Bone Health
Skin Wrinkles May Provide a Glimpse Into Bone Health
June 6, 2011 (Boston, Massachusetts) — A close look at the skin of early postmenopausal women might provide a glimpse into their skeletal health, according to a study presented here at ENDO 2011: The Endocrine Society 93rd Annual Meeting.
The study found a significant inverse association between skin wrinkles and bone mineral density (BMD) in a population of women within 3 years of menopause who were not on any hormone therapy and who had not had any cosmetic skin procedures.
“It’s a unique population when changes are happening in a dynamic fashion.” This is a relation “not previously described,” said study presenter Lubna Pal, MBBS, MRCOG, MSc, a reproductive endocrinologist and associate professor at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut.
Common Building Block
The architecture of the skeleton and the skin share a common building block: collagen, Dr. Pal explained. Age-related changes in collagen contribute to age-related skin changes like wrinkles and sagging, and might also contribute to reduced BMD.
“When I am seeing an older patient, her bigger concern is what is happening to her skin; the clinician’s concern is what is happening to her bones,” Dr. Pal said. “So part of the question was: Can I fine tune to the patient’s concern and get a sense of the bone health?”
Dr. Pal and colleagues performed a cross-sectional analysis of baseline data on 114 early postmenopausal women (70% white) enrolled in the longitudinal Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study (KEEPS).
As part of an ancillary study of the skin, the distribution and depth of skin wrinkles were assessed at 11 sites on the face and neck using the Lemperle wrinkle scale. Skin firmness was assessed at the forehead and cheek using a durometer, which has been validated in patients with scleroderma, and bone density was assessed with dual x-ray absorptiometry at the lumbar spine, hip, and total body.
The researchers observed a clear inverse correlation between skin wrinkling and BMD at the spine (r, –0.27; P < .01), femoral neck (r, –0.29; P < .01), and total body (r, –0.26; P =.01), independent of age, body composition, or other factors known to influence BMD.
“Basically, what we found was that the higher the wrinkle score, the worse the bone mineral density,” Dr. Pal said, “so our hypothesis was substantiated by these associations.”
Firmer skin of the face and forehead was associated with higher BMD.
“Powerful Potential Relevance”
Madhusmita Misra, MD, MPH, from Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, in Boston, who was not involved in this study, said: “This is a meaningful association if, indeed, it is real; we need future data to confirm that.”
“We have multiple clinical risk factors that are already available that identify an individual’s fracture risk; this may be yet another piece that would enhance the overall predictability. I think it is of powerful potential relevance, but it needs to be substantiated,” Dr. Misra added.
“Ultimately,” Dr. Pal said, “we want to know if the intensity of skin wrinkles can allow the identification of women who are more likely to fracture a bone, especially the femoral neck or hip.” If this is the case, then looking at skin wrinkles plus other clinical risk factors “may allow the identification of fracture risk in populations that do not have access to more costly technology.”
But Dr. Pal agrees with Dr. Misra that much more study is needed.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg,” Dr. Pal said. “It’s a tantalizing association” that needs to be followed-up in long-term studies to substantiate a relation between wrinkles and the risk for bone fracture.
Dr. Pal noted that the women in the study are being followed longitudinally, and that it will be “interesting to see in the coming years whether women with deeper wrinkles are losing bone at a faster rate than other women.”
The study was funded by Aurora Foundation to the Kronos Longevity Research Institute in Phoenix, Arizona. Dr. Pal and Dr. Misra have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
ENDO 2011: The Endocrine Society 93rd Annual Meeting: Abstract P3-126. Presented June 4, 2011.
Another Argument in Favor of Organic Meats
From Medscape Medical News
Poultry Drug to Be Pulled From Market Due to Arsenic Concern
June 8, 2011 — Alpharma, a subsidiary of Pfizer, will voluntarily suspend domestic sales of roxarsone (3-Nitro), a poultry drug, 30 days from now in response to a study by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that found above-average levels of inorganic arsenic — a carcinogen — in the livers of treated chickens, the agency announced today.
However, because these above-average levels of inorganic arsenic are still very low, the FDA stated that continuing to eat chickens already treated with roxarsone does not pose a health risk. It also stated that there is no need to recall such chickens from the marketplace. Still, the suspension of sales is warranted, according to the agency.
“The levels are low, but the fact they represent an added source of human exposure [to a carcinogen], and a source that is completely avoidable, the agency feels it’s important to take action,” said Bill Flynn, DVM, deputy director for science policy at the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine in a press conference this afternoon.
Used primarily in broiler chickens, roxarsone is approved by the FDA to help prevent a parasitic disease called coccidiosis. It is also approved for weight gain, feed efficiency, and improved pigmentation. FDA allows turkeys and pigs to be treated with roxarsone as well, although Pfizer stated in a press release that its use in pigs is negligible.
Roxarsone contains organic arsenic, a noncarcinogenic form of the element that is considered less harmful than inorganic arsenic. The FDA stated that when it approved roxarsone in 1944, it believed that the organic arsenic contained in it would be excreted as organic arsenic. Recent scientific evidence, however, indicates that organic arsenic can transform into the inorganic version.
Based on this new understanding of arsenic, FDA scientists developed a new analytic method capable of detecting very low levels of inorganic arsenic in edible tissue. In a study of 100 broiler chickens, using this method, scientists found that levels of inorganic arsenic in the livers of treated chickens were higher than the levels in untreated chickens.
In a press release, Pfizer described those levels in treated chickens as “equivalent to the amount of inorganic arsenic found in an 8-ounce glass of drinking water.”
The FDA has approved other arsenic-containing animal drugs during the years. In addition to roxarsone, the only one that still appears to be on the market is nitarsone, an Alpharma feed additive for turkeys that prevents and treats a deadly infection called histomoniasis, according to the agency.
Pfizer Subsidiary Will Continue to Sell Roxarsone Abroad
The idea behind allowing domestic roxarsone sales to continue for another 30 days is to give animal producers time to switch to substitute therapies and help ensure that animal health and welfare do not suffer in the meantime. The sales suspension will apply to pigs and turkeys as well as chickens.
When a reporter at the press conference asked whether the suspension of roxarsone sales means that they could possibly resume, the FDA’s Dr. Flynn replied that Pfizer gave his agency “clear assurances that they will not return the product to market until they address all of the FDA’s concerns.” Dr. Flynn added that the company and the FDA will work together to examine all the relevant scientific data on using roxarsone in animals.
Although Pfizer’s Alpharma subsidiary will suspend sales of roxarsone for domestic use, it will continue to sell it for use abroad. Dr. Flynn said the FDA is sharing its new findings on the poultry drug with its foreign partners.
David Goldman, MD, MPH, an official from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), added during the press conference that the USDA will address the issue of imported chickens treated with roxarsone. Dr. Goldman, the assistant administrator of the Office of Public Health Science at the USDA’s Food Safety Inspection Service, said that chickens can be imported only from other countries determined to have food-safety systems equivalent to that in the United States.
The USDA, he said, will look at the potential implications of the actions by Pfizer and the FDA “on the equivalence-determinations for those countries that may be using this product in poultry production, and then make further determination about whether those products should be allowed into the country.”
Non-Alcoholic Beer & Athletic Performance: Your Thoughts?
POLYPHENOLS IN BEER BOOST HEALTH FACTORS IN ATHLETES
Researchers have found that foods that contain substantial amounts of a variety of polyphenols, specifically nonalcoholic weissbier or wheat beer, have positive effects on the health of athletes, including a 20 percent reduction in certain indicators of inflammation (leukocytes), a strengthening of the immune system when under physical stress, a one-third reduction in the risk of contracting a cold, and briefer and milder upper respiratory infections.
(Polyphenols are compounds found naturally in plants in the form of pigments, flavors, or tannins, and many polyphenols have been linked with health-promoting and cancer-preventative properties. Many athletes have long suspected that nonalcoholic wheat beer boosts their health.)
The team selected nonalcoholic Erdinger brand weissbier for the study, because it is commonly consumed by marathoners and tri-athletes, and it is rich in varied polyphenols (and vitamins and minerals), making it strongly representative of polyphenol-rich foods. The test group drank 1.5 liters of wheat beer daily for three weeks prior to running a marathon and for two weeks following the race.
This study will be published in the January 2012 issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise and is not yet available for access.
Research Discovers Compound To Prevent Muscle Wasting
APPLE PEEL COMPOUND PREVENTS MUSCLE WASTING
Researchers have discovered that a waxy compound found in the skin of apples, ursolic acid, prevents the muscle atrophy that is common with aging and illness; and causes increased muscle size, decreased storing of fat, and reduced blood levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, and glucose (sugar). This suggests ursolic acid may be a therapy for age- and illness-related muscle wasting, as well as for other metabolic diseases.
For 92 genes linked to muscle atrophy, scientists pinpointed what are known as gene-expression signatures. After comparing those signatures with the signatures of 1300 bioactive small molecules, they found the signature of ursolic acid to be the opposite of the atrophy-inducing genes. When ursolic acid was fed to fasting mice, it prevented muscle wasting; and when it was fed to non-fasting mice, it increased muscle size.
Further research is needed to confirm this apple skin compound has the same effect on humans and to determine whether therapeutic levels can be attained by increased apple consumption or if ursolic acid supplements are needed. This study was published in the June 8, 2011 issue of the journal Cell Metabolism.
The full text is available online at http://bit.ly/jbCyH2 without charge.
3 Different Approaches to Eating – Which is Healthiest?
ON-AND-OFF DIETING HEALTHIER THAN NO DIETING AT ALL…but look to see which was healthiest
A study has found that repeatedly switching between a low-fat diet and a high-fat diet results in greater health and a longer lifespan than not dieting at all.
Many have suggested yo-yo dieting, with its repeated weight loss and gain, may more negatively affect health and longevity than simply remaining obese and not dieting at all; this belief might discourage obese persons from dieting. However, researchers divided study mice into three dietary groups:
- one fed a consistent high-fat diet;
- another alternating between a low-fat and high-fat diet, mirroring people who yo-yo diet;
- and a third group given a consistent low-fat diet.
The high-fat group consumed more calories, weighed more, had greater body fat, experienced higher blood sugar, became pre-diabetic, and lived an average of 1.5 years.
The health profile of the yo-yo diet group worsened during the high-fat phases but bounced back during the low-fat phases, and they lived an average of 2.04 years.
Similarly, the healthy low-fat control group lived an average of 2.09 years.
This study was presented June 6, 2011 at the annual meeting of The Endocrine Society in Boston. It has not yet been published or posted.
More Evidence to Support Low Carb Diet for Reduced Belly Fat
LOWER-CARB DIET REDUCES BELLY FAT
Researchers have found that – compared to a lowered-fat diet – a diet that includes a modest reduction in carbohydrates and a slight increase in fat results in a 4% greater weight loss, a greater loss of fat tissue versus lean, and an 11% greater reduction in visceral or deep belly fat, changes that lower the risk of type 2 diabetes, stroke, and coronary artery disease.
All participants lowered calorie intake by 1000. However, the control group adopted a standard weight loss diet in which carbohydrates, fat and protein comprised 55, 27, and 18 percent of total calories, respectfully.
The test group adopted a diet in which carbohydrates, fat and protein made up 43, 39, and 18 percent of total calories, respectfully, and contained low-glycemic foods, which do not cause excessive blood sugar spikes.
The belly reducing effect was found among whites, but not among blacks; whites have a greater amount of deep abdominal fat and may benefit most from trimming fat in this area, the researchers suggested.
This study was presented June 5, 2011 in Boston at the annual meeting of The Endocrinology Society. It has not yet been published or posted.
How Does Your Cell Phone (Radiation Level) Rate?
Yesterday, the International Agency for Research on Cancer announced that radio frequency electromagnetic fields are possibly carcinogenic to humans and linked this to cell phone usage. You can listen to the report or read it from this link: click on IARC.
Find out which cell phones emit the least radiation here from Environmental Working Group: Cell phone list.
Another Reason Why Sleep is Important
SLEEP LOSS DECREASES TESTOSTERONE, INCREASING HEALTH RISKS
A small study has concluded that young men who sleep less than five hours a night for eight days experience an average reduction of 10 to 15 percent in their testosterone levels, with the lowest levels occurring between 2pm and 10 pm, and that these lower levels increase the risk of low-testosterone-related health effects. (Testosterone levels very gradually diminish with age, about one to two percent per year, but especially low levels can cause symptoms such as reduced bone and muscle mass, as well as decreased energy, erectile dysfunction, mood problems, fatigue, sleep disturbance, and low sex drive.)
The men in the study, whose average age was 24, were rigorously screened to rule out any endocrine, psychological, or sleep problems.
They slept 10 hours a night for three days, then five hours a night for eight days, and testosterone was measured after each phase.
Also, the participants reported reduced mood, vigor, and sense of well-being, worsening with each day of the reduced sleep phase.
This study was published in the June 1, 2011 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Associations. It is accessible online now at http://bit.ly/iNYIFs with subscription or fee.
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China Leaps Ahead of the US in Banning BPA in Baby Bottles
China bans Bisphenol-A in baby bottles -vows death penalty for serious safety breaches
China has become the latest country to ban the use of Bisphenol-A (BPA) in baby bottles, while Government officials signalled increasing use of the death penalty to crack down on food safety violators. BPA is currently banned in Europe, Canada and the United Arab emirates.
The Ministry of Health, in conjunction with five other government bodies, issued notices yesterday confirming that inclusion of BPA in the manufacture of infant bottles would be outlawed as of June 1, 2011.
From September 1, 2011 on, it will be illegal to import or sell any BPA-containing baby bottles, said the notice.
Beijing also urged local food inspectors to step up scrutiny on baby bottle producers to ensure compliance with the new measure.
The European Union announced at the end of last year that it was banning BPA in baby bottles. Production of containers with BPA was prohibited from March 1, 2001, with a ban on the importation and sale due to come into force June 1, 2011.
BPA is a monomer used in the manufacture of polycarbonate bottles. Its continued use in food contact materials remains a source of ongoing debate as it has been linked with serious health problems – including cancer, birth defects and heart disease. However, major food safety agencies across the globe – including the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – have declared it poses no health hazards at current levels.
Death penalty
Further to Beijing’s target announced a few months ago of punishing food safety violations more severely, government chiefs have ordered the courts to hand out stiffer penalties to offenders.
The Supreme People’s Court said judges should impose the death penalty to those guilty of food safety crimes that result in human fatalities.
Those convicted of committing several violations in the same case – such as production and sale of counterfeit and sub-standard goods – should receive the harshest punishment available, added a Supreme Court notice last week.
Offenders should also be fined more heavily and/or banned from producing food.
Food crime team
A leading Beijing official announced the likely formation of a crack police squad to clamp down on the rising number of adulteration scandals amid growing public concern.
Ji Lin, vice-mayor of the city and director of the city’s food safety commission, said the new team would target the surroundings between the urban and rural areas as they had become production hotbeds for counterfeit or unsafe food.
Bait & Switch?
This article appeared in the NY Times
Tests Reveal Mislabeling of Fish
Scientists aiming their gene sequencers at commercial seafood are discovering rampant labeling fraud in supermarket coolers and restaurant tables: cheap fish is often substituted for expensive fillets, and overfished species are passed off as fish whose numbers are plentiful.
Yellowtail stands in for mahi-mahi.
Nile perch is labeled as shark and tilapia may be the Meryl Streep of seafood, capable of playing almost any role.
Recent studies by researchers in North America and Europe harnessing the new techniques have consistently found that 20-25% of the seafood products they check are fraudulently identified, fish geneticists say.
Labeling regulation means little if the “grouper” is really catfish or if gulf shrimp were spawned on a farm in Thailand.
Environmentalists, scientists and foodies are complaining that regulators are lax in policing seafood, and have been slow to adopt the latest scientific tools even though they are now readily available and easy to use.
“Customers buying fish have a right to know what the heck it is and where it’s from, but agencies like the F.D.A. are not taking this as seriously as they should,” said Michael Hirshfield, chief scientist of the nonprofit group Oceana, referring to the Food and Drug Administration.
On Wednesday, Oceana released a new report titled “Bait and Switch: How Seafood Fraud Hurts Our Oceans, Our Wallets and Our Health.” With rates of fraud in some species found to run as high as 70%, the report concluded, the United States needs to “increase the frequency and scope” of its inspections.
DNA bar coding, as it is called, looks at gene sequences in the fish’s flesh. “The genetics have been revolutionary,” said Stefano Mariani, a marine researcher at University College Dublin, who has published research on the topic. “The DNA bar coding technique is now routine, like processing blood or urine. And we should be doing frequent, random spot checks on seafood like we do on athletes.”
Policing the seafood industry has historically been challenging because even the most experienced fishmongers are hard pressed to distinguish certain steaks or fillets without the benefit of scales or fins. And many arrive in supermarkets frozen and topped with an obscuring sauce.
Older laboratory techniques to identify fish meat looked at the mix of proteins in flesh samples, but were unreliable, expensive and cumbersome. Investigators often relied instead on laborious legwork, tracking inconsistent fish names on paperwork as seafood moved across international borders. Eighty-four percent of seafood consumed in the United States is now imported, often passing through a multistep global supply chain.
With the new genetic techniques, the gene sequence found in a fish sample is compared with an electronic reference library like that maintained by the International Barcode of Life Project, which now covers 8,000 varieties of fish compiled by biologists over the last five years. The testing is now relatively cheap: commercial labs charge about $2,000 for analyzing 100 fish samples, for an average of $20 apiece, but the cost is under $1 per sample for labs that own the equipment.
Douglas Karas, a spokesman for the F.D.A., said in an e-mail that the agency had been working with scientists to “validate” DNA testing for several years. It recently purchased gene sequencing equipment for five F.D.A. field laboratories and hoped to use it “on a routine basis” by the end of this year.
This new type of scrutiny could allow hundreds of thousands of samples to be tested each year, rather than the hundreds that are now rigorously analyzed, said Dr. Paul Hebert, scientific director of the Barcode of Life project, based in Guelph, Ontario. In March, the F.D.A. issued an alert to inspectors about mislabeled fish. It had already used bar coding as irrefutable evidence to prosecute sellers or issue warnings involving seafood “misbranding,” Mr. Karas said, much as prosecutors use DNA evidence in sex crime cases.
But it will take time to clamp down on a lucrative and, apparently, widespread practice. Dale Sims, chief fishmonger for Cleanfish, a San Francisco-based supplier of high-end sustainable seafood, said he’d seen thresher shark labeled as shark, swordfish and mahi-mahi all in the same market, as well as many other obvious substitutions.
“It infuriates me but it’s hard to correct,” he said. “I’m embarrassed to say that there’s been a lot of fragmentation in this industry. So if someone is unscrupulous, it’s been easy to get away with it.”
For consumers, the issue is about dollars and cents — wanting to get the quality and type of fish they paid for. “If you’re ordering steak, you would never be served horse meat,” said Dr. Hirshfield of Oceana. “But you can easily be ordering snapper and get tilapia or Vietnamese catfish.”
USDA TO UNVEIL NEW DIETARY GUIDELINES 6/2/11
USDA WILL DUMP FOOD PYRAMID
A US Department of Agriculture (USDA) communique indicates that in response to longstanding criticisms, the USDA will replace the controversial 19-years-old Food Pyramid on June 2, 2011 with a clearer Food Plate.
The Food Plate will be divided to clarify relative portions of different food groups.
A small circle might appear next to the plate representing dairy, such as milk or yogurt.
The 1992 pyramid was meant to suggest smaller portions for foods at the smaller peak of the pyramid, but many people viewed peak items as most important; also, many criticized the pyramid for ignoring the insulin impact of some high carbohydrate foods. Delayed change resulted in alternative pyramids.
The nonprofit group Oldways developed separate pyramids for the Vegetarian Diet, Mediterranean Diet, Asian Diet, and Latino Diet, available at http://bit.ly/iGEUN4, http://bit.ly/kAKRGO, http://bit.ly/m6V96x, and http://bit.ly/m3TDSk, respectively.
Harvard University released its Healthy Eating Pyramid, which includes vitamin supplements and exercise, online at http://hvrd.me/iurrj3.
The Healing Foods Pyramid 2010 was released by University of Michigan Integrative Medicine at http://bit.ly/lu6wqe.
The Food Plate will likely appear June 2 on the USDA site, which is at http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/.
Can You Guess the Average Number of Prescription Drug Side Effects?
?
The list of side effect of prescription drugs currently averages 70 reactions per drug, overwhelming physicians and patients alike, U.S. researchers say.
Lead author Dr. Jon Duke, a Regenstrief Institute investigator and assistant professor at Indiana University School of Medicine, and colleagues says the study involved more than 5,600 drug labels and more than half a million labeled effects. The study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, found that the average label contains 70 different side effects, with more commonly prescribed drugs averaging around 100 side effects. The list of side effect of prescription drugs currently averages 70 reactions per drug, overwhelming physicians and patients alike, U.S. researchers say.
Lead author Dr. Jon Duke, a Regenstrief Institute investigator and assistant professor at Indiana University School of Medicine, and colleagues says the study involved more than 5,600 drug labels and more than half a million labeled effects.
The study, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, found that the average label contains 70 different side effects, with more commonly prescribed drugs averaging around 100 side effects. A single label contained as many as 525 possible reactions.
Overall, the greatest number of side effects was found in antidepressants, anti-viral medication and newer treatments for Restless Legs Syndrome and Parkinson’s disease, the study says.
Generally medications prescribed by psychiatrists and neurologists had the most complex labels, while drugs used by dermatologists and ophthalmologists had the least, Duke says.
“Having a high number of side effects on a drug’s label should not suggest that the drug is unsafe. In fact, much of this labeling has less to do with true toxicity than with protecting manufacturers from potential lawsuits,” Duke says in a statement. “But having all these labeled side effects can overwhelm doctors who must weigh the risks and benefits when prescribing a medication.”
Another Reason Tomatoes Are Good For You
Did you know? . . .
A substance found in cooked or processed tomatoes blocks artery-clogging LDL, or bad, cholesterol.
This appears to reduce the harmful oxidation of fats in the blood to almost zero within eight weeks, potentially reducing the risk of heart attack or stroke.
This conclusion was presented to a meeting of the British Cardiovascular Society in June, 2009.
Researchers Suggest One Way to Reduce Autism Risk
WELL-TIMED PRENATAL VITAMINS MAY REDUCE RISK OF AUTISM
Researchers have concluded that taking prenatal vitamins for three months before becoming pregnant and one month after getting pregnant lowers the risk of having a child with autism, especially for genetically susceptible mothers and children. (Prenatal vitamins are supplements that are recognized by health organizations, such as the American Dietetic Association, as increasing the likelihood of a healthy newborn.)
Mothers of autistic children were 4.5 times more likely both to have genotypes linked to greater risk of having autistic children, and to report not having taken prenatal vitamins during the three months prior to, and the first month of, pregnancy.
Taking prenatal supplements after the first month of pregnancy had no effect on the risk of having an autistic child. Researchers suggested that folic acid, which is synthetic vitamin B9, and other B vitamins in prenatal vitamins might help protect against deficits in early fetal brain development, even among the genetically susceptible.
Due to possible inaccuracies involved in interviewing women years after giving birth, the team stressed the need for further research. This just-released study will be published in the July, 2011 issue of the journal Epidemiology and is available online now at http://bit.ly/jAVqh9.
Ways to Prepare Fish That Could Reduce Risk of Heart Failure
BAKED OR BROILED FISH LINKED TO LOWER HEART FAILURE RISK?
A study found that consumption of 5 or more weekly servings of broiled or baked fish may lower heart failure risk by 30%, while one weekly serving or more of fried fish may increase heart failure risk by 48%.
Researchers found heart failure risk was reduced further when the fish was dark, such as salmon or mackerel, compared to when the fish was tuna, or light fish such as sole or cod.
Despite earlier studies, the team did not find any lower heart failure risk with increased intake of omega-3 fatty acids, or alpha-linolenic acid (ALA); and while frying increases trans fatty acid (TFA) content, no link was found between TFA intake and heart failure risk.
The finding may not be one of cause and effect because those eating more baked or broiled fish were more likely to be older, heavier, less active, diabetic, and smokers, and who eat fewer fruits and vegetables.
All participants were women.
This study was released May 24, 2011 but will not be published until a future issue of Circulation: Heart Failure. It is available online now at http://bit.ly/kFgKgh without charge.
80% of Seafood We Eat is Imported. What Percentage of US Food Imports Are FDA-Inspected?
GLOBALIZATION OF FOOD SUPPLY RAISES DISEASE RISK
How safe do you feel eating food treated with raw human sewage?
Did you know that 80% of all fish and seafood we eat in the US is imported?
…and only 1% is FDA inspected.
So what does that mean for you and your family?
Researchers have found that the increasing importation of food from developing nations is raising foodborne illness risks due to much lower standards in these countries for sanitary food production.
Importing foods can move diseases from areas in which they are indigenous to areas where they have never existed. In a number of developing countries, raw human and animal sewage is routinely used to treat soils and aquaculture ponds. Contaminants, many linked to fecal matter, are frequently found in imported foods. However, due to mushrooming imports, only1% of imported food is FDA-inspected.
Eighty percent of fish and seafood consumed in the US is imported, much of it from Asia where fish are fed raw sewage.
In Thailand, chicken coops – containing up to 20,000 birds – are suspended over ponds so that farmed shrimp and fish can feed directly off the bird droppings.
Crops are often grown on tiny lots where farmers are under pressure to use unapproved chemicals or misrepresent their methods, suggested the report.
Presented May 23, 2011 in New Orleans at the general meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, this study has not yet been published or posted online.
How Can Dark Chocolate Help You?
Dark chocolate may combat exercise-induced oxidative stress
Consuming flavonoid-rich dark chocolate prior to exercise may decrease the potential muscle damaging effects of oxidative stress, suggests a new study.
Dark chocolate containing 70% cocoa was associated with blunting oxidative stress after exercise, measured as a reduction in levels of a compound called F2-isoprostane, according to findings published in European Journal of Nutrition.
“We believe that the small effects observed here could be physiologically important, but arise from cocoa-induced metabolic changes leading to modulation of the major plasma constituents,” wrote scientists led by Glen Davison from Aberystwyth University in Wales.
“In addition, dark chocolate was effective at blunting the exercise-induced increase in plasma total antioxidant status observed in the other trials, providing support for the idea that the elevated total antioxidant status on the dark chocolate trial has physiological significance.”
Stress
Oxygen-breathing organisms naturally produce reactive oxygen species (ROS), which play an important role in a range of functions, including cell signalling. However, over production of these ROS from smoking, pollution, sunlight, high intensity exercise, or simply ageing, may overwhelm the body’s antioxidant defences and lead to oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress has been linked to an increased risk of various diseases including cancer, Alzheimer’s, and cardiovascular disease.
The researchers also noted that extended periods of exercise are also often used to model physical stress, and that this may be eased by consumption of a polyphenol-rich dark chocolate.
Choc-full of benefits?
According to their new findings, the effects were seen after only one 100 grams serving of the dark chocolate.
“It is possible, therefore, that greater blunting of oxidative stress responses would be observed with a different timing and/or quantity of dark chocolate ingestion, although this will require further investigation,” wrote the researchers.
The health benefits of polyphenols from cocoa have been gathering increasing column inches in the national media. To date studies have reported potential benefits for cardiovascular health, skin health, and even brain health.
The majority of science into the potential benefits of cocoa have revolved around cardiovascular benefits of the flavanols (also known as flavan-3-ols or catechins), and particularly the monomeric flavanol (-)epicatechin.
Study details
Davison and his co-workers recruited 14 healthy men to participate in their study. Volunteers were asked to consume 100 grams of dark chocolate, a control bar, or nothing. Two hours later they were required to cycle for 2.5 hours at 60 percent of the maximal oxygen uptake level.
Results showed that intake of the dark chocolate resulted in an increase in antioxidant status before the cycling, and reduced levels of F2-isoprostane one hour after the cycling had finished, compared with the control bar.
Insulin levels were also increased before the trial and after cycling for men who consumed the dark chocolate and this was associated with a “better maintenance of plasma glucose concentration”, added the scientists.
On the other hand, there were no changes in markers of immune response, which is known to be affected by rigorous exercise.
“These results with acute dark chocolate consumption are similar to those observed following 2 weeks of daily dark chocolate ingestion,” wrote the researchers.
The other scientists were affiliated with Loughborough University and the University of Newcastle in the UK, and the Nestle Research Center in Lausanne, Switzerland. The study was funded by the Nestle Research Center.
Source: European Journal of Nutrition
“The effect of acute pre-exercise dark chocolate consumption on plasma antioxidant status, oxidative stress and immunoendocrine responses to prolonged exercise”
Authors: G. Davison, R. Callister, G. Williamson, K.A. Cooper, M. Gleeson
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Cutting Fat Just A Little Has Big Benefits Long-Term
SLIGHTLY LOWER FAT INTAKE MAY REDUCE DIABETES RISK
Researchers have found that, even without any resulting weight loss, a modest reduction in dietary fat alone may significantly increase insulin secretion, increase glucose tolerance, and increase insulin sensitivity – indicators of a decreased risk of diabetes type two.
Participants were placed on one of two diets with only minor differences in the content of fat and carbohydrates. These diets were eucaloric, meaning their calories were tightly controlled so that body weight would not change during the eight-week study.
In addition, during analysis, the team took into account even minor, short-term fluctuations in body weight. One diet was 55 percent carbohydrate and 27 percent fat and the other was 43 percent carbohydrate and 39 percent fat.
The lower-fat diet produced better insulin sensitivity even without weight loss. Further study is needed to determine the exact mechanism involved, but these results suggest that an upper limit of dietary fat of about 27 percent might lower the long-term risk of diabetes type two. This just-released study will be published in a future issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition but is available online now at http://bit.ly/jUN0Wd with subscription or fee.
Why Eat Your Crucifers?
CRUCIFEROUS VEGETABLES REDUCE RISK OF CARDIOVASCULAR MORTALITY
Scientists have found that, for both men and women, a greater consumption of fruits and vegetables may reduce both the overall risk of dying and the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease; and they found that a greater consumption of cruciferous vegetables in particular may reduce these risks even further and by as much as 22 percent.
The crucifer, or brassica, family of vegetables includes cabbage, broccoli, cress, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and others.
However, increased fruit and vegetable intake was not found to have any significant effect on the risk of death from cancer.
While those with highest cruciferous intake levels showed the greatest reductions in mortality risk, even those at the lowest intake level consumed a lot of crucifers; this is because the study used information on 134,796 Chinese adults in Shanghai, a population that regularly consumes a large amount of crucifers.
The team suggested that increased intake of crucifers and other vegetables may promote longevity and cardiovascular health.
This study was released May 18, 2011 and will be published in a future issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. It is available online now at http://bit.ly/kuajMF with subscription or fee.
Untreated OSA May Pose Significant Public Health Risk
SLEEP APNEA LINKED TO FASTER CANCER GROWTH
Researchers have found evidence that the intermittent interruption in breathing that occurs in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may cause greater proliferation of cancer cells, increased tumor growth, and more aggressive cancers.
OSA is a disorder in which patients regularly stop breathing for short periods during sleep, and it may affect as many as five percent of Americans, raising the risk of cardiovascular disease and lung problems.
Previous research had shown an association between continuous hypoxia, or shortness of oxygen, and cancer growth, but it was not known until now whether the intermittent hypoxia of OSA had the same effect. It is worth noting that the research focused only on melanoma cancer. The team suggested that if further research confirms these results or worse, finds that the interruption in breathing can actually cause cancer in OSA patients in the first place, it will mean that the public health impact of untreated OSA may be far greater than ever suspected.
This study was presented today, May 18, 2011 in Denver at the international conference of the American Thoracic Society. It has not yet been published or posted online.
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Study: Poor Childhood Diet Linked to Low IQ – Vitamins Can Help
A diet high in fats, sugars, and processed foods in early childhood may result in lower IQ scores, while a diet rich in healthy foods packed with vitamins and nutrients may work in reverse, suggests new research.
The study, published in BMJ’s Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, reports a “weak but novel” association between dietary patterns in early childhood, and general intelligence assessed at eight and a half years of age.
The results of the study suggest that the eating habits in early childhood – particularly up until the age of three – may play a role in shaping the development of the brain, and thus affect behaviour, learning performance and IQ in later life.
“In this population of contemporary British children, a poor diet, associated with increased intake of processed foods, fat and sugar, in early childhood may be associated with lower IQ at the age of 8.5 years. In addition, a concurrent healthy diet may be associated with higher IQ,” said the researchers, led by Dr Kate Northstone from the Department of Social Medicine at the University of Bristol, UK.
The importance of healthy diets
Commenting on the new study, Barbara Gallani director of food safety and science at the UK’s Food and Drink Federation told FoodNavigator that it would not be surprising if a healthy, balanced diet is important in IQ development, “just like it is generally for children’s health and growth.”
She added that it is important for everyone, not just children, to eat a wide variety of foods, noting that it is possible eat a healthy diet and still include some ‘treat’ foods.
Gallani said that food manufacturers are leading the way when it comes to providing clear labelling on foods, as well as changing recipes to make old favourites healthier, which “makes it even easier for parents to choose a balanced diet that’s right for their families.”
An intelligent diet
Northstone and her colleagues noted that previous research investigating possible associations between nutrition and IQ in children have tended to focus on the use of dietary supplements or on intakes of specific nutrients.
For example, several studies have examined the effects of vitamin supplementation on IQ in children, with mixed results.
However, the authors said that studies investigating the long-term effects of nutrition on intelligence are sparse and conflicting. “In particular …there appears to be little known about the effects of the diet in early childhood on general intelligence later in life,” they said.
“We do not eat foods in isolation, rather consuming combinations of foods in meals and snacks,” explained the authors.
“Assessing dietary patterns as opposed to individual foods or nutrients allows to us take into account these intercorrelations, which may otherwise be overlooked,” they said.
The new cross sectional study, based on the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), examined the links between dietary patterns through early and mid-childhood (3 to 8.5 years) and IQ assessed at 8.5 years of age.
Study details
The researchers measured dietary patterns using principal-components analysis (PCA), which provide overall summaries of dietary intake. The diet data, measured at the ages of 3, 4, 7 and 8.5 was then examined for any associations between diet and IQ in nearly 4,000 children.
Three consistent dietary patterns were found from PCA at each time point: a ‘processed’, ‘traditional’ and ‘health conscious’ pattern.
The ‘processed’ pattern was illustrated by foods containing high fat and sugar content and by higher intakes of processed and convenience foods. The ‘traditional’ pattern was associated with consumption of generally home cooked meat, poultry, potato and vegetables, whilst the ‘health-conscious’ pattern was predominantly made up from high intakes of salads, fruit, vegetables, fish, pasta and rice.
“On minimal adjustment, all dietary pattern scores were associated with IQ with the exception of the ‘traditional’ pattern,” said the authors.
Before adjustment for confounding factors (such as parental influence, social and economic status, and other environmental factors) the researchers observed that the ‘processed’ food pattern was negatively associated with IQ at all ages, while the ‘health-conscious’ pattern at all ages were positively associated with IQ.
However, after adjustment for a wide variety of potential confounding factors, they reported that many associations between IQ and dietary pattern were lost, and those that remained (‘processed’ pattern at three years and ‘health-conscious’ patterns at 8.5 years) “were markedly attenuated”, according to the authors.
For the remaining relationships (after full adjustment) the ‘processed’ food pattern at 3 years was found to be such that a one point increase in the PCA score resulted in an almost two-point decrease in IQ at 8.5 years. Whilst the ‘health-conscious’ pattern was associated with an increased in IQ of 1.20 points per one point increase in PCA pattern score.
Interpretation
Northstone and colleagues said that the results of the study suggest a more “long-term effect of diet on the child’s ability to ‘learn’,” they noted that this could be in part be explained by favourable growth of the brain in early childhood – They noted that it is known that the brain grows at its fastest rate during the first 3 years of life.
“Studies have shown that head growth during this time is associated with cognitive outcome, and it is possible that good nutrition during this early period may encourage optimal brain growth,” said the authors.
However, they added that given the levels of attenuation seen in the effect sizes when adjusted for confounding factors, “we cannot exclude the possibility of residual confounding.”
Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.1136/jech.2010.111955
“Are dietary patterns in childhood associated with IQ at 8 years of age? A population-based cohort study”
K. Northstone, C. Joinson, P. Emmett, A. Ness, T. Paus
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The Unexpected Amount of Vitamin D Required to Help COPD Rehabilitation
VITAMIN D SUPPLEMENTS BOOST COPD REHABILITATION BENEFIT
A study has found that, among chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients who participated in a three-month respiratory rehabilitation exercise program, those who simultaneously received large-dose vitamin D supplementation experienced a significant boost in exercise capacity and respiratory muscle strength, compared to those who received placebos. (COPD is a progressive lung disease that includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema, and can involve chronic coughing or shortness of breath; it is exacerbated by a lack of exercise, which is common among sufferers, and rehabilitation programs aim to increase lung muscle strength and exercise capacity.)
Although the US recommended daily allowance for vitamin D is 600 international units (IU) for those up to age 70, and 800 IU for those older, the researchers gave some COPD rehabilitation patients 100,000 IU daily. Within three months, those patients significantly surpassed the others in lung strength and exercise capacity.
Researchers suggested vitamin D supplements could boost the regular benefits of rehabilitation programs. Further study is needed to determine how vitamin D effects this benefit. This study was presented today, May 16, 2011 at the international conference of the American Thoracic Society in Denver. It is not yet available online.
Can You Guess How Much Sugar You Eat Daily?
Did you know…?
Th
e average American eats his or her weight in sugar every year.
Typically, an individual consumes 50 teaspoons of sugar a day, often without realizing it.
Most dietary sugar is hidden in processed and packaged foods.
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Possible Link Between Digestive Problems & Depression/Anxiety?
DIGESTIVE IRRITATION IN NEWBORNS MAY CAUSE LIFELONG DEPRESSION
A new study has found that short-term gastrointestinal irritation in the first days of life can permanently re-set the brain to a state of depression or anxiety, suggesting that digestive problems may actually be the cause of certain psychological disorders, and not the result of them as is commonly assumed.
Because not all stomach upsets result in lifelong depressive or psychological disorders, the researchers speculate that the impact of gastric irritation may depend on when it occurs during the development of the genetic makeup of the affected person. Past research shows that individuals who suffer from functional dyspepsia (persistent or recurring pain in the upper abdomen), a group making up about 15-20 percent of the population, are also more likely than others to be depressed or anxious.
Conventional wisdom has held that stress hormones associated with altered mood cause digestive disturbances; however, the gut and brain are actually hard-wired together by the vagus nerve, which sends signals in both directions from the brain to the internal organs.
This just-released study will not be published until a future issue of the journal PLoS One. It is available online now at http://bit.ly/iPmy4w without charge.
Study: How Omega-3 in Pregnancy is Linked to Childhood Obesity
Adequate intake of omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy may lower the risk of childhood obesity by 32%, according to new research from Harvard Medical School.
The study, published in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, examined the relationship between the type of fat a mother consumed at mid-pregnancy and whether her child was obese at age 3 – determined by body mass index (BMI) and skinfold measurements.
The researchers, led by Dr. Emily Oken, associate professor in the department of population medicine, reported that enhanced maternal-fetal omega-3 status was associated with lower childhood obesity.
“We examined the extent to which prenatal omega-3 and omega-6 PUFA concentrations were associated with childhood adiposity,” wrote Onken and her colleagues.
“A higher ratio of cord plasma omega-6 to omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) was associated with higher subscapular and triceps [skinfold thicknesses] and odds of obesity,” they said.
Omega-3 and obesity
The consumption of omega-3 fatty acids, most notably EPA and DHA, is associated with several health benefits, including improving of lipid metabolism, preventing coronary heart diseases, and reducing inflammatory responses. In addition, omega-3s have been suggested to reduce fat levels in animals fed a high-fat diet.
Onken and her colleagues explained that a low intake of omega-3 fatty acids, found mainly in fish and seafood, in addition to a presence of large amounts of omega-6s has been suggested to be a risk factor in the development of obesity.
Previous research in animals found that such imbalances in the types of fatty acids in the diet, promotes the development of fat tissue. However, the authors noted that very few studies have investigated these effects in human populations.
Study details
Onken and her colleagues reported that around one fifth expectant mothers ate more than 2 fish meals per week at mid-pregnancy, however only about half of these women achieved the recommend intake of DHA of 200 mg per day.
The authors said that such an observation suggests although pregnant women ate fish, they did not consume enough of the species known to contain high amounts of DHA, such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel.
Only 3% of pregnant women in the study were found to consume the recommended intake of 200 mg/day of DHA in the last month of pregnancy. Onken and her team noted that this is the time when large amounts of DHA are transferred from the mother to the infant to support brain development.
The research team then calculated the odds for obesity in the offspring at age 3 according to the mother’s omega-3 fatty acid intake and the level of omega-6s and omega-3s in cord blood at delivery.
Onken and her co-workers reported the odds of obesity in 3-year-olds were between 2 and 4 times higher when cord blood had a high ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids.
In contrast, the odds of obesity were 32% lower when maternal consumption of omega-3s was high or if the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 was at close to recommended levels.
The Harvard research team noted that the study is the first indications from human data that low intakes of omega-3s in the presence of large amounts of omega-6s during pregnancy might affect the chance of obesity in the offspring.
“These findings need to be confirmed by others. It will also be important to demonstrate that making deliberate changes to a woman’s fat intake during pregnancy has desirable effects on weight and fatness in children,” they added.
Source: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Volume 93, Issue 4, Pages 780-788, doi: 10.3945/?ajcn.110.005801
“Prenatal fatty acid status and child adiposity at age 3 y: results from a US pregnancy cohort”
Authors: S. M Donahue, S.L Rifas-Shiman, D.R. Gold, Z.E Jouni, M.W Gillman, E. Oken.