Vitamin E in pecans may reduce LDL oxidation

A handful of pecans a day could reduce the risk of heart disease, found a recent study, likely due to the nut’s high vitamin E content.

Researchers at Loma Linda University in California linked pecans to slowing down the unwanted oxidation of blood lipids by up to 7.4 per cent, in turn potentially lowering the risk of heart disease.

Pecans are especially rich in a form of vitamin E, gamma tocopherol, which is thought to protect fats from oxidation.
The study is published in Nutrition Research (volume 26, issue 8, August 2006, 397-402).

The Loma Linda University researchers analyzed blood samples from 23 men and women between the ages of 25 and 55. The participants were randomly placed on either the American Heart Association's Step I diet or the study’s pecan-enriched version of the diet in which 20 per cent of calories were replaced with pecans.

After four weeks on one diet, each group switched to the other diet.

"We concluded that even though the pecan diet was high in unsaturated fats, which one may think would increase blood oxidation, that did not happen,” said Dr.Haddad. “We found the opposite result: the pecan diet showed reduced oxidation of blood lipids."

Sugar linked with mental problems in Norway study

Oslo teens who drank the most sugary soft drinks also had more mental health problems such as hyperactivity and distress, Norwegian researchers reported on Thursday.

Their study of more than 5,000 Norwegian 15- and 16-year-olds showed a clear and direct association between soft drink intake and hyperactivity, and a more complex link with other mental and behavioral disorders.

They surveyed the students, asking them how many fizzy soft drinks with sugar they had a day, and then questions from a standard questionnaire used to assess mental health.

The teens who reported skipping breakfast and lunch were among the heaviest soft drink consumers, Dr. Lars Lien and colleagues at the University of Oslo found.

Most of the students said they drank anywhere between one and six servings of soft drinks per week.

Those who drank no soft drinks at all were more likely than moderate drinkers to have mental health symptoms, the researchers said. But those who drank the most -- more than six servings a week - had the highest scores.

For hyperactivity, there was a direct linear relationship -- the more sodas a teen drank, the most symptoms of hyperactivity he or she had.

The worst problems were seen in boys and girls who drank four or more soft drinks a day. Ten percent of the boys and 2 percent of the girls drank this much.

Courtesy Reuters

Steve - this is such a welcome study. While painfully evident in what we see clinically, there has been so little data connecting sugar and mental health. Results of a study such as this done in the United States would produce numbers much higher because the average diet is much worse than in Norway.

Tai chi mind-body exercise may benefit cardiovascular physiology

According to Harvard Researchers, data from multiple Chinese studies showed positive outcomes related to improved cardiovascular physiology from the incorporation of Tai chi. These results were presented to the National Institutes of Health last month.

More selenium could slash bladder cancer risk, says study

Increasing the daily intake of selenium from dietary and supplementary sources, could cut the risk of bladder cancer by 70 per cent, suggests a new study from Belgium.

Continued coverage of positive results, like the new study published in the International Journal of Urology (Vol. 13, pp. 1180-1184), could help further increase public awareness of a mineral already associated with reducing the risk of prostate and lung cancer, as well as boosting the immune system.

The authors carried out a population case-control study with 178 cases and 362 controls. Blood samples were taken to assess serum selenium concentrations. After accounting for sex, age, smoking and occupational exposure, the researchers calculated that the risk of bladder cancer was slashed by 70 per cent for those people with blood levels of more than 96 micrograms per litre, compared to those with serum levels of less than 82.4 micrograms per litre. Serum selenium levels between 82.4 and 96 micrograms per litre were associated with a 52 per cent risk reduction in bladder cancer risk.

The European recommended daily intake (RDI) is 65 micrograms.

Health Insurance rises again!

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, health insurance premiums rose on average 7.7% in 2006, which is twice the rate of inflation. What is particularly startling is the difference between wage and premium growth. Since 2000, health insurance has gone up 87%; wages have gone up 20%. The average cost for health insurance for individuals is $4242 per year. For families, the cost is $11,480. As employers move away from offering health benefits to their employees, the burden will fall on employees, putting further strain on their budgets.

Steve - these numbers become more and more staggering. Until we change the health care paradigm and focus on prevention, the numbers will continue to increase.

Americans still confused by food labels

According to a poll published by the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, almost all of the participants had difficulty with at least some of the labels.

Many had trouble understanding serving sizes and completing simple calculations. In particular, those with chronic illnesses where understanding labels might be particulary important, actually had a harder time reading labels than other people.

Steve - this is why it is crucial to have a nutritionist/dietitian that can trust to sort out the details with you.

New York proposes trans fat ban in restaurants

New York City's Health Department on Tuesday proposed a near ban on the use of artificial trans fat at restaurants, likening its health danger to that of lead paint.

The proposal would limit the use of the artery-clogging fat, which is often used in fast foods, to 0.5 grams per serving. The proposal comes after a year-long city campaign to educate restaurants on the effects of such fats and encourage them to stop their use.

The city said the voluntary campaign failed and while some of New York's more than 20,000 restaurants reduced or stopped using artificial trans fat, overall use did not decline at all.

"Trans fat causes heart disease. Like lead in paint, artificial trans fat in food is invisible and dangerous, and it can be replaced," New York City Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden said in a statement.

The proposal would give restaurants six months to switch to oils, margarine and shortening with less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving.

After 18 months, all other food items would need to contain less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving. Packaged food items still in the manufacturer's original packaging when served would be exempt.

The department would also require that more restaurants print calorie information on menus.

Bonnie - well, now...the idea does not not seem as ludicrous as Mayor Daley thinks! Now we have seen by New York's example that trying to get restaurants to voluntarily remove the trans fats from its menus is a failure. Hopefully we can trump New York and implement Alderman Burke's plan (while watered down, it is still something) before they implement their own. This will show at least that the fattest city in America is trying to do something for its citizens.

Make sure you know your fruit is organic, conventional, or GMO

We found in Julie Deardorff's column in the Chicago Tribune:
Look at the PLU stickers on your produce. What a great little tip!

Conventionally grown produce are four digits long
and begin with the number 3 or 4.

Organically grown produce are five digits
and begin with the number 9.

Genetically modified produce are also five digits
and begin with the number 8.

Fatty fish benefits kidneys

According to a study published in the September 20th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, omega-3 fatty acids may help protect your kidneys against cancer. The 15-year study showed that women who ate high amounts of fatty fish (more than one serving per week) had a 44 percent less risk for developing renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer).

Legendary nutritional authority has a lot to say

Jeffrey Blumberg, PhD, FACN, is a senior scientist and director of the Antioxidants Research Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (HNRCA) at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts. His research efforts are focused on the biochemical basis for the role of antioxidant nutrients and their dietary requirements in health promotion and disease prevention during the aging process via their modulation of oxidative stress status. Dr Blumberg is also a professor in the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, where he teaches graduate students and trains post-doctoral fellows.

In a recent interview that appeared in the September/October issue of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine, Dr. Blumberg was asked how he would characterize the mainstream medical establishment’s understanding and acceptance of dietary supplement research and dietary supplements in general?

"Some clinicians and policy makers fear that recommending dietary supplements will suggest these products are substitutes for a healthful diet. But there should be no dichotomy between foods and supplements. It seems clear to me that both are necessary solutions to promoting health. Of course, all the available evidence suggests that people who use supplements are more likely to engage in other proactive health behaviors, including eating better, exercising more, and not smoking. There is no indication that people use supplements as an excuse to continue with poor dietary choices. Oddly, some people then conclude that those who use supplements do not need them. But they do need them, albeit less desperately than those who do not take them. Nonetheless, I have found physicians who actively discourage any use of any supplements rather than try to design a rational supplement regimen for their patients.

Perhaps many physicians do not feel knowledgeable enough about nutrition to make the recommendation, or they simply do not have the time to assess each patient’s dietary pattern and nutritional status. This only suggests to me the need for a healthcare team approach, actively involving dietitians and pharmacists to contribute to this effort.

It is also likely that some physicians have been discouraged by the null results of recent clinical trials. However, there is a great deal of misunderstanding regarding the conclusions that should be drawn from studies conducted in patient populations receiving polypharmacy therapies and the inappropriateness of extrapolating them to use in primary prevention. For example, do vitamin E supplements reduce the risk of heart disease? Vitamin E given in randomized trials to patients with heart disease and/or diabetes who are also receiving anticoagulants, anti-platelet drugs, beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, diuretics, ACE inhibitors, statins, and other agents does not appear in most studies to provide a benefit. However, most of the observational data on healthy people taking vitamin E indicate a marked reduction in the risk of a first cardiac event."

Bonnie - Dr. Blumberg is as highly regarded a scientist as there is. He also serves on the board of The American College of Nutrition, in which I am a member of. He has understood for decades the importance of dietary supplementation. Being a researcher for the government, Dr. Blumberg stepped out of his comfort zone with these comments. I am glad he did.

Acupuncture shows promise for hot flashes

Acupuncture may offer women an alternative for easing hot flashes during menopause, preliminary research suggests.

In a study of 29 women with frequent, daily hot flashes, researchers found that those who received acupuncture began to have fewer and less severe symptoms during the night.

As nighttime hot flashes improved, so did the quality of the women's sleep, the researchers report in the journal Fertility & Sterility.

Recent medical research has found that acupuncture may work by altering signals among nerve cells or by affecting the release of various chemicals of the central nervous system. There's also some evidence that acupuncture affects hormones related to both sleep and menopause.

By the end of treatment, women who'd been getting the real acupuncture sessions reported a greater reduction in the severity of their nighttime hot flashes than those in the comparison group.

Both groups said their hot flashes had become less frequent, the researchers found, and as hot flash symptoms improved, so did the women's sleep quality.

Panel: FDA hasn't learned from Vioxx

Two years after the withdrawal of the pain-killer Vioxx, the Food and Drug Administration still can't adequately track the safety of new drugs and respond quickly to problems, a panel of experts said Friday.

The Institute of Medicine said the FDA needs more money, people and power to ensure it maintains focus on the safety of drugs it regulates once they're on the market.

The institute proposed a series of steps to improve safety review, including boosting the FDA's budget.

It recommended the FDA review the safety of all new drugs five years after their introduction, making initial approval almost tentative and subject to withdrawal.

New drugs also would carry a symbol for two years alerting patients and doctors that uncertainties may remain about their risks and benefits. Advertising would be restricted during that period, if legally permissible, according to the report.

Courtesy AP

Wait-and-see approach lowers antibiotic use for ear infections

A new study suggests that taking a wait-and-see approach before giving antibiotics to children with acute ear infections results in significantly lower use of antibiotics, with little difference in outcomes for the children.

The study's results, published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, are particularly timely. Resistance to antibiotics is a major public health concern worldwide, and acute otitis media (AOM, or ear infection) is the most common reason for prescribing antibiotics to children, at a rate of approximately 15 million prescriptions per year in the United States.

The study, co-authored by Vanderbilt's Donald H. Arnold, M.D., M.P.H., tracked emergency department visits of nearly 300 children, ages 6 months to 12 years. Participants were divided into wait-and-see prescription (WASP) group, where parents had the option of delaying use of antibiotics, and standard prescription (SP) group.

Researchers found that the WASP group significantly reduced the use of antibiotics: 62 percent of parents in that group did not fill the antibiotic prescription, compared with 13 percent in the SP group, resulting in an overall 56 percent reduction in antibiotic use. Although the WASP group had 2.4 days of earache versus two days in the SP group, there were no statistically significant differences between the groups in the frequency of subsequent fever or unscheduled visits for medical care.

Courtesy Healthy News Service

Protein triggers weight loss hormone

New research that appears in the September issue of Cell Metabolism shows that increasing the protein content of the diet augments the body's own weight-loss hormone, called PPY, thus reducing hunger and aiding weight-loss.

Steve - how shocking...not! How many times do we need to say it? Eat protein! Make sure you consume it with every meal and make it at least 30% of your daily intake.

Diet Lowers Cancer Risk

According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, it is estimated that eating a Mediterranean-style diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and exercising regularly can reduce your cancer risk by 30 to 40 percent.

American Journal Clinical Nutrition Highlights

From our favorite nutrition journal, here is the latest:

• For women with risk of developing uterine fibroids, lignan consumption (such as flaxseed) may be a viable strategy for reducing the risk.
  
  
• Ingestion of protein WITH carbohydrates after activities of daily living improves whole-body protein balance, and the increase of muscle protein synthesis in older person.
  
  
• Per last week's blog entry, you'll find our comments on US Medical Students' attitude towards nutrition education.
  

The breakfast hype

A recently released article in the New York Times, quoting numerous academic authorities across the country, weighed the pros and cons of eating breakfast.

It was universally agreed upon that breakfast for children is crucial. Experts were mixed on the importance of breakfast for adults. For the experts who believe that breakfast is not important for asults, we think it is ridiculous.

Without protein every 5-6 waking hours, we see impaired glucose, lower levels of concentration, and breakdown of muscle (protein) for fuel. Eating the wrong fuel, however (typical breakfast fare of fruit juice, sugar cereals/bars/rolls) is worse than no breakfast because it causes a peak, then drop in insulin levels.

In short, eat a balaced breakfast!

Bonnie and Steve

A Milk War Over More Than Price

Organic milk is about to become much more widely available, as Wal-Mart rolls out its own organic brand, which will be cheaper than similar milk on the market. But critics worry that what consumers will be getting is a diluted form of organic milk. Sold under Wal-Mart’s popular Great Value label, half-gallon cartons of the milk is likely to create stiff competition for many other makers of organic milk — which comes from cows that have not been treated with hormones or antibiotics — and even sellers of conventional milk.

The organic milk Wal-Mart is selling under its own label comes from Aurora Organic Dairy, which also supplies Safeway, Costco, Target and Wild Oats with their store brands of organic milk. The controversy turns on how closely Aurora adheres to the principles behind the organic food movement. Many organic farmers say grass feeding is essential for organic dairy production because it is part of a cow’s natural behavior. Milk from grass-fed cows, they say, is also higher in beneficial fatty acids than milk from cows fed grain, making it more nutritious.

At Aurora’s Platteville operation, 4,000 cows are put on grass only when not being milked or when they are nearing the end of a lactation cycle. That totals about two to three months a year. The rest of the time they stay in dirt-lined outdoor pens where they eat from an ample trough filled with a mixture of hay, silage, corn and soybeans. In accordance with organic standards, Aurora cows also get no hormones or antibiotics and all their feed is grown organically.

Courtesy of NY Times

Steve - of course, we still need to keep an eye on Wal-Mart and the metamorphisis of the organic dairy industry. In an ideal world, if all cows could be grass-fed, it would be best. That is nearly impossible right now. There are organic dairies that produce grass-fed milk. You can also buy from local dairy farmers. You will just have to pay more. Nevertheless, the fact that Wal-Mart is carrying organic milk that is free of antibiotics and hormones is a very positive step for the overall health of the population. Rome wasn't built in a day!

Salad eaters more likely to get key nutrients

People who eat salads have higher serum levels of vitamins C and E, folic acid, and carotenoids, according to a large study of US adults that suggests these nutrients are well absorbed in the body from raw vegetables.

Researchers at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans based their findings on data from a federal health and nutrition survey of 17,688 US adults between 1988 and 1994. For the study, published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, salad consumption was assessed based on intakes of salad, raw vegetables and salad dressing.

The study contributes to the existing body of research showing Americans are not getting enough fruits and vegetables and could serve as a roadmap for supplement formulators to target specific populations not getting enough of the nutrients in question.

“From this analysis we know that one extra serving of salad daily increased levels of a variety of nutrients,” concluded the authors led by Dr Joseph Su.

The data revealed consumption of salads or raw vegetables was 10 to 15 percent less among non-Hispanic African Americans than among non-Hispanic whites of the same age and sex.

Essential food for young minds

Kids who regularly eat breakfast appear to get the nutrients they need and do better in school.

Kids should eat breakfast. Children are still growing, so their need for energy and nutrients is more critical. "The research overwhelmingly shows that there appear to be many more benefits to eating breakfast than any negative consequences," says Gail Rampersaud, a dietitian at the University of Florida in Gainesville who recently analyzed 47 studies published between 1970 and 2004 on the health effects of breakfast (or skipping it) on children.

Among the findings:

Many studies — although not all — suggest that skipping breakfast may have ill effects on the cognitive function of children, especially on their memory.

Studies have also reported that the introduction of a school breakfast program led to better math grades, as well as reduced absences and tardiness.

In addition to the effects on children's mind, children who don't get breakfast risk losing out on adequate intake of vitamins A and C, calcium and iron, according to about a dozen studies.

About another dozen studies suggest that children and adolescents who skip breakfast are more likely to be overweight. Despite this evidence, even children as young as 4 years old are not always fed breakfast by their parents. In the United States, it's estimated that 8% of children age 6 to 11 skip breakfast, with the number climbing to 25% in 12- to 19-year-olds.

By Andreas von Bubnoff, Special to The LA Times
September 18, 2006