Archive for the ‘Diet & Nutrition’ Category

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has published an update to their popular cookbook entitled “Keep The Beat.” It’s a collection of recipes that are limited in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, and sodium, as well as being moderate in calories. The majority of the recipes were created in collaboration with Culinary Institute of America-trained chef and instructor David Kamen and a James Beard Foundation award-winning registered dietitian based on guidelines from NHLBI. For those with heart disease, or those who simply want to eat healthier, it’s often difficult to find nutritionally sound recipes that are delicious at the same time. Costing only a nominal $5 it may just be the healthiest pocket change you spent in a while. The book can be purchased at the NHLBI website. [via NIH News]

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Today’s Daily Dose comes from the current issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Researchers found, after following over 238 thousand women over the course of 40 years, that women who had a BMI of 30 or greater at the age of 18 had more than twice the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), compared to women with a BMI between 18.5 and 20.9. “Our results suggest that weight during adolescence, rather than childhood or adulthood, is critical in determining the risk of MS,” said study author Kassandra Munger, ScD, of the Harvard School of Public Health. The study authors theorize the link between obesity and MS may be that obese women tend to have lower vitamin D levels (higher vitamin D levels are thought to reduce the risk of MS). In addition, fatty tissue can produce substances thought to affect immune and cellular function which may be associated with MS. [via Medical News Today]

Calculated your BMI.

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Integrative medicine is a hot field right now with more and more patients exploring complimentary and alternative treatments. Why shouldn’t some of these remedies work? After all, plenty of medicines are derived from the nature around us. One such example is lovastatin (also known by the brand name Mevacor), a medication used to lower cholesterol which is derived from red yeast rice, a supplement used in Traditional Chinese Medicine since 800 A.D. that’s produced by cultivating a red-colored mold on rice. A study published in the current issue of Annals of Internal Medicine demonstrates the efficacy of red yeast rice in improving the lipid profiles of people with high cholesterol. When compared with another popular cholesterol-lowering medication, simvastatin (Zocor), red yeast rice was able to lower LDL levels just as effectively. But, similar to prescription lipid-lowering drugs, red yeast rice can have similar side effects on the liver and muscles. So why isn’t your physician recommending red yeast rice? The reasons are plenty, but one main cause is the currently under-regulated U.S. supplements industry where it may be difficult to accurately know how much of a medicinally active ingredient you are receiving, and consistently so. Regardless, red yeast rice may be a viable alternative for cholesterol reduction in certain people who may not be able to tolerate synthetically manufactured medications due to their side effects. [via Annals of Internal Medicine]

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Research from Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity shows that cereals which are most aggressively marketed to children are also the least healthy, as measured by an Oxford University nutrition scoring system. The researchers also found that none of the cereals targeted to children in the US meets the nutrition standards required to advertise to children in the UK. Among other findings, cereals marketed directly to children have 85% more sugar, 65% less fiber and 60% more sodium than cereals marketed to adults. Even more shocking, (but perhaps should not be a surprise) is that all cereals marketed directly to U.S. children meet the cereal industry’s own nutrition standard for “better-for-you” foods. These include: Cocoa Puffs (44% sugar), Cap’n Crunch (44% sugar), Froot Loops (41% sugar), Lucky Charms (41% sugar) and Cinnamon Toast Crunch (32% sugar). Cereal companies spend nearly $156 million dollars annually on marketing their cereals to children on television. [via Medical News Today]

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Did you know that carbonation has a distinct taste? According to new research from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research scientists have elucidated the fine intricacies of fizziness. When consuming a carbonated beverage the sensation of tiny bubbles bursting on your tongue is, in fact, misleading. If one were to drink a soda in a pressure chamber (thus preventing the bubbles from bursting) the sensation would actually be the same. What gives? The “taste” of carbonation involves the interaction of an enzyme, carbonic anhydrase 4, with the sour-sensing cells in your taste buds. This interaction sends signals to the brain where carbonation is perceived as the familiar fizz, followed by a sensation of tartness. [via NIH News]

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An article in the September 17th issue of the New England Journal of Medicine proposes that a national “soda tax” of 1 cent per ounce of soda and other sugar-laden drinks could curb the United State’s obesity epidemic while generating funds to promote obesity prevention programs. While this tax strategy has reduced cigarette and alcohol use, will it would work with food? That remains to be seen. “There are certain products which make a strong contribution to the obesity epidemic while, conversely, there is no plausible public health benefit [from them],” noted Dr. David Ludwig, senior author of the paper and associate professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School. Opponents of such an idea say that singling out a specific food type sends the wrong public health message. Rather, they say, the government should promote proper nutrition education. Would a heftier price stem your appetite for soda? [via BusinessWeek]

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As more people search for alternative, non-soda beverages coconut water is fast becoming commonplace in American grocery stores. Coconut water, which comes from a young coconut, should not be confused with coconut milk, which is made from the fatty adult coconut. Coconut water actually contains a great deal of electrolytes including potassium, iron, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus which allow coconut water to be rapidly absorbed by our bodies. One registered dietician on ABC News likens it to “nature’s Gatorade.” So much so, in fact, that in emergency situations, coconut water has been used as intravenous fluid when saline isn’t available. Read more via ABC News.

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You may have noticed some new foods as of late if you are a Starbucks patron. As of July 1st Starbucks started selling baked goods free of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), artificial flavors and dyes. The new campaign comes with the tag line “Real Food. Simply Delicious”. As much as this is commendable, some critics are saying that the move towards unprocessed sugars is simply a marketing ploy. Pepsi, for example, has already introduced new soda products made with cane sugar. But is cane or beet sugar healthier? Some research has shown that highly processed sugars like HFCS can more readily lead to hepatic steatosis (aka fatty liver disease) and contribute to obesity. But from a caloric standpoint, there’s essentially no difference. Cane or beet sugar contains 50% fructose and 50% glucose and HFCS contains 55% fructose and 45% glucose. All three sugars deliver about 15-20 calories per teaspoon. Therefore, the only way still to reduce caloric intake from sugars is to consume less sugar.

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The National Cancer Institute just released the results of a large study which examined over half a million Americans and their diets. The main finding was that men and women with the highest total fat consumption were 53% and 23% more likely to develop pancreatic cancer, compared to those with the lowest fat intake. The association was strongest for those whose dietary fat came mostly from red meat and dairy products. Individuals who consumed high levels of saturated fats were 36% more likely to develop pancreatic cancer than those who consumed very low levels. It should be said that although there are positive links seen in this study between pancreatic cancer and fat intake, we cannot for certain say that fat is the culprit. There may be other factors that not were not considered, such as the use of hormones in raising cattle, genetics, etc.

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Using global figures from 2004, researchers estimate that 1 in 25 deaths worldwide is related to alcohol consumption. This includes deaths from injuries, accidents and diseases like liver cirrhosis, cancer and cardiovascular disease. The highest percentage of deaths linked to alcohol were found in countries of the former Soviet Union where 1 in 7 die of an alcohol related cause. One of the countries with the lowest alcohol related mortality is India where about 95% of women and 80% of men abstain from drinking. Much of the focus of this research is to shed light on the parallels between alcohol consumption and tobacco smoking-they both cause high disease and economic burdens, especially on developing countries. The researchers are calling for an international effort in alcohol control, especially in emerging economies like China and Thailand where increasing industrialization and westernization is correlating with increasing alcohol consumption.

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