Showing posts with label daily. Show all posts
Showing posts with label daily. Show all posts
A Daily Serving of Walnuts Cuts Breast Cancer Risk
Monday, April 28, 2014
Interestingly, it is not only the potent dose of Omega-3 fats that are responsible for the risk reduction, but a synergistic effect between multiple nutrients provided by the nut. Scientists now confirm that eating two ounces of this super food each day can significantly lower your risk of developing this insidious killer disease.
Regular Walnut Consumption Slows Breast Cancer Tumor Progression
Dr. Hardman found that the group whose diet included walnuts from conception to late life developed breast cancer at less than half the rate of the group consuming a typical diet. In addition, the number of tumors and their sizes were significantly smaller. Of the results, she commented“These reductions are particularly important when you consider that the mice were genetically programmed to develop cancer at a high rate... we were able to reduce the risk for cancer even in the presence of a preexisting genetic mutation.”
Walnuts Provide a Perfect Blend of Essential Nutrients
The result of this study continues to add to the wealth of scientific evidence that natural nutrients provided by an array of `super foods` significantly contribute to our health. Dr. Hardman concluded“Food is important medicine in our diet… the results of this study indicate that increased consumption of walnuts could be part of a healthy diet and reduce risk for cancer in future generations.”It`s easy to add two ounces of walnuts (about 14 halves) to your daily diet to prevent breast cancer and a host of other chronic diseases.
Daily Multivitamin Use Does Not Reduce Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Men
Friday, April 18, 2014
Approximately one-third of Americans take a daily multivitamin, but little is known about a multivitamins long-term affect on chronic diseases. Now, new research from Brigham and Womens Hospital (BWH) finds that daily multivitamin use does not reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in men. A similar BWH study, announced last month, found daily multivitamin use can reduce a mans risk of cancer by 8 percent. The cardiovascular disease findings will be presented Nov. 5 at the American Heart Associations Scientific Sessions 2012 and published simultaneously in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
"The findings from our large clinical trial do not support the use of a common daily multivitamin supplement for the sole purpose of preventing cardiovascular disease in men," said Howard D. Sesso, ScD, lead author and an associate epidemiologist in the Division of Preventive Medicine at BWH. "The decision to take a daily multivitamin should be made in consultation with ones doctor and consideration given to an individuals nutritional status and other potential effects of multivitamins, including the previously reported modest reduction in cancer risk."
Researchers enrolled nearly 15,000 men over the age of 50 in the study and followed them for more than 10 years. The men were randomly assigned to take either a multivitamin or a placebo every day which ensured that both treatment groups were identical with respect to risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The men self-reported episodes of heart attacks, strokes and cardiovascular disease, and a panel of physicians reviewed and confirmed their events with medical records. Researchers then compared the group that took the multivitamin with the group that took the placebo and found no significant impact on risk of heart attack, stroke, or cardiovascular mortality. Additionally, the effect of a daily multivitamin on major cardiovascular events did not differ on participants with a baseline history of cardiovascular disease and those who were initially free of cardiovascular disease.
J. Michael Gaziano, MD, chief of the Division of Aging at BWH, investigator at VA Boston and senior author of the study, said, "Since so many Americans take daily multivitamins, studies like this are key to providing us with valuable information about what specific benefits multivitamins do or do not provide in terms of their long-term impact on chronic diseases. For cardiovascular disease, we must continue to emphasize a heart-healthy diet, physical activity, smoking cessation and regular screening for cardiovascular risk factors."
Daily Olive Oil Consumption Cuts Stroke Risk by Forty Percent
Friday, March 7, 2014
Scientists suggest that olive oil taken as part of a healthy diet can lower the life-altering risks associated with a stroke by 41% in the elderly. Based on this body of work, researchers “suggest that a new set of dietary recommendations should be issued to prevent stroke in people 65 and older."
Extra Virgin, Cold Pressed Olive Oil Consumed Daily Dramatically Lowers Stroke Risk
Participants were followed for a period of five years and 148 strokes occurred during that time span. After considering dietary, lifestyle and medical history researchers found that those with the highest intake of extra virgin olive oil were 41% less likely to suffer a stroke compared with those with the lowest consumption of the monounsaturated oil. In a secondary arm of this study where plasma fatty acid measurements were available, individuals with the highest oleic acid (olive oil fraction) were found to experience a 73% lower risk of stroke.
Olive Oil Found to Improve Blood Lipid Profile, Lowers Blood Pressure
The study author from the University of Bordeaux in France, Dr. Cécilia Samieri commented “Stroke is so common in older people and olive oil would be an inexpensive and easy way to help prevent it.” The study did not specify the amount of olive oil used by those in the `intense` group that experienced the highest degree of protection from stroke. Nutritionists recommend that most people should add 1 to 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil five days a week to reap the powerful health benefits of this monounsaturated oil.
Drinking Cup of Beetroot Juice Daily May Help Lower Blood Pressure
Friday, February 7, 2014
A cup of beetroot juice a day may help reduce your blood pressure, according to a small study in the American Heart Association journal Hypertension.
People with high blood pressure who drank about 8 ounces of beetroot juice experienced a decrease in blood pressure of about 10 mm Hg. But the preliminary findings dont yet suggest that supplementing your diet with beetroot juice benefits your health, researchers said.
"Our hope is that increasing ones intake of vegetables with a high dietary nitrate content, such as green leafy vegetables or beetroot, might be a lifestyle approach that one could easily employ to improve cardiovascular health," said Amrita Ahluwalia, Ph.D., lead author of the study and a professor of vascular pharmacology at The Barts and The London Medical School in London.
The beetroot juice contained about 0.2g of dietary nitrate, levels one might find in a large bowl of lettuce or perhaps two beetroots. In the body the nitrate is converted to a chemical called nitrite and then to nitric oxide in the blood. Nitric oxide is a gas that widens blood vessels and aids blood flow.
"We were surprised by how little nitrate was needed to see such a large effect," Ahluwalia said. "This study shows that compared to individuals with healthy blood pressure much less nitrate is needed to produce the kinds of decreases in blood pressure that might provide clinical benefits in people who need to lower their blood pressure. However, we are still uncertain as to whether this effect is maintained in the long term."
The study involved eight women and seven men who had a systolic blood pressure between 140 to 159 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), did not have other medical complications and were not taking blood pressure medication. The study participants drank 250 mL of beetroot juice or water containing a low amount of nitrate, and had their blood pressure monitored over the next 24 hours.
Blood pressure is typically recorded as two numbers. Systolic blood pressure, which is the top number and the highest, measures the pressure in the arteries when the heart beats. Diastolic blood pressure, the bottom and lower number, measures blood pressure in the arteries between heart beats.
Compared with the placebo group, participants drinking beetroot juice had reduced systolic and diastolic blood pressure -- even after nitrite circulating in the blood had returned to their previous levels prior to drinking beetroot. The effect was most pronounced three to six hours after drinking the juice but still present even 24 hours later.
In the United States, more than 77 million adults have diagnosed high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart diseases and stroke. Eating vegetables rich in dietary nitrate and other critical nutrients may be an accessible and inexpensive way to manage blood pressure, Ahluwalia said.
Getting people to eat more fruits and vegetables is challenging, but results of the study offer hope, she said. "In the U.K., the general public is told that they should be eating five portions of fruit or vegetables a day but this can be hard to do. Perhaps we should have a different approach to dietary advice. If one could eat just one (fruit or vegetable) a day, this is one more than nothing and should be viewed as positive."
The USDA recommends filling half your plate with fruits and vegetables, and the American Heart Association recommends eating eight or more fruit and vegetable servings every day.
Regular Daily Exercise Alters DNA to Prevent Chronic Disease
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Many people think the genes they inherited at birth are static and predetermine their fate for the remainder of their life. Extensive research into the science of epigenetics is providing startling evidence that this thought process is grossly outdated, and our individual DNA is dynamic and continually influenced by multiple lifestyle factors including diet, environment, stress and physical activity.
Researchers publishing the result of a study in the journalCell Metabolism provide evidence that that when healthy but inactive men and women exercise for a matter of minutes, it produces a rather immediate change to their DNA. While we cannot change our core DNA code, exercise does influence the DNA molecules within our muscles. Scientists have found that DNA is chemically and structurally altered or expressed in very important ways that affect a myriad of metabolic processes that protect us from chronic disease.
Short Bursts of Moderate Intensity Exercise Positively Influences DNA Expression
The scientists found that DNA modifications signal precise genetic reprogramming in muscles that determine overall muscle strength as well as structural and metabolic benefits derived from physical activity. Study leader, Dr. Juleen Zierath noted “Our muscles are really plastic… muscle adapts to what you do. If you dont use it, you lose it, and this is one of the mechanisms that allows that to happen.”
Epigenetic modifications involve the addition or deletion of chemical markers on the DNA strand that change rapidly based on environmental influences such as the nutritional composition of your last meal, pollutants in the environment or the intensity of an exercise workout. Researchers found that DNA within skeletal muscle examined after a short burst of exercise bore fewer chemical markers (specifically methyl groups) than it did before exercise.
Fifteen to Twenty Minutes of Moderate Intensity Exercise Lower Disease Risk
The study team specifically determined that the DNA modifications occurred in stretches of DNA that are involved in expressing genes known to be important for muscular adaptation to exercise. This research clearly provides more evidence that our genetic constitution is continually evolving in an effort to protect us, and is positively influenced by short, moderate intensity bursts of physical activity. These alterations allow us to adapt quickly to the changing environment that surrounds us.
Dr. Zierath concluded “Exercise is medicine… and it seems the means to alter our genome for better health may be only a jog away.” The finding of this study may explain recent research showing that the best form of exercise works our musculature in short bursts of moderate to full intensity (as measured by attaining maximum heart rate for your age range) for several minutes in duration, followed by a rest period and then another energy burst. Combining this evidence with an organic whole food diet will positively influence your genes toward optimal health.
Daily steps add up for midlife womens health
Friday, January 24, 2014
Moving 6,000 or more steps a day—no matter how—adds up to a healthier life for midlife women. That level of physical activity decreases the risk of diabetes and metabolic syndrome (a diabetes precursor and a risk for cardiovascular disease), showed a study published online this month in Menopause, the journal of the North American Menopause Society.
Although other studies have shown the value of structured exercise in lowering health risks such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease, this study has shown that habitual physical activity—whether it comes from exercising or just activities of daily living—has the power to improve womens health.
In Passo Fundo, Brazil, 292 women who were 45 to 72 years old wore pedometers and recorded their daily steps. They also had health checks such as cholesterol and blood sugar and waist and hip measurement (to gauge abdominal obesity, which is a risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease). Women who took 6,000 or more steps per day were considered active and those who took fewer inactive.
The active women were much less likely than the inactive ones to be obese and have metabolic syndrome or frank diabetes, whether or not they had gone through menopause–when these risks usually go up–and whether or not they were using hormone therapy.
For midlife women, it looks like the journey to health begins with 6,000 steps!
Daily Egg Consumption Increases Risk For Diabetes
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
A new study in Diabetes Care found that eating eggs may raise the risk for developing type 2 diabetes:1"These data suggest that high levels of egg consumption (daily) are associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes in men and women."The data came from two large cohorts, the Physicians Health Study I (1982–2007) that included 20,703 men, and the Womens Health Study (1992–2007) that included 36,295 women.
Men experienced an increased risk for diabetes of:
- 18% for 2-4 eggs/week
- 46% for 5-6 eggs/week
- 58% for 7 or more eggs/week
- 19% for 2-4 eggs/week
- 18% for 5-6 eggs/week
- 77% for 7 or more eggs/week
1Egg Consumption and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes in Men and Women, Diabetes Care, published online ahead of print November 18, 2008.
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