Health for life

Women who had sufficient amounts of vitamin D were 32 percent less likely to develop fibroids than women with insufficient vitamin D, according to a study from researchers at the National Institutes of Health.

Fibroids, also known as uterine leiomyomata, are noncancerous tumors of the uterus. Fibroids often result in pain and bleeding in premenopausal women, and are the leading cause of hysterectomy in the United States.

The study of 1,036 women, aged 35-49, living in the Washington, D.C., area from 1996 to 1999, was led by Donna Baird, Ph.D., a researcher at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of NIH. Baird and her collaborators at The George Washington University and the Medical University of South Carolina screened participants for fibroids using ultrasound. They used blood samples to measure the primary circulating form of vitamin D, known as 25-hydroxy D. Those with more than 20 nanograms per milliliter of 25-hydroxy D were categorized as sufficient, though some experts think even higher levels may be required for good health. The body can make vitamin D when the skin is exposed to the sun, or vitamin D can come from food and supplements.

Study participants also completed a questionnaire on sun exposure. Those who reported spending more than one hour outside per day also had a decreased risk of fibroids. The estimated reduction was 40 percent. Although fewer black than white participants had sufficient 25-hydroxy D levels, the estimated reduction in prevalence of fibroids was about the same for both ethnic groups.

"It would be wonderful if something as simple and inexpensive as getting some natural sunshine on their skin each day could help women reduce their chance of getting fibroids," said Baird.

Baird also noted that, though the findings are consistent with laboratory studies, more studies in women are needed. Baird is currently conducting a study in Detroit to see if the findings from the Washington, D.C., study can be replicated. Other NIEHS in-house researchers, led by Darlene Dixon, D.V.M., Ph.D., are learning more about fibroid development, by examining tissue samples from study participants who had surgery for fibroids.

"This study adds to a growing body of literature showing the benefits of vitamin D," said Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., director of NIEHS and the National Toxicology Program.

Where do you get your protein? If its from red meat (steak and pork), processed meat (bacon and salami), and high-fat dairy foods, it may be increasing your risk of fatal and non-fatal heart attack.

That was the finding of a recent assessment of the very large Nurses Health Study which followed over 84,000 women for 26 years.¹

It found:

• Higher intakes of red meat, red meat excluding processed meat, and high-fat dairy were significantly associated with elevated risk of coronary heart disease (CHD).
  
  
• Higher intakes of poultry, fish, and nuts were significantly associated with lower risk.

And concluded:

"These data suggest that high red meat intake increases risk of CHD."

The study was unique in that it investigated how substituting one source of protein for another, e.g. nuts, fish, or poultry for red meat, affects heart disease risk. It found, for example, that substituting one serving of nuts for one serving of red meat reduced CHD risk by 30%; substituting a serving of fish for red meat reduced it by 24%.

Although the study was conducted on women, the researchers say men are likely to benefit from the findings as well.

Lead author of the study, Adam Bernstein:

"Our research adds to the growing and convincing body of evidence that red meat intake should be minimized or excluded from the diet in order to maintain cardiovascular health."

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¹Major Dietary Protein Sources And Risk Of Coronary Heart Disease In Women, Circulation, August 2010

Shifting Protein Sources Away From Red Meats May Reduce Risk Of Heart Disease In Women, Harvard School of Public Health, Press Release, August 2010

... and aid the breakdown of fat!

Researchers reporting in last months issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that supplementing 30 grams/day of resistant starch to their volunteers diets resulted in a 33% increase in insulin sensitivity. As a result, subjects could clear glucose from their bloodstreams faster than those who did not receive the resistant starch.

A study last year in Nutrition and Metabolism found that replacing 5.4% of the carbohydrate in a meal* increased fat-oxidation (the breakdown of fat) and could decrease fat accumulation over time. The implications for resistant starchs use in weight management are encouraging.

* For example, if your meal contained 100 grams of carbohydrate, 5.4 grams would be replaced with resistant starch.

What is resistant starch (RS)?
Simply, its starch we eat that is not digested in the small intestine. It passes to the large intestine where it undergoes fermentation by bacteria. The HealthyEatingClub.com lists these foods as containing resistant starch:

• Intact wholegrain cereals/seeds/nuts, e.g. oats, rye, wheat, barley, semolina, corn, linseed, sesame
  
• Processed starchy foods, e.g. some breakfast cereals (cornflakes), white bread, rice, pasta
  
• Processed starchy foods with added RS called Hi-Maize (derived from corn)
  
• Legumes, e.g. lentils, beans (Legumes have the highest content of RS.)
  
• Unripe fruit, especially banana
  
• Cooked cold rice, cold pasta salad, cold boiled potato salad (Cooking and cooling food can increase RS content.)

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For some background on resistant starch:
Resistant Starch

For the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition study:
Insulin-sensitizing effects of dietary resistant starch and effects on skeletal muscle and adipose tissue metabolism

For the Nutrition and Metabolism study:
Resistant starch consumption promotes lipid oxidation