New Hampshire Health News Digest

Why Fish Oils Can Improve Diabetes Control Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have identified the molecular mechanism that makes omega-3 fatty acids so effective in reducing chronic inflammation and insulin resistance… Advertisement The discovery could lead to development of a simple dietary remedy for many of the more than 23 million Americans suffering from diabetes and other conditions. Writing in advance of publication, Jerrold Olefsky, MD, and colleagues identified a key receptor on macrophages abundantly found in obese body fat. Obesity and diabetes are closely correlated. The scientists say omega-3 fatty acids activate this macrophage receptor, resulting in broad anti-inflammatory effects and improved systemic insulin sensitivity. Macrophages are specialized white blood cells that engulf and digest cellular debris and pathogens. Part of this immune system response involves the macrophages secreting cytokines and other proteins that cause in...

Consequences of Malnutrition, Fasting, Stress and Disease - Nutrition Partner B. Braun 4. Consequences of fasting, stress and disease Fasting and stress have opposite influences on the energy expenditure of the human organism. The healthy human body is capable of passing from a state involving three regular food intakes to a state of short-term fasting and even prolonged fasting, as a result of precise metabolic regulation. In these cases, the organism will save as much energy as possible, thus reducing energy expenditure. However, in stress conditions, energy expenditure is markedly increased. As a result, the body´s metabolism will be converted into a catabolic state, the gravity of which is determined by the nature and degree of the injury and type and severity of underlying disease. These and other processes will be developed in the following chapters. [Table of contents] 4.1 Effects of fasting In theory, if a person having 15 kg of adipose triglycerides — i.e. 140.000 kcal of rese...

Vegetarian Indians more likely to suffer heart disease--study | TheMedGuru : "On the occasion of World Heart Day (September 26) there’s a bad news for vegetarians Indians. As per a new research report presented by a Pune-based bariatric Dr. Shashank Shah, vegetarian Indians are more prone to suffer from heart ailments. Commenting on why veggie Indians are more at risk of heart diseases, Dr. Shah said in a press statement, “We found that Indians are grossly deficient in vitamin B12, which is a crucial cardio-protective factor in the body. Vitamin B12 is usually found in food that comes from animals, like fish, meat, poultry, milk and milk products. However, since a lot of Indians are vegetarians, they do not get adequate amounts of vitamin B12 in their diet.”" [...] Details of research study To come to this startling conclusion Dr Shah along with his colleague Dr Todkar, studied the data collected from about 300 patients from Hiranandani Hospital, Powai, over the period of one...

Science trumps politics: urinary sodium data challenge US dietary sodium guideline -- McCarron et al. 92 (5): 1005 -- American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Science trumps politics: urinary sodium data challenge US dietary sodium guideline1,2 David A McCarron, Tilman B Drüeke and Edward M Stricker 1 From the Department of Nutrition, University of California, Davis, CA (DAM); INSERM ERI-12, UFR de Médecine et de Pharmacie, Université de Picardie Jules Verne, Amiens, France (TBD); and the Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA (EMS). 2 Address correspondence and reprint requests to DA McCarron, The McCarron Group, 120 NW Ninth Avenue, Portland, OR 97209. E-mail: dmccarron@mccarrongroup.com. See corresponding article on page 1172. For the past 3 decades, the US government has promoted a policy of reduced dietary sodium intake as the principal nutritional means of reducing blood pressure and its attendant cardiovascular disorders in adults. Early on, this poli...

Changes in lipoprotein(a), oxidized phospholipids, and LDL subclasses with a low-fat high-carbohydrate diet — The Journal of Lipid Research Changes in lipoprotein(a), oxidized phospholipids, and LDL subclasses with a low-fat high-carbohydrate diet 1. Nastaran Faghihnia*, 2. Sotirios Tsimikas†, 3. Elizabeth R. Miller†, 4. Joseph L. Witztum† and 5. Ronald M. Krauss*,1 + Author Affiliations 1. *Department of Atherosclerosis Research, Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, Oakland, CA 2. †Department of Medicine,† University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA Abstract Low-fat diets have been shown to increase plasma concentrations of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], a preferential lipoprotein carrier of oxidized phospholipids (OxPLs) in plasma, as well as small dense LDL particles. We sought to determine whether increases in plasma Lp(a) induced by a low-fat high-carbohydrate (LFHC) diet are related to changes in OxPL and LDL subclasses. We studied 6...

Confirmatory Evidence of Cancer-Nutrition Link Remains Elusi... : Oncology Times Confirmatory Evidence of Cancer-Nutrition Link Remains Elusive Goodman, Alice Free Access SAN FRANCISCO-Although a link between nutrition and cancer was posited as long ago as ancient China, modern studies have been only partly successful in illuminating this association, explained Arthur Schatzkin, MD, DrPH, of the NCI's Nutritional Epidemiology Branch, speaking here at the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting at a Scientific Symposium on Nutrition and Cancer. Do we have hard, credible evidence that nutritional modification can truly affect the incidence of malignant disease in humans? The answer, in short, is a resounding maybe. We are getting there, but nutrition and cancer is a complex and difficult field. When it comes to nutrition, the evidence is softer and vulnerable to the results of the latest analysis or published paper. The dearth of hard evidence coupled with inherent diffi...

Cancer Prevention Diet In Fact, Only a Guess But even this was only a guess. "We have attributed the largest risk to dietary factors," they wrote. "It must be emphasized the figure chosen is highly speculative and chiefly refers to dietary factors which are not yet reliably identified." However, even by 1981 two possible preventive factors, beta-carotene and other precursors of Vitamin A, and dietary fiber were already identified. It was a satisfying overall package. Beta-carotene was an antioxidant, and there was some evidence that antioxidants might have a role in preventing the No. 1 cancer killer, lung cancer. Fiber seemed to have a preventive role in the No. 2 cancer--colorectal cancer-and eating more fiber usually meant a lower fat diet, and both animal and vegetable fats were also suspects in increasing cancer risk. Finally, these theories nicely fit the dietary recommendations that had already been made. While the scientific literature grew to include litera...

Evidence Summary: Dietary fiber supplements and obesity Dietary fiber supplements and obesity Evidence Summary Fiber supplements were defined, for the purposes of this project, as fibers which have been isolated from the original source. The fiber may be incorporated into foods and beverages or taken as a pill or powder. Body Weight 11 studies: Three positive-rated randomized controlled trials (Birketvedt et al, 2005; Rossner et al, 1987; Ryttig et al, 1989), five neutral-rated randomized controlled trials (Birketvedt et al, 2000; Hylander et al, 1983; Pasman, Westerterp-Plantenga et al, 1997; Rigaud et al, 1990; Solum et al, 1987) and three positive-rated randomized controlled trials with crossover (Kovacs et al, 2001; Meada et al, 2005; Vuksan et al, 1999), examined the impact of fiber supplements on body weight in overweight and obese individuals. Increased Weight Loss Seven studies found increased weight loss with fiber supplement intake of 0.8g to 20g for five weeks to 14 months (...

Do Cholesterol Drugs Do Any Good? So how can anyone question the benefits of such a drug? For one thing, many researchers harbor doubts about the need to drive down cholesterol levels in the first place. Those doubts were strengthened on Jan. 14, when Merck and Schering-Plough (SGP) revealed results of a trial in which one popular cholesterol-lowering drug, a statin, was fortified by another, Zetia, which operates by a different mechanism. The combination did succeed in forcing down patients' cholesterol further than with just the statin alone. But even with two years of treatment, the further reductions brought no health benefit. DOING THE MATH The second crucial point is hiding in plain sight in Pfizer's own Lipitor newspaper ad. The dramatic 36% figure has an asterisk. Read the smaller type. It says: "That means in a large clinical study, 3% of patients taking a sugar pill or placebo had a heart attack compared to 2% of patients taking Lipitor." Now do some simple ...