AJCN September, 2009 – SUMMARY
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MEAT AND DAIRY HAZARDOUS 1. Meat and dairy are likely to contribute to breast cancer – In another study, we identified 2 dietary patterns: Western (refined grains, processed meat, and sweets) and prudent (whole grains, vegetables, fruit, and fish). The prudent diet was weakly associated with lower breast cancer risk 2. Meat contributes to brain cancer 3. Fat and processed meat diet increases heart disease 82% vs. whole grain, fruit and vegetable diet decreases it 46%
WEIGHT LOSS 4. High protein, carb-free diet has merit – Background: High-protein diets have been shown to increase energy expenditure 5. Drinking water reduces weight gain – Total water intake was inversely related to energy from fat and energy density but positively related to dietary fiber, caffeine, alcohol, and diet quality. 6. Vitamin D deficiency may contribute to obesity 7. CLAs reduce obesity — SUPPLEMENT: Monosodium glutamate symposium – It is the fifth basic taste, in addition to sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. It may reduce weight gain by affecting the brain. 8. Increasing obesity at age 4 raises risk of heart disease
FRUITS, VEGETABLES, AND WHOLE GRAINS INCREASE YOUR HEALTH 9. Cholesterol levels improved by anthocyanins – Anthocyanins are found in fruits and vegetables. 10. Whole grains, esp. bran, reduce hypertension 11. Dietary fiber reduces the risk of getting breast cancer
OTHER SIMPLE HEALTH STEPS 12. Vitamin C is important for a healthy brain 13. Even those with diabetes benefit from moderate alcohol intake 14. Elderly may benefit from weighing more 15. Green tea reduces the risk of dying from pneumonia – Odds of dying were 1.00 (reference) for <1 cup/d, 0.59 for 1–2 cups/d, 0.55 for 3–4 cups/d, and 0.53 for 5 cups/d. 16. Those with prostate cancer may benefit from B6 supplements
STILL CONTROVERSY 17. Coffee did not prevent mental decline in elderly people – This study did not justify coffee drinking, though others have. 18. Nutritional quality of organic foods is not substantially different ( though hormones, pesticides, herbicides, and other exogenous contaminants were not considered)
DETAILS –
1. Meat and dairy likely to contribute to breast cancer – Dietary risk factors for breast cancer attract the attention of scientists and the public alike because modifiable risk factors carry the potential for prevention. ..Multiple biological mechanisms have been proposed to explain a possible link between animal products and breast cancer. Heterocyclic amines and polyaromatic hydrocarbons created during the high-temperature cooking of red meat are established mammary carcinogens. Exogenous hormones administered to cattle to increase muscle mass and promote milk production could be passed on to consumers of meat and dairy products and stimulate the growth of hormone-sensitive breast tumors. Additionally, nutritional components, such as the high iron concentrations in red meat, or the specific fatty acid content of milk products could promote mammary carcinogenesis…The overall lack of relation between consumption of animal products and breast cancer seen in prospective studies needs to be interpreted in light of the considerable methodologic challenges in studying the effects of diet on cancer risk. In another study, we identified 2 dietary patterns: Western (refined grains, processed meat, and sweets) and prudent (whole grains, vegetables, fruit, and fish). The prudent diet was weakly associated with lower breast cancer risk
2. Vitamin D deficiency may contribute to obesity – The objective was to identify factors associated with vitamin D status and deficiency in obese adolescents to further evaluate the relation of body fat indexes to vitamin D status and deficiency… The findings provide initial evidence that the distribution of fat may be associated with vitamin D status…
3. CLAs reduce obesity – This was a 36-wk randomized, double-masked, crossover study. Fifty-five obese postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes … Supplementation with CLA (8 g oil/d) reduced body mass index (BMI) (P = 0.0022) and total adipose mass (P = 0.0187) without altering lean mass.
4. Cholesterol levels improved by anthocyanins – Anthocyanins are found in fruits and vegetables. People were given 160 mg anthocyanins twice daily. Anthocyanin consumption increased HDL-cholesterol concentrations (13.7% and 2.8% in the anthocyanin and placebo groups, respectively; and decreased LDL-cholesterol concentrations (13.6% and –0.6% in the anthocyanin and placebo groups, respectively)
5. Whole grains, esp. bran, reduce hypertension – we found an independent inverse association between intake of whole grains and incident hypertension in men. Bran may play an important role in this association.
6. Elderly may benefit from weight – Conclusions: This study clearly indicates that the generally accepted rule that overweight is associated with morbidity and mortality does not apply to hospitalized elderly patients, for whom fat mass is associated with a decreased risk of adverse events.
7. High protein, carb-free diet has merit – Background: High-protein diets have been shown to increase energy expenditure (EE). Objective: The objective was to study whether a high-protein, carbohydrate-free diet (H diet) increases gluconeogenesis and whether this can explain the increase in EE.Conclusions: Forty-two percent of the increase in energy expenditure after the H diet was explained by the increase in gluconeogenesis. The cost of gluconeogenesis was 33% of the energy content of the produced glucose.
8. Vitamin C important for healthy brain – Background: The neonatal brain is particularly vulnerable to imbalances in redox homeostasis because of rapid growth and immature antioxidant systems. Vitamin C has been shown to have a key function in the brain, and during states of deficiency it is able to retain higher concentrations of vitamin C than other organs. However, because neurons maintain one of the highest intracellular concentrations of vitamin C in the organism, the brain may still be more sensitive to deficiency despite these preventive measures…Conclusions: Our data show that vitamin C deficiency in early postnatal life results in impaired neuronal development and a functional decrease in spatial memory in guinea pigs. We speculate that this unrecognized effect of vitamin C deficiency may have clinical implications for high-risk individuals, such as in children born from vitamin C–deficient mothers.
9. Increasing obesity at age 4 raises risk of heart disease
10. Those with prostate cancer benefit from B6 supplements – Conclusion: A high vitamin B-6 intake may improve prostate cancer survival among men with a diagnosis of localized-stage disease.
11. Meat contributes to brain cancer – Many positive findings from studies examining the association between maternal intake of cured meats during pregnancy and the subsequent risk of childhood cancer (6) have provided incentive to examine these dietary exposures in relation to adult brain tumors…
12. Even those with diabetes benefit from moderate alcohol intake – Background: Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes in the general population, but little is known about the effects in individuals at high risk of diabetes…Conclusions: Despite overall low rates of alcohol consumption, there was a reduced risk of incident diabetes in those who reported modest daily alcohol intake and were assigned to metformin or lifestyle modification.
13. Coffee did not prevent mental decline in elderly – This study did not justify coffee drinking, though others have.
15. Drinking water reduces weight gain – Results: In 2005–2006, American adults reported consuming 3.18 L of total water within the previous 24 h (in 1999–2004, estimated total water intake was 3.35 L), with plain water and beverages contributing 33% and 48% of the total, respectively. Plain water intake was unrelated to the intake of energy and body mass index but was positively related to dietary fiber and inversely related to beverages, sugars, and the energy density of foods; these associations were in the opposite direction for beverage moisture intake. Total water intake was inversely related to energy from fat and energy density but positively related to dietary fiber, caffeine, alcohol, and diet quality. The number of eating episodes predicted higher beverage and food moisture and total water intakes. A higher body mass index predicted higher intakes of beverage moisture and total water.
16. Dietary fiber reduces risk of breast cancer
17. Green tea reduces risk of pneumonia – Risk of death from pneumonia were reduced by green tea consumption. Odds of dying were 1.00 (reference) for <1 cup/d, 0.59 for 1–2 cups/d, 0.55 for 3–4 cups/d, and 0.53 for 5 cups/d.
18. Nutritional quality of organic foods is not substantially different ( though hormones, pesticides, herbicides, and other exogenous contaminants were not considered) – Conclusions: On the basis of a systematic review of studies of satisfactory quality, there is no evidence of a difference in nutrient quality between organically and conventionally produced foodstuffs. The small differences in nutrient content detected are biologically plausible and mostly relate to differences in production methods.
SUPPLEMENT: Monosodium glutamate symposium – The Umami discovery – Introduction – to honor the discovery a century ago by Kikunae Ikeda, a physical chemist at Tokyo Imperial University, of the active taste principle in a seaweed favored by the Japanese in cooking. The structure of this tastant turned out to be simple, the sodium salt of glutamic acid (monosodium glutamate; MSG). This taste was termed umami (a Japanese word) and is similar to the taste described in English as “meaty” or “savory.” Umami is found as a dominant taste in ripe tomatoes and ripened cheeses such as parmesan. Hence, a pasta meat sauce sprinkled with parmesan or pizza represent clear examples of the umami taste in Western cuisines…It is the fifth basic taste, in addition to sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. It may reduce weight gain by affecting the brain.Notably, 3 areas of the brain—the medial preoptic area, the hypothalamic dorsomedial nucleus, and the habenular nucleus—are activated by intragastric L-glutamate but not by glucose or sodium chloride. Furthermore, the chronic, ad libitum ingestion of a palatable solution of monosodium L-glutamate (1% wt:vol) by rats has also been found to reduce weight gain, fat deposition, and plasma leptin concentrations compared with rats that ingest water alone.
The more power you give away, the more you gain…the most powerful leaders are those who give up leadership opportunities and are selfless in their title and rank. – Dick Couto KNFP3
