J Nutrition April, 2009 – SUMMARY – See SYNOPSES and links after summary.
ARE YOU GETTING ENOUGH FISH OIL? 1. Towards Dietary Reference Intakes for Eicosapentaenoic and Docosahexaenoic Acids-consistent evidence from multiple research paradigms demonstrates a clear, inverse relation between EPA+DHA intake and risk of fatal (and possibly nonfatal) heart disease, providing evidence that supports a nutritionally achievable DRI for EPA+DHA between 250 and 500 mg/d.
2. Getting fish oil in the placenta -These essential fatty acids are important for proper fetal development and must be provided by the mother’s diet to provide good health.
3. Mother’s diet controls offspring obesity even at age 23 – Evidence from epidemiologic studies has shown that early undernutrition [poor diet of junk food and excess calories lacking nutrients like fish oil and folic acid] may be a determinant of obesity later in life.

TO EVALUATE YOUR DIET OBJECTIVELY – 4. Urinary Potassium is biomarker of a good diet – Poor eating habits are not objectively assessed in routine clinical practice. Urinary K+ provides a summary measure of diet quality

THINGS YOU MAY ALREADY KNOW – Vegetables reduce cancer risk 5. even childhood brain cancer – Brain tumors account for >26% of childhood cancer deaths 6. prostate cancer – Enterolactone, a major metabolite of plant-based lignans, inhibits cancer growth and development…
7. Symposium on the Role of Soy in Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention and Treatment – Soyfoods were first consumed in China more than a millennium ago, but it is the low incidence of breast and prostate cancer, heart disease, and hot flashes in Japan, despite the high socioeconomic status of this country, that helped fuel interest in the early 1990s in the possible chronic disease-preventive properties of soy and certain soybean constituents.
8. Green Tea lowers serum triglycerides

SYNOPSES OF ARTICLES THIS MONTH

1. Towards Dietary Reference Intakes for Eicosapentaenoic and Docosahexaenoic Acids – There is considerable interest in the impact of (n-3) long-chain PUFA in mitigating the morbidity and mortality caused by chronic diseases…The workshop participants arrived at these conclusions: 1) consistent evidence from multiple research paradigms demonstrates a clear, inverse relation between EPA+DHA intake and risk of fatal (and possibly nonfatal) CHD, providing evidence that supports a nutritionally achievable DRI for EPA+DHA between 250 and 500 mg/d; 2) because of the demonstrated low conversion from dietary ALA, protective tissue levels of EPA+DHA can be achieved only through direct consumption of these fatty acids; 3) evidence of beneficial effects of EPA+DHA on cognitive decline are emerging but are not yet sufficient to support an intake level different from that needed to achieve CHD risk reduction; 4) EPA+DHA do not appear to reduce risk for cancer; and 5) there is no evidence that intakes of EPA+DHA in these recommended ranges are harmful.

2. Getting fish oil in the placenta -Docosahexanoic (DHA)4 and arachidonic (ARA) acids are important for proper fetal development and accumulate in the fetus during gestation. ..it is suggested that maternal health and nutrition during pregnancy could be important in determining fatty acid transport and binding protein expression and, thereby, essential fatty acid delivery to the fetus.

3. Mother’s diet controls offspring obesity even at age 23 – Obesity is considered a public health problem worldwide. Evidence from epidemiologic studies has shown that early undernutrition may be a determinant of obesity later in life. ..For each unit of maternal prepregnancy BMI, the offspring BMI increased 0.65 and 0.63 kg/m2 in men and women, respectively (P < 0.001).

4. Urinary Potassium is biomarker of a good diet – Poor eating habits, a strong predictor of health outcomes, are not objectively assessed in routine clinical practice. In this study, we evaluated the use of urinary potassium (K+) as a means to identify people consuming a poor quality diet…Urinary K+ provides a summary measure of diet quality, is significantly related to BMI, blood pressure, and heart rate, and may be useful clinically to detect poor dietary habits and monitor response to dietary interventions.

5. Vegetables reduce cancer risk, even childhood brain cancer – Brain tumors are the second most common pediatric cancer, accounting for >26% of childhood cancer deaths …Although the chemopreventive effects of fruits and vegetables remain incompletely understood, the National Cancer Institute has determined in laboratory studies that >1000 different phytochemicals possess cancer-preventive activity and it is estimated that there could be as much as 100 different of these phytochemicals per serving of vegetables

6. Vegetables inhibit prostate cancer – Enterolactone, a major metabolite of plant-based lignans, has been shown to inhibit prostate cancer growth and development…

7. Green Tea lowers serum triglycerides – The results suggest that the lipid-lowering effect of GT is mediated partly by its inhibition of hepatic lipogenesis…

8. Symposium on the Role of Soy in Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention and Treatment – Soyfoods were first consumed in China more than a millennium ago, but it is the low incidence of breast and prostate cancer, heart disease, and hot flashes in Japan, despite the high socioeconomic status of this country, that helped fuel interest in the early 1990s in the possible chronic disease-preventive properties of soy and certain soybean constituents. Second, it was the first time an entire session was devoted to equol, a bacterially derived product of the soybean isoflavone daidzein, which is produced by only ~30% of Westerners …Highlights include – reduction of breast cancer risk when consumed by pre-menopausal women; increased bone density when post-menopausal women consumed 54 mg/day of genistein; reduced menopausal symptoms when women consumed at least 15 mg genistein; lower cholesterol levels similar to soluble fiber, though not as efficacious as phytosterols.

I AM SURE GLAD THAT YOU ARE PAYING ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU PUT IN YOUR BODY. PLEASE HELP YOUR FRIENDS TO PAY ATTENTION TOO!