Getting milk fat has benefits –
1. CLAs (in milk fat) reduce adipose tissue
2. CLAs reduce body fat
3. Lessons from the Bovine Genome – DNA sequence of cow helps explain the unifying nutritional functions of milk.
What to eat -4. Folate – Telomere dysfunction has been associated with development of age-related pathologies, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. Adequate folate preserves telomeres
5. Fish oil reduces colon cancer risk
6. Eating nuts reduces the risk of heart disease
7. Elderly need to get enough zinc – reduced immune responsiveness are classic hallmarks of both aging and zinc deficiency
8. Fruits and veggies – Quercetin is main flavonoid (antioxidant) in the human diet. Quercetin preserves liver.
9. General dietary guidance in US reduces risk of early death – Recommendations for intake of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, and low-fat dairy form the underpinning of dietary guidance for health promotion.
10. Breast feeding provides bacteria that reduces risk of cow-milk allergy, allergy may lead to asthma
SYNOPSES OF ARTICLES THIS MONTH
1. CLAs (in milk fat) reduce adipose tissue – We hypothesized that L-arginine and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) would have additive effects in decreasing adiposity…We conclude that CLA and arginine modulated adipose tissue metabolism by separate, but not additive, effects.
2. CLAs reduce body fat – In a double-blind, parallel, 16-wk intervention, we randomized 81 healthy postmenopausal women to 1) 5.5 g/d of 40/40% of cis9,trans11-CLA (c9,t11-CLA) and trans10,cis12-CLA (t10,c12-CLA) (CLA-mix); 2) cis9, trans11-CLA (c9,t11-CLA); or 3) control (olive oil). We assessed all variables before and after the intervention. The CLA-mix group had less total fat mass (FM) (4%) and lower-body FM (7%) than the control.
3. Lessons from the Bovine Genome – Nearly 10,000 years ago, humans began to domesticate cattle for their ability to transform grass into energy-dense meat and milk. It is impossible to estimate all of the consequences of this decision to the subsequent development and success of human civilization, yet it is clear that humans and cattle have become inexorably linked. The influence of bovine milk to human nutrition is highlighted by the convergent evolution of lactase persistence; in separate pastoral human populations, DNA mutations that enabled individuals to drink milk into adulthood were so advantageous that they became the dominant polymorphism (1)…What are the unifying nutritional functions of milk? First, milk, being the sole source of nourishment during the neonatal period, contains all of the essential nutrients required for the growing neonate. Second, milk is not simply a soup of individual nutrients; rather, it is an ensemble of biomolecules in complex, higher-order structures. The most abundant milk proteins are delivered as micelles, fat is delivered as milk fat globules, and glucose is delivered as the disaccharide lactose. All of these structures influence bioavailability and the rate at which these nutrients are delivered to blood and tissues (6). Third, milk contains an arsenal of protective molecules and specialized cells to directly combat pathogens and to guide the development of the infant’s immune system (7). Fourth, milk contains oligosaccharides not digestible by the infant but that do promote a select subset of protective bacteria in the infant’s gut (8). Fifth, milk contains signaling compounds that regulate the development of the offspring with effects on metabolic regulation, hormone sensitivity, and neurological pathways, many of which persist into adulthood (9). In summary, the guiding principles for nutrition research are that foods have the capacity to provide essential nutrients, regulate bioavailability via biomolecular structure, modulate immune function, direct gut microbiota, and influence developmental signaling, all of which are exemplified by milk.
4. Adequate folate preserves telomeres – Human chromosomes are capped by telomeres, which consist of tandem repeats of DNA and associated proteins. The length of the telomeres is reduced with increasing cell divisions except when the enzyme telomerase is active, as in stem cells and germ cells. Telomere dysfunction has been associated with development of age-related pathologies, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. DNA damage in the telomeric region causes attrition of telomeres. Because folate provides precursors for nucleotide synthesis and thus affects the integrity of DNA, including that of the telomeric region, folate status has the potential to influence telomere length. Telomere length is epigenetically regulated by DNA methylation, which in turn could be modulated by folate status.When plasma folate concentration was above the median, there was a positive relationship between folate and telomere length.
5. Fish oil reduces colon cancer risk – We recently demonstrated that (n-3) PUFA trigger the induction of apoptosis in the colon by enhancing phospholipid oxidation and mitochondrial Ca2+ accumulation…Thus, (n-3) PUFA appear to promote an oxidation-reduction imbalance in the intestine, which may directly or indirectly trigger apoptosis and thereby reduce colon cancer risk.
6. Eating nuts reduces the risk of heart disease – Higher nut consumption has been associated with lower risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) events in several epidemiologic studies…consumption of at least 5 servings/wk of nuts or peanut butter [serving size, 28 g (1 ounce) for nuts and 16 g (1 tablespoon) for peanut butter] was significantly associated with a lower risk of CVD (relative risk = 0.56). Furthermore, when we evaluated plasma lipid and inflammatory biomarkers, we observed that increasing nut consumption was significantly associated with a more favorable plasma lipid profile, including lower LDL cholesterol, non-HDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, and apolipoprotein-B-100 concentrations.
7. Elderly need to get enough zinc – The age-related decline in lymphocyte development and function coincides with impaired zinc status in the elderly. Thymic involution and reduced immune responsiveness are classic hallmarks of both aging and zinc deficiency, resulting in decreased host defense and an increased susceptibility to infections.
8. Quercetin preserves liver – Quercetin is main flavonoid (antioxidant) in the human diet. Quercetin (50 mg/kg) was administered for 2 wk starting on d 14 after (bile duct ligation) surgery. .. Our findings suggest that quercetin administered after the onset of hepatic injury significantly ameliorates pulmonary complications in CBDL rats and that limitation of cirrhotic evolution contributes to this effect.
9. General dietary guidance in US reduces risk of early death – Recommendations for intake of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, and low-fat dairy form the underpinning of dietary guidance for health promotion. We examined the association of a summary index of food consumption behaviors compatible with the spirit of prevailing dietary guidance and mortality. We used data from the NIH-American Association of Retired Persons cohort (n = 350,886), aged 50–71 y and disease free at baseline in 1995–1996, to examine the association of a dietary behavior score (DBS) with mortality after 10.5 y of follow-up (deaths, n = 29,838). ..Adoption of recommended dietary behaviors was associated with lower mortality in both men and women independent of other lifestyle risk factors.
10. Breast feeding provides bacteria that reduces risk of cow-milk allergy, allergy may lead to asthma – Cow milk allergy is the most common food allergy in children. So far, no effective treatment is available to prevent or cure food allergy…Dietary supplementation with Immunofortis, B. breve M-16V, and particularly the synbiotic mixture, provided during sensitization, reduces the allergic effector response in a murine model of IgE-mediated hypersensitivity that mimics the human route of sensitization. This model shows the potential for dietary intervention with synbiotics in reducing the allergic response to food allergens.
As for consciousness, it is “the most profound mystery facing modern biology” – Richard Dawkins
