J Nutrition August, 2009 – SUMMARY –– See SYNOPSES and links after summary located at
http://www.beloit.edu/nutrition/aln/0809jnutr
Basic dietary advice – 1. Diets low in refined grains and high in fruits and vegetables produce a cancer prevention food plan
Specific items to eat –
Fish oil normally, but not during short term infection – 2. Endocannabinoids reduce inflammation 3. Inflammatory response is useful during influenza infection
Blueberries – 4. Blueberries increase insulin sensitivity and reduce inflammation
Yogurt – 5. Probiotics useful to maintaining a healthy gut
Resveratrol – 6. Resveratrol increases strength of the immune system
Folic Acid – 7. Supplementing newborns in Nepal with folic acid reduced risk of kidney disfunction and metabolic syndrome
SYNOPSES OF ARTICLES THIS MONTH
1. Diets low in refined grains and high in fruits and vegetables produce a cancer prevention food plan – A mathematical diet optimization model was used to generate food plans meeting 2007 dietary recommendations of the World Cancer Research Fund. Following guidelines 3-5 and 7 gave food plans low in refined grains and high in fruits and vegetables that lower cancer risk.
2. Endocannabinoids reduce inflammation – Fish oil reduces inflammation. Long chain omega-3 fatty acids (fish oil) reduces several metabolic risk factors for heart disease. Fish oil appears to stimulate endocannabinoids as part of the mechanism to reduce inflammation, just as chocolate does.
3. Inflammatory response is useful during influenza infection – Antiinflammatory properties of fish oil may be beneficial during a chronic inflammation illness. But this study in mice showed that the immune response to an influenza infection was suppressed by a fish oil diet, resulting in a higher mortality rate and viral burden in mice eating fish oil. Thus, it might be useful not to take fish oil during short-term infections.
4. Blueberries increase insulin sensitivity and reduce inflammation – Adipose tissue inflammation promotes insulin resistance. Both are associated with oxidative stress, adipocyte death, and macrophage scavenging. Upregulation of genes related to macrophages was attenuated or eliminated by providing 2.7% of energy in diet from blueberries.
5. Probiotics useful to maintaining a healthy gut – Probiotic nutrients [like yogurt] have shown promise in therapy for treatment of gastrointestinal inflammation, infection, and atopic disease. Dendritic cells in the intestine play a critical role in shaping the intestinal immune response. The characteristics of dendritic cells change substantially in beneficial ways in response to addition of probiotics to the diet.
6. Resveratrol increases strength of the immune system – Resveratrol modulates B lymphocyte proliferation, antibody synthesis, and apoptosis. Quercetin did not.
7. Supplementing newborns in Nepal with folic acid reduced risk of kidney disfunction and metabolic syndrome – This is another example of how important folic acid is during pregnancy and development. It also reflects international concerns of the nutrition research community.
