J Nutrition Nov, 2010 –See this, longer synopses, and links to published articles below or at Nutrition investigator . Please read how and why these emails are written this way here. And review the disclaimer.
SYNOPSES OF ARTICLES THIS MONTH
1. EPA in fish oil prevents diabetes by reducing adipose tissue inflammation – We investigated the effects of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) on prevention (P) and reversal (R) of high saturated-fat (HF) diet-induced obesity and glucose-insulin homeostasis. EPA minimized saturated fat-induced insulin resistance and this is in part mediated by its effects on fatty acid oxidation and inflammation.
2. Whole grain fiber protects against diabetes and heart disease – Epidemiological studies have shown an inverse relation between a whole grain consumption and risk of type-2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. This mechanism may be one explanation by which whole grain is protective against type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
3. Flaxseed and walnut supplementation may ameliorate central obesity.
4. Coffee beans reduce obesity – Clinical studies have shown that the consumption of coffee mannooligosaccharides (MOS) decreases body fat, suggesting that MOS consumption may be useful for weight management…Consumption of a MOS-containing beverage, as part of a free-living weight-maintaining diet, leads to reductions in total body volume, relative to placebo, in men.
5. Branched chain amino acids promote muscle recovery – Essential amino acids (EAA) stimulate skeletal muscle protein synthesis (MPS) in humans. Leucine may have a greater stimulatory effect on MPS than other EAA. We conclude that in 10 g of EAA, the leucine content typical of high quality proteins (~1.8 g) is sufficient to induce a maximal skeletal muscle protein anabolic response…
6. High fat diet kills intestinal probiotics necessary to good health – Bile acid is one of the stress factors affecting the growth and survival of probiotic bacteria in the gut. Unconjugated secondary bile acids (SBA) are highly toxic to intestinal bacteria. (9, 10). Although precise mechanisms for the antimicrobial effect of unconjugated SBA are still not clarified, pleiotropic actions, including membrane damage, DNA damage, misfolding or denaturation of intracellular proteins, oxidative stress, low pH stress, osmotic stress, and chelating of intracellular ions, have been proposed (8). Fat consumption reportedly promotes hepatic bile acid synthesis and increases biliary bile acid excretion (11–13). In theory, higher intake of dietary fat may impair the growth and survival of probiotic bacteria in the gut due to increased concentrations of bile acids, which in turn diminish health-related effects of probiotics.
7. Longer breastfeeding improves adolescents’ strength – Our aim in this study was to examine the association between breastfeeding duration and cardiorespiratory fitness, isometric strength, and explosive strength during adolescence aged 12.5–17.5 y. In adolescents who were breastfed for 3–5 mo or ≥6 mo, the risk of having a standing long jump performance below the 5th percentile was reduced by half compared with those who were never breastfed.
8. Measuring women’s diet quality in developing nations – Micronutrient malnutrition is one of the most widespread yet largely neglected nutrition challenges faced by women living in the developing world today. An estimated 19 million pregnant women are vitamin A deficient due to poor diets (1), and 500 million women of childbearing age (~40%) are anemic (1, 2). The burden of these and other micronutrient deficiencies, such as zinc, iodine, and vitamin B-12, is particularly high in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa (3).
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“Modern science is advancing at an unprecedented rate, and the amount of scientific data is doubling every year.” -Raddick et al, Science 3298:1028 (2010)
