Health News Tidbits –
November 2005
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Drugs/Meds
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Lifestyle
Public Health
Lack of B-Vitamins May Contribute to Cognitive Decline -
High homocysteine concentrations in people over age 60 were associated with decreasing levels of cognitive performance. High vitamin B12 levels correlated with better cognitive performance.
Am J Epidemiology, October 1, 2005
Probiotics help dermatitis in children -
Children given a probiotic supplement for four months showed a significant improvement in symptoms of atopic dermatitis, said Australian researchers this month.
The new study adds to previous research by the University of Helsinki into the merits of probiotics on dermatitis in children, but uses an independent analysis index to confirm the results.
Twenty-seven children aged between 6-18 months were given 1 billion cfu of L fermentum freeze-dried powder twice daily for 16 weeks. The remaining children received maltodextran without probiotics twice daily for the same duration.
Results indicated that the reduction in the SCORAD severity scale over time was significant in the probiotic group – 92 per cent scored better at 16 weeks than at baseline – but not the placebo group.
Further tests proved that the probiotic group enjoyed a reduction in severe AD symptoms, with 54 per cent recording a drop from acute to mild AD, compared with the placebo group who saw a 30 per cent decline in severe conditions.
The SCORAD index, originally developed by the European Task Force on AD as a referent clinical severity scale, scores the extent and subjective symptoms according to clinically approved consensus agreed by more than 20 dermatologists.
Courtesy of nutraingredients.com
Drugs/Meds -
Sleeping Pill Use by Youths Soars, Study Says -
The use of sleeping pills among children and very young adults rose 85 percent from 2000 to 2004, in yet another sign that parents and doctors are increasingly turning to prescription medications to solve childhood health and behavioral problems.
And about 15 percent of people under age 20 who received sleeping pills were also being given drugs to treat attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, according to the study by Medco Health Solutions, a managed-care company that makes estimates about medication use in the whole population based on extrapolations from its own data. Drugs used to treat attention disorders can cause insomnia.
Few of the prescriptions given to children and young adults have the approval of the Food and Drug Administration because no sleep medication has been approved for use in children under 18. Still, doctors commonly use medications for patients and disorders for which the drugs have never received formal approval, particularly when those patients are children.
Courtesy of The NY Times
Food/Diet -
Doctors warn about toddler diets -
According to the American heart Association, there is an increasing number of overweight 2-year olds. This coincides with toddlers introduction to "grown-up" food, which often is too much junk and too few vegetables.
About face with regard to eggs -
According to the President of the American Heart Association, "eggs certainly can be a part of a healthy diet." This is a far cry from their position of only two tears ago. Eggs recently were awarded a Heart Tick from the National Heart Foundation, Asutralia's equivalent of the AHA. They go on to say that "we do not restrict consumption of eggs for the general population."
Bonnie - my position has never wavered on eggs, even when they were the "pariah" of the AHA. Eggs are a superfood, especially if they are organic and infused with omega-3 DHA.
Eating fish regularly delays dementia: study -
Eating fish at least once a week slows the toll aging takes on the brain, while obesity at midlife doubles the risk of dementia, a pair of studies concluded on Monday.
Omega-3 fatty acids contained in fish have been shown to boost brain functioning as well as cutting the risk of stroke, and eating fish regularly appears to protect the brain as people age, the six-year study of Chicago residents said.
"The rate of (mental) decline was reduced by 10 percent to 13 percent per year among persons who consumed one or more fish meals per week compared with those with less than weekly consumption," wrote Martha Clare Morris of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago.
"The rate reduction is the equivalent of being three to four years younger in age," she added in the report published online by the Archives of Neurology.
The protective effect from eating fish was evident even after researchers adjusted for consumption of fruits and vegetables.
In another study published in the same journal, Swedish researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm concluded that obesity, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol levels at midlife each doubled the risk of dementia later in life.
Subjects who suffered from all three of the health problems at midlife multiplied their risk of developing dementia six times compared to people free of the risk factors, she said.
Nearly 1,500 subjects who have been part of a study that began in 1972 were reexamined. The 16 percent who were obese at midlife were at double the risk of dementia compared to the one-quarter of those with normal weight at midlife and the half who had been slightly overweight.
"Midlife obesity, high systolic blood pressure, and high total cholesterol were all significant risk factors for dementia, each of them increasing the risk around two times," study author Miia Kivipelto wrote.
Courtesy of Reuters
Steve - Enough said? Will this convince consume fish and/or fish oil?
Lose sleep from heartburn? Read on... -
According to U of Arizona's Dr. Ronnie Fass, if you lose sleep from heartburn you may want to cut back on your carbohydrate consumption, specifically carbonated soft drinks. High acidity cann trigger nightime heartburn. Researchers studied 15,000 people, and those who drank more than one carbonated soft drink daily were about 25% more apt to have heartburn while asleep than those who did not consume a soft drink. Being overweight also increased nighttime heartburn risk by 30%.
Food allergic rejoice! -
Starting January 1, 2006, the Food Allergen Labelling Consumer Protection Act goes into effect. In short, any consumable product that contains or is derived from the top 8 allergens must be labeled as such. The big 8 allergens are: milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, and soybeans. No more hidden allergens!
Corn sensitive - be on the lookout for hi-maize -
Hi-maize and Z-TRIM, brands of corn-based fiber and resitant starch, may be appearing in your grocery items and on restaurant menus. While the intent of these products is admirable, to increase insoluble and soluble fiber intake, many Americans have trouble tolerating corn-based products. All the more reason to look at your grocery labels and be cognizant about what you order in a restaurant.
Bonnie
Eating more protein helps people feel full longer -
What a shocker! Have they not been listening to what we've been saying for twenty years? Have they not looked at our Circle of Health? Of course not.
In "they," we are referring to the organization of 1900 health professionals called the NAASO or The North American Association for the Study of Obesity. They reported at their annual meeting an abundance of "new" evidence supporting diets that foster 30% protein, 20% fat, and 50% carbohydrate increase satiety and accelerate weight loss if overweight.
Steve
Dairy industry flexing organic muscle -
A Federal Advisory Board seven months ago sought to close loopholes to ensure that organic dairy cows are raised in pastures, rather than in confined pens. The USDA has yet to embrace their recommendations. Does this smell like a gallon of sour milk? Some believe the USDA is under extreme pressure from large dairy companies to ignore the board's advice.
The organic milk business is booming and conventional, large-scale dairies want a piece. Only, completely altering sardine-can infrastructure for open pasture is not an option. So the dairy industry is pressuring the USDA to allow "organic" to include sardine-can dairies as long as organic feed is used.
Why such a fuss? The reason is a bit complex. If organic cows are not required to be raised in pastures, it will do little good for our health. Maybe the pesticide count will be lower and growth hormone will not be allowed (which many conventional dairies are doing anyway). More importantly, the feed that cows consume in pens, even if organic, is usually soy and corn, which are genetically incompatible.
Beyond lactose intolerance and casein allergy, milk incompatible for humans because it is inflammatory. Omega-6 fatty acids, which exist in force in corn and soy, promote inflammation. Cows were meant to eat grasses. The grasses give the cow's meat and milk copious quantities of bioavailable Omega-3 fatty acids, which are anti-inflammatory.
A USDA ruling forcing organic cows to feed only in pasture will allow us the opportunity to consume other sources of Omega-3's other than fish (which, because of such high demand, will put a huge strain on fish numbers worldwide).
Steve
Excerpts taken from Andrew Martin's Chicago Tribune article
Pesticide Levels in Produce -
This is a short list of the most contaminated and least contaminated fruits and vegetables with pesticide residue. Keep in mind, testing does not occur on the outside of the fruit or vegetable, it is tested in the interior.
Most contaminated with pesticides:
* Apples
* Bell Peppers
* Celery
* Cherries
* Grapes (imported)
* Nectarines
* Peaches
* Pears
* Potatoes
* Red Raspberries
* Spinach
* Strawberries
Least contaminated with pesticides:
* Asparagus
* Avocados
* Bananas
* Broccoli
* Cauliflower
* Corn (sweet)
* Kiwi
* Mangos
* Onions
* Papaya
* Pineapples
* Peas (sweet)
Steve - even more impetus to go organic when possible!
Estrogenic effect of yam ingestion in healthy postmenopausal women -
The researchers objective in this 24 person study was to understand why yam has been used to treat menopausal symptoms folklorically.
What they found was that replacing two-thirds of staple food (rice) with yam for 30 days improved the status of the women's sex hormones, lipids, and antioxidant levels. The same results were not seen in a group that was given sweet potato.
J Amer Coll Nutr October, 2005
Bonnie - this is one of the first studies I have seen structured this way and I am impressed, albeit not suprised with the results. I would like them to some more larger studies so wild yam will be taken more
seriously.
Make This Year a Happy Halloween! -
Do you cringe around Halloween time? Weeks of parties, school events, and trick-or-treating increase your child's (and sometimes your) candy/sweet consumption ten-fold over any other time of the year. Do you find your child's attention span off, emotional and physical highs and lows more pronounced? More immune-depressed than usual? All the excess sugar and chemicals help to create these symptoms.
Here are some ideas to make Halloween a bit healthier:
* Trick-or-treating: what to do with all the candy! If you are an enterprising parent or child, turn that candy into cash! We have used the following method for two generations of Minsky children. Tell your child that for every piece of candy, they will receive a nickel or dime (your choice). When you explain to them what it can add up to, and they can use the $ to spend as they wish, they usually jump at the chance. Don't forget to let them know that they can still eat a piece or two of their spoils (if interested).
* School Parties or Events: we always recommend kids eating healthy snacks instead of candy. Although, if your child is going to eat candy, try to accompany them with their own candy (free of artificial ingredients and hydrogenated fats) and always, ALWAYS accompany it with a healthy fat (like nuts/seeds) or lean protein (jerky, deli turkey, etc.). This will protect against blood sugar highs and lows.
* Handing Out Candy: do your visiting trick-or-treaters a favor. If you are going to pass out candy, try to offer the best of the worst (free of artificial sweetners, artificial flavors, artificial colors, hydrogenated or partially-hydrogenated fats).
Happy Halloween!! Bonnie and Steve
Exercise to cut dementia risk -
According to a study in Lancet Neurology, people in their late 40s and early 50s who exercise for half an hour at least twice a week during midlife can significantly cut a person's risk of dementia later by as much as 60%.
Cosmetics: the journey into the unknown -
Earlier this year, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) did something amazing. It issued an unprecedented warning to the cosmetics industry that it was time to inform consumers that most personal care products have not been safety tested.
It is possible that in the not too distant future 99 per cent of personal care products could be required to carry a caution on the label: "Warning: The safety of this product has not been determined."
What concerns scientists at the FDA and at environmental health organizations throughout the world is the "cocktail effect" - the daily mixing of many different types of toxins in and on the body - and how this might damage health over the longer term.
On average, we each use nine personal care products a day containing 126 different ingredients. Such "safety" testing as exists looks for reactions, such as skin redness, rashes or stinging, but does not investigate potential long-term problems for either humans or the environment. Yet the chemicals that go into products such as shampoos and hand creams are not trace contaminants. They are the basic ingredients.
Absorbed into the body, they can be stored in fatty tissue or organs such as the liver, kidney, reproductive organs and brain. Cosmetics companies complain of unfounded hysteria, but scientists are finding industrial plasticisers such as phthalates in urine, preservatives known as parabens in breast-tumour tissue, and antibacterials such as Triclosan and fragrance chemicals like the hormone-disrupting musk xylene in human breast milk. Medical research is proving that fragrances can trigger asthma; that the detergents in shampoos can damage eye tissue; and that hair-dye chemicals can cause bladder cancer and lymphoma. An even greater number of substances in personal care products are suspected to present potential risks to human health from this known effect on animals.
If these problems had been linked to pharmaceutical drugs, the products would have been taken off the market. At the very least, money would have been spent on safety studies. But because the cosmetics industry is largely self-governing, and because we all want to believe in the often hollow promises of better skin and whiter teeth, products containing potentially harmful substances remain in use and on sale.
Courtesy of The Independent
State of type 2 diabetes commentary -
Highlights from a review study in the October issue Journal of The American College of Nutrition:
* monosaturated or polyunstaurated fats appear to have a beneficial effect on insulin action
* breastfeeding for at least two months may lower the risk of diabetes in children
* few studies have examined the role of type and amount of carbohydrates in relation to the development of type 2 diabetes; what appears to be...
o persons with a diet at the highest level of the glycemic index were more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those at the lowest levels
o very little data exists showing the relationship between intake of whole-grain foods and risk of type 2 diabetes
* their conclusion: the public health importance of diabetes prevention is indisputable; to reduce the burden of this devastating disease, prevention programs must target not only the affected individuals, but also families, workplaces, schools, and communities.
A little exercise goes long way for your heart -
By Natalie Gott
RALEIGH, N.C. -- There's no need to run. Just going for a brisk walk -- in the park, around the block or on a treadmill -- may be enough to help keep your heart healthy, a small study suggests.
The study, which indicates roughly two to three hours of mild exercise a week at a moderate intensity can significantly cut the risk of cardiovascular disease, supports earlier research.
The findings may encourage people who are reluctant to exercise, said Brian Duscha, the lead author of the research published in the October issue of the journal Chest.
''The classic question always is: What's the minimum amount I need to do to enjoy the benefits of it,'' Duscha said. ''If you just walk 12 miles a week at a brisk pace, it's scientifically proven now that you will get some benefits.''
The conclusions are based on a study at Duke University Medical Center of 133 middle-aged overweight sedentary adults who were at risk for heart disease.
Associated Press
Public Health -
Changing eating habits in America -
Highlights of this fascinating Chicago Sun-Times article are as follows:
* Percent of in-home main meals including fresh produce dropped from 55.5% in 1985 to 45.9% in 2004.
* Annual restaurant meals eaten in the car per person has risen from 19 in 1985 to 32 in 2005.
* Sandwiches are the number one most often eaten food in America.
* The annual number of main meals skipped per person went from 102 in 1985 to 114 this year.
What's most obvious from the "Eating Patterns in America" report is that since 1985, not much has changed in what Americas want to eat. Sandiwches, potatoes, cereal, bread, and chips are all in the top 10 most consumed foods.
The hidden dangers of heartburn -
Steve - a client emailed us an incredible article entitled, "The Hidden Dangers of Heartburn: How a Common Health Problem is Quietly Becoming an Unsuspected Killer," from the October 10th issue of theWall Street Journal. We cannot reprint it for but the highlights are as follows:
* Esophageal adenocarcinoma, the cancer most often linked with heartburn, has jumped fivefold in the past 30 years.
* Experts believe the way doctors and patients treat heartburn symptoms may be making things worse by prescribing acid-suppressing drugs. Long-term use of acid-reducing drugs alter then environment in the digestive tract in a way that allows cancer to take hold in certain patients.
* Studies show that acid-suppressing drugs may not be enough to stop continuing damage to the esophagus.
How timely that this article just came out as we recently exposed how babies and young children are being prescribed reflux meds like candy. What the Journal article did not emphasize enough is the importance of diet in eliminating heartburn. For those of you looking to eliminate or greatly reduce heartburn symptoms without meds, you can follow our Reversing Relux in Your Child Action Plan (it works for adults as well) or our Pain Relief Diet.
High work demands increase heart disease in young men -
According to a study in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, Finnish researchers measured thickness of the carotid artery in 478 men and 542 women ages 24 to 39 years. They also assessed job strain by asking participants about the pace and mental demands of their work.
Results showed that men who reported high job strain were 29% more likely to have increased thickness of the artery, similar to that of a smoker or poor eater. Women did not show the same effect, possibly because their job stress peaks later in life.
Courtesy of LA Times
Treating diarrhea in children younger than one -
According to researchers, the feeding of cereal containing probiotics (including lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidus) and zinc, reduced the severity and duration of acute gastroenteritis in 65 young children aged 6-12 months.
J Amer Coll Nutr, October 2005
Public Health: Before Avoiding Fish, a Word to the Wise - Printed in today's New York Times...
Federal health officials should think carefully before issuing advisories recommending that women of childbearing age limit their intake of fish, new research suggests.
The warnings are intended to protect fetuses from mercury, which concentrates in some fish and, at high enough levels, can damage the brains of the babies.
But in a series of articles in the current American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers say the effect of the advisories may be detrimental to public health, since the fatty acids in fish help prevent serious problems like stroke and heart disease.
There is also evidence that they help prenatal brains develop.
"These and other potential health effects yield a classic risk-risk trade-off," wrote the lead researcher, Joshua T. Cohen of the Harvard School of Public Health.
Harvard researchers asked experts from a variety of universities to review the literature and decide whether the benefits of reducing mercury in pregnant women's diets was worth the loss of the fatty acids.
"I think we've got two messages," Dr. Cohen said. "If you're not pregnant and you're not going to become pregnant, eat fish. If you are pregnant or you are going to become pregnant, you should still eat fish, but you should eat fish low in mercury."
The problem with the government advisories, the researchers said, is that officials do not try to assess what effect they will have on the public.
They are directed at women of childbearing age, but some experts believe they keep other people away from fish, too. And instead of avoiding just those fish high in mercury, like swordfish and king mackerel, some women avoid all fish.
Bonnie - finally, somebody is making sense. I cannot tell you how many clients have unnecessarily stopped eating fish because of federal health advisories. We need to read the fine print of the advisories or speak to a local health professional, like myself, who has a public health background.
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