Month: May 2024

How are your telomeres?

Review Nutr Hosp

. 2019 Dec 26;36(6):1403-1417.

doi: 10.20960/nh.02673.

Diet, physical activity and telomere length in adults

What are telomeres? They are bits of DNA at the end of a chromosome that protects it during cell replication.

What is telomerase? An ezyme, often referred to as “anti-aging”, that maintains telomeres, helping to keep them long, thus active. (SJF)

María Jossé Navarro-Ibarra  1 , Jesús Hernández  2 , Graciela Caire-Juvera  2

Affiliations

Abstract in English, Spanish

Telomere length (TL) is a predictive biomarker of premature aging. Telomere shortening has been linked to age-related diseases and noncommunicable diseases (NCD), and may reflect the effects of behavioral, psychosocial and environmental factors on health status. Telomere attrition can be affected by lifestyle factors such as diet and physical activity. The search of studies included in this review was conducted on PubMed Central database. A majority of studies are cross-sectional, as there is a clear lack of prospective studies to evaluate the individual effect of dietary components, dietary patterns, and physical activity on TL in the long term. The current literature suggests that high adherence to Mediterranean diet (MD), with consumption of antioxidants, fiber and vegetables, as well as seeds and walnuts, is associated with longer TL. The dietary components of a healthy diet, such as carotenoids, vitamins A, C, D, E, polyphenols, fiber, and omega-3 fatty acids could help maintain TL. In contrast, a high consumption of sugary beverages, processed meat, and proinflammatory diets is associated with telomere shortening. In a majority of studies TL is positively associated with moderate physical activity. The predominant mechanisms through which a healthy diet and moderate physical exercise could mitigate telomere attrition include decreasing oxidative stress and inflammation. We shall not discuss the associations of possible risk or protective factors in terms of causality since the majority of studies are cross-sectional and randomized controlled trials are limited; accordingly, some results are inconclusive. For future research, we suggest evaluating the individual effects of dietary components, dietary patterns and physical activity, considering repeated measurements and exercise intensity, on TL. It is also advisable to include biomarkers of oxidative stress and inflammation proteins, and to measure telomerase activity.

Keywords: Longitud de los telómeros. Dieta. Actividad física..

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Of Mice and Mazes

The Y-maze can be used to assess short term memory in mice. Spontaneous alternation, a measure of spatial working memory, can be assessed by allowing mice to explore all three arms of the maze and is driven by an innate curiosity of rodents to explore previously unvisited areas.

In this study mice were tested for a working memory by using 2 arms of a Y-shaped maze. Given a chance, the mice will naturally explore new environments exposed. An alternative might be that they would remember which arms of the maze already visited.

Each mouse was started out of the maze in the center of the maze and the third arm was blocked. One group had been given a high fat diet; the other group, a heatlhy diet, i.e. not a high fat diet.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) (.gov.)

The results of the maze study resulted in the following:
Mice eating a healthy diet behaved as expected. They chose to explore a new maze previously blocked off from the mice. But mice eating a high fat diet did not prefer any one arm. They seemed to show they could not remember which parts of the maze they had already seen.

Human studies surveyed adults and students and their processed food consumption, especially highly processed foods. Some foods like processed lunch meats have been found to increase inflammation in the body, Some studies surveyed students and the results are indicating that “junk” food fuels the inflammation in the brain. Other studies have found people with depression had 30% more brain inflammation than people who were not depressed. Stay tuned – the research is just beginning.Could diet or other lifestyle factors make a difference in outcomes?

Your Diet and a Stroke??

On one hand, salt is a gift from the sea; on the other hand, it is a hazard to health when consumed in excess. Most of the salt consumed is joined with chloride and travels around as sodium chloride as table salt. Much of that is not consumed from the salt shaker however, but disguised in processed foods.

Every 40 seconds someone in the U.S. suffers a stroke. Fortunately, about 80% are thought to be preventable. The average American eats about 8500 milligrams of salt, double the recommended amounts, almost none of which comes from the salt shaker. It comes from processed food, an industry that hauls in $ trillions in annual sales. Your brain and your heart are the organs mostly affected which occurs when oxygen and and nutrients cannot get to the brain. “Hypertension can then damage the blood vessesls and cholesterol and can cause a buildup of fatty deposits that narrows arteries”.
says cardiologist Phillip Ades, M.D., Eating Well Advisor.

The Role of the Sodium/Potassium Ratio

What does sodium do in the body? Sodium closely works with potassium
and the two help to maintain water balance in the body. They both attract water nornally and each draws sufficinent water to the outside or inside of cells to maintain an optimal level of water in both places, Water balance and cell function are upset when there’s an imbalance in the body’s supply of sodium and potassium. High dietary intakes of sodiun appear to play an important role in the development of hypertension (high blood pressure) in many people. Bottom Line!!

Risk Factors for Hypertension
Obesity is a major risk factor for hypertension and the most effective treatment is weight loss. Others are age, family history, high sodium/low potassium diet, excessive alcohol intake (<2 glasses /day, smoking, frequent stress, anxiety.

Restricting highly processed foods is very effective to improve your potassium intake. High salt processed meals, salad dressings, canned soups, ham, sausages and biscuits are often the culprits. Reading food labels are also an excellent way to beware of your high sodium intake.

Approaches to Treatment:
Weight Loss (if needed)
Salt intake <1500 mg of sodium per day.)
Moderate alcohol consumption (if any)
30 minutes of exercise a day
Meditation, yoga
If blood pressure remains elevated and lifestyle changes have been implemented, or if blood pressure is quite high when diagnosed, anti-hypertensive drugs are usually prescribed. SEE YOUR DOCTOR OR LICENSED NUTRITIONIST SALLY FELTNER, MS PHD, RETIRED RD,

Is Sea Salt a Better Choice Than Table Salt

A survey by the American Heart Association of 1000 adults discovered that 6 out of 10 thought sea salt was a low sodium alternative to table salt. Equal amounts of se salt and table salt contain the same amount of sodium (40%). Unlike table salt, sea salt as well as Kosher salt, is generally not fortified with iodine. Iodized table salt is a leading source of iodine in U.S. diets.

How else can I decrease my intake of sodium? Increase your potassium-rich foods?

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans has designated potassium as a nutrient likely to be under-consumed by Americans in general. Food listed are good sources and try to include the foods at least four of these foods or twice a week. This will help you balance your sodium/potassium intake.

Beans, orange juice lima beans, banana, baked potato, sweet potato, winter squash spinach, tomato juice, yogurt, fish are potassium-rich

Snacking on some walnuts at least once a week was associated with a 17% lower risk of stroke, according to research at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Walnuts are a top source of heart-healthy alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), an omega-3 fatty acid. It can help improve blood vessel function and reduced inflammation which has been shown to damage arteries. All this together helps prevent blood clots and vascular weakening.

Getting nearly twice as much sodium as potassium is associated with a 22% greater stroke risk. Sodium makes your body hold onto water, which raises blood pressure “ Potassium helps the regulate this fluid retention.

Limit sodium to 2300 milligrams a day (1500 if you have hypertension) and aim to get 4700 milligrams of potassium – a double target if your diet is rich in fruits and vegetables.