Olive Oil and Health?

Adding more olive oil to your diet may help prevent an early death.?

A recent study from the researchers at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health was published online Jan. 10, 2022 by the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Data from 90,000 men and women, free of cardiovascular disease and cancer were asked to complete a dietary questionnaire every four years. At the end of the data collecting, 36,856 of the participants had died.

From the diet questionnaires, it was found that those who routinely consumed the most olive oil – averaging more than one half a tablespoon a day – had the lowest risk of dying during the 28 – year old follow-up period compared with people who rarely or never consumed olive oil.

The Olive Oil comsumers had:

A 19% lower overall risk of death

A 19% lower risk of cardiovascular disease

A 17% lower risk of cancer-related disease

A 29% lower risk of death related to a neurodegenerative condition

A 18% lower risk of death related to a respiratory disease

This may explain why olive oil as a major component of the Mediterranean diet has consistently shown health benefits in numerous studies. The results also suggest that when used as a substitute for products containing animal fat such as butter, we see the same benefits.

Bon appetit!

In the News: Vitamin D and Fish Oil

Can vitamin D and fish oil prevent autoimmune disease.? Autoimmune diseases are a category of conditions where an individual’s immune system acts abnormally, often attacking and destroying healthy tissues by mistake. Many triggers can cause an individual’s body to start making components referred to as antibodies. Usually, antibodies help the body fight off infections. However, in patients with an autoimmune disease, attack the body’s healthy tissues instead. These diseases include diabetes type 1, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriasis, or thyroid disease to name a few (possibly 80 of them) and usually affect women more than men. Symptoms vary, but can include pain, fatigue, skin problems, and other chronic conditions.

Study Methods

The study called the VITAL study was published Jan 26, 2022 in the BMJ was a randomized controlled trial included 25,871 racially diverse people over the age of 50 who were split into two groups. One group took 2,000 IU of vitamin D3 each day; those in another group took 1000 mg of fish oil and a third group took both. Another group took two placebos. The study was blinded – i.e. no one knew which group they were in.

Results

“During a five-year follow-up, participants reported any diagnoses of any autoimmune disease that were verified with medical records.

Compared with a placebo, vitamin D supplementation was associated with a 22% reduced risk of autoimmune disease overall. The improvement was greater (39%) after the first two years of treatment. Fish oil alone showed less robust results, but still showed fewer participants with confirmed autoimmune diagnoses compared with placebo.”

Toxicity

Both vitamin D and fish oil may have some effects due to the ability of each to regulate or tame the inflammatory response that “drive autoimmune disorders.” It is too soon based on one study to make recommendations that people take either vitamin D or fish oil supplements – but those with a strong family history should consult with their primary health care provider about these decisions. The vitamin D dose used in the study is more than twice the recommended daily intake of 600 IU or 800 IU for people 71 and older. WARNING: The consequences of overdoses or toxicity can occur at 10,000 IU daily. It is not necessary to take megadoses of any supplement unless your doctor approves it.

Harvard Women’s Health Watch, Volume 29, Number 10 June 2022.

The Best Foods for Health and Why–Phytonutrients

The Best Cholesterol-Lowering Food: Cruciferous Vegetables.

You can’t go wrong with increasing your intake of plants from the Brassica family – broccoli, cabbage, kale, cauliflower, and Brussel’s sprouts. There are many studies that have found them to provide valuable nutrients and even help to prevent cancer and heart disease. What makes them so powerful? They are high in dietary fiber, polyphenols (phytochemicals) and provide over 40 phenolic compounds labeled “cruciferous” meaning their leaves grow in a cross-pattern. Cruciferous means “cross”.

The red color of many cruciferous vegetables is significant. Anthocyanins are pigments that cause the red and purple coloring of many kales, cabbage, and other colorful vegetables. How do they lower blood cholesterol? One study found that healthy volunteers a fed a beverage of primarily broccoli and cabbage two times a day for three weeks that showed a significant decrease in the so-called ‘bad” cholesterol, LDL. Follow up studies produced the same results.

What Foods Lower Blood Pressure? One important group is those who contain polyphenols – such as berries. They are a large family of phytochemicals particularly in cardiovascular health. Their benefits come from their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and blood vessel dilating properties, and immune system functions. All fruits and vegetables contain polyphenols, but certain ones like berries, cocoa, tea, pomegranate, olives, and grapes contain especially high amounts.

Harvard researchers found that anthocyanins were the primary flavonoid associated with polyphenols’ benefits to blood pressure. Just one serving of blueberries per week significantly reduced the risk of high blood pressure by 10% in those over age 60 compared with people in the same age group consuming no blueberries. Anthocyanins are present in other common fruits and berries such cranberries, blackberries, and strawberries.

Source; Harvard Medical School, Best Foods for Women’s Health.

Healthy Eating Plate – Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, The Nutrition Source.

A new study: Vitamin D, Fish Oil and Autoimmune Disease

Autoimmune diseases are a category of conditions where an individual’s immune system acts abnormally, often attacking and destroying healthy tissues by mistake. Many triggers can cause an individual’s body to start making components referred to as antibodies. Usually, antibodies help the body fight off infections. However, in patients with an autoimmune disease, they attack the body’s healthy tissues instead. These diseases include rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, psoriasis, or thyroid disease to name a few (possibly 80 of them) and usually affect women more than men. Symptoms vary, but can include pain, fatigue, skin problems, and other chronic conditions. A new study suggests that vitamin D and fish oil supplements may offer over 50 protection.

Study Methods

The study called the VITAL study was published Jan 26, 2022 in the BMJ and was a randomized controlled trial that included 25,871 racially diverse people over the age of 50 who were split into two groups. One group took 2,000 IU of vitamin D3 each day; those in another group took 1000 mg of fish oil and a third group took both. Another group took two placebos. The study was blinded – i.e. no one knew which group they were in.

Results

“During a five-year follow-up, participants reported any diagnoses of any autoimmune disease that were verified with medical records.

Toxicity

Both vitamin D and fish oil may have some effects due to the ability of each to regulate or tame the inflammatory response that “drive autoimmune disorders.” It is too soon based on one study to make recommendations that people take either vitamin D or fish oil supplements – but those with a strong family history should consult with their primary health care provider about these decisions. The vitamin D dose used in the study is more than twice the recommended daily intake of 600 IU or 800 IU for people 71 and older. The consequences of overdoses or toxicity can occur at 10,000 IU daily.

Harvard Women’s Health Watch, Volume 29, Number 10 June 2022.

Drinking for Longevity

From the Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer from the people who’ve lived the longest by Dan Buettner, page xxii. “Scientific studies suggest that only about 25% of how long we live is dictated by genes, according to famous studies of Danish twins. The other 75% is determined by our lifestyles and the everyday choices we make.” What we drink is only one of them.

CLICK HERE.

Is Folate (Folic Acid) Safe?

Folate is a water-soluble vitamin (not stored in the body) and primary food sources include: Fortified, refined grain products (cereals, bread, and pasta), dark green vegetables like collards and romaine, dried beans.

Folate plays key roles during pregnancy in the synthesis of proteins needed for the normal development of fetal tissues including the spinal cord and brain. It also promotes the normal formation of red blood cells. Folate is the form found in foods whereas folic acid is used in vitamin supplements and fortified foods.

The consequences of a deficiency include megaloblastic anemia (abnormally large red blood cells with reduced oxygen capability,) increased rise of neural tube defects, preterm delivery, and elevated levels of homocysteine (associated with heart and brain health). It may mask signs of vitamin B12 deficiency (pernicious anemia).

Until the late 1990’s, neural tube defects such as spina bifida and anencephaly affected approximately 3900 pregnancies in the U. S. each year.Today, public health policies mandate the fortification of certain food with folic acid, the synthetic form of folate, preventing birth defects in thousands of babies.

Research had previously shown that high doses of folate (folic acid) was associated with certain types of cancer.

“The success of the fortification of folic acid program can be seen in the decline in the estimated number of neural tube affected pregnancies that has occurred since the fortification of grains and grain products. In 1994, there were 1.6 cases per 1000 births; in 2001, about 0.9 cases per 1000. Americans were consuming more folate, in the form of folic acid, through food and supplements, causing concern among scientists about possible increased cancer rates, especially for colorectal cancer.” However, is folate safe? Current research says “yes”. Read on:

CLICK HERE.

INTERMITTENT FASTING?

“The weight-loss idea is quite appealing: Limit your eating to a period of six to eight hours each day, during which you can have whatever you want.” However, is it effective for weight loss?

“Almost every type of diet out there works for some people,” he said. “But the take-home supported by this new research is that when subjected to a properly designed and conducted study — scientific investigation — it is not any more helpful than simply reducing daily calorie intake for weight loss and health factors.”

Nevertheless, intermittent fasting may act as a positive tool for some people to practice the act of mindful eating. (SJF).

CLICK HERE.

All About Probiotics

SHOULD YOU TAKE A PROBIOTIC?

Lately there’s a lot of buzz about taking probiotics that is becoming a household word on food labels; everyone wants to get in on the claims made to benefit them and the microbiome with a simple pill.

First of all what is the microbiome ? Everyone has one that is individual to them. It refers to our personal colony of micro -organisms, mostly bacteria, in our body that outnumbers our human cells. It is crucial to our digestion and integrity of the intestinal lining; it determines how and when and where things are absorbed into the bloodstream, participates in our metabolism and plays a role in our immune defenses. In the gastrointestinal tract the bacteria in the microbiome digest things we couldn’t digest otherwise like high fiber foods.

Mark Bittman and David L. Katz, MD – How to Eat: All Your Food and Diet Questions Answered. 2020

Eat probiotic foods along with prebiotic foods since rebiotics are the food that bacteria eat and what sustains good bacteria long-term. They include foods like oatmeal, bananas, berries, asparagus and beans.

Carrie Daniel-MacDougall, Ph.D, M.P.H., a nutritional epidemiologist at MD Anderson who studies diet and the microbiome says:

“Unless your doctor is prescribing probiotics for a specific person purpose, stick to getting them from foods like yogurt that may have other nutrients like calcium.”

In some cases, probiotics from food or supplements may help individuals with irritable bowel syndrome or Crohn’s disease. There is also potential for harm if used improperly or in combination with other medications. Your doctor or a certified nutritionist can help you find the one that’s right for you. Sometimes the probiotic could even disrupt or displaced some of the good bacteria you already have. McDougall says.

In the News

A NEW STUDY ON ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS AND CANCER

“Aspartame intake was associated with increased breast and obesity-related cancers.”

Soft drinks accounted for more than half of their artificial sweetener intake, while table-top sweeteners represented 29 per cent and yoghurt or cottage cheese 8 per cent.

The researchers then compared consumption of these sweeteners to the rate of cancer in participants, while adjusting for other possible factors such as age, body mass index, smoking, poor diet, physical activity and family history of cancer.

The participants who consumed the largest amount of sweeteners had an increased cancer risk of 13 per cent compared to non-consumers, the study found.

“More specifically, aspartame intake was associated with increased breast and obesity-related cancers,” it said. Needless to say: This study need replication since it has been implicated in cancer studies since its role in the food supply began a few decades ago. Additionally, since this study is observational, it only suggests an association, not causation.

https://www.insider.com/artificial-sweeteners -diet-sodas-linked-to-higher-risk-cancer-2022-3

An Anti-Inflammatory Diet May Protect Against Dementia.

A study published in the journal, Neurology found greater adherence to an anti-inflammatory diet resulted in a lower risk of dementia. The study included 1,059 people with an average age of 73 and free from dementia .They completed a diet questionnaire from the previous month that included food groups that constituted a diet score. A pro-inflammatory diet reflected high scores and included foods that were cooked at high temperature and excess consumption of omega-6 fats in relation to omega-3 fats. An anti-inflammatory diet included fruits, vegetables, legumes, coffee, tea. for lower diet scores. Safe low temperature ways to cook foods included poaching, boiling, stewing, steaming while dangerous methods included frying, grilling barbecuing, and roasting.

Results: “After a three year followup, 6% of the participants developed dementia. It was determined that one-point increase in the dietary score was associated with a 21% increase in dementia, and that participants with the highest third of dietary scores had a three times greater risk of dementia compared to participants whose scores were among the lowest third.”

Neurology. Dec 2021, 97(24)e2381-e2391.

Life Extension: The Science of a Healthier Life. May 2022.

Omega-3 fatty acids and Cancer

Omega -3 fats were found to have no significant effect on total tumor burden or affect latency period, tumor weight, or tumor regression. (Sally J. Feltner. Influence of type and level of dietary polyunsaturated fat on incidence of chemically -induced mammary tumors and on selected immune responses in rats. (Unpublished dissertation, 1988)

These were the results of my dissertation a couple of decades ago; however a new study wakes us up to the possibility that omega 3 fish oils (EPA and DHA) may have an positive effect (less growth) of tumors when fed fish oils as an adjunct to immunotherapy in mice.

CLICK HERE.

What happened here?

In my study there were no effects on tumor incidence; the new study found that omega -3 fatty acids may have a positive benefit if they are used with certain cancer treatments with the ultimate suppression of tumor growth. In my study, however, “the animals fed a high or low fish oil diet (omega 3)) produced a significantly higher antibody titer in response to sheep red blood cells than those fed the low or high corn (omega 6) oil diet.” This indicates a positive effect on the immune system at least in animals.

Study results of omega-3/6 fatty acids can be complex resulting in conflicting results in both human and animal studies.

This may be due to the imbalance of intake between the 3’s and the 6’s. in the Standard American diet. The optimal ratio of omega-3 fats in the diet is in a range of 2:1 to 4:1 (6s to 3s). The typical ratio in the U.S. diet is 16:1 – that is bad!! This means that inflammation can “run rampant”, increasing your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and arthritis. We simply eat too many omega-6 and not enough omega-3 fatty acids. Additional studies are planned. Very interesting.!