Dieting
Eating red meat sets up target for disease-causing bacteria
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Offering another reason why eating red meat could be bad for you, an international research team, including University of California, San Diego School of Medicine professor Ajit Varki, M.D., has uncovered the first example of a bacterium that causes food poisoning in humans when it targets a non-human molecule absorbed into the body through red meats such as lamb, pork and beef.
In findings to be published on line October 29th in advance of print in the journal Nature, the scientists discovered that a potent bacterial toxin called subtilase cytotoxin specifically targets human cells that have a non-human, cellular molecule on their surface. The molecule –N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc) – is a type of glycan, or sugar molecule, that humans don’t naturally produce.
Subtilase cytotoxin is produced by certain kinds of E. coli bacteria, causing bloody diarrhea and a potentially fatal disease called haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS) in humans. Humans usually become infected after eating contaminated red meat, which is why this is also known as “hamburger” disease.
Fish in children’s diet cuts eczema risk: study
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Feeding babies as little as one portion of fish before they are nine months old may cut their risk of developing eczema, Swedish researchers said on Thursday.
Introducing fish of any type into the diet curbed the risk of contracting the skin condition by 25 percent compared with children who never ate it, Bernt Alm, a pediatrician at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, and colleagues reported in the British Medical Journal.
“The main finding was that early introduction of fish was beneficial,” Alm said in a telephone interview. “There was no link with the amount of fish or type of fish. We think it is more the timing of the introduction.”
Making snack food choices
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People who are asked whether they would choose between a “good” snack and a “bad” snack might not follow their intentions when the snacks arrive. In an article in the September/October 2008 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, Dutch researchers found that there is a substantial inconsistency between healthful snack choice intentions and actual behavior.
Participants were asked about their intentions in choosing among four snacks: an apple, a banana, a candy bar and a molasses waffle. About half of the participants indicated they would choose the apple or banana—a “healthy” snack. But when presented, one week later, with the actual snacks, 27% switched to the candy bar or waffle. Over 90% of the unhealthy-choice participants stuck with their intentions and chose the unhealthy snack. The study included 585 participants who were office employees recruited in their worksite cafeterias.
Although intentions are often tightly linked to what people really do, it doesn’t always work that way. One explanation is that intentions are usually under cognitive control while actual choices are often made impulsively, even unconsciously.
New study reveals higher protein breakfast may help dieters stay on track
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A new study published online today in the British Journal of Nutrition found that timing of dietary protein intake affects feelings of fullness throughout the day. The study concluded that when people ate high-quality protein foods, from sources such as eggs and lean Canadian bacon, for breakfast they had a greater sense of sustained fullness throughout the day compared to when more protein was eaten at lunch or dinner.i
“There is a growing body of research which supports eating high-quality protein foods when dieting to maintain a sense of fullness,” said Wayne W. Campbell, PhD, study author and professor of Foods and Nutrition at Purdue University. “This study is particularly unique in that it looked at the timing of protein intake and reveals that when you consume more protein may be a critical piece of the equation.”
A Closer Look at the Study
The study included overweight or obese men who ate a reduced calorie diet. The diet consisted of two variations of protein intakes, both which were within federal nutrition recommendations: normal protein intake (11-14 percent of calories) or increased protein (18-25 percent of calories). The researchers tested the effect of consuming the additional protein at specific meals – breakfast, lunch or dinner – or spaced evenly throughout the day.
Fruits and Vegetables, Making it Easier to Eat More
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With back-to-school time just around the corner, the Produce for Better Health Foundation (PBH) is calling upon Moms to promote health and combat the national childhood obesity epidemic by focusing on including more fruits and vegetables in meals and snacks. To help Moms instill good eating habits and fight unhealthy food messages on television and in popular culture, PBH is unveiling new sets of strategies and tools for Moms and their families both online and in the retail setting.
In a survey conducted earlier this year, Moms expressed deep concern about how obesity might affect their kids now and when they are adults—and for good reason. Data shows one in three children in this country are overweight and news reports point to scores of American children taking drugs to treat high cholesterol, Type 2 diabetes and other conditions related to obesity. According to the same survey, many Moms also feel society is too full of messages encouraging unhealthy eating; a sentiment underscored by recent government reports of increases in product placements in television story lines, and a spend of $1.6 billion by the food and beverage industry to market soda, sugary cereal, and other less nutritious foods to kids.
Adults who eat eggs for breakfast lose 65 percent more weight
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A study published online today in the International Journal of Obesity shows that eating two eggs for breakfast, as part of a reduced-calorie diet, helps overweight adults lose more weight and feel more energetic than those who eat a bagel breakfast of equal calories. [1] This study supports previous research, published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, which showed that people who ate eggs for breakfast felt more satisfied and ate fewer calories at the following meal. [2]
“People have a hard time adhering to diets and our research shows that choosing eggs for breakfast can dramatically improve the success of a weight loss plan,” said Nikhil V. Dhurandhar, Ph.D., lead researcher and associate professor in the laboratory of infection and obesity at Pennington Biomedical Research Center, a campus of the Louisiana State University system. “Apparently, the increased satiety and energy due to eggs helps people better comply with a reduced-calorie diet.”
EU says safety of cloned animal products uncertain
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The European Union’s top food safety agency said on Thursday cloned animal products may not be safe and further study was needed.
“It is clear there are significant animal health and welfare issues for surrogate mothers and clones that can be more frequent and severe than for conventionally bred animals,” Vittorio Silano, chair of EFSA’s Scientific Committee, told reporters.
“For cattle and pigs, food safety concerns are considered unlikely. But we must acknowledge that the evidence base is still small. We would like to have a broader data base and we need further clarification.”
EU says safe to eat during Games, despite concerns
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Europeans travelling to the Beijing Olympics have nothing to fear from Chinese food, despite an upsurge in food safety warnings in the Asian powerhouse, the European Union’s health chief said on Wednesday.
“There is no need for Europeans to take any extra or special measures, other than the ones they would normally take when travelling to a country outside the European Union,” EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou told Reuters.
“There are problems, but there is no major danger from eating food during the Olympics.”
Newest fertility treatment may be a diet
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The newest low-tech fertility treatment may be a diet, researchers said on Wednesday after learning that obese men have more abnormal sperm and make less semen.
Their findings, presented at a meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Barcelona, Spain, add to recent research showing that obese women are more likely to be infertile.
“We felt that it was possible that male overweight might contribute to fertility problems, particularly since it is a known risk factor for problems in conceiving among women,” said Dr. Ghiyath Shayeb of the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.
Many people in US lack optimally fluoridated water
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Increased usage of community water fluoridation has been credited with markedly reducing the prevalence and severity of tooth decay in the US in the past 60 years, but new research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that in many states the availability of optimally fluoridated water is lacking.
Overall, the percentage of the US population served by public water systems who received optimally fluoridated water rose from 62.1 percent in 1992 to 65.0 percent in 2000 and to 69.2 percent in 2006. The Healthy People 2010 objective is to increase the percentage to 75 percent.
However, the findings, which appear in Friday’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, published by the CDC, also indicate high variability between states in the percentage of persons receiving optimally fluoridated water.
Leading worldwide cause of cardiovascular disease may be modified by diet
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A new article indicates that an increased intake in minerals such as potassium, and possibly magnesium and calcium by dietary means may reduce the risk of high blood pressure and decrease blood pressure in people with hypertension. A high intake of these minerals in the diet may also reduce the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke. These findings are published in a supplement appearing with the July issue of The Journal of Clinical Hypertension.
Potassium, specifically, has been hypothesized as one reason for the low cardiovascular disease rates in vegetarians, as well as in populations consuming primitive diets (generous in potassium and low in sodium). In isolated societies consuming diets high in fruits and vegetables, hypertension affects only 1 percent of the population, whereas in industrialized countries which consume diets high in processed foods and large amounts of dietary sodium, 1 in 3 persons have hypertension. Americans consume double the sodium and about half of the potassium that is recommended by current guidelines.
According to the paper, if Americans were able to increase their potassium intake, the number of adults with known hypertension with blood pressure levels higher than 140/90 mm Hg might decrease by more than 10 percent and increase life expectancy. Similar studies show that diets high in magnesium (at least 500 to 1,000 mg/d) and calcium (more than 800 mg/d) may also be associated with both a decrease in blood pressure and risk of developing hypertension. Data regarding these minerals, however, are not definitive.
Looking for the Fountain of Youth? Cut Your Calories, Research Suggests
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Want to slow the signs of aging and live longer? New Saint Louis University research suggests cutting back on calories could be a promising strategy.
Calorie restriction has long been shown to slow the aging process in rats and mice. While scientists do not know how calorie restriction affects the aging process in rodents, one popular hypothesis is that it slows aging by decreasing a thyroid hormone, triiodothyronine (T3), which then slows metabolism and tissue aging.
A new study in the June 2008 issue of Rejuvenation Research, found that calorie restriction – cutting approximately 300 to 500 calories per day – had a similar biological effect in humans and, therefore, may slow the aging process.
The Hazards of Too Much Water
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We’ve all been told it’s important to drink plenty of fluids during exercise. But now it seems too much water can be very dangerous. So which is right? Both. Good hydration is important, but overhydration can be hazardous, even lethal. Common sense and moderation can help protect you from both extremes, reports the July 2008 issue of Harvard Men’s Health Watch.
Dehydration increases the risk of muscle cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke during exercise in warm weather. And even in mild weather, dehydration can leave exercisers groggy for hours afterward. When the hazards of dehydration became apparent, experts began to encourage drinking fluids during exercise. Guidelines were formulated to meet the needs of elite male athletes whose high-intensity exercise produced lots of fluid loss in sweat. As a result, athletes began to increase fluid intake, and some drank too much, leading to water intoxication and hyponatremia (low blood sodium levels). Hundreds of cases and a number of deaths have been recorded in medical journals.
Caution is justified, but it’s not easy to drink enough to get into trouble. The typical victim of water intoxication is a runner who is out on a marathon course for over four hours and who consumes enough fluids to gain weight during the race.
Low-fat diet as heart-healthy as Mediterranean
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After a heart attack, adopting either a low-fat or Mediterranean-style diet similarly and significantly benefits overall and cardiovascular health, research suggests.
The diets provide similar amounts of protein, carbohydrates, cholesterol, and unhealthy saturated fats, but a Mediterranean diet has higher amounts of “healthy” monounsaturated fats, particularly omega-3 fatty acids found in fish.
Either diet, when applied with equal intensity, can be an effective component of post-heart attack lifestyle changes, researchers say. Post-heart attack patients who followed these diets for 4 years significantly reduced their risk for subsequent cardiovascular events, Dr. Katherine R. Tuttle and colleagues found.
Tap water chemicals not linked to penis defect
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Though some research has linked chemicals in chlorinated tap water to the risk of birth defects, a new study finds no strong evidence that the chemicals contribute to a common birth defect of the penis.
The defect, known as hypospadias, occurs when the urinary outlet develops on the underside of the penis rather than at the tip. Genetics are thought to play a large role in hypospadias risk, but the other potential causes are not fully understood.
Some past studies have suggested that certain chemicals in tap water—byproducts of the chlorination process used to kill disease-causing pathogens—may contribute to the risk of birth defects and miscarriage. Other studies, though, have found no such links.
