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Supplemental, dietary antioxidant intake linked with lower dementia risk
Lishui University (China), December 12 2022.
Results from a systematic review and meta-analysis published in the journal European Geriatric Medicine revealed a relationship between increased intake of antioxidant vitamins C and E and a lower risk of dementia.
Futao Zhou and colleagues identified 75 studies from 19 articles that included a total of 28,257 participants for their review. The studies evaluated the association between intake from diet and/or supplements of beta-carotene, flavonoids, vitamin C and vitamin E with Alzheimer disease, all-cause dementia and cognitive impairment without dementia. The research included 2,557 participants with Alzheimer disease, 1,035 cases categorized as all-cause dementia and 6,197 cases of cognitive impairment without dementia. When high intake of vitamins C or E was compared to low intake, high dietary plus supplemental intake of either vitamin was associated with a “markedly” lower risk of Alzheimer disease. High vitamin C from diet plus supplementation was associated with 30% lower risk and high vitamin E with a 27% lower risk of the disease in comparison with low intake. Each 20 milligram per day increase in vitamin C from diet, diet plus supplements, or overall, was associated with a 2% reduction in the risk of Alzheimer disease. When dementia from all causes was examined, the authors reported that “It is supplemental, not dietary, use of vitamin E or vitamin C that can significantly reduce the risk.” High supplemental vitamin C intake was associated with a 19% lower risk of all-cause dementia and high supplemental vitamin E intake with a 20% lower risk compared with low intake.
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Antioxidant capacity of orange juice is multiplied tenfold
University of Granada, December 5, 2022
The antioxidant activity of citrus juices and other foods is undervalued. A new technique developed by researchers from the University of Granada for measuring this property generates values that are ten times higher than those indicated by current analysis methods. The results suggest that tables on the antioxidant capacities of food products that dieticians and health authorities use must be revised. In order to study these compounds in the laboratory, techniques that simulate the digestion of food in the digestive tract are used, which analyse only the antioxidant capacities of those substances that can potentially be absorbed in the small intestine: the liquid fraction of what we eat. “The problem is that the antioxidant activity of the solid fraction (the fibre) isn’t measured, as it’s assumed that it isn’t beneficial. However, this insoluble fraction arrives at the large intestine and the intestinal microbiota can also ferment it and extract even more antioxidant substances, which we can assess with our new methodology,” José Ángel Rufián Henares, professor at the University of Granada, explains. His team has developed a technique called ‘global antioxidant response’ (GAR), which includes an in vitro simulation of the gastrointestinal digestion that occurs in our body, whilst taking into account the ‘forgotten’ antioxidant capacity of the solid fraction. Upon applying the technique to commercial and natural orange, mandarin, lemon and grapefruit juices, it has been proved that their values greatly increase. For example, in the case of orange juice, the value ranges from 2.3 mmol Trolox/L (units for the antioxidant capacity) registered with a traditional technique to 23 mmol Trolox/L with the new GAR method.
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‘Obesity can reduce life by up to 8 years’
McGill University (Montreal), December 8, 2022
Life expectancy can be reduced by up to 8 years by obesity, which can also cause adults to lose as much as 19 years of healthy life if it leads to type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. A study published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinologyexamines the issue. The researchers behind the study analyzed data from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), creating a disease-simulation model to estimate the risk of adults of different body weight developing diabetes and cardiovascular disease. From this, the researchers then calculated the extent to which overweight and obesity may contribute to both years of life lost and years of healthy life lost in American adults aged between 20 and 79 years old, in comparison to people of normal weight. They found that people who were overweight (BMI 25-30 kg/m2) were estimated to lose up to 3 years of life, depending on age and gender. Individuals classed as obese (BMI 30-35 kg/m2) were calculated to lose up to 6 years, and people classed as very obese (BMI 35 kg/m2 or more) could lose up to 8 years of life. According to the study, excess weight had the greatest impact on lost years of life among the young and dropped with increasing age. As well as reducing life expectancy, carrying extra weight was also found to reduce “healthy life-years,” which were defined in the study as years free of obesity-linked cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Young adults aged between 20 and 29 showed the highest losses of healthy life-years, adding up to around 19 lost years for very obese people. Among people who were overweight or obese, the researchers calculated that two to four times as many healthy life-years were lost than total years of life lost. The researchers behind that study found that infant mortality was “moderately increased” among overweight and mildly obese mothers (BMI 25-35 kg/m2) compared with mothers of a normal weight; but among more obese mothers (BMI over 35 kg/m2), the risk of infant mortality was more than doubled.
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The more TV you watch, the more bodily pain you have over time: Study
Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute (Australia), December 12, 2022
Data from 4,099 participants of the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle Study (AusDiab) has revealed that an increase in daily TV-watching time is significantly associated with an increase in bodily pain severity over time, according to a new study from the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute. Bodily pain is common in aging adults and a common presentation in several chronic diseases, including people living with type 2 diabetes. “We found that increments in TV-viewing time over time predicted bodily pain severity,” Professor David Dunstan, principal researcher and Head of the Baker-Deakin Department of Lifestyle and Diabetes said. “Even a one-hour increase in daily TV time was significantly associated with an increase in pain severity. “And those findings were even more pronounced in those living with type 2 diabetes.” The study found that as average daily TV-viewing time increased, bodily pain worsened (score decreased). The mean bodily pain score for those aged 50 years at the start of the study, for example, was 76.9 and worsened by 0.3 units year-on-year. An increase of one hour in TV watching led to a worsening of bodily pain by 0.69 units (score further decreased), or the equivalent of more than two years of pain associated with natural aging. The study also found that the bodily pain scores for people living with type 2 diabetes were even more pronounced. The type 2 diabetes cohort had higher TV-viewing time and more severe bodily pain than those without the condition. People without type 2 diabetes watched on average 1.6 hours per day, compared to 2.2 hours for people with type 2 diabetes. When TV-watching time increased above 2.5 hours per day, the impact on bodily pain severity increased even more significantly. Long uninterrupted periods of time spent sitting (sedentary behavior), especially watching TV, can adversely impact blood glucose control, insulin and other aspects of metabolism in people with type 2 diabetes. Such alterations in metabolism increase levels of inflammation, which can act to precipitate bodily pain. These new findings highlight the benefits of reducing time spent in sedentary behaviors, for both the general population and those living with chronic disease.
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Study shows clear new evidence for mind-body connection
University of Calgary (Canada), December 4, 2022
A group working out of the University of Calgary Department of Oncology has demonstrated that telomeres – protein complexes at the end of chromosomes – maintain their length in breast cancer survivors who practise meditation or are involved in support groups, while they shorten in a comparison group without any intervention.
A total of 88 breast cancer survivors who had completed their treatments for at least three months were involved for the duration of the study. The average age was 55 and most participants had ended treatment two years prior. To be eligible, they also had to be experiencing significant levels of emotional distress. In the Mindfulness-Based Cancer Recovery group, participants attended eight weekly, 90-minute group sessions that provided instruction on mindfulness meditation and gentle Hatha yoga, with the goal of cultivating non-judgmental awareness of the present moment. Participants were also asked to practise meditation and yoga at home for 45 minutes daily. In the Supportive Expressive Therapy group, participants met for 90 minutes weekly for 12 weeks and were encouraged to talk openly about their concerns and their feelings. The objectives were to build mutual support and to guide women in expressing a wide range of both difficult and positive emotions, rather than suppressing or repressing them. All study participants had their blood analysed and telomere length measured before and after the interventions. Scientists have shown a short-term effect of these interventions on telomere length compared to a control group, but it’s not known if the effects are lasting. Dr. Carlson says another avenue for further research is to see if the psychosocial interventions have a positive impact beyond the three months of the study period.
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Yoga reduces blood pressure in patients with prehypertension
Sir Gangaram Hospital (India), December 8, 2022
Yoga reduces blood pressure in patients with prehypertension, according to a study. This study investigated the impact of hatha yoga on blood pressure in 60 patients with prehypertension who were otherwise healthy. Patients were randomised to two groups of 30 each to assess the effect of three months of yoga plus conventional lifestyle changes versus conventional lifestyle changes alone (control group) on 24 hour ambulatory blood pressure. Yoga included stretching exercises (asanas), breath control (pranayam) and meditation. Yoga practice was for one hour every day. Conventional lifestyle changes consisted of moderate aerobic exercise, diet, and smoking cessation. The investigators found that in the yoga group, both 24 hour diastolic BP and night diastolic BP significantly decreased by approximately 4.5 mmHg and 24 hour mean arterial pressure significantly decreased by around 4.9 mmHg. The control groupdid not show any significant change in blood pressure. Dr Angrish said: “Although the reduction in blood pressure was modest, it could be clinically very meaningful because even a 2 mmHg decrease in diastolic BP has the potential to decrease the risk of coronary heart disease by 6% and the risk of stroke and transient ischaemic attack by 15%.”
He concluded: “Our research suggests that patients with prehypertension should be advised to practice hatha yoga (a combination of asanas, pranayam and meditation) for one hour daily. It may prevent the development of hypertension and in addition give a sense of well-being.”