Health News

REPORTING POINT 03/11

HEALTH NEWS

“Live healthy...Live well”

Dedicated to providing pertinent information on health, fitness, and nutrition to foster a culture of wellness among Southwest Airlines flight crews and their families.

by Larry Kline

email: livehealthy-livewell@cox.net

Past issues of “Health News” are available at http://livehealthy-livewell.blogspot.com/. It includes a search engine; just enter a key word to find past articles. LK

GLUCOSAMINE NOT EFFECTIVE – glucosamine works no better than a placebo against arthritis pain, according to two well-designed studies. In a Norwegian trial of people with low back pain and osteoarthritis of the lower spine, half took glucosamine sulfate (1,500 milligrams a day), the other half a placebo. After six months, both groups reported similar levels of disability, pain, and overall quality of life. Another long term study (the GAIT study) confirmed that glucosamine sulfate and chondroitin sulfate, taken singly or together for two years, were no better than a placebo at reducing pain from arthritis of the knee. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 10/10.

PREVENT CANCER WITH CARDIO – people with the highest fitness levels are three times less likely to die of cancer compared with those who are least active. The benefits of staying in good cardiovascular shape were constant regardless of whether the test subjects were lean or overweight. Moderate exercise appears to help disarm free radicals, the rogue chemicals that cause the DNA damage that leads to cancer. Men’s Health 4/08.

WHOLE-GRAINS FOR LOWER DIABETES RISK – many studies have linked whole-grain goods with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. A Harvard study that tracked nurses with diabetes over a 26-year period found that those who ate the most bran (a component of whole grains) had a 35 percent lower risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke than those who ate little or no bran, and a 28 percent lower overall mortality rate. Many people with diabetes still believe they should cut down on all carbohydrates, but they should be eliminating refined carbs (such as white bread, rice and processed foods) and added sugars and they should be replacing these foods with more whole grains. University of California Berkeley Wellness Letter 10/10.

PROTECTING COFFEE'S ANTIOXIDANTS - sugar and nondairy creamers seem to undo a big chunk of the health benefits of drinking coffee by binding up the good-for-your-body antioxidants in the brew.

In a study, coffee drinkers sipped instant coffee three different ways -- black, with a little whole milk, or with sugar and nondairy creamer. Blood tests then showed that levels of chlorogenic acids (CGAs) -- antioxidants in coffee that may play a role in the brew's beneficial impact on diabetes risk and more -- were different across the groups. Milk seemed to have little effect on blood levels of the compound, while the lightened, sweetened cup appeared to reduce CGA levels anywhere from 23–29 percent.

Instant coffee is highly processed, the caffeine and some of the healthy polyphenols found in brewed coffee are preserved because instant starts its life as brewed coffee. Instant is just brewed coffee that's either been freeze- or spray-dried until the liquid is gone. But some of the polyphenols and the taste go, too; how much depends on which beans, what brewing process, and which drying method are used.

However, there's a healthy twist to this story: the instant coffee actually has two-thirds more fiber than filtered coffee. A 12-ounce cup of instant contains about 3 grams of fiber, compared to about 1.8 grams in the same amount of brewed. The fiber helps your body absorb those polyphenols (plant substances that help your body help itself).

Researchers aren't sure why sugar and creamer seemed to diminish the antioxidants in coffee. More research is needed to confirm the effect and also clear up remaining questions about milk (other research has shown that proteins in milk bind with CGAs in tea, making the antioxidants unavailable to the body). But the bottom line is that the less you put in your coffee, the better it probably is for you. No sugar means no extra calories. And if you must have milk, choose just a splash of fat-free. Whole milk and many nondairy creamers add saturated fat. Real Age 10/08/10.

SLEEP MORE, EAT LESS – researchers allowed healthy young, lean test subjects to sleep for either four or eight hours in a laboratory. After one night of four hours of sleep, the test subjects ate 22 percent more calories the next day than they did after eight hours of sleep. They also reported being more hungry before breakfast and dinner.

In a separate study, scientists found that a single night with only four hours of sleep led to insulin resistance in healthy lean people in their 40s. After the night of restricted sleep, the participants were less able to move blood sugar into their cells suggesting that their bodies were at least temporarily resistant to insulin. Insulin resistance can lead to heart disease, diabetes, and possibly breast cancer.

Getting proper sleep is essential to a healthy lifestyle. Most adults need 7 to 8 hours a night. School-aged children need at least 9 hours. Other studies that limit adults sleep find higher levels of ghrelin (which makes people hungry) and lower levels of leptin (which makes people feel full) in their blood. Changes in ghrelin, leptin, and insulin resistance may explain why studies find a higher risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure in people who get too little sleep. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 91:1550, 2010, Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 95: 2963, 2010.

GOOD FOR THE GOOSE AND THE GANDER - most men know that eating tomatoes and tomato products are good for their prostate health because of the phytochemical lycopene. Tomato-based foods like these are also loaded with apigenin, a powerful flavonoid that was credited with reducing the risk of ovarian cancer by an impressive 20 percent in a recent study.

Researchers suspect that apigenin's antioxidant and anti-inflammatory powers may take the credit for the recent study results. Also, apigenin may help reduce ovarian cancer risk by affecting the way estrogen works in the body and may interfere with the growth of blood vessels that feed cancer cells. Still, more research will be needed to confirm if apigenin-rich foods could play a definitive role in risk reduction of ovarian cancer.

Ovarian cancer has very few early-stage symptoms, and there are no standard or routine screening tests, so it's often not caught until an advanced stage. Controlling what risk factors you can and living an anti-cancer lifestyle may be two of your best options against the disease. That means controlling your weight and eating a healthful diet -- of which apigenin-rich foods may be a part. Not a tomato fan? You'll find apigenin in celery and red wine, too. Real Age 9/23/10.

GREEN TEA AND AGING - Green tea is an antioxidant and is used in promoting cardiovascular health and reducing serum cholesterol levels in laboratory animals and humans. Studies suggest that green tea contains dietary factors that help decrease the development of some infectious diseases and dental caries. Green tea has diuretic, stimulant, astringent, antibacterial, antifungal, anticarcinogenic, thermogenic and anti-inflammatory properties. Green tea has also been reported to enhance immunity.

Findings from a recent study suggest that green tea may protect DNA from damage associated with aging. The placebo-controlled, cross-over supplementation study included healthy volunteers who were randomly assigned to receive two cups of green tea or water every day for 4 weeks. A six-week washout period separated each four-week intervention, and blood and urine samples were collected before and after each intervention. The results of the study found a 20 percent reduction in levels of DNA damage, while measures of whole-body oxidative stress were unchanged. These findings indicate that regular consumption of green tea may protect against damage at a genetic level and slow the aging process. British Journal of Nutrition 9/10.

NO-FAIL WORKOUT – training to failure slows results, according to Spanish researchers. They found that lifters who performed each set of a workout until they could not complete a repetition had smaller gains in strength than those who left a bit in reserve. End each set when your lifting pace starts to slow, suggests the scientists. Men’s Health 6/10.