Low Vitamin D Levels Linked to Heart Risk
While the jury is still out on whether extra vitamin D can help prevent heart disease, the largest study of its kind reports that low levels of the “sunshine vitamin” are strongly associated with greater risk of heart disease, heart attack and cardiovascular mortality. Danish scientists took blood samples from 10,170 adults and followed them for an average of 29 years. Those with the lowest blood levels of vitamin D (below 15 nanomol/liter, 5% of the study population) were compared with those with adequate vitamin D (about half of the sample). People in the lowest vitamin D group were at 40% greater risk of heart disease, 64% higher risk of heart attack, 57% more likely to die early of any cause, and 81% more likely to die of heart disease. Researchers also conducted a meta-analysis of 35 other studies, finding those in the lowest one-quarter of vitamin D were at 39% greater heart-disease risk and 46% higher risk of early death than those with the most vitamin D. Scientists cautioned, however, that the studies couldn’t prove causality, and that vitamin D deficiency could be merely a marker for poor health generally. — Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology

Gaming with Body Instead of Thumbs Burns More Calories
Active video games, such as those on the Xbox 360 using the Kinect motion-capture video system, boost heart rates and double energy expenditures, according to a new study. English researchers tested two active Xbox games, Dance Central and Sports Boxing, on 18 adolescents ages 11-15. Even on the easiest settings, the games increased heart rates to 118-131 beats per minute (34%-48% higher than sedentary games). Calories burned increased 150% over resting rates and 103% over sedentary gaming with the dance game, and 263% and 194%, respectively, with the boxing game. By switching to active games for the nearly 2 hours daily spent gaming, adolescents could lose almost 3 pounds a month. But researchers noted, “If such virtual activities are to play a part in weight management interventions, they need to be adhered to long term.” — Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine

Cranberry Juice Modestly Lowers BP
Low-calorie cranberry juice might be a new weapon in the battle against high blood pressure, according to findings reported at a meeting of the American Heart Association. USDA researchers gave 56 healthy adults without hypertension either 8 ounces twice a day of low-calorie cranberry juice or a placebo beverage. After 8 weeks, the cranberry-juice group showed an average drop of 3 mm Hg in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure, while those sipping the placebo saw no change. The use of low-calorie cranberry juice was significant, researchers commented, because regular cranberry juice can contain high levels of added sugar to counter the berries’ natural tartness. Cranberries, they added, contain “a broad and interesting array” of natural plant flavonoids associated with lower risk of cardiovascular disease.

Sedentary Jobs Spread Worldwide
The US isn’t alone in becoming a nation of chair jockeys: Other countries are growing more sedentary, too, especially at work. University of North Carolina researchers told a recent Obesity Society meeting that workplace activity levels have fallen in the US, UK, China, Brazil and India — countries totaling 45% of the world’s population. Measures of physical activity typically focus on leisure time, but this study sought to also analyze energy expenditure on the job, calculated as metabolic-equivalent (MET)-hours per week. In the US, total weekly MET-hours fell from 235 to 160 from 1965 to 2009, led by a decline in occupational activity; UK numbers were similar, going from 216 in 1960 to 173 in 2005. China saw the biggest and fastest change, falling from 399 to 213 between 1991 and 2009. Drops in activity were smaller in Brazil and India, but the study projected falling energy-expenditure levels in both countries between now and 2030.

Cilantro Aversion Is Genetic
Can’t stand the taste of cilantro, that increasingly popular herb found in Asian and Mexican cuisine? Blame your genes. Scientists have long suspected that thinking cilantro tastes like soap might be inherited. Now a study of nearly 30,000 people by the consumer genetics firm 23andMe has identified specific gene variants linked to a dislike of cilantro. The most important are among those controlling the sense of smell, especially a gene labeled OR6A2. That encodes an olfactory receptor that increases sensitivity to the aldehyde compounds (organic chemicals formed by the oxidation of alcohols) that give cilantro its distinctive taste. If you’re genetically predisposed to loathe cilantro, you’re not alone: 17% of European peoples, 14% of those of African descent and, surprisingly, 21% of east Asians hate the herb, too — as did culinary maven Julia Child.