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September 2012
Is it possible to be fat but still fit? The largest study ever to examine the “obesity paradox” — analyzing data on more than 43,000 Americans — says yes, and that almost half of all obese people are nonetheless “metabolically healthy.” Those obese participants were found to be more fit than most, regardless of weight, and free of conditions such as insulin resistance, unhealthy cholesterol, high blood pressure or diabetes. As a result, Spanish and Swedish researchers concluded, these “metabolically healthy” obese people are at no greater risk of heart disease or cancer than normal-weight people. Researchers wrote, “There appears to be a subset of obese people who seem to be protected from obesity-related metabolic complications.” The 46% of obese participants classified as “metabolically healthy” after blood tests, treadmill testing and other assessments were at 38% lower risk of death from all causes compared to other obese subjects and at no greater risk than metabolically healthy but normal-weight participants. — European Heart Journal…
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September 2012
A new study again casts the spotlight on magnesium, an often-overlooked mineral that’s now getting noticed for health benefits ranging from diabetes to stroke prevention. In the latest research, British and Dutch scientists compared dietary magnesium intake among 768 patients with colorectal adenomas (polyps) and 709 healthy control subjects. For every 100 mg increase in magnesium from foods (about the amount in a cup of beans or 2 potatoes), the risk of cancer dropped 19%. That association was limited, however, to people with a BMI of 25 or over, those who were at least 55 years old, and advanced adenomas. The scientists also analyzed data from 9 previous studies. In that review, every additional 100 mg of magnesium from the diet per day was linked to a 12% lower risk of colorectal cancer and a 13% decrease in the risk of colon polyps. — American Journal of Clinical Nutrition…
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September 2012
Contradicting other research on calorie restriction and longevity, a new National Institutes on Aging study reports that rhesus monkeys fed 30% fewer calories were healthier but didn’t live any longer than a control group. The monkeys — long-lived primates similar to humans — had been followed since 1987. Those on a restricted diet did have a lower incidence of cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes. But that didn’t translate into longer lifespans. Researchers in a similar study at the Wisconsin National Primate Center, who have reported longevity benefits linked to calorie restriction, pointed out potentially key differences between the studies: The control group in the NIA study was given vitamin and mineral supplements and fed a limited, though higher-calorie diet. In the Wisconsin experiment, monkeys in the control group were allowed free access to food, which those researchers argued more closely resembles actual human lifestyles. — Nature…
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September 2012
Staying healthy and maintaining a normal weight helps protect your brain, according to a 10-year study of 6,401 British civil servants. Participants, initially ages 39-63, were less likely to have impaired cognitive function if they were not overweight or obese. Those with multiple markers of “metabolic abnormality” were more likely to suffer impaired cognitive function; these markers included high cholesterol or triglycerides, high blood pressure, low “good” HDL cholesterol, high glucose or diabetes. In followup mental testing at the 5- and 10-year points, those who were both obese and “metabolically abnormal” were significantly more likely to show a faster rate of cognitive decline. Researchers speculated that vascular problems associated with weight might affect brain function, along with fat-related secretions that impact the aging brain. — Neurology…
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August 2012
Thai researchers believe a new tool in diabetes prevention might be found in the Asian spice aisle. Curcumin, the main compound that gives turmeric its yellow color, was linked to a reduced risk of progression from prediabetes to type-2 diabetes in a randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial with 240 participants. Over 9 months, subjects at risk for diabetes took 3 capsules twice a day of either a curcumin extract or a placebo. None of those randomly assigned to curcumin developed diabetes, while 16.4% of the control group progressed to the disease. Markers of inflammation and insulin resistance were also significantly better in the curcumin group. “The intervention represents a chance for the diabetes-prone population to halt the disease progression and maintain a normal and healthy lifestyle,” researchers concluded. — Diabetes Care…
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August 2012
If your workout routine doesn’t include weights, a new study of exercise and diabetes risk may convince you to add resistance training to your aerobics regimen. Researchers analyzed data on 32,000 men in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study; over 18 years, 2,278 developed diabetes. Participants who spent at least 150 minutes weekly doing both aerobic and resistance exercise were 59% less likely to develop type-2 diabetes than their sedentary peers. Both aerobic and resistance exercise were associated with lower diabetes risk, but men who did both had the lowest risk of all. Although more was better when it came to weight training, as little as 10 minutes a day provided a benefit. Previous studies showing exercise helps prevent diabetes mostly focused on aerobic activity, although resistance training had been shown to improve blood-sugar control in those already with the disease. Even though the new study looked only at data on men, researchers expressed confidence the findings would also apply to women. — Archives of Internal Medicine…
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July 2012
New Tufts research has linked low blood levels of vitamin B6 to markers of inflammation that contribute to heart disease and other chronic conditions. Lydia Sakakeeny, PhD, and colleagues analyzed data on 2,229 men and women from the Framingham Offspring study. The researchers found that levels of PLP, an indicator of vitamin B6 levels in the blood, correlated with 13 different markers of inflammation. The same associations weren’t seen with other B vitamins, suggesting a specific link, although the observational study couldn’t prove cause and effect. “Low vitamin B-6 status, based on plasma concentrations of PLP, has been identified in inflammatory diseases, including cardiovascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and diabetes,” Sakakeeny and colleagues noted. “This study, in combination with past findings, further supports our hypothesis that inflammation is associated with a functional deficiency of vitamin B6.” — Journal of Nutrition
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June 2012
Not that most of us need convincing to indulge in stone fruits (“drupes”) such as plums, nectarines and peaches, but new Texas A&M research suggests compounds in these delicious fruits may fight metabolic syndrome. Scientists found four major types of antioxidant phenols in the fruits that attack the syndrome on “different fronts,” including via fat cells, arterial health and inflammation. Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of symptoms such as obesity and hypertension that predisposes patients to heart disease and diabetes. “Each of these stone fruits contain similar phenolic groups but in differing proportions, so all of them are a good source of health-promoting compounds and may complement each other,” scientists added. The findings will be presented at the American Chemical Society meeting in August.
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May 2012
To get a handle on your risk for sudden cardiac death, break out the tape measure. Excess belly fat, as measured by waist-to-hip ratio, was associated with a 40% greater risk of dying from sudden heart problems (within an hour of symptom onset) in a new study. Researchers looked at 15,156 participants in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study, ages 45-64 at baseline, among whom 301 cases of sudden cardiac death were recorded over 12.6 years. Initially, all three measures of obesity tested (BMI, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio) were associated with greater risk; after adjusting for other conditions associated with obesity, however, such as diabetes and hypertension, only waist-to-hip was a significant predictor of risk. Those in the top one-fifth of the ratio had waist-to-hip measures of 0.97 or higher for women and 1.01 or higher for men (indicating a waist roughly as big as the hips). Belly fat might be especially dangerous, researchers suggested, because of its effects on inflammation, which in turn can lead to fibrosis in the heart muscle. — Heart Rhythm Society
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May 2012
To the dismay of dentists everywhere, an expert review of 537 studies on periodontal disease and risk of heart attack or stroke overturns the popular belief that healthy gums contribute to a healthy heart. “A link between oral health and cardiovascular disease has been proposed for more than a century,” noted a scientific statement from the American Heart Association, endorsed by the American Dental Association and World Heart Federation. But despite many observational studies finding that people with periodontal disease often also suffer from atherosclerosis, the experts found no evidence of cause and effect. Rather, both conditions share common risk factors, such as tobacco use, diabetes and age. “Patients and providers are increasingly presented with claims that periodontal disease treatment strategies offer atherosclerotic vascular disease protection; these claims are often endorsed by professional and industrial stakeholders," the experts wrote, concluding that such assertions “are unwarranted.” — Circulation
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May 2012
Fiber, already known for a variety of other health benefits, may help protect against heart disease, particularly for women. Swedish researchers who compared the dietary habits and prevalence of cardiovascular disease among more than 20,000 adults report that women who consumed the most fiber were at almost 25% lower risk than those eating a low-fiber diet. The association was less pronounced among men, although high fiber intake was linked to lower incidence of stroke in men. Researchers analyzed heart disease and 13 nutritional variables, based on food questionnaires, over 13.5 years of follow-up. The study included 8,139 men and 12,535 women in the Swedish city of Malmo, ages 44-73; participants had no history of cardiovascular disease or diabetes. Researchers couldn’t say why fiber might be protective, but noted that the gender difference in their results merited further investigation. — PLOS One
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April 2012
Go ahead and satisfy your java jones — coffee won’t hurt your heart or give you cancer, and it might even reduce your risk of diabetes. That’s the takeaway from an analysis of 9 years of data on 42,659 participants in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study. German researchers found no connection between coffee consumption and increased risk of heart disease or cancer. But participants who drank 4 or more cups of coffee daily were 23%-30% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those drinking less than a cup per day. Overall, the study documented 1,432 new cases of diabetes. The apparent protective benefit of coffee — which echoes that seen in a 2009 meta-analysis — could be due to the presence of magnesium, antioxidant lignans or chlorogenic acids, scientists speculated. It’s not caffeine, however, as decaf drinkers actually saw an even lower risk of diabetes. The bottom line, as an accompanying editorial put it, is that “current information suggests that coffee is not as bad as we were told.” — American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
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March 2012
An increase in food availability and more sedentary lifestyles may be putting Asian populations at risk of type 2 diabetes — compounded by their traditional diets high in white rice. Harvard researchers report that people consuming the most white rice were 27% more likely to develop diabetes than those eating the least, and the association was greatest in Asian people (55%). Researchers pooled results from four prior studies totaling 352,384 participants, with followup periods ranging from 4 to 22 years. The added diabetes risk among non-Asian participants, 11%, was only on the borderline of statistical significance. But the analysis also found a dose-response relationship: The more white rice people ate, the greater their diabetes risk, with each additional daily serving linked to 11% greater likelihood of developing the disease. That suggests even Western populations might want to opt instead for brown rice, which isn’t processed like white rice and retains its whole-grain nutrients. — BMJ
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March 2012
Counting calories could do more than just help shrink your waistline. A new Mayo Clinic study suggests that eating too much may increase the risk for memory loss in people age 70 and older. Researchers compared the calorie intakes of 163 people suffering mild cognitive impairment (MCI) with 1,070 normal control subjects. Those consuming the most calories — more than 2,143 per day — were almost twice as likely to have MCI than participants eating the least, fewer than 1,526 daily calories. The higher the amount of calories consumed each day, the higher the risk of MCI, which is the stage between normal memory loss that comes with aging and early Alzheimer’s disease. The results were the same after adjusting for history of stroke, diabetes, amount of education and other factors that can affect risk of memory loss. The findings will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in April.
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January 2012
Previous studies have shown that drinking coffee may help protect against type-2 diabetes, but exactly how has remained a mystery. Now a new Chinese study reports that compounds in coffee may inhibit the formation of protein compounds that contribute to the death of cells in the pancreas, which produces insulin. Researchers focused on a chlorogenic acid naturally found in coffee, demonstrating in the lab “significant inhibitory effects” on the compounds linked to pancreatic cell death. They also looked at caffeine, and found a “weak inhibitory effect” on the damaging proteins and on the protection of pancreas cells. This is the first time, scientists noted, that caffeine has been shown to have beneficial effects on the pancreas; in type 2 diabetes, the pancreas does not produce adequate insulin or the body doesn’t respond properly to insulin. Researchers speculated that coffee compounds might be considered for future anti-diabetes drug development. — Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry
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