What are the top breaking nutrition news stories based on the most recent studies for Nov. 25, 2009--the day before Thanksgiving meals? You can read more about all these stories in depth at ScienceDaily's Nov. 25th releases online.The first most important is that a Soy Component May Be Key to Fighting Colon Cancer. Scientists have identified a new class of therapeutic agents found naturally in soy that can prevent and possibly treat colon cancer, the third most deadly form of cancer. Sphingadienes are natural lipid molecules found in soy that research shows may be the key to fighting colon cancer.
The second breaking nutrition news story in order of importance is Flaxseed Oil May Reduce Osteoporosis Risk. November 25, 2009 — Animal studies suggest that adding flaxseed oil to the diet could reduce the risk of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women and women with diabetes, according to a report to be published in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health. To read the study, see the journal reference, Impact of feeding flaxseed oil on delaying the development of osteoporosis in ovariectomized diabetic rats. Int. J. Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health, 2009, 2, 189-201. Also see Inderscience Publishers (2009, November 25). Flaxseed oil may reduce osteoporosis risk. ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 25, 2009.
Third in importance of breaking nutrition news for November 25, 2009 is the Antifibrotic Effects of Green Tea. Scientists examined the protective effect of green tea extract on hepatic fibrosis in vitro and in vivo in dimethylnitrosamine (DMN)-induced rats. Researchers drew a conclusion that green tea may protect liver cells and reduce the deposition of collagen fibers in the liver. Green tea provides a safe and effective strategy for improving hepatic fibrosis.
Several studies have shown that lipid peroxidation stimulates collagen production in fibroblasts and hepatic stellate cells (HSC), and plays an important role in the development of liver fibrosis. Hepatoprotective effects of green tea against carbon tetrachloride, cholestasis and alcohol induced liver fibrosis were reported in many studies. However, the hepatoprotective effect of green tea in dimethylnitrosamine (DMN)-induced models has not been studied.
A research article published on November 7, 2009 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. The research team, led by Prof. Hong-Yon Cho from Korea University examined the protective effect of green tea extract (GT) on hepatic fibrosis in a rat HSC line and in a rat model of DMN-induced hepatic fibrosis. See the study at the World Journal of Gastroenterology.
Fourth listed for breaking nutrition news of Nov. 24th 2009 is the ScienceDaily release, "Diabetics Show Alarming Increase in Morbid Obesity." That study revealed one out of five type 2 diabetics is morbidly obese -- approximately 100 pounds or more overweight -- a new study has shown. A Loyola University Health System study has found that one out of five Type 2 diabetics is morbidly obese -- approximately 100 pounds or more overweight.
The fifth breaking nutrition news release, "High Salt Intake Directly Linked to Stroke and Cardiovascular Disease," ScienceDaily, November 24, 2009, revealed that high salt intake is associated with significantly greater risk of both stroke and cardiovascular disease, according to the conclusion of a new study. The study concluded that a high salt intake is associated with significantly greater risk of both stroke and cardiovascular disease, according to a new study published on the British Medical Journal website. See the BMJ-British Medical Journal study site to read the study in depth.
The sixth breaking nutrition news release from Science Daily, Nov. 24th, 2009, is "Polyphenols and Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Boost the Birth of New Neurons, Study Finds." Researchers in Spain have confirmed that a diet rich in polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids, patented as an LMN diet, helps boost the production of the brain's stem cells. In medical terms, boosting production of the brain's stem cells is called neurogenesis.
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) researchers have confirmed that a diet rich in polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids, patented as an LMN diet, helps boost the production of the brain's stem cells neurogenesis- and strengthens their differentiation in different types of neuron cells.
The research revealed that mice fed an LMN diet, when compared to those fed a control diet, have more cell proliferation in the two areas of the brain where neurogenesis is produced, the olfactory bulb and the hippocampus, both of which are greatly damaged in patients with Alzheimer's disease. These results give support to the hypothesis that a diet made up of foods rich in these antioxidant substances could delay the onset of this disease or even slow down its evolution.
The study will be published in the December issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Diseaseogenesis- and strengthens their differentiation in different types of neuron cells. Where do you find a diet rich in polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids?
You find these substances in a largely plant-based diet, in foods such as tea, beer, grapes, wine, olive oil, cocoa, nuts and other fruits and vegetables. Polyunsaturated fatty acids can be found in blue fish and vegetables such as corn, soya beans, sunflowers and pumpkins.
According to the release, the LMN cream used in this study was composed of a mixture of natural products: dried fruits and nuts, coconut, vegetable oils rich in polyunsaturated fat and flour rich in soluble fiber.
Will this type of diet work on humans? The purpose the this study looked at the effects of an LMN cream-enriched diet on the neurogenesis of the brain of an adult mouse.
The seventh breaking nutrition news story from ScienceDaily, Nov. 24, 2009, "Obese Patients' Reaction to Diet Can Be Predicted, Study Finds," focused on a new study that looked at connections between inflammation and body weight. The study examined the presence of increased body fat, and therefore higher levels of inflammatory substances in the blood to see what hinders the loss and maintenance of body weight, as shown by new research from Spain's University of Navarra conducted by Estíbaliz Goyenechea Soto, a scientist at the School of Pharmacy.
The project, entitled "A nutrigenetic and nutrigenomic study in relation to the control of body weight and inflammation," examined how the individual genetics of obese patients can help or hinder weight loss when dieting and even influence the subsequent long term maintenance of their weight loss.
Do people with higher levels of inflammatory substances in their blood have a genetic predisposition? This genetic predisposition, along with external and personal factors such as inadequate dietary habits or physical inactivity, predispose patients to obesity and the complications that arise from it (diabetes, hypercholesterolemia and high blood pressure) which in turn increase cardiovascular risk.
Eighth on the list of nutrition news is the November 21, 2009 article reporting the recent study on "Older Problem Drinkers Use More Alcohol Than Do Their Younger Counterparts." Older adults that have alcohol dependence problems drink significantly more than do younger adults who have similar problems, a new study has found. The findings suggest that older problem drinkers may have developed a tolerance for alcohol and need to drink even more than younger abusers to achieve the effects they seek.
Ninth on this current nutrition news list is the ScienceDaily news release, "Let Them Eat Snail: Nutritional Giant Snails Could Address Malnutrition," November 20, 2009. According to the article, a nutritionist in Nigeria says that malnutrition and iron deficiency in schoolchildren could be reduced in her country by baking up snail pie. She explains snail is not only cheaper and more readily available than beef but contains more protein. The most important point is do the people like the taste? Is it a familiar food?
Udofia and her research team baked pies of both varieties and asked young mothers and their children to try the tasty meal. Most of them preferred the taste and texture of the pies baked with the snail Archachatina marginata to those made with beef. Snail meat contains protein, fat (mainly polyunsaturated fatty acid), iron, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, zinc, vitamins A, B6, B12, K and folate.
The snail meal also contains the amino acids arginine and lysine at higher levels than in whole egg as well as healthy essential fatty acids such as linoleic and linolenic acids. The high-protein, low-fat content of snail meat makes it a healthy alternative food.
The affordable snail is readily available in the area's swamps and green forests as well as in many parts of the third world. Just remember to cook it thoroughly so you don't get parasites that could be growing in the snail growing in you. That's one of the main questions nutritionists ponder: how to provide food that's available and affordable around the world--that people will enjoy tasting.
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