Disease Proof : Disease Proof : Health & Nutrition News & Commentary : Dr. Joel Fuhrman

The obesity problem always raises some weird news, like to combat obesity New York City put posters displaying the number of calories in popular fast foods, like cheeseburgers and muffins, all over the subways. Then a city in Italy wanted to pay people to lose weight and some experts believe people are fat because they have sick fat cells.

But this news is not so light, no pun-intended, research in British Medical Journal claims obese young men, at the age of 18, are more likely to die prematurely later in life than normal weight teenagers. After reviewing the deaths of over 45,000 men, scientists determined the incidence of death was highest among the obese; Reuters reports.

And recently, studies have come out linking obesity to cancer, headaches, high blood pressure and thyroid inflammation in children.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

According to a new study in The Lancet salt may be more harmful for patients with metabolic syndrome, a major predicator of heart disease and type-2 diabetes, increasing risk of high blood pressure. Researchers examined over 1,900 Chinese people, ages 16 and up, they were fed either a high or low-sodium diet for 7 days and their blood pressure was checked regularly. Results showed participants with metabolic syndrome were more likely to be sensitive salt and had higher blood pressure; HealthDay News reports.

Salt gets a bad rap. But it’s warranted. A recent report found reducing salt helps lower systolic blood pressure by helping blood vessels relax. And in September, experts at American Heart Association claimed cutting salt helps control high blood pressure. Salt also contributes to heart disease and stroke.

As for metabolic syndrome, previous studies show red meat increases the risk of metabolic syndrome but eating some mixed nuts everyday lowers risk by 13.7%. Nutty!

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (1)
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Vitamin D supplements may reduce the risk of multiple sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune condition causing the immune system to attack the central nervous system. Disease onset occurs in young adults and affects 350,000 people in the United States, but new findings in the journal PLoS Genetics reveal giving infants vitamin D may “switch on” certain genes and lower overall risk of multiple sclerosis; NutraIngredients reports.

Our bodies convert ultraviolet rays from the sun into vitamin D and vitamin D increases the absorption of calcium, leading to stronger bones and less risk of osteoporosis. And getting sufficient vitamin D has been linked to lower risk of prostate cancer and hypertension.

Actually in 2006, Harvard researchers also determined higher levels of vitamin D may protect against multiple sclerosis.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (3)
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Karen Collins, MS, RD, CDN, a practicing nutritionist in upstate New York, loves root vegetables, stuff like carrots, turnips, jicama, beets and radishes. She likes that they’re cheap, perfect for these economic tough times. They’ve got a long self life, some as long as 3 weeks! And veggies, like parsnips and rutabagas are high in potassium, which helps to control blood pressure; via CalorieLab.

Root vegetables, such as beets and carrots, are packed with fiber and powerful antioxidants, like cartonoids and betacyanin, which protect against cancer by inhibiting cell mutations. And these anti-cancer properties are also found in other fruits and veggies, like nuts, beans, peppers, tomatoes, oranges and especially leafy greens, such as broccoli and watercress.

Now, beets are great for making healthy desserts and you can totally find them on the cheap. I once found a pile of beets and turnips for under a buck!

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (2)
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Reported in Archives of Internal Medicine, scientists have determined multivitamins have little or no influence on the risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease or overall death-risk in postmenopausal women. The study involved 161, 808 participants and documented chronic conditions, such as breast, colon and stomach cancer and stroke, myocardial infarction and total mortality. Researchers point out populations eating a lot of fruits and vegetables have lower risk of chronic disease; via CNN.

In November, findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed vitamins C and E do nothing to prevent heart disease in men and then in December, another study showed just taking vitamin C and E and selenium supplements don’t ward off prostate cancer.

Now, for potent sources of vitamins and minerals, with known anti-cancer and heart disease-preventing effects, give green veggies, like broccoli, kale and Swiss chard, a try!

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Dumb ideas, we’ve all heard them, like the Jump to Conclusions Mat and the Knife Wrench, both equally stupid. But they’re about to be topped! Some dummy has announced for the entire month of February he’ll only eat bacon—plus beer, wine, water and martinis. And he says his weight won’t change and his blood pressure may actually drop; via Fit Sugar.

Okay, let’s recap. Bacon bad, bacon very bad! Just last month a studied linked cured meats, such as bacon and hotdogs, with a higher risk of leukemia and a previous report showed processed meats and cheese speed up the growth of lung cancer tumors. Not to mention, foods rich in saturated fat, like bacon, lead to heart disease.

I like this idea better, get an entire city to go veggie for a month. As for me, the closest I get to bacon these days is the Haminal. He’s cuddly, cute and cholesterol free!

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (5)
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

A new study in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests the benefits of reducing salt may extend beyond heart health. Australian researchers examined 29 overweight and obese men and women with normal blood pressure. Participants were randomly assigned a low-salt diet or an American diet for 2 weeks. After 2 weeks, they switched to the other diet, followed by 2 weeks of no intervention. Findings revealed people on a low-salt diet had lower systolic blood pressure and improved flow-mediated dilation (FMD), which is blood vessels ability to relax; FoodNavigator investigates.

Salt is not part of a healthy diet. According to Dr. Fuhrman, salt increases the body’s excretion of calcium, leading to bone loss and osteoporosis. And salt is very dangerous for vegans and vegetarians. It boosts risk boosts their risk of hemorrhagic stroke risk.

But a different kind of salt was recently named healthy! Salt Lake City, Utah is the fittest city in the United States. Sorry, shameless tie-in!

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (4)
• Trackbacks
• Share Link