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

I need more vitamin D. I can’t think my way out of a paper bag. And now, new research in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry reveals insufficient levels of vitamin D are associated with cognitive impairments in older men. Experts studied over 3,000 European men, ages 40 to 79, and discovered participants with low vitamin D scored worse on thinking tests, compared to people with normal levels. The average vitamin D level was 63 nanomoles per liter, researchers say 90 to 140 is considered optimal; Reuters explains.

We neglect vitamin D. It’s important! Our bodies get vitamin D from sunshine. It acts like a hormone and tells our intestines to absorb calcium and phosphorus. Recently, lack of vitamin D has been linked to sudden cardiac death and even stunted growth. That’s why Dr. Fuhrman’s Osteo-Sun is designed to provide an optimal dose of vitamin D.

Whoa! Not getting enough vitamin D can be scary. Last week, a report showed insufficient vitamin D can make people demented and increase risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Eek!

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A new study in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease claims low blood levels of vitamin D may heighten the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Scientists point out numerous studies have linked vitamin D deficiency with conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, depression and gum disease, and that all of these have been associated with increased risk of dementia. The cost of Alzheimer’s care in the U.S. tops $100 billion each year; via Nutra Ingredients.

Vitamin D deficiency is an epidemic, with c-sections, high blood pressure and heart attacks all linked to inadequate vitamin D. Vitamin D helps your body build strong bones and stave off osteoporosis and helps to prevent cancer, such as colon, breast and prostate cancer.

Many multivitamins do not contain sufficient vitamin D. That’s why Dr. Fuhrman’s Osteo-Sun is specifically designed to provide enough vitamin D, both in its vegan and non-vegan forms.

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• According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Commission to Build a Healthier America, highly educated people, ages 25 to 74, are healthier than adults who didn’t graduate high school of the same age. Non-graduates are 2.5 times less likely to be in very good health than college graduates; from HealthDay News.

• Writing in the journal Nutrition Reviews, researchers claim immigrant populations moving to European countries tend to replace their traditional healthy diets with the worst aspects of western diets, such as fast food. Ethnic groups with low incomes often can not afford healthier foods and face limited food availability; via EurekAlert!

• Americans are mental! Published in the journal Health Affairs, data shows more Americans are now on medications for mental issues. Compared to 1996, 73% more adults and 50% more children are using psychotropic drugs, medications include antidepressants, antipsychotics and Alzheimer's drugs; Reuters reports.

• United States senators Tom Harkin and Lisa Murkowski want a bill passed allowing the U.S. Agriculture Department to establish nutrition standards for snack food and beverages sold in school vending machines, which are often high in fat, sugar and calories. This sort of legislation may help kick junk foods out of schools; Reuters explains.

• Parents who teach their kids to stay focused and not worry about the small stuff, increase children’s chances of becoming healthier adults, especially girls. The study, in the journal Health Psychology, tracked 569 individuals finding participants with better attention spans and positives outlooks reported better health; from ScienceDaily.

• The Children's Food Campaign has determined many baby foods are worse than junk food. Saying some baby products contain as much sugar and saturated fat as chocolate cookies and cheeseburgers. For example, a brand of cheese biscuits has more saturated fat per gram than a McDonald’s quarter-pounder with cheese; via Reuters.

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A new study in Journal of Inflammation claims polyphenols, plant nutrients that reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer, contained in pomegranate extract inhibit the production of inflammatory compounds, potentially preventing chronic inflammation associated with heart disease, Alzheimer's, osteoporosis, diabetes and arthritis. For the study, scientists stimulated cells to prompt an inflammatory response and then incubated the cells with pomegranate. Results showed pomegranate extract decreased pro-inflammatory reaction; Bakery and Snacks investigates.

Pomegranates are the real deal. Dr. Fuhrman calls them potent disease-fighters, especially for prostate cancer. In 2006, a study revealed men drinking pomegranate juice had better PSA scores. And pomegranates have also been found to help prevent atherosclerosis and diabetes.

In related news, the term “antioxidants” is resonating with consumers and increasing their willingness to try products including them. Maybe that’s the why the pomegranate phone is so darn cool.

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Smoking is a drag, no pun intended, but apparently obesity is equally bad. New findings published in The Lancet found moderate obesity shortens life expectancy by up to 4 years and severe obesity can shave off 10 years. Scientists compare these effects to lifelong smoking. The study followed 895,000 people in Europe and North America. During the study 100,000 participants died. Researchers claim carrying a third more than your optimum weight can shorten your life by roughly 3 years, for most people that is 50 to 60 extra pounds; from Medical News Today.

Obesity news is never good. Just last week obesity was linked to dementia and Alzheimer's disease, as well as poor reproductive ability in women, and just a little bit of belly fat makes it hard to breathe. Maybe that’s because your mouth is always stuffed with food!

So, if you’ve got a weight problem. Consider this. Vegetables are low in calories and high in fiber. This fills your stomach quickly without all the extra calories, i.e. you’ll lose weight.

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New findings in the Archives of Neurology reveal obesity, along with heart disease and diabetes heighten the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease. In a series of studies researchers examined over 10,000 individuals with conditions such as obesity and determined those participants with metabolic syndrome-related ailments had reduced cognitive function later in life, leading to Alzheimer's; HealthDay News reports.

Dr. Fuhrman insists a diet rich in green vegetables helps reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, while diets low in vegetables and high in meat actually increase the likelihood of developing dementia. Exercise has also been shown to protect against dementia.

But we’re still a whacked out country! In 2008, the number of Americans with Alzheimer's reached 5 million. Although later in the year it was discovered internet searches can keep our brains healthy, but I don’t think that includes looking for funneh LOLcats.

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While not claiming a direct link between mad cow and Alzheimer's disease, a new study in the journal Nature suggests prion protein, an infectious agent associated with the neurodegenerative illness Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, the human equivalent of mad cow, may relate to mad cow disease itself. Prion protein is a misfolded protein that can arise from genetic mutations or can be contracted by eating tainted meat, such as cattle infected with mad cow disease; The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

This summer South Koreans went berserk when officials began renegotiating beef imports with the U.S. fueled by fears over a 2003 outbreak of mad cow disease in the United States. Before that, the Bush administration backed a federal appeal to stop meatpackers from testing their animals for mad cow.

With in the past few years both the U.S. and Canada reported incidents of mad cow disease. I don’t eat red meat. I’m way too crazy already. Eek!

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Next time you’re freaked out, calm down. A new study in Neurology claims people who cope with stress are less likely to develop dementia. In outgoing, social people the findings were particularly high. A decreased risk was also observed in less social people that could still handle stress well. Researchers tracked 506 older people for 6 years, during this time 106 became demented. In the beginning, participants filled out questionnaires to determine their personality type and stress level; CNN reports.

I deal with stress by bashing my head against the wall. Kidding! Actually, for me Yoga is a huge stress alleviator. And a previous study reveals mediation and prayer techniques, like those found in Yoga, might change people’s gene activity and help them better react to stress. Shanti, shanti!

And other reports show being social improves memory and reducing stress helps you live longer.

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I’m a genius! I do HUNDREDS of web searches each day. A new report claims searching the net TRAINS our brains to stay active and healthy; Reuters reports.

This is GREAT! And centenarians would agree. In a recent survey, U.S. centenarians listed “keep your mind active” as a TOP TEN tip for living to 100.

I wonder how many searches you’d have to do to STOP alcohol from shrinking your brain. Oh, and here's more tips! Check out Dr. Fuhrman’s Seven Secrets of Longevity.

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This is an excerpt from Dr. Fuhrman’s book Eat For Health.

As this chart shows, heart disease as a major cause of disability and death is a recent phenomenon.

Heart disease was not inevitable in the past and it doesn’t have to be inevitable now. It has known causes. Populations where these predisposing lifestyles are not lived out have practically no heart disease. When studies look at these issues, they find that the cultures that eat a healthy, vegetable-rich diet have almost no recorded heart disease, including hundreds of thousands of rural Chinese who have not had a single documented heart attack.1 Because heart disease has become so ubiquitous in America, many people believe the myth that heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, and dementia are largely genetic or the consequence of aging. It may be rare in the modern world that any majority of a population exercises, does not smoke, and eats very healthfully, but those that do earn a low-risk status and do not have heart attacks.2

The same factors that cause atherosclerosis, leading to heart attacks and strokes, also create dementia, and I am referring to both vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s. This includes the same diets that are high in animal fat and low in vitamins, minerals, fruits, and green vegetables.3 Of course, smoking and lack of physical exercise play a role in these common diseases, but the point is that it does not have to happen to you. These diseases, and others that plague modern America, are not the inevitable consequences of aging. They can actually resolve and improve with age or can be avoided entirely. They are simply the result of years of poor nutrition and an unhealthy lifestyle. My hope for you is that through this eating-style, you, like my patients who have embraced this program, can rid yourself of migraine headaches, acne, autoimmune diseases, and diabetes. So many of my patients have restored their health after conventional physicians—and the conventional beliefs about the inevitability of disease— told them their problems were going to be life long. Their doctors were wrong.

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