Wednesday May 6, 2009

Food industry breaks healthy eating promises
Guardian UK, May 4, 2009
A report published today shows just how little the food industry has done to make products marketed at children more healthy. Are we surprised? A quick quiz for mummies and daddies. Which of these pairs of snacks are better for your little darling?
1. A bite of MacDonald's quarter-pounder with cheese? Or a Farley's Toddler's Own Mini-Cheese Biscuit?
2. A dark chocolate digestive? Or a Farley's Original rusk?
3. A bite of Cadbury's Picnic bar? Or a spoonful of Kellogg's Crunchy Nut Cornflakes?
4. A packet of Walker's cheese and onion crisps, or the same weight in Tesco's Special Flakes breakfast cereal?
You probably didn't have much trouble with that. Obviously the naughty snack choices are better for a little 'un - there's less saturated fat, gram for gram, in the quarter-pounder, less sugar in the digestive and the Picnic bar, and much less salt in the crisps.

This all comes from new reports by Sustain's Children's Food Campaign and Which?. They also pointed out that Morrison's Choco Crackles, Kellogg's Coco Pops, Moons and Stars, Frosties and Ricicles are 37% pure sugar - indeed they contain about as much per 30g serving as a Cadbury's chocolate Flake.
OK, so you're not surprised. It does boggle one's cells, though, the way these food corporations have the cheek to trumpet their commitment to children's health. "We're on a journey to make sure we always make good food your family can eat at every mealtime ... working closely with the Food Standards Agency and Government health departments on healthy eating issues," says Heinz, who own Farley's. Some journey. And Heinz have a page on their site devoted to the problem of overweight six-year-olds and obese 15 year olds – where Heinz admits and profusely apologises for the role its played in Billy Bunterising the nation.
Actually Heinz doesn't – Heinz blames the parents. We should exercise our brats more and tempt them to eat greens by adding Heinz Tomato Ketchup and Heinz Salad Cream, it says. The sad thing is, some of us will. We trust them. And then we'll become the subjects of one of those specialist Daily Telegraph human zoo pieces, like this one, where "Britain's fattest mother" admits to raising her eight-month-old triplets on fast food. But that now seems not to be such a bad idea.
Still not shocked by the food corporations? OK try this. A bowl of Kellogg's Frosties – which, you may have noticed, is marketed at children, especially those who like tigers - contains 37g of sugar, about 7 teaspoons, in 100g. This is nearly half the entire recommended daily intake of sugar for a 5-10 year old (my 10-year-old Frostie-fan eats about 80g of the cereal in a sitting, when he can get them).
In 2004, after criticism from the government, Kellogg's promised to cut the sugar content of Frosties and introduced a new "reduced sugar" version, a mere 25% sugar to the standard 37%. But where are Reduced Sugar Frosties now? All eaten up, probably by Tony the Tiger. They went out of production last year.
But don't worry. Kellogg's is taking steps, "because nothing's more important in life than your health and wellbeing". The website boasts: "We've teamed up with the Government's Change4Life initiative to promote a balance of eating well, being more active and therefore living longer." Still not surprised? Nor me.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/wordofmouth/2009/may/04/junk-food-children-kids

Famous Study Blaming Beta-Carotene for Increases in Lung Cancer Was Dishonest, Flawed
David Gutierrez, NaturalNews.com, May 5, 2009

(NaturalNews) A German professor has questioned the findings of a recent study that linked beta-carotene supplements to an increased risk of lung cancer in smokers.

"The obvious weakness of this study lies in its methodology," said Hans Konrad Biesalski of the Institute for Biological Chemistry and Nutrition at the University of Hohenheim.

The study, conducted by researchers from the University of North Carolina (UNC)-Chapel Hill published in March in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that smokers who took beta-carotene, lutein or retinol supplements over the long term had a significantly higher risk of lung cancer than those who did not take the supplements. The risk of lung cancer increased relative to the amount of time that supplements were taken.

Biesalski criticized the study for relying on dietary questionnaires to assess participants' supplement intake.

"For this study, participants were asked to give details from memory of food supplements which they had taken in some cases 10 years ago," he said. "It is hardly conceivable that the subjects were able to remember accurately enough in which sequence, how frequently and in what composition they had taken products containing micronutrients in the previous four or ten years. ... The validity of the questionnaires used and above all the conclusions drawn from them are therefore questionable."

Biesalski attributes some of the study's more perplexing findings to this methodological flaw.

"For the first time [the study showed] that it is not the absolute dose that increases the risk of lung cancer, but the length of time of use," he said. "This is not surprising, since recall of dosages is surely even more dubious than recall of preparations."

He noted that dietary supplements can play an important role in cancer prevention, although they cannot in themselves make up for poor lifestyle choices.

"Numerous epidemiological studies confirm a preventive effect for lung cancer from a balanced, carotenoid and vitamin rich diet," Biesalski said. "Clearly, however, micronutrients alone cannot compensate the consequences of harmful behavior such as smoking."
http://www.naturalnews.com/026205.html

Yoga for anxiety and depression

Harvard Medical School Health Publication, April 2009 Issue

Studies suggest that this practice modulates the stress response.
Since the 1970s, meditation and other stress-reduction techniques have been studied as possible treatments for depression and anxiety. One such practice, yoga, has received less attention in the medical literature, though it has become increasingly popular in recent decades. One national survey estimated, for example, that about 7.5% of U.S. adults had tried yoga at least once, and that nearly 4% practiced yoga in the previous year.
Yoga classes can vary from gentle and accommodating to strenuous and challenging; the choice of style tends to be based on physical ability and personal preference. Hatha yoga, the most common type of yoga practiced in the United States, combines three elements: physical poses, called asanas; controlled breathing practiced in conjunction with asanas; and a short period of deep relaxation or meditation.
Many of the studies evaluating yoga's therapeutic benefits have been small and poorly designed. However, a 2004 analysis found that, in recent decades, an increasing number have been randomized controlled trials — the most rigorous standard for proving efficacy.
Available reviews of a wide range of yoga practices suggest they can reduce the impact of exaggerated stress responses and may be helpful for both anxiety and depression. In this respect, yoga functions like other self-soothing techniques, such as meditation, relaxation, exercise, or even socializing with friends.

Taming the stress response

By reducing perceived stress and anxiety, yoga appears to modulate stress response systems. This, in turn, decreases physiological arousal — for example, reducing the heart rate, lowering blood pressure, and easing respiration. There is also evidence that yoga practices help increase heart rate variability, an indicator of the body's ability to respond to stress more flexibly.
A small but intriguing study further characterizes the effect of yoga on the stress response. In 2008, researchers at the University of Utah presented preliminary results from a study of varied participants' responses to pain. They note that people who have a poorly regulated response to stress are also more sensitive to pain. Their subjects were 12 experienced yoga practitioners, 14 people with fibromyalgia (a condition many researchers consider a stress-related illness that is characterized by hypersensitivity to pain), and 16 healthy volunteers.
When the three groups were subjected to more or less painful thumbnail pressure, the participants with fibromyalgia — as expected — perceived pain at lower pressure levels compared with the other subjects. Functional MRIs showed they also had the greatest activity in areas of the brain associated with the pain response. In contrast, the yoga practitioners had the highest pain tolerance and lowest pain-related brain activity during the MRI. The study underscores the value of techniques, such as yoga, that can help a person regulate their stress and, therefore, pain responses.

Improved mood and functioning

Questions remain about exactly how yoga works to improve mood, but preliminary evidence suggests its benefit is similar to that of exercise and relaxation techniques.
In a German study published in 2005, 24 women who described themselves as "emotionally distressed" took two 90-minute yoga classes a week for three months. Women in a control group maintained their normal activities and were asked not to begin an exercise or stress-reduction program during the study period.
Though not formally diagnosed with depression, all participants had experienced emotional distress for at least half of the previous 90 days. They were also one standard deviation above the population norm in scores for perceived stress (measured by the Cohen Perceived Stress Scale), anxiety (measured using the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory), and depression (scored with the Profile of Mood States and the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, or CES-D).
At the end of three months, women in the yoga group reported improvements in perceived stress, depression, anxiety, energy, fatigue, and well-being. Depression scores improved by 50%, anxiety scores by 30%, and overall well-being scores by 65%. Initial complaints of headaches, back pain, and poor sleep quality also resolved much more often in the yoga group than in the control group.

Potential help for PTSD

Since evidence suggests that yoga can tone down maladaptive nervous system arousal, researchers are exploring whether or not yoga can be a helpful practice for patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
One randomized controlled study examined the effects of yoga and a breathing program in disabled Australian Vietnam veterans diagnosed with severe PTSD. The veterans were heavy daily drinkers, and all were taking at least one antidepressant. The five-day course included breathing techniques (see above), yoga asanas, education about stress reduction, and guided meditation. Participants were evaluated at the beginning of the study using the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), which ranks symptom severity on an 80-point scale.
Six weeks after the study began, the yoga and breathing group had dropped their CAPS scores from averages of 57 (moderate to severe symptoms) to 42 (mild to moderate). These improvements persisted at a six-month follow-up. The control group, consisting of veterans on a waiting list, showed no improvement.
About 20% of war veterans who served in Afghanistan or Iraq suffer from PTSD, according to one estimate. Experts treating this population suggest that yoga can be a useful addition to the treatment program.

Cautions and encouragement

Although many forms of yoga practice are safe, some are strenuous and may not be appropriate for everyone. In particular, elderly patients or those with mobility problems may want to check first with a clinician before choosing yoga as a treatment option.
But for many patients dealing with depression, anxiety, or stress, yoga may be a very appealing way to better manage symptoms. Indeed, the scientific study of yoga demonstrates that mental and physical health are not just closely allied, but are essentially equivalent. The evidence is growing that yoga practice is a relatively low-risk, high-yield approach to improving overall health.
Brown RP, et al. "Sudarshan Kriya Yogic Breathing in the Treatment of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression: Part I — Neurophysiologic Model," Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (Feb. 2005): Vol. 11, No. 1, pp. 189–201.
Brown RP, et al. "Sudarshan Kriya Yogic Breathing in the Treatment of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression: Part II — Clinical Applications and Guidelines," Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (Aug. 2005): Vol. 11, No. 4, pp. 711–17.
Janakiramaiah N, et al. "Antidepressant Efficacy of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) in Melancholia: A Randomized Comparison with Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) and Imipramine," Journal of Affective Disorders (Jan.–March 2000): Vol. 57, No. 1–3, pp. 255–59.
Khalsa SB. "Yoga as a Therapeutic Intervention: A Bibliometric Analysis of Published Research Studies," Indian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology (July 2004): Vol. 48, No. 3, pp. 269–85.
Kirkwood G, et al. "Yoga for Anxiety: A Systematic Review of the Research," British Journal of Sports Medicine (Dec. 2005): Vol. 39, No. 12, pp. 884–91.
Pilkington K, et al. "Yoga for Depression: The Research Evidence," Journal of Affective Disorders (Dec. 2005): Vol. 89, No. 1–3, pp. 13–24.
Saper RB, et al. "Prevalence and Patterns of Adult Yoga Use in the United States: Results of a National Survey," Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine (March–April 2004): Vol. 10, No. 2, pp. 44–49.
https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Mental_Health_Letter/2009/
April/Yoga-for-anxiety-and-depression

Cancer-obesity link discovery by MSU researchers could aid prevention efforts

Michigan State University News, April 30, 2009 E-mail Editor
EAST LANSING, Mich. — A new link between body fat and cancer identified by a Michigan State University researcher underscores obesity’s health risk and could lead to new cancer treatment and prevention strategies. Jenifer Fenton, an MSU food science and human nutrition researcher with the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, identified the connection between obesity and colon cancer, the third-leading killer of Americans, in part by examining tissue hormones.

Working with MSU/MAES physiologist Julia Busik and biologist Fay Hansen-Smith of Oakland University in Rochester, Mich., Fenton examined a key hormone found in fat tissue and thought to promote cancer. Her conclusions are published in a study today in the journal Carcinogenesis.
 Leptin – a fat cell-derived hormone regulating body energy – is higher in obese individuals. Fenton’s study is the first to demonstrate that, at higher levels, leptin induces precancerous colon cells to produce more of a growth factor that can increase blood supply to early cancer cells – promoting tumor growth and cancer progression.
 “Adipose tissue, or fat, is recognized as a significant risk factor for diabetes and heart disease, but the role of adipose tissue in cancer risk is less understood,” Fenton said. “Abdominal fat in particular seems to be associated with the greatest risk for cancer. As your waist-to-hip ratio increases, so does your risk for cancer, especially breast, colon and endometrial cancers.”
 Some 149,000 Americans will be diagnosed with colon cancer and 50,000 will die from it this year, according to the American Cancer Society. More than a million have been diagnosed with colon or rectal cancer in the U.S. as of 2006, the National Cancer Institute reported.
 Fenton and her team focused on colon cancer because, unlike breast or prostate cancer, colon cancer affects both genders equally, allowing them broader reach and a larger impact on cancer prevention.
 “Trying to address the problem when someone already has a late-stage tumor is not primary prevention,” Fenton said. “Our goal is to understand the active signals and mechanisms involved so we can create opportunities to prevent or interrupt cancer progression early in the process.
 “The impact of obesity and cancer are a priority for the health of the nation,” Fenton added. “Although weight loss is the ideal prevention strategy for reducing obesity as a risk factor for colon cancer, 95 percent of all people who lose weight will gain it back – and often more – within a year, so behavior modification as a prevention strategy is difficult and challenging. For this reason, continuing research also will include the identification of dietary compounds that may prevent or reduce colon cancer risk associated with obesity in the absence of weight loss.”
 The study, “Novel Mechanism for Obesity-induced Colon Cancer Progression,” is available online. The research is supported by the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station and the National Cancer Institute.
 http://news.msu.edu/story/6272/

Calorie restriction causes temporal changes in liver metabolism

American Gastroenterological Association, May 4, 2009

Dietary fat and carbohydrates alter insulin sensitivity during restriction

Bethesda, MD (May 4, 2009) – Moderate calorie restriction causes temporal changes in the liver and skeletal muscle metabolism, whereas moderate weight loss affects muscle, according to a new study in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) Institute. In addition, researchers found that short-term calorie restriction (CR) with a low-carbohydrate diet caused a greater change in liver fat content and metabolic function than short-term CR with a high-carbohydrate diet.
Insulin resistance is the most common metabolic complication associated with obesity and is associated with an increased risk of developing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and type 2 diabetes. Although an energy-deficit diet is the cornerstone of therapy for obesity, the most appropriate macronutrient composition of diet therapy needed to improve metabolic health remains controversial.
"Our data underscore the complexity of the metabolic effects of calorie restricition with diets that differ in macronutrient composition, and demonstrate differences among organ systems in the response to calorie restriction and subsequent weight loss," said Samuel Klein, MD, of the Washington University School of Medicine and lead author of the study. "Our findings help explain the rapid improvement in glucose levels observed after low-calorie diet therapy and bariatric surgery," he added.
In the present study, 22 obese patients were randomized to a high-carbohydrate or low-carbohydrate energy-deficit diet. A euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp, muscle biopsies and magnetic resonance spectroscopy were used to determine insulin action, cellular insulin signaling and intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content before, after 48 hours and after ~11 wks (7 percent weight loss) of diet therapy. An euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp is a widely used experimental procedure for the determination of insulin sensitivity.
Researchers found that short-term CR caused a rapid decrease in IHTG content, an increase in hepatic insulin sensitivity and a decrease in endogenous glucose production rate, whereas longer-term CR and a moderate 7 percent weight loss improved skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity in conjunction with an increase in cellular insulin signaling. The effect of moderate CR in obese patients with either a low-fat or low-carbohydrate diet on metabolic function is a continuum, with differential effects on specific organ systems.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-05/aga-crc050409.php

MEDITATE YOUR WAY TO BETTER BLADDER HEALTH

Loyola School of Medicine News, April 28, 2009

MAYWOOD, Ill. - After nine years of suffering in silence and living in fear of leaving the house, Anna Raisor, 53, turned to physicians at Loyola University Health System (LUHS) for alternative measures to treat the embarrassing side effects of incontinence.
LUHS physicians enrolled Raisor in a clinical trial using cognitive therapy to manage her overactive bladder. Cognitive therapy employs deep-breathing and guided-imagery exercises that train the brain to control the bladder without medication or surgery.
Findings from this study, which were presented today at the American Urological Association's Annual Meeting in Chicago, Ill, revealed that cognitive therapy is an effective management strategy for urge incontinence. These results also were published in the latest issue of the Journal of Urology.
"The mind-body connection has proven to be particularly valuable for women suffering from incontinence," said study investigator Aaron Michelfelder, MD, vice chair, division of family medicine, Loyola University Health System, and associate professor, department of family medicine, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. "Cognitive therapy is effective with these women, because they are motivated to make a change and regain control over their body."
Michelfelder's patients attend an initial office visit where he introduces them to cognitive therapy. They then listen to an audio recording with a series of relaxation and visualization exercises at home twice a day for two weeks. Patients track the number of incontinence episodes that they experience in a pre- and post-therapy diary. The majority of patients, including Raisor, experienced a substantial improvement in symptoms.
"Before entering this clinical trial, I saturated seven to eight pads a day and was afraid to leave home as a result," said Raisor. "Today, I am 98 percent free of leakage. The therapy has allowed me to successfully recognize the link between my brain and bladder to manage my incontinence and remain virtually accident-free."
The study evaluated a subset of 10 patients with a mean age of 62. Patients were eligible to participate in this study, if they had a diagnosis of overactive bladder (OAB), which is the sudden and unstoppable need to urinate. They also had to be stable on all OAB treatments for the past three months before entering the study. The data revealed that the average number of urge incontinence episodes per week decreased from 38 to 12.
"Nearly one in four women suffers from a pelvic floor disorder, which includes incontinence," said study investigator Mary Pat FitzGerald, MD, urogynecologist, Loyola University Health System, and associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. "Cognitive therapy may play a vital role in a comprehensive approach to treating this disorder."
Study investigators FitzGerald and fellow Shameem Abbasy, MD, are part of a team of LUHS urogynecologists who are combining the expertise of urologists and gynecologists to transform the way women with incontinence and other pelvic floor disorders are managed. Loyola University Health System's Urogynecology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery Center was the first of its kind in greater Chicago. It is still one of the few centers in the country that offers a single location for the diagnosis and treatment of women with pelvic floor disorders.
In addition to using cognitive therapy to treat incontinence, LUHS urogynecologists have been using the robotic da VinciTM surgical system with positive outcomes for nearly two years. LUHS was one of the first groups in Chicago to offer this type of minimally invasive robotic surgery.
http://www.loyolamedicine.org/News/News_Releases/
news_release_detail.cfm?var_news_release_id=973440965

Hypothyroidism In Women Associated With Liver Cancer

Women with a history of hypothyroidism face a significantly higher risk of developing liver cancer, according to a new study in the May issue of Hepatology, a journal published by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). The article is also available online at Wiley Interscience (www.interscience.wiley.com).
Hypothyroidism is the most common thyroid disorder among U.S. adults, affecting between 8 and 12 percent of the U.S. population, and more women than men. The condition can cause hyperlipidemia and weight gain and may play a role in the development of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis which can progress to more severe liver disease. Studies have also suggested a clinical association between hypothyroidism and hepatitis C, which is contributing to the country’s rising rate of liver cancer.
Researchers, led by Manal Hassan of Anderson Cancer Center at the University of Texas, designed a case-control study to better understand the association between hypothyroidism and the development of liver cancer, also known as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), in the U.S.
They included 420 patients with liver cancer and 1,104 healthy controls. From each subject, the researchers gathered demographic data and information about liver cancer risk factors, like smoking, alcohol consumption and family cancer history. The participants were also asked about their history of thyroid conditions and obesity. They provided blood samples that were tested for hepatitis B and hepatitis C.
About 15 percent of the liver cancer patients had a history of thyroid disease, compared to about 12 percent of the healthy controls. Subjects with a history of hypothyroidism had twice the risk of liver cancer; however the relationship was only significant for females.
Women who had a prior history of hypothyroidism for more than 10 years had a threefold higher risk of liver cancer compared to women without a history of thyroid disorders. Adjusting for obesity did not change the association.
“Whether and why hypothyroidism causes HCC is not clear,” the authors write. “However, the association between hypothyroidism and NASH can be explained by the underlying hyperlipidemia, decreased fatty acid oxidation insulin resistance and lipid peroxidation in patients with hypothyroidism.” And these conditions may make the patient susceptible to HCC development.
“Further studies among different populations are warranted to confirm the association between hypothyroidism and HCC and to identify the underlying biological mechanisms and the genetic predisposition factors that may contribute to susceptibility to HCC development in the presence of thyroid disorders,” the authors conclude.
Article: “Association Between Hypothyroidism and Hepatocellular Carcinoma: USA Case-Control Study.” Hassan, Manal; Kaseb, Ahmed; Li, Donghui; Patt, Yehuda; Vauthey, Jean-Nicolas; Thomas, Melanie; Curley, Steven A.; Spitz, Margaret; Sherman, Steven; Abdalla, Eddie; Davila, Marta; Lozano, Richard; Hassan, Deena; Chan, Wenyaw; Brown, Thomas; Abbruzzese, James. Hepatology; May 2009.