Nutritional supplement may help decrease addiction

From physorg:

In a recent eight-week trial, 27 people were given increasing doses of the amino acid, N-acetyl cysteine, which has an impact on the chemical glutamate – often associated with reward in the brain. At the end of the trial, 60 percent of the participants reported fewer urges to gamble. The research will be published in the Sept.15, 2007 issue of Biological Psychiatry.

Yet another over the counter miracle supplement, like SAM-e and tryptophan that may soon be a diet fad without substantial data, but with such promise of benefit that it could soon take on a life of its own.

A good breakfast can help control your blood sugar all day!

From Science Daily:

"It is known that a carbohydrate-rich breakfast with low GI [glycemic index] can moderate increases in blood sugar after lunch. But my results show that low GI in combination with the right amount of so-called indigestible carbohydrates, that is, dietary fiber and resistant starch, can keep the blood-sugar level low for up to ten hours, which means until after dinner," says Anne Nilsson, a doctoral student at the Unit for Applied Nutrition and Food Chemistry and author of the dissertation.
Experiments also showed that the blood sugar increase following breakfast can be moderated in a similar way by eating the right grain products the night before.

Additionally, eating the 'right' grains can help decrease metabolic syndrome. This researcher also studied mental acuity and blood sugar levels after meals.

It turned out that subjects who had eaten low GI breakfasts could concentrate better and had a better working memory (a type of short-term memory) than the other group. These experiments also showed that healthy individuals with low glucose tolerance, that is with high rises in blood sugar than average following a meal, generally performed less well. "The findings indicate that people with great fluctuations in their levels of blood sugar run a greater risk of having a generally lower cognitive ability," says Anne Nilsson.

Apparently, the indigestible carbohydrates are the key to feeding the bacteria in the large intestine. This in turn ferments the carbohydrates into usable compenents like short chain fatty acids:

Anne Nilsson's studies show that components produced in the process of fermentation can enter the blood and favorably affect the regulation of blood sugar and the feeling of satiety, and they can help alleviate inflammatory conditions in the body, which in turn can entail a reduced risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

Diet pill to go over the counter this Fri

The FDA has finally approved orlistat, better known by its prescription name brand xenical, to become available over the counter (OTC) this Friday, 6/15. The OTC version will be called alli.

Since the main side effects are loose, oily stools (steatorrhea), increased flatulence, and decreased absorption of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K, and beta-carotene), I wonder if sales of Depends and multivitamins will increase.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070613102138.htm

Volume expanding diet pill fills you up so you eat less

Pic: Jelly belly, from about the size of a spit wad the compound grows to a tennis ball so dieters sit down feeling full. Image: Courtesy of Prof. Luigi Ambrosio

From wired:

MILAN -- Italian scientists are testing a new diet pill that turns into a clear, gelatinous blob the size of a tennis ball that may help shrink waistlines by giving dieters a sense of satiety.

This is currently in clinical trials in Rome. If all goes well, they hope to have it available to the public in about a year.

When swallowed, it is in powder form, but when you add water (you are supposed to drink 2 glasses of water with this), this cellulose hydrogel can soak up to 1,000 times its weight.

I wonder if this could dehydrate people, especially since most people don't actually take their pills as prescribed. Without the 2 glasses of water, that liquid will come from somewhere, and I'll be interested in seeing if this creates any electrolyte imbalances.

Of course, the safer way to diet would be to focus on foods with lower caloric density.

From physorg:

Eating smart, not eating less, may be the key to losing weight. A year-long clinical trial by Penn State researchers shows that diets focusing on foods that are low in calorie density can promote healthy weight loss while helping people to control hunger.
Foods that are high in water and low in fat – such as fruits, vegetables, soup, lean meat, and low-fat dairy products – are low in calorie density and provide few calories per bite. “Eating a diet that is low in calorie density allows people to eat satisfying portions of food, and this may decrease feelings of hunger and deprivation while reducing calories” said Dr. Julia A. Ello-Martin, who conducted the study as part of her doctoral dissertation in the College of Health and Human Development at Penn State.

May not be as cool and high tech, but definitely sounds cheaper and safer.

Soft drinks are unhealthy, especially for your mitochondrial DNA

Apparently, the culprit is sodium benzoate, a preservative which is used to prevent mold in soft drinks, and found in Coca Cola, Pepsi, Sprite, Dr. Pepper, and others.

All about sodium benzoate, from The Independent:

"Sodium benzoate has already been the subject of concern about cancer because when mixed with the additive vitamin C in soft drinks, it causes benzene, a carcinogenic substance. A Food Standards Agency survey of benzene in drinks last year found high levels in four brands which were removed from sale.
Now, an expert in ageing at Sheffield University, who has been working on sodium benzoate since publishing a research paper in 1999, has decided to speak out about another danger. Professor Peter Piper, a professor of molecular biology and biotechnology, tested the impact of sodium benzoate on living yeast cells in his laboratory. What he found alarmed him: the benzoate was damaging an important area of DNA in the "power station" of cells known as the mitochondria.
He told The Independent on Sunday: "These chemicals have the ability to cause severe damage to DNA in the mitochondria to the point that they totally inactivate it: they knock it out altogether.
"The mitochondria consumes the oxygen to give you energy and if you damage it - as happens in a number if diseased states - then the cell starts to malfunction very seriously. And there is a whole array of diseases that are now being tied to damage to this DNA - Parkinson's and quite a lot of neuro-degenerative diseases, but above all the whole process of ageing.""

It's also suspected of worsening ADHD in kids.

http://news.independent.co.uk/health/article2586652.ece

School lunch vending machines: tracking so much more

From cnet:

"Instead of standing in one of eight long lunch lines during a 30-minute break, students at Sebastian River can walk up to one of the refrigerated vending machines, punch in a PIN code and student ID number, and buy milk, a bag of sliced carrots and a turkey sandwich, among other options. The machine prompts students to make choices that complete a balanced diet under guidelines set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which officially approved the machines for use in schools on January 22. The school also calls the machines "healthy" because they don't sell carbonated soft drinks or fried and sugary snacks. "

The machine keeps track of prepaid accounts for students, and keeps track of disbursements to low income kids and the 'free lunch program' so that schools can be later reimbursed by the government.

Parents can log in online to MealPayPlus to see what and when their child ate during the day, and to add money to the account.

The machine also has a camera so they can take pics of who is actually purchasing the meal to prevent bullies from stealing PINs and IDs.

So much for the lunch lady.

http://news.com.com/Machines+give+kids+lessons+in+food,+finance/2009-1041_3-6185887.html?part=rss&tag=2547-1_3-0-5&subj=news

Soup as a diet aid?

Apparently, having a low calorie bowl of soup at the beginning of your meal, before your main course, is being purported to help you lose weight.

Researchers at Pennsylvania State University "found those who had broth before their main reduced the total calorie intake of their meal by a fifth, compared with those who just had the main meal. "

Soup details: "low-calorie, broth-based soups that are about 100 to 150 calories per serving."

Seems like a silly study, since this makes such intuitive sense. Soup fills you up volume wise, without much caloric density.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/health/dietfitness.html?in_article_id=452198&in_page_id=1798

Foods on this week's "Good for You" list

Perusing articles from the past weekend, there seem to be a large number of food/nutrition related claims.

Green Tea Compound, EGCG, May Be A Therapy For People With Rheumatoid Arthritis
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070429113444.htm

A study where rats fed powdered tart cherries had "lower total cholesterol, lower blood sugar, less fat storage in the liver, lower oxidative stress and increased production of a molecule that helps the body handle fat and sugar" than control rats:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070430074703.htm

Fish Oil May Help Kidney Disease Sufferers
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070430094018.htm

Macadamia Nuts Reduce Cardiovascular Disease Risks. "The Healthy Heart diet with macadamia nuts did reduce total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride levels compared with the standard American diet. "
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070430125512.htm

Pistachios Lower Cholesterol, Provide Antioxidants comparable to fruits and green leafy vegetables
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070430125516.htm

Moderate coffee (3-5 cups a day), decreases risks of Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, kidney stones, gallstones, depression and even suicide.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070430125523.htm

Coming soon? Baby formula to keep your child forever slim

Wow. This feels like the 'slim' culture is going too far. However, they justify this as a way of preventing diabetes, and other obesity related health complications.

"Science Daily — Infant formula and other baby foods that provide permanent protection from obesity and diabetes into adulthood could be on shop shelves soon, reports Lisa Melton in Chemistry & Industry, the magazine of the SCI. "

They plan to do this by adding leptin, a hunger hormone to foods.

"Those who take the foods early in life should remain permanently slim. 'Like those people who are lean by nature even though they overeat ? like we all do -- they will tend to be inefficient in terms of using energy,' says Mike Cawthorne, who heads the Metabolic Research group at Clore."

Apparently, it does not work as well in adults because adjust and cancel out leptin's affects. But,

"Providing leptin earlier enough effectively hard-wires the body's energy balance. In fact, whether one is fat or thin may be determined before birth. Feeding the hormone to pregnant rats has been found to have a lifelong impact on their offspring's predisposition to obesity. Animals born of leptin-treated mothers remain lean even when fed a fat-laden diet, while those from untreated dams gained weight and developed diabetes."

We all had better hope that there's no famine any time soon, or all these 'permanently slim' inefficient energy users may starve and die out.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070423080517.htm

Fast-food nutrition baffles consumers

The quiz is frightening. I got 2 right, out of sheer luck.

Here's the scoop: "The poll asked 523 registered voters to answer four seemingly simple questions: Pick out the dishes with the most calories, the fewest calories, the least salt and the most fat from among menu items from Denny's, Chili's, Romano's Macaroni Grill and McDonald's...By any measure, the respondents flunked. Two-thirds answered all four questions wrong. And no one -- not one single person -- got all four right."

Why: Public health advocates want a bill that requires chain restaurants to publish nutritional data on menus, so that we can make more informed choices.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/04/18/MNGOUPAJ7V1.DTL&feed=rss.news

Here's the quiz from the article:

Fast food nutrition quiz
A new poll by Field Research Corp. asked Californians to identify the low-calorie, low-salt, high-fat and high-calorie menu items from a list of four choices. Of the people surveyed, 68 percent failed every question, and no more than 11.2 percent got any one question correct.
Number in parentheses that follows each possible answer is the percentage of survey respondents who selected that food item:

1. Which of the following breakfast items that are served at Denny's do you think has the fewest calories?
A. Ham and cheddar omelet (36.2)
B. Country fried steak and eggs (11)
C. Three slices of French toast with syrup and margarine (14.7)
D. Three pancakes with syrup and margarine (28.5)

2. Which of the following items that are served at Chili's do you think has the least salt?
A. Cajun chicken sandwich (6.6)
B. Classic combo steak and chicken fajitas (7.6)
C. Guiltless chicken platter (24.9)
D. Smoked turkey sandwich (51.5)

3. Which of the following items that are served at Romano's Macaroni Grill do you think has the most fat?
A. Traditional lasagna (35)
B. Chicken Caesar salad (10.1)
C. Pasta classico with sausage and peppers (21.8)
D. Barbecue chicken pizza (26.2)

4. Which of the following items that are served at McDonald's do you think has the most calories?
A. Two Big Macs (53)
B. Two Egg McMuffins (8.4)
C. One large chocolate shake (11.2)
D. Four regular hamburgers (22.1)

Answers: 1 (B) Country fried steak and eggs (464 calories); 2 (A) Cajun chicken sandwich (2,220 mg. sodium); 3 (B) Chicken Caesar salad (69 grams fat); 4 (C) One large chocolate shake (1,160 calories)

Note: Results of telephone interviews completed March 20-31 among 523 registered voters in California, with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
Numbers do not add up to 100 because "don't know" responses are not shown.
Source: California Center for Public Health Advocacy

Calorie restriction, longevity, and other benefits

"Science Daily — Much research has shown that reduced calorie intake can increase health and longevity. Professor Stephen Spindler (University of California) and his collaborators have discovered that reducing calorie intake later in life can still induce many of the health and longevity benefits of life-long calorie reduction. Importantly, this also includes anti-cancer effects. "

They note with decreased caloric intake, the body does a better job of destroying cancerous and damaged cells, which keeps one healthier longer. They hypothesize that the body is using the damaged cells for energy, then replacing the cell once food is consumed.

"Previous research has show that mice can live up to 40% longer if they simply consume fewer calories, but a highly nutritious diet."

The hope is to figure out how this works, and someday create a pill to do this.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070402102012.htm

A vitamin in cocoa?

Another study that says cocoa is good for you, but this time because of the prescence of epicatechin. Epicatechin is also found in teas, wine, chocolate and some fruit and vegetables.

Here's the scoop: "Hollenberg has spent years studying the benefits of cocoa drinking on the Kuna people in Panama. He found that the risk of 4 of the 5 most common killer diseases: stroke, heart failure, cancer and diabetes, is reduced to less then 10% in the Kuna. They can drink up to 40 cups of cocoa a week. Natural cocoa has high levels of epicatechin.
'If these observations predict the future, then we can say without blushing that they are among the most important observations in the history of medicine,' Hollenberg says. 'We all agree that penicillin and anaesthesia are enormously important. But epicatechin could potentially get rid of 4 of the 5 most common diseases in the western world, how important does that make epicatechin?... "

Sounds like a wonderful pipe dream, but...
...now all we need to do is a double blind study out here where people get to drink cocoa with or without epicatechin for a while, and see if the 'with epicatechin' group gets any healthier. :-)
Or, if we decided to adopt the lifestyle of the Kuna of Panama, we might be a lot healthier too.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070311202024.htm

Vitamin D May Reduce Falls In Elderly Nursing Home Residents

Summary: 800 International Units (IU) per day of Vitamin D reduced falls by 72%, compared to the placebo group.

The depressingly staggering (yes, pun) statistic from the article is that 50% of nursing home residents fall every year, and once they are weakened, they are even more at risk of further injury.

"Past studies have shown that vitamin D could help prevent falls in seniors, and may be due to a possible strengthening effect the vitamin has on the musculoskeletal system."

Since vitamin D is the only vitamin the body is capable of producing on its own (with exposure to sunlight), I wonder how much of these nursing home residents get any real sun?


http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070222160028.htm