Search Health Studies

Search Results

Countering the Effect of Depression in Elderly Heart Attack Patients

Many studies have found links between heart disease and depression. Researchers in Greece set out to study whether elderly patients (mean age 75 years) admitted to the hospital for acute heart disease were more likely to suffer another cardiovascular incident within 30 days if they exhibited symptoms of depression. The scientists did, in fact, find that depressive symptoms heightened the risk of this type of relapse, but that higher adherence to the Mediterranean Diet erased the association.

Cardiology Research and Practice, 2011: 429487 [Epub May 9, 2011]

The "Japan Diet" May Reduce Cardiovascular Risk

Researchers in Tokyo conducted a review of the nutrition transition in Japan in the last 40-50 years relative to the risk of chronic disease.  Many studies suggest that the traditional Japanese diet, featuring a higher intake of fruits, vegetables, fish, and soy and a limited intake of saturated fat and salt is protective against cardiovascular disease.  However, if dietary patterns in Japan continue to be Westernized, the prevalence of chronic disease is expected to increase.
Journal of Atherosclerosis and Thrombosis.  2011;18(9):723-734. Epub Jun 17, 2011 (Tada et al.)

Fish May Reduce Stroke, CVD, Cancer Mortality

A study conducted in Hong Kong sought to evaluate whether frequency of fish consumption affects mortality in adults.  Researchers found that consuming fish 1-3 times per week was associated with a lower rate of mortality from stroke (30% lower), cardiovascular disease (33% lower), and cancer (33% lower) than consuming fish less frequently.
Annals of Epidemiology.  2011 Mar; 21(3):164-169 (Wang et al.)

Live Longer with Increased Fish Consumption

Public Health officials in Hong Kong compared death records of 23,608 over the age of 30 with a group of 12,395 controls. Relatives registering the deaths were asked for dietary and lifestyle data, from which the researchers determined that those eating fish one to three times a week had a 25% lower risk of all-cause mortality, a 34% reduced risk of ischemic heart disease and cancer and a 30% reduced risk of stroke. They concluded that “fish consumption significantly reduced mortality from several causes.”
Annals of Epidemiology. March 2011; 21(3):164-9 (Wang et al.)

High-Phenolic Olive Oil Protects Arteries Best

Oxidized LDL (low-density lipoprotein, or “bad cholesterol”) has been shown to increase the risk of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). Oxidized LDL antibodies (OLAB) have been shown, in studies, to protect against atherosclerosis. Scientists in five European countries working as part of the EUROLIVE Study Group designed a crossover study to see whether higher polyphenol levels in different olive olis would generate more OLABs. 200 healthy men were randomly assigned to consume, in three week stints, 25mL a day (just under two tablespoons) of each of three olive oils with high, medium, and low phenolic content. The researchers found that the protective OLABs increased in direct relationship to the phenolic content of the olive oils.

Clinical Nutrition, March 3, 2011 [Epub ahead of print]

MUFAs are Protective Against Heart Disease and Metabolic Syndrome

Our understanding of the role of fats in our diet is shifting from a focus on the total quantity of fat to one emphasizing the quality of fats. Scientists at the University of Manitoba carried out a thorough review of research detailing the association of mono-unsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) with cardiovascular disease and with metabolic syndrome. They concluded that MUFAs are cardioprotective and reduce the risk of obesity, particularly when they are substituted for saturated fats.

Lipids, February 10, 2011 [Epub ahead of print]

Brain MRIs show Less Disease with Med Diet

Scientists at the Taub Institute for Research in Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain (at U.C. Davis) collected high-resolution MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) data on the brains of 707 elderly New Yorkers. They then studied dietary assessments of these people from the past 5.8 years (on average), and divided the participants into three groups according to Mediterranean Diet adherence. They found that participants in the top-adherence group had 36% less evidence of cerebrovascular disease, and those in the middle group had 22% reduced odds, and concluded that “higher adherence to the Mediteranean Diet is associated with reduced cerbrovascular disease burden.”

Annals of Neurology, February 2011; 69(2): 257-68

Med Diet Improves Longevity Markers, Insulin Sensitivity

Scientists at the University of Naples studied 192 overweight and obese men, putting half the men on a Med Diet (if overweight) or a Med Diet plus exercise and calorie restriction (if obese), while the other half followed a conventional diet. After two years, the Med Diet group had lost, on average 14 kg (31 lbs), while the control group had lost just 2 kg. Moreover, the Med Diet group showed “significant amelioration of multiple risk factors” including improved cardiovascular markers, reduced oxidative stress, and improved insulin sensitivity. 

Cardiology Research & Practice, Dec. 20, 2010; 2011:293916

Vegetarian Diet to Reduce Heart Disease

Heart disease is the primary cause of death in the United States.  The risk factors for heart disease include high BP, elevated cholesterol, diabetes, tobacco use, lack of exercise, and obesity.  Through a review of the literature, scientists at the University of Tennessee evaluated possible links between cardiovascular disease and vegetarian diets.   Research indicates an inverse relationship between fruits, vegetables, and fiber consumption and the risk of heart disease.  Diets low in saturated fat are also associated with decreased risk of heart disease.  Vegetarian diets follow these rules and vegetarians tend to have fewer chronic diseases such as heart disease, obesity, and diabetes. The authors conclude that a well-planned vegetarian diet with adequate supplementation may be effective for primary prevention of heart disease.
Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.  March 2010; 22:134-139. ([Stitcher MA et al.]

Higher Phenols Beneficial in Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

Oxidative DNA damage is one of the metabolic precursors to cancer and coronary vascular disease and phenols are organic compounds with antioxidant properties. A study conducted in Florence, Italy measured the oxidative DNA damage in ten healthy, post-menopausal women when they consumed olive oils with different concentrations of natural phenols. Subjects replaced fats and oils habitually consumed with the study oil (50g/d), which was either a high-phenol extra virgin olive oil (592 mg total phenols/kg) or a low-phenol extra virgin olive oil (147 mg total phenols/kg) for eight weeks in each period.  The study found that during treatment of high-phenol-EVOO, the average oxidative DNA damage was 30% lower than the average during low-phenol-EVOO treatment. Though the sample size was small, the study indicated that consuming an extra-virgin olive oil rich in phenols, particularly hydroxytryosol, may reduce DNA damage.
British Journal of Nutrition 2006 Apr; 95(4): 742-51 (Salvini et al.)
 

More Beans, Fewer Heart Attacks

When traditional diets are abandoned, health often declines –as a Harvard School of Public Health study found in Costa Rica. Researchers matched 2119 people who had suffered a first acute myocardial infarction with a similar control group and assessed their diets. After adjusting for many factors, they found that consumption of 1 serving or more of dried beans daily was associated with a 38% lower risk of heart attack.
The Journal of Nutrition, July 2005; 135(7):1770-5 (Kabagambe et al.)

Nutritional Consequences of the African Diaspora

Africans carried their foods and dietary customs into diaspora throughout the Americas as a result of the European slave trade. Their descendants represent populations at different stages of a nutrition transition. West Africans are more often in the early stage, where there are many challenges and conditions like undernutrition and nutrient deficiencies. Many Caribbean populations represent the middle stages, with undernutrition and obesity co-existing. African Americans and black populations in the United Kingdom suffer the worst, from the consequences of caloric excess and diets high in fat and animal products. Obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, and certain cancers are prevalent in the African-American and Afro-British populations, and they are beginning to emerge in populations that never before faced these diseases, as diets become more Western.

Annual Review of Nutrition, 2001;21:47-71. (Luke et al.)

Pages