Nutrition News
Nutrition Updates
October 2008
Barbara Quinn, MS, RD, CDE
How safe is food cooked in a microwave oven? Which containers and coverings are safe to microwave food? Find the answers and more information about microwave ovens and food safety in this recently published document by the United States Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service.
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/PDF/Microwave_Ovens_and_Food_Safety.pdf
What are the health implications of dietary fiber? This position paper in the October 2008 issue of the American Dietetic Association reviews current research, intake recommendations, and the role of dietary fiber in cardiovascular health, diabetes, weight control, and the management of other diseases.
http://www.adajournal.org/article/S0002-8223(08)01566-6/abstract
The Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports the latest trends in obesity in the United States. The current “weight” of our problem is shown in these animated maps which illustrate the prevalence of obesity from state to state between 1985 and 2007.
http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/obesity/trend/maps/
This randomized double-blind clinical trial on 340 participants tested the hypothesis that B-vitamin supplements may help in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. After 18 months on high doses of folic acid (5 mg/day), vitamin B6 (25 mg/day), and B12 (1 mg/day), no beneficial effect on cognitive decline was observed compared to the control group.
http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/300/15/1774
Is fructose intake associated with obesity? This study on rats found that the consumption of fructose induced leptin resistance. When these animals were fed a high-fat diet, they had an accelerated weight gain when compared to controls.
http://ajpregu.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/00195.2008v1?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=fructose&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=relevance&resourcetype=HWCIT
How does our diet affect our risk for having a heart attack? This standardized case-control study (INTERHEART) examined dietary patterns of participants from 52 countries. Not surprisingly, the prudent diet (high in fruits and vegetables) was negatively associated myocardial infarction (MI) while an unhealthy diet (high in fried foods, salty snacks, eggs, and meat) accounted for approximately 30 percent of the risk for a heart attack in this population.
http://circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/CIRCULATIONAHA.107.738716v1
This prospective study followed 82,000 Swedish women and men for 9.4 years to assess the association between the consumption of dairy foods and the risk for bladder cancer. The findings suggest that “a high intake of cultured milk (such as yogurt) may lower the risk of developing bladder cancer.”
http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/abstract/88/4/1083
This cross-sectional survey reported in the British Medical Journal examined which eating behaviors in 3287 Japanese adults were associated with being overweight. Their conclusions? “Eating until full and eating quickly are associated with being overweight in Japanese men and women, and these eating behaviours combined may have a substantial impact on being overweight.”
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/abstract/337/oct21_2/a2002
Isoflavone supplements have been used to treat menopausal symptoms on women. Can these supplements also improve cardiovascular health? This randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled trial on 50 obese postmenopausal women did not find a protective effect of a 6-month trial of isoflavone supplementation on cardiovascular health compared to the placebo group. Find the research report at
http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1089/jwh.2008.0836?cookieSet=1