Strokes and Red Meat

A meta-analysis published online on July 31 in Stroke found that red meat consumption is associated with an increase in all strokes and in ischemic strokes in particular. Increasing one's intake of fresh, processed, and total red meat consumption by one serving per day resulted in an 11% increase in risk for stroke. This association, however, was not very strong. One of the studies included, a Japanese study, found no association between red meat and stroke. It could be that eating a significant amount of red meat is also associated with other things, and all together they lead to an increase in stroke. Other studies have shown red meat to be associated with certain cancers and with atherosclerosis. It seems like it certainly is something that could be kept to a minimum in one's diet. If you consume red meat, it should be not very often and should preferably be organic and grass fed beef or bison or whatever meat it is. 

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Exercise and Heart Disease

The headline to this blogpost is somewhat misleading, in that the study in question did not look at heart disease but at lipoproteins as risk factors for heart disease. Most people are familiar with the concept of high cholesterol being a risk factor for heart disease. The real story is far more complex. Total cholesterol as a risk factor is nearly meaningless in most cases. Even knowing one's low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL) values is next to meaningless. What is meaningful is the amount of LDL and HDL particles and their sizes. A recent study published in the American Heart Journal found that putting sedentary middle-aged individuals on an exercise program effected their LDL and HDL particle numbers and sizes in a beneficial way, regardless of how closely they adhered to the diet recommended by the American Heart Association. Now this could also be a statement about the effectiveness of the AHA diet. This study does show that the biggest favor you could do yourself is to be physically active on a consistent basis.

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Acupuncture for Chronic Pain

In interesting meta-anlysis published online September 10, 2012 found acupuncture to be helpful for chronic pain. About 50% of patients who get acupuncture have some improvement in their pain. About 42% of patients have an improvement in their pain with sham acupuncture, which is quite a lot. Still, the result is that acupuncture is helpful for about half the people with chronic pain. 

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Is Your iPad Keeping You Up at Night?

A study published online July 31 in Applied Ergonomics found that the light emitted from an iPad on the brightest setting and used for two hours suppresses the production of melatonin. Normally melatonin is secreted starting about 2 hours before bedtime. If the onset of melatonin is suppressed at that time, it can delay the normal sleep pattern. In previous research, these researchers did not find that computer use or watching television suppressed melatonin in any significant amounts. However, tablet computers are typically viewed from a closer distance. The effect would probably be less pronounced if the brightness setting is turned down. The new iPad also has a nighttime setting where the background is dark and the letters white. This setting emits a lot less light. 

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An Apple A Day Keeps Cancer Away?

A recent Italian study published in the Annals of Oncology found that a diet high in flavonoids, in particular a group called the proanthocyanidins, and glycans reduced the risk of developing pancreatic cancer by more than 25%. Proanthocyanidins are found in apples, pears, grapes, cocoa, tea, and many other foods. The highest amount of proanthocyanidins were found in Red Delicious and Granny Smith apples, even more so than in grapes and wine. The study was a case control study of 350 patients with pancreatic cancer and 650 case-control patients. A very detailed food frequency questionnaire was used to evaluate their diets.
In Functional Medicine we look at food as information. There are many chemicals found in foods, in particular many fruits and vegetables, that can inhibit the growth of cancer by effecting the gene expression in the cells. Other foods such as tomatoes, strawberries and other berries, broccoli, and other cruciferous vegetables have all been found to reduce the risk of various cancers.

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Healthy Habits Reduce Hypertension

A presentation at the August 2012 European Society of Cardiology showed that a healthy lifestyle reduced the risk for high blood pressure by two thirds. This large prospective population-based cohort study looked at 9,637 Finnish men and 11,430 Finnish women between 25 and 74 years of age and free of hypertension at baseline. They were followed for an average of 16 years. Healthy behavior included:

1. not smoking
2. less than 50 g of alcohol per week (roughly 3.5 drinks per week)
3. leisure time physical activity at least 3 times per week
4. daily consumption of vegetables
5. BMI less than 25 kg/m2

Smoking was not associated with an increase in blood pressure, although it is associated with heart disease in general.

The researchers found that healthy alcohol consumption, leisure time physical activity, daily vegetables, and healthy weight resulted in an approximately 60% reduction in risk for hypertension. There is no downside to a healthy lifestyle.

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BPA linked to Severe Heart Disease

Bisphenol A (BPA) is banned in much of Europe but not in the US. It is found in many plastics and resins. Most cans are lined with a resin that contains BPA. Plastics with the recycle code of  3 or 7 may contain BPA. It is also found in credit card and cash register receipts, water pipes, and food packaging. It has been found in human breast milk as well. A new study in the United Kingdrom, the Metabonomics and Genomics in Coronary Artery Disease study found a link between coronary artery disease (heart disease) and BPA, especially in severe heart disease. The mechanism is still unknown.

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Chronic Stress and Stroke

New research published online in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry found that experiencing a major life event in the last year increased the risk for a stroke 4 times. A high score on a stressful event scale doubled the risk for stroke, as did a current or previous history of smoking. Interestingly, the intake of two or more energy drinks per day also doubled the risk for stroke. In this case I think you'd also have to examine why people would be consuming two energy drinks a day. There are probably other issues going on that contribute to the risk of stroke, and not necessarily the energy drink alone. In a June 23, 2012 post I wrote about another study linking chronic stress and stroke. Ways to deal with chronic stress include working in some downtime daily. This may be sitting quietly listening to music, or mediation. Exercise is also very helpful in dealing with chronic stress.

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Chocolate and Stroke

Good news! More research showing that consuming chocolate is good for you! At least in preventing strokes. An article published online in the August 29 edition of Neurology found that men who consume the most chocolate have a 17% lower risk for stroke than men who consume the least amount of chocolate. When women are included in an analysis of several studies, the overall decrease in stroke risk was 17% with chocolate consumption. No information was available on the types of chocolate that was consumed. The study was done in Sweden where about 90% of the chocolate is milk chocolate with 30% cocoa solids. Chocolate is high in flavonoids that have a cardio-protective effect. They are anti-oxidants, anti-inflammatory, lower blood pressure, increase high-density cholesterol, and improve the health of the blood vessels. 

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Depression and Inflammation

In Functional Medicine and Chiropractic we've long looked at the whole body as an integrated whole, and not independent body parts. Depression is not something that just happens to the mind and in the mind. The physical body is intimately linked to the mind and vice versa. An unhealthy body can lead to depression. The mainstream medical world is now coming around, although in their own way. An article in the September 3, 2012 Archives of General Psychiatry states that prolonged or excessive inflammation can damage many parts of the body, including the brain. Rather than using diet and nutritional supplements known to reduce inflammation, they used a biologic drug, infliximab, a drug known to block an inflammatory pathway in the body. This drug reduced depression in those patients with the highest level of inflammation. I would wager that an anti-inflammatory diet, one high in fruits and vegetables, low in processed and simple carbohydrates, with healthy fats, would also have an anti-depressant effect on those with higher levels of inflammation.

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Walnuts Improve Quality of Sperm

Most fertility interventions are focused on the woman and not the man. A new study published August 15, 21012 online in Biology of Reproduction found that consuming 75 g of whole-shelled walnuts daily for 12 weeks has a positive effect on sperm in healthy young men consuming a Western diet. There were improvements in vitality, morphology, and motility of the sperm. There were also fewer incidences where the sperm was missing a sex chromosome. 120 healthy men between 21 and 35 years of age who normally ate a Western diet were recruited for the study. An additional health benefit of adding the walnuts, was an improvement in their omega-3 and omega-6 blood levels. Many couples choose to clean up their diets before trying to conceive. It makes sense.

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Apples and Cholesterol

A study published online in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics found that women who eat dried apple every day for a year see a decrease in their cholesterol levels. Women who ate prunes daily did not see a decrease, but did see their cholesterol levels remain steady. This study was done without a control group and all the women had gone through menopause, a time when cholesterol levels generally rise. The women were encouraged to eat about 75 grams (about 2 apples' worth) of dried apple each day or 100 grams of prunes daily for a year. After 6 months the apple group saw a 13% drop in total cholesterol and a 24% drop in LDL cholesterol. Those numbers compare favorably with statins. It would be nice to see this study replicated with a control group. 

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Exercise and Smoking

A study out of the University of Exeter in the UK found that exercise reduced the craving for cigarettes. I found this interesting, as it seems that exercise can be used to help people quit smoking. Many people don't start exercising until they've quit smoking, but this study shows that there is a benefit to starting an exercise program and then quitting smoking.

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Fitness in Middle Age Protects Your Health

Recent research out of the Cooper Institute at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and published in the August 27 Archives of Internal Medicine showed that staying fit during middle age is associated with a decreased risk of developing chronic diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and heart disease. As I've mentioned before, there is no downside to becoming more fit and eating well.

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Fat and Fit

The September 5, 2012 European Heart Journal has a Swedish study that showed that obese individuals with high levels of cardiorespiratory fitness and a healthy cardio-metabolic profile (such as normal glucose, hemoglobin A1c, hsCRP, triglycerides, uric acid) have a lower risk of death than obese individuals with poor fitness and poor cardio-metabolic profiles. Interesting, as far as cardiovascular mortality and cardiovascular events were concerned fit, metabolically healthy obese individuals had the same risk as normal weight individuals. It is only in the last few years that researchers have distinguished fit and fat people from unfit and fat people. Most fat people are not fit, but that does not mean that all are unfit.

Fitness helps prevent type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome, both associated with obesity. Becoming fit is a very pro-active way to begin to turn your life around it weight is an issue. Often people who exercise will crave healthier foods.

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Lifestyle Changes Could Prevent 50% of Cancers

Medscape reports on the findings of Graham Colditz, PhD, DrPH who presented a paper at the Union for INternational Cancer Control World Cancer Congress 2012 who stated that more than 50% of cancer could be avoided by using preventative lifestyle strategies. 1/3 of cancer in high-income countries is due to smoking, so obviously not smoking is a good idea. About 20% of cancers can be attributed to being overweight or obese. A healthy body mass index  (BMI) to prevent cancer is considered between 21 to 23 kg/m2, so slightly less than 24.9 considered normal weight. Poor diet and lack of exercise each are associated with about 5% of all cancers. He speculated that improvement in diet could reduce cancer incidence by 50% and an increase in physical activity could reduce cancer incidence by up to 85% in 5-20 years.
Other non-lifestyle factors included tamoxifen in reducing recurrences of breast cancer, raloxifene in reducing the risk for invasive breast cancer, bilateral oophorectomy in women carrying the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene, aspirin for colorectal cancer prevention, and use of colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy as screening tools. Three viruses have been associated with cancers so far: human papillomavirus, hepatitis B an C. Vaccinations and treatment against these viruses could eradicate those cancers.
The reductions seen with the lifestyle changes are quite impressive and there are no downsides to implementing them. There can be unwanted consequences from any of the drug treatments. It seems safest to implement the lifestyle changes.

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