Food and Cancer

Medscape reports on a paper presented at the August 29 Union for International cancer Control World Cancer Congress 2012 by Richard Beliveau, Ph D, from the University of Montreal, University of Quebec at Montreal, and McGill University in Quebec. He stated that not all fruits and vegetables protect against cancer, but rather specific fruits and vegetables protect against specific cancers. He mentioned turmeric the spice as being a powerful anti-inflammatory that could prevent cancer from developing. Inflammation is a risk factor for cancer, as seen in inflammatory bowel disease or with infections such as H. pylori. He highlighted epigallocatechin gallate, which is found in green tea. It targets tumor invasion and metastasis, as well as prevents the formation of blood vessels. Resveratrol from grapes also has anti-tumor effects as does broccoli. Tomatoes have been found to reduce the risk of prostate cancer, and leafy green vegetables reduce the risk for pancreatic cancer.

He also mentioned obesity, which is associated with cancers. He pointed out that people over 40 are tumor carriers, but the tumors start in adolescence. We can either feed those tumors or prevent those tumors.

The 5 "golden rules" of chronic disease prevention also apply to cancer: (1) don't smoke; (2) maintain a BMI between 21 and 23 kg/m2; (3) eat an abundance of plant products (fruits, vegetables, grains); (4) exercise at least 30 minutes a day; (5) stay away from industrially prepared (junk) food. I would probably add in the importance of 6-8 hours of sleep at night, healthy social relationships, and ways to de-stress (meditation, listening to quiet music, reading).

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Risks for Type 2 Diabetes

A study performed at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and published in the September 19 issue of JAMA followed 732 obese participants for 7 years. Those who were more likely to develop diabetes had at baseline impaired fasting glucose, a family history of diabetes, hypertension, metabolic syndrome (waist circumference greater than 35 inches for women, greater than 40 inches for men, low HDL cholesterol, high triglycerides, high fasting glucose), and a higher concentration of VLDL cholesterol. The incidence was less likely if someone had more muscle mass. 

Interestingly there was no direct association between body mass index (BMI) and diabetes. The crucial criteria are central obesity (or big belly), and lower muscle mass. 

Type 2 diabetes can be avoided with a good diet and exercise program, which is something I offer my patients. 

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Poor Food Choices and Sedentary Activities

A European study published online September 3 in Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine found that adolescents between 12.5 and 17.5 years who spent more time in front of the computer or television were less likely to make good food choices. This does not come as a surprise to me at all. Generally spending more time in front of the computer means less time being physically active. When you're physically active, you usually crave better foods, as your body wants the nutrition. Some of this can be overcome by parents having readily available healthier snack foods around, such as "baby" carrots and fruit. 

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Cherries and Gout

A study published in the recent Arthritis and Rheumatism journal found as association between eating cherries and or cherry extract and a reduced incidence of gout attacks. While I find the study problematic for any number of reasons, I do find it interesting in that earlier studies have found that black cherry juice can reduce delayed onset muscle soreness after exercise. We'll see if this gout data can hold up with more rigorous research. In the meantime, if you do have gout, including cherries in your diet would not be a bad idea. Of course they're only in season for a relatively short time, so cherry extract may be the way to go for the rest of the year.

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BPA and Obese Children

The September 19 issue of JAMA contained a study that showed that obese children and adolescents have a higher concentration of bisphenol A (BPA) in their urine. BPA, a known endocrine disruptor (messes up your hormones), is found in canned foods, liquids packaged in plastic bottles, and other consumer products, mainly those associated with softer plastics. This study was cross-sectional, so we can't conclude that BPA causes obesity. It could be that obese children eat more canned food, or have more sodas and energy drinks out of plastic bottles. Sodas and energy drinks are also associated with obesity.

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Foods to Lower Blood Pressure

Medscape reports on studies presented at the American Heart Association High Blood Pressure Research 2012 Scientific Sessions during the week of September 20. Research done at Tufts University looking at over 2000 adults in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring Cohort found that those who ate more than 2% or their total calories from yogurt (equivalent to one six-ounce cup of low-fat yogurt every three days had a 30% lower risk of hypertension than non-yogurt eaters and a 0.19 mmHg smaller annualized elevation of systolic blood pressure. While yogurt is a healthy food, it is better to have unsweetened yogurt, as many of the fruit yogurts contain a lot of sugar. I enjoy mixing up plain low-fat yogurt with fresh fruit and cinnamon.
A small study done at the US Department of Agriculture found that adding low-calorie cranberry juice or cranberries to the diet resulted in lower diastolic blood pressure and systolic blood pressure trending lower.
A Japanese study conducted in India that used a blend of sesame and rice-bran oil found significant drops in blood pressure. The oil was helpful by itself and augmented the effect of a calcium-channel blocker, nifedipine. The oil is not available yet commercially.

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Obesity and Cognitive Decline

A study published in the August 21, 2012 issue of Neurology reported on the cognitive changes occurring over a 10 year period for the 6404 participants (67% men) in the Whitehall II Study ongoing since 1985. Obesity is associated with a more rapid decline with age. These researchers wanted to see if metabolical function affected the outcomes. They noted the findings associated with metabolic syndrome: blood pressure, glucose levels, triglyceride levels, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels. They did not measure other markers of inflammation such as hsCRP, IL-6, and TNF-alpha. They are did not take exercise into consideration. However, we know that exercise reduces one's risk for metabolic syndrome greatly. Overall they found that the decline in cognitive function was less so for  metabolically normal individuals, regardless of weight. However, the metabolically normal but obese group did decline a bit more than the normal weight individuals. In the metabolically abnormal group, for everyone the decline was more marked, but especially so in the obese individuals. 

The take-home message here is that even metabolically normal obese people would be well-served by losing some weight to reduce their risk of cognitive decline. 

One problem I have with this study is that individuals who were metabolically normal, but only through the use of drugs, were considered normal. The drugs do not get to the underlying problems, especially nutritional and exercise problems. So the findings might have been more dramatic if the drugged people were not included in the normal group. 

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DHA for Children with Reading Problems

An interesting study published online on PLoS One showed that supplementing children's diets with 600 mg/day docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) improved reading and behavior in children who were in the bottom fifth of readers. DHA did not make a difference in reading score in children who were not in the bottom quintile. Behavior changes were noticed by the parents more than by the teachers. This study was don in England with healthy children aged 7-9. It was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The placebo was corn/soybean oil and the DHA was derived from algae. Other studies have shown a benefit of DHA in children with autism, hyperactivity, or developmental coordination disorder (DCD).

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