Dietary supplement use in the US continues to increase. The majority
report taking only one dietary supplement usually on a daily basis.
Scientists from the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) and Centers
for Disease Control (CDC) reported in the Journal of Nutrition (Dec
22) results on dietary supplement use by Americans from National
Health and Nutrition Evaluation Survey (NHANES) 2003-2006. Fifty
percent of Americans report using dietary supplements with 79% having
taken them within the last 30 days.
December 23, 2010 12:00 AM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The December issue of SIGHT AND LIFE magazine has a great article by
L Renzi and BR Hammond on the role of nutrition in maintaining visual
health. According to the World Health Organization, approximately 314
million people are visually impaired worldwide and 12 million of these
are children.
December 21, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
With today’s acquisition of Martek, TalkingNutrition will increase
its coverage of research pertaining to omega-3 fatty acids, including
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). Dr
Wennberg and associates used a case-control study design within a
northern Swedish cohort involving 431 cases of myocardial infarction,
including 81 sudden cardiac deaths to study the effects of fish
consumption, omega-3 fatty acids (DHA and EPA) and red blood cell
concentrations of mercury. On average, these people consumed 1.26 fish
meals per week. The authors found a protective effect of fish
consumption on risk biomarkers. Although they did not find harmful
effects of fish consumption, intakes of mercury, EPA and DHA were
interrelated. People who ate more fish had higher intakes of DHA, EPA
and mercury
December 21, 2010 12:00 AM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Hot flushes are the most common reason for women to seek treatment
for postmenopausal symptoms. Isoflavones, found in soybean-based
products, bind to estrogen receptors and can modulate hot flushes
during menopause. A study published Dec 14 reports a 51% reduction in
the number of hot flushes in women using a once-daily 30 mg genistein
supplementation regimen.
December 19, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Everyone living outside of sunny warm geographies like California
should be assured that vitamin D is important for cardiovascular
health, maintaining strong bones, and a healthy immune system. Don’t
be misled by confusing terminologies and misguided headlines. A study
published today in the American Journal of Medicine reports that
vitamin D levels are not associated with cardiovascular mortality. It
is misleading to draw nutrient-disease associations in a subset of
people who have the highest serum vitamin D levels in the world. This
study should carry “Warning, results seen in southern Californians not typical”.
December 16, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Two very interesting papers published today demonstrate the
importance of maternal diet during pregnancy. They show that a newborn
baby can lack essential nutrients on the first day of life when the
diet of the mother didn’t contain adequate amounts of omega-3 fatty
acids and vitamin E. Essential long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, eg
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA),
December 15, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The FDA asked for industry support in today’s announcement of their
new initiative to rid the market of drugs masquerading as dietary
supplements. During the press conference, FDA Principal Deputy
Commission Dr Joshua Sharfstein stated that about 300 products have
generated warning letters or recalls since 2007. The FDA issued a
letter today to manufacturers of dietary supplements focused on
products with undisclosed ingredients to promote weight loss, sexual
enhancement and body building. Call 1-800-964-3648 if you wish to the
recording of the FDA Media Advisory.
December 14, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Mandatory fortification of foods is a one-size fits all approach
assuming a normal statistical population distribution. Single
substitutions within a gene may lead to bimodal populations. What will
guide policy when individuals within one part of the population have
different requirements or risks from others? In 1998, the Canadian
government began mandatory folic acid fortification of cereal grains.
A primary driver of this policy was to increase folate status of women
of childbearing years and reduce the incidence of neural tube defects
during the first trimester of pregnancy. A Dec 13 study by Dr M
Tremblay and colleagues published in the Canadian Medical Association
Journal examined red blood cell folate concentrations
December 13, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Social inequalities contribute greatly to health inequalities.
Vitamin A deficiency is a major public health problem worldwide. A
Cochrane review of 43 randomized controlled trials (RCT) with almost a
quarter of million children between 6 months - 5 years, concluded that
vitamin A supplementation reduced the risk of death by 24%. Vitamin A
supplementation reduced new occurrences of diarrhea and measles.
Severe vitamin D deficiencies across India and Pakistan in all age
groups, as well as insufficiency in populations of South-east and East
Asia were reported
December 12, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
It is important to read the body of articles and not just the
heading. A new scientific study has generated headlines today that too
much vitamin D may not be beneficial. In reality, the headlines
confirm that vitamin D disparities may put some women at greater risk.
A Dec 9 Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism study
reported a U-shaped risk association between serum 25(OH)D level and
risk of frailty in older women. The authors conclude that risk of
frailty was lowest among older women with serum 25(OH)D levels between
20-30 ng/mL.
December 9, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Getting old is better than the alternative. New evidence shows that
omega-3 fatty acids can benefit the aging process by helping maintain
vascular health, mental health, and vision. Vascular aging increases
blood pressure, the risk of cardiovascular disease and reduces quality
of life. Dr M Pase and colleagues conducted a systematic review of
omega-3 fatty acid randomized control trials (RCT) studying vascular
function. In a Dec 7 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition paper,
they report chronic omega-3 fatty acid supplementation (1.5-25 month)
improved measures of vascular function in 8 out of 9 trials.
December 8, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Undernutrition is one of the world’s most serious and least addressed
socioeconomic and health problems according to the United Nations
System Standing Committee on Nutrition policy brief “Climate Change
& Nutrition Security.” Climate change is predicted to exacerbate
the risk of hunger and malnutrition. On Dec 8, UNICEF reports that two
of the biggest killers of Pakistani children - acute respiratory
infections and malnutrition – will increase as winter approaches.
While almost 200 nations are meeting in Mexico this week to consider
the impact of climate change (food insecurity and climate change map),
December 7, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The latest controversy in nutrition seems to be the Institute of
Medicine’s new vitamin D report. It is confusing when The Wall Street
Journal Nov 30 headline is to triple vitamin D intake and The New York
Times headline negates the value of extra vitamin D and calcium.
Actions speak louder than words. What are the experts doing and
saying? According to FDA guidance on evidence-based reviews,
significant scientific agreement (SSA) doesn’t require consensus. SSA
represents the best judgment by qualified experts. However, the same
standards aren’t necessarily applicable to drugs and essential nutrients.
December 6, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Long work hours, night shifts, and inadequate social networks
contribute to increased stress among people working 24h on-call
shifts. Make certain you are getting your antioxidant vitamins – C, E,
and beta-carotene. A Dec 3 study in the American Journal of Medical
Sciences measured oxidative stress in 70 healthcare shift workers. Dr
H Buyukhatipoglu and associates reported that serum total oxidative
status decreased significantly and the oxidative stress index
increased significantly in this pool of nurses and medical residents
after hours of continuous work.
December 6, 2010 12:00 AM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Ethnic disparities aren’t being discussed with regards to new
Institute of Medicine (IOM) vitamin D recommendations. They need to be
considered because vitamin D is related to cardiovascular disease
(CVD) and a Dec 4 publication reports CVD death rates are higher in
African-Americans than in whites. While a Watchdog has filed a Freedom
of Information (FOI) request to see reports from 14 vitamin D experts
who were not on the IOM-appointed committee, it will take time to for
this material to be released. In the meantime, let’s consider the IOM
press release of Nov 30 which stated that “the majority of Americans
and Canadians are getting enough vitamin D“. How is it possible to
draw this conclusion when Table I-1 in the report shows non-Hispanic
blacks and Mexican Americans have 5- and 2-fold fold higher rates of
vitamin D inadequacy (defined as 40 nmol/L) than non-Hispanic whites.
December 3, 2010 12:00 AM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Identification of nutrient-gene interactions will transform the
development of future dietary recommendations. New research shows that
single nucleotide polymorphisms can change an individual’s nutrient
requirement. This study challenges the concept of a normal population
distribution with an Estimated Average Requirement (EAR). One-carbon
metabolism generates precursor molecules needed for neurotransmitters,
hormones and cell membranes. Flux through the pathway depends upon a
reaction catalyzed by the MTHFR enzyme. Folate is an essential methyl
donor in this pathway. Individuals with a nucleotide substitution in
MTHFR, known as the MTHFR 677TT genotype, have lower serum folate
levels and plasma homocysteine concentrations than those with the
677CC genotype. In a Dec 1 scientific paper, Dr M Caudill and
colleagues report
December 2, 2010 12:00 AM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Researchers found that serum alpha-carotene concentrations were
inversely correlated with risk of death (all causes, cardiovascular,
cancer, and other) in over 15,000 US adults >20y. In the preamble,
the authors justify their exclusive focus on alpha-carotene because of
previous beta-carotene randomized control trials (RCT). Where did they
ever find fruits and vegetables which didn’t contain other
carotenoids? Drs S Liu and colleagues published their results online
in Archives of Internal Medicine on Nov 22, 2010. They concluded that
people with 9 ug/dL of alpha-carotene or more and those with 0-1 ug/dL
had 39% and 23% lesser chances of early death, respectively. The
authors do not report any efforts to determine the effect of
beta-carotene or any other carotenoid on mortality.
November 23, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Coronary artery disease is the most common type of heart disease.Not
surprisingly, diet falls within the top 5 search terms on the American
Heart Association website (advanced cardiovascular life support,
cholesterol, cpr, diet, and heart attack).If all forms of major
cardiovascular disease were eliminated, life expectancy would rise by
almost 7 years. Drs PRC Howe and colleagues tested the
cardioprotective potential of trans-resveratrol, a polyphenol-rich
ingredient found in red wine, grape seeds, tea, and cocoa. They used a
technique, flow-mediated dilation (FMD)
November 22, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Vitamin D supplementation is more important during winter months when
sun exposure is limited and serum 25(OH)D insufficiency may be
exacerbated by genetics under these circumstances. According to a
report published online in Osteoporosis International (Nov 18, 2010),
four times more women are vitamin D deficient in the north of Great
Britain than the south.
November 22, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Last Thursday, I provided perspective on a study published in the
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition citing the contribution of
mandatory fortification of cereal grains and voluntary fortification
in ready-to-eat breakfast cereals to folic acid intakes of American
children.This week a very interesting historical summary on the
history of folic acid fortification has been published
November 22, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Drs L Yeung and collaborators analyzed usual daily folic intakes of 4
age-groups of children from the 2003-2006 National Health and
Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Since 1996, the FDA mandated
that all cereal grains be fortified with 140ug folic acid/100g flour
to prevent the occurrence of neural tube defects in babies as they
develop during the first trimester of pregnancy. The study found that
32% of children consumed folic acid only from enriched cereal grain
products. In other words, almost 1/3 of children probably wouldn’t
have consumed much folic acid if the FDA hadn’t mandated folic
fortification. Forty-two percent of children obtained their folic acid
from fortified cereal products AND breakfast ready-to-eat cereals.
November 17, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The never-ending publication of new scientific research can be
overwhelming. However, it isn’t always new news! As Judy Blatman wrote
in the blog for Council for Responsible Nutrition members, old studies
are still very relevant. Within the past few weeks, consumers were
exposed to many conflicting headlines about omega-3 fatty acids:
November 15, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Last night, the New York Academy of Sciences (NYAS) held their
“Science and the City” 7th Annual Gala. The NYAS is focused on
‘Developing a Scientific Agenda for Nutrition’. It was a superb
evening featuring the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists. And an
incredulous opportunity to have dinner with amazing people such as
Nobel laureate, Dr James Watson. The Sackler Institute for Nutrition
Science was announced.
November 15, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University reported at the American
Heart Association meeting in Chicago that 32.3% of blacks and 6.65 of
whites had low vitamin D levels (< 15ng/mL or 37.5 nmol/L). They
had examined health records of 7,981 white and black adults from
NHANES from 1988 to 1994. Adjusting for age and other risk factors,
vitamin D status [serum 25(OH)D] partially explained risk of stroke
death in whites but not blacks. Even though blacks were 65% more
likely to suffer a stroke, more whites died of stroke than blacks (116
vs 60). Why is this?
November 14, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
A new prospective cohort study in 202 children under 2y admitted to
intensive care in Sao Paulo Brazil reports that 28% had low blood
thiamin concentrations. This study was conducted because thiamin
deficiency is associated with poorer clinical outcomes in hospital.
Low thiamin levels are also associated with elevated C-reactive
protein concentrations (>20 ng/dl), a pro-inflammatory cytokine.
The prevalence rate in young children was similar to the 33% incidence
of thiamin deficiency observed in adult patients hospitalized for
congestive heart failure.
November 11, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
In a cross-sectional study of middle-aged 1,200 Puerto Ricans
(45-75y) living in the Boston area, Dr K Tucker and S Bhuparthiraju
found that the variety of fruit and vegetable intakes, not the
quantity consumed, was inversely associated with reduced measures of
inflammation, ie lower C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. These inverse
associations can be attributed to nutrients such as beta-carotene,
beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, lycopene and vitamin C.
Unfortunately, median fruit and vegetable consumption was only 3.2
servings per day in this study. The NHANES survey also reported people
were eating only 3.3 servings daily,
November 10, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The Cholesterol Treatment Trialists’ (CTT) Collaborators published a
meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCT) examining the
effect of more vs less intensive statin regimens with interventions of
>2y on the average reduction of LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C). The
authors concluded that more intensive statin therapy was superior in
lowering LDL-C. They found that statin therapy reduced all-cause
mortality by 10% per 1.0 mmol/L LDL reduction. They also noted similar
reductions in major vascular events with no significant effect on
deaths due to stroke. However, it can be seen from Figure 2 that
statin therapy increases haemorrhagic stroke events (% per annum) from
57 to 63 (unweighted RR = 1.21 and weighted RR = 1.39). Compare this
study and its lack of media attention to the headlines arising from
the British Journal of Medicine study on vitamin E and stroke released
on Nov 5.
November 9, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
A new study reports that vitamin E and C supplementation in 11,545
healthy male doctors (50y +) from Physicians Health Study (PHS II) had
little effect on the risk of cataracts. Hopefully, this single study
does not lead health care professionals and consumers to conclude that
vitamin supplementation isn’t beneficial for eye health. 1. The
Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) clearly demonstrated in a
large-scale study that vitamin supplementation reduces the risk of
progression to end-state age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
November 8, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
There is a tendency among people from G8 countries to think that
malnutrition only happens elsewhere. This is not true. Hidden hunger
and essential micronutrient inadequacies exist everywhere. Just like
unemployment may be 9% nationally, there are subpopulations where over
30% can be unemployed. These disparities need to be identified and
addressed. Let’s think about nutrient gaps.
November 7, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
An analysis of 9 individual trials with 118,765 individuals where
half were given placebos and the remainder were given vitamin E
supplements. The authors report that vitamin E supplementation had no
effect on total stroke risk and significantly reduced the chances of a
stroke to part of the brain (ischaemic) by 10%. The authors also noted
that there was only a small increased chance of a hemorrhagic stroke
(p < 0.045) to 8 per 10,000 people (1 to 1250 as quoted in the
study). Many headlines will emphasize the finding that vitamin E
increases risk of hemorrhagic stroke. Let’s give some perspective to
risk vs benefits of vitamin E supplementation:
November 4, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
A randomized controlled trial (RCT) compared supplementing 2g
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) daily vs placebo in 402 individuals with
mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease for 18 months. The authors
measured cognitive processes using Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) and
rate of brain atrophy. They concluded that DHA supplementation did not
slow the progression of Alzheimer’s disease in this population and
discussed whether the dose may have been too small or the results may
have been affected by high omega-6 fatty acid intakes.
November 3, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
It was exciting to see the headline “Poor diet may worsen lung
function in COPD patients” until I read the press release from the
76th American College of Chest Physicians (AACP) 76th annual meeting
and learned that the authors analyzed self-reported food frequency
records to estimate dietary intakes of vitamins A, C, D, E and from 13
women and 7 men. One of their conclusions was that 25% of the
respondents were deficient
November 2, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Within weeks, the Institute of Medicine Committee is expected to
release the 2010 Dietary Reference Intakes for Vitamin D and Calcium.
At that time, it will become clearer if the committee will build upon
clinical practice recommendations targeting vitamin D levels of at
least 30-40ng/mL for individuals at risk of osteoporosis, chronic
kidney disease and other endocrine-related disorders. What might be
some of the recent studies which will guide the IOM on their
recommendations for vitamin D?
November 1, 2010 7:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Experts in the field of carotenoids met to summarize the current
knowledge with respect to beta-carotene. The results of this
beta-carotene consensus conference were just published in the Journal
of Nutrition. The experts established:
October 28, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Dr L Bettendorff and colleagues published an interesting insight into
human requirements for thiamin, vitamin B1. Although the essentiality
of thiamin has been known for centuries, its structure was identified
in 1911 (almost one century ago), and the reference daily intake (RDI)
is established, the amounts found in individual organs/tissues and
their relative need for a specific organ/tissue to function optimally
has not been established. This is actually the case for many vitamins
and essential nutrients.
October 27, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
In a prospective study conducted on 161 individuals (10-70y) with
irritable bowel diseases (IBD), gastroenterologists found that
patients with vitamin D deficiency (< 30ng/mL) were 9 times more
likely to have abnormal bone density than those with normal levels of
vitamin D. They also reported that 22% of patients had abnormal bone
density, and 50% of these were under 40y. This finding isn’t a total
surprise as genetic variations in vitamin D receptor (VDR) binding
sites have been associated with autoimmune diseases.
October 26, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Dr Robert Parker and associates studied common variants in cytochrome
450 which catalyzes the hydroxylation reactions in vitamin E
metabolism. It has been suggested that individual mutations in the
CYP4F2 gene may contribute to 2 common variants in CYP4F2 structure
and associated variation in vitamin E status in humans. They found
indviduals carrying the W12G allele seemed to have lower plasma and
tissue concentrations of vitamin E metabolites and showed less
response to vitamin E supplementation.
October 21, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Neurology publishes a study where researchers followed 271
dementia-free subjects (65-79y) for 7y to detect incident Alzheimer’s
disease. They measured serum total homocysteine and holotranscobalamin
levels and concluded that inadequate vitamin B12 status may be
involved in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
October 19, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
A study published in JAMA examined the effect of docosahexanoic acid
(DHA) supplementation in a randomized control study (RCT) involving
2399 women with at approximately 22wk gestation at 5 Australian
hospitals. The pregnant women received fish oil capsules (800 mg DHA
and 100mg eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) daily) or matched 500mg
vegetable oil capsules (equal proportions of rapeseed, sunflower and
palm oil) without DHA from study entry to birth. Women completed a
self-administered Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Score (EPDS) at 6wk
and 6mo postpartum.
October 19, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Dr G Liu and associates report in Pediatrics on three boys with
autism who exhibited optic nerve damage and vision loss related to
vitamin B12 deficiency. Treatment with B12 injections helped normalize
B12 levels and improve vision. The deficiency came about because of
food selectivity and a severely limited diet. The number of autism
cases among individuals up to age 22 is increasing annually in the US
and outlying areas.
October 18, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Food dyes are in the news again. Three food colorings – quinoline
yellow, sunset yellow, and ponceau 4R – are under review. The United
Kingdom Food Standards Agency is asking food businesses for comments
on new EU proposals to reduce levels of three food colors in food and
drinks. Thus, 3 of 6 food colors used in the Southampton University
study associating food colors with hyperactivity in children are under review.
October 17, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The Institute of Medicine Committee charged with examining
Front-of-Package Nutrition Rating Systems and Symbols released their
report. After reviewing 20 different labeling systems, the IOM
Committee recommended a nutrient-specific system highlighting four
nutrients - calories, trans fat, saturated fat and sodium – in
addition to serving size. These four nutrients were chosen because
they are routinely over consumed.
October 15, 2010 12:00 AM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Vitamin D status of 310 monozygotic and 200 dizogotic male twins was
published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Dr P Raggi
and colleagues measured the effect of genetics and season on serum
25(OH)D3 levels. During the winter months, 70% of the variation in
vitamin D levels was attributable to genetic factors.
October 13, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
A new report in the Journal of the American Medical Association
highlights the increasing prevalence of age-related macular
degeneration (AMD). AMD leads to vision loss and is associated with
genetic and environmental risk factors. With the discovery of new
genes associated with AMD risk, it is hoped that abnormalities in the
innate immune system and cholesterol metabolism may be targeted to
help maintain eyesight.
October 12, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Elevated plasma homocysteine levels have been associated with
increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Increasing folic acid
intakes has been shown to decrease homocysteine levels and to reduce
the risk of neural tube defects during pregnancy. A meta-analysis of 8
randomized control trials (RCT) of folic acid supplementation
involving 37,485 individuals at increased risk of heart disease found
a 25% reduction in plasma homocysteine levels.
October 11, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The haptoglobin protein binds free hemoglobin released from red blood
cells to prevent oxidative reactions which can damage cells and even
cause mutations to DNA. The haptoglobin gene has 3 common
polymorphisms, called HP 1-1, 2-1, and 2-2. In humans, these variants
have been shown to bind erythrocytes with different affinity, HP 2-2
being the weakest. A new report published in the American Journal of
Clinical Nutrition studied 1046 nonsmoking men and women
October 10, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Researchers reviewed the scientific literature for randomized control
trials (RCT) of vitamin D supplementation for 3 or more months in
healthy youth (1m to 20y) with bone density outcomes. They identified
6 RCTs meeting these conditions. From these 6 short-term RCTs with 541
subjects being supplemented with vitamin D, they concluded "the
results do not support vitamin D supplementation to improve bone
density in healthy children with normal vitamin D levels". They
acknowledged that children with low serum 25(OH)D3 levels might
benefit from supplements. Try this perspective. The public shouldn’t
be distracted from the REAL issue of widespread vitamin D deficiency
among people worldwide by headlines that young people with adequate
vitamin D
October 7, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Dr Andrew Shao, Council for Responsible Nutrition, reminds us that
vitamins C, D, E, folate, calcium, magnesium, and omega-3 fatty acids
are shortfall nutrients for most Americans. For this reason, the more
than 50% of Americans who use dietary supplements are trying to follow
the 3 pillars of health - eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, and
use supplements to improve their nutrition where needed. In a survey
of multivitamin supplement users vs adults who do not use multivitamin
supplements, Dr Suzanne Murphy and colleagues found that dietary
supplement users were more likely to make more nutritious food choices
(vs non-users) and that multivitamin supplements did indeed help
October 5, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Vitamin E acts as a chain-breaking antioxidant that prevents the
propagation of lipid peroxidation. Although overt deficiency is rare,
approximately 90% of Americans are not consuming recommended daily
intakes. This is important because vitamin E deficiency causes
peripheral neuropathy in humans. Burn injury increases the production
of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and upregulates inflammatory
responses which then cause damage beyond the initial injury. Dr Maret
Traber and associates studied the impact of burn injury on plasma
levels and body stores of vitamin E in 8 pediatric patients over the
first 30d after burn injury and up to 1y in some individuals. The
Recommended Dietary Allowance for these adolescents was 7mg
alpha-tocopherol/d. The authors found adipose vitamin E concentrations
decreased almost 50%
October 4, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
The 2010 CRN Consumer Survey on Dietary Supplement use in the US
reports that 27% of American adults are taking vitamin D supplements,
up from 19% in 2009 and 16% in 2008. This is great news given that 59%
of males and 68% of females 31-50y are not consuming recommended
amounts of vitamin D daily (200 IU/d). And self-reported usual food
intakes from vitamin D are only the tip of the iceberg. The REAL
concern is the inadequate vitamin D3 status of people worldwide,
typically adults most have serum 25(OH)D levels below 80 nmol/L.
Tuberculosis (TB) is a case in point. The number of people with TB is
increasing worldwide. More than 2 billion people are infected with TB,
and HIV epidemics are contributing to its transmission. Dr Elizabeth
Corbett and colleagues
October 4, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
How do governments weight investments in disease prevention versus
disease treatments? This was a question discussed at the CRN's The
Conference by Michael Samuelson, Health & Wellness Institute, and
Robert Gould, Partnership for Prevention. It is timely with an ongoing
discussion in Canada where the governments of Manitoba, Nova Scotia,
Newfoundland and Labrador, and now Ontario may limit vitamin D testing
to just people already diagnosed with disease conditions. The Winnipeg
Free Press quotes Health Minister Deb Matthews as saying it's
important to "ensure that precious health-care dollars are
invested in care that is evidence-based."
September 30, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Two French researchers studied micronutrient adequacy of diets and
food consumption behaviors (3 non-consecutive quantitative 24h
recalls) of women of child-bearing age in 2 districts of Ouagadougou,
the capital of Burkina Faso. Because of the importance of nutritional
status for healthy pregnancies and babies, the authors explored the
existence of nutrition disparities in a city where more than 33% of
the women are overweight.
Folic acid is required to make healthy cells and is essentially
important for pregnant women to prevent major birth defects of the
brain and spinal cord of their babies as they are developing in the
womb during the first trimester of pregnancy. A primary purpose of
folic acid fortification of cereals, breads, and pastas and other
foods labeled 'enriched' with 140 micrograms of folic acid per 100g of
grain implemented by Congress in 1998 was to reduce the incidence of
neural tube defects. Since fortification of grain products, the March
of Dimes reports the rate of neural tube defects has decreased by
one-third in the US. Since some women are not planning to get pregnant
and many are uncertain when they conceive, they are often not
consuming adequate amounts of folic acid during the first weeks/months
of pregnancy. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends
that women
As we await the Institute of Medicine Committee report on Dietary
Reference Intakes for Vitamin D and Calcium in November 2010, a paper
published this month in the Journal of Nutriton demonstrates the
difficulty in establishing dietary recommendations based on singular
biological paradigms (eg bone health) when assessing optimal nutrient
status across all subpopulations. In adults, vitamin D adequacy has
been classically determined by finding serum 25(OH)D levels which
maximally suppress serum parathyroid hormone (PTH). This is important
because higher serum PTH levels are
Nutrient-gene interactions are changing the face of nutrition, and
ultimately public health policy. Case in point, a study published in
the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports that postmenopausal
women have higher choline requirements because of their lower estrogen
concentrations than do premenopausal women. This conclusion typifies
common dietary recommendations based on age and gender. The novel
insight is the fact that choline requirements are greater in women
with more rs12325817 alleles. This changes everything. As scientists
discover nutrient-gene interactions for choline, associate haptoglobin
polymorphisms with vitamin E intake and cardiovascular risk, ability
to absorb and convert beta-carotene to vitamin A with enzyme variants,
and folic acid requirements with genes, it becomes more and more
likely that
A new study in Canada found that a significant proportion of
emergency patients had acutely low vitamin C and vitamin D levels in
their blood upon arrival to the hospital. In a study published in
Nutrition, the authors report that approximately 20% of patients had
vitamin C levels low enough to be associated with scurvy. Upon
admission, patients were randomized to receive different vitamin
supplementation regimens. Those patients receiving vitamin C
supplementation had significant improvements in mood within 7-10 days.
A new American Journal of Clinical Nutrition report analyzes the
relationship between multivitamin supplement use and heart attack risk
(myocardial infarction, MI) in 31,671 women without a history of
cardiovascular disease (CVD) and 2,261 women with a history of CVD in
Sweden over an average of 10.2y. Women in the CVD-free group who used
multivitamins had a 27% reduced risk vs those who did not. In those
with a history of heart disease, multivitamins did not affect risk of
a subsequent event. Not surprising since vitamins are nutrients not
drugs. Interestingly, those who had used multivitamins for 5y or more
had a 40% lower risk of a heart attack. Interestingly, those who used
multivitamins for 5y or more
Participants in the 2y Dietary Intervention Randomized Controlled
Trial (DIRECT) were studied to detemine the association of baseline
serum vitamin D3 levels [25(OH)D3] levels and dairy calcium intake
with weight loss. The results werepublished in the American Journal of
Clinical Nutrittion. Baseline serum 25(OH)D3 levels were significantly
lower with increasing obesity, measured by
UNICEF released the latest mortality rates for children under 5y. The
good news is that 12,000 fewer children are dying daily compared to
1990. The under-five mortality rate dropped by a third from 89 to 60
deaths per 1,000 live births. The bad news is that 12,000 children die
each day. And the improvements gained still are not projected to
achieve Millenium Development Goals of a 2/3 decline between 1990 and
2015. Vitamin deficiencies and inadequate nutrition contribute to
these horrifying statistics. To help end hunger, the World Food Programme
September 21, 2010 8:30 PM | Posted By Michael McBurney |
Researchers at the American Heart Association annual scientific
meeting reported that 12 month supplementation with daily doses of
omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFA) [850 mg
eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and 882mg docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)]
significantly decreased hospitalization rates in patients with
confirmed heart disease relative to those receiving olive oil placebo
(6% vs 30%).
