Eats « Weekly Gravy

Mid-life isn’t too late to make a dietary change to preserve brain health. Women who started following the diet known as DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) to lower their blood pressure were about 17% less likely to report memory loss and other signs of mental decline decades later, a new study reveals. “Subjective complaints about daily cognitive performance are early predictors of more serious neurocognitive disorders such as Alzheimer’s,” senior author Yu Chen, a professor of population health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine in New York City, said in a university news release. “With more than 30 years’ follow-up, we found that the stronger the adherence to a DASH diet in midlife, the less likely women are to report cognitive issues much later in life,” Chen added. About 6.5 million Americans over age 65 were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2022, a number that’s expected to double by 2060. Women comprise about two-thirds of those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, the most widespread form of dementia. Research has also shown that high blood pressure, particularly in midlife, is a risk factor for cognitive (mental) decline and dementia. The DASH diet emphasizes plant-based foods that are rich in potassium, calcium and magnesium. It limits saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium and sugar. To study the impact of eating this way, researchers analyzed data from more than 5,100 women enrolled… read on > read on >

Rich in colorful fruits and vegetables, healthy fats and lean proteins, a Mediterranean style of eating consistently earns accolades for its long list of health benefits, including the prevention of heart disease and diabetes. Now, new research from Spain shows this way of eating, when combined with regular exercise and fewer calories, can slash dangerous belly fat in older folks while helping to preserve their muscle mass. Fat that accumulates around the midsection is known to cause inflammation and has been linked to heart disease, stroke, diabetes and some forms of cancer. Muscle mass is known to decline with advancing age, and this can lead to weakness, less mobility and a greater chance of falls. The study, led by researcher Dora Romaguera, from the Health Research Institute of the Balearic Islands, included just over 1,500 middle-aged and older people who were overweight or obese and had metabolic syndrome, a cluster of disorders that signal a person’s increased risk of diabetes, heart disease and stroke. One group of people followed a Mediterranean diet while cutting their calories by 30% and increasing their physical activity. They were also told to limit their consumption of processed foods, meats, butter, added sugar and to eat more whole grains. But the advice did not stop with food: They were also encouraged to increase their physical activity progressively, with a goal of walking 45 minutes per day or more on… read on > read on >

Nutrition is important for your whole body, including those two small organs through which you look at the world. The same diet that’s good for your heart and the rest of your body will also help your eyes, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO). The academy offers advice on vision-healthy foods and how to create a diet rich in them. “Some nutrients keep the eye healthy overall, and some have been found to reduce the risk of eye diseases,” Dr. Rebecca Taylor, an ophthalmologist in Nashville, Tenn., said in an article on the AAO’s website. Your eyes rely on tiny arteries for oxygen and nutrients, similar to how your heart relies on much larger arteries, so a diet that’s low in fat and rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains is good for them. The AAO suggests including orange-colored vegetables and fruits with vitamin A in your diet. The nutrient gives your retina what it needs to help turn light rays into images and helps your eyes stay moist. Carrots are a well-known source of vitamin A, but sweet potatoes provide even more of the nutrient, Taylor noted in an AAO news release. “A sweet potato has more than 200% of the daily dose of vitamin A doctors recommend,” Taylor said. Cantaloupe and apricots are also good sources. The antioxidant vitamin C is… read on > read on >

Think twice about ordering that double cheeseburger, salami on rye or juicy T-bone. Just two servings of red meat a week — processed or unprocessed — can increase your risk of type 2 diabetes by 62%, according to a new study. “A modest but statistically significant increase in risk was seen with even two servings of red meat per week, and risk continued to increase with higher intakes,” said lead author Xiao Gu, a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston. “Our findings suggest that replacing red meat with healthy plant-based protein sources, such as nuts and legumes, or modest intakes of dairy foods, would reduce the risk of diabetes.” The study can’t prove that eating red meat causes type 2 diabetes, but there appears to be a link. And a serving of meat is likely smaller than you might suspect. One serving of unprocessed red meat is about 3 ounces of pork, beef or lamb; a serving of processed red meat is about 1 ounce of bacon or 2 ounces of hot dog, sausage, salami, bologna or other processed red meats, Gu said.Red meat is usually high in saturated fat and low in polyunsaturated fat, Gu said. “Studies have shown that saturated fat can reduce beta cell function and insulin sensitivity, which results in type 2 diabetes,” he… read on > read on >

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has proposed a ban on the use of formaldehyde in hair relaxers over concerns about its link to respiratory problems and certain cancers. Right now, the FDA only discourages using such hair-straightening products, which are typically used by Black women. Recent research has helped raise awareness about the potential dangers of using chemical hair relaxers. “We know that these products are very poorly regulated by the federal government in terms of what goes in there,” said Kimberly Bertrand, an associate professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine and the lead author of a recently published study on the dangers of relaxers. “You can’t look at an ingredient label and know that it contains these endocrine disruptors. They don’t list phthalates and parabens on the box — they say fragrance and preservative. So, women don’t really know what they’re being exposed to.” In that study, data from Boston University’s Black Women’s Health Study, which began in 1995 and tracks the health of 59,000 Black women, showed that postmenopausal Black women who used chemical hair straighteners had a higher risk of developing uterine cancer, NBC News reported. Another study published recently by the American Journal of Epidemiology found lower fertility in current and former users of hair straighteners. Women who used hair-straightening chemicals more than four times in the… read on > read on >

Fluctuating blood pressure can be a harbinger for both dementia and heart disease, a new study finds. Ups and downs within 24 hours or even over several days or weeks were linked with impaired thinking, researchers from Australia reported. Higher variations in systolic blood pressure, the top number, were linked with stiffening of the arteries, which is associated with heart disease. “Clinical treatments focus on hypertension, while ignoring the variability of blood pressure,” said lead author Daria Gutteridge, a PhD candidate at the University of South Australia’s Cognitive Aging and Impairment Neuroscience Laboratory. “Blood pressure can fluctuate across different time frames — short and long — and this appears to heighten the risk of dementia and blood vessel health,” Gutteridge said in a university news release. Researchers studied this in 70 healthy older adults aged 60 to 80 who had no signs of dementia or thinking impairment. The team monitored participants’ blood pressure, gave them a cognitive test and measured arterial stiffness in their brains and arteries. “We found that higher blood pressure variability within a day, as well as across days, was linked with reduced cognitive performance. We also found that higher blood pressure variations within the systolic BP [blood pressure] were linked with higher blood vessel stiffness in the arteries,” Gutteridge said. “These results indicate that the different types of BP variability likely… read on > read on >

TUESDAY, Oct. 17, 2023 (HealthDay News) – A proposed rule from federal regulators that would ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars has been sent to the White House Office of Management and Budget for final review. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration first announced the proposed rule in April. The agency said then that the rule had “the potential to significantly reduce disease and death,” reduce “youth experimentation and addiction” and increase the numbers of smokers who quit. “Once finalized, rules to end the sale of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars rule will be the most significant actions that the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products has taken in its 14-year history. The American Lung Association [ALA] is eager for these lifesaving rules to be implemented and urges the White House to finalize these rules before the end of the year,” ALA President and CEO Harold Wimmer said in a statement. “The science and data are clear. Ending the sale of menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars will save lives. It will also help reduce the unjust disparities in tobacco use caused by the tobacco companies targeting certain communities with menthol cigarettes,” Wimmer added. While numbers of smokers have dropped, those who smoke menthols has increased, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The menthol flavor is appealing to new smokers, making cigarettes more… read on > read on >

As a consumer, you probably see “heart healthy” labels on food items all the time. But do you really know what heart health means and why it’s important? Experts from Tufts University in Boston offer some details on how your heart works and how you can safeguard your heart’s health. “It’s not as if you turn 65 or 70 and everything falls apart,” said Alice Lichtenstein, director of the cardiovascular nutrition team at Tufts’ Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging. “If your aim is to keep your vasculature healthy, you have to start early and be a good role model for your offspring,” she said in a school news release. The heart does a lot of important work, pumping blood through arteries and veins to carry oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. With age, blood vessels can stiffen and blockages can build up. The whole system may become more prone to inflammation, increasing risk of heart attacks, heart failure and other cardiac dysfunction. Lifestyle can’t control all of this. Some of it is the result of genetics and your environment. While men have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease than women when they’re young, women’s risk rises sharply after menopause, according to Tufts. The blood vessels expand and contract based on the body’s needs. But they also become less flexible over time,… read on > read on >

WEDNESDAY, Oct. 11, 2023 (HealthDay News) – California has become the first state to ban four chemicals commonly added to food that are linked to health issues. Although the law, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, only bans the additives in his state, it’s possible the chemicals could be removed from products across the country, NBC News reported. The chemicals are red dye No. 3, potassium bromate, brominated vegetable oil and propylparaben. All four are currently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but they are illegal in the European Union and some other parts of the world, NBC News reported. “The additives addressed in this bill are already banned in various other countries,” Newsom said in a statement. “Signing this into law is a positive step forward on these four food additives until the United States Food and Drug Administration [FDA] reviews and establishes national updated safety levels for these additives.” Assembly member Jesse Gabriel introduced the bill with Assembly member Buffy Wicks. Gabriel said that the law won’t eliminate the foods these additives typically go in — ranging from orange soda to hamburger rolls and candies — but the manufacturers will need to make “really minor” changes to ingredients. “We have incredible confidence that consumers are still going to be able to enjoy all the products that we know and love here in… read on > read on >

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers about risks of using compounded versions of the drug ketamine, often taken for psychiatric disorders. Compounded products are not evaluated by the FDA for safety and effectiveness. They’re also not regulated like approved drugs, so they present a greater risk. “Although compounded drugs can serve an important medical need for certain patients when an FDA-approved drug is not medically appropriate, they also present a risk to patients and should only be used under the care of a health care provider,” the FDA said in a news release. It offered an example of a concerning case reported about a patient in April. That person had taken compounded oral ketamine outside of a health care setting for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The result was slowed breathing and a ketamine blood level that appeared to be twice what a person would typically receive as anesthesia, the FDA said. Patients are increasingly interested in taking compounded ketamine products, including oral formulations, for mental health disorders including depression, anxiety, PTSD and obsessive-compulsive disorder, according to the FDA. Known safety concerns associated with the drug are abuse and misuse, psychiatric events, increases in blood pressure, slowed breathing and lower urinary tract and bladder symptoms. In the FDA-approved version of ketamine, the expected benefit outweighs these risks when used at… read on > read on >