Eats « Weekly Gravy

Following a healthy plant-based diet after a diagnosis of prostate cancer may help prevent the disease from progressing or recurring, a new study suggests. Men who ate a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains had a 52% lower risk of cancer progressing and a 53% lower risk of recurrence, compared with men who had the lowest amounts of plants in their diet, the researchers found. “Progressing to advanced disease is one of many pivotal concerns among patients with prostate cancer, their family and caregivers and their physicians,” said lead researcher Vivian Liu, a clinical research coordinator at the Osher Center for Integrative Health at the University of California, San Francisco. “These findings may directly inform clinical care by providing diet recommendations as guidance for managing their health and reducing morbidity for the most common cancer facing U.S. men, in addition to having other positive health benefits for preventing other chronic diseases,” Liu said. A plant-based diet may have these benefits because fruits and vegetables contain antioxidants and anti-inflammatory components, as well as dietary fiber that improve glucose control and reduce inflammation, she explained. Also, this diet reduces potentially harmful exposures to animal-based foods, such as hormones and heterocyclic amines created during high-temperature cooking, which have been linked to prostate cancer in particular, Liu said. Diets high in animal protein may also increase insulin… read on > read on >

Americans eat too much salt and more than a dozen favorite and convenience foods are largely to blame. Nearly 90% of Americans exceed dietary guidelines for sodium intake, a risk factor for high blood pressure and heart disease. New research out of Canada put some familiar favorites at the top of the list. “The top 15 food category contributors to dietary sodium represent just over 50% of total dietary sodium intake for American adults, with pizza, breads, cold cuts, soups and burritos being the top five contributors,” the study authors said in a news release from the Institute for the Advancement of Food and Nutrition Sciences. At the top of the list is pizza with 5.3% of total dietary sodium intake, followed by breads, rolls and buns at 4.7%. After that is cold cuts and cured meats at 4.6%; soups at 4.4%; burritos and tacos with 4.3%; savory snacks at 4.1%; and poultry at 4%. Rounding out the bottom half of the list and comprising between 1.5% and 3.1% of sodium intake are cheese; pasta mixed dishes; burgers; meat mixed dishes; cookies, brownies and cakes; bacon, frankfurters and sausages; vegetables; and chicken nuggets. For the study, University of Toronto researchers used U.S. health survey data for 2017 to 2018. The survey asked respondents to recall what they ate. Education and food-labeling campaigns to get people… read on > read on >

A nasal spray that can reverse an opioid overdose should be sold over-the-counter, two expert panels to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended Wednesday. Research has shown that wider availability of naloxone — brand named Narcan — could save lives as the opioid epidemic rages on in this country. The FDA advisors voted unanimously in favor of making the drug easier to access after a daylong meeting that focused on whether untrained users would be able to safely and effectively use the nasal spray in emergencies, the Associated Press reported. The recommendation came despite concerns from some panel members about the clarity of the drug’s instructions and packaging, which caused confusion among some people in a company study. The manufacturer, Emergent Biosolutions, said it would revise the packaging and labeling to address those concerns, the AP reported. The FDA will make a final decision on the drug in the coming weeks. “Perfect should not be the enemy of the good, and the evidence we saw today provides clear indication that the drug can be used without the direction of a health care provider,” said panel member Dr. Brian Bateman, of Stanford University. In a statement, the American Medical Association applauded the panel’s decision. “The AMA believes greater access will occur when naloxone for overdose risk is just as easily accessible in a pharmacy, grocery… read on > read on >

A nasal spray that can reverse an opioid overdose may become available for easier over-the-counter purchase. U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisers are meeting Wednesday to discuss making generic naloxone hydrochloride available without requiring interaction with a pharmacist, CNN reported. Approval could happen later this year. Research shows that wider availability of the antidote could save lives in the growing U.S. opioid epidemic. The meeting of the FDA’s Nonprescription Drugs Advisory Committee and the Anesthetic and Analgesic Drug Products Advisory Committee is a response to an application submitted last year by Emergent BioSolutions, Inc. of Baltimore. The FDA gave the company’s application priority review, CNN reported. Emergent has said in briefing documents that its nasal spray was designed to be administered by people who have no medical training. Naloxone is available in various strengths and applications. The spray is easier to administer than an injection, the company said. Naloxone is used to revive those believed to be overdosing on opioids. There are no known harmful effects if it is given to someone who is not on opioids. Although naloxone is already available without a prescription, it must be obtained directly from a pharmacist. Not all pharmacies stock it, CNN reported. “Allowing it to be over-the-counter in the same manner in every state really clears up some confusion and hopefully clears up some of that red… read on > read on >

More than a decade ago, the Obama administration passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 as a way to counter the toll the obesity epidemic was taking on children’s health. The goal was to markedly improve the nutritional value of federal food programs that regularly put free and/or low-cost breakfasts, lunches and snacks on the plates of nearly 30 million American students. Did it work? A new study delivers a resounding yes. “We showed that the annual change in body mass index [BMI] decreased by 10 percent in children and adolescents in America following the implementation” of the law, said study lead author Dr. Aruna Chandran. She is a social epidemiologist and senior scientist with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, in Baltimore. What fueled the drop? School-based federal food programs provide “an estimated 50% of students’ caloric intake each school day,” Chandran noted. So, the upshot is that “accessibility to school meals and snacks represents a key opportunity for intervention to combat the childhood obesity epidemic,” she added. In the study, Chandran and her colleagues pored over BMI trends among 14,000 kids between the ages of 5 and 18. As a point of comparison, the investigators focused on two periods of time. The first fell between 2005 and the summer of 2016, before the new law was implemented; the second stretched… read on > read on >

People with peanut allergies have to be vigilant about avoiding the food and always be armed with emergency treatment. Now scientists say they’ve taken an early step toward a drug that could prevent severe reactions to peanuts in the first place. The compound has only been tested in lab mice, and no such drug will be available for people anytime soon, experts stressed. But in early experiments, researchers found that the drug protected lab mice from severe allergic reactions to peanuts for more than two weeks. However, animal findings do not always pan out in humans. The vision is to have a self-injected medication that people with peanut allergy can take every couple weeks, or maybe once a month, according to researcher Mark Kaplan, chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Indiana University School of Medicine. It would not be a “cure” for the condition. But it could give people an additional layer of protection should they accidentally ingest peanuts. “Accidental exposure is always a real risk,” Kaplan explained. That’s because peanuts are harder to avoid than many people realize, he noted. They are often used as ingredients in processed or prepared foods, and cross-contamination is also possible — when the same equipment that has touched peanuts is used for other foods, too. Even though parents and adults with peanut allergy studiously read… read on > read on >

Canned tuna is known to contain low levels of mercury, but a new Consumer Reports investigation has found spikes of the neurotoxin in some cans. The organization tested five popular tuna brands, CBS News reported. While the mercury levels were all within U.S. Food and Drug Administration standards, Consumer Reports urged pregnant women to “avoid canned tuna altogether.” FDA guidelines say pregnant women can eat canned tuna in limited quantities. “While canned tuna, especially light varieties, has relatively low average levels of mercury, individual cans can sometimes have much higher levels,” Consumer Reports said. “From can to can, mercury levels can spike in unpredictable ways that might jeopardize the health of a fetus,” said James Rogers, director of food safety research and testing at the independent nonprofit. Mercury can affect neurodevelopment, said CBS News medical contributor Dr. David Agus. The effects may include impaired brain function and developmental delays in children. If a fetus is exposed to high levels of mercury, it may lead to thinking and memory issues later on, he said. “Young children and pregnant women especially need to keep mercury away from those neurons that are developing,” Agus told CBS News. Consumer Reports tested 10 tuna products from five brands: Bumble Bee, Chicken of the Sea, Safe Catch, StarKist and Wild Planet. The tests included about 30 samples of both albacore and… read on > read on >

The key to living longer could be eating less. In a new study published in the journal Nature Aging, researchers found that a calorie-restricted diet had substantial health benefits, including delayed aging. “The main take-home of our study is that it is possible to slow the pace of biological aging and that it may be possible to achieve that slowing through modification of lifestyle and behavior,” senior study author Dr. Dan Belsky, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health in New York City, told NBC News. The phase 2 clinical trial included 220 adults who either made a 25% calorie cut to their diet or no changes at all. The body mass index (BMI) for participants ranged from 22 to 27 (a BMI of 30 is the threshold for obesity). In the first month, those in the calorie-restricted group were given three prepared meals each day so they would be familiar with portion sizes. They were counseled about their diet for the first 24 weeks of the two-year study. The other group had no counseling or restrictions. Despite the plan to cut about 500 calories in a 2,000-calorie daily diet, most cut only half that, said Dr. Evan Hadley, director of the geriatrics and clinical gerontology division at the National Institute of Aging (NIA), which funded the study. “But… read on > read on >

A new treatment for chronic constipation may bring relief without having to use drugs. It’s a vibrating pill called Vibrant that stimulates the colon as it passes through the body. Although the pill was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last August, doctors can start prescribing Vibrant this week. “We are working right now with insurance companies to obtain coverage in commercial plans,” Cathy Collis, chief commercial officer for Vibrant Gastro Inc., told CNN. “But until we get that coverage, our goal and commitment is to make sure that this is accessible and affordable to patients.” The company had to show the pills contained no toxic materials, could withstand an accidental bite and didn’t carry risk of infections, getting stuck, irritating tissues or interfering with other medical devices, CNN reported. A person prescribed the pill would take it at bedtime daily. The pill would then travel through the stomach and small intestine before reaching the large intestine about 14 hours later and stimulating nerve cells. In doing this, it causes muscle contractions that move food out. The pill then leaves the body with the feces. The pills are made of medical-grade material similar to what gastroenterologists use for pill cameras, CNN reported. Vibrant is intended for the 10% to 20% of people who live with chronic constipation, having fewer than three bowel movements… read on > read on >

Parents in the United States may assume baby food is free of impurities, but a recent research review highlights the much different reality: Most foods made for babies and toddlers have some amount of toxic heavy metals. The contaminants include metals, such as lead and arsenic, that can harm brain development, and contribute to learning and behavior problems in children. And they are found in everything from rice cereals to formula to pureed vegetables. It’s an issue that’s been known for decades, yet most parents are probably unaware of it, experts said. “Most people would probably think that, out of all foods, baby food has to be the safest,” said Dr. Sarah Ventre, the lead author on the review and a pediatrician at the University at Buffalo, in New York. But lead, arsenic and other toxic metals exist in the soil and groundwater, finding their way into the food supply, including the products that ultimately end up in baby food. A 2019 study found heavy metals in 95% of baby foods tested. One-quarter contained traces of all four metals researchers assessed: arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury. That study was commissioned by the nonprofit Healthy Babies Bright Futures (HBBF), and included in the new review. Jane Houlihan, research director at HBBF, agreed that the facts surprise parents, who may assume baby food is tightly regulated. “But… read on > read on >