Nutrition

A new study found that short-term high protein diets may hinder muscle endurance and short-term high carbohydrate diets may increase endurance. This study found that what elite long-distance runners ate determined which types of bacteria lived in their colons. A diet high in fruits and vegetables (high-carbohydrates) was associated with improved time-trial runs in highly trained competitive runners by 6.5 percent.

A 36-week study from Stanford University compared the benefits of two diets -- a Mediterranean diet and a ketogenic diet -- for treating 33 individuals with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes. Both diets were based on eating lots of non-starchy foods that do not cause a high rise in blood sugar, and avoiding foods that cause a high rise in blood sugar such as sugar-added foods or drinks and foods made from flour (ground-up whole grains).

A study of 360,600 British adults found that high levels of exercise will not protect you from the life-shortening effects of an unhealthful diet. People who ate an unhealthful diet and exercised vigorously every day still were at increased risk for dying from heart disease, cancer, or any cause.

Whenever you read about a study on health benefits from a specific food or food group, you can bet that there is a food industry organization or lobbying group involved in funding the study, and in promoting favorable results. The avocado is a perfect example. When popular weight loss diets were focusing on cutting back on fats, avocados got a bad reputation because they are a concentrated source of fat and are high in calories compared to most other vegetables and fruits.

A study from the Netherlands suggests that vegetarian and vegan diets may not be preferred for older adults because they are often deficient in protein, and that can increase the rate of muscle loss with aging. This muscle loss increases risk for falls, heart attacks, heart failure and premature death.

Last year, North Americans spent more than 30 billion dollars on dietary supplements, and 31 percent of adults reported taking daily multivitamins or vitamin-mineral supplements. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) reviewed 84 studies testing vitamin-mineral supplements in almost 700,000 people, and found "insufficient evidence" of any benefits that could extend one's life.

Researchers followed more than 3500 Japanese adults, 40-64 years of age, for 20 years and found that those who ate lots of dietary fiber were at reduced risk for developing dementia. The study found that those who ate the most soluble fiber had the lowest incidence of dementia.

On May 13, 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved tirzepatide (Mounjaro), from Lilly, for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. The drug has not been approved for weight loss, but so far studies show that tirzepatide with a weight loss diet causes significant weight loss in diabetics and sent 50 percent of them into remission as long as they kept taking the drug. The most recent study found that 63 percent of 2,539 obese, non-diabetic adults who were put on a weight loss diet and received tirzepatide once a week achieved at least 20 percent body weight reduction in 72 weeks.

More than 80 million North Americans suffer from Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), and many do not know that they have it because most people with a fatty liver have normal liver function blood tests in the early stages of the disease. The American Association of Clinical Endocrinology, supported by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, has just issued new guidelines for diagnosing and treating NAFLD.

A study from the Cleveland Clinic found that people with mild to moderate calcification of their aortic valves who took calcium pills were at double risk for dying from heart disease and three times more likely to need surgery to replace their heart valve than the participants who did not take calcium pills.

Researchers followed 27,078 Finnish men for 31 years and found that the more dietary cholesterol and eggs a person ate, the greater the premature total death rate and death from heart attacks. They reviewed 41 other prospective studies and found the same association between dietary egg and cholesterol intake and increased total and heart attack death rates. These results are similar to those of the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study followed 521,120 U.S. adults, average age 62.2 years, for an average of 16 years and found that eating half an egg per day was associated with increased risk for death from heart attacks, cancer, and all causes

The World Heart Federation reports that even small amounts of alcohol increase heart attack risk. Taking one drink a day does not help to prevent heart attacks and appears to increase risk for heart attacks. A study of 371,463 individuals found that no amount of alcohol helps prevent heart disease, even low amounts of alcohol increase heart attack risk, and the more you drink, the greater your chance of suffering a heart attack.

Researchers followed 3700 adults, ages 40 to 64, for up to 20 years and found that those who ate the most fiber were 25 percent less likely to suffer dementia in later life than those who ate the least . The more fiber a person ate, the less likely they were to develop dementia. Dietary fiber is found in fruits, vegetables, beans, grains, nuts and other seeds.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force does not recommend the routine use of vitamin or mineral pills to prevent chronic diseases (USPSTF Bulletin, May 4, 2021). Heart disease is the leading causes of death in the U.S. today, but taking vitamin pills has not been shown to prevent heart disease, and neither the American Heart Association nor the American College of Cardiology recommend them.

Vegan diets are recommended by many researchers and doctors because they may help to prevent heart attacks and some cancers, but a diet that excludes all animal products can increase risk for deficiencies in dietary protein and vitamin B12. Older people in particular can be harmed by vegan diets because these deficiencies may increase their chances of suffering from muscle weakness, osteoporosis, lack of coordination, falls and broken bones.

Studies on meat from mammals and processed meats continue to show increased risk for heart attacks and certain cancers. The largest review ever of the prospective studies, including thirteen cohort studies involving over 1.4 million people and followed for up to 30 years, found that: *Each 50 g/day higher intake of processed meat (e.g. bacon, ham, and sausages) increased the risk of coronary heart disease by 18 percent

Most people do not need to keep track of how much fluid they take in. The average person takes in 6-8 glasses of liquids each day without even thinking about it, just by following their own thirst sensations. They meet almost 80 percent of their needs for water by drinking anything liquid and get the remaining 20 percent from the food that they eat.

A study from Italy found that eating a lot of processed foods is associated with increased risk for suffering a heart attack in people who have heart disease, and dying from heart disease, even if that person followed the plant-based Mediterranean diet and all the other rules for preventing and treating heart disease.

The American Heart Association reports that dementia is strongly associated with a pro-inflammatory diet. Dementia means loss of brain function, and your chance of having dementia increases as you age. A new study from Greece found that people who eat a pro-inflammatory diet are far more likely to suffer from dementia, compared to those eating an anti-inflammatory diet.

A team of 17 internationally recognized scientists published a paper supported by more than 169 journal references, proposing that the current obesity epidemic is not caused just by taking in too many calories. They believe that obesity is caused primarily by hormonal changes brought on by eating refined carbohydrates and sugar-added foods.

Forty-two percent of North Americans have vitamin D levels below 20 ng/mL, which makes them deficient by most standards. Vitamin D deficiency is associated with increased risk for developing many diseases

Turmeric is anti-inflammatory, as are many other spices such as cinnamon or ginger.  Turmeric roots are available in some produce sections, and ground (dry) turmeric is in virtually every spice section.  It’s a widely used spice, especially in Indian dishes, and we recommend using it that way. 

Many people believe that they gradually gain weight from their 20s onward because their metabolism gets slower over the years, but now it appears that this is not true. The researchers found that metabolism (the rate at which a person burns calories) remains stable through adult mid-life, from ages 20 to 60. After age 60 it begins to slow down at a rate of slightly less than one percent per year.

There is little debate in the scientific community whether eating mammal meat (beef, pork, lamb) regularly is associated with increased risk for heart disease. An analysis of several studies covering more than 1.4 million people, who were followed for 30 years or more, found that for each 1.75 ounces of beef, lamb or pork consumed, the risk of heart disease increased by nine percent.

The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) found that daily consumption of starchy snacks made from flour was associated with a 50 percent increased risk of death from all causes and a 44-57 percent increased risk of death from a heart attack. This study of 21,503 North Americans, with 149,875 person-years of follow-up, also found that lunches based on refined grains were associated with a 44 percent increased risk of cardiovascular death.

With the ever-increasing epidemic of obesity in North America, more than 70 percent of adults and almost 20 percent of children are overweight, which increases risk for heart attacks, diabetes, strokes, arthritis, and some types of cancers. A recent review of the world’s scientific literature suggests that obesity is determined to a large degree by the types of bacteria that live in your colon.

Researchers followed 3,000 middle-aged people, average age 53, for 18 years and found out that the more ultra-processed foods they ate, the more likely they were to suffer a heart attack. Each daily serving of ultra-processed food increased heart attack risk by seven percent, and increased risk of death from a heart attack by nine percent.

Eating more fruits and vegetables, and restricting meat, egg yolks and non-fermented dairy products, can help to reduce your chances of suffering a heart attack. Eating just two servings of red meat or processed meat per week (not poultry or fish) is associated with increased risk for heart attacks and premature death.

Organic fresh produce sales in 2020 were $8.54 billion, an increase of over $1 billion from 2019. A very sobering study of 55 rice types found that organic rice contained significantly more arsenic than non-organic rice. More than half of the rice samples were "unfit to feed to infants."

A review of 17 different studies involving more than 560,000 people who suffered 37,000 heart attacks and strokes, followed for 10 years, found that compared to those who ate the lowest amount of fried food per week, those who ate the most suffered a 28 percent greater risk of a major heart attack or stroke, a 22 percent higher risk of heart disease, and a 37 percent higher risk of heart failure.