ScienceDaily: Tart Cherries Can Alter Factors Linked To Heart Disease And Diabetes, Animal Study Suggests
Tart cherries may be good for more than just making pie, according to new data from an animal study conducted by University of Michigan Health System researchers and presented recently at a major scientific meeting.
Tart cherries may be good for more than just making pie, according to new data from an animal study conducted by University of Michigan Health System researchers and presented recently at a major scientific meeting. (Credit: Photo by Brian Prechtel; Courtesy of USDA/Agricultural Research Service)
In a study involving rats, the researchers report that animals that received powdered tart cherries in their diet had lower total cholesterol, lower blood sugar, less fat storage in the liver, lower oxidative stress and increased production of a molecule that helps the body handle fat and sugar, compared with rats that didn’t receive cherries as part of an otherwise similar diet. All of the rats had a predisposition toward high cholesterol and pre-diabetes, but not obesity.
I have been getting some very tart freeze-dried cherries for my megamuffins recently. Wonder if they work?
ScienceDaily: Pistachios Lower Cholesterol, Provide Antioxidants
A handful of pistachios may lower cholesterol and provide the antioxidants usually found in leafy green vegetables and brightly colored fruit, according to a team of researchers.
“Pistachio amounts of 1.5 ounces and 3 ounces — one to two handfuls — reduced risk for cardiovascular disease by significantly reducing LDL cholesterol levels and the higher dose significantly reduced lipoprotein ratios,” says Sarah K. Gebauer, graduate student in integrative biosciences, Penn State, to attendees at the Experimental Biology meeting April 30 in Washington, D.C.
Got to be careful about those nuts - you may be tempted to avoid the fat and calories, but most of them are really good for you.
Eggs Enhance Dieters’ Weight Loss - Associated Content
Overweight women lost more weight during the course of their diets eating eggs for breakfast than they did eating bagels, according to the report, released at the annual meeting of Experimental Biology and funded by the Egg Nutrition Center and the American Egg Board.Nikhil Dhurandhar, lead researcher for the study, said the eggs cause people to feel fuller longer, thus reducing the temptation to continue eating.
Study participants were put on a diet that reduced their recommended calories consumption by 1,000 calories a day. One group was given two eggs for breakfast, and another was given bagels with the same amount of calories.
After 8 weeks of this routine, Dhurandhar said the results were more than what he expected. Women on the egg diet lost 65 percent more weight and reported feeling more energetic than the women who ate bagels.
I certainly feel more satisfied if I get some protein at breakfast.
ScienceDaily: Pomegranate Juice May Help Fight Lung Cancer
Researchers are adding to the list of cancer types for which pomegranates seem to halt growth. A recent study at the University of Wisconsin–Madison using a mouse model shows that consuming pomegranates could potentially help reduce the growth and spread of lung cancer cells or even prevent lung cancer from developing.
The list is already pretty long.
Nobody wants to undergo chemotherapy if they don’t need to. But for those who must, the advice to eat more vegetables and take your vitamins is just as important as ever.
Antioxidants May Aid Chemotherapy Patients
There is no evidence that antioxidant supplements interfere with the therapeutic effects of chemotherapy agents, according to a recent systematic review of the use of antioxidants during chemotherapy, available in the May, 2007 issue of the peer-reviewed journal Cancer Treatment Reviews. In fact, they may help increase survival rates, tumor response, and the patient’s ability to tolerate treatment.
Yet another reason.
Is Your Favourite Red Wine Really That Good For You?
According to Dr Hoffman, although the health benefits of resveratrol found in red wine have been well documented, no one has systematically measured its levels in particular wines before.”As a result, they assume that all red wines are the same, but this is certainly not the case as the levels of resveratrol vary.”
Dr Hoffman and Mr Johansson are using new state-of-the-art High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrometery (LCMS) to separate and collect the compounds found in the wines.
They plan to be able recommend the healthiest bottle of wine among those they have tested. They also aim to work with wine suppliers and retailers so that they can persuade them to put health indicators on their products.
Move over, Robert Parker. The Hoffman Ratings are coming.
Glycemic load doesn’t affect weight loss - Breaking News - World - Breaking News
When it comes to losing weight, the number of calories you eat, rather than the type of carbohydrates, may be what matters most, according to a new study.The findings, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggest that diets low in “glycemic load” are no better at taking the pounds off than more traditional - and more carbohydrate-friendly - approaches to calorie-cutting.
I’ve always been a believer in the “weight gain/loss = calories in - calories out” theory. Still, the concept of glycemic load has some intuitive appeal. For example, given the link between obesity and diabetes, and the need to control sugar absorption in the latter case, perhaps overweight people should pay attention to glycemic index even if they aren’t trying to lose weight.
Fruity cocktails may be healthy - Diet & Nutrition - MSNBC.com
Adding ethanol — the type of alcohol found in rum, vodka, tequila and other spirits — boosted the antioxidant nutrients in strawberries and blackberries, the researchers found.
I’ll drink to that.
No, that isn’t what I was thinking (though it isn’t a bad idea either.)
ScienceDaily: Black Raspberries Yield Possible Skin Cancer Treatment
Researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Center say a topical compound made of black raspberries significantly slows the growth of squamous cell carcinomas of the skin in mice exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation, the most dangerous light in the solar spectrum.
That’s what I originally had in mind.
No, that isn’t what I was thinking (though it isn’t a bad idea either.)
ScienceDaily: Black Raspberries Yield Possible Skin Cancer Treatment
Researchers at the Ohio State University Medical Center say a topical compound made of black raspberries significantly slows the growth of squamous cell carcinomas of the skin in mice exposed to ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation, the most dangerous light in the solar spectrum.
That’s what I originally had in mind.