Natural Cure

Diet and lifestyle may play a much more significant role in a persons ability to respond favourably to certain drugs, including some cancer therapies, than previously understood, say scientists.

Writing in Nature Genetics, University of Manchester scientists have shown how the nutrients in the environment are critical to the fitness of cells that carry genetic mutations caused by diseases.

The findings for the first time provide a scientific insight into why some people might respond better to certain medications than others and form the foundations for more individualised drug treatment in the future.

The team used bakers yeast a model organism studied by biologists to reveal molecular processes in higher organisms to explore the relationship between environment and genetic background.

The large-scale study involved removing one of the two copies of all yeast genes similar to removing one parents set of genes in a human and analysing the resulting fitness under different dietary restrictions.

If the gene targeted is quantitatively important, you would normally expect the yeast to show a reduction in fitness, said Dr Daniela Delneri, who carried out the research in the Universitys Faculty of Life Sciences.

But what we found was that in certain environmental conditions, removing one copy of certain genes actually produced the opposite effect and surprisingly the yeast cells grew more quickly and were healthier.

The team further established that this effect was mainly occurring in genes involved in the proteasome the quality-control system within the cell that degrades unwanted proteins.

The proteasome is important as it maintains the equilibrium of the cell, said Dr Delneri. When this equilibrium is lost it can result in many diseases, including cancer, diabetes, Huntingdons, Alzheimers and Parkinsons.

For example, in rapidly-growing malignant cells the high proteasome activity renders the tumour cells immortal, so drugs that block or inhibit the proteasomes actions are currently used as therapeutic compounds.

Our study shows that reduced proteasome activity could be either advantageous or damaging to the cell depending on the nutrients available to it in the surrounding environment.

The findings suggest that, ideally, when therapeutic drugs are administered to alter the proteasome activity, the environment governed by the type of tissue or a persons diet and lifestyle should be taken into consideration to assure the correct beneficial effect.


Posted by: Evelyn    Source

Lipoic Acid A new study done with mice has discovered that supplements of lipoic acid can inhibit formation of arterial lesions, lower triglycerides, and reduce blood vessel inflammation and weight gain all key issues for addressing cardiovascular disease.

Eventhough the results cannot be directly extrapolated beyond the laboratory, scientists report that they strongly suggest that lipoic acid supplementation may be useful as an inexpensive but effective intervention strategy. reducing known risk factors for the development of atherosclerosis and other inflammatory vascular diseases in humans.

The findings were made by researchers from the Linus Pauling Institute and College of Veterinary Medicine at Oregon State University, and the Department of Medicine at the University of Washington. They were just published in Circulation, a journal of the American Heart Association.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States.

The study observed that lipoic acid supplements reduced atherosclerotic lesion formation in two types of mice that are widely used to study cardiovascular disease, by 55 percent and 40 percent, respectively. The supplements were also linked to almost 40 percent less body weight gain, and lower levels of triglycerides in very low-density lipoproteins.

As a result, the authors concluded that lipoic acid may be a useful adjunct in the prevention and therapy of atherosclerotic vascular diseases.

We are excited about these results, especially since the supplements of lipoic acid appear to provide several different mechanisms to improve cardiovascular health, said Balz Frei, professor and director of the Linus Pauling Institute. They are helping in a fundamental way to reset and normalize metabolic processes, in ways that could help address one of the most significant health problems in the Western world.

These findings also reinforce the need for more comprehensive human studies, Frei said. That will be the next step in our research, in double-blind, randomized, clinical studies during the next five years with Oregon Health and Science University.

Alpha lipoic acid is a naturally occurring nutrient found at low levels in green leafy vegetables, potatoes and meats, particularly organ meats such as kidney, heart or liver. The amounts used in this research would not be obtainable by any normal diet, scientists said, and for human consumption might equate to supplements of about 2,000 milligrams per day. Even at low, normal, dietary levels, the compound can play a key role in energy metabolism.

Atherosclerosis, or what used to be called hardening of the arteries, is a long-term process that is now seen as a chronic inflammatory disease, which begins when certain types of white blood cells called monocytes bind to adhesion molecules on the walls of arteries. This in turn allows the monocytes to enter the arterial wall, there they become inflammatory macrophages that, in the presence of low density lipoprotein, or LDL, can transform into lipid-laden foam cells ultimately, an arterial fat deposit.

This chronic process often begins during adolescence, can continue for a lifetime, and has been associated with obesity, poor diet, lack of exercise, diabetes, high blood pressure, genetic predisposition and other causes. The fatty deposits in arteries can ultimately trigger a heart attack or stroke.

Scientists now think that high levels of alpha lipoic acid can be especially useful in preventing this process, by inhibiting the formation of the adhesion molecules. It can also lower triglycerides, another important risk factor for cardiovascular disease. It may also function as an antioxidant, and helps to normalize insulin signaling and glucose metabolism.

From what we understand, this supplement would be most valuable as a preventive mechanism before people have advanced cardiovascular disease, Frei said. However, it may help retard the process at any stage, and may also be of value in treating diabetic complications.

Also of considerable interest, Frei said, is the apparent role of lipoic acid supplementation in reducing weight gain. It appears to have this effect both through appetite suppression, an enhanced metabolic rate, and at least in laboratory animals has been shown to stimulate higher levels of physical activity, which again would increase caloric expenditure and further reduce weight.

Mice given lipoic acid supplements simply chose to eat less than a control group that did not receive supplements, suggesting a reduced appetite. In another test, mice that received supplements gained less weight than other mice in a control group that were given identical amounts to eat, suggesting a higher metabolic rate and enhanced activity levels.

Weight gain and obesity is a major risk factor for atherosclerosis and heart disease, and lower weight and abdominal fat may be one of the mechanisms by which lipoic acid has beneficial effects, Frei said. The study concluded that lipoic acid supplementation may be a promising approach to prevent weight gain and to lower cardiovascular disease risk in humans.

Eventhough some of the most compelling research with lipoic acid research has been done in mouse models, researchers say, there should be a reasonable extrapolation to humans, because the lipoprotein profile is similar, as well as the composition of the atherosclerotic lesions. These mouse models are routinely used in studies of human atherosclerosis.


Posted by: Evelyn    Source

Oats The first issue of Volume 2 (January/February 2008) explores the results of the Oats at 10 Years study, marking the 10th anniversary of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration claim that oats, as part of an overall heart healthy diet, could lower the risk of heart disease. The article, written by Mark B. Andon, PhD, and James W. Anderson, MD, looks at the history of the first food-specific health claim, theorizing that foods containing whole-oat sources of soluble fiber (oats, oat bran, and oat flour) could reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.

This is an extremely important study, said the journals Editor, Dr. James M. Rippe, who is also a nationally renowned heart specialist, author, and authority on health, fitness and weight loss. It tracked the value of oat-based products and showed the connection between consumption and a healthier lifestyle. It is an outstanding benchmark.

Launched one year ago, AJLM is a bimonthly journal for practitioners seeking to incorporate lifestyle practices and activities into clinical medicine, emphasizing the interaction between traditional therapies and changes in lifestyle. In 2007, AJLM explored cardiovascular disease; stress/anxiety; pain/arthritis; diabetes/metabolic disease, and obesity, and will examine lifestyle interventions in children; metabolic syndrome; womens health; hypertension; mens health, and dyslipidemia in 2008.

Im extremely proud of this journal, added Ron Epstein, Director of Controlled Circulation Publications at SAGE. Our first-year response among practitioners has been phenomenal, and were off to an even better start this year, beginning with the Oats at 10 Years study.


Posted by: Evelyn    Source

Repetition commonly makes people enjoy things less. Such satiation causes our favorites to lose their sheen, makes it hard to follow a diet, and pushes us to escalate our spending on novelty. Life has even been called a hedonic treadmill where we must find better and better experiences just to stay happy. However, new research from the recent issue of the Journal of Consumer Research finds that paying attention to details can help us avoid becoming bored with the same old thing.

It has long been said that the devil is in the details. This research finds that the details may be the key to slowing the hedonic treadmill, writes Joseph P. Redden (University of Minnesota).

In one of three studies conducted at the University of Pennsylvania, Redden had participants eat 22 fruit-flavored jelly beans (cherry, orange, strawberry, peach, tangerine) while rating their enjoyment. At the end, participants were asked to indicate how well they could distinguish the flavors, how much they noticed the different flavors, how repetitive the eating task felt, how similar the jelly beans seemed to each other, and how much variety they perceived.

People given specific flavor labels (e.g., cherry) became less satiated and kept enjoying the jellybeans longer than people given the general label of jellybean, Redden reveals. In other words, though everyone ate the same variety of jellybeans, people who were just given jellybeans to eat as opposed to tangerine jellybeans and strawberry jellybeans gave lower assessments as the experiment wore on, though both groups rated the jellybeans about equally toward the beginning of the experiment.

A number of people see satiation as an unavoidable, physiological consequence of consumption. This research shows that satiation, or the decline in enjoyment, depends on how much repetition people perceive, Redden explains. The current findings have several implications for consumers. Notably, consumers can enjoy themselves more by focusing on the details during their experiences.

The study also has implications for our understandings of expertise, or how people who devote themselves to a particular field can maintain interest over a number of years. However, Redden cautions that countering satiation may also potentially have a negative effect by reducing one deterrent to mindless over-consumption.

Subcategorization reduced satiation for experiences that were more cognitive (e.g., studying) as well as more sensory (e.g., eating snacks), Redden says.

He continues: Consumers should find subcategorization particularly useful when facing limited options, developing expertise, or following a repetitive regimen. Regardless of how they use the findings, the current research establishes that subcategorization offers people the potential to make their lives more enjoyable.


Posted by: Evelyn    Source

Adolescents who participate in physical education at school are more likely to maintain a normal weight as young adults, as per a research studyby scientists at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. For each weekday of physical education at school the odds of being an overweight adult decreased by 5 percent. Participation in all five days of physical education decreased the odds of being an overweight adult by 28 percent. The study is reported in the January 2008 edition of the journal, Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

These findings underscore the important role that school-based and extracurricular physical activities play in reducing the likelihood of becoming an overweight adult, said Robert Wm. Blum, MD, MPH, PhD, the studys senior author. While physical education was not a good weight-loss mechanism over time, it appears to have a positive impact in helping teenagers maintain a healthy weight into young adulthood, added Blum, who is the Bloomberg Schools William H. Gates Sr. Professor and Chair in Population and Reproductive Health.

The Hopkins team studied 3,345 teens in grades eight through 12 who took part in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health at which time the teens were surveyed on their participation in physical education and physical activities outside of school. The scientists then followed up with the participants five years after leaving school to check their height and weight.

The scientists observed that increased participation in physical education and certain extracurricular physical activities decreased the likelihood of being overweight as an adult. The likelihood of being an overweight adult was most reduced among teens who participated in wheel-related extracurricular activities, such as rollerblading, biking or skate-boarding more than 4 times per week. These teens were more than twice as likely to maintain a normal weight as adults in comparison to their less active peers. However, no impact was detected when physical activities were performed fewer than three times per week.

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommend physical education at all grade levels. Studies show that less than half of high school students are enrolled in physical education courses. Only 6 percent of junior high schools and 5 percent of senior high schools offer daily physical education, as per the Institute of Medicine.

Sixteen percent of adolescents in the United States are overweight or obese and 85 percent of obese teens will become obese adults. School-based physical education could be a low-cost strategy and a long-lasting solution to adult obesity, said Blum.


Posted by: Evelyn    Source