Top 10 most toxic foods
10 surprisingly toxic common foods

While most people know that cakes and chocolate aren’t great for your health, there are other seemingly healthy foods whose dangerous properties slip under the radar. While it is unlikely moderate amounts of these foods will harm you, in large quantities – or in certain conditions – they may do more damage to your health than you think. Here are some of the most toxic common foods.

Mushrooms

While mushrooms available in most supermarkets should be pretty safe to eat, mushroom fans need to be careful about what species' they are consuming as many varieties can be highly dangerous and even fatal. Around 100 species of mushrooms are said to be dangerous to humans, with symptoms ranging from headaches to seizures or even death. In 2010 a small variety of mushroom called the Little White was blamed for an estimated 400 deaths in China.


Chillies

Chillies are renowned for their heat, which is what makes them so popular. However, it is actually the chemical that causes this spiciness (capsaicin) which can cause toxic effects such as stomach pain, itchy skin and, in extreme cases, death. For most people eating chillies will do little harm, however capsaicin is best eaten sparingly so make sure to take it easy and avoid any chilli eating challenges!



Rapeseed oil

There has been much controversy about this seemingly innocent natural oil, but the general consensus seems to be that it could have many negative implications on our health. Reports state that the rape plant - from which the oil is produced - is extremely toxic, and side effects of consuming its oil could include respiratory problems and blindness.

Rice

It is impossible to dispute that rice has many great health benefits. However, like with most things, it may be best eaten in moderation due to its reportedly unsafe levels of arsenic. One study has suggested that one in five packs of American long-grain rice contain potentially harmful levels of the toxic substance, while others have reported concern for the levels of arsenic in rice milk and baby rice. While there is relatively little risk of the odd bowl of rice causing any long lasting harm, the consumption of high levels of arsenic has been linked to cancer.

Nutmeg

Perhaps one of the most immediately dangerous foods on this list is also one of the most surprising, and that is the common store cupboard spice, nutmeg. Although, like many of the foods on the list, nutmeg does have reported health benefits, it can also be extremely dangerous when taken in large doses. Containing a toxic substance called myristicin, moderate proportions of nutmeg can cause hallucinations, while larger doses can cause convulsions, palpitations, nausea, dehydration and death.

Non-organic apples

Although it is advisable to buy as much organic fruit and veg as you can, in reality this is hard to do on most people's budgets. When making decisions over whether or not to go organic, it is important therefore to note that some foods have a higher concentration of pesticides than others, and apples are one of the fruits that top this list. Because apples are vulnerable to insect infestations and growths, growers are liable to coat the fruit in chemical pesticides and fungicides, some of which will absorb into its flesh. To minimise health risks, try to buy organic apples wherever possible, or at least remove the skin before eating.


Farmed Salmon

We may be constantly urged to eat more oily fish, but research has suggested that consuming farmed salmon may not be the best way to do it. A study found that 13 different toxins - including PCBs, which have been classed as a probable human carcinogen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - are at much higher levels in farm-raised salmon than in wild salmon. Due to the possible health dangers of consuming these toxins, it is advisable to either reduce your portions of farmed salmon (guidelines are for a half to two portions a month, depending on where the salmon is from) or switch to the wild variety.
Microwave popcorn

Although eating microwave popcorn is not believed to be particularly harmful, it has been found that butter flavoured versions of the snack contain a dangerous chemical (diacetyl) in the flavouring which releases toxic fumes when microwaved. While this has mainly affected factory workers so far - with many developing a lung condition dubbed "popcorn lung" - one consumer is now known to have also developed lung problems due to this toxin.
However, this is clearly a case of moderation being key, with the sufferer admitting to eating microwave popcorn at least twice a day for 10 to 12 years. Unless you are eating your popcorn in similar quantities, it is most likely safe to consume popcorn at home, just be careful to avoid the fumes when opening the bag.
Potatoes

Potatoes may look innocent enough, but did you know they actually come from the same family as poisonous plant the deadly nightshade? Although they are not quite as dangerous as this family member, potatoes do pose certain risks to our health due to them containing toxic compounds known as glycoalkaloids, the most worrying of which is solanine which affects the nervous and digestive systems, causing headaches, weakness, confusion, diarrhoea and vomiting amongst other things.
Poisoning from potatoes occurs very rarely but fans of the popular vegetable should take measures to protect themselves by avoiding potatoes with sprouts - which tend to have a higher concentration of glycoalkaloids - and those which have turned green. Although the green colour of the potatoes is harmless in itself, it does indicate that the potatoes have been exposed to light, which can also encourage solanine levels to rise over the safe level for consumption.
Peanuts

Not only are peanuts one of the most common food allergens, but the popular bar snack may also be dangerous to those who don't suffer from allergies. Peanuts are particularly best avoided by those with kidney or gallbladder problems as they contain oxalates which can crystallise and cause kidney and gallbladder stones.
However, even for the rest of us peanuts can be toxic due to their susceptibility to mould and the frequently occurring presence of aflatoxin - a highly toxic carcinogen - that is produced by a fungus called Aspergillus flavus invading the nuts. If you simply can't resist snacking on peanuts, try to purchase ones produced in arid areas - such as New Mexico -where the soil is dry and the risk of aflatoxins is lower.


realbuzz.com

Cinnamon does more than spice up your muffins
1





This sweet spice, used most often to pep up pancakes, toast, oatmeal or buns, has a long and storied history that includes being used in the ancient Egyptians' embalming process. But it may also do more than make our food taste better.
A 2003 study in the journal Diabetes Care of five dozen people with Type 2 diabetes showed that the daily addition of cinnamon to their diet lowered blood sugar, cholesterol and triglyceride levels after 40 days.




http://www.myhealthnewsdaily.com

5 Fish You Should Never Eat



Eat This, Not That







If you’re over the age of 12, you’ve probably had more than a few dearly held beliefs ruined by reality. Like when you discovered it was Mom and Dad, not Santa, who were orchestrating the magic of Christmas. Or when you spent hours watching “Kim’s Fairytale Wedding” over and over again, only to learn that keeping up with this Kardashian was a waste of time. As they say, reality bites.

Well, folks, I hate to do this to you, but . . .

Not all fish are good for you.

Last year, the USDA increased its seafood recommendation to 8 ounces per week, and that has led many to believe that all fish are equally smart choices. But some are so high in contaminants like mercury that their health benefits are outweighed by their health risks. Others are flown in from halfway around the world, but given labels that make you think they were caught fresh earlier that morning. And still others are raised in filthy, overcrowed pools and loaded up with chemicals to keep them alive.

So let me shed light on some very rough waters. Put these fish at the top of your don't-eat list and you'll avoid most of the troubles of the world's fishing industry.


#1: ATLANTIC BLUEFIN TUNA

Why It's Bad: A recent analysis by The New York Times found that Atlantic bluefin tuna has the highest levels of mercury of any type of tuna. To top it off, bluefin tuna are severely overharvested, to the point of reaching near-extinction levels, and are considered "critically endangered" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Rather than trying to navigate the ever-changing recommendations for which tuna is best, consider giving it up altogether. But if you can't . . .
Eat This Instead: Opt for American or Canadian (but not imported!) albacore tuna, which is caught while it's young and doesn't contain as high levels of mercury.




#2: ATLANTIC SALMON (Both Wild-caught and Farmed)




Why It's Bad: It's actually illegal to capture wild Atlantic salmon because the fish stocks are so low, and they're low, in part, because of farmed salmon. Salmon farming is very polluting: Thousands of fish are crammed into pens, which leads to the growth of diseases and parasites that require antibiotics and pesticides. Often, the fish escape and compete with native fish for food, leading to declines in native populations.
Adding to our salmon woes, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is moving forward with approving genetically engineered salmon to be sold, unlabeled, to unsuspecting seafood lovers. That salmon would be farmed off the coast of Panama, and it's unclear how it would be labeled. Currently, all fish labeled "Atlantic salmon" come from fish farms.

Eat This Instead: Opt for Wild Alaskan salmon.


#3: ATLANTIC FLATFISH


Why It's Bad: This group of fish includes flounder, sole, and halibut that are caught off the Atlantic coast. They found their way onto the list because of heavy contamination and overfishing that dates back to the 1800s. According to Food and Water Watch, populations of these fish are as low as 1 percent of what's necessary to be considered sustainable for long-term fishing.

Eat This Instead: Pacific halibut seems to be doing well, but the group also recommends replacing these fish with other mild-flavored white-fleshed fish, such as domestically farmed catfish or tilapia.
CHANGE YOUR PLATE, LOSE WEIGHT: People using paper plates tend to eat more later because they consider those meals as just "snacks."

#4: IMPORTED KING CRAB

Why It's Bad: The biggest problem with imported crab is that most of it comes from Russia, where limits on fish harvests aren't strongly enforced. But this crab also suffers from something of an identity crisis: Imported king crab is often misnamed Alaskan king crab, because most people think that's the name of the crab. And supermarkets often add to the confusion by labeling imported king crab "Alaskan King Crab, Imported." But Alaskan king crab—crab that actually hails from the great state of Alaska—is a completely separate animal and is much more responsibly harvested than the imported stuff.

Eat This Instead: When you shop for king crab, whatever the label says, ask whether it comes from Alaska or if it's imported. Approximately 70 percent of the king crab sold in the U.S. is imported, so it's important to make that distinction and go domestic.

#5 IMPORTED SHRIMP
Why It's Bad: Imported shrimp actually holds the designation of being the dirtiest of all the seafood we looked at. Problem is, 90 percent of shrimp sold in the U.S. is imported. Imported farmed shrimp comes with a whole bevy of contaminants including antibiotics, residues from chemicals used to clean pens, E. coli, mouse hair, rat hair, and pieces of insects. Yum! Part of this has to do with the fact that less than 2 percent of all imported seafood (shrimp, crab, catfish, or others) gets inspected before its sold, which is why it's that much more important to buy domestic seafood.
Eat This Instead: Domestic shrimp. Seventy percent of domestic shrimp comes from the Gulf of Mexico, which relies heavily on shrimp for economic reasons. Pink shrimp from Oregon are another good choice; the fisheries there are certified under the stringent Marine Stewardship Council guidelines.


http://health.yahoo.net/experts/eatt...uld-throw-back

Study Reveals Lonely People Don't Sleep Through the Night
Study Reveals Lonely People Don't Sleep Through the Night

Lonely people are less likely to have a good night's sleep, a recent study found. According to the survey released by researchers at the University of Chicago published in the journal "Sleep" last Tuesday, loneliness is associated with fragmented sleep patterns.

The research team surveyed 95 adults in one of the city's communities on issues such as how much stress they were under and whether they felt anxious, and then analyzed their sleeping patterns. As a result, they found a strong correlation between increased feelings of loneliness and the frequency of interruptions to their sleep on any given night.

Even though their sleep was more broken-up, however, lonely people still got roughly the same number of hours' rest as other people in the study. Their sleeping patterns also did not show any evidence that it led to them dozing off during the day.

englishnews@chosun.com

I don't sleep well maybe this could be why?

New Clinical Practice Guideline On Sudden Hearing Loss

The American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation published a new Clinical Practice Guideline on Sudden Hearing Loss (SHL).

A sudden loss of hearing is a frightening symptom that most often prompts urgent medical care. Current diagnosis and treatment plans vary greatly. This guideline provides evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis, management, and follow-up of adults who present with SHL. Prompt, accurate recognition and management of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL), a subset of SHL, may improve hearing recovery and patient quality of life. SSNHL affects 5 to 20 per 100,000 population, with about 4,000 new cases per year in the United States.

The purpose of this guideline is to provide all clinicians who may encounter patients with SHL with evidence-based recommendations for diagnosis, counseling, treatment, and follow-up. By focusing on opportunities for quality improvement, the guideline should improve diagnostic accuracy, facilitate prompt intervention, decrease variations in management, reduce unnecessary tests and imaging procedures, and improve hearing and rehabilitative outcomes for affected patients.

"We are pleased that this guideline provides doctors with a set of evidence-based recommendations for patients who present with sudden hearing loss. This guideline will help advance the care of afflicted patients and result in improved outcomes," said Robert J. Stachler, MD, Guideline Chair.

Key Points for the AAO-HNSF Clinical Practice Guideline: Sudden Hearing Loss

What is sudden hearing loss and why is it important? Sudden hearing loss (SHL) is a frightening symptom that often prompts an urgent or emergent visit to a physician. The guideline primarily focuses on sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) in adult patients (aged 18 and over).

The panel recognized that patients enter the health care system with SHL as a nonspecific, primary complaint. Therefore, the initial recommendations of the guideline deal with efficiently distinguishing SSNHL from other causes of SHL at the time of presentation. Prompt recognition and management of SSNHL may improve hearing recovery and patient quality of life (QOL). SSNHL affects 5 to 20 per 100,000 population, with about 4,000 new cases per year in the United States.

Why is the sudden hearing loss guideline newsworthy? This is the first evidence-based guideline on sudden hearing loss in the United States. The guideline's recommendations should improve diagnostic accuracy, facilitate prompt intervention, decrease inappropriate variations in management, reduce unnecessary tests and imaging procedures, and improve hearing and rehabilitative outcomes for affected patients.

What is the purpose of the sudden hearing loss guideline? To provide clinicians with evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis, management, and follow-up of patients who present with SHL. The guideline is intended for all clinicians who diagnose or manage adult patients (18 and over) who present with SHL. The guideline was developed by a multidisciplinary panel representing the fields of otolaryngology, otology, neurotology, neurology, family medicine, emergency medicine, audiology, nurse practitioners, and consumer advocacy groups.

What are the newsworthy points made in the guideline?
Prompt and accurate diagnosis is important:
a. Sensorineural ('nerve') hearing loss should be distinguished clinically from conductive ('mechanical') hearing loss.
b. Unusual presentations such as bilateral SSNHL, recurrent SSNHL, or focal neurological findings (problem with nerve, spinal cord, or brain function) may represent definable underlying disease and should be managed accordingly.
c. The diagnosis of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL), is made when audiometry confirms a 30 decibel hearing loss at three consecutive frequencies and an underlying condition cannot be identified by history and physical exam.
Unnecessary tests and treatments should be avoided:
a. Routine head/brain CT scans, often ordered in the ER setting, are not helpful and expose the patient to ionizing radiation.
b. Routine, non-targeted, laboratory testing is not recommended.
c. The following should not be routinely prescribed: antivirals, thrombolytics, vasodilators, vasoactive substances, or antioxidants to patients with ISSNHL.
Retrocochlear workup should be performed in all patients with ISSNHL, regardless of hearing recovery.
Initial therapy for ISSNHL may include corticosteroids.
a. Corticosteroids may be delivered systemically or via intratympanic application.
b. Hyperbaric oxygen, currently not FDA-approved for this indication, may be offered.
Doctors should offer intratympanic steroid perfusion when patients have incomplete recovery from ISSNHL after failure of initial management.
Follow-up and counseling is important:
a. Doctors should educate patients with ISSNHL about the natural history of the condition, the benefits and risks of medical interventions, and the limitations of existing evidence regarding efficacy.
b. Doctors should obtain follow-up audiometry within six months of diagnosis for patients with ISSNHL.
c. Doctors should counsel patients with incomplete hearing recovery about the possible benefits of amplification and hearing assistive technology and other supportive measures.


Source-Eurekalert

Vitamin A Pill may Reduce Skin Cancer Risk

A study published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology suggests that taking a vitamin A pill every day may reduce the risk of skin cancer among women.

The study was led by Dr Maryam Asgari from the Kaiser Permanente Northern California Division of Research in Oakland, who analyzed the effect of vitamin A supplements among 69,600 men and women between 50 and 76 years of age.

The researchers found that a compound, known as retinol, present in vitamin A reduced the risk of skin cancer among women by as much as 60 percent. “Our data suggest a possible interaction between supplemental retinol use and the anatomic site of melanoma, with sun-exposed sites showing a stronger protective effect than sun-protected sites. It may be that retinol's effects may be mediated by sunlight exposure. This intriguing possibility warrants further exploration in future studies”, Dr Asgari said.

Source-Medindia

Introducing Vegetables into Your Child's Diet Better Than Hiding Them in Food

New research indicates that a better way to increase consumption of vegetables among children is to introduce them gradually into the diet rather than continually hiding them in food.

A survey of adolescents by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System found that only 21 percent of our children eat the recommended 5 or more fruits and vegetables per day.

So not very many children are asking their parents to "pass the peas," and parents are resorting to other methods to get their children to eat their vegetables.

One popular method is hiding vegetables. There are even cookbooks devoted to doing this and new food products promise they contain vegetable servings but don't taste like vegetables.

But this "sneaky" technique has been controversial, as some dietitians, doctors, and parents have argued that sneaking vegetables into food does not promote increased vegetable consumption because children are unaware they are eating vegetables, and are not likely to continue the practice into adulthood.

A study found that informing children of the presence of vegetables hidden within snack food may or may not alter taste preference. Acceptability of the vegetable-enriched snack food may depend on the frequency of prior exposure to the vegetable.

Chickpea chocolate chip cookies or chocolate chip cookies? Investigators from Columbia University enrolled 68 elementary and middle school children and asked just that question.

In each pair, one sample's label included the food's vegetable (eg, broccoli gingerbread spice cake), and one sample's label did not (eg, gingerbread spice cake).

Participants reported whether the samples tasted the same, or whether they preferred one sample. What the children didn't know was that both samples contained the nutritious vegetable. The investigators found that taste preferences did not differ for the labeled versus the unlabeled sample of zucchini chocolate chip bread or broccoli gingerbread spice cake.

However, students preferred the unlabeled cookies (ie, chocolate chip cookies) over the vegetable-labeled version (ie, chickpea chocolate chip cookies). The investigators also assessed the frequency of consumption for the three vegetables involved and chickpeas were consumed less frequently (81 percent had not tried in past year) as compared to zucchini and broccoli.

Lizzy Pope, MS, RD, the principal investigator of this study stated, "The present findings are somewhat unanticipated in that we were expecting students to prefer all three of the "unlabeled" samples. These findings are consistent with previous literature on neophobia that suggests that children are less apt to like food with which they are unfamiliar."

"Since the majority of students had had broccoli and zucchini within the past year (as compared to chickpeas), it appears that there must be some familiarity with a vegetable for the labeling of the vegetable content not to influence taste preference. Considering this then, it is not surprising that the unlabeled version of the chickpea chocolate chip cookies was preferred over the labeled version," Pope added.

Dr. Randi Wolf, PhD, MPH, co-investigator also said, "Food products labeled with health claims may be perceived as tasting different than those without health claims, even though they are not objectively different.

"I've even read studies that have shown children like baby carrots better when they are presented in McDonald's packaging. These prior studies suggest the potential power that food labels can have on individuals. Although anecdotal reports suggest that children may not eat food products that they know contain vegetables, little is actually known about how children's taste preferences may be affected when the vegetable content of a snack food item is apparent on the item's label. This study is important in that it may contribute knowledge of the potential effectiveness of a novel way to promote vegetable consumption in children," he noted.

Based on what the investigators learned from this study, it seems more important to introduce our children to a variety of vegetables rather than continually hiding them.

The results were published in the March/April 2012 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior.

Source-ANI

Higher Ammonia Levels Behind Increased Daytime Sleepiness In Cirrhotic Patients

Researchers have found that higher ammonia levels in blood significantly raises daytime sleepiness in patients with cirrhosis.

The findings available in the March issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, show that higher blood levels of ammonia reduced the ability of cirrhotic patients to produce restorative sleep.

Chronic liver disease can lead to cirrhosis—a condition where scar tissue replaces healthy tissue, resulting in decreased blood flow through the liver and reduced liver function. Viral hepatitis, heavy alcohol use and obesity are among the causes of cirrhosis according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).

In patients with chronic liver failure neuropsychiatric abnormalities may arise—termed hepatic encephalopathy (HE)—which experts believe to be due to neurotoxic substances that originate in the gut and are not cleared by the liver, such as ammonia. HE is common following a gastrointestinal bleed, which can be simulated by the oral administration of a mixture of protein mimicking that contained in blood ('amino acid challenge'; AAC).

To investigate the effects of excess ammonia and HE on sleep-wake patterns in patients with cirrhosis, Dr. Sara Montagnese and colleagues from the Dipartimento di Medicina in Padova, Italy and the Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology in Zurich, Switzerland, induced hyperammonaemia in participants by an AAC. Ten cirrhotic patients and ten healthy controls underwent eight days of sleep quality monitoring, neuropsychiatric/wake and sleep EEG assessment prior to and following the AAC, and hourly ammonia and sleepiness assessments for eight hours post-AAC.

"Our study found that induced hyperammonaemia led to a significant increase in daytime sleepiness in both patients and healthy volunteers," said Dr. Montagnese. The authors also report changes to the EEG architecture of a sleep episode (nap) in patients with cirrhosis, which they believe points to a reduced ability to produce restorative sleep.

Dr. Montagnese concludes, "Our findings have important clinical implications in that subjective sleepiness may be used as a surrogate marker for HE." The authors also suggest that strategies aimed at reducing daytime sleepiness may result in improved sleep at night.

Source-Eurekalert

Married Men Indulging in Extra Marital Affairs More Likely to Die During Sex

Married men cheating on their wives are more likely to die during sex according to a new report compiled by the American Heart Association.

The researchers analyzed more than 5,500 cases of sudden deaths and found that a very small number, less than 0.6 percent or 34 deaths, occurred during sex.

However a very large majority of these deaths were among married men who were having extra marital affairs. According to the report, published in the journal Circulation, more than 93 percent of the deaths occurred among married men cheating on their partners.

However lead researcher Professor Glenn Levine said that the high percentage should not be blown out of context. “I would not blow this too out of context. Without being sarcastic, I really can state that I have not had a patient who asked me about the cardiac risks of an extramarital affair”, he said.

Source-Medindia


^^^Married men, beware, LOL!

Boost Energy Levels in Brain by Jogging for 30 Minutes

by Kathy Jones on March 03, 2012


The fact that exercise increases our fitness levels by making the muscles more resistant to fatigue is pretty well-known.

Past research has found exercise spurs the birth of new mitochondria - structures in the cells that produce the body's energy - in the muscles.

This process increases your fitness endurance while reducing the risk of obesity.

Now, a team from the University of South Carolina have revealed that a regular gym session could sharpen the mind in exactly the same way.

They have found that regular treadmill sessions also give a boost to the cell's powerhouses in the brain.

Research leader, Dr Mark Davis said this energy boost helped the brain to work faster and more efficiently.

"The evidence is accumulating rapidly that exercise keeps the brain younger," the Daily Mail quoted Dr Davis as telling Scientific American.

In the short term he said this could reduce mental fatigue and sharpen your thinking in between gym sessions.

He added that building up a large reservoir of mitochondria in the brain could also create a 'buffer' against age-related brain diseases such as Alzheimer's.he researchers came to their conclusions after a study, published in The Journal of Applied Physiology, on a group of mice.

Half of the mice were exercised on a small treadmill for half an hour a day while the other half were left to lounge in their cages.

Unsurprisingly they found after eight weeks that the running mice could exercise for 126 minutes before they tired, while the sedentary mice could only manage 74 minutes.

However, tissue samples revealed the running mice also had a surge in mitochondrial development in the brain, with evidence of both new mitochrondria and increased signaling between the brain cells.

Dr Davis said although it was an animal study, it was reasonable to assume the same process 'occurs in human brains'.

He added that a 30-minute jog was the human equivalent to the workout that the mice completed.

Source-ANI

Calcium and Vitamin Supplements - Why the Supplements


Humans are by nature inquisitive and insatiable. They tirelessly pursue a perfect healthy body. Calcium and vitamin supplements are taken to provide the body with the ''required'' nutrients.



People want their daily doses of health through minerals & vitamins not through diet, but through a short cut, via supplements. Various supplements are available in the market and all boast of being the best. These rooftop proclamations of "I am the best" leave the consumer confused. This is an objective effort to clear the mist over supplements and guide the consumers.

http://www.medindia.net

Vitamin E


Vitamin E represents a family of eight fat-soluble anti-oxidant vitamins. Alpha-tocopherol is the most important vitamin E in humans. Alpha-tocopherol protects the LDL cholesterol in the blood and body cell membranes from oxidation by free radicals. (Oxidation of LDL cholesterol is believed to contribute to atherosclerosis of the arteries that can lead to strokes and heart attacks.) Alpha-tocopherol also inhibits blood clotting.

http://www.medindia.net

Paris Shop Offers Gluten-free Cakes For Celiac Sufferers

A small shop in Paris offers customers cakes and pastries that are specially made for those suffering from gluten intolerance. Some of the customers burst into tears when they first bite the cakes, as they can now relish their favorite delicacies unmindful of their health condition since they are gluten-free.

Marie Tagliaferro is one of the very few -- if not the only pastry chef in pastry-loving France -- to offer customers such delicacies in a country where gluten intolerance has long been considered a problem of the very young.

When customers call at her small Paris shop, they always ask "is it really gluten-free?" says her husband Francois, the bakery's owner-manager.

"And we say, yes, I promise, it's gluten-free... And they are very emotional, they start to eat the cakes and we have some people who are moved to tears because they haven't had a religieuse (a glazed puff pastry) or a lemon meringue tart for 15 years," he adds.

It might not quite be the stuff of Marcel Proust's madeleine recollections, but for people deprived for years of a chocolate eclair, the Tagliaferro shop has proved a godsend.

Cakes and pastries were always Marie's life. But a few years ago doctors told her she had a severe intolerance to gluten -- a protein found in cereals such as wheat -- which can cause chronic diarrhea and vomiting.

She thought she would never again be able to enjoy her own pastry creations.

But now she's has opened a patisserie dedicated to gluten-free versions of the best French pastries.

"I did some tests... at the start I just used exactly the same recipes I learnt in traditional patisserie, and then I adapted them according to the results," she explains.

"For example, with choux pastry you want the air to escape but I couldn't use the same approach with gluten-free dough because it goes all over the place. So, if we don't know, we just try it and see if it works!" she says.

A medical intolerance to gluten, known as celiac disease, affects up to one person in 100.

And while in many countries it's a standard dietary variation, in France, where gluten-based foodstuffs are almost a national icon, the disease is still under-diagnosed and little known.

For Brigitte Jolivet, president of French Association of Gluten Intolerance, little is done for French sufferers.

"In textbooks from 20 or 30 years ago, doctors were taught that celiac disease was a disease of children which disappeared in adolescence, so it wasn't something adults had," she says.

"So doctors who trained 20 or 30 years ago -- for them the discussion's over. And it's true that the baguette is one of the symbols of France, so cutting out bread isn't easy here, it's difficult," she adds.

Even for those without celiac disease, a gluten-free diet is popular on health grounds -- meaning anyone can enjoy the pastries here, and if Marie's done her job properly, you won't even know the difference.

So far, the reaction has been far more enthusiastic than they expected.

If things go well, Marie and her husband plan to soon start tackling the next symbol of French cuisine -- home-made gluten-free baguettes.

Source-AFP

Early Babies Likely to Suffer Health Problems

Babies born early have a higher risk of health problems during infancy, shows study.

Doctors said their work challenged widely held views that babies born after 37 weeks had similar long-term outcomes to those born at full term.

The research was carried out by the universities of Leicester, Liverpool, Oxford and Warwick and the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit.

It looked at 14,000 children in the UK, born 10 years ago, up to the age of five and studied health outcomes, including admissions to hospital and having illnesses such as asthma.

Previous work has focused on babies born very prematurely, before 32 weeks, but this study suggests that the higher number of babies born later may also need extra attention.

About a fifth of babies - some 100,000 a year - are born early at 37-38 weeks.

The study found that babies born during this time have a slightly higher risk of health problems up to the age of five. The earlier the baby arrived, the bigger the risk.

For example, 15 percent of babies born full term experienced asthma or wheezing as young children but the figure increased to 17 per cent for those born just a few weeks early.

They were also slightly more likely to go into hospital.

Study authors stressed that parents should not worry about what was a modest chance of extra illness. Rather their work should be used to question the level of healthcare support and monitoring given to these families.

"We've found that it's no longer appropriate, as we have done previously, to think of babies as either being born at term or premature," the BBC quoted Dr Elaine Boyle, from the University of Leicester, as saying.

"What we've found is that there is a gradient of increasing health risk with increasing prematurity but this risk stretches right up until the time at which a baby should be born," she said.

The study was published in the British Medical Journal.

Source-ANI

Dark Meat Reduces Heart Disease Rik in Women

Women with high cholesterol may protect themselves from developing coronary heart disease (CHD) by consuming dark meat of poultry, research finds.

The study, published online in the European Journal of Nutrition, evaluated the effects of taurine, a naturally-occurring nutrient found in the dark meat of turkey and chicken, as well as in some fish and shellfish, on CHD. It revealed that higher taurine intake was associated with significantly lower CHD risk among women with high total cholesterol levels. The same association was not seen in women with low cholesterol levels, however.

There is very little information available about taurine, said principal investigator Yu Chen, PhD, MPH, associate professor of epidemiology at NYU School of Medicine, part of NYU Langone Medical Center. While there have been some animal studies that indicate taurine may be beneficial to cardiovascular disease, this is the first published prospective study to look at serum taurine and CHD in humans, she explained. "Our findings were very interesting. Taurine, at least in its natural form, does seem to have a significant protective effect in women with high cholesterol."

Coronary heart disease is the leading killer of American men and women, causing one in five deaths. Also known as coronary artery disease, it is caused by the buildup of plaque in the arteries to the heart. Large prospective epidemiologic studies have provided evidence that nutritional factors are important modifiable risk factors for CHD.

Dr. Chen and colleagues conducted their study using data and samples from the NYU Women's Health Study. The original study enrolled more than 14,000 women, 34 to 65 years of age, between 1985 and 1991 at a breast cancer screening center in New York City. Upon enrollment, a wide range of medical, personal and lifestyle information was recorded and the data and samples continue to be utilized for a variety of medical studies.

For the serum taurine study, funded by the American Heart Association, the researchers measured taurine levels in serum samples collected in 1985 – before disease occurrence – for 223 NYUWHS participants who developed or died from CHD during the study follow up period between 1986 and 2006. The researchers then compared those samples to the taurine levels in serum samples collected at the same time for 223 participants who had no history of cardiovascular disease.

The comparison revealed serum taurine was not protective of CHD overall. However, among women with high cholesterol, those with high levels of serum taurine were 60 percent less likely to develop or die from CHD in the study, compared to women with lower serum taurine levels. If future studies are able to replicate the findings, taurine supplementation or dietary recommendations may one day be considered for women with high cholesterol at risk for CHD.

"It is an interesting possibility," she said. "If these findings are confirmed, one day we might be able to suggest that someone with high cholesterol eat more poultry, specifically dark meat."

Dr. Chen explained that Caucasian women comprised more than 80 percent of the study population and, therefore, the results may not at this time be generalized to men or other races, but suggested that future studies should be conducted in these populations. In addition, she explained, it is unclear whether synthetic taurine as an additive in food and drink products will have the same benefit observed in this study, and health effects of these products should be investigated separately. "We studied taurine found in the blood that originated from natural sources," Dr. Chen said. "The nutrient being added to energy drinks or supplements is man-made and is added in unstudied amounts. These products also often contain not only very high amounts of taurine, but a multitude of other ingredients as well – such as caffeine and ginseng – that may influence CHD risk."

The researchers are currently using NYUWHS data to evaluate the effect of taurine on the occurrence of stroke in another study funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI).

Source-Eurekalert

Red Meat - Myths and Facts

There has perhaps been more misinformation written about red meat than any other food. The reason for these myths are unclear but it seems that "meat" as a category often gets lumped together in scientific reviews irrespective of the fattiness of the meat, the origin of the meat (for example, grain fed versus pasture fed) or whether it's processed.

Red meat is a rich source of protein and an excellent source of iron, the mineral most commonly lacking in diets around the world. It also supplies vitamin B12 for a healthy nervous system and zinc for immune function; vitamin B6, niacin, selenium and omega-3 fatty acids.

The good news for meat lovers is that red meat can play a valuable role in a healthy diet - just make sure the cuts are lean and trimmed of fat and the serving sizes are moderate.

Myth: Red meat is bad for your heart and cannot be included in heart healthy diets

Fact: It depends on the type of meat you choose. A review of 54 studies on red meat and heart disease found that lean red meat trimmed of visible fat does not raise total cholesterol or LDL cholesterol levels. Lean trimmed red meat is low in saturated fat and can be included in cholesterol lowering and heart healthy diets. A number of studies have shown cholesterol reductions when people include lean red meat in a low saturated fat diet. Avoid fried meats, fatty meats and meat which has fat marbled through it.

It is well recognized that plant protein (such as tofu) is associated with lower blood pressure. Recent studies have shown that animal protein in the form of lean red meat is also inversely related to lower blood pressure. A study comparing two groups of moderate hypertensive patients fed one group 250g per day of lean red meat in place of the carbohydrate-rich foods that the control group was receiving. Systolic blood pressures were lower in the group which was given meat. It is thought that certain amino acids, taurine and arginine, in the meat may have helped to lower blood pressure. The diet containing meat was also lower in sodium due to the low salt content of fresh meat.

Cholesterol content of various foods (mg per 100g)*
Beef 50
Veal 51
Lamb 66
Mutton 66
Beef liver 271
Beef kidney 313
Beef heart 103
Lamb brain 1352
Egg, boiled 385
Chicken (meat only) 76
Duck 110
Cod fish 60


* Data for red meats is for Australian products from Williams P, (2007) Nutr & Diet.,64(S4)S113-119
* Cholesterol levels may vary by country of origin as feeding methods vary

(Ref: McCance and Widdowson, 1991)

Myth: Red meat only contains saturated fats

Fact: Fat content and type of fat in meat depends on the type of meat and the feeding protocol. However red meat provides saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Analysis on lean fat trimmed Australian red meat (which is pasture fed) has shown a ratio of saturated fatty acids (SFA) to monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) to polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) of around 24:40:14. Part of the SFA is stearic acid which has been shown not to raise cholesterol levels.

http://www.medindia.net

this is how I almost always eat

and people stare at me ....all the time

I just laugh...I'm the healthy one and in fact plan to cancel my health insurance! I haven't been to the doctor since 2001/ I'm throwing money away!

I DO need to excersize more tho! and I have a PLAN....

thats good to know, keep healthy!

Taking vitamin E linked to osteoporosis:
research
Japanese scientists say they have found a link between consumption of vitamin E and the degenerative bone condition osteoporosis, in a study likely to shed new light on the use of supplements.



Taking vitamin E linked to osteoporosis: research
Researchers found that giving mice increased doses of the vitamin to a level similar to that found in supplements caused the animals' bones to thin.

The mice developed osteoporosis after eight weeks on the diet, which had levels of vitamin E significantly higher than those found in a mouse's natural diet, according to the study, published in the journal Nature Medicine.

The team, led by Shu Takeda of Keio University, said vitamin E stimulates the generation of bone-degrading cells, which normally work with bone-forming cells to maintain bone strength.

Osteoporosis is a disease that causes the thinning of bone tissue and loss of bone density over time. It often affects older people, particularly women, who may become more prone to bone fractures.

Vitamin E is found naturally in various foods including vegetable oil, nuts and some leafy vegetables.

It is also a popular health supplement as an antioxidant, and is widely believed to enhance health and slow problems related to ageing.

The study called for greater research into how enhanced levels of vitamin E affect human health.

"It is possible that with the volume (of vitamin E) contained in health supplements, bones may become fragile," Takeda told the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.

The findings come after researchers found mice that had been genetically modified to be deficient in vitamin E had a high bone density.

http://news.ph.msn.com/top-stories/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5959596