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Health and Fitness Newsletter Archive from Dr. Ann - Wellness Newsletter November 2008
By: Dr. Ann |
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 NEWS....
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Take Charge of Your Health |
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November 2008 | |
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Cancer and the Weight of the Matter
Maintaining a healthy body weight throughout life is second only to avoiding tobacco as the most powerful thing an individual can do to decrease their cancer risk - yet studies repeatedly show only a minority of the population is aware of the body weight cancer link (so help me spread the word by forwarding this to friends and loved ones).  Even less folks are aware that gaining weight in adulthood, even if your weight is still in the "normal" range can increase cancer risk. Indeed, weight stability (ideally keeping your weight where it was in your early 20's) appears to be important for cancer protection too. This observation was echoed in a new study published in the International Journal of Cancer (September 2008) that included 46,000 adult males followed over an 18 year period. Investigators were seeking the relationship between adult weight gain and colon cancer and found that for every 10 pounds of weight gained per decade since the age of 21, the risk of colon cancer increased by 33%, i.e. if you are now 50 and weigh 20 pounds more than you did at age 21, your risk of colon cancer has increased 66%. (For women a plethora of studies have found adult weight gain significantly increases the risk of post-menopausal breast cancer.)
In a second related study, that was one of the first and definitely the largest to evaluate the risk of colorectal cancer in those afflicted with metabolic syndrome, scientists found a sharply increased risk. Amongst about 1,200 metabolic syndrome patients included in the study, the risk of colon cancer was increased by 75%. Metabolic syndrome is a now epidemic (25 - 30 % of population) condition strongly tied to excess body fat that includes the simultaneous presence of multiple cardiovascular risk factors like high blood pressure, high triglycerides, elevated blood sugar, and low HDL.
Lastly we are also seeing repeatedly in studies (especially for colon, breast, and prostate cancer) that overweight cancer survivors are significantly more likely to die of their cancers than their leaner counterparts. A striking new study in the current issue of The Lancet Oncology drives home the all-important guidance for cancer survivors to strive to keep body weight in a healthy range. After following 2,500 prostate cancer patients over a 24 year period, scientists found that being overweight (BMI 25 - 29) increased the risk of cancer death by 47%, while being obese (BMI >30) increased cancer death risk by a whopping 250%. Scientists believe the high insulin level that accompanies excess body fat is the most likely culprit behind these findings. (FYI - insulin promotes cell growth and blocks cell death, a deadly combo if you have cancer cells in your body.) The lead investigator in this study, Dr. Michael Pollack, was so struck by these findings that he feels dealing with excess body weight and its frequent companion, high blood insulin levels may provide more benefit to overweight prostate cancer patients than chemotherapy.
For my best advice on the healthiest, simplest, and most effective way to lose weight, and keep it off you can check out the updated version of my book, Dr. Ann's 10-Step Diet now available in paperback. Click here to view my new video tips for Reining in Your Appetite.
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Superstar Food of the Month
Lentils
Like their bean cousins, lentils are cheap, versatile, filling, and power-packed full of fiber, B-vitamins, protein, minerals, and antioxidant polyphenols. They provide more folate than any other food and have an edge over the other legumes because they cook quickly, require no pre-soaking, and tend to cause less gas.
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Tip of the Month
Add Some Canned Pumpkin to Your Morning Oatmeal
Add 2 - 3 tablespoons of canned pumpkin to your morning oatmeal. Canned pumpkin is off-the-charts healthy because of its super-high levels of carotenoid phytochemicals. (It is fresh pumpkin pureed and then cooked down to remove its water, which concentrates its glowing goodness.) Finish it off with a little cinnamon, brown sugar, and Smart Balance. Yum!
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A "Bitter" Sweet Surprise
 Have you seen the new advertising blitz ("The Sweet Surprise Campaign") undertaken by the Corn Refiners Association (sugar pushers) claiming that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is "natural" and "the same as sugar?" They claim that HFCS has been unduly vilified and that it is handled in the body no differently than regular sugar. Although some past studies have shown this may be the case, a brand new report in the American Journal of Physiology (October 2008) raises additional concerns. In this novel study, investigators found that rats fed a high fructose diet over a six month period developed a particularly high risk metabolic syndrome called leptin resistance. Leptin is a powerful appetite-suppressive hormone that binds to cells in the brain to turn off hunger. With leptin resistance, leptin can't do its job leading to unbridled appetite, excessive eating, and ultimately obesity. In this particular study, when the leptin-resistant, fructose fed rats were put on a high fat diet, they gained significantly more weight than the control group of normal rats put on the same high fat diet.
HFCS is not natural - it is made in factories and is only found in processed, man-made foods. Although associations do not prove causality, it is compelling to note that dramatic acceleration in HFCS intake over the past 30 years parallels dead on with the escalating rates of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and kidney disease. Other laboratory studies have shown that fructose can cause insulin resistance, high triglycerides,inflammation, fatty liver, abdominal obesity, and kidney injury. It is interesting to note that we do not observe these same effects when we give laboratory animals equivalent amounts of glucose or starch.
I continue to be wary of HFCS and recommend you minimize or avoid it. At a minimum it is a reliable marker for a factory made, "fake" food. Stick with the foods nature provides because they are the ones that guard and protect your health.
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Pass on the Post-Workout Carbs
If burning fat is one of your goals for working out, you may want to skip your post-workout snack. Reporting in the Journal of Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism (2007), investigators found that after a 1 hour walk on the treadmill, study subjects experienced a 40% boost in insulin efficiency (which translates to a faster metabolism and enhanced fat-burning potential). However if study subjects were given a high carb (sugary) beverage, like a sports drink, immediately after the workout, this benefit was completely wiped out. Follow-up studies by the same investigators found that any type of calories post-exercise, but particularly carb calories, seemed to blunt the boost in metabolism exercise normally induces. The investigators concluded that it appears to be optimal to avoid eating back the calories you burned, especially from carbs, within the first 2 - 3 hours post-workout.
Check out my Metabolism Boosters video for additional tips to rev up your fat-burning engine.
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Another Reason to Enjoy Olive Oil
 I consider extra virgin olive oil a superstar food for both sensory pleasure and health protection, and a fascinating new study in the October issue of Cell Metabolism provided yet another reason to make this delicious fat your oil of choice, namely better appetite control. Olive oil is chock full of heart-happy monounsaturated fats and is particularly high in one called oleic acid. In this current study, scientists infused oleic acid directly into the gastrointestinal tract of laboratory rats and found that it triggered the release of appetite-suppressive neurochemicals from the lining of the intestines that ultimately quieted the brain's appetite center. As expected, the laboratory rats that received the oleic acid infusions ate less afterwards than the control rats not given the oleic acid. A similar report in the journal, Gastroenterology (November 2007) noted the same findings and also found that oleic acid delayed stomach emptying, giving rise to a prolonged sense of "fullness." A simple and practical way to take advantage of olive oil's potential to quiet your inner cookie monster is to enjoy a salad tossed with an olive oil vinaigrette as a pre-meal appetizer. For other great reasons to include extra virgin olive oil in your diet you can watch this brief video clip.
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Dr. Ann's latest video tips!
Click here to view a full list of Dr. Ann's web videos.
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Supplement Setback
Over the past 5 years, as I have diligently read the new science as it relates to wellness and nutrition (with a few a exceptions) I have experienced an almost complete about face in my belief and enthusiasm for supplements. The past month happened to bring us a deluge of new data from several large, very powerful randomized clinical trials (the only type of study that can really tease out the truth) that have highly reinforced my current views. The conclusions of these reports are highlighted as follows:
· The long-term use of B-vitamin supplements to include folic acid proved to be of no benefit to lower a woman's risk of cancer (JAMA, November 2008).
· High dose B-vitamin supplements (folic acid, B-12, and B6) did nothing to slow cognitive decline in those with mild to moderate Alzheimer's' Disease (JAMA, 2008).
· Long term use of vitamin C and E supplements in healthy adult males was of no benefit for cancer protection (American Academy of Cancer Research Meeting, November 2008).
· Long term use of vitamin C and E supplements in healthy adult males was of no benefit in reducing the risk of heart attacks, strokes, or cardiovascular death. Those taking vitamin E had a slightly increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke. (American Heart Association 2008 Scientific Session)
· Long term use of Gingko Biloba was of no benefit in preventing or slowing the development of dementia in elderly subjects (JAMA, November 2008)
Americans currently spend billions of dollars on the above supplements.
For my current views on what supplements you should consider, view my Lowdown on Supplements video tip.
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 ... For Parents (and Grandparents)
As a mother of 4, devoted to raising good and healthy kids, there were a number of compelling new study findings I felt worthy of your attention. They are summarized as follows:
· The American Academy of Pediatrics, the country's leading authority on children's health doubled the recommended amount of daily vitamin D for children of all ages to 400 IU's. With the exception of infants fed exclusively on formula, they recommend that all other children (infants, toddlers, and older kids) receive 400 IU of a vitamin D supplement daily. Fortunately, this is the amount in any chewable kids' multivitamin and most liquid infant vitamins so it's easy and convenient to do.
· For optimal bone health, children require at least 25 minutes of vigorous activity (running, jumping, jogging) daily. (Pediatrics, September 2008) Keep in mind that whether or not your child develops osteoporosis later in life is largely determined by what they do or do not do right (diet/exercise) during youth. Has your child had his/her exercise today?
· Inadequate sleep in youth may lead to higher body weight in adulthood (Pediatrics, November 2008). This was the first study to identify a long-term association between sleep in youth and adult obesity risk. Studies show kids are sleeping less today than previous generations. Current recommendations are that children ages 5 - 12 sleep 11 hours per night and teens 8.5 to 9.5 hours per night.
· There has been a profound increase in prescription drug use in American kids over the past few years. From 2002 to 2005 there was a 100% increase in the use of type 2 diabetes meds, a 46.5% increase in asthma meds, a 40.4% increase in ADHD meds and a 15% increase in cholesterol meds. (Pediatrics, November 2008) America has truly become the land of the medicated.
· Children as young as 2 years old make food choices that mirror what their parents do. (Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, November 2008) This study found that even very young children will not inherently reach for sweets and junk food when given the opportunity, but instead select foods based on what's been in their parents' shopping carts. Being a positive role model has been repeatedly shown to be the most powerful thing you can do as a parent to raise a healthy child.
· Only 3% of all possible combinations of fast food kid's meals meet the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) guidelines. (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, November 2008) Ten separate fast food chains were included in this first-of-its-kind study, and the only combinations of meals that satisfied the NSLP standards (which are not particularly rigorous) were those that included some type of milk as a beverage and fruit as a side. And almost all were based on deli-type sandwiches. Bottom line - if your child is regularly consuming fast food it is highly likely that they are malnourished.
My Kids
(Lucie, Frazier, Liz, Jack) |
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Exciting News/Reminders
- Dr. Ann is the featured expert for the "Spice Cures" cover story of the December issue of Bottom Line Personal (circulation 1.5 million!!).
- Look for Dr. Ann's tips in the December issue of Health magazine's "Beating the Holiday Blues" article.
- Eat Right for Life! CD now available -- Dr. Ann's most popular motivational seminar. To order call 843-329-1238 (available soon from Dr. Ann's website).
- Join Dr. Ann on the first and third Thursdays of each month, from 12:30 to 1:00 PM for her live "Ask the Expert" radio broadcast on S.C. Public Radio's "Your Day" program (also webstreamed at http://yourday.clemson.edu). Click here to visit the archives. A special thank you to Whole Foods for sponsoring Dr. Ann's radio broadcasts!
Coming Soon:
- Dr. Ann's What's for Dinner... a booklet of 15 healthy, family-friendly dinner meal plans and recipes.
- Dr. Ann's Eat Right for Life! DVD.
Have a healthy and happy Thanksgiving!
Dr. Ann | |
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Dr. Ann & Just Wellness, LLC | 246 Mathis Ferry Road | Suite 100 | Mt. Pleasant | SC | 29464
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