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August 2003 Vol. 8 No. 8
Nothing determines who we will become so much as those things we choose to ignore
Sandor Minab
Table of Contents:
DIGITAL ON-LINE DIRECTORY to Improving Your Earning Power
Charlotte Fitness Conference October 3-5, 2003
Low-Glycemic-Index Foods Improve Diabetes Control
Health Advocates Condemn Proposed Bill to Shield Junk Food Industry
Food and Breast Cancer Survival
Childhood Fruit Intake Reduces Adult Cancers
FDA Orders Estrogen Cancer Warnings
Insulin Resistance Linked to Prostate Cancer
More Cancer-Fighting Substances in Organic Produce
More Americans Are Becoming Pre-Diabetics
Exercise Can Reverse Pre-Diabetes
Discover Nutrition Facts You Never Knew About 25 Well-Known Foods
Fast Food Industry Concerned About Health and Nutrition
DIGITAL ON-LINE DIRECTORY to Improving Your Earning Power
The NEW 2004 13th Annual Edition of America’s Finest Companies®
A Proven Way to Make Money in Any Market! For fitness and healthcare professionals who would like their money to earn a better return while planning for the future. Check this site for more information: http://www.afpafitness.com/OnlineDirectoryPDF.htm
Low-Glycemic-Index Foods Improve Diabetes Control
Diets rich in carbohydrates that release sugars into the bloodstream slowly improve blood sugar control for individuals with diabetes, according to a meta-analysis published in tomorrow’s Diabetes Care. The analysis compiles the findings of 14 previous studies comparing foods that vary in their glycemic index (GI), a gauge of how quickly foods release sugars into the blood.
Examples of low-GI foods include beans, peas, lentils, pasta, pumpernickel bread, bulgur, parboiled rice, barley, and oats. Diets rich in these foods led to a small, but significant improvement in blood glucose control, as reflected by a drop in hemoglobin A1c levels of 0.43% points (CI 0.72-0.13).
High-GI foods include potatoes, wheat flour, white bread, and some varieties of breakfast cereals and rice. The glycemic index was developed by David J.A. Jenkins, M.D., Ph.D., D.Sc., of St. Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, Ont., and the University of Toronto.
Brand-Miller J, Petocz P, Hayne S, Colagiuri S. Low-glycemic index diets in the management of diabetes. Diabetes Care 2003;26:2261-7.
For more information on nutrition and health, please visit www.PCRM.org and www.CancerProject.org
Health Advocates Condemn Proposed Bill to Shield Junk Food Industry Neal Barnard, M.D., to Submit Testimony on the Addictive Power of Unhealthy Foods
Washington, D.C.-A proposed bill to absolve the restaurant, junk food, and fast-food industries of any responsibility for America’s obesity crisis threatens consumer rights, says the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. The nonprofit is submitting testimony this week against H.R. 339, the “Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption Act.” Introduced by Rep. Keller (R-FL), the bill seeks to protect the food industry from lawsuits holding it liable for the negative health effects of their products. A hearing will be held on Thursday, June 19, on Capitol Hill.
“What if the tobacco industry had conned Congress into passing legislation protecting it from legal action?” asks nutrition researcher and PCRM president Neal Barnard, M.D. “We shouldn’t grant Big Food the kind of immunity we wouldn’t give Big Tobacco. We’ve long known that meat, cheese, and other unhealthy foods dramatically increase the risk of heart disease, cancer, and diabetes and are just as detrimental to public health as tobacco. But we’re just now discovering how the food industry exploits our addictions for these foods. This bill will literally rob consumers of their ability to seek legal recourse.”
Ever since last summer when a lawsuit was filed against McDonald’s on behalf of a New Yorker suffering from diet-related illnesses, the food industry has tried to defend itself by claiming that food-unlike tobacco-is not addictive. However, a growing body of literature-including a new book by Dr. Barnard-argues that food is addictive. In Breaking the Food Seduction, Dr. Barnard reviews little-known scientific studies showing that cheese-along with meat, chocolate and sugar-are similar to drugs in that they cause the release of opiate-like compounds that stimulate the brain’s pleasure center.
The food industry has a history of using legislation and lobbying to squelch criticism of its products. In the 1990s, for example, the food industry convinced 13 states to pass the infamous veggie-libel or “food-disparagement” laws, which prohibit citizens from speaking out about the problems of unsafe foods. PCRM believes H.R. 339 is just as dangerous to consumer protection.
Dr. Barnard and members of PCRM’s nutrition and legal teams are available for comment. To schedule an interview, please contact Jeanne Stuart McVey at 202-686-2210, ext. 316, or jeannem@pcrm.org.
Food and Breast Cancer Survival
A wonderful article that can be read in its entirety at:
http://www.pcrm.org/magazine/gm03summer/gm03summer04.html
Childhood Fruit Intake Reduces Adult Cancers
A 60-year study of 3,878 men and women living in rural and urban areas of England and Scotland found that participants who consumed more fruit as children had less cancer later in life. Initial food surveys were carried out in 1930s pre-war Britain and examined for vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene intake. Compared to those who ate the least fruit as children, those who ate the most were 38 percent less likely to develop cancer as adults.
Maynard M, Gunnell D, Emmett P, Frankel S, Smith GD. Fruit, vegetables, and antioxidants in childhood and risk of adult cancer: the Boyd Orr cohort. J Epidemiol Community Health 2003;57:218-25.
FDA Orders Estrogen Cancer Warnings
After analyzing data from the Women’s Health Initiative study, the FDA has mandated a new boxed warning-the highest level of warning information in labeling-for estrogen and estrogen/progestin products such as Prempro, indicating an increased risk for heart disease, heart attacks, strokes, and breast cancer. It also emphasizes that the products are not approved for heart disease prevention. FDA News, January 8, 2003.
Insulin Resistance Linked to Prostate Cancer
As reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, researchers measured fasting serum glucose and insulin levels in 128 cancer patients and 306 healthy individuals, finding that insulin resistance is associated with a higher risk of prostate cancer. Western diets, high in saturated fat, red meat, and refined sugar contribute to insulin resistance, a condition whereby tissues become unresponsive to the many actions of insulin. Such diets may also lead to obesity, which, in turn, aggravates insulin resistance.
Hsing AW, Gao Y, Streamson C, Deng J, Stanczyk FZ. Insulin resistance and prostate cancer risk. J Natl Cancer Inst 2003;95:67-71.
More Cancer-Fighting Substances in Organic Produce
A University of California, Davis, study of organically grown corn, strawberries, and marionberries found they contained higher levels of natural cancer-fighting compounds than conventionally grown samples. Pesticides and herbicides used for conventional produce appear to impede the production of phenolics, which defend plants from insects and people from disease. Levels of antioxidants in organically grow corn were 58.5 percent higher than conventionally grown corn; antioxidant levels in organic marionberries and strawberries were 50 and 19 percent higher, respectively.
Certified organic crops are not genetically engineered, irradiated, or fertilized with sewage sludge. The land must also be free of pesticides and herbicides for three years prior to farming.
Asami D, Hong Y, Barrett DM, Mitchell AE. Comparison of the total phenolic and ascorbic acid content of freeze-dried and air-dried marionberry, strawberry, and corn grown using conventional, organic, and sustainable agricultural practices. J Agric Food Chem 2003;51:1237-41.
More Americans Are Becoming Pre-Diabetics
The incidence of metabolic syndrome, sometimes called pre-diabetes, is increasing. The condition is characterized by obesity, especially around the abdomen, dyslipidaemia (especially high levels of triglycerides and low levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol), hyperglycaemia, and hypertension.
As the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is also increasing, researchers are trying to determine whether treating metabolic syndrome will be more effective in cutting diabetes rates than focusing on the prevention of obesity and other risk factors for diabetes. Studies have found that people with metabolic syndrome are at an increased risk of developing diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
Researchers suggest that modest, healthy lifestyle changes may be most effective in treating metabolic syndrome and preventing its subsequent type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
British Medical Journal July 12, 2003;327:61-62 (Full Text Article) http://bmj.com/cgi/content/full/327/7406/61?etoc
Exercise Can Reverse Pre-Diabetes
Inactive adults who add a few hours of exercise each week may cut their risk of developing a pre-diabetic condition known as insulin resistance syndrome, even if they don’t lose weight.
As the population is eating more and exercising less, increasing numbers of adults and children are developing the syndrome, which results when a person loses the ability to use insulin effectively.
The syndrome can develop into type 2 diabetes and increase the risk of heart disease if left untreated.
To investigate whether physical activity influences the risk of insulin resistance syndrome, researchers followed 18 sedentary men and women for six months. Participants exercised by walking for 30 minutes between three and seven days a week and were told not to change their diets or body weights.
At the end of the study, researchers examined insulin sensitivity and levels of blood fats, such as cholesterol. It was found that exercise with no weight loss increased insulin sensitivity. According to researchers, even modest amounts of exercise, without weight loss or loss of abdominal fat, can improve indicators of glucose and fat metabolism among inactive, middle-aged adults, a group that is particularly at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care March 26, 2003;26:557-562
Discover Nutrition Facts You Never Knew About 25 Well-Known Foods
Foods are full of many different compounds–some naturally health promoting and some harmful. Read these useful food facts about 25 foods–the details may surprise you! http://www.mercola.com/nutritionplan/foodalert.htm
Fast Food Industry Concerned About Health and Nutrition
Leaders in the junk food industry have announced that health is a top priority to them. Find out just how much processed food Americans are actually eating. As Americans continue to put on the pounds, major players in the junk food industry including McDonald’s, Kraft and Coca-Cola have announced that health and nutrition are high up on their agendas.
They say they are making changes in the way they approach fat content, menu choices and marketing to promote healthier lifestyles among their consumers. Members of the junk food industry have recently been the target of lawsuits alleging their products cause adverse health effects, while facing increasing evidence about the health risks of junk foods. Health officials welcome the changes but remain skeptical.
Yahoo News July 19, 2003
If you believe the latest deceptive ploy there is a good chance you might have also believed the tobacco companies when they claimed cigarettes don’t cause cancer. Although fast food and junk food tastes good and is quite affordable, it will cost you far, far more in the long run. You can only fool your body for so long. It is a virtual certainty that if you subsist on fast foods you are accelerating the aging process and compromising your health. There is just no way around it–if you want to reap a healthy life, you need to spend some serious time in the kitchen preparing your own food. Either you or a family member will need to personally do this or pay someone to do it for you.
The United States has nearly 200,000 fast-food restaurants and over 3 million soft-drink vending machines. We also have an extremely wide variety of processed foods available in our grocery and convenient stores.
About 90 percent of the money Americans spend on food goes toward processed foods. How can you possibly be healthy with that much processed food in your diet? Our goal should be to reverse this ratio and strive for 90 percent non-processed food and only 10 percent from other food sources. Not only will you enjoy the health benefits, but the satisfaction of preparing meals and controlling the ingredients is a great feeling.