Food scientists in Singapore have formulated a new recipe for making healthier bread by adding anthocyanin, a plant pigment derived from black rice. Bread made with anthocyanin appears to be digested more slowly (allowing for better blood glucose control), and is high in antioxidants. Results of the Food Chemistry study showed that digestion rates of this bread reduced by 12.8% when 1% of anthocyanin extract was added into the dough. The digestion rate dropped further to 20.5% when the amount of anthocyanin extract increased to 4%. The researchers are excited about the possibility of using anthocyanin to make healthier, more diabetic-friendly food products.
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Do Proton Pump Inhibitors Increase the Risk of Dementia?
Lewis H. Kuller, MD, DrPH1 [+] Author Affiliations JAMA Neurol. Published online February 15, 2016.;():. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2015.4931. LPACO BLOG EDITORIAL NOTE-- Here is an extract of the editorial comment on the recent study which received extensive press coverage and puts the results in perspective. There are increased data of risk of long term PPI use for dementing illness as well as renal disease progression.The major alternative to PPI, the H2A meds such as ranitidine, famotidine, cimetidine are also associated with dementia development in restrospecfove data analyses, complicating the recommendations for patients. This study and other retrospective studies with database derived diagnoses for "dementia" are problematic as there are numerous causes of dementia and confounding diseases which prompt use of PPI and H2A medications: for example, many patient with high propensity for cerebrovascular vascular disease (and vascular type dementia) require long term use of blood thinners, anticoagulants and anti platelet agents which predispose to internal GI bleeding, GI irritation. Thus there would be expectations of finding higher risk of H2A and PPI use in patient who develop vascular type dementia. The recommendations for many years have been to use the lowest necessary dose of PPI for control of GI ulcer and reflux disease and attempts at drug withdrawal or substitution. Avoidance of automatic use of GI protection long term for low risk patients who require aspirin treatment seems reasonable to reduce long term PPI abs H2A long term use. It is reasonable to discuss with patients directly the risks and benefits of PPI and H2A. EXTRACT In 2015, the German Study on Aging, Cognition and Dementia in Primary Care Patients reported that among 2911 persons 75 years of age or older, the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) was associated with an increased risk of dementia (hazard ratio [HR], 1.33 [95% CI, 1.04-1.83) and an increased risk of Alzheimer disease (HR, 1.44 [95% CI, 1.01-2.06]).1 The study by Gomm et al2 used a large German insurance database to link PPI use and subsequent incidence of dementia using both inpatient and outpatient medical records. They have found a similar increase in the risk of dementia among PPI users (HR, 1.44 [95% CI, 1.36-1.52]).2Determining the relatively low prevalence of PPI use among older individuals required a very large database with available follow-up information about incidence of dementia to evaluate the association of PPI use and dementia. The use of an administrative database restricts the quality of the diagnosis of dementia and types of dementia. The availability of their prior study with a smaller sample size but a more detailed evaluation of dementia enhances the possible validity of their conclusions. A new small study suggests that incorporating barley into diets may help lower blood sugar levels and reduce diabetes risk. Researchers followed 20 healthy middle-aged participants; some ate barley kernel bread at breakfast, lunch, and dinner for 3 days, while the others ate white bread. The team noted in the British Journal of Nutritionresults that participants who ate the barley kernel bread had improved metabolisms for up to 14 hours, experienced decreased blood sugar and insulin levels, and their appetites decreased.
NBC News (2/5, Fox) reported on its website that investigators “have found a genetic ‘signature’ common to five different types of cancer and hope it might be a step towards an early blood test for cancer in general.” It is “not a genetic mutation but a change in the genetic function called methylation, the team at the National Human Genome Research Institute...said.” The researchers found that “different types of colon, lung, breast, stomach and endometrial cancers all showed the same methylation mark around a gene called ZNF154.” The findings were published in The Journal of Molecular Diagnostics.
The New York Times (2/4, Fleur, Subscription Publication) reports that the CDC has announced that pregnant women whose male sexual partners have recently spent time in a Zika-infected territory “should either abstain from sex or use condoms during intercourse for the duration of their pregnancy.” The recommendation came a day after Dallas reported the first case of sexual transmission of Zika in the United States. The agency “said...it plans to issue further guidelines in the coming days with an emphasis on what male sexual partners of women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant should do to prevent the sexual transmission of the virus.” In its lead story, the CBS Evening News (2/4, lead story, 2:30, Pelley) reported there are now at least 51 cases of Zika in the US. Correspondent Mark Strassman added that with 80 percent of Zika patients showing no symptoms, “it’s likely there are many more cases than the official numbers indicate.” NBC Nightly News (2/4, story 6, 0:25, Holt) reported that Florida expanded its state of emergency to five counties as Gov. Rick Scott (R) said on Thursday there are now 12 confirmed Zika cases in the state, all from people infected outside the US. The New York Times (2/5, A23, Otterman, Subscription Publication) reports Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on Thursday announced New York will offer free testing to pregnant women who recently traveled to Zika-infected territories, regardless of whether they show symptoms. This is “expected to significantly expand” tests for the virus being conducted in the state, “raising issues about capacity as New York City’s lab hurries to develop the capability to perform the tests.” The Times mentions that there are currently 11 confirmed Zika cases in the state. USA Today (2/5, Szabo) reports a new study indicates “the protection offered by middle-school whooping cough vaccines fades with each passing year, leaving teens vulnerable to infection as they age, a new study finds.” The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, found that “the shot protects 69% of 11- and 12-year-olds in the first year after vaccination, but within four years, just 9% of these children have sufficient protection from the infection.”
The New York Times (2/5, Bakalar) reports, “new, more effective vaccine against whooping cough is needed, but according to the lead author, Dr. Nicola P. Klein, co-director of the Kaiser Permanente Vaccine Study Center, a change in schedule might be effective until one is developed.” Some people with BMIs labeling them overweight or obese may actually be healthy, study shows2/5/2016 The Los Angeles Times (2/4, Khan) reports in “Science Now” that a studypublished online Feb. 4 in the International Journal of Obesity suggests that “some 54 million Americans who are labeled as obese or overweight according to their body mass index [BMI] are,” upon “a closer look, actually healthy.” The study’s findings “reveal that employers could potentially saddle people with unfairly high health insurance costs based on a deeply flawed measure of actual health.”
According to the NPR (2/4, Chen) “Shots” blog, physicians “contend that BMI’s usefulness ends at a rough indication that a patient should be checked for things like high blood pressure or cholesterol.” BMI was not invented as an “individual health metric.” Professional athletes, for example, “often have BMIs that could get them in trouble with a workplace wellness plan,” and “that mismatch between BMI and health is true not just for athletes,” the study found. The New Haven (CT) Register (2/3, Stannard) reported that research published in the BMJ suggests exercise may help reduce “injuries from falls in older men, but not in women.”
HealthDay (2/4, Preidt) reports that the research “included more than 1,600 inactive women and men, aged 70 to 89, randomly assigned to either a long-term, moderate exercise regimen or to a health education program.” Investigators found that “compared to those in the health education group, men in the workout group had a 38 percent lower risk of serious fall injuries, a 53 percent lower risk of fall-related fractures, and a 59 percent lower rate of fall injuries requiring hospitalization.” However, “the exercise program did not appear to reduce women’s risk of serious fall injuries.” |
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