In this week’s article, we provide a roundup of some of the most recent health and nutrition related articles in the news, four items comprising:
- Research debunks ‘myth’ that strenuous exercise suppresses the immune system
- Heart benefits: Supplement could slow cardiovascular ageing by mimicking calorie restricting effect
- Fizzy drinks ban needed to protect children’s health, say dental group
- How meat is cooked may affect risk of type 2 diabetes
Research debunks ‘myth’ that strenuous exercise suppresses the immune system
New research overturns a myth that has persisted for nearly four decades — that competing in endurance sports, like this weekend’s London Marathon, suppresses the body’s immune system and makes competitors more susceptible to infections.
Research from the 1980s, which focused on events such as the Los Angeles Marathon, asked competitors if they had symptoms of infections in the days and weeks after their race. Many did, leading to a widespread belief that endurance sports increase infection risk by suppressing our immune system.
Now a new article, from researchers in the Department for Health at the University of Bath published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology, reinterprets scientific findings from the last few decades and emphasises that exercise – instead of dampening immunity – may instead be beneficial for immune health.
Read the full article here.
Related Cytoplan blogs
Exercise – Can there be too much of a good thing?
Vitamin and Mineral Loss in Hot Weather and when Exercising
Heart benefits: Supplement could slow cardiovascular ageing by mimicking calorie restricting effect
Dietary supplementation with nicotinamide riboside could activate the same chemical pathways as calorie restriction, say researchers after a pilot study showed benefits in two measures of heart health.
The small, randomised placebo-controlled crossover trial demonstrated that six week supplementation of nicotinamide riboside (NR) increased levels of a compound called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) by 60% in elderly adults. This compound is responsible for the activation of sirtuins enzymes, which are widely considered to drive the beneficial effects of caloric restriction.
A one gram per day dose of NR also appeared to lower systolic blood pressure by around 10 points in people with elevated or stage-1 hypertension blood pressure categories (120-139 mmHg), said the team from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Read the full article here.
Related Cytoplan blogs
Nutrient Support for Cardiovascular Health
Fizzy drinks ban needed to protect children’s health, say dental group
Fizzy drinks should be age-restricted in order to tackle rising childhood obesity and tooth decay, a leading dentists’ charity has said.
The Dental Wellness Trust, a British NGO which fights poor dental hygiene in the developing world, is calling for an outright ban on children under the age of six consuming the high-sugar drinks, and rules preventing them being sold to children under twelve in shops.
Writing in The Telegraph, the charity applauds the Government’s long awaited “sugar tax”, which came into force on Friday, but said further “bold and brave” policies are needed to improve the health of British children, one in five of whom now leaves primary school obese.
The Soft Drinks Industry Levy imposes a tax of 18p per litre on soft drinks containing five to seven grams of sugar per 100ml, and a 24p per litre for more than eight grams per 100ml.
Read the full article here.
Related Cytoplan blogs
The impact of nutrition on dental health
Healthy mouth, healthy you: the importance of good oral health
How meat is cooked may affect risk of type 2 diabetes
You may have heard that grilling and barbecuing meats may create cancer-causing substances. You may have also heard that eating a lot of red meat—especially processed meats—may be linked to certain cancers. Now, new research suggests a possible connection between high-heat meat cooking and type 2 diabetes.
The study, published in Diabetes Care by researchers from the Harvard Chan School of Public Health’s Department of Nutrition, found that frequent use of high-heat cooking methods (such as broiling, barbecuing/grilling, and roasting) to prepare beef and chicken increased the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Based on data from three large cohorts followed for 12 to 16 years—including more than 289,000 men and women from the Nurses’ Health Studies and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study—researchers found that participants who most frequently ate meats and chicken cooked at high temperatures were 1.5 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, compared to those who ate the least.
There was also an increased risk of weight gain and developing obesity in the frequent users of high-temperature cooking methods, which may have contributed to the development of diabetes. Of note, this research demonstrated that cooking methods might contribute to diabetes risk beyond the effects of meat consumption alone.
Read the full article here.
Related Cytoplan blogs
Could Alzheimer’s disease be ‘Type 3 Diabetes’?
Diabetes and Insulin Resistance
Cognitive and Emotional Approaches to Reversing Insulin Resistance
If you have any questions regarding the topics that have been raised, or any other health matters please do contact me (Clare) by phone or email at any time.
clare@cytoplan.co.uk, 01684 310099
Clare Daley and the Cytoplan Editorial Team
Last updated on 26th April 2018 by cytoffice
