Gary Null’s Daily Health News - 10.24.22

Carotenoids linked to lower diabetes

Utrecht University Medical Center (Netherlands), October 21, 2022

A prospective study of 37,846 subjects links higher carotenoid consumption to a lower risk of diabetes.

People who consume a diet high in antioxidant-rich carotenoids have a lower occurrence of diabetes, according to a new study. The researchers linked higher intakes of beta and alpha carotene with lower risks of type 2 diabetes.

The research analyzed data from validated food frequency questionnaires from 37,846 participants in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition, which followed subjects for a mean of 10 years. They focused on dietary carotenoid intake levels consisting of beta-carotene, alpha-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lycopene, lutein, zeaxanthin and the total of these six carotenoids. The study also examined how smoking (tobacco, not carotenoids) played into the subjects’ risk of developing diabetes. Thirty-one percent of the subjects smoked.

 “This study shows that diets high in beta-carotene and alpha-carotene are associated with reduced type 2 diabetes in generally healthy men and women,” concluded the authors of the study, which appeared in the journal Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Disease. Smoking, according the researchers’ analysis, made no difference in the risk of diabetes.

An earlier study linked low carotenoids with increased risk of colon cancer. Animal and human studies have found that beta-carotene can enhance many aspects of immunity. Some of this research has shown that beta-carotene boosts the activity of "natural-killer" cells, a type of immune cell that fights cancer.

 

Melatonin and CoQ10 for migraines

University of California, Los Angeles, October 20, 2022

Migraines affect about 12 percent of people in the United States, occurring more often in women, in people between the ages of 30 and 39, and within families.

A retrospective analysis of migraine sufferers found that emotional stress was a trigger for 80 percent of them, missing a meal was a trigger for 57 percent, and lack of sleep was a trigger for 50 percent.

In a study, patients who experienced migraine headaches two to eight times per month were randomly assigned to take either a placebo or 100 milligrams of CoQ10 three times per day for at least three months. The authors measured success as a greater than 50 percent reduction in the frequency of migraines. Only 14.4 percent of those who took the placebo showed this level of reduction, but 47.6 percent of those who took CoQ10 reduced their frequency of migraines by that amount.

Then there's the B vitamin riboflavin. Another study found that 59 percent of people who took a daily dose of 400 milligrams had a greater than 50 percent reduction in the frequency of migraines, compared to 15 percent of those who took a placebo. However, it took three months for riboflavin to show this benefit.

Knowing that sleep problems increase the risk of migraines, researchers compared the effects of 3 milligrams of melatonin to the effects of the anti-depressant amitriptyline or of a placebo. After three months, 54.4 percent of people who took melatonin had a 50 percent or greater reduction in frequency of headaches compared to 39.1 percent in the amitriptyline group and 20 percent in the placebo group. 

 

 

Study: Eating foods high in healthy fats helps fight off skin cancer

University Medical Center Groningen (Netherlands), October 21, 2022

A study has found that foods rich in healthy fats can help protect against skin cancer and boost the effectiveness of immunotherapy among skin cancer patients. Results showed that patients who followed the Mediterranean diet and received the drugs were more likely to survive and remain progression-free after 12 months.

The Mediterranean diet includes lots of superfoods like olive oil, nuts and fish, along with fruits, vegetables and whole grains. The diet is popular because it is associated with amazing health benefits such as a longer lifespan and protection against cardiovascular diseases.

For the study, researchers from the U.K. and UMCG tracked the diets of 91 patients with advanced melanoma. The volunteers were all taking Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors (ICIs). ICIs have worked well for those with melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer.

Researchers analyzed the patients’ progress and gave them frequent X-ray check ups. The findings revealed that the patients following a Mediterranean diet responded better to ICIs and were also most likely to not get any worse a year later.

According to the results of the study, whole grains and legumes in particular also helped reduce the likelihood of patients experiencing side effects from the immunotherapy drugs kike colitis or inflammation of the colon.

Meanwhile, those who consumed a lot of red and processed meat experienced more side effects.

 

 

 

Exercise Matters Regardless of Genetics When it Comes to Longevity

University of California San Diego, October 21, 2022

A study from the University of California San Diego found that engaging in physical activity contributed to your longevity, regardless of genetic predispositions.

This study of over 5,400 postmenopausal women aged 63 and up examined the role fitness habits play in longevity. The findings? Even light activity makes a difference, correlating with a 45% reduced risk of death, compared with those leading a sedentary lifestyle. Meanwhile, moderate-to-vigorous activity was found to have an even greater impact, with a 54% reduced risk of death.

These results were consistent among the women, regardless of any specific genetic predisposition. "Even if you aren't likely to live long based on your genes, you can still extend your lifespan by engaging in positive lifestyle behaviors such as regular exercise and sitting less," concluded senior author and assistant professor at UC San Diego, Aladdin H. Shadyab, Ph.D.

The UC San Diego study sought to answer the question of whether this risk changes if the person is genetically predisposed to live a long life. The conclusion is that no, it does not. Exercise increased the likelihood to live longer regardless of the subject's genetic profile, just as being sedentary increased their risk to die younger than would have otherwise been predicted based on their genes.

When accounting for activity of the subjects and adjusting for variables like race, age, BMI, smoker vs. nonsmoker and overall health status the authors found:

• The highest quartile for light physical activity had a whopping 45% reduced risk of death compared to those in the lowest quartile
• The highest quartile of moderate-to vigorous activity category had a 54% reduced risk of death vs. the lowest
• The highest quartile for sedentary time doubled their risk of death compared to those with the lowest sedentary quartile

This association of activity and longevity carried through even with the genetic risk score taken into account, confirming that the benefit of exercise on longevity was present, regardless of genetics. Shadyab emphasized the importance of these findings and physical activity's impact on living longer, stating, "Even if your genes predispose you to a long life, remaining physically active is still important to achieve longevity."

 

 

Pesticide Free Organic Food Lowers Blood Cancer Risk by 86%

Centre of Research in Epidemiology and Statistics (France), October 22, 2022

Cutting out pesticides by eating only organic food could slash your cancer risk by up to 86 percent, a new study claims.

The biggest impact was seen on non-Hodgkin's lymphoma risk, which plummeted among those who shunned chemical-sprayed food, according to the survey of nearly 70,000 French adults. 
Overall, organic eaters were 25 percent less likely to develop any cancer, and their risks of skin and breast cancers dropped by a third.

The health benefit was far greater for obese people, they found. 

However, the diet had no significant effect on bowel cancer - which is soaring in numbers globally - or prostate cancer.

'Our results indicate that higher organic food consumption is associated with a reduction in the risk of overall cancer,' lead author Dr Julia Baudry of the Centre of Research in Epidemiology and Statistics Sorbonne, Paris said.  'We observed reduced risks for specific cancer sites - postmenopausal breast cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and all lymphomas - among individuals with a higher frequency of organic food consumption.

 

Dr Baudry explained among the environmental risk factors for cancer there was growing evidence of a link between exposure to pesticides notably in farm workers and cancer development. 'Because of their lower exposure to pesticide residues, it can be hypothesised that high organic food consumers may have a lower risk of developing cancer.

 

The cohort, who were 78 percent female and an average age of 44 were broken up into four groups according their organic diet food scores. Factoring in known cancer risks, the proportion of participants in the top quartile for eating organic food who got certain cancers was a fraction compared to those in the bottom quartile.

 

The most common was 459 breast cancers, followed by 180 prostate cancers, 135 skin cancers, 99 colorectal cancers, 47 non-Hodgkin lymphomas, and 15 other lymphomas.

High organic food scores were inversely associated with the overall risk of cancer being 25 percent less for those of the top quartile compared to the bottom.

 

WHO highlights high cost of physical inactivity in first-ever global report

World Health Organization, October 21, 2022

Almost 500 million people will develop heart disease, obesity, diabetes or other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) attributable to physical inactivity, between 2020 and 2030, costing US$ 27 billion annually, if governments don't take urgent action to encourage more physical activity among their populations.

The Global status report on physical activity 2022, published by the World Health Organization, measures the extent to which governments are implementing recommendations to increase physical activity across all ages and abilities.

Data from 194 countries show that overall, progress is slow and that countries need to accelerate the development and implementation of policies to increase levels of physical activity and thereby prevent disease and reduce burden on already overwhelmed health care systems.

• Less than 50% of countries have a national physical activity policy, of which less than 40% are operational
• Only 30% of countries have national physical activity guidelines for all age groups
• While nearly all countries report a system for monitoring physical activity in adults, 75% of countries monitor physical activity among adolescents, and less than 30% monitor physical activity in children under 5 years
• In policy areas that could encourage active and sustainable transport, only just over 40% of countries have road design standards that make walking and cycling safer. 

The economic burden of physical inactivity is significant and the cost of treating new cases of preventable non-communicable diseases (NCDs) will reach nearly US$ 300 billion by 2030, around US$ 27 billion annually.

The report calls for countries to prioritize physical activity as key to improving health and tackling NCDs, integrate physical activity into all relevant policies, and develop tools, guidance and training to improve implementation.