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NUTRITION NEWS III from Paula Harrison, M.S., R.D. VITAMIN E AND IMMUNE HEALTH Taking into account vitamin E's antioxidant properties, researchers have investigated the vitamin's role in fortifying the body's immune defenses. Significantly, studies have demonstrated the importance of vitamin E for normal immune function - as well as the effects of a shortage of vitamin E. Animal studies show that vitamin E deficiency affects both humoral and cell-related immune responses. (The former involves immune defenses against bacteria and viruses in body fluids, while the latter fights viruses and cancer cells present inside the body's cells.) In adults, low serum levels of vitamin E have been associated with subpar immune response and high susceptibility to colds and viral infections as well as more severe and slower-healing infections and cancer. By contrast, vitamin E supplementation has been shown to normalize these and other indicators of immune health. Animals and humans given vitamin E supplements produce antibodies to vaccines (e.g. typhoid, diptheria, hepatitis B) faster than comparison groups. Research on these "immunostimulatory" effects also suggests that vitamin E helps protect against bacterial and viral infections (e.g. flu, pheumonia, dysentery, chlamydia) as well as cancer. TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE Can you really lose weight while building bone? Is calcium a useful dieting aid? Researchers studied a group of women ages 18 to 31, for two years. The women didn't follow any specific diet. They didn't stick to a special exercise plan. In fact, all they really did was keep careful records of everything they ate. At the end of the two years the researchers got a surprise. Among women taking in less than 1,900 calories a day, those who consumed the most calcium lost the most weight. Women who got about 1,000 milligrams of calcium per day cut body fat and dropped as much as 6 to 7 pounds. Those who didn't drink their milk and consumed less than 780 milligrams of calcium a day gained body fat. Unfortunately, women who consumed more than 1,900 calories didn't benefit from calcium. At that point, the researchers say "Calories take over, and any potential benefits of weight control from calcium are lost." TO AVOID ILLNESS, AVOID ALFALFA SPROUTS. E.COLI 0157:H7, a strain of bacteria that can sicken or even kill people with vulnerable immune systems, is most commonly associated with undercooked hambuergers. But according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been more reoports of people getting sick from E. coli present in raw alfalfa sprouts- those curly, crunchy vegetable "threads" that often appear atop salads or tucked into sandwiches - than from E. coli in burgers. That, presumably, is at least part of the reason that the Food and Drug Administration has stepped up its advisory on the risk of bacterial infection that comes with eating alfalfa sprouts. Last year, the federal agency cautioned that sprouts should not be eaten by people at the highest risk of contracting food-borne illness: the elderly, young children, pregnant women, or anyone else with a weakened or compromised immune system. Now the FDA is advising people of ALL ages "to be aware of the risks associated with eating raw sprouts" and says that "those persons who wigh to reduce the risk of foodborne illness from sprouts are advised not to eat" them. THE CARDIOPROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF ALMONDS A recent experimental trial conducted at the Health Research and Studies Center in Los Altos, California has corroborated the cardioprotective effects of almonds. The study examined whether plasma cholesterol in a group of free-living, middle-age men and women with hypercholesterolemia who consumed a baseline low-fat diet (28% energy from total fat, 17% from monounsaturated fatty acids)could be reduced by a diet higher in total fat from monounsaturated fat(37% energy from total fat, 25% from MUFA). At baseline, subjects had a mean total cholesterol (TC) of 235 mg/dL, mean low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) of 154 mg/dL, and mean high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) of 58 mg/dL. For this 9-week trial, the baseline diet was modified similarly for all subjects by limiting intake of meats, fatty fish, full-fat dairy products, eggs, and saturated fat, thereby making plant foods (grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables) and low-fat dairy products the foundation of the study diet. During the two-week baseline period, subjects maintained their habitual food pattern and received no specific information about the experimental diet until the end of this period. The sunjects had already modified their diets to lower total cholesterol.Typical modifications included lowering total fat intake, increasing the polyunsaturated fatty acids/ saturated fatty acids ratio, and supplementing the diet with oat bran. After the 2-week baseline period, the diet of all subjects was supplemented with 100 g/day of almonds. Dietary intake was evaluated by weighed 3-day food records at week 4 and at the end of the trial. Lipoprotein concentratins were measured at baseline and every 3 weeks. At 9 weeks, the almond-based diet included a significant 9% reduction in total cholesterol and a highly significant 12% lowering in LDL-C. HDL-C was unchanged and triglycerides (TG) were lowered by 5%, although this was not statistically significant. Weight did not change during the study. This initial trial demonstrated that a diet higher in fat than is typically recommended for cholesterol control, with the majority of the MUFA (monounsaturated fatty acids) provided by almonds, induced beneficial changes in the lipoprotein profile. REFERENCES: Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter, Volume 17, Number 3, May 1999. Tufts University Health and Nutrition Letter, Volume 17, Number 4, June 1999. Nutrition Action Health Letter, Volume 26, Number 5, June 1999. *****Paula Harrison is a registered dietician practicing in Wyckoff, New Jersey. Paula is a graduate of New York University with a M.S. in Nutrition. If you have any questions you might want to ask her, you may E-mail her at: gpgodart-smile@worldnet.att.net |
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