Vegocentric

PCRM: Eating Eggs Linked to Cancer

jeff — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 07:49:32 +0000

Eating eggs is linked to developing prostate cancer, according to a new National Institutes of Health-funded study. By consuming 2.5 eggs per week, men increased their risk for a deadly form of prostate cancer by 81 percent, compared with men who consumed less than half an egg per week. Researchers followed 27,607 men who were part of the Health Professionals Follow-up Study from 1994 to 2008. For men who already had prostate cancer, eating poultry and processed red meat increased their risk for death.

Richman EL, Kenfield SA, Stampfer MJ, Giovannucci EL, Chan JM. Egg, red meat, and poultry intake and risk of lethal prostate cancer in the prostate specific antigen-era: incidence and survival. Cancer Prev Res. Published ahead of print September 19, 2011; DOI:10.1158/1940-6207.CAPR-11-0354.

PCRM: Mom’s Yogurt Puts Baby at Risk for Asthma

jeff — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 07:48:57 +0000

Pregnant women who eat yogurt may put their future children at risk for developing asthma, according to new research in Denmark. Consuming low-fat yogurt while pregnant is directly linked to the development of childhood asthma and hay fever, and full-fat yogurt is associated with adolescent hay fever. Consuming low-fat yogurt was associated with a 60 percent increase in asthma and an 80 percent increase in hay fever, compared with zero consumption of low-fat yogurt. The 61,912 women who completed the food questionnaire were part of the Danish National Birth Cohort.

Maslova E, Halldorsson TI, Stom M, Olsen SF. Low-fat yoghurt intake in pregnancy associated with increased child asthma and allergic rhinitis risk: a prospective cohort study. Poster presented as part of the European Respiratory Society’s Annual Congress, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 25 September 2011.

PCRM: Vegetarian Men at Reduced Risk for Heart Disease

jeff — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 07:24:59 +0000

Vegetarian men weigh less and have less cardiovascular disease risk, compared with nonvegetarians, according to a new study in Nutrition and Metabolism. Researchers in China compared 171 vegetarians to 129 age-matched nonvegetarians and found that the vegetarian men’s weight, blood pressure, triglycerides, and cholesterol levels were lower, compared with the meat-eaters. The vegetarians’ arterial walls were healthier, as well.

Researchers have known for years that Westerners adopting a vegetarian or vegan diet are healthier than meat-eaters. This new study shows that, even within a country where rice and other plant foods are staples, those who avoid meat completely are better off than those who include even modest amounts of meat.

Yang SY, Zhang HJ, Sun SY, et al. Relationship of carotid intima-media thickness and duration of vegetarian diet in Chinese male vegetarians. Nutr Metab. 2011;8:63.

PCRM: Avoiding Cow’s Milk May Cut Risk of Type 1 Diabetes

jeff — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 09:16:59 +0000

Children who are not exposed to cow’s milk proteins during infancy may have less risk of developing type 1 diabetes, according to a new report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. In the Trial to Reduce Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in the Genetically at Risk (TRIGR) study, women were encouraged to breastfeed. Those who then transitioned their infants to baby formula were given a specially prepared formula in which proteins were broken up so that no intact cow’s milk proteins remained. The full study results are not yet in. However, the TRIGR pilot study, including 230 infants followed until about 10 years of age, showed that those who followed the special feeding plan were 60 percent less likely to develop type 1 diabetes, compared with children who drank regular cow’s milk formula during infancy.

The study adds more support to the long-held theory that cow’s milk proteins trigger the production of antibodies that can destroy a child’s insulin-producing cells.

Knip M, Virtanen SM, Becker D, Dupré J, Krischer JP, Akerblom HK. Early feeding and risk of type 1 diabetes: experiences from the Trial to Reduce Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in the Genetically at Risk (TRIGR). Am J Clin Nutr. Published ahead of print Jun 8, 2011.

PCRM: Glycemic Index of Foods Influences Weight Loss

jeff — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 20:19:34 +0000

Decreasing the intake of high-glycemic foods can help reduce body weight, according to a new article in the Journal of Nutrition. The glycemic index is a measure of how rapidly a given food releases sugar into the bloodstream. In a National Institutes of Health-funded study conducted by PCRM, 99 participants with type 2 diabetes were placed into either the vegan diet group or the 2003 American Diabetes Association (ADA) diet group. The vegan diet proved better at controlling blood glucose and cholesterol. After adjusting for various factors such as fiber, fat, and calorie intake, the glycemic index intake predicted weight loss, and weight loss, in turn, predicted lower hemoglobin A1C levels, a measure of sugar levels in the blood over time. The vegan diet group reduced glycemic index intake greater than the ADA diet group.

Turner-McGrievy GM, Jenkins DJ, Barnard ND, Cohen J, Gloede L, Green AA. Decreases in dietary glycemic index are related to weight loss among individuals following therapeutic diets for type 2 diabetes. J Nutr. In press.

PCRM: Calcium Intake Associated with Cardiovascular Disease

jeff — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 06:10:09 +0000

Calcium supplements may increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, according to a study published this week in the British Medical Journal. Researchers followed 16,718 postmenopausal women in the Women’s Health Initiative. They found that a combination of calcium and vitamin D supplements increased heart health risk by 13 to 22 percent. The analysis showed the risk of calcium intake remained with or without vitamin D.1

Calcium supplements have been called into question by previous studies showing that calcium intake from both supplements and dairy products increases the risk of prostate cancer.2-4

1. Bolland MK, Grey A, Avenell A, Gamble GD, Reid IR. Calcium supplements with or without vitamin D and risk of cardiovascular events: reanalysis of the Women’s Health Initiative limited access dataset and meta-analysis. BMJ. Published ahead of print April 19, 2011. doi:10.1136/bmj.d2040.

2. World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research. Food, Nutrition, and the Prevention of Cancer: A Global Perspective. American Institute for Cancer Research. Washington, D.C. 1997; p. 322.

3. Chan JM, Stampfer MJ, Ma J, Gann PH, Gaziano JM, Giovannucci E. Dairy products, calcium, and prostate cancer risk in the Physicians’ Health Study. Am J Clin Nutr. 2001;74:549-554.

4. Chan JM, Giovannucci EJ. Dairy products, calcium, and vitamin D and risk of prostate cancer. Epidemiol Rev. 2011;23:87-92.

PCRM: Drug-Resistant Bacteria Common in Meat across Nation

jeff — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 06:09:28 +0000

Nearly half of all meat and poultry products in United States grocery stores are contaminated with a type of bacteria linked to human disease, according to a new study. Of those products infected with Staphylococcus aureas, 52 percent had a drug-resistant strain of the bacteria. Researchers collected samples from 80 different brands in 26 retail grocery stores in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Flagstaff, Ariz. The bacteria were most common in the turkey samples, followed by pork, chicken, and beef.

Waters AE, Contente-Cuomo T, Buchhagen J, et al. Multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in US meat and poultry. Clin Infect Dis. Published ahead of print April 15, 2011:doi:10.1093/cid/cir181.

PCRM: Eggs and Cholesterol Associated with Gestational Diabetes Risk

jeff — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 06:08:40 +0000

Egg consumption increases the risk of gestational diabetes, according to a new article in this week’s American Journal of Epidemiology. Researchers analyzed two studies conducted in Washington state, the Omega Cohort Study and the Alpha Case-Control Study, and found that as egg and cholesterol intake increased, so did the risk of gestational diabetes. Women who consumed the most eggs (greater than or equal to seven per week) had a 77 percent increased risk of diabetes in the Omega study and a 165 percent increased risk in the Alpha study, compared with those who consumed the least.

Qiu C, Frederick IO, Zhang C, Sorensen TK, Enquobahrie DA, Williams MA. Risk of gestational diabetes mellitus in relation to maternal egg and cholesterol intake. Am J Epidemiol. 2001;173:649-658.

McDougall March Roundup

jeff — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 05:02:21 +0000

McDougall says Vitamin D recommendations are too high: “Widespread recommendations for testing vitamin D levels using a standard that is too high to achieve is another example of disease mongering—where healthy people are turned into patients.”

McDougall picks his five favorite articles from recent medical journals, covering topics including acne, baby formula, hidden vegetables, harmful PSA velocity, and blood pressure pills.

And this month, he features recipes from Veganomicon goddess Isa Chandra Moskowitz, including chickpea piccata, miso udon stir-fry, mango BBQ beans, five spice delicata squash, and a Goddess Nicoise salad.

PCRM: Some Foods Have Drug-Like Effects on the Brain

jeff — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 04:56:13 +0000

Some foods elicit reactions in the brain similar to those caused by recreational drugs, according to a new study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry. Researchers examined magnetic resonance images of 48 healthy women who tasted chocolate milkshakes, finding that reaction patterns in the anterior cingulate cortex, medial orbitofrontal cortex, and amygdala were similar in response to foods as to drugs.

Gearhardt AN, Yokum S, Orr PT, Stice E, Corbin WR, Brownell KD. Neural correlates of food addiction. Arch Gen Psychiatry. Published ahead of print April 4, 2011. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.32.