A mouse study suggests that resveratrol—a compound abundant in red wine—may moderate some of a high-fat diet’s negative effects on the immune system.
Can resveratrol balance out a fatty diet?
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More support for heart-healthy benefits of Mediterranean diet
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A very large Italian study provides more evidence that the Mediterranean diet reduces inflammation, with their finding that those with a greater adherence to such a diet had significantly lower levels of platelets and white blood cells. These are both inflammatory markers: high platelet counts are associated with both vascular disease and non-vascular conditions such as cancer, and a high white blood cell count is a predictor of ischemic vascular disease.
Link between fatty acids and heart disease complex
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A meta-analysis of 72 studies with over 600,000 participants from 18 nations has concluded that total saturated fatty acid, whether measured in the diet or in the bloodstream as a biomarker, was not associated with coronary disease risk. Nor was there any significant association between consumption of total monounsaturated fatty acids, long-chain omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids, and cardiovascular risk.
More fish needed for healthy heart?
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Middle-aged Japanese men living in Japan had lower incidence of coronary artery calcification, a predictor of heart disease, than middle-aged white men living in the United States, after accounting for risk factors such as smoking, cholesterol, alcohol consumption, diabetes and high blood pressure.
Old, sprouting garlic even better than fresh
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"Sprouted" garlic — old garlic bulbs with bright green shoots emerging from the cloves — have been found to have even more heart-healthy antioxidant activity than fresh garlic.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-02/acs-dto022614.php
Whole diet approach better for reducing cardiovascular risk
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A review of research from 1957 to the present has concluded that a whole diet approach, and specifically Mediterranean-style diets, has more evidence for reducing cardiovascular risk than strategies that focus exclusively on reduced dietary fat.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-02/ehs-ssw020514.php
Higher levels of copper in amyloid plaques associated with degree of neurodegeneration
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Following on from the evidence that Alzheimer’s brains show higher levels of metals such as iron, copper, and zinc, a mouse study has found that amyloid plaques in Alzheimer’s-like brains with significant neurodegeneration have about 25% more copper than those with little neurodegeneration. This is consistent with a human study showing very high levels of copper in Alzheimer’s plaques.
Iron, though doubled in Alzheimer’s brains compared to controls, was not significantly different as a function of neurodegeneration, and zinc showed very little difference.
Alzheimer's disease consists of 3 distinct subtypes
A two-year study which involved metabolic testing of 50 people, suggests that Alzheimer's disease consists of three distinct subtypes, each one of which may need to be treated differently. The finding may help explain why it has been so hard to find effective treatments for the disease.
The subtypes are:
Lifestyle changes can prevent cognitive decline even in genetically at-risk individuals
A Finnish study involving over 1000 older adults suggests that a counselling program can prevent cognitive decline even among those with the Alzheimer’s gene.
The study involved 1,109 older adults (aged 60-77) of whom 362 were carriers of the APOE4 gene. Some of the participants received regular lifestyle counselling (general health advice), while the rest received “enhanced” lifestyle counselling, involving nutrition counselling, physical and cognitive exercises, and support in managing the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Nutrients linked to better brain connectivity, cognition in older adults
A study involving 116 healthy older adults (65-75) has found that higher levels of several key nutrients in the blood were associated with more efficient brain connectivity and better cognitive performance. In fact, the findings suggest that the level of nutrients governs the strength of the association between functional brain network efficiency and cognitive performance.
Western-style diet impairs brain function and increases desirability of sugary foods
A study involving 110 lean and healthy students (aged 20-23) found that those randomly assigned to a high energy western-style diet for a week performed worse on a memory test compared to those who ate their normal healthy diet. Moreover, those on the unhealthy diet then showed a greater tendency to eat more sugary foods.