Yoga offers low-back pain relief in low-income minority populations: NIH

 

Posted on July 12, 2013 by Stone Hearth News

Results of an NCCAM-funded study found that once-weekly yoga classes relieved pain, improved function, and reduced the need for pain medication just as well as twice-weekly classes in minority and low-income populations with chronic low-back pain.

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, Boston University School of Public Health, Group Health Research Institute, and the University of Washington published their findings in the online journal Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Researchers enrolled 95 adults aged 18–64 through six health centers in a low-income, predominantly-minority area of Boston. The participants had moderate to severe chronic low-back pain and significant related impairment. Most were non-White (82 percent), were unemployed or disabled (51 percent), and had annual household incomes of $40,000 or less (74 percent). One-third (35 percent) had a high-school education or less.
All participants were randomly assigned to once- or twice-weekly sessions of a previously-tested hatha yoga class for 12 weeks. The program also included home practice, keeping a log, meditation, and information on yoga philosophy. Participants could continue with their usual back care.

The researchers found statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in pain and back-related function in both groups (i.e., whether they had class once or twice per week); however, there was no statistical difference in these measures between the groups. Participants experienced the most benefit by 6 weeks, and the researchers noted that this finding may be of interest to clinicians who wonder how much yoga to recommend to patients. Results also suggest that low-income and minority populations will accept and be satisfied with the kind of yoga program they offered. But the researchers also mentioned that the cost of individual community yoga classes ($15–$20) may keep low-income populations from engaging in them. Adverse events, mostly musculoskeletal pain, were common; they mostly resolved on their own and were not serious. There are some limitations in this preliminary study, many of which will be addressed in the larger and longer trial to follow.

Reference

• Saper RB, Boah AR, Keosaian J, et al. Comparing once– versus twice–weekly yoga classes for chronic low back pain in predominantly low income minorities: a randomized dosing trial. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine [online journal]. 2013: 658030. Accessed at www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2013/658030/ on July 5, 2013.

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Drinking more water may result in more weight loss, says new small study

         

 Posted on July 7, 2013 by Stone Hearth News

                                  Association between water consumption and body weight outcomes: a systematic review 1,2,3; Rebecca Muckelbauer, Giselle Sarganas, Anke Grüneis, and Jacqueline Müller-Nordhorn; First published June 26, 2013, doi: 10.3945/​ajcn.112.055061 Am J Clin Nutr August 2013 ajcn.055061 ; + Author Affiliations: 1 From the Berlin School of Public Health, Charité University Medical Center Berlin, Berlin, Germany; + Author Notes: ↵2 Supported by the Berlin School of Public Health, Charité University Medical Center Berlin, Germany; ↵3 Address correspondence to R Muckelbauer, Berlin School of Public Health, Charité University Medical Center Berlin, Seestr. 73, 13347 Berlin, Germany. E-mail: rebecca.muckelbauer@charite.de.

 Abstract

Background:

Drinking water is often applied as a dietary means for weight loss and overweight/obesity prevention, but no evidence-based recommendation exists for this indication.

Objective:

We summarized the existing evidence on the association between water consumption and body weight outcomes in adults of any body weight status.

Design:

In a systematic review, we retrieved studies from 4 electronic databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and COCHRANE), cross-references by PubMed functions and hand-searching, and experts’ recommendations. Any type of study including adults aged >18 y that reported the association between daily water consumption and any weight-related outcome, such as body weight, body mass index, or body weight classifications, was eligible.

Results:

Of 4963 retrieved records, 11 original studies and 2 systematic reviews were included. In participants dieting for weight loss or maintenance, a randomized controlled trial, a nonrandomized controlled trial, and an observational longitudinal study showed that increased water consumption, in addition to a program for weight loss or maintenance, reduced body weight after 3–12 mo compared with such a program alone. In mixed-weight populations not primarily dieting for weight loss or maintenance, 2 short-term randomized trials showed no effect of water consumption on body weight; 6 cross-sectional studies showed inconsistent results.

Conclusions:

Studies of individuals dieting for weight loss or maintenance suggest a weight-reducing effect of increased water consumption, whereas studies in general mixed-weight populations yielded inconsistent results. The evidence for this association is still low, mostly because of the lack of good-quality studies. This trial was registered at www.crd.york.ac.uk/Prospero as CRD42012002585.

Received November 19, 2012.

Accepted April 29, 2013.

How just a little exercise changes your DNA and why that is a very good thing

 

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Stone Hearth News

Exercise, even in small doses, changes the expression of our innate DNA. New research from Lund University in Sweden has described for the first time what happens on an epigenetic level in fat cells when we undertake physical activity.

“Our study shows the positive effects of exercise, because the epigenetic pattern of genes that affect fat storage in the body changes”, says Charlotte Ling, Associate Professor at Lund University Diabetes Centre.
The cells of the body contain DNA, which contains genes. We inherit our genes and they cannot be changed. The genes, however, have ‘methyl groups’ attached which affect what is known as ‘gene expression’ – whether the genes are activated or deactivated. The methyl groups can be influenced in various ways, through exercise, diet and lifestyle, in a process known as ‘DNA methylation’. This is epigenetics, a relatively new research field that in recent years has attracted more and more attention.
In the study, the researchers investigated what happened to the methyl groups in the fat cells of 23 slightly overweight, healthy men aged around 35 who had not previously engaged in any physical activity, when they regularly attended spinning and aerobics classes over a six-month period.
“They were supposed to attend three sessions a week, but they went on average 1.8 times”, says Tina Rönn, Associate Researcher at Lund University.
Using technology that analyses 480 000 positions throughout the genome, they could see that epigenetic changes had taken place in 7 000 genes (an individual has 20 000 genes).
They then went on to look specifically at the methylation in genes linked to type 2 diabetes and obesity.
“We found changes in those genes too, which suggests that altered DNA methylation as a result of physical activity could be one of the mechanisms of how these genes affect the risk of disease”, says Tina Rönn, adding that this has never before been studied in fat cells and that they now have a map of the DNA methylome in fat.
In the laboratory, the researchers were able to confirm the findings in vitro (studying cell cultures in test tubes) by deactivating certain genes and thus reducing their expression. This resulted in changes in fat storage in fat cells.
###
Publication:
A Six Months Exercise Intervention Influences the Genome-wide DNA Methylation Pattern in Human Adipose Tissue, PLOS Genetics, June 2013 Source
MORE POSTS ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF EXERCISE

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Sugar trade association tries to counter nutritional advice

      

    Posted on July 3, 2013 by Stone Hearth News

                                 
The following release has been circulated to the media.

People’s diets show a sugar-fat seesaw

Research published today shows why people find it hard to follow Government guidelines to cut their fat and sugars intake at the same time – a phenomenon known as the sugar-fat seesaw.

The review, published in the journal Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, looked at 53 scientific papers and found a strong and consistent inverse association in the percentage of energy coming from fats and sugars. People with diets low in sugars were likely to be high in fat, and vice-versa. Nutritionists have labelled this the ‘sugar-fat seesaw’. Dr Michele Sadler, who led the research team, said: “A key reason that we see this sugar-fat seesaw is likely to be because sources of sugars such as fruit, breakfast cereals and juices are low in fat, while sources of fat such as oils and meat products are low in sugar.”

 In the UK dietary guidelines are set and described as a percentage of daily energy intakes. Therefore, the researchers suggest that people may find it difficult to follow advice to reduce the sugars and fats contribution to energy intakes at the same time, something recommended by the Government.

 Dr Sadler added: “This study highlights the need to focus dietary messages on eating a healthy balanced diet and not categorising individual nutrients as good or bad, which could result in unbalanced dietary habits.”

 ###

 Editorial Notes Sadler MJ, McNulty H & Gibson S (2013) Sugar-fat seesaw: A systematic review of the evidence. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, DOI: 10.1080/10408398.2011.654013

 Dr Michele Sadler and Ms Sigrid Gibson are both freelance Registered Public Health Nutritionists. Prof Helene McNulty is a registered dietitian and Professor of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Ulster.

This study was supported by an unrestricted-research grant from Sugar Nutrition UK (formerly The Sugar Bureau). The funding source had no involvement in any of the research process or in production of the published manuscript, as stated in the papers acknowledgments.

Contact: Sugar Nutrition UK info@sugarnutrition.org.uk 44-020-718-98301 Sugar Nutrition UK

Exercise reorganizes the brain to be more resilient to stress: Princeton study

 

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Stone Hearth News

Physical activity reorganizes the brain so that its response to stress is reduced and anxiety is less likely to interfere with normal brain function, according to a research team based at Princeton University.

The researchers report in the Journal of Neuroscience that when mice allowed to exercise regularly experienced a stressor — exposure to cold water — their brains exhibited a spike in the activity of neurons that shut off excitement in the ventral hippocampus, a brain region shown to regulate anxiety.
These findings potentially resolve a discrepancy in research related to the effect of exercise on the brain — namely that exercise reduces anxiety while also promoting the growth of new neurons in the ventral hippocampus. Because these young neurons are typically more excitable than their more mature counterparts, exercise should result in more anxiety, not less. The Princeton-led researchers, however, found that exercise also strengthens the mechanisms that prevent these brain cells from firing.
The impact of physical activity on the ventral hippocampus specifically has not been deeply explored, said senior author Elizabeth Gould, Princeton’s Dorman T. Warren Professor of Psychology. By doing so, members of Gould’s laboratory pinpointed brain cells and regions important to anxiety regulation that may help scientists better understand and treat human anxiety disorders, she said.
From an evolutionary standpoint, the research also shows that the brain can be extremely adaptive and tailor its own processes to an organism’s lifestyle or surroundings, Gould said. A higher likelihood of anxious behavior may have an adaptive advantage for less physically fit creatures. Anxiety often manifests itself in avoidant behavior and avoiding potentially dangerous situations would increase the likelihood of survival, particularly for those less capable of responding with a “fight or flight” reaction, she said.
“Understanding how the brain regulates anxious behavior gives us potential clues about helping people with anxiety disorders. It also tells us something about how the brain modifies itself to respond optimally to its own environment,” said Gould, who also is a professor in the Princeton Neuroscience Institute.
The research was part of the graduate dissertation for first author Timothy Schoenfeld, now a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health, as well as part of the senior thesis project of co-author Brian Hsueh, now an MD/Ph.D. student at Stanford University. The project also included co-authors Pedro Rada and Pedro Pieruzzini, both from the University of Los Andes in Venezuela.
For the experiments, one group of mice was given unlimited access to a running wheel and a second group had no running wheel. Natural runners, mice will dash up to 4 kilometers (about 2.5 miles) a night when given access to a running wheel, Gould said. After six weeks, the mice were exposed to cold water for a brief period of time.
The brains of active and sedentary mice behaved differently almost as soon as the stressor occurred, an analysis showed. In the neurons of sedentary mice only, the cold water spurred an increase in “immediate early genes,” or short-lived genes that are rapidly turned on when a neuron fires. The lack of these genes in the neurons of active mice suggested that their brain cells did not immediately leap into an excited state in response to the stressor.
Instead, the brain in a runner mouse showed every sign of controlling its reaction to an extent not observed in the brain of a sedentary mouse. There was a boost of activity in inhibitory neurons that are known to keep excitable neurons in check. At the same time, neurons in these mice released more of the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, which tamps down neural excitement. The protein that packages GABA into little travel pods known as vesicles for release into the synapse also was present in higher amounts in runners.
The anxiety-reducing effect of exercise was canceled out when the researchers blocked the GABA receptor that calms neuron activity in the ventral hippocampus. The researchers used the chemical bicuculine, which is used in medical research to block GABA receptors and simulate the cellular activity underlying epilepsy. In this case, when applied to the ventral hippocampus, the chemical blocked the mollifying effects of GABA in active mice.

###

The paper, “Physical Exercise Prevents Stress-Induced Activation of Granule Neurons and Enhances Local Inhibitory Mechanisms in the Dentate Gyrus,” was published in the Journal of Neuroscience. This research was supported by National Institute of Mental Health grant MH091567.  Source

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Whole grains, fiber, bran and diabetes: new research

        

  Posted on July 2, 2013 by Stone Hearth News

                                 Consumption of cereal fiber, mixtures of whole grains and bran, and whole grains and risk reduction in type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease 1,2,3,4; Susan S Cho 5, Lu Qi 6, George C Fahey Jr 7, and David M Klurfeld 8*; First published June 26, 2013, doi: 10.3945/​ajcn.113.067629 Am J Clin Nutr August 2013 ajcn.067629

   + Author Affiliations: 5 NutraSource, Clarksville, MD; 6 Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA; 7 Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL; and 8USDA/Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD.

 + Author Notes: ↵1 This statement was peer reviewed and approved by the American Society for Nutrition’s (ASN’s) Reviews, Papers, and Guidelines Committee and approved by ASN’s Board of Directors. The statement did not undergo editorial peer review by the editors of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition; ↵2 This project was funded by an unrestricted educational grant from CJ CheilJedang, Garuda International, and the Kellogg Company; ↵3 The opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the USDA, the Agricultural Research Service, or any of the authors’ affiliations; ↵4 Author disclosures: SS Cho, research support from Garuda International, Innophos, JRS, Kellogg, Roquette; consultancy for CJ CheilJedang, Corn Products International, Cyvex Nutrition, Optimum Nutrition, Pacific Rainbow, RFI Ingredient, and Shangdong Longlive. L Qi, no disclosures to report. GC Fahey, research support from Roquette America Inc, Ingredion, Abbott Nutrition, Del Monte, and Hartz Mountain; consultancy for Ingredion, Novus lnternational, Procter & Gamble, Perfect Companion Group, Pronaca, Nova Foods, NuPec, Dae Han Feed Co Ltd, Milk Specialties Co, and Watt Publishing Co. DM Klurfeld, was a member of Unilever North America Scientific Advisory Board at the time this work was performed.

Abstract

Background:
Studies of whole grain and chronic disease have often included bran-enriched foods and other ingredients that do not meet the current definition of whole grains. Therefore, we assessed the literature to test whether whole grains alone had benefits on these diseases.
Objective:
 The objective was to assess the contribution of bran or cereal fiber on the impact of whole grains on the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D), obesity and body weight measures, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) in human studies as the basis for establishing an American Society for Nutrition (ASN) position on this subject. Design: We performed a comprehensive PubMed search of human studies published from 1965 to December 2010.
Results:
 Most whole-grain studies included mixtures of whole grains and foods with ≥25% bran. Prospective studies consistently showed a reduced risk of T2D with high intakes of cereal fiber or mixtures of whole grains and bran. For body weight, a limited number of prospective studies on cereal fiber and whole grains reported small but significant reductions in weight gain. For CVD, studies found reduced risk with high intakes of cereal fiber or mixtures of whole grains and bran.
Conclusions:
 The ASN position, based on the current state of the science, is that consumption of foods rich in cereal fiber or mixtures of whole grains and bran is modestly associated with a reduced risk of obesity, T2D, and CVD. The data for whole grains alone are limited primarily because of varying definitions among epidemiologic studies of what, and how much, was included in that food category.

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A good night’s sleep increases the cardiovascular benefits of a healthy lifestyle

         

 Posted on July 2, 2013 by Stone Hearth News

                                 A good night’s sleep can increase the benefit of exercise, healthy diet, moderate alcohol consumption and non-smoking in their protection against cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to results of a large population follow-up study.(1) Results showed that the combination of the four traditional healthy lifestyle habits was associated with a 57% lower risk of cardiovascular disease (fatal and non-fatal) and a 67% lower risk of fatal events.(2) But, when “sufficient sleep” (defined as seven or more hours a night) was added to the other four lifestyle factors, the overall protective benefit was even further increased – and resulted in a 65% lower risk of composite CVD and a 83% lower risk of fatal events.

  “If all participants adhered to all five healthy lifestyle factors, 36% of composite CVD and 57% of fatal CVD could theoretically be prevented or postponed,” the authors report. “The public health impact of sufficient sleep duration, in addition to the traditional healthy lifestyle factors, could be substantial.

” The study is published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, and is the first to investigate whether the addition of sleep duration to the four traditional healthy lifestyle factors contributes to an association with CVD.

The Monitoring Project on Risk Factors for Chronic Diseases (MORGEN) is a prospective cohort study in the Netherlands from which 6672 men and 7967 women aged 20 years and free of CVD at baseline were followed up for a mean time of 12 years. Details of physical activity, diet, alcohol consumption, smoking and sleep duration were recorded between 1993 and 1997, and the subjects followed-up through a cross-link to national hospital and mortality registers.

 As expected, results showed that adherence to each of the four traditional lifestyle factors alone reduced the risk of CVD. Those at baseline who recorded sufficient physical activity, a healthy diet and moderate alcohol consumption reduced their risk of composite CVD from 12% for a healthy diet to 43% for not smoking; and risk reduction in fatal CVD ranged from 26% for being physically active to 43% for not smoking.

 However, sufficient sleep duration alone also reduced the risk of composite CVD by about 22% (HR 0.78) and of fatal CVD by about 43% (HR 0.57) when compared with those having insufficient sleep. Thus, non-smoking and sufficient sleep duration were both strongly and similarly inversely associated with fatal CVD.

 These benefits were even greater when all five lifestyle factors were observed, resulting in a in a 65% lower risk of composite CVD and an 83% lower risk of fatal CVD.

 MORE POSTS ABOUT SLEEP AND THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM

As background to the study, the investigators note that poor sleep duration has been proposed as an independent risk factor for CVD in two other (non-European) studies, but without adding the effect of sleep to other healthy lifestyle benefits. This study – in a large population – now suggests that sufficient sleep and adherence to all four traditional healthy lifestyle factors are associated with a lower CVD risk. When sufficient sleep duration is added to the traditional lifestyle factors, the risk of CVD is even further reduced.

As an explanation for the results, the investigators note that short sleep duration has been associated with a higher incidence of overweight, obesity and hypertension and with higher levels of blood pressure, total cholesterol, haemoglobin A, and triglycerides, effects which are “consistent with the hypothesis that short sleep duration is directly associated with CVD risk”.

 The study’s principal investigator, Dr Monique Verschuren from the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment in the Netherlands, said that the importance of sufficient sleep “should now be mentioned as an additional way to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease”. “It is always important to confirm results,” she added, “but the evidence is certainly growing that sleep should be added to our list of CVD risk factors.

” Dr Verschuren noted that seven hours is the average sleeping time that “is likely to be sufficient for most people”. An earlier study from her group in the Netherlands, which included information on sleep quality, found that those who slept less than seven hours and got up each morning not fully rested had a 63% higher risk of CVD than those sleeping sufficiently – although those who woke rested, even from less than seven hours’ sleep, did not have the increased risk.(3)