Silvie+Maryl – Holistic Living, Plant-Based Diet, Recipes, Love & Relationship, Healthy LifestyleTips

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Bones: Adding flaxseed oil to the diet could reduce the risk of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women and women with diabetes, according to a report to be published in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health. The results of the study conducted in Egypt suggested that flaxseed oil has a beneficial effect on bone mineral density and reduces markers associated with osteoporosis. The research team explains that the presence of so-called “n-3 fatty acids” in flaxseed oil may play a role in protecting the processes of matrix formation and bone mineralization, which seem to be compromised by diabetes and menopause.  Tip: If you don’t have flaxseed oil, grind flaxseed and add it to your morning smoothie for better fatty acid absorption.

Weight-control: Women who store fat on their waist in middle age are more than twice as likely to develop dementia when they get older, according to a study published in the journal Neurology. “Anyone carrying a lot of fat around the middle is at greater risk of dying prematurely due to a heart attack or stroke,” says Deborah Gustafson of the Sahigrenska Academy in Sweden, where the study was conducted. “If they nevertheless manage to live beyond 70, they run a greater risk of dementia.” The conclusion is based on a 32-year study that showed that women who were broader around the waist than the hips in middle age ran slightly more than twice the risk of developing dementia when they got old, with the average diagnosis being 75 years of age. Yet another reason to eat healthy.

Cancer: A study conducted by Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland has discovered that a set of therapeutic agents called “sphingadienes” (SDs), found in soy and soy products (tofu, tempeh,) may play a key role in preventing and fighting colon cancer. Soy has been touted as protective against colon cancer, the third most deadly type of cancer, but the researchers identified that it is SDs that eliminate unhealthy or mutant cells that give rise to the illness. “I would be comfortable recommending soy products as a change in the diet that could protect against cancer,” said Dr. Julie Saba, director of the Cancer Center at the hospital and senior scientist of the study, which will be published in the journal Cancer Research. “The more that soy is studied, the more of these protective agents are found so it’s a very healthy diet choice.” Just remember: Soy is one of the top four genetically modified crops in the USA, so PLEASE buy it organic (see our post “Why Organic” for more info on this.)

Mating: Looks like opposites do attract – genetically. According to research published in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology, the world’s largest species of monkey ‘chooses’ mates with genes that are different from their own to guarantee healthy and strong offspring.  Female mandrills, a species closely related to humans, are more likely to reproduce with males whose genes are complementary, possibly because they ‘smell out’ suitable candidates that have different genetic make up, something which would help maintain genetic diversity and give the offspring a better chance to resist disease. Dr. Jo Setchell, lead author of the study, said that, because mandrills and humans are very closely related on the evolutionary scale, “our results support the idea that humans might choose genetically compatible mates.”

Pain: The therapeutical properties of herbal teas have been known for ages, but now researchers at Newcastle University have been able to scientifically prove the pain relieving properties of Hyptis crenata – otherwise known as Brazilian mint. The South American herb traditionally used as a medicinal tea was shown to be as effective a pain reliever as the synthetic aspirin-style drug Indometacin. The research is being published in the journal Acta Horticulturae. “Since humans first walked the earth we have looked to plants to provide a cure for our ailments – in fact, it is estimated that more than 50,000 plants are used worldwide for medicinal purposes,” said Graciel Rocha, lead author of the study.” Besides traditional use, more than half of all prescription drugs are based on a molecule that occurs naturally in a plant. What we have done is to take a plant that is widely used to safely treat pain, and scientifically proven that is works as well as some synthetic drugs. Now we have to find out how and why it works.”  Side note: Holistic practitioners say that, because plants are naturally occurring and not a man-made substance, our bodies identify them and know what to do with them – hence, no odd side effects like the kind synthetic stuff produces.

Pollution: Walk to work – In the second paper in the Series on Health and Climate Change published in the medical journal The Lancet, researchers found that increased walking and cycling, and fewer cars on the road, would have a much greater impact on health than the use of low-emission vehicles. By doing projections for the year 2030 for the cities of London, UK and Delhi, India, the team found that reductions in carbon dioxide emissions through an increase in active travel (walking, biking) and less use of motor vehicles had considerably greater health benefits than if more people used lower-emission cars. Of course, combining active travel with low-emission vehicles would give the largest benefits. The health benefits effected included reductions in heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, dementia, breast cancer, depression, and colon cancer in London and reductions in heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, acute respiratory infections, depression and lung cancer in Delhi.

Neurogenesis: Talk about brain food. Researchers have confirmed that a diet rich in polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids helps boost the production of the brain’s stem cells. The study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, concluded that polyphenols (found in tea, grapes, olive oil, cocoa, nuts and other fruits and vegetables) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (found in blue fish, corn, soy beans, sunflower and pumpkin seeds) stimulated cell proliferation in  the two areas of the brain where cells grow – the hippocampus and the olfactory bulb  - both of which are greatly damaged in patients with Alzheimer’s disease and would be especially beneficial for this type of condition.

Gender: Bringing home the tofu – according to a study published in the journal Sex Roles, female breadwinners – more common now than ever due to layoffs of highly paid husbands during the recession – experience both benefits and tensions in their capacity as the main provider. The pluses: opportunities for control, independence, goal-oriented ambition. The minuses? Pressure, worry, guilt and resentment.  The worry has a lot to do with societal expectations for women to take care of the children (even if working), which leaves working moms experiencing guilty about care giving as well as resentful for having to perform multiple roles not expected of men. The study also found that it was important for a woman in a female-breadwinner/stay-at-home-male dynamic to express to her male partner and others how much she values his contributions to the household.

Immunity: The gut is the largest immune system organ in the body.  In order to stay healthy, the gastrointestinal tract needs bacteria to colonize it and help keep it working properly, which is usually done with the help of “good” gut bacteria nourished by probiotics.  Now, scientists have crystalized a protein that may help gut bacteria bind to the gastrointestinal tract.  According to Dr. Nathalie Juge, lead author of a paper published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, “Probiotics need to interact with cells lining the gut to have a beneficial effect, and if they attach to surfaces there, they are more likely to stick around long enough to exert their activity”. The team discovered a mucus-binding protein abundant in lactic acid bacteria (what probiotics are usually made from) that also recognizes human immunoglobulin proteins, an integral part of the immune system. This could help produce more effective probiotics with the type of bacteria that will best make themselves at home in the gut – and keep us healthy.

Muscles: Taking out the garbage is not just for husbands, it seems. According to a study to be published in the journal Cell Metabolism, just like you clean your house periodically to keep a good and healthy environment, cells too must rid themselves of the garbage that accumulates in them over time in order to maintain muscle strength with age. They do this via autophagy, a process of degradation and recycling within cells.  Marco Sandri, lead author of the study, said, “We thought if you reduced autophagy it might protect agains atrophy,” referring to muscle wasting away. ‘”nstead, it’s the opposite. If you don’t remove the damage, it triggers weakness.”  As is above (you cleaning your house), so is below (your cells cleaning their “house”) – that’s a given.