Health News

• The Atkins and other low-carb diets have taken a major hit from a recent research paper published in the July issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association: a study of nearly 4,500 otherwise healthy Canadians showed that you’re less likely to be obese if you eat foods low in carbohydrates. The lowest risk of being overweight or obese was among adults who obtained 47%-64% of their energy from carbohydrates. Overweight and obesity prevalence was 65% in the lowest quartile of carbohydrate intake. Those with the highest carbohydrate intake had lower intakes of total calories, protein and fats, but more fiber than those in the lowest carbohydrate intake category.

• The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) says that blacks have a 51% greater prevalence of obesity and Hispanics a 21% greater prevalence compared with whites. Geography is also a marker with blacks and whites in the South or Midwest having a greater chance of being obese, while Hispanics in the South, Midwest and West had higher rates.

• Research has indicated older women who are obese and have Type 2 diabetes could decrease their body mass index or add muscle mass by taking safflower oil or conjugated linoleic acid supplements.

• Scientists study cataracts in rat eye lenses think they may have found a dietary supplement to prevent or even treat the condition: carnosine.

• Manufacturers of baby foods, increasingly aware of food allergies to wheat products, have doubled the number of new products made with rice instead of wheat over the 130 introduced in 2007.

• A team of Glasgow University researchers identified a molecule which amplifies allergic reactions, along with a biological agent which may reduce the symptoms leading to a reduction in the number of fatal anaphylactic shock cases. Anaphylaxis, which can lead to cardiac arrest and death, is caused by foods such as peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, fish, shellfish, dairy products and eggs. Non-food causes include wasp or bee stings, rubber, penicillin and some drugs or shots.

GEEK ALERT! The following is technical for information junkies!

According to Dr. Alirio Melendez and Prof. Eddy Liew, the team leaders, the immune system hormone cytokine IL-33 plays a key role in the onset of anaphylaxis. Removing the IL-33 molecule will reduce the severity of the reaction. Anaphylactic shock induces a severe inflammatory reaction which often constricts breathing; the IL-33 molecule amplifies that inflammatory reaction. Patients with high levels of IL-33 tend to have more severe reactions. While children often outgrow allergies to milk, eggs, soy and wheat, those for peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish and fish often persist into adulthood. Interestingly, the UK population has the highest prevalence of these allergies in Europe and ranks among the highest in the world. The findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Association of Sciences of the USA (PNAS) journal.

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