Marion County Medical Center

Health Shorts

April 2006

Garlic Fights Off Enemies
Garlic extract, even at fairly moderate concentrations, has been found in laboratory studies to be effective against the Helicobacter pylori bacteria that cause most stomach ulcers. Even some antibiotic-resistant strains of H. pylori were found to be vulnerable to garlic.

In other studies, the raw juice of garlic was effective against many common intestinal bacteria responsible for diarrhea in humans and animals.
[SOURCE: Gowsala P. Sivam, “Protection against Helicobacter Pylori and Other Bacterial Infections by Garlic,” The Journal of Nutrition, March, 2001]

Prevent Cancer with Fruits, Veggies
If Americans followed the recommendation to get at least five servings a day of fruits and vegetables, the effect in terms of health would be significant.

While a low intake of fruits and vegetables may not be as dangerous as cigarette smoking, the number of Americans who do not meet their daily requirements of fruits and vegetables is large. One National Cancer Institute survey found that only eight percent of Americans knew they should eat five or more servings a day.
[SOURCE: Reed Mangels, “Hold the Beef and the Bacon,” Vegetarian Journal, January-February, 2006; Kristi Steinmet and John D. Potter, “Vegetables, Fruit, and Cancer Prevention: A Review,” Journal of the American Dietetic Association, October, 1996]

Vegetarians Less Likely To Get Fat
Vegetarians were half as likely and vegans a third as likely as meat-eaters to be overweight, according to a Tufts University study of 55,500 women. Of the three study groups, meat eaters consumed the most calories.
[SOURCE: Gloria McVeigh, “The Veggie Advantage,” Prevention, December, 2005]

Asparagus Is Major Source of Folate
You don’t have to stalk the wild version to get the health benefits of asparagus. A close relative of garlic and onions, asparagus is an excellent source of folate as well as vitamin C and fiber. Only five stalks of asparagus provide about 30 percent of a person’s daily requirement of folate, a B vitamin essential to healthy cell growth.

Asparagus was considered a luxury food in ancient times and was a favorite of France’s Louis XIV. Increasing the plant’s notoriety was a popular health food book of the 1970s, Stalking the Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons.
[SOURCE: “Asparagus Bursts with Flavor and Folate,” Environmental Nutrition, March, 2003]

Iron and Vitamin C–Hard To Beat
Vegetarians and vegans can get iron by eating whole grains and vegetables, but this type of iron, known as nonheme, is more difficult to absorb than iron from animal products. To improve absorption, nutritionists recommend eating foods rich in vitamin C, preferably at the same time the iron-rich foods are consumed.

Broccoli, swiss chard and potatoes have both iron and vitamin C. Other suggested combinations include strawberries on iron-fortified cereal or a salad of orange segments and sesame seeds on iron-rich spinach.
[SOURCE: Suzanne Havala Hobbs, “How Can I Get Enough Iron? (ASK THE NUTRITIONIST)” Vegetarian Times, March, 2006]

How Diet Affects Your Cancer Risk
More than 50,000 Americans died of colorectal cancer last year, and it’s believed that as many as 70 percent of these deaths could have been prevented through lifestyle changes.

In a European study of 478,000 men and women from 10 countries, subjects eating high quantities of fish had a reduced risk of colorectal cancer while those eating large quantities of red meat (beef, veal, pork, lamb) had an increased risk. Diets high in poultry did not appear to affect the risk. Other studies have shown that persons eating mostly vegetarian diets also have a reduced risk of colorectal cancer.
[SOURCE: Reed Mangels, “Hold the Beef and the Bacon,” Vegetarian Journal, January-February, 2006]

Raw Food Diet May Cause Bone Loss
Raw fruits and vegetables are generally nutritious, but following an exclusive raw food diet may carry some health risks. A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine [March 28, 2005] found that persons following a long-term raw-food vegetarian diet had lower bone-mineral content and decreased density of the lumbar spine.

In another study, persons with an extremely high intake of raw fruits and vegetables had lower total cholesterol and triglyceride levels but also decreased HDL cholesterol and increased levels of homocysteine due to a deficiency of vitamin B12.
[SOURCE: Diane Lofshult, “Raw-Veggie Diet Rubs Bones the Wrong Way,” IDEA Fitness Journal, October, 2005; Corinna Koebnick, et al, “Long-Term Consumption of a Raw Food Diet Is Associated with Favorable Serum LDL Cholesterol and Triglycerides But Also with Elevated Plasma Homocysteine and Low Serum HDL Cholesterol in Humans,” Journal of Nutrition, October, 2005]

Vegan Ranks Increasing
Most surveys today indicate that at least a third of vegetarians in the United States identify themselves as vegans, avoiding all animal products, including milk, cheese, eggs and honey. The percentage of vegans has apparently increased dramatically over the past two decades. A 1992

Vegetarian Times survey reported that four percent of vegetarians at that time considered themselves vegan.
[SOURCE: Charles Stahler, “How Many Youth Are Vegetarian? The Vegetarian Resource Group Asked in a 2005 National Poll,” Vegetarian Journal, July-August, 2005]

Food Allergies Run in Families
If your brother or sister is allergic to peanuts, your risk of developing the same allergy is 10 times greater than it would be if you grew up in a family without allergies, according to Scott Sicherer, M.D., author of The Complete Peanut Allergy Handbook. Your risk is also higher if someone in your immediate family has other types of allergies such as asthma or eczema.

For families with a history of allergies, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that infants be breast fed for at least four to six months and that they not be fed cow’s milk, wheat, corn, citrus fruits and soy products until their digestive systems are mature (after age one). Fish, peanuts, tree nuts and shellfish should not be introduced until after age two.

Signs of an allergic reaction include flushing, hives, swelling of the face and throat, a runny nose, coughing and wheezing, difficulty breathing, a drop in blood pressure and shock.
[SOURCE: Rachelle Laliberte, “Was It the Peanuts?” Preventtion, December, 2005]

Kids Often Outgrow Food Allergies
About 85 percent of children who are allergic to eggs, milk or soy outgrow their allergies by age 10, according to the Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. An allergy to peanuts is more likely to continue past that age, persisting into adulthood for 8 of 10 persons.

A Johns Hopkins study found that a widely available blood test can safely determine if the allergy has subsided. Introducing food to which the child has had a reaction should not be done without consulting a doctor.
[SOURCE: Laura Flynn McCarthy, “Myth Buster,” Parenting, November 1, 2005;”New Food-Allergy Test,” Prevention, January, 2005]

Coffee Won’t Boost BP but Cola Will
A cup of coffee may get your motor running when you’re feeling tired, but daily coffee drinking will not put you at risk of high blood pressure. Regular drinking of cola beverages is another matter.

Results from the Nurses’ Health Study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association [November 9, 2005] found that women drinking one cola a day increased their risk of high blood pressure by 9 to 13 percent. Women drinking four or more soft drinks a day had a 28 to 44 percent higher risk. Among the same group of 155,000 women, even heavy drinking of coffee had no significant effect on hypertension risk.
[SOURCE: W.C. Winkelmayer, JAMA, November 9, 2005; Daniel DeNoon, “Cola Drinks May Boost Blood Pressure,” WebMD Medical News, November 8, 2005]

Fructose Boosts Triglycerides
Seven healthy, normal-weight males given high doses of fructose for six days showed increased levels of triglycerides and blood sugar plus impairments in insulin sensitivity, according to a study published in Diabetes [July, 2005]. When the subjects were given fish oil, their triglyceride levels decreased but they showed no change in their sensitivity to insulin.
[SOURCE; David Faeh, et al, “Effect of Fructose Overfeeding and Fish Oil Administration on Hepatic de Novo Lipogenesis and Insulin Sensitivity in Healthy Men,” Diabetes, July, 2005]

Looking for a Healthy Cereal?
If you’re looking for a healthy cereal for yourself or your kids, read the labels. Nutritionists recommend that sugar make up no more than half of total carbohydrates. A cereal should also provide at least two grams of protein and a good dose of fiber.

A serving of shredded Wheat, for example, has six grams of protein, six of fiber and no added sugar. Among child-oriented cereals, Kix has only three grams of sugar with two grams of protein and one of fiber. Cinnamon Life has much more sugar (nine grams) but three grams of protein and two of fiber.
[SOURCE: Liesa Goins, “Bowl Playoff,” Men’s Health, July-August, 2004]

How Many Spoonfuls of Sugar?
The World Health Organization recommends that no more than 10 percent of your daily calories come from added sugars. For someone eating 2000 calories a day that would equal about 17 ounces of soda or 3 ounces of candy.

Hidden sugar, often in the form of high-fructose corn syrup, abounds in many packaged foods such as pretzels, frozen pizza and catchup. Packaged foods plus soft drinks plus candy equal a big potential for weight gain.
[SOURCE: Amy Palanjian, “Facts about High-Fructose Corn Syrup,” Organi Style, June, 2005]