Category Archives: Health Benefits

December 22, 2009 · 2:00 AM

Top 10 Diabetes Superfoods

The American Diabetes Association has published a list of  Top 10 Diabetes Superfoods.  They share a low glycemic index and provide key nutrients, according to the ADA.  Click the link for details.  Here they are in no particular order:

  • beans
  • dark green leafy vegetables
  • citrus fruit
  • sweet potatoes
  • berries
  • tomatoes
  • fish high in omega-3 fatty acids
  • whole grains
  • nuts
  • fat-free milk and yogurt

Regular readers here know I have no problem generally with regular or high-fat versions of dairy products.  An exception would be for people trying to lose weight while still eating lots of carbohydrates; the low- and no-fat versions could have lower calorie counts, which might help with weight management.

But compare non-fat and whole milk versions of yogurt in the USDA nutrient database.  One cup of non-fat fruit variety yogurt has 233 calories, compared to 149 calories in plain whole milk yogurt.  The “non-fat” version  reduced the fat from 8 to 2.6 g (not zero g) and replaced it with sugars (47 g versus 11 g). 

Unfortunately, your typical supermarket yogurts are low-fat yet loaded with sugar or high fructose corn syrup that impede weight loss.

Nevertheless, this superfoods list may give us some guidance in design of a Diabetic Mediterranean Diet.  Except for “fat-free,” everything else on the list is a component of the traditional healthy Mediterranean diet.  “Fat-free” is a modern invention and not necessarily an improvement.

Steve Parker, M.D.

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December 3, 2009 · 8:07 PM

Is Olive Oil Less Healthy When Used for Cooking?

Cooking doesn’t destroy much of olive oil’s healthy properties, according to registered dietitian Karen Collins in a recent guest post at CalorieLab.

I’ve been wondering about this since olive oil plays such a prominent role in the Advanced Mediterranean and Ketogenic Mediterranean Diets.  I use room-temperature olive oil on my salads and vegetables, but also use it  to sauté vegetables, eggs, and meat. 

Olive oil is the major fat in the traditional Mediterranean diet.  It has heart-healthy and perhaps anti-cancer action related to monounsaturated fat and phenolic compounds that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Steve Parker, M.D.

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October 28, 2009 · 11:07 AM

Nuts: The Healthy Snack

MPj04031620000[1]Nut consumption is strongly linked to reduced coronary heart disease, with less rigorous evidence for several other health benefits, according to a recent article in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

This is why I’ve included nuts as integral components of the Ketogenic Mediterranean Diet and the Advanced Mediterranean Diet.

Regular nut consumption is associated with health benefits in observational studies of various populations, within which are people eating few nuts and others eating nuts frequently.  Health outcomes of the two groups are compared over time.  Frequent and long-term nut consumption is linked to:

  • reduced coronary heart disease (heart attacks, for example)
  • reduced risk of diabetes in women (in men, who knows?)
  • less gallstone disease in both sexes
  • lower body weight and lower risk of obesity and weight gain 

The heart-protective dose of nuts is three to five 1-ounce servings a week.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Sabaté, Joan and Ang, Yen.  Nuts and health outcomes: New epidemiologic evidence.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 89 (2009): 1,643S-1,648S.

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October 22, 2009 · 1:45 AM

Mediterranean Diet Linked to Lower Depression Risk

Numerous media outlets in early October reported on a new study linking the Mediterranean diet with lower risk of depression.  Reuters is an example.

Researchers at the University of Navarra in Spain followed 10,000 university graduates over the course of four years, monitoring the onset of depression.  Food consumption was gauged via a food frequency questionnaire.

Compared to the study participants with very low adherence to the Mediterranean diet, those with high adherence were 30% less likely to develop depression.  As adherence to various components of the Mediterranean diet increased, the rate of depression dropped in stepwise fashion.  

The researchers suspect that it’s the overall dietary pattern, as opposed to any one single component of the Mediterranean diet, that reduces the risk of depression. 

Visit the Advanced Mediterranean Diet website to learn how eat Mediterrranean-style and decrease your risk of developing depression.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference: 

 Sanchez-Villegas, A., et al.  Association of the Mediterranean dietary pattern with the incidence of depression.  Archives of General Psychiatry, 66 (2009): 1,090-1,098.

Kelland, Kate.  Study shows Mediterranean diet cuts depression risk.  Reuters online, October 5, 2009.

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August 20, 2009 · 2:00 AM

Fish Linked to Lower Dementia Risk, Once Again

Brain food

Brain food

Older adults in low- to middle-income countries seem to have a lower risk of dementia if they regularly eat fish, according to a new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

This comes on the heels of another recent study questioning the anti-dementia protective effect of fish consumption.

Almost 15,000 people were surveyed in China, India, Cuba, Domincan Republic, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela.  As fish intake increased – from never, to some days of the week, to most or all days of the week – dementia prevalence dropped by 19% for each increase of intake.  Data for the effect were less convincing for Indian populations. 

The prevalence of dementia also tended to rise with meat consumption.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Albanese, Emiliano, et al.  Dietary fish and meat intake and dementia in Latin America, China, and India: a 10/66 Dementia Research Group population-based study.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 90 (2009): 392-400.

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June 25, 2009 · 9:57 AM

Which Components of the Mediterranean Diet Prolong Life?

We're pro-life

We're pro-life

Researchers at Harvard and the University of Athens (Greece) report that the following specific components of the Mediterranean diet are associated with lower rates of death:

  • moderate ethanol (alcohol) consumption
  • low meat and meat product intake
  • high vegetable consumption
  • high fruit and nut consumption
  • high ratio of monounsaturated fat to saturated fat
  • high legume intake

Minimal, if any, contribution to mortality was noted with high cereal, low dairy, or high fish and seafood consumption. 

The researchers examined diet and mortality data from over 23,000 adult participants in the Greek portion of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and nutrition.  You’ll be hearing more about the EPIC study for many years.  Over an average follow-up of 8.5 years, 1,075 of participants died.  652 of these deaths were of participants in the lower half of Mediterranean diet adherence; 423 were in the upper half.

Alcohol intake in Greece is usually in the form of wine at mealtimes. 

The beneficial “high ratio of monounsaturated fat to saturated fat” stems from high consumption of olive oil and low intake of meat. 

It’s not clear if these findings apply to other nationalities or ethnic groups.  Other research papers have documented the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet in at least eight other countries over three continents. 

The researchers don’t reveal in this report the specific causes of death.  I expect those data, along with numbers on diabetes, stroke, and dementia, to be published in future articles, if not published already.  Prior Mediterranean diet studies indicate lower death rates from cardiovascular disease and cancer.   

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Trichopoulou, Antonia, et al.  Anatomy of health effects of the Mediterranean diet: Greek EPIC prospective cohort study.  British Medical Journal, 338 (2009): b2337.  DOI: 10.1136/bmj.b2337.

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June 13, 2009 · 2:00 AM

Health Benefits of Nuts

You just don't see sickly squirrels. Hmmm . . .

You just don't see sickly squirrels. Hmmm . . .

I frequently check in at CalorieLab for up-to-date nutrition news.

Karen Collins, M.S., R.D., C.D.N., was a guest contributor there March 14, 2009, writing about the potential health benefits of nuts.  I was aware of the cardiovascular benefits; she taught me about possible salutary effects on cancer and diabetes.

From my own literature review, the cardiac benefits are associated with a nut “dose” of three to five 1-ounce servings a week.

Last December, I blogged about reversal of metabolic syndrome with a Mediterranean Diet supplemented with nuts.

I recommend Ms. Collins’ article to you. 

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Albert, Christine, et al.  Nut consumption and decreased risk of sudden cardiac death in the Physicians’ Health Study.  Archives of Internal Medicine, 162, (2002): 1,382-1,387.

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May 8, 2009 · 8:45 AM

Health Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet

2108988Medical News Today on May 6, 2009, published a comprehensive review of the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet.  Click here to read.  It’s definitely worth your time if you’re not already sold on the Mediterranean diet.

My only point of disagreement is regarding whether the Mediterranean diet lowers your risk of obesity.  MNT says “yes.”  The studies I’ve read are inconclusive.

Steve Parker, M.D.

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