Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 7/23/08.  You should consult your doctor if you are taking any medications.

Regular Meals Reduce Risk Of Developing Metabolic Syndrome, Study Shows - Science Daily, 7/22/08 - "People who eat at irregular times run a greater risk of developing insulin resistance and what is known as metabolic syndrome"

Vitamin K good for young bones, too: study - Nutra USA, 7/17/08 - "These findings suggest that improvement in vitamin K status, and thus in the amount of active osteocalcin, might significantly improve bone health in children, even in those with arthritis" - See vitamin K at Amazon.com.

Ornish: Why Atkins Still Doesn't Beat Low-Fat Diet -  Newsweek, 7/16/08 - "A new study comparing the Atkins diet, a Mediterranean diet and a low-fat diet published on July 17 in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), is likely to inspire headlines saying that the Atkins diet is better for your waistline and your health than a low-fat diet ... I believe this study is extremely flawed. Here's why: ... funded in part by the Atkins Foundation ... quality of data in this study ..."

Abstracts from this week's Doctor's Guide Nutrition/Dietetics plus abstracts from my RSS feeds (Click here for the journals, the PubMed ones at the top):

The omega-3 fatty acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), prevents the damaging effects of Tumour Necrosis Factor (TNF)-alpha during murine skeletal muscle cell differentiation - Lipids Health Dis. 2008 Jul 18;7(1):24 - "deleterious effects of TNF-alpha on C2C12 myogenesis were completely inhibited by co-treatment with EPA ... EPA has a protective action against the damaging effects of TNF-alpha on C2C12 myogenesis. These findings support further investigations of EPA as a potential therapeutic agent during skeletal muscle regeneration following injury" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com.

Long-term fish consumption and n-3 fatty acid intake in relation to (sudden) coronary heart disease death: the Zutphen study - Eur Heart J. 2008 Jul 18 - "long-term fatty-fish consumption lowered the risk of sudden coronary death [HR: 0.46" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com.

Oral active vitamin D is associated with improved survival in hemodialysis patients - Kidney Int. 2008 Jul 16 - "Our study shows that hemodialysis patients receiving oral active vitamin D had a survival advantage inversely related to the vitamin dose" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Low Vitamin D Levels Predict Stroke in Patients Referred to Coronary Angiography - Stroke. 2008 Jul 17 - "Low levels of 25(OH)D and 1,25(OH)2D are independently predictive for fatal strokes, suggesting that vitamin D supplementation is a promising approach in the prevention of strokes" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Testosterone therapy in hypogonadal men and potential prostate cancer risk: a systematic review - Int J Impot Res. 2008 Jul 17 - "Of studies that met inclusion criteria, none demonstrated that testosterone therapy for hypogonadism increased prostate cancer risk or increased Gleason grade of cancer detected in treated vs untreated men"

Telmisartan but not candesartan affects adiponectin expression in vivo and in vitro - Hypertens Res. 2008 Apr;31(4):601-6 - "the changes in serum adiponectin and plasma glucose over 3 months were significantly greater in the telmisartan group than in the candesartan group. In vitro, although the protein level of adiponectin was not significantly elevated, the mRNA expression of adiponectin was elevated 1.5-fold by telmisartan in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Our findings suggest that telmisartan may have beneficial effects in type 2 diabetes beyond its antihypertensive effect" - I've been saying that telmisartan should be the first line treatment for hypertension for some time now if natural methods such as coenzyme Q10 don't work.

Telmisartan, an Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptor Blocker, Improves Coronary Microcirculation and Insulin Resistance among Essential Hypertensive Patients without Left Ventricular Hypertrophy - Hypertens Res. 2008 Apr;31(4):615-22 - "Coronary flow velocity reserve (CFVR) ... CFVR was improved in the telmisartan group (2.4+/-0.4 to 2.9+/-0.4; p<0.01), but there was no difference in the nifedipine group (2.5+/-0.3 to 2.5+/-0.3; n.s.). HOMA-IR was improved in the telmisartan group (3.1+/-1.1 to 1.6+/-0.7; p<0.01), but there was no difference in the nifedipine group (2.8+/-1.1 to 2.4+/-0.7; n.s.). In conclusion, this study demonstrates that antihypertensive therapy with telmisartan, but not nifedipine, has a beneficial effect on coronary microcirculation and insulin resistance among essential hypertensive patients" - See telmisartan at OffshoreRX.

Microalbuminuria Reduction with Telmisartan in Normotensive and Hypertensive Japanese Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Post-Hoc Analysis of the Incipient to Overt: Angiotensin II Blocker, Telmisartan, Investigation on Type 2 Diabetic Nephropathy (INNOVATION) Study - Hypertens Res. 2008 Apr;31(4):657-64 - "The patients treated with either dose of telmisartan showed lower transition rates from microalbuminuria to overt nephropathy compared to the placebo group. In addition, more patients on telmisartan reverted to normoalbuminuria (UACR<30 mg/g creatinine): 15.5% of the 40 mg group, 19.6% of the 80 mg group, and 1.9% of the placebo group ... Side effects did not differ among the groups. The present study demonstrates that telmisartan prevents the progression of microalbuminuria (in some cases induces remission of albuminuria) in normotensive Japanese patients with type 2 diabetes. Telmisartan is shown to be safe and well tolerated in these patients"

Adiponectin, but not leptin or high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, is associated with blood pressure independently of general and abdominal adiposity - Hypertens Res. 2008 Apr;31(4):633-40 - "all three markers were significantly correlated with systolic blood pressure (negative correlation for adiponectin and positive correlations for leptin and hs-CRP)"

(-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) inhibits HGF-induced invasion and metastasis in hypopharyngeal carcinoma cells - Cancer Lett. 2008 Jul 14 - "Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has recently attracted a considerable amount of attention as a stromal-derived mediator in tumor-stromal interactions, particularly because of its close involvement in cancer invasion and metastasis, and (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) can modulate the cell signaling associated with angiogenesis, metastasis, and migration of cancer cells ... EGCG at physiologically relevant concentration (1muM) suppressed HGF-induced tumor motility and MMP-9 and uPA activities, and the suppression of Akt and Erk pathway by EGCG was one of the downstream mechanisms to facilitate EGCG-induced anti-invasion effects. These results suggest that EGCG may serve as a therapeutic agent to inhibit HGF-induced invasion in hypopharyngeal carcinoma patients" - I took six capsules per day of green tea extract when I had my neck cancer.  Maybe that's what saved me.  See green tea extract at Amazon.com.

Vitamin D3 induces autophagy of human myeloid leukemia cells - J Biol Chem. 2008 Jul 15 - "These findings extend our understanding of the action of vitamin D3 in antineoplastic effects and the role of Beclin1 in regulating multiple cellular cascades, and suggest a potentially promising strategy with a significantly better antileukemia effect" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Neat Tech Stuff :

• There is a $200 rebate on the latest and greatest TiVo TCD648250B Series3 HD Digital Media Recorder until 8/30/08 which brings the cost to $379.18.  There is a $150 rebate on the TiVo TCD649080 Series2 80-Hour Dual-Tuner Digital Video Recorder until 8/30/08 which brings the cost to $65.99.  The series 3 has about 300 hours recording that the series 3 has about 80 hours.  Both can take an external hard drive.  A 500 GB ($159.99) will give you another 300 to 900 hours of recording depending on which source you believe.  The series 3 will accept the cables cards from your cable company.  The way I understand it, that will give you access to channel past 99 on RoadRunner.  The cable companies charge less then $2 per month for the cable cards.  Also see that TiVo AG0100 Wireless G USB Network Adapter for TiVo Series2 & Series3 DVRs.  I was going to list the advantages of that but it would take too long but one big advantage is that you can transfer shows to your computer or iPod.  Read it.  For all the advantages of TiVo, see http://www.tivo.com/.  You can program from the Internet (probably the Internet on your iPhone), include pictures, etc.  TiVo requires the DVDR subscription on your cable service.  I believe RoadRunner charges $10.95 per month for that.

Health Tip:

I've had trouble with my gums for about 20 years.  The back two teeth all around had pockets that were a 6.  I tried religiously flossing, Arestin and Periostat (doxycycline) plus getting my teeth cleaned every three months.  Nothing seemed to work.  Then the dental hygienist suggested using chlorhexidine gluconate 0.12% with something like Butler Go Between Ultra (I used the 1.2 mm).  I tried three different models of the go betweens and like that model of the Butler the best.  In just three months the pockets decreased from 6 down to 4.  I was due for a dental check the same time as the cleaning and both the dental hygienist and the dentist couldn't believe the difference and asked what I was doing different.  I kept the Butler Go Between soaking in an espresso cup about a third full of the chlorhexidine gluconate on my desk and used it between my back teeth about three times per day.  I believe you need a prescription for the chlorhexidine gluconate 0.12% or get it from a dentist.

Supplement Focus (Vitamin K):

General Vitamin K Information:

• Vitamin K - The Natural Pharmacist

Vitamin K News & Research:

• vitamin K at Amazon.com
• Vitamin K good for young bones, too: study - Nutra USA, 7/17/08 - "These findings suggest that improvement in vitamin K status, and thus in the amount of active osteocalcin, might significantly improve bone health in children, even in those with arthritis"
• Vitamin K2 linked to lower prostate cancer risk - Nutra USA, 4/9/08 - "While no reduction in the risk of prostate cancer was observed for vitamin K1 (phylloquinone), an increased intake of all menaquinones (vitamin K2) was associated with a 35 per cent reduction in risk"
• Study gives vitamin K anti-inflammation boost - Nutra USA, 12/3/07 - "Limited in vitro data support the inverse association between vitamin K and interleukin-6, and this may influence the association between vitamin K and other cytokines, such as osteoprotegerin" - [Abstract]
• Vitamin K shows potential in the fight against wrinkles - Nutra USA, 10/19/07 - [Abstract] - "Recent studies have linked vitamin K to the elasticity of skin in patients suffering from pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE), an inherited condition resulting in severe wrinkling of the skin on the face and body"
• Vitamin K linked to fewer varicose veins, better vascular health - Nutra USA, 8/23/07 - "they suggested that adequate dietary intake of vitamin K may be a necessary prerequisite in preventing the development of varicose veins" - [Abstract]
• Is vitamin K deficiency more common than thought? - Nutra USA, 7/18/07
• Vitamin K may reverse arterial calcification - Nutra USA, 4/3/07 - "using 10-week old male Wistar Kyoto rats ... high-vitamin K intake (both K1 and K2) not only blocked the progress of further calcium accumulation but also lead to a greater than 37 per cent reduction of previously accumulated arterial calcium precipitates within six weeks"
• Many Seniors Are Still Not Meeting The Recommended Intake Of Vitamin K - Science Daily, 2/12/07 - "Although older adults seem to consume more vitamin K than younger adults, many seniors are still not meeting the recommended intake of vitamin K ... Research has shown poor vitamin K intake may be associated with conditions such as bone fractures, bone loss, hardening of the arteries, and osteoarthritis"
• Vitamin K2 higher bioavailability than K1, say scientists - Nutra USA, 12/18/06
• Vitamin K may reverse artery hardening, suggests study - Nutra USA, 12/11/06 - "A high-dose vitamin K supplement reduced calcium precipitates associated with hardening of the arteries by 37 per cent in rats"
• Study Suggests Vitamin K Deficiency as an Osteoporosis Risk Factor - Doctor's Guide, 9/22/06 - "one of the early effects of declining estrogen is the impairment of vitamin K function in bone even before any bone loss that could be attributed to menopause can be measured ... Our study suggests that the generally accepted level of vitamin K in healthy women is inadequate to maintain bone health just at the onset of menopause"
• Vitamin K1-rich diet linked to better heart health - Nutra USA, 8/29/06
• Strong support for vitamin K’s bone health benefits - Nutra USA, 6/27/06 - "Supplementation of vitamin K (MK-4) resulted in reductions in hip fractures of 77 per cent, vertebral fracture of 60 per cent, and all non-vertebral fractures of 81 per cent"
• More support for vitamin K’s protection from osteoarthritis - Nutra USA, 4/12/06 - "Higher intake of vitamin K, found naturally in cabbage, spinach, cauliflower, and other green leafy vegetables, could reduce the risk of osteoarthritic knee problems by 40 per cent"
• Vitamin K's Delicate Balancing Act - Life Extension Magazine, 4/06 - "Scientists have discovered that vitamin K regulates several biochemical processes that require exquisite balance to function normally, including blood coagulation, bone mineralization, and vascular health"
• Vitamin K in the Treatment and Prevention of Osteoporosis - Am J Health-Syst Pharm. 2005;62(15):1574-1581/Medscape, 8/5/05 - "The results of two dose-response studies have indicated that (1) the amount of vitamin K needed for optimal γ-carboxylation of osteocalcin is significantly higher than what is provided by diet alone and (2) there is a need to increase current dosage recommendations to optimize bone mineralization"
• Natto vitamin K2 superior to vitamin K? - Nutra USA, 3/24/04
• Vitamin K - Life Extension Magazine, 3/04
• Vitamin K Builds Strong Bones - New Hope Natural Media, 3/28/03 - "Without adequate vitamin K, osteocalcin cannot be produced, and bone formation becomes impaired ... when women with osteoporosis take supplemental vitamin K, the urinary excretion of calcium falls by about 50%, suggesting that less calcium is being leached from the bones ... Some research, however, suggests that the optimal level of intake may be higher, as much as 400 mcg per day. A typical western diet contains 80 to 150 mcg per day"
• Vitamin K(1) Absorption Unreliable in Infants with Conjugated Hyperbilirubinaemia - Doctor's Guide, 3/5/03
• Watch Out for Vitamin K? - Dr. Weil, 11/27/02
• Low Bone Mineral Density and Quantitative Ultrasound in Men Associated with Low Vitamin K Status - Doctor's Guide, 9/23/02 - "Low vitamin K status is associated with low quantitative ultrasound (QUS) and low bone mineral density (BMD) of the femoral neck and trochanter ... What we did was measure the amount of vitamin K in circulation and use the more sensitive measures of vitamin K status which was % undercarboxylated osteocalcin ... We corrected for triglycerides because vitamin K is transported in the blood by triglyceride-rich lipoproteins ... What we found was that the higher the amounts of vitamin K in the plasma, the higher the BMD" - So does that mean that if your triglycerides are in check you may need extra vitamin K? - Ben
• Topical Vitamin K Effectively Treats Bruising Following Laser Therapy - Doctor's Guide, 8/26/02
• Vitamin K Therapy Slows Spread of Liver Cancer - Doctor's Guide, 5/29/02 - "Results show that 59 percent of patients treated with vitamin K-II were alive at two years compared to 29 percent of those who were not given vitamin K-II (p=0.14). Invasion of the cancer into the portal vein occurred in 2 percent of the vitamin K-II treated group at one year and in 13 percent at two years, compared to 21 and 55 percent of controls, respectively" - Also see liver cancer.  Vitamin K3 (menadione sodium bisulfite) is put in animal foods and animal vitamins.
• Hydrogenated Oils Affect Amount of Vitamin K Available to Bone - Doctor's Guide, 11/30/01 - "Hydrogenation of plant oils decreases the amount of vitamin K available to bone in consumers using food products containing the oils ... available data indicate that more than half of younger US adults do not meet the current guidelines governing adequate intake of the nutrient" - Another reason to stay away from the brands of peanut butter that are hydrogenated. - Ben
• Vitamin K Deficiency Linked to Low Bone Mineral Density in Women - Doctor's Guide, 10/15/01
• Vitamin K Cuts Hip Fractures - Nutrition Science News, 9/01
• Low-Dose Vitamin K Treats Excessive Anticoagulation - Doctor's Guide, 7/9/01
• US Anticoagulation Clinics Underuse Vitamin K - Doctor's Guide, 7/9/01
• Low Dose Vitamin K Helps Warfarin Patients - Doctor's Guide, 11/2/00
• Bone Up on Osteoporosis - Nutrition Science News, 11/00
• Lack of Vitamin K Linked to Hip Fractures - Doctor's Guide, 5/9/00
• Vitamin K - Life Extension Magazine, 2/00
• Research Points to Better Blood Clotting Control - Doctor's Guide, 4/13/98
• Combining Acetaminophen With Anticoagulant Increases Risk Of Bleeding - Doctor's Guide, 3/3/98
• Is Vitamin K Linked To Childhood Cancer? - Doctor's Guide, 1/16/98

Vitamin K Abstracts:

• Phylloquinone intake, insulin sensitivity, and glycemic status in men and women - Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Jul;88(1):210-5 - "Limited evidence suggests that vitamin K may have a beneficial role in glucose homeostasis ... Higher phylloquinone intake was associated with greater insulin sensitivity and glycemic status, as measured by 2-h post-OGTT insulin and glucose and ISI(0,120), after adjustment for age, sex, waist circumference, lifestyle characteristics, and diet quality [2-h post-OGTT insulin: lowest and highest quintile, 81.0 and 72.7 microU/mL, respectively (P for trend = 0.003); 2-h post-OGTT glucose: 106.3 and 101.9 mg/dL, respectively"
• An Attempt to Evaluate the Effect of Vitamin K(3) Using as an Enhancer of Anticancer Agents - Biol Pharm Bull. 2008;31(6):1270-1273 - "These findings suggest that VK(3) induces G(2)/M arrest by inhibition of cyclin B/cdk1 complex formation, and is thus useful as an enhancer of G(2) phase-dependent drugs in hepatic cancer chemotherapy"
• A 12 week, open label, phase I/IIa study using apatone for the treatment of prostate cancer patients who have failed standard therapy - Int J Med Sci. 2008 Mar 24;5(2):62-7 - "oral Apatone (Vitamin C and Vitamin K3) administration in the treatment of prostate cancer ... 5,000 mg of VC and 50 mg of VK3 each day ... At the conclusion of the 12 week treatment period, PSAV decreased and PSADT increased in 13 of 17 patients (p < or = 0.05). There were no dose-limiting adverse effects. Of the 15 patients who continued on Apatone after 12 weeks, only 1 death occurred after 14 months of treatment"
• Vitamin K(2) suppresses malignancy of HuH7 hepatoma cells via inhibition of connexin 43 - Cancer Lett. 2008 Jan 29 - "The anti-cancer potential of vitamin K(2) (VK(2)) in hepatoma has gained considerable attention"
• Vitamin K and Vitamin D Status: Associations with Inflammatory Markers in the Framingham Offspring Study - Am J Epidemiol. 2007 Nov 15 - "Vitamin K status, measured by plasma phylloquinone concentration and phylloquinone intake, was inversely associated with circulating inflammatory markers as a group and with several individual inflammatory biomarkers" - See vitamin K at Amazon.com.
• Vitamin K(2) supplementation improves hip bone geometry and bone strength indices in postmenopausal women - Osteoporos Int. 2007 Feb 8 - "Vitamin K(2) helps maintaining bone strength at the site of the femoral neck in postmenopausal women by improving BMC and FNW, whereas it has little effect on DXA-BMD"
• Vitamin K and the Prevention of Fractures: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials - Arch Intern Med. 2006 Jun 26;166(12):1256-61 - "This systematic review suggests that supplementation with phytonadione and menaquinone-4 reduces bone loss. In the case of the latter, there is a strong effect on incident fractures among Japanese patients"
• Two-year randomized controlled trial of vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) and vitamin D3 plus calcium on the bone health of older women - J Bone Miner Res. 2007 Apr;22(4):509-19 - "women who took combined vitamin K and vitamin D plus calcium showed a significant and sustained increase in both BMD and BMC at the site of the ultradistal radius"
• Vitamin K treatment for postmenopausal osteoporosis in Indonesia - J Obstet Gynaecol Res. 2006 Apr;32(2):230-4 - "After 48 weeks of treatment, the mean percentage change of lumbar BMD in the vitamin K(2) group was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than that of the control group"
• Vitamin K, bone turnover, and bone mass in girls - Am J Clin Nutr. 2004 Oct;80(4):1075-80 - "Better vitamin K status was associated with decreased bone turnover in healthy girls consuming a typical US diet"
• Bone health. New role for vitamin K? - Can Fam Physician. 2004 Jul;50:993-7 - "Evidence suggests that dietary phylloquinone intake of <100 microg daily might not be optimal for bone health. Low intake of vitamin K could contribute to osteoporosis and subsequent fracture ... Family physicians need to be aware of the importance of encouraging adequate vitamin K intake, particularly among institutionalized elderly people, to prevent increased bone resorption"
• Role of Vitamin K2 in the Development of Hepatocellular Carcinoma in Women With Viral Cirrhosis of the Liver - JAMA. 2004 Jul 21;292(3):358-61 - "Hepatocellular carcinoma was detected in 2 of the 21 women given vitamin K2 and 9 of the 19 women in the control group ... the risk ratio for the development of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients given vitamin K2 was 0.13" - See vitamin K at Amazon.com.
• Vitamin K intake and bone mineral density in women and men - Am. J. of Clin. Nutr., 2/03 - "Low dietary vitamin K intake was associated with low BMD in women ... In contrast, there was no association between dietary vitamin K intake and BMD in men"
• Vitamin K supplementation in cystic fibrosis - Arch Dis Child. 2003 Nov;88(11):974-5 - "a increased vitamin K intake may have significant health benefits for children with CF"