Recent Longevity News for the seven days ending 10/16/13.  You should consult your doctor if you are taking any medications.

'Love Hormone' May Help Treat Personality Disorder - Medscape, 10/11/13 - "The neuropeptide oxytocin, which has been shown to reduce anxiety in social situations, enhance the recognition of facial expressions, and shift attention from negative to positive information, may decrease social-threat hypersensitivity in women with borderline personality disorder ... the patients with borderline personality disorder showed more and faster initial fixation changes than healthy women and had more saccades to the eyes of angry faces, combined with greater amygdala activation in response to angry faces, compared with the control group" - See Oxy Pro (Oxytocin) Nasal Spray at International Anti-aging Systems.

Effects of Soy, Whey Protein Supplementation Post-Exercise - Science Daily, 10/12/13 - "Our main findings demonstrate that 14 days of supplementation with soy protein does appear to partially blunt serum testosterone. In addition, whey influences the response of cortisol following an acute bout of resistance exercise by blunting its increase during recovery"

Molecule produced during exercise boosts brain health - Science Daily, 10/10/13 - "a molecule called FNDC5 and its cleavage product, irisin, are elevated by endurance exercise in the brain and increase BDNF expression. On the other hand, mice genetically altered to have low irisin levels in the brain had reduced levels of BDNF ... FNDC5/irisin has the ability control a very important neuroprotective pathway in the brain"

Multivitamins With Minerals May Protect Older Women With Invasive Breast Cancer - Science Daily, 10/9/13 - "The research was conducted as part of the Women's Health Initiative Clinical Trials and the Women's Health Initiative(WHI)Observational Study. Combined, the two studies include data from 161,608 postmenopausal women ages 50 to 79 when they first joined the study ... A comparison of mortality rates revealed that women with invasive breast cancer who took multivitamin/mineral supplements were 30 percent less likely to die from their cancers than women with invasive breast cancer who hadn't taken the supplements. Could differences between the multivitamin/mineral users and nonusers account for this finding? The researchers looked at many possible confounding factors including additional supplements that the women took, their smoking status, education, race/ethnicity, weight, depression, alcohol use, physical activity, age at breast cancer diagnosis, and diabetes. The association between regular use of multivitamin/mineral supplements and reduced risk of death persisted even after these factors were taken into account" - See Garden of Life, Vitamin Code, 50 & Wiser Women at Amazon.com.

High Dietary Intake of Polyphenols Are Associated With Longevity - Science Daily, 10/9/13 - "the first to evaluate the total dietary polyphenol intake by using a nutritional biomarker and not only a food frequency questionnaire ... Polyphenols have antioxidant, antiinflammatory, anticarcinogenic, etc. effects ... based on a 12-year follow-up of a population sample composed by 807 men and women aged 65 or over from Greve and Bagno (Tuscany, Italy) ... the research proves that overall mortality was reduced by 30% in participants who had rich-polyphenol diets (>650 mg/day) in comparison with the participants who had low-polyphenol intakes (<500 mg/day)" - See grape seed extract at Amazon.com.

Amino acid offers potential therapeutic alternative in psychiatric disorders - Science Daily, 10/8/13 - "drug discovery is at a near standstill for treating psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression and common forms of autism ... According to Professor Berk, there is now an incontrovertible evidence base that these disorders share inflammation and oxidative stress as part of their disease physiology ... The amino acid, NAC, seems to have multiple effects on all these pathways: it boosts glutathione, which is the body’s major antioxidant defence; has anti-inflammatory properties; enhances levels of nerve cell growth proteins and the growth of new neurons; and reduces cell death pathways. It also appears to reduce dysfunction of mitochondria ... NAC reduces the core symptoms of schizophrenia including negative symptoms such as improved apathy, social interaction and motivation. It also appears to reduce depression in people with bipolar disorder and at this meeting ... there is intriguing evidence that it reduces cravings in a number of addictions including cocaine, cannabis and cigarette smoking" - See n-acetyl cysteine at Amazon.com.

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):

Vitamin D and Physical Performance in Older Men and Women Visiting the Emergency Department Because of a Fall: Data from the Improving Medication Prescribing to reduce Risk Of FALLs (IMPROveFALL) Study - J Am Geriatr Soc. 2013 Oct 1 - "Physical performance was assessed using the Timed Up and Go Test, the Five Time Sit to Stand Test, handgrip strength, and the tandem stand test ... In men, higher serum 25(OH)D concentration was significantly associated with better handgrip strength (regression coefficient (B) = 3.86, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.04-5.69), faster TUG time (B = -2.82, 95% CI = -4.91 to -0.73), and faster FTSS time (B = -3.39, 95% CI = -5.67 to -1.11). In women, higher serum 25(OH)D concentration was significantly associated with faster TUG time" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Tea Consumption and Depressive Symptoms in Older People in Rural China - J Am Geriatr Soc. 2013 Oct 1 - "Compared with no or irregular tea consumption, controlling for age, sex, education, leisure activities, number of comorbidities, and Mini-Mental State Examination score, the odds ratios of having high depressive symptoms were 0.86 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.56-1.32) for weekly and 0.59 (95% CI = 0.43-0.81) for daily tea consumption (P for linear trend = .001); the linear trend of the association remained statistically significant when further controlling for history of stroke, transient ischemic attacks, and presence of carotid plaques" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.

Tea Consumption and Mortality in the Oldest-Old Chinese - J Am Geriatr Soc. 2013 Oct 1 - "subjects who reported frequent tea drinking at age 60 and at the baseline survey had a 10% lower risk of mortality than subjects who reported infrequent tea drinking at age 60 and at the baseline survey" - See green tea extract at Amazon.com.

Efficacy of medical treatment in Cushing's disease: a systematic review - Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2013 Oct 1 - "Pasireotide was the only treatment to be assessed in a randomized trial and was supported by a 'moderate' level of evidence. Response rates with pasireotide from three prospective studies were 17-29%. The remaining medications were supported by a 'low' or 'very low' level of evidence. The highest response rates were reported in small retrospective studies of metyrapone (75%, one study) and mitotane (72%, one study). Response rates were 25-50% for cabergoline (four studies) and 45% for ketoconazole (one study). Among studies that included patients with other forms of Cushing's syndrome, response rates were 53-88% for ketoconazole (three studies), 70% for mitotane (one study), 57% for metyrapone (one study) and 38-60% for mifepristone. Again, all of these medications are supported by a 'low' level of evidence"

Melatonin modulates microsomal prostaglandin E synthase 1 and nuclear factor-E2-related factor-2-regulated antioxidant enzyme expressions in LPS-induced murine peritoneal macrophages - Br J Pharmacol. 2013 Sep 30 - "Increasing evidences demonstrate that melatonin regulates inflammatory and immune processes acting as both an activator and inhibitor of these responses ... melatonin might be a promising target for diseases associated with overactivation of macrophages" - See melatonin at Amazon.com.

Silymarin Improves Vascular Function of Aged Ovariectomized Rats - Phytother Res. 2013 Sep 30 - "Both aging and estrogen depletion lead to endothelial dysfunction, which is the main reason of many cardiovascular diseases ... silymarin (SM) ... In spite of the presence of estrogen antagonist, immediate SM treatment restored the endothelial function and vascular tone better than estrogen replacement. Additionally, as a complementary and alternative medicine, it does not cause estrogenic side effects when taken acutely" - See silymarin at Amazon.com.

Quercetin prevents liver carcinogenesis by inducing cell cycle arrest, decreasing cell proliferation and enhancing apoptosis - Mol Nutr Food Res. 2013 Oct 1 - "Adult male Wistar rats were subjected to a two-phase model of hepatocarcinogenesis (initiated-promoted group). Initiated-promoted animals also received quercetin 10 and 20 mg/kg body weight (IPQ10 and IPQ20 groups, respectively). Antioxidant defenses were modified by quercetin administration at both doses. However, only IPQ20 group showed a reduction in number and volume of preneoplastic lesions. This group showed increased apoptosis and a reduction in the proliferative index" - See quercetin at Amazon.com.

Energy-restricted, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids-rich diet improves the clinical response to immuno-modulating drugs in obese patients with plaque-type psoriasis: a randomized control clinical trial - Clin Nutr. 2013 Sep 28 - "Forty-four obese patients with mild-to-severe plaque-type psoriasis treated with immuno-suppressive drugs were randomized to assume for six months either their usual diet or an energy-restricted diet (20 kcal/kg/ideal body weight/day) enriched of n-3 PUFAs (average 2.6 g/d) ... At 3 and 6 months, a significant clinical improvement was observed in patients assuming the low-calorie high n-3 PUFAs diet respect to controls. Specifically Psoriasis Area Score Index (7.7 +/- 3.7, 5.3 +/- 4.3 and 2.6 +/- 3.0, respectively; p < 0.05), itch scores (15.4 +/- 13.5, 12.3 +/- 12.1 and 1.8 +/- 5.9, respectively; p < 0.05) and Dermatological Life Quality Index (19.5 +/- 1.9, 11.4 +/- 3.5 and 5.1 +/- 1.6; respectively, p < 0.05) all decreased respect to baseline. In these subjects but not in controls, a significant decrease in body weight (93.8 +/- 10.1, 85.8 +/- 11.4 and 83.1 +/- 12.1 kg, respectively; p < 0.05), waist circumference (112.7 +/- 7.2, 106.1 +/- 10.3 and 101.9 +/- 10.4 cm; p < 0.05), serum triglycerides (141.8 +/- 51.1, 100.5 +/- 26.6 and 90.2 +/- 34.5 mg/dL; respectively, p < 0.05), serum total cholesterol (198.3 +/- 31.7, 171.4 +/- 29.0 and 176.5 +/- 20.5 mg/dL; respectively, p < 0.05) and n-6/n-3 ratio intake also occurred (5.1 +/- 0.9, 2.0 +/- 0.9 and 2.3 +/- 1.1; respectively, p < 0.05)" - See Mega Twin EPA at Amazon.com and Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.

Dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (DHEAS) promotes MIN6 cells insulin secretion via inhibition of AMP-activated protein kinase - Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2013 Oct 8 - "Although it has the property of anti-diabetes, the long-term effect of DHEAS on insulin secretion in beta-cells is still unclear. In this study, the effect of DHEAS on the insulin secretion activity in MIN6 cell lines in vitro was assessed. Insulin biosynthesis and secretion were stimulated by DHEAS for 24 h. DHEAS inhibited the AMPK activation and upregulated the expression of ACC-1. These findings indicate that DHEAS may exert prominent stimulatory effects on insulin secretion partly via AMPK inhibition and ACC-1 upregulation" - See DHEA at Amazon.com.

Effects of correction of vitamin D insufficiency on serum osteocalcin and glucose metabolism in obese children - Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2013 Sep 21 - "Osteocalcin (OCN) and vitamin D insufficiency (VDI) have been shown to be associated with abnormal glucose metabolism (GluMet) ... involved 230 obese children in a cross-sectional part, and 72 participants in a prospective part in which children with VDI were treated with vitamin D2 at a dose of 20,000 IU daily for 28 days ... correction of VDI by raising mean (SD) 25-OHD of 51.5 (12.3) to 141.8 (40.8) nmol/L resulted in an improvement of their GluMet and increase in their whole-body insulin sensitivity index with no changes in their OCN measures" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

A randomized study on the effect of vitamin D3 supplementation on skeletal muscle morphology and vitamin D receptor concentration in older women - J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2013 Oct 9 - "To determine whether vitamin D3 4000 IU/d alters muscle fiber cross-sectional area (FCSA) and intramyonuclear VDR concentration over 4 months ... Vitamin D3 supplementation increased intramyonuclear VDR concentration by 30% and increased muscle fiber size by 10% in older, mobility-limited, vitamin D-insufficient women" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Resveratrol Inhibits Hydrogen Peroxide-Induced Apoptosis in Endothelial Cells via the Activation of PI3K/Akt by miR-126 - J Atheroscler Thromb. 2013 Oct 10 - "In this study, we demonstrated that the protection of endothelial cells by RSV against oxidative injury is due to the activation of PI3K/Akt by miR-126" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.

Thiamine deficiency leads to reduced nitric oxide production and vascular dysfunction in rats - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2013 Oct 5 - "Thiamine deficiency is a condition that is known to cause damage to the nervous and cardiovascular systems because it interferes with cellular metabolism. It is well known that the control of vascular function is highly dependent on the production of nitric oxide (NO) by NO synthases ... Thiamine deficiency modulates eNOS-dependent NO production, leading to a decreased vasorelaxation and an increased contractile response in the rat aorta"

Probiotics determine hypolipidemic and antioxidant effects in hyperlipidemic hamsters - Mol Nutr Food Res. 2013 - "probiotic mix (Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium animalis) ... Male Golden Syrian hamsters developed hyperlipidemia after 21 weeks of fat diet. For the last 5 weeks of experiment, ten HL were treated with the probiotic mix (HLP), ten received water (HL). Ten animals received standard chow (N). Increase of plasma total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), phospholipids (PL), oxidized LDL, glucose, of 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE) in plasma, liver, and myocardium, and of intestinal Niemann Pick C1 like 1 (NPC1L1) and microsomal TG transfer protein (MTTP) expression was observed in HL versus N. The probiotic mix decreased plasma TC, TG, PL, oxidized LDL, 4-HNE, and glucose levels and increased paraoxonase-1 activity, decreased NPC1L1 and MTTP protein expression compared to HL. In HLP liver, a significant reduction of TC, TG, and fatty acids was observed. PL increased and 4-HNE levels decreased in the liver and myocardium of HLP versus HL" - See probiotic products at Amazon.com.

Efficacy of Fasting and Calorie Restriction (FCR) on Mood and Depression among Ageing Men - J Nutr Health Aging. 2013;17(8):674-680 - "FCR (Fasting and Calorie Restriction) ... A total of 31 subjects completed the study (n=16, FCR and n=15, control) ... Our findings show that a FCR dietary regime is effective in improving mood states and nutritional status among ageing men"

Neat Tech Stuff / "How To's":

• Get a Canon wide-format printer for $99 shipped - CNET, 10/15/13 - "For a limited time, Adorama has the Canon Pixma Pro-100 wide-format printer with photo paper for $99 shipped. That's after redeeming a $300(!) mail-in rebate (PDF)"
• We've got the dirt on these luxury vacuum cleaners - CNET Reviews, 10/14/13 - "First, the good news. The Dyson DC41 Animal Complete was a standout in our performance tests, yielding particularly impressive results when it came time to clean up pet hair. The bad news? It isn't designed nearly as well as you'd expect from a brand like Dyson. The wand lacks a handle, the locking mechanism requires you to yank the vacuum to pull it out of a standing position, and when it comes time to put it back up, the DC41 falls flat. Literally. For a steeper-than-steep price of $649, we expected better" - See Dyson DC41 Animal Complete Upright Vacuum Cleaner.
• Best Buy promises $100 trade-in credit for new iPhone buyers - CNET News, 10/11/13 - "Starting October 13 and ending October 19, you can trade in any working smartphone for a $100 credit" - Note:  I checked on this.  If you want something like the gold colored iPhone 5s, there's no rain check option as discussed in this article.  Just what they have in stock and everyone is out of the gold model.  Verizon offers the same deal without the time window.
• Ultimate guide to the paperless office - PCWorld, 10/8/13 - "If you’re dealing with formats more cumbersome than standard printouts, try a desktop scanner such as the Fujitsu ScanSnap V600, which brings the line’s one-button scanning to bound and oversize documents"
  • Fujitsu ScanSnap SV600 Contactless Scanner Video - webcollage.net
  • Fujitsu ScanSnap SV600 at Amazon.com

• It’s getting to be a hassle shopping for the exact LED bulb you want such as daylight Kelvin rating, non-dimmable so you get the most lumens for your buck both in cost of the bulb and lower wattage per lumen, correct wattage equivalent and a color rendering index of at least 80.  This is my pick for recessed lighting: Lighting EVER 7W A19 LED Bulb, High Performance Samsung LED, Daylight White, 60W Incandescent Bulb Replacement

Health Focus (Gallstones):

Popular Supplements:

• silymarin / omega-3 / primadophilus / vitamin C / fiber

Alternative News:

• Garlic and onions may reduce cholesterol gallstones: Study - Nutra USA, 11/27/08 - "Mice were divided into groups – one group was fed the lithogenic diet, and the others fed the lithogenic diet supplemented with 0.6 and 2.0 per cent garlic and onion, respectively ... The incidence of gallstones in the latter group was found to be reduced by 15 to 30 per cent" - [Abstract] - See garlic supplements at Amazon.com.
• Dietary garlic and onion reduce the incidence of atherogenic diet-induced cholesterol gallstones in experimental mice - Br J Nutr. 2008 Nov 5:1-9 - "Dietary garlic and onion markedly reduced biliary cholesterol ... Serum and liver cholesterol were decreased by feeding garlic or onion compared to the LG diet. Thus, dietary Allium spices exerted antilithogenic influence by decreasing the cholesterol hyper-secretion into bile and increasing the bile acid output thus decreasing the formation of lithogenic bile in experimental mice" - See garlic supplements at Amazon.com.
• Magnesium linked to fewer gallstones - Nutra USA, 2/26/08 - "After adjusting the results to account for age differences, which may affect the results, Tsai and co-workers calculated that men with the highest levels of magnesium intake (454 mg/d) were 28 per cent less likely to develop gallstones, compared to men with the lowest average intake (262 mg/d)" - [Abstract] - See magnesium supplements at Amazon.com.
• Long-term effect of magnesium consumption on the risk of symptomatic gallstone disease among men - Am J Gastroenterol. 2008 Feb;103(2):375-82 - "The age-adjusted relative risks (RRs) for men with total magnesium intake and dietary magnesium, when the highest and lowest quintiles were compared, were 0.67 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.59-0.77, P for trend <0.0001) and 0.67 (CI 0.59-0.76, P for trend <0.0001), respectively. After adjusting for multiple potential confounding variables, when extreme quintiles were compared, the multivariate RR of total magnesium intake (RR 0.72, CI 0.61-0.86, P for trend = 0.006) and dietary magnesium (RR 0.68, CI 0.57-0.82, P for trend = 0.0006) remained significant with a dose-response relationship ... Our findings suggest a protective role of magnesium consumption in the prevention of symptomatic gallstone disease among men" - See magnesium supplements at Amazon.com.
• Magnesium Intake May Cut Risk of Gallstones - Medscape, 2/22/08 - "Magnesium deficiency is known to cause elevated triglyceride levels and decreased HDL cholesterol levels, both of which may raise the risk of gallstones ... Compared with the lowest quintile of total magnesium intake (median 262 mg/day), the highest quintile of intake (454 mg/day) reduced the risk of gallstone disease by 33%" - See magnesium supplements at Amazon.com.
• Exercise To Avoid Gallstones, New Research Suggests - Science Daily, 2/13/08
• Long-Term Effect of Magnesium Consumption on the Risk of Symptomatic Gallstone Disease Among Men - Am J Gastroenterol. 2007 Dec 12 - "Our findings suggest a protective role of magnesium consumption in the prevention of symptomatic gallstone disease among men" - See magnesium supplements at Amazon.com.
• More Unsaturated Fats, Fewer Gallstones? - WebMD, 10/4/04

Other News:

• An easier way to remove gallstones - Science Daily, 1/18/12 - "A tiny ultrasonic probe at the tip of the endoscope locates gallstones, even small ones embedded in the organ's lining. Surgeons can use the horn-shaped "absorbing box" to get rid of fine, difficult-to-remove "sludge-like" gallstones - which the authors say can be compared with "sand sprinkled on a carpet" - by sucking them out like a vacuum cleaner ... Approximately ten percent of the population suffers from gallstones"
• Long-term Statin Use Associated With Decreased Risk Of Gallstones Requiring Surgery - Science Daily, 11/10/09 - "Use of the cholesterol-lowering drugs statins for more than a year is associated with a reduced risk of having gallstones requiring surgery"
• What's The Main Risk Factor Of Gallstone Disease? - Science Daily, 9/19/08
• Statins Cut Gallstones Risk - WebMD, 10/16/07 - "The study suggested that overall, current statin use slashed the risk of having gallbladder removal surgery by 18% -- no matter how long a woman had been taking the drug ... Women with diabetes who had been taking statins for two or more years reduced their risk of surgery by 75% ... Statins improve insulin resistance in people with diabetes but not in nondiabetics"
• Yo-Yo Dieting Ups Men's Gallstone Risk - WebMD, 11/27/06 - "men who repeatedly lose, then regain 20 or more pounds through dieting are up to 76% more likely to develop gallstones later in life than men who maintain a constant weight"
• Hormone Therapy May Increase Risk of Gallstones - WebMD, 10/1/01 - "women taking HRT, consisting of the female hormones estrogen and progestin, were 30% to 40% more likely to need gallbladder surgery ... Although the chance of HRT leading to gallstones was not great, the study of more than 2,200 postmenopausal women does raise concerns ... women taking statins -- the most popular type of cholesterol-lowering drug -- had a 45% drop in the chance they would need gallbladder surgery"