Recent Longevity News for the week ending 3/25/15

Zinc deficiency linked to immune system response, particularly in older adults - Science Daily, 3/23/15 - "When you take away zinc, the cells that control inflammation appear to activate and respond differently; this causes the cells to promote more inflammation ... Approximately 12 percent of people in the U.S. do not consume enough zinc in their diets. Of those 65 and older, closer to 40 percent do not consume enough zinc ... Older adults tend to eat fewer zinc-rich foods and their bodies do not appear to use or absorb zinc as well, making them highly susceptible to zinc deficiency" - See Jarrow Zinc Balance at Amazon.com.

Exercise linked to improved erectile, sexual function in men - Science Daily, 3/23/15 - "men who reported more frequent exercise, a total of 18 metabolic equivalents, or METS, per week, had higher sexual function scores, regardless of race. MET hours reflect both the total time of exercise and the intensity of exercise. A total of 18 METS can be achieved by combining exercises with different intensities, but is the equivalent of two hours of strenuous exercise, such as running or swimming, 3.5 hours of moderate exercise, or six hours of light exercise ... In contrast, men of any ethnicity who exercised less reported lower levels of sexual function. Additional contributors to low sexual function included diabetes, older age, past or current smoking and coronary artery disease" - Note:  It blows a whole in the below jogging study that I didn't believe that you only need 1 - 2.4 hours of jogging per week for the lowest mortality.

New MIND diet may significantly protect against Alzheimer’s disease - Science Daily, 3/23/15 - "With the MIND diet, a person who eats at least three servings of whole grains, a salad and one other vegetable every day -- along with a glass of wine -- snacks most days on nuts, has beans every other day or so, eats poultry and berries at least twice a week and fish at least once a week and benefits. However, he or she must limits intake of the designated unhealthy foods, especially butter (less than 1 tablespoon a day), cheese, and fried or fast food (less than a serving a week for any of the three), to have a real shot at avoiding the devastating effects of AD ... Blueberries are one of the more potent foods in terms of protecting the brain ... strawberries have also performed well in past studies of the effect of food on cognitive function"

Colorado Marijuana Study Finds Legal Weed Contains Potent THC Levels - NBC News.com, 3/23/15 - "After analyzing more than 600 samples of bud provided by certified growers and sellers, LaFrate said he detected little medical value and lots of contamination ... The 600-plus weed samples generally carried little or no cannabidiol, or CBD — the compound that makes medical marijuana "medical." The average CBD amount: 0.1 percent ... It's disturbing to me because there are people out there who think they're giving their kids Charlotte's Web. And you could be giving them no CBD — or even worse, you could be giving them a THC-rich product which might actually increase seizures ... Three decades of cross-breeding pot strains — done to meet a demand for stronger weed — generally elevated THC and decreased CBD in many marijuana varieties ... just like other industries, now you have a big marijuana industry determined to hide these findings from the public. Where is their outcry?"

Vitamin D may keep low-grade prostate cancer from becoming aggressive - Science Daily, 3/22/15 - "His previous research had shown that when men with low-grade prostate cancer took vitamin D supplements for a year, 55 percent of them showed decreased Gleason scores or even complete disappearance of their tumors compared to their biopsies a year before ... assigned 37 men undergoing elective prostatectomies either to a group that received 4,000 U of vitamin D per day, or to a placebo group that didn't receive vitamin D. The men's prostate glands were removed and examined 60 days later ... many of the men who received vitamin D showed improvements in their prostate tumors, whereas the tumors in the placebo group either stayed the same or got worse. Also, vitamin D caused dramatic changes in the expression levels of many cell lipids and proteins, particularly those involved in inflammation" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Intranasal Oxytocin Increases Compassion Toward Women - Medscape, 3/20/15 - "These results may have important clinical implications for treatment of psychopathology, that involve aberrant social behavior including autism spectrum disorders (Hollander et al., 2007), Post traumatic stress disorder - PTSD (Pitman et al., 1993; Olff, 2012), Obsessive-Compulsive disorder OCD (Swedo et al., 1992; Meinlschmidt and Heim, 2007), schizophrenia (Pedersen et al., 2011) or social anxiety disorder (Guastella et al., 2009), and suggest that OT may improve some symptoms, and in particular the social impairments symptoms of these patients (for review, Heinrichs et al., 2009; Matsuzaki et al., 2012). This study suggests that the effect of OT may be not generalized positive effects, but the OT effect depends on the context in which the patient is in. More particularly, OT may affect the social behavior toward women. Future studies on the effect of OT on psychiatric disorders should take in a count these findings" - See Oxy Pro (Oxytocin) Nasal Spray at International Anti-aging Systems.

Jogging Dose and Long-term Mortality: Copenhagen Heart Study - Medscape, 3/20/15 - "Compared with sedentary nonjoggers, 1 to 2.4 h of jogging per week was associated with the lowest mortality (multivariable hazard ratio [HR]: 0.29; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.11 to 0.80). The optimal frequency of jogging was 2 to 3 times per week (HR: 0.32; 95% CI: 0.15 to 0.69) or ≤1 time per week (HR: 0.29; 95% CI: 0.12 to 0.72). The optimal pace was slow (HR: 0.51; 95% CI: 0.24 to 1.10) or average (HR: 0.38; 95% CI: 0.22 to 0.66). The joggers were divided into light, moderate, and strenuous joggers. The lowest HR for mortality was found in light joggers (HR: 0.22; 95% CI: 0.10 to 0.47), followed by moderate joggers (HR: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.32 to 1.38) and strenuous joggers (HR: 1.97; 95% CI: 0.48 to 8.14)"

Vitamin D prevents diabetes and clogged arteries in mice - Science Daily, 3/19/15 - "In our study, inactivation of the vitamin D receptor induced diabetes and atherosclerosis, so normalizing vitamin D levels may have the opposite effect"

Melatonin can help you get a good night's sleep in a noisy environment - Science Daily, 3/19/15 - "intensive care unit (ICU) ... participants were randomly divided into four equal groups but continued to sleep in the simulated ICU. The first group did not receive any sleep aid. The second were provided with eye masks and earplugs. The third group took 1mg of fast-release oral melatonin when going to bed. The final group of participants was given a placebo ... all sleep patterns were disturbed by exposure to the simulated ICU environment. This resulted in feelings of anxiety and reduced quality of sleep ... Those who took melatonin were found to have decreased awakenings during the night even compared to the eye mask and earplugs group. The quality of the sleep was also found to be much improved for those taking melatonin, with reported lower anxiety levels and increased REM sleep -- thought to be linked to improved cognitive restoration" - See melatonin at Amazon.com.

Nutritional supplement shown to be effective in reducing female hair loss - Nutra USA, 3/19/15 - "the nutritional supplement combines specific omega 3&6 from fish and blackcurrant seed oils with antioxidants (lycopene, vitamin C, and vitamin E) ... after 6 months of treatment, photograph assessment demonstrated a superior improvement in the supplemented group" - See black currant oil at Amazon.com (most health enthusiasts are already taking the rest and most people get too much omega 6 already except for the gamma linolenic acid (GLA) form as in blackcurrant seed  oil).

Dogs Do Love Their Owners: 'Love Hormone' Makes Dogs Man's Best Friend, Study Says - ABC News, 3/18/15 - "The dogs given oxytocin were better able to complete simple tasks than those given a simple saline spray, the researchers found. The dogs' response to the hormone could offer important clues about how dogs evolved to become "man's best friend," ... We created this almost perfect other social creature. They understand us and will always love us. Dogs are very empathetic and they have greater empathy ... it's likely dogs also had a high number of receptors because they were so empathetic and socialized, similar to humans" - See Oxy Pro (Oxytocin) Nasal Spray at International Anti-aging Systems.

How fatty acids can fight prostate cancer - Science Daily, 3/18/15 - "the fatty acids bind to a receptor called FFA4, for "free fatty acid receptor 4." Rather than stimulating cancer cells, the receptor acts as a signal to inhibit growth factors, suppressing proliferation of the cancer cells" - See fish oil supplements at Amazon.com.

Recommendation for vitamin D intake was miscalculated, is far too low, experts say - Science Daily, 3/17/15 - "The recommended intake of vitamin D specified by the IOM is 600 IU/day through age 70 years, and 800 IU/day for older ages. "Calculations by us and other researchers have shown that these doses are only about one-tenth those needed to cut incidence of diseases related to vitamin D deficiency," ... We call for the NAS-IOM and all public health authorities concerned with transmitting accurate nutritional information to the public to designate, as the RDA, a value of approximately 7,000 IU/day from all sources ... This intake is well below the upper level intake specified by IOM as safe for teens and adults, 10,000 IU/day" - Hmm, what have I been saying in my newsletters?  See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Abstracts from this week:

Plasma phospholipid fatty acids and fish-oil consumption in relation to osteoporotic fracture risk in older adults: the Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility Study - Am J Clin Nutr. 2015 Mar 18 - "Daily fish-oil consumption in late life was associated with lower fracture risk in men (HR: 0.64; 95% CI: 0.45, 0.91). Daily fish-oil consumption in midlife was associated with lower fracture risk in women (HR: 0.75; 95% CI: 0.58, 0.98)" - See fish oil supplements at Amazon.com.

The role of taurine in the pathogenesis of obesity - Mol Nutr Food Res. 2015 Mar 19 - "Ingestion of taurine has been shown to alleviate metabolic diseases such as hyperlipidemia, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity in animal models. A global epidemiological survey showed that 24-h urinary taurine excretion, as a marker of dietary taurine intake, was inversely associated with body mass index, blood pressure, and plasma cholesterol in humans" - See taurine at Amazon.com.

Echinacea Reduces the Risk of Recurrent Respiratory Tract Infections and Complications: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials - Adv Ther. 2015 Mar 18 - "Six clinical studies with a total of 2458 participants were included in the meta-analysis. Use of echinacea extracts was associated with reduced risk of recurrent respiratory infections (RR 0.649, 95% CI 0.545-0.774; P < 0.0001) ... Three independent studies found that in individuals with higher susceptibility, stress or a state of immunological weakness, echinacea halved the risk of recurrent respiratory infections (RR 0.501, 95% CI 0.380-0.661; P < 0.0001). Similar preventive effects were observed with virologically confirmed recurrent infections (RR 0.420, 95% CI 0.222-0.796; P = 0.005). Complications including pneumonia, otitis media/externa, and tonsillitis/pharyngitis were also less frequent with echinacea treatment (RR 0.503, 95% CI 0.384-0.658; P < 0.0001)" - See Echinacea goldenseal at Amazon.com.

Vitamin D Status and Acute Respiratory Infection: Cross Sectional Results from the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2001-2006 - Nutrients. 2015 Mar 13;7(3):1933-1944 - "analyzed 14,108 individuals over 16 years of age in the National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHANES) 2001-2006 ... After adjusting for season, demographic factors, and clinical data, 25OHD levels <30 ng/mL were associated with 58% higher odds of ARI (OR 1.58; 95% CI: 1.07-2.33) compared to levels ≥30 ng/mL" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

The Association of Obesity with Sex Hormone Binding Globulin is Stronger than the Association with Aging - Implications for the Interpretation of Total Testosterone Measurements - Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2015 Mar 16 - "Total testosterone concentrations are influenced by sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) concentrations, which are decreased by obesity and increased with aging ... the association between obesity and lowered SHBG is greater than the association of aging with increased SHBG. These competing effects may impact total testosterone measurements for the diagnosis of low testosterone, particularly in obese men"

Diet Soda Intake Is Associated with Long-Term Increases in Waist Circumference in a Biethnic Cohort of Older Adults: The San Antonio Longitudinal Study of Aging - J Am Geriatr Soc. 2015 Mar 17 - "diet soda (DS) intake (DSI) ... In a striking dose-response relationship, increasing DSI was associated with escalating abdominal obesity, a potential pathway for cardiometabolic risk in this aging population"

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA): a modulator of microglia activity and dendritic spine morphology - J Neuroinflammation. 2015 Dec;12(1):244 - "Recent studies have revealed that excessive activation of microglia and inflammation-mediated neurotoxicity are implicated in the progression of several neurological disorders ... DHA can prevent LPS-induced abnormalities (neuroinflammation) by reducing inflammatory biomarkers, thereby normalizing microglia activity and their effect on synaptic function" - See Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.

Supplementation with vitamin E alone is associated with reduced myocardial infarction: A meta-analysis - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2015 Feb 4 - "Sixteen randomized controlled trials of vitamin E treatment were analyzed in this meta-analysis ... Compared to controls, vitamin E given alone significantly decreased myocardial infarction (3.0% vs 3.4%) (random effects R.R.: 0.82; 95% C.I., 0.70-0.96; p = 0.01). This effect was driven by reduction of fatal myocardial infarction (random effects R.R.: 0.84; 95% C.I., 0.73-0.96; p = 0.01)" - See Jarrow FamilE (contains all eight members of the vitamin E family, includes Tocomin) at Amazon.com.

MicroRNAs as potential regulators of docosahexaenoic acid benefits in Alzheimer's disease - Nutr Neurosci. 2015 Mar 14 - "Docosahexaenoic acids (DHAs) are known to be beneficial in AD, in part, through their anti-inflammatory properties. MicroRNAs (miRs) are important regulators of brain functions and this regulation becomes disrupted in AD ... The effects of DHA on AD are generally positive, but the mechanism remains enigmatic. Emerging studies demonstrate that one of the potential mechanisms of action of DHA is modulation of miRs. The miR mechanism offers possible future strategies against AD" - See Jarrow Max DHA at Amazon.com.

Silibinin inhibits acetylcholinesterase activity and amyloid β peptide aggregation: a dual-target drug for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease - Neurobiol Aging. 2015 Feb 11 - "these data suggest that silibinin could act as a dual inhibitor of AChE and Aβ peptide aggregation, therefore suggesting a therapeutic strategy for AD treatment" - See silymarin at Amazon.com.

Live Longer with Vitamin D? - Nutrients. 2015 Mar 12;7(3):1871-1880 - "Whether or not there is a connection between 25-hydoxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) status and overall mortality is a matter of considerable debate. A new meta-analysis confirmed that low 25(OH)D levels were associated with a significant increased risk for all-cause mortality. Individuals with severe vitamin D deficiency have almost twice the mortality rate as those with 25(OH)D level ≥ 30 ng/mL, (≥75 nmol/L). Unlike previous meta-analyses which suggested that serum 25(OH)D > 50 ng/mL was associated with increased mortality, this new analysis found that there was no increased risk even when 25(OH)D levels were ≥70 ng/mL" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Efficacy of Folic Acid Therapy in Primary Prevention of Stroke Among Adults With Hypertension in China: The CSPPT Randomized Clinical Trial - JAMA. 2015 Mar 15 - "randomly assigned to receive double-blind daily treatment with a single-pill combination containing enalapril, 10 mg, and folic acid, 0.8 mg (n = 10 348) or a tablet containing enalapril, 10 mg, alone (n = 10 354) ... Among adults with hypertension in China without a history of stroke or MI, the combined use of enalapril and folic acid, compared with enalapril alone, significantly reduced the risk of first stroke. These findings are consistent with benefits from folate use among adults with hypertension and low baseline folate levels" - See folic acid products at Amazon.com. 

Health Focus (Chromium):