Recent Longevity News for the week ending 2/1/17

Abstracts from this week:

Longitudinal association between fasting blood glucose concentrations and first stroke in hypertensive adults in China: effect of folic acid intervention - Am J Clin Nutr. 2017 Jan 25 - "A high FBG concentration (≥7.0 mmol/L) or diabetes, compared with a low FBG concentration (<5.0 mmol/L), was associated with an increased risk of first stroke (6.0% compared with 2.6%, respectively; HR: 1.9; 95% CI: 1.3, 2.8; P < 0.001). Folic acid treatment reduced the risk of stroke across a wide range of FBG concentrations ≥5.0 mmol/L, but risk reduction was greatest in subjects with FBG concentrations ≥7.0 mmol/L or with diabetes (HR: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.46, 0.97; P < 0.05). There was a significant interactive effect of FBG and folic acid treatment on first stroke" - See methylfolate at Amazon.com.

Long-Term Vitamin D Supplementation Affects Metabolic Status in Vitamin D-Deficient Type 2 Diabetic Patients with Coronary Artery Disease - J Nutr. 2017 Jan 25 - "Compared with placebo, vitamin D supplementation resulted in significant reductions in fasting plasma glucose (-14.9 ± 7.1 compared with +19.3 ± 7.1 mg/dL; P = 0.001), serum insulin (-2.7 ± 1.1 compared with +1.8 ± 1.1 μIU/mL; P = 0.006), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (-0.7 ± 0.3 compared with +0.5 ± 0.3; P = 0.01), and β cell function (-9.1 ± 4.2 compared with +5.7 ± 4.2; P = 0.01) and a significant increase in serum vitamin D (+6.8 ± 0.9 compared with +0.1 ± 0.9 ng/mL; P < 0.001) and the Quantitative Insulin Sensitivity Check Index (+0.008 ± 0.004 compared with -0.007 ± 0.004; P = 0.01). In addition, changes in serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP; -1.0 ± 0.5 compared with +0.6 ± 0.5 μg/mL; P = 0.02), plasma nitric oxide (NO; +7.0 ± 2.0 compared with -4.6 ± 2.0 μmol/L; P < 0.001), total reduced glutathione (GSH; +104 ± 16.4 compared with +24.8 ± 16.4 μmol/L; P = 0.001), and malondialdehyde concentrations (-0.2 ± 0.1 compared with +0.2 ± 0.1 μmol/L; P < 0.001) in the supplemented group were significantly different from the changes in these indicators in the placebo group" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Effects of combined treatment with branched-chain amino acids, citric acid, L-carnitine, coenzyme Q10, zinc, and various vitamins in tumor-bearing mice - Biol Pharm Bull. 2017 Jan 26 - "A functional dietary supplement (FDS) containing Coenzyme Q10, Branched-chain Amino Acids and L-carnitine was administered to tumor-bearing mice, investigating its effects on tumor and muscle tissues ... The median survival time was comparable (21 days in the FDS group vs. 18 days in the control group, p=0.30). However, cumulative food intake was significantly higher in the FDS group than the control group (p=0.011). Metastasis of melanoma to the lung was observed in the control group but not in the FDS group (p=0.043). The weight of the suprahyoid muscles was significantly higher in the FDS group than in the control group (p=0.0045). The weight of the tumor was significantly lower in the FDS group than in the control group (p=0.013). The results possibly suggest oral administration of FDS in tumor-bearing mice enhances the maintenance of suprahyoid muscle mass, resulting in an extended feeding period and suppression of tumor growth and metastasis"

Blood pressure and cardiovascular morbidity risk in type 2 diabetes with hypertension over a decade of follow-up: evidence for J-shaped phenomenon - J Hum Hypertens. 2017 Jan 26 - "Considering 130<SBP<140 mm Hg as reference, a SBP>140 mm Hg was associated with increased CVD (HR [95% confidence interval (CI)]: 2.43 [1.23-4.82]) and CHD (HR [95% CI]: 2.05 [1.02-4.13]) risk. However, a SBP<120 mm Hg in those with drug-treated hypertension also showed higher risk for CVD (HR [95% CI]: 2.80 [1.24-6.34]) and CHD events (HR [95% CI]: 2.39 [1.03-5.57]). Our findings revealed that the risk for macrovascular morbidity events was inversely associated with BP reduction below the level of 120/80 mm Hg for those with diabetes. People with diabetes might benefit from a BP management to a moderate range of 120/80-140/90 mm Hg for CVD risk reduction"

The effect of l-arginine supplementation on body composition and performance in male athletes: a double-blinded randomized clinical trial - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2017 Jan 25 - "Athletes received daily either 2 g per day l-arginine supplement or the same amount of placebo (maltodextrin) for 45 days ... Sport performance (VO2 max) significantly increased in l-arginine supplementation group (4.12±6.07) compared with placebo group (1.23±3.36) (P=0.03). This increase remained significant even after adjustment of baseline values, physical activity and usual dietary intake of subjects throughout the study. No significant effect of l-arginine supplementation was found on weight, BMI, BFM and LBM" - Related study:

• The effects on plasma L-arginine levels of combined oral L-citrulline and L-arginine supplementation in healthy males - Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2017 Feb;81(2):372-375 - "Oral l-citrulline plus l-arginine supplementation more efficiently increased plasma l-arginine levels than 2 g of l-citrulline or l-arginine, suggesting that oral l-citrulline and l-arginine increase plasma l-arginine levels more effectively in humans when combined" - [Nutra USA] - See BulkSupplements Pure L-Arginine HCL Powder at Amazon.com and BulkSupplements Pure L-Citrulline Powder at Amazon.com.

Efficacy of Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Supplementation in Managing Overweight and Obesity: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials - J Nutr Health Aging. 2017;21(2):187-192 - "Based on meta-analysis of seven studies, the analysis of aggregated data showed a significant reduction in waist circumference (p=0.005; WMD: -0.53" - Note: I assume that's 0.53 inches.  See fish oil supplements at Amazon.com.

Salba-chia (Salvia hispanica L.) in the treatment of overweight and obese patients with type 2 diabetes: A double-blind randomized controlled trial - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2016 Dec 9 - "Preliminary findings indicate that consumption of Salba-chia (Salvia hispanica L.), an ancient seed, improves management of type 2 diabetes and suppresses appetite ... A double-blind, randomized, controlled trial with two parallel groups involved 77 overweight or obese patients with type 2 diabetes (HbA1c: 6.5-8.0%; BMI: 25-40 kg/m2). Both groups followed a 6-month calorie-restricted diet; one group received 30 g/1000 kcal/day of Salba-chia, the other 36 g/1000 kcal/day of an oat bran-based control ... At 6-months, participants on Salba-chia had lost more weight than those on control (1.9 ± 0.5 kg and 0.3 ± 0.4 kg, respectively; P = 0.020), accompanied by a greater reduction in waist circumference (3.5 ± 0.7 cm and 1.1 ± 0.7 cm, respectively; P = 0.027). C-reactive protein was reduced by 1.1 ± 0.5 mg/L (39 ± 17%) on Salba-chia, compared to 0.2 ± 0.4 mg/L (7 ± 20%) on control (P = 0.045). Plasma adiponectin on the test intervention increased by 6.5 ± 0.7%, with no change observed on control" - Note: 1.9 - 0.3 = 1.6 kilograms more weight loss or 3.5 pounds.  See Salba-chia seeds at Amazon.com.

White Ginseng Protects Mouse Hippocampal Cells Against Amyloid-Beta Oligomer Toxicity - Phytother Res. 2017 Jan 23 - "Amyloid-beta oligomer (AβO) is a soluble oligomer form of the Aβ peptide and the most potent amyloid-beta form that induces neuronal damage in Alzheimer's disease. We investigated the effect of dried white ginseng extract (WGE) on neuronal cell damage and memory impairment in intrahippocampal AβO (10 μM)-injected mice ... WGE improved memory impairment by inhibiting hippocampal cell death caused by AβO. In addition, AβO-injected mice treated with WGE showed restoration of reduced synaptophysin and choline acetyltransferase intensity and lower levels of ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule 1 in the hippocampus compared with those of vehicle-treated controls. These results suggest that WGE reverses memory impairment in Alzheimer's disease by attenuating neuronal damage and neuroinflammation in the AβO-injected mouse hippocampus" - See ginseng at Amazon.com.

• What Is White Ginseng For? - Lifestrong, - "White ginseng is dried ginseng. To produce white ginseng, manufacturers air dry ginseng in the sun. The process of sun drying bleaches the roots of the ginseng plant to a yellowish-white color. This bleaching process may reduce the therapeutic constituents found in ginseng, although clinical studies have not confirmed this theory. Some scientists, however, believe that enzymes present in the ginseng roots breakdown the therapeutic constituents of the ginseng during the bleaching process."

Health Focus (Cayenne/Capsicum):