Recent Longevity News for the week ending 12/11/19

Study reveals increased cannabis use in individuals with depression - Science Daily, 12/9/19 - "In 2017, the prevalence of past month cannabis use was 18.9% among those with depression and 8.7% among those without depression. Daily cannabis use was common among 6.7% of those with depression and among 2.9% of those without"

Even a Little Alcohol May Raise Cancer Risk - NYT, 12/9/19 - "the equivalent of six ounces of wine, 17 ounces of beer or two ounces of whiskey a day for 10 years increased the relative risk of cancer by 5 percent. After two drinks a day for 40 years, the relative risk of having any cancer increased by 54 percent compared with a nondrinker. The associations were particularly strong for cancers of the mouth, throat, stomach and colon"

Taming chronic inflammation may reduce illness, save lives - Science Daily, 12/5/19 - "point to inflammation-related diseases as the cause of 50 percent of all deaths worldwide ... Inflammation is a naturally occurring response by the body's immune system that helps fight illness and infection. When inflammation is chronic, however, it increases the risk of developing potentially deadly diseases ... In a perspective article, published in the journal Nature Medicine, the authors describe how persistent and severe inflammation in the body plays a key role in heart disease, cancer, diabetes, kidney disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and autoimmune and neurodegenerative disorders ... it is important to make people aware of the risk factors for chronic inflammation, which include obesity, physical inactivity, social isolation, chronic stress and inadequate or poor sleep ... Currently, just a few biomarkers are known to indicate inflammation, such as elevated levels of C-reactive protein, a protein found in blood plasma ... It's also important to recognize that inflammation is a contributor not just to physical health problems, but also mental health problems such as anxiety disorders, depression, PTSD, schizophrenia, self-harm and suicide"

Dramatic health benefits following air pollution reduction - Science Daily, 12/6/19 - "It looked for outcomes and time to achieve those outcomes in several settings, finding that the improvements in health were striking. Starting at week one of a ban on smoking in Ireland, for example, there was a 13 percent drop in all-cause mortality, a 26 percent reduction in ischemic heart disease, a 32 percent reduction in stroke, and a 38 percent reduction in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Interestingly, the greatest benefits in that case occurred among non-smokers." -  It's one reason we don't need to add pot to the list of problems.

BPA Levels in Humans Are Underestimated: Study - WebMD, 12/6/19 - "The new method developed by researchers and outlined in their study suggests that the measurements used by the FDA and other regulatory agencies underestimate BPA exposure by as much as 44 times"

Melatonin: Magic Potion or Unregulated Danger? - Medscape, 12/5/19 - "Natural melatonin levels are low early in the evening, rise steadily through the night, and peak in the last third of sleep. Because melatonin has a short half-life (about 30-45 minutes), taking a standard-release tablet around bedtime results in a peak early in the night and a tail toward morning — precisely the opposite of the natural pattern" - See melatonin at Amazon.com.

Study finds key brain region smaller in birth control pill users - Science Daily, 12/4/19 - "We found a dramatic difference in the size of the brain structures between women who were taking oral contraceptives and those who were not"

Clinical study finds eating within 10-hour window may help stave off diabetes, heart disease - Science Daily, 12/5/19 - "a 10-hour time-restricted eating intervention, when combined with traditional medications, resulted in weight loss, reduced abdominal fat, lower blood pressure and cholesterol, and more stable blood sugar and insulin levels for participants ... Unlike counting calories, time-restricted eating is a simple dietary intervention to incorporate, and we found that participants were able to keep the eating schedule ... Time-restricted eating (eating all calories within a consistent 10-hour window) supports an individual's circadian rhythms and can maximize health benefits ... Eating and drinking everything (except water) within a consistent 10-hour window allows your body to rest and restore for 14 hours at night ... To reduce food intake to the 10-hour window, most participants delayed their first meal and advanced their last meal each day, so meals were not skipped. Although calories were not recommended to be reduced for the intervention, some participants did report eating less, likely due to the shorter eating window ... Overall, participants experienced improved sleep as well as a 3-4 percent reduction in body weight, body mass index, abdominal fat and waist circumference. Major risk factors for heart disease were diminished as participants showed reduced blood pressure and total cholesterol. Blood sugar levels and insulin levels also showed a trend toward improvement" - [Medscape - See the graphs]

Low-Dose Aspirin Might Cut Cancer Risk - WebMD, 12/4/19 - "Low-dose aspirin reduced overall cancer death risk by 15% and all-cause death by 19% among more than 146,000 people who participated in a cancer screening trial conducted between 1993 and 2008 ... Overweight folks also experienced a marked decline in their risk of death from gastrointestinal cancer (28%) and colon cancer (34%)"

Probiotic Reduces Crying Time in Colicky Infants - Medscape, 12/4/19 - "80% of BB-12 recipients showed a ≥50% reduction in crying duration after 28 days, compared with 31.5% of those in the placebo group (P < .0001)" - See probiotics for babies at Amazon.com.

Diabetes drug has unexpected, broad implications for healthy aging - Science Daily, 12/4/19 - "The results revealed that metformin turns on unexpected kinases and pathways, many independent of AMPK. Two of the activated kinases are called Protein Kinase D and MAPKAPK2. These kinases are poorly understood, but are known to have some relation to cellular stress, which could connect them to the health-span- and life-span-extending effects observed in other studies. In fact, metformin is currently being tested in multiple large-scale clinical trials as a health-span- and life-span-extending drug, but the mechanism for how metformin could affect health and aging has not been clear. The current study indicates that Protein Kinase D and MAPKAPK2 may be two players in providing these therapeutic effects, and identifies new targets and cellular processes regulated by AMPK that may also be critical to metformin's beneficial effects."

25 Again? How Exercise May Fight Aging - NYT, 12/4/19 - "A lot of studies, probably thousands, show that higher circulating inflammatory factors in people are associated with greater loss of muscle mass ... physically fit people tend to have lower levels of inflammation in their bodies than inactive people"

Permanent Hair Dyes and Chemical Straighteners May Be Linked to Breast Cancer, Study Says - Time, 12/4/19 - "Overall, using permanent dye was associated with a 9% higher risk of developing breast cancer, compared to non-use. But black women who used permanent dye had a 45% higher risk of breast cancer, compared to non-users, and those who used these products every eight weeks or more often had a 60% higher risk ... Black women were also far more likely to report using chemical straighteners—74% had, compared to 3% of white women—which were associated with an 18% higher risk of breast cancer in the study population as a whole"

Why You Should Start Thinking About Your Cholesterol Earlier - Time, 12/4/19 - "the authors estimated that a man younger than 45 with non-HDL cholesterol between 145-185 mg/dL—levels below 130 mg/dL are considered healthy—and at least two other heart disease-risk factors has a 29% chance of having a heart problem by age 75. Meanwhile, a man older than 60 with exactly the same characteristics has a 21% probability of having a heart problem by age 75. For women, those numbers were 16% and 12%, respectively"

Pot while pregnant: Doctors urge caution - Science Daily, 12/3/19 - "In the latest issue of the Journal of Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Medicine, physicians reviewed sonogram data from nearly 450 pregnant women who self-reported daily marijuana use. They found that daily cannabis use is associated with delayed fetal growth, which can put a baby at risk of certain health problems during pregnancy, delivery, and even after birth ... Those problems include low birth weight, hypoglycemia, low Apgar scores, among others, and in the most severe cases, delayed growth can lead to stillbirth. Physicians also found an increase in placental vascular resistance in both the second and third trimesters, which can "disrupt the necessary flow of oxygen rich blood through the placenta," and can lead to delayed growth ... "Recent data from JAMA (The Journal of the American Medical Association) indicates that marijuana use in pregnancy has doubled over the last 15 years and what's more alarming is that 70% of women believe there is minimal or no harm from using marijuana in pregnancy,""

Migraine headaches? Consider aspirin for treatment and prevention - Science Daily, 12/3/19 - "high-dose aspirin, in doses from 900 to 1,300 milligrams given at the onset of symptoms, is an effective and safe treatment option for acute migraine headaches. In addition, some but not all randomized trials suggest the possibility that daily aspirin in doses from 81 to 325 milligrams may be an effective and safe treatment option for the prevention of recurrent migraine headaches"

Can You Eat to Beat Depression? - WebMD, 12/2/19 - "following a Mediterranean diet full of green vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans, olive oil, psychiatry, and seafood could ease symptoms of depression. It also found that people who ate more meat, dairy, and processed foods had a higher risk of becoming depressed. Of the 26 studies included, only a handful showed no relation between diet and mental health. And a small randomized controlled trial, published a few weeks ago, found that college students with symptoms of depression saw their mood improve in just 3 weeks on a similar diet. That type of trial is considered the “gold standard” among researchers"

Brush your teeth to protect the heart - Science Daily, 12/2/19 - "Tooth brushing three or more times a day was associated with a 10% lower risk of atrial fibrillation and a 12% lower risk of heart failure during 10.5-year follow up ... While the study did not investigate mechanisms, one possibility is that frequent tooth brushing reduces bacteria in the subgingival biofilm (bacteria living in the pocket between the teeth and gums), thereby preventing translocation to the bloodstream"

Proton Pump Inhibitors Linked to Gastroenteritis - Medscape, 11/27/19 - "they found a significant association between PPI use and acute gastroenteritis (relative risk, 1.81)"

High-Protein Diet Could Be Harmful, Even for Healthy Kidneys - Medscape, 11/27/19 - "Despite the fact that our patients received state-of-the-art drug treatment, we observed a beneficial effect of a low-protein intake on kidney function ... Among the four quartiles of daily protein intake, the prevalence of renal hyperfiltration (defined as an eGFR with residuals > 95th percentile after adjustment for confounders) was significantly higher among those in the highest quartile of protein intake, at 6%, compared with 5.2% among those in the lowest protein intake quartile ... those in the highest quartile of protein intake had a 32% greater risk of experiencing a rapid decline of eGFR per year compared with those in the lowest quartile"

No Link Between Marijuana Use and Cancer, Except TGCT - Medscape, 11/27/19 - "testicular germ cell tumor (TGCT) ... there is insufficient evidence to support an association between ever having used marijuana and other types of cancer ... marijuana use was associated with TGCT (odds ratio [OR], 1.36 ... nonseminoma TGCT (OR, 1.85"

Why You Should Add Rest to Your Workout Routine - Time, 11/27/19 - "Studies back that up. One published in 2018 argues that there’s a “Goldilocks Zone” for exercise—that is, a sweet spot between getting too little physical activity (which is linked to a higher risk of heart disease and cancer, among other chronic illnesses) and too much (which, especially for middle-aged and older adults, can increase the risk for heart issues and premature death by placing too much strain on the body). The paper advises against doing more than four or five hours of vigorous exercise per week, and recommends at least one rest day ... Other research from 2017 suggests taking days off can protect against bone loss—which is of particular concern for women—and excess inflammation, a risk factor for many chronic diseases. Working out too much could even make you sick, one 2016 study suggests. In the small study, athletes who did intense workouts on back-to-back days saw a drop in proteins that help the immune system fight disease. Over-training also robs your muscles of the time they need to recover"

Eating After You Exercise May Provide Added Fat-Burning Benefits - NYT, 11/27/19 - "The riders who had pedaled on an empty stomach, however, had incinerated about twice as much fat during each ride as the men who consumed the shake first. The riders all had burned about the same number of calories while pedaling, but more of those calories came from fat when the men did not eat first ... Those riders also showed greater improvements in insulin sensitivity at the end of the study and had developed higher levels of certain proteins in their muscles that influence how well muscle cells respond to insulin and use blood sugar ... On the whole, these findings suggest that “you can probably get more out of your workout without increasing its intensity or duration by exercising before breakfast"

FDA concerned people 'mistakenly believe' trying CBD products 'can’t hurt' - 10News, 11/16/19 - "Among the risks that the FDA cited were liver injury, drug interactions, and male reproductive toxicity. Until it learns more about the effectiveness and safety of CBD, the FDA said it cannot generally recognize the ingredient as safe or approve products that contain it ... CBD is also not characterized as a dietary supplement under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act"

Hops compounds help with metabolic syndrome while reducing microbiome diversity - Science Daily, 11/25/19 - "The study builds on earlier research at OSU that found xanthohumol, often abbreviated to XN, and two hydrogenated derivatives, DXN and TXN, can likely improve cognitive and other functions in people with the syndrome ... Results show that each of the hops compounds decreased the amount and diversity of microbes, reduced inflammation and changed bile acid metabolism -- there was a reduction in secondary bile acid production and an increase of conjugated bile acids, which are indicators of improved energy metabolism, glucose metabolism and cholesterol metabolism ... the hops compounds have previously been shown to have antimicrobial properties, "so they may be killing off certain bugs that aren't beneficial and preserving other ones that are."" - See hops supplements at Amazon.com.

Longer Life, Lower Rates of Cancer in US Seventh-Day Adventists - Medscape, 11/26/19 - "Seventh-Day Adventists follow a healthy lifestyle as part of their religion. For many, that includes a vegetarian diet, not smoking, not drinking alcohol, limiting caffeine, getting regular exercise, and maintaining a healthy weight/body mass index. Social and religious factors that may boost social support and community may also play a role. ... Adventists aged 65 years had 36% lower risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR], 0.67; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.64 - 0.69) and Adventists aged 85 years had 22% lower risk (HR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.75 - 0.81)."

Abstracts from this week:

Plasma DHA Is Related to Sleep Timing and Duration in a Cohort of Mexican Adolescents - J Nutr. 2019 Nov 23 - "higher plasma DHA was linearly associated with longer sleep duration on the weekends; to illustrate, those in Q4 compared with Q1 had 32 min longer duration (95% CI: 7, 57; P trend = 0.005). Higher DHA was also associated with earlier sleep timing during weekdays and weekends, although in a nonlinear fashion. The largest difference was a 0.75-h (45-min) later sleep midpoint in Q2 compared with Q4 (95% CI: 0.36, 1.14)." - [Nutra USA] - See docosahexaenoic acid at Amazon.com.

Curcumin improves asthenozoospermia by inhibiting reactive oxygen species reproduction through nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 activation - Andrologia. 2019 Dec 3:e13491 - "Our results have shown that curcumin might protect spermatozoa by regulating Nrf2 level" - See curcumin at Amazon.com.

Studies on the phytomodulatory potential of fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) on bisphenol-A induced testicular damage in mice - Andrologia. 2019 Dec 3:e13492 - "Bisphenol A (BPA), an organic synthetic compound and endocrine disruptor, which majorly cause deleterious effects on male reproductory system. Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum), associated with Leguminosae family is used as a herbal medicine with potent antioxidant properties. The present study was aimed to scrutinise the preventative role of fenugreek seeds aqueous extract (FSEt) on BPA-induced testicular damage in mice ... FSEt-administered mice showed improvement in the histoarchitecture compared with BPA-administered animals. In addition, fenugreek treatment showed reduced levels of malondialdehyde and elevated levels of antioxidant enzymes. Expression studies of apoptotic markers revealed a significant decrease in the expression of Bcl-2 and significant increase in caspase-9 and caspase-3. However, FSEt restored the deleterious effects caused by BPA. The current findings plausibly might have promising protective role against BPA-induced testicular damage" - See fenugreek at Amazon.com.

Carnosine treatment during human semen processing by discontinuous density gradient - Andrologia. 2019 Dec 3 - "20 mM of carnosine supplementation on the layers of Percoll; and (b) 50 mM carnosine supplementation ... The 50 mM carnosine supplementation led to improved sperm mitochondrial activity when compared to untreated samples. Motility variables, such as percentage of motile and progressively motile spermatozoa, average path velocity, straight line velocity, curvilinear velocity and linearity, showed an improvement after semen processing irrespective of carnosine supplementation. Both concentrations of carnosine increased the beat-cross frequency (BCF) when compared to samples before processing. We conclude that carnosine supplementation in semen samples benefits sperm mitochondrial activity and BCF" - See carnosine at Amazon.com.

Association of Magnesium Consumption with Type 2 Diabetes and Glucose Metabolism: a Systematic Literature Review and Pooled Study with Trial Sequential Analysis - Diabetes Metab Res Rev. 2019 Nov 22 - "Compared to the lowest magnesium intake, the highest level was associated with a 22% lower risk for T2D; the risk was reduced by 6% for each 100 mg increment in daily magnesium intake. Additional analysis of 26 RCTs (1168 participants) was performed, revealing that magnesium supplementation significantly reduced the fasting plasma glucose (FPG) level (SMD, -0.32 [95% CI, -0.59 to -0.05], 2-h oral glucose tolerance test (2-h OGTT) result (SMD, -0.30 [-0.58 to -0.02]), fasting insulin level (SMD, -0.17 [-0.30 to -0.04]), homeostatic model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) score (SMD, -0.41 [-0.71 to -0.11]), triglyceride (TG) level, systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). TSA showed an inverse association, with most benefits of magnesium supplementation on glucose metabolism being stable. In conclusion, magnesium intake has an inverse dose-response association with T2D incidence, and supplementation appears to be advisable in terms of glucose parameters in T2D/high-risk individuals" - See magnesium supplements at Amazon.com.

The effects of curcumin supplementation on body mass index, body weight, and waist circumference in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: A systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials - Phytother Res. 2019 Dec 4 - "Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a major cause of liver-related morbidity; its prevalence is elevating due to the rising epidemic of obesity ... Curcumin supplementation significantly reduced BMI (weighted mean difference [WMD] = -0.34 kg/m2 , 95% CI [-0.64, -0.04], p < .05) and WC (WMD = -2.12 cm, 95% CI [-3.26, -0.98], p < .001). However, no significant effects of curcumin supplementation on body weight were found. These results suggest that curcumin supplementation might have a positive effect on visceral fat and abdominal obesity that have been associated with NAFLD" - See curcumin at Amazon.com.

Genistein protects against amyloid-beta-induced toxicity in SH-SY5Y cells by regulation of Akt and Tau phosphorylation - Phytother Res. 2019 Dec 3 - "Differentiated SH-SY5Y cells were pre-treated for 24 hr with genistein (1 and 10 nM) and exposed to Aβ25-35 (25 μM), and we found that genistein partially inhibited Aβ induced cell death, primarily apoptosis. Furthermore, the protective effect of genistein was associated with the inhibition of Aβ-induced Akt inactivation and Tau hyperphosphorylation. These findings reinforce the neuroprotective effects of genistein against Aβ toxicity and provide evidence that its mechanism may involve regulation of Akt and Tau proteins" - See genistein at Amazon.com.

Beneficial effects of nano-curcumin supplement on depression and anxiety in diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial - Phytother Res. 2019 Dec 1 - "Depression in patients with diabetes is associated with poor glycemic control and linked to an increased risk for diabetes complications such as neuropathy. Curcumin has shown potential antidepressant-like activities in some studies. The present study is the first randomized controlled trial to test the efficacy of nano-curcumin supplementation on depression, anxiety, and stress in patients with diabetic polyneuropathy ... Eighty patients with diabetes ... received 80 mg of nano-curcumin or placebo capsules daily for 8 weeks ... After intervention, there was a significant reduction in the mean score of depression in the nano-curcumin group (from 16.7 [3.1] to 15.3 [2.6]) compared with placebo group (17.5 [3.2] to 17.3 [3.1]; p = .02). In addition, a significant fall was found in the mean score of anxiety in the nano-curcumin group (from 22.4 [4.03] to 20.6 [3.4]) compared with the placebo group (21.9 [3.5] to 21.2 [3.5]; p = .009). Changes in stress score were not statistically significant between the two groups. These findings suggested that nano-curcumin supplementation for 8 weeks was effective in reducing depression and anxiety scores in patients with diabetic polyneuropathy" - See nano-curcumin at Amazon.com.

Dietary saturated fat intake and risk of stroke: Systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2019 Oct - "This meta-analysis further demonstrated that a higher consumption of dietary SFA is associated with a lower risk of stroke, and every 10 g/day increase in SFA intake is associated with a 6% relative risk reduction in the rate of stroke"

Grape seed procyanidin suppresses inflammation in cigarette smoke-exposed pulmonary arterial hypertension rats by the PPAR-γ/COX-2 pathway - Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2019 Sep 30 - "Grape seed procyanidin (GSP) ... pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) ... GSP ameliorates inflammation by the PPAR-γ/COX-2 pathway and finally inhibits the proliferation of PASMCs, which leads to pulmonary vascular remodeling" - See grape seed extract at Amazon.com.

High Protein Intake Is Associated with Lower Risk of All-Cause Mortality in Community-Dwelling Chinese Older Men and Women - J Nutr Health Aging. 2019 - "Contrary to findings from Caucasian populations of all ages, among Chinese older adults, higher total protein intake was associated with lower all-cause and cancer mortality in Chinese older men. While higher animal protein intake was associated with reduced all-cause mortality in Chinese older men, higher plant protein intake was protective against all-cause mortality in Chinese women. The attenuated associations between protein intake and mortality risk after adjustment for other dietary variables also highlight the role of whole diet approach in mortality risk reduction among older adults"

Serum SHBG is associated with the development and regression of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a prospective study - J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2019 Dec 3 - "Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), a homodimeric glycoprotein produced by hepatocytes has been shown to be associated with metabolic disorders. Whether circulating SHBG levels are predictive of later risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) remains unknown ... Basal SHBG was negatively associated with NAFLD development, with a fully adjusted odds ratio (OR) and its 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.22 (0.12-0.40) (P-trend < 0.001). In contrast, basal SHBG was positively associated with NAFLD regression, with a fully adjusted OR of 4.83 (2.38-9.81) (P-trend < 0.001). Multiple-stepwise logistic regression analysis showed that SHBG concentration was an independent predictor of NAFLD development (OR, 0.28 [0.18-0.45]; P < 0.001) and regression (OR, 3.89 [2.43-6.22]; P < 0.001). In addition, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves were 0.764 (95% CI, 0.740-0.787) and 0.762 (95% CI, 0.738-0.785) for the prediction models of NAFLD development and regression, respectively"

Anti-Aging Effects of Schisandrae chinensis Fructus Extract: Improvement of Insulin Sensitivity and Muscle Function in Aged Mice - Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2019 Nov 3;2019 - "Schisandrae chinensis Fructus has a long history of medicinal use as a tonic, a sedative, and an antitussive drug ... Insulin sensitivity was lower at 20 months of age than at 16 months of age; however, the decrease in insulin sensitivity was less in SFe-fed mice. SFe supplementation also appeared to improve glucose tolerance. Body weight gain was lower in SFe-fed mice than in mice fed the control diet. Body fat mass was lower and the lean mass was higher in SFe-fed mice. In addition, the grip strength was enhanced in SFe-fed mice. Histological analysis of the tibialis anterior muscle showed that the size of myofiber and slow-twitch red muscle was increased by SFe supplementation. The expression of proteins related to muscle protein synthesis such as phospho-Erk1 and phospho-S6K1 was increased by SFe supplementation. The mRNA expression of genes related to myogenesis and their encoded proteins such as MyoD, Myf5, MRF4, myogenin, and myosin heavy chain, was increased, whereas that of genes related to muscle degradation, such as atrogin-1, MuRF-1, and myostatin, were decreased relative to control mice. These results suggest that SFe supplementation might have beneficial effects for the improvement of insulin sensitivity and inhibition of muscle loss that occur with aging" - See schizandra at Amazon.com.

Assessment of the Effectiveness of Vitamin Supplement in Treating Eczema: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis - Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2019 Oct 31 - "This study suggests that vitamin supplements could be important therapeutics to help manage eczema patients"

Theacrine alleviates chronic inflammation by enhancing TGF-β-mediated shifts via TGF-β/SMAD pathway in Freund's incomplete adjuvant-induced rats - Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2019 Nov 29 - "The present study investigated the therapeutic effect of theacrine (TC) on arthritis and its mechanisms in Freund's incomplete adjuvant (FIA)-induced SD rats ... TC notably suppressed the severity of FIA-induced rat by attenuating the apparent scores, animal weight and inflammatory indexes in the 25 mg/kg TC group compared with the FIA rat model. Furthermore, TC significantly decreased the levels of IL-6 and increased the levels of TGF-β. Histopathological examinations indicated that TC rescued the synovial hyperplasia and inflammatory cell infiltration in joint tissues. In addition, TC enhanced TGF-β-mediated shifts in inflammatory marker expression in joint tissue. Overall, the present study demonstrated that TC exerted a superior anti-arthritic effect via the suppression of IL-6 and the activation of TGF-β by the TGF-β/SMAD pathway" - See theacrine at Amazon.com.

Moderate intensity exercise training combined with inulin-propionate ester supplementation increases whole body resting fat oxidation in overweight women - Metabolism. 2019 Nov 29 - "Our previous work has shown that oral supplementation with inulin propionate ester (IPE) reduces intra-abdominal fat and prevents weight gain and that oral propionate intake enhances resting fat oxidation. The effects of IPE combined with exercise training on energy substrate utilisation are unknown ... Moderate intensity exercise training programmes when combined with daily oral IPE supplementation may help overweight women to achieve increase in fat oxidation" - See inulin at Amazon.com.

Statins were associated with a reduced gastric cancer risk in patients with eradicated Helicobacter pylori infection: a territory-wide propensity score matched study - Biol Pharm Bull. 2019;42(12):2002-2008 - "statins were associated with a lower GC risk (SHR 0.34; 95% CI:0.19-0.61), in a duration- and dose-response manner"

Sulforaphane Exhibits Cytotoxic Effects against Primary Effusion Lymphoma Cells by Suppressing p38MAPK and AKT Phosphorylation - Biol Pharm Bull. 2019;42(12):2109-2112 - "Primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) ... Sulforaphane (SFN), a natural compound found in cruciferous vegetables and broccoli sprouts, modulates signaling pathways and epigenetic gene expression ... Our data and previous literature indicate that SFN represses the phosphorylation of p38MAPK and AKT, which results in PEL cell apoptosis" - See sulforaphane at Amazon.com.

Effect of Vitamin D Supplementation on Body Composition and Physical Fitness in Healthy Adults: A Double-Blind, Randomized Controlled Trial - Ann Nutr Metab. 2019 Dec 4:1-7 - "cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) ... One year of vitamin D supplementation effectively improves lean body mass, but not muscle strength and CRF in healthy adults" - See vitamin D at Amazon.com.

Mulberry fruit improves memory in scopolamine-treated mice: role of cholinergic function, antioxidant system, and TrkB/Akt signaling - Nutr Neurosci. 2019 Dec 2:1-11 - "we examined whether mulberry fruit extract (MFE) protected neuronal cells against oxidative stress-induced neurodegeneration ... MFE protects neuronal cells against oxidative stress-induced apoptosis through upregulating the expression of BDNF and antioxidant enzymes by stabilizing the activation of the TrkB/Akt pathway" - See mulberry leaf extract.

An encapsulated fruit, vegetable and berry juice powder concentrate increases plasma values of specific carotenoids and vitamins - Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2019 Nov 15:1-10 - "The aim of this study was to analyze whether a whole food based, encapsulated fruit, berry, and vegetable juice powder concentrate provides bioavailable carotenoids and vitamins A (all-trans retinol), E and C. Eighteen healthy subjects received 6 capsules a day for 8 weeks, which provided 2.91 mg β-carotene, 490 μg vitamin A, 18.7 mg vitamin E, 159 mg vitamin C, 6.1 mg lutein and 1 mg lycopene. Plasma concentrations of several carotenoids and vitamins before and after supplementation were measured. After 8 weeks of supplementation, the plasma concentration of the following carotenoids increased significantly: α-carotene increased from 59.6 ± 22.4 nmol/L to 85.7 ± 24.2 nmol/L (p = 0.002), β-cryptoxanthin from 106.7 ± 39.8 nmol/L to 151.9 ± 57.9 nmol/L (p = 0.017), and lycopene from 1.2 ± 0.5 μmol/L to 1.7 ± 0.5 μmol/L (p = 0.005). Significant increases were also observed for plasma concentrations of vitamin C from 70 ± 20 μmol/L to 90 ± 10 μmol/L (p < 0.001), all-trans retinol from 1.99 ± 0.24 μmol/L to 2.30 ± 0.66 μmol/L (p = 0.015), and α-tocopherol from 27 ± 6 μmol/L to 32 ± 6 μmol/L (p = 0.008). For those micronutrients with accepted plasma reference ranges, all observed increases levelled off around the upper limit of the individual reference range. The data demonstrate that the investigated supplement is able to increase plasma concentrations of certain carotenoids and vitamins of healthy subjects within 8 weeks" - See carotenoid complex at Amazon.com.

Health Focus (Deprenyl/Selegiline):