Please help my newsletter get noticed by clicking on the Facebook "Like" in the upper right-hand corner or here:

Recent Longevity News for the week ending 3/8/23

Regular laxative use correlated with higher dementia risk in U.K. study - Washington Post, 3/4/23 - "The type of laxative affected the outcome: People who regularly used osmotic laxatives, which attract water into the colon, were 64 percent more likely to be diagnosed with dementia than their counterparts; they were also more likely to develop vascular dementia than those who used stimulants or bulk-forming laxatives. Those who regularly used more than one type of laxative were at higher risk, too: They had a 28 percent higher risk of developing dementia, and those who regularly used two or more had a 90 percent higher risk ... Researchers write that their analysis supports a hypothesis that laxative use may change the gut microbiome, affecting gut nerves’ signaling ability or possibly producing toxic substances that affect the brain ... The research did not show that laxatives caused dementia, but the association is cause for more research, the scientists write." - Note: The association might be due to the fact that people who use laxatives probably eat less fruit and vegetables. Also, it sounds like probiotics might be a solution.

Cholesterol drug lowers heart attack risk; avoids muscle side effects - Washington Post, 3/4/23 - "Now, new research shows that a different cholesterol drug, called bempedoic acid, can significantly lower heart attack risk in the statin-intolerant. The drug, sold under the brand name Nexletol, will not replace statins as a first-line therapy, but the new data shows the pill is an effective alternative for a large number of adults at high risk of heart attack who cannot or will not take a statin"

Now We Need to Worry About Harmful 'Forever Chemicals' in Our Toilet Paper Too - Time, 3/2/23 - "All of that toilet paper, including major brands sold around the world, turn out to be yet another source of PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. Also known as “forever chemicals,” these ubiquitous manufacturing chemicals have been linked by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to a range of health ills, including, decreased fertility, hypertension in pregnant people, increased risk of certain cancers, developmental delays in children, low birthweight, hormonal irregularities, elevated cholesterol, reduced effectiveness of the immune system—leading to decreased efficacy of vaccines—and more." See bidets at Amazon.com.

Two Cups of Coffee Increase Heart Dangers With Hypertension - Medscape, 2/23/23 - "People with severely high blood pressure who drink two or more cups of caffeinated coffee each day could double their risk of dying from a heart attack, stroke, or any type of cardiovascular disease"

Daily Marijuana Use Now Linked to Heart Risks - WebMD, 2/27/23 - "cannabis users were 34% more likely to have heart disease than those who had never tried marijuana"

Abstracts from this week:

Rutin and Hesperidin Alleviate Paclitaxel-Induced Nephrocardiotoxicity in Wistar Rats via Suppressing the Oxidative Stress and Enhancing the Antioxidant Defense Mechanisms - Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2023 Feb 22 - "Paclitaxel is a primary chemotherapy agent that displays antitumor activity against a variety of solid tumors. However, the clinical effectiveness of the drug is hampered by its nephrotoxic and cardiotoxic side effects ... In paclitaxel-treated rats, the treatment of rutin and hesperidin decreased the elevated serum levels of creatinine, urea, and uric acid, indicating a recovery of kidney functions. The cardiac dysfunction in paclitaxel-treated rats that got rutin and hesperidin treatment also diminished, as shown by a substantial reduction in elevated CK-MB and LDH activity ... Thus, paclitaxel likely induces toxicity in the kidney and the heart by producing oxidative stress. The treatments likely countered renal and cardiac dysfunction and histopathological changes by suppressing oxidative stress and augmenting the antioxidant defenses. Rutin and hesperidin combination was most efficacious in rescuing renal and cardiac function as well as histological integrity in paclitaxel-administered rats" - See rutin at Amazon.com and hesperidin at Amazon.com.

Inulin: properties and health benefits - Food Funct 2023 Mar 6 - "Inulin, a soluble dietary fiber, is widely found in more than 36 000 plant species as a reserve polysaccharide. The primary sources of inulin, include Jerusalem artichoke, chicory, onion, garlic, barley, and dahlia, among which Jerusalem artichoke tubers and chicory roots are often used as raw materials for inulin production in the food industry. It is universally acknowledged that inulin as a prebiotic has an outstanding effect on the regulation of intestinal microbiota via stimulating the growth of beneficial bacteria. In addition, inulin also exhibits excellent health benefits in regulating lipid metabolism, weight loss, lowering blood sugar, inhibiting the expression of inflammatory factors, reducing the risk of colon cancer, enhancing mineral absorption, improving constipation, and relieving depression" - See inulin at Amazon.com.

Increase from low to moderate, but not high, caffeinated coffee consumption is associated with favorable changes in body fat - Clin Nutr 2023 Feb 11 - "Moderate changes in the consumption of caffeinated coffee, but not changes to high consumption, were associated with reductions in total body fat, trunk fat and VAT in a Mediterranean cohort with MetS. Decaffeinated coffee was not linked to adiposity indicators. Moderate consumption of caffeinated coffee may be part of a weight management strategy"

The effects of spirulina intake on clinical and metabolic parameters in Alzheimer's disease: A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial - Phytother Res 2023 Mar 2 - "Mini-mental state examination score (MMSE) ... Compared with placebo, spirulina intake resulted in a significant improvement in MMSE score (spirulina group: +0.30 ± 0.99 vs. Placebo group: -0.38 ± 1.06, respectively, p = 0.01). In addition, spirulina intake decreased high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) (spirulina group: -0.17 ± 0.29 vs. Placebo group: +0.05 ± 0.27 mg/L, p = 0.006), fasting glucose (spirulina group: -4.56 ± 7.93 vs. Placebo group: +0.80 ± 2.95 mg/dL, p = 0.002), insulin (spirulina group: -0.37 ± 0.62 vs. Placebo group: +0.12 ± 0.40 μIU/mL, p = 0.001) and insulin resistance (spirulina group: -0.08 ± 0.13 vs. Placebo group: 0.03 ± 0.08, p = 0.001), and increased insulin sensitivity (spirulina group: +0.003 ± 0.005 vs. Placebo group: -0.001 ± 0.003, p = 0.003) compared with the placebo. Overall, our study showed that spirulina intake for 12 weeks in patients with AD improved cognitive function, glucose homeostasis parameters, and hs-CRP levels" - See spirulina at Amazon.com.

Berberine ameliorates depression-like behaviors in mice via inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated neuroinflammation and preventing neuroplasticity disruption - J Neuroinflammation 2023 Mar 1 - "Neuroinflammation has been suggested that affects the processing of depression. There is renewed interest in berberine owing to its anti-inflammatory effects ... The anti-depressants effects of berberine were accompanied by reduced the neuroinflammatory response via inhibiting the activation of NLRP3 inflammasome and rescued the neuronal deterioration via suppression of impairments in synaptic plasticity and neurogenesis" - See berberine at Amazon.com.

The impact of food restriction on liver enzyme levels: a systematic review and meta-analysis - Nutr Rev 2023 Mar 1 - "Existing evidence suggests that dietary restriction improves adult liver enzyme levels"

Aged Garlic Extract Prevents Alcohol-Induced Cytotoxicity through Induction of Aldehyde Dehydrogenase 2 in the Liver of Mice - Mol Nutr Food Res 2023 Mar 1 - "Acetaldehyde is a highly toxic primary metabolite of ethanol, and converted to non-toxic acetic acid by aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH). Accumulation of acetaldehyde causes significant damage to our body. Aged garlic extract (AGE) is a functional food material and possesses various health beneficial effects ... AGE prevented acetaldehyde-induced hepatotoxicity through enhancing acetaldehyde detoxification through Nrf2-dependent induction of mitochondrial ALDH2" - See aged garlic at Amazon.com.

Effects of resveratrol supplementation on cardiac remodeling in hypertensive patients: a randomized controlled clinical trial - Hypertens Res 2023 Feb 28 - "Resveratrol (RES) has been demonstrated to be protective in the cardiovascular system in animal studies, but the evidence is limited in humans. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effect of RES supplementation on cardiac remodeling in patients with hypertension ... After 6 months, the RES group had smaller left atrial, lower E/e', higher left ventricular global longitudinal strain and lower biomarkers indicating cardiac fibrosis (expressed by decreases in procollagen type I C-peptide and galectin-3) compared to the control group. However, there was no significant difference in left ventricular structure between the two groups. Although the RES group showed a significant decrease in brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity compared to the pre-intervention value, the difference between the RES and the control groups was not obvious. What's more, compared with the control group, the serum levels of sirtuin3, superoxide dismutase and klotho were significantly increased in the RES group. In conclusion, RES supplementation can alleviate left atrial remodeling, improve left ventricular diastolic function and may alleviate cardiac fibrosis in hypertensive patients, and could be used as an adjunct to conventional therapies of hypertensive heart disease" - See resveratrol products at Amazon.com.

The protection of luteolin against diabetic cardiomyopathy in rats is related to reversing JNK-suppressed autophagy - Food Funct. 2023 Feb 28 - "Increasing evidence has shown that impaired autophagy dramatically causes myocardial hypertrophy and fibrosis in the diabetic heart, ultimately leading to diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM). Luteolin has been reported to effectively attenuate diabetic cardiovascular injury by inhibiting oxidative stress and alleviate sepsis-induced myocardial injury by enhancing autophagy ... Luteolin significantly improved cardiac function and attenuated myocardial disorganization and fibrosis in the diabetic rat accompanying the dose-dependent down-regulation of JNK, c-Jun, miR-221 and p62, increase of LC3-II/I and autophagic vesicles, and decrease of mitochondrial swelling in the diabetic heart. These data suggest that the protection of luteolin against DCM, at least, is related to suppressing JNK/c-Jun-regulated miR-221 and the subsequent blockage of autophagy" - See luteolin products at Amazon.com.

Daily blueberry consumption for 12 weeks improves endothelial function in postmenopausal women with above-normal blood pressure through reductions in oxidative stress: a randomized controlled trial - Food Funct 2023 Feb 27 - "Estrogen-deficient postmenopausal women have oxidative stress-mediated suppression of endothelial function that is exacerbated by high blood pressure. Previous research suggests blueberries may improve endothelial function through reductions in oxidative stress, while also exerting other cardiovascular benefits ... These findings suggest daily consumption of freeze-dried blueberry powder for 12 weeks improves endothelial function through reduced oxidative stress in postmenopausal women with above-normal blood pressure" - See blueberry extract at Amazon.com.

Neat Tech Stuff / "How To's":

By far the best waist belt I've found for after surgery:

Best low profile hate I've found for after chemo:

Health Focus (Uric Acid):