Scientists evaluated data from 1,801 men and women with metabolic syndrome who were enrolled in the Ludwigshafen Risk and Cardiovascular Health study (LURIC). Subjects included patients referred for coronary angiography from 1997 to 2000.  Fasting blood samples were analyzed for 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], glucose and other factors, and the participants were followed for an average of 7.7 years.

The majority of subjects (92%) had suboptimal levels of vitamin D at less than 75 nmol/L (30 ng/ml) and 22% were considered severely deficient at less than 25 nmol/L (10 ng/ml).  Those with optimal vitamin D levels had a 75% lower risk of mortality during the follow-up when compared to the group considered severely deficient.  The risk of death from cardiovascular causes was 67% lower in the group with optimal vitamin D levels.  For specific cardiovascular disease mortality, there was a strong reduction for sudden death (85%) and congestive heart failure (76%) compared to the vitamin D deficient group.  The reduction in mortality was dose-dependent for each of these causes.

In this group of patients with metabolic syndrome there was a significant reduction in all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality in those with optimal vitamin D levels.  Randomized, controlled intervention trials are needed to confirm the effects of vitamin D on mortality and may help establish recommendations for supplementation in this population of adults.

G. Neil Thomas et al.  Vitamin D Levels Predict All-Cause and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality in Subjects With the Metabolic Syndrome: The Ludwigshafen Risk and Cardiovascular Health (LURIC) Study.
Published online before print March 7, 2012, doi: 10.2337/dc11-1714 Diabetes Care March 7, 2012.

Overall, participants in this study were healthy nonsmokers with relatively few chronic diseases and free of memory and thinking problems. Most had generally healthy diets, but there were some with deficiencies of certain nutrients. This created enough variation to determine that nutrient status does play a significant role in memory, thinking, and brain volume. It was determined that nutrient levels accounted for 17% of the variation found in memory and thinking, and for the 37% of the variation in brain volume.

With this data the researchers came to three conclusions. The first conclusion is that individuals with diets high in omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins C, D, E, and B were more likely to score better on memory and thinking tests. Those with diets high in trans-fat were more likely to both score poorly on memory and thinking tests, and to have brain shrinkage.  Finally, individuals with low omega-3 fatty acid intake and other nutrient intake are more likely to have lower brain volume.

Getting adequate nutrients through a balanced diet and supplements may be an important overall approach to maintaining good brain health and thinking ability as we age.

Bowman GL, Silbert LC, Howieson D, Dodge HH, Traber MG, Frei B, Kaye JA, Shannon J, Quinn JF. Nutrient biomarker patterns, cognitive function, and MRI measures of brain aging. Neurology 2012 Jan 24;78(4):241-9. Epub 2011 Dec 28.

For example, when you sleep at night, your blood pressure, heart rate, and body temperature decrease. In the morning your body temperature naturally rises to prepare you for a metabolic resurgence. So, how do you fire up your metabolism? Perhaps you decide to drink two cups of coffee for a morning boost and skip breakfast thinking it might help you to lose a little weight? How many of you reading this article have tried skipping meals in an attempt to lose weight? Were you disappointed with the lack of results? That’s because your body gets confused when you don’t eat. You are sending your body the message that no food is available so it had better start storing fat for the hard times ahead.

If you are reading this and thinking, “I’m not hungry in the morning,” the next question is “Do you drink coffee in the morning before eating?” If the answer is yes, try waiting 30 minutes to start your coffee ritual in the morning. You may find that your appetite for breakfast returns. You may even find that without the coffee, which is an appetite suppressant, you are maybe even ravenous in the morning. If you want sustained energy all day, you must eat. Ideally, your breakfast will contain protein and unsaturated fat. Eating an all-carbohydrate breakfast or skipping breakfast entirely will set you up for cravings later in the day.

If our goal is to feel naturally energized during every waking minute of each day, if we follow our circadian rhythms closely, we will experience a greater energetic flow. For example, our muscles tend to gain more strength during the morning hours between 6:00am to10:00am. This is the perfect time of day to exercise and, of course, our breakfast fuel supports this natural process. Then, between the hours of 10:00am to 2:00pm, our digestive functions get stronger and metabolism reaches its peak. Like nature, when the sun is highest in the sky, our body temperature is at its highest point of the day. This is when your body digests foods and burns fuel most efficiently. So, it is best not to waste your peak metabolic opportunity of the day by failing to schedule at least 30 minutes to eat lunch. From 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM, our parasympathetic nervous system is activated. This is the best time of the day for heavier mental activity and less physical activity (which can be impeded if you are crashing from too much coffee and carbohydrate intake at breakfast and lunch).

The second best time of the day to exercise falls between the hours of 6:00 PM to10:00 PM. However, because the body’s metabolic processes have already started to slow down for an evening of rest, a less vigorous form of exercise should be chosen. You might also recognize these hours as prime dinner time. But based on what you now know about the daily cycles of nature, when do you think the largest meal of the day should be eaten? If you said “Lunch”, you would be correct.

From 10:00 PM to 2:00 AM, your body moves into its liver cleansing cycle. This is the second time of day when metabolic activity increases. During this time the goal is to clean the blood and repair damaged tissue. We have all heard it said that going to bed with a full stomach, beyond the obvious discomfort, is bad for you. What’s so bad about it? If you eat a big meal late in the day, your body must spend its important internal cleansing time doing the work of digestion. If you are living along with the cycles of nature, all is quiet and you are resting peacefully.

Biotin is necessary for cell growth, the production of fatty acids, and the metabolism of fats and amino acids. It plays a role in the citric acid cycle, which is the process by which biochemical energy is generated during aerobic respiration. Biotin not only assists in various metabolic reactions but also helps to transfer carbon dioxide. Biotin may also be helpful in maintaining a steady blood sugar level. Biotin is often recommended for strengthening hair and nails.As a consequence, it is found in many cosmetics and health products for the hair and skin, though it cannot be absorbed through the hair or skin itself.

Biotin deficiency is rare because, in general, intestinal bacteria produce biotin in excess of the body’s daily requirements. For that reason, statutory agencies in many countries, for example the USA and Australia^, do not prescribe a recommended daily intake of biotin. However, a number of metabolic disorders in which an individual’s metabolism of biotin is abnormal exist.

Biotin is consumed from a wide range of food sources in the diet, however there are few particularly rich sources. Foods with a relatively high biotin content include Swiss chard, raw egg yolk (however, the consumption of egg whites with egg yolks minimizes the effectiveness of egg yolk’s biotin in one’s body), liver, some vegetables, and peanuts. The dietary biotin intake in Western populations has been estimated to be 35 to 70 μg/d (143–287 nmol/d).

Uses

Diabetes

Diabetics may benefit from biotin supplementation. In both insulin-dependent and non-insulin-dependent diabetics deficient in biotin, supplementation with biotin can improve blood sugar control and help lower fasting blood glucose levels, in one study the reduction in fasting glucose approached 50 percent. Biotin can also play a role in preventing the neuropathy often associated with diabetes, reducing both the numbness and tingling associated with poor glucose control.

Hair and nail problems

The signs and symptoms of biotin deficiency include hair loss which progresses in severity to include loss of eyelashes and eyebrows in severely deficient subjects, as well as nails that break, chip, or flake easily. Biotin supplements are available in most pharmacies and recommended dose to treat deficiency for adults is about 30 mcg to 100 mcg per day.

Palmo Plantar Pustulosis

Patients with palmoplantar pustulosis had metabolic derangements of glucose and fatty acids as well as immune dysfunction derived from biotin deficiency, which led to abnormal manifestations of skin, bone and other tissues and organs. All of the clinical, metabolic and immune disorders were improved by biotin administration. These findings indicate that biotin deficiency was implicated in the outbreak and exacerbation of the disease and its complications. Supplementary addition of a probiotic agent to the biotin treatment intensified the therapeutic effect of the vitamin. Additionally, patients with psoriasis vulgaris, systemic lupus erythematosus, atopic dermatitis or rheumatoid arthritis also had biotin deficiency with the subsequent metabolic abnormalities and immune dysfunction, and so the biotin treatment provided beneficial effects in the therapy of the diseases, as in the case of palmoplantar pustulosis.^{[citation needed]}

Cradle cap (seborrheic dermatitis)

Children with a rare inherited metabolic disorder called phenylketonuria (PKU; in which one is unable to break down the amino acid phenylalanine) often develop skin conditions such as eczema and seborrheic dermatitis in areas of the body other than the scalp. The scaly skin changes that occur in people with PKU may be related to poor ability to use biotin. Increasing dietary biotin has been known to improve seborrheic dermatitis in these cases.

Teriyaki Chicken

1 package Boneless Skinless Chicken (Breasts)

I like thighs, but breasts are leaner.

1/2 cup soy sauce

1 clove minced garlic

1 teaspoon minced ginger (or more if you like)

1/4 cup chopped green onion (add more or less according to your taste)

2 or 3 packets artificial sweetener (again, according to your taste)

Place the chicken in a zip lock bag.  Mix the remaining ingredients and pour over the chicken.  Marinate for at least 2 hours.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place chicken in a foil lined (makes clean-up easier) baking dish and pour marinade over the chicken.  Back for about 20 minutes.  Turn chicken over and back an additional 20 -25 minutes until juices run clear.  Discard any remaining liquid.

Kalua Pork (Kind of a Hawaiian style pulled pork)

3 lbs pork shoulder (boneless is easier to work with)

1/4 cup liquid smoke

1 tablespoon sea salt

1/4 cup water

Cut pork into 3 or 4 pieces. Place into baking dish.  Pierce pieces with fork to get maximum smoke flavor into the meat.  Pour liquid smoke onto all the pieces, saturating the pork well.  Cover with foil.  Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 2 hours, turning meat once after the first hour.  Take meat out of the baking dish and shred pork using a fork in each hand.  Mix salt with water.  Add the salt water to the shredded pork a little at a time until it reaches your desired saltiness.   Great with stir fried vegetables.

Spicy Grilled Pork Chops

4 pork rib chops, cut 3/4 inch thick (about 1-3/4 pounds total)

1/4 cup lime juice

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon bottled hot pepper sauce

1/4 teaspoon salt

Place chops in a re-seal-able plastic bag set in a shallow dish. For marinade, in a small bowl, stir together lime juice, chili powder, oil, garlic, cumin, cinnamon, hot pepper sauce, and salt; pour over chops. Seal bag; turn to coat chops. Marinate in the refrigerator for 4 to 24 hours, turning bag occasionally. Drain chops, discarding marinade.
Place chops on the rack of an uncovered grill directly over medium coals. Grill for 11 to 14 minutes or until pork juices run clear (160 degree F), turning once

Information on diet was taken from a food frequency questionnaire and telephone interviews. The types of fish most commonly consumed by the women in Denmark were cod, plaice, salmon, herring, and mackerel. The women were categorized based on fish consumption, the five groups were: (1) 0-3 g/d (grams/day); (2) 3-10 g/d; (3) 10-20 g/d; (4) 20-30 g/d; and (5) >30 g/d.

During the follow-up period, 577 events of cardiovascular disease were identified. Adjustments were made for physical activity, BMI, smoking, education, cohabitant status, parity, occupation, alcohol intake, total energy intake, saturated fat intake, dietary fiber intake, and trans-fatty acid intake. After the adjustments, the group who ate between 0-3 grams of fish per day was 54% more likely to have cardiovascular disease than those who ate greater than 30 grams of fish per day,

Getting adequate omega-3 fatty acids from fish and supplements may be a safe and effective way to help maintain good cardiovascular health and potentially reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Marin Strøm, Thorhallur I. Halldorsson, Erik L. Mortensen, Christian Torp-Pedersen, Sjurdur F. Olsen. Fish, n-3 Fatty Acids, and Cardiovascular Diseases in Women of Reproductive Age: A Prospective Study in a Large National Cohort. Hypertension, 2011; DOI:10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.111.179382

Using a meta-analysis, researchers recently conducted a study to quantify the effects of omega-3 on arterial stiffness and its association with CVD.  Multiple databases and clinical trial registries were used to obtain data from randomized and controlled adult human clinical trials on the link between arterial stiffness and omega-3 intake.  A total of 10 trials met the final inclusion criteria.  The studies included results from using both pulse wave velocity (PWV) and arterial compliance to measure arterial stiffness.

The meta-analysis confirmed that supplementation of omega-3 fatty acids was effective in significantly improving arterial stiffness as measured by both PVW and arterial compliance.  The results remained significant when accounting for changes in blood pressure, heart rate or BMI.

The results of the current study show that supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids (typically from fish oil) may help decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease in part by reducing arterial stiffness, a known risk factor for CVD.

Pase MP, Grima NA, Sarris J.  Do long-chain n-3 fatty acids reduce arterial stiffness? A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Br J Nutr. 2011 Oct;106(7):974-80.

Swedish researchers performed a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies to evaluate the connection between magnesium intake and the risk of stroke.

Seven prospective studies were included in the review that included a total of 241,378 participants and 6,477 stroke cases.  The analysis revealed that for each 100 milligram daily increase of magnesium there was an 8 percent reduction in the risk of total stroke.

The association was still significant after adjustment for hypertension and diabetes. When the strokes were analyzed according to type, the protective effect was significant for ishemic stroke (the most common type) but not for intracerebral or subarachnoid hemorrhage.  The authors did note, however, that the low numbers of hemorrhagic stroke that occurred among the study participants may have decreased the ability to measure the association accurately.

The researchers stated that magnesium’s positive influence on blood pressure, glucose, lipids, lipoprotein peroxidation, and reduction of diabetes risk may be responsible for its protective benefit with stroke risk.  In addition to supplementation, increased consumption of magnesium dense foods, such as almonds, green leafy vegetables, beans and legumes, and whole grains may be an effective approach to reducing stroke risk.

Susanna C Larsson, Nicola Orsini, and Alicja Wolk Dietary magnesium intake and risk of stroke: a meta-analysis of prospective studies. Am J Clin Nutr February 2012 vol. 95 no. 2 362-366.

In a new study, researchers analyzed the effect of calcium/vitamin D fortified orange juice on weight loss and reduction in visceral adipose tissue (VAT) in overweight and obese adults.

Two parallel, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials were conducted at the same time with either regular or reduced calorie (lite) orange juice (OJ). There were 171 study subjects randomly assigned to one of two groups.  The trials were conducted over a period of 16 weeks.

The treatment groups consumed three 8 ounce glasses of OJ (regular or lite) fortified with 350 mg Ca and 100 IU vitamin D per serving, and the control groups consumed either unfortified regular or lite OJ. Measurements of VAT and subcutaneous adipose tissue were performed before and after the trials.

The average weight loss after 16 weeks was 2.45 kg and did not differ significantly between groups. In the regular OJ trial, the reduction of VAT was significantly greater in the calcium/vitamin D group than in the control group. In the lite OJ trial, the reduction of VAT was also significantly greater in the calcium/vitamin D group than in the control group.  When the results of the two trials were combined, the difference between the supplemented groups and controls was even more statistically significant.

The findings of the current study suggest that calcium/vitamin D supplementation may contribute to a specific and beneficial reduction of VAT in overweight adults.

Jennifer L Rosenblum et al. Calcium and vitamin D supplementation is associated with decreased abdominal visceral adipose tissue in overweight and obese adults. Am J Clin Nutr January 2012 vol. 95 no. 1 101-108.

How do people who want to maintain a fit lifestyle make sure they don’t blow their goals out the window at their favorite eatery?

This month the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior decided to find out. The study, which included 35 healthy women age 40 to 59 who ate an average of 5.6 times a week were assigned to attend six weekly sessions that focused on education and mindful eating meditations designed to help people consume less fat and fewer calories while eating out and prevent weight gain. The study included a group that did not take part in this experiment.

So, how did it turn out?

The women who were taught all about portion size and mindful eating when eating out ended up eating fewer calories and also consumed less fat in comparison to the control group. These women also lost weight, 3.7 pounds of average, according to the study.

This study proves the key to maintaining an even losing weight while eating out is knowing the facts about calories and portion control.

Luckily, a lot of restaurants are jumping on the education bandwagon by letting their patrons know how many calories they are consuming in the menus. When this information is not available, people need to make sure they take time out to learn the key principles highlighted in this study – eat being mindful of portion size and calories. Only then many will be able to unlock the secret to long-time success when it comes to weight loss.