Gardening for Food
and Health
Resveratrol Health
Benefits
Resveratrol and
Aging
Menopause and Black
Cohosh
Ask Dr. J: Calcium
D-Glucarate or Citrate
References
In The Health News
Diet and Disease
Recipe of the Month:
Quick Oat Cake Snacks
Dear Friends,
Dear Friends,
This year is the first time that
I have been able to grow a vegetable
garden in Florida, and it seems
miraculous to me that I can harvest
tomatoes, basil, broccoli rabe,
lettuces, and summer squashes
as early as April! I look forward
to watermelons when I return in
the summer for visits.
As I start my garden in New Hampshire,
I realize that growing food always
seems somewhat of a miracle, and
it keeps me in touch with the
earth (literally) and with the
natural environment. It also enhances
my understanding of the food that
I eat, and I can feel sure that
there are no unwanted chemicals
in the produce from my own garden.
Increasingly, people are demanding
higher quality, better flavor,
and fresher, locally grown food;
vegetable and fruit gardening
satisfies all of these desires.
Also, when you grow your own food,
you will not be eating genetically
engineered foods (sometimes called
“frankenfoods”), which
have not been shown to be safe
for consumers or the environment.
Farms and markets that grow and
distribute fresh, local produce
are developing rapidly around
the world, and you can be part
of this growing trend (pun intended)
with your own garden (and if you
have too much for your own needs,
you can share or sell the extra!).
To some extent, anyone can participate
in growing their own food. I have
a large garden, but even a small
yard is enough to grow quite a
bit of food. I saw one small plot
in front of a house in Cambridge
filled with tomatoes, basil, scallions,
zucchini, carrots, and trellised
snap peas and cucumbers. It was
all of eight by ten feet. Even
if you do not have this amount
of space, you can cut a one foot
row of any length and put in a
few plants, and use a trellis
to take advantage of vertical
space (which also captures more
sunlight if you are not in a full
sun area).
If you have no outside land of
any size, such as apartment dwellers,
you can have window boxes with
lettuces and herbs always ready
to pick and eat, and you can grow
tomatoes and strawberries in containers
on a balcony. Another option is
to participate in the urban community
gardens that are popping up in
many cities. These are plots in
unused areas that are developed
into thriving organic gardens.
You might find that there is a
waiting list to get space, but
put yourself on the list. Many
immigrants find that the spices
and vegetables that they are used
to in their home countries are
not available in supermarkets,
but they are growing them in their
own or in community gardens.
You can also grow heirloom varieties
that are not available in markets.
You do not have to be totally
dependent on large, industrial
farms for all of your food, and
you can find relaxation, exercise,
and personal and aesthetic development
by getting in touch with the earth
and your food.
Last month I mentioned some benefits
of resveratrol in blocking growth
in cell cultures of brain tumor
cells, but it has many other properties
that support health. It is a polyphenol
found in red wine and other food
sources, similar in structure
to flavonoids and proanthocyanidins.
Although wine is perhaps the best
known source of resveratrol, it
is also found in peanuts, grapes,
berries, and in Polygonium cuspidatum,
a component of traditional Asian
herbal remedies.
Some research suggests that the
resveratrol in red wine is the
reason for the so-called “French
paradox.” While dietary
fat is high in France, heart disease
rates are lower than in the US.
(but heart disease is still the
number one cause of death in France).
Although many other health habits
might explain the difference (more
vegetables, more exercise, higher
vitamin E intake), or even other
components of red wine (such as
antioxidant catechins), resveratrol
consumption from wine might be
part of it.
In any case, resveratrol has
a number of health benefits that
make it valuable as part of the
diet and as a supplement. It is
a potent antioxidant, helping
to prevent the oxidation of LDL
cholesterol (the bad form of cholesterol),
while increasing the level of
the good HDL-cholesterol. It protects
the arterial lining (endothelium),
enhancing the production of nitric
oxide, which in turn relaxes the
arteries to improve blood flow.
Resveratrol also reduces the proliferation
of arterial cells involved with
progression of atherosclerosis,
and it inhibits excessive blood
clot formation that can block
arteries.
A review of the properties of
resveratrol in relation to colon
cancer suggests a number of ways
that the compound could inhibit
the activity of certain enzymes
and the expression of certain
tumor-related genes (oncogenes).
One of the enzymes that resveratrol
inhibits is ornithine decarboxylase,
which has been linked with increased
cell growth and carcinogenesis.
Resveratrol also appears to inhibit
the development of breast cancer.
In a case-control epidemiologic
study from 1993 to 2003 in Switzerland,
researchers evaluated the relationship
of resveratrol intake to the rate
of breast cancer in 971 women,
369 of whom had breast cancer
and the rest serving as controls.
The third of women with the lowest
intake had double the risk of
those in the middle level of intake.
Those women with the highest resveratrol
intake had a 61 percent reduction
in breast cancer risk. Interestingly,
in this study the favorable association
was only noted with resveratrol
from grapes, but not from wine.
It appears that this benefit was
not just associated with higher
fruit intake in general, nor with
alcohol intake.
Resveratrol appears to have a
number of other anti-aging properties.
It influences the signal transmission
between cells and regulates inflammatory
pathways through its effects on
cytokines, which are cell messengers
that control a number of different
cell functions. It can block a
number of steps in the development
of cancer, including the initiation,
promotion, and progression phases,
and it can help regulate overactive
immune cells.
Aging studies are virtually impossible
to do in humans, but evidence
from other organisms suggests
that resveratrol can favorably
influence lifespan. While it might
seem that information drawn from
studies of yeasts and fruit flies
would not relate to humans, their
aging characteristics, in spite
of shorter lifespans, have much
in common with us. For example,
their susceptibility to toxic
aging factors, such as pesticides
and oxidants is similar, as these
substances reduce the ability
of the cells to replicate.
A study in fruit flies, using
a biomarker for aging, showed
that resveratrol (as well as alpha-lipoic
acid) could extend lifespan. Somewhat
surprisingly, fruit flies and
humans have many genetic similarities.
A study in yeasts (Saccharomyces
cerevisiae, the same organism
used to make bread and beer) shows
that resveratrol has effects that
mimic those of caloric restriction,
which has been shown to extend
lifespan in many animals and other
organisms.
Levels vary widely, but red wine
typically contains 160 mcg of
resveratrol per ounce (about 1
mg per 6 ounces). Peanuts contain
about 73 mcg per ounce. Alcohol
also has its drawbacks, so supplements
of 2 to 4 mg or more of resveratrol
may be beneficial to slow aging
without the risks associated with
frequent alcohol consumption.
Menopausal symptoms include hot
flashes, depression, nervousness,
and other mood disorders, as well
as night sweats and sleep disturbances.
Black cohosh is an herb that reduces
the symptoms of menopause without
the side effects of conventional
hormone therapy. A new study shows
that a standardized extract of
black cohosh is as effective as
the hormones in relieving all
of the above menopausal symptoms,
especially hot flashes.
In this multi-center, randomized,
controlled trial, 304 patients
were given 40 mg of black cohosh
extract or a placebo. The herb
relieved symptoms as effectively
as hormone treatment with no side
effects, and the results were
both statistically significant
and clinically relevant.
Typical treatments have been
with hormone replacement therapy,
but the horse-derived estrogens
(Premarin) and synthetic progestin
(Provera) have been shown to create
significant health risks. In addition,
for older women on long-term treatment
they do not provide much protection
against osteoporosis.
The medical profession long presumed
that such hormone replacement
would reduce both heart disease
and cognitive decline, but scientific
data showed this not to be true—women
on long term Premarin or Premarin
and Provera had a greater decline
in mental function than those
who never took them and no reduction
in heart disease. They also had
a higher incidence of strokes.
None of these risks have been
demonstrated for women on bio-identical
hormone replacement.
Q. What is the
difference between calcium citrate
and calcium D-glucarate? Is one
better absorbed than the other?
—VR, via email
I often have to clarify the difference
between calcium citrate (or other
sources of calcium) and calcium
D-glucarate, as the latter is
quite different from all the others.
Calcium citrate is one of the
best absorbed supplemental forms
of calcium, and it is also somewhat
more concentrated than some other
supplements, such as calcium lactate
and calcium gluconate, so you
can get more into each pill.
Calcium D-glucarate does not
contain significant amounts of
calcium, and it is not recommended
as a supplement for this purpose.
It is an aid in detoxifying the
body because of a special metabolic
effect that it has in the digestive
tract. When the liver detoxifies
a number of chemicals, it attaches
them to a substance called glucuronic
acid so they can be excreted.
A bacterial enzyme in the intestinal
tract, called beta-glucuronidase,
breaks this attachment, allowing
the toxin to be reabsorbed into
the blood stream, placing a greater
burden on the liver.
Calcium D-glucarate inhibits
beta-glucuronidase allowing the
toxin to stay attached to the
carrier and reducing the detoxification
load on the liver. As a result,
the liver functions better and
the healing process is improved.
More specifically, calcium D-glucarate
helps block several stages of
carcinogenesis, including initiation,
promotion, and progression, partly
by reducing sensitivity to chemical
carcinogens. Typical doses of
calcium D-glucarate range from
1000 to 5000 mg daily for prevention
or treatment.
Stepping off
the pesticides treadmill. www.nri.org/InTheField/india_pests.htm
Brian Halweil,
Eating at home, Ode Magazine,
May 2005.
H.R.H. Prince
Charles, Feeding our sanity, Ode
Magazine, May 2005.
Delmas D, et
al., Resveratrol: Preventing properties
against vascular alterations and
ageing. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2005
May;49(5):377-95.
Wolter F, et
al., Molecular mechanisms of the
chemopreventive effects of resveratrol
and its analogs in colorectal
cancer: key role of polyamines?
J Nutr. 2004 Dec;134(12):3219-22.
Levi F, et
al., Resveratrol and breast cancer
risk. Eur J Cancer Prev. 2005
Apr;14(2):139-142.
Alarcon de
la Lastra C, Villegas I, Resveratrol
as an anti-inflammatory and anti-aging
agent: Mechanisms and clinical
implications. Mol Nutr Food Res.
2005 Apr 14; [Epub ahead of print]
Wood JG, et
al., Sirtuin activators mimic
caloric restriction and delay
ageing in metazoans. Nature. 2004
Aug 5;430(7000):686-9.
Bauer JH, et
al., An accelerated assay for
the identification of lifespan-extending
interventions in Drosophila melanogaster.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2004
Aug 31;101(35):12980-5.
Ulrich S, et
al., Molecular mechanisms of the
chemopreventive effects of resveratrol...
Mol Nutr Food Res. 2005 May;49(5):452-61.
Kang JH, et
al., Postmenopausal hormone therapy
and risk of cognitive decline
in community-dwelling aging women.
Neurology. 2004 Jul 13;63(1):101-7.
Anderson GL,
et al., Effects of conjugated
equine estrogen in postmenopausal
women ... JAMA. 2004 Apr 14;291(14):1701-12.
Bibbins-Domingo
K, Effect of hormone therapy on
mortality rates among women with
heart failure and coronary artery
disease. Am J Cardiol. 2005 Jan
15;95(2):289-91.
Osmers R, et
al., Efficacy and safety of isopropanolic
black cohosh extract for climacteric
symptoms. Obstet Gynecol. 2005
May;105(5):1074-83.
The combination of too much iron
in the diet and high levels of
iron in the blood, as measured
by transferrin saturation, increases
the risk of death from cancer.
Transferrin is an iron transport
protein, and the percent saturation
reflects the amount of iron stored
in the body. (Mainous AG, et al.,
Transferrin saturation, dietary
iron intake, and risk of cancer.
Ann Fam Med. 2005 Mar-Apr;3(2):131-7.)
The researchers noted that it
is the combination of high iron
storage with high dietary iron
that makes the difference. Dietary
iron comes from red meat, liver,
and fortified foods.
Exercise improves survival in
breast cancer patients. In a study
of 2987 nurses diagnosed with
breast cancer from 1984-1998,
those who walked at least 3 to
5 hours per week cut their risk
of dying of the disease in half
(Holmes MD, et al., Physical activity
and survival after breast cancer
diagnosis. JAMA 2005 May 25;293(20):2479-86).
Even one hour of exercise per
week was helpful, but less than
the higher level of activity.
Unfortunately, for many reasons,
women often reduce or abandon
exercise after a diagnosis of
breast cancer, especially if they
are overweight.
A large European study confirms
that a diet high in fruits, vegetables,
beans, grains, fish, and olive
oil not only prevents heart disease
and cancer, but also prolongs
life. The study of almost 75,000
people over 60 years old showed
that this Mediterranean diet,
low in meat, dairy, and saturated
fat and rich in antioxidants,
can add at least one year to the
life of these individuals. (Trichopoulou
A, et al., Modified Mediterranean
diet and survival: EPIC-elderly
prospective cohort study. BMJ.
2005 Apr 30;330(7498):991.) The
extra lifespan could be much greater
by starting the diet earlier in
life.
We are all sometimes in too much
of a hurry to prepare a full meal,
and healthy snacks are essential.
I love Scottish oat cakes, and
have found an organic variety
from Nairn’s, one of the
oldest oat cake purveyors. They
are available from The Scottish
Grocer (www.thescottishgrocer.com),
and they are tasty, totally organic,
with no hydrogenated oils or sugar
(which is unusual in crackers).
I top them with a slice of Tofu
Lin (SoyBoy) and mustard, nut
butter with banana or a fresh
Medjool date (organic, available
by mail from Ehrlich’s Date
Garden in Arizona at 928-783-4778),
hummus, or guacamole, or I just
eat them plain. They are high
in fiber to help lower cholesterol.
You can also try Real Foods Corn
Thins, a rice-cake-like puffed
corn snack from Australia (only
the sesame is organic; ask your
health food store to order them
if not in stock).
