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January 2016
Healthy Young Adults
Nutrients help ensure physical and mental health
More vitamin E,
especially in the young
A large new study finds most
Americans are low in vitamin E,
particularly those aged 20 to 30. The
study followed 7,922 people for four
years and found those who relied solely
on food as a source had inadequate levels
of vitamin E. Those who took vitamin
E supplements in addition to diet had
adequate levels.
Four in 10 of those age 51 or older
had inadequate vitamin E levels, seven
in 10 of those aged 31 to 50 were low,
and nearly nine in 10 of those age 20 to
30 had low levels of vitamin E.
Discussing the findings, doctors
said vitamin E plays an important role
in protecting cell membranes from
free radical oxidative damage, and that
adequate vitamin E levels may extend
life, help maintain cognitive function,
and help ensure healthy reproduction.
Omega-3s and depression
About one in three college
students reports feelings of depression
severe enough to make studying and
maintaining academic performance
difficult. In this study, 18 women and
five men, average age 20, attending
college and testing positive for
depression, took a placebo or 1,400 mg
of EPA/DHA per day.
After three weeks, 67 percent of
J A N U A RY ’ S
Healthy Insight
Natural Blood
Thinner
Doctors were searching for a natural
blood thinner and in this study, gave
12 healthy men, average age 22, a single
dose of nattokinase (NK), an enzyme
from fermented soy. The dose was 2,000
fibrinolytic units of NK or a placebo, in
two alternating phases two weeks apart.
The men had no blood disorders, were
not consuming food natto, had never
taken NK, and were taking no other
medications.
At two and four hours after taking
NK, clot-forming action was slightly
prolonged, and at six and eight hours,
signs of anti-clotting action were
increased. All changes were within the
normal range.
those who had taken omega-3s no longer
tested positive for depression compared
to 20 percent in the placebo group.
Nerve cell membranes in the brain
contain omega-3s, which influence
nerve signals and help regulate the
hormones related to emotion including
serotonin, epinephrine, dopamine, and
norepinephrine.
Doctors said this preliminary study
shows promise for treating depression
in college students with omega-3
supplements, and call for larger studies
to confirm these results.
Reference: PLoS One; 2015, Vol. 10, No. 8, e0135510
Reference: Nature Journal Scientific Reports 5;
2015, Article No. 11601
This Issue
Nutrients lower cholesterol
and chances for breast cancer
2
NAC and CoQ10 reduce chances for heart problems
2
Nutrients help control and improve diabetes
3
Nutrients boost sports endurance and muscle function
3
Correcting vitamin D deficiency
may help ease dizziness
4
Healthy Women
Nutrients lower cholesterol and chances for breast cancer
Iodine reduces cholesterol
Vitamin D and breast cancer
The thyroid gland produces the
hormone that regulates how quickly the
body uses energy, and needs sufficient
levels of iodine in order to do so. If
thyroid hormone is low, the body will
release thyroid-stimulating hormone
(TSH) to prod the thyroid to produce
more. Elevated TSH levels are linked to
higher cholesterol levels.
In this study, doctors gave 163
iodine-deficient, overweight and obese
Moroccan women 200 mcg of iodine
per day, or a placebo. After six months,
the iodine group had TSH levels 33
percent lower than placebo, and higher
thyroid hormone levels. The iodine
group also saw total cholesterol levels
decline by 11 percent, and 21.5 percent
had elevated cholesterol levels compared
to 34.8 percent in the placebo group.
In 2002, doctors advised
postmenopausal women on hormone
replacement therapy (HRT) of an
increase in chances for breast cancer.
Earlier studies suggested vitamin D
might protect against breast cancer,
particularly estrogen-receptor positive
tumors.
In this study, 57,403
postmenopausal women completed
questionnaires every few years from
1990 to 2008, reporting on diet,
vitamin D from supplements and diet,
HRT, and other factors.
Overall, women who were currently
taking vitamin D supplements were 18
percent less likely to have developed
breast cancer compared to women who
had used vitamin D in the past or to
women who had never used vitamin D
at all.
Doctors found the greatest benefit
among women who had been on HRT
and who continued taking vitamin D:
chances for developing breast cancer
were 26 percent lower.
Reference: The Journal of Nutrition; 2015, Vol. 145,
No. 9, 2067-75
Healthy Hearts
Nutrients lower chances for heart problems
NAC, inflammation,
and blood pressure
Chronic inflammation, including
elevated homocysteine levels, raises
chances for heart disease. Earlier
studies found B-vitamins can lower
some inflammation factors, but not
others. N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is an
2
antioxidant earlier studies found lowered
homocysteine, and possibly blood
pressure.
In this study, researchers reviewed
two NAC studies, one with 40 men with
elevated lipid levels, and the other with
42 men with normal lipids. Both studies
included smokers and non-smokers. The
dose was 1,800 mg of NAC per day, or a
placebo, for four weeks.
Homocysteine levels decreased by
4.1 percent in the placebo groups and
by 11.7 percent for those taking NAC,
regardless of lipid levels or smoking.
While blood pressure did not change
in the placebo groups, systolic blood
pressure decreased significantly in all
NAC groups. Diastolic blood pressure
decreased in men with elevated lipid
levels who took NAC, but not in men
with normal lipids.
CoQ10 with statin therapy
Doctors most often prescribe statin
drugs for lowering LDL cholesterol
levels. One of the side effects is muscle
pain, possibly due to lower levels
of CoQ10, a naturally occurring
antioxidant in every cell.
In this study, doctors reviewed eight
placebo-controlled trials that measured
the effect of statin therapy on CoQ10
levels. All of those taking statins had
lower levels of CoQ10, regardless of
which of the four types of statin drug
they were taking.
A new study is underway, using a
dose of 600 mg of CoQ10 per day, or
a placebo, to determine if CoQ10 can
reduce muscle pain in those on statin
therapy.
Reference: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition;
October, 2015, Published Online
January 2016 natural insights for well being ®
Diabetes Progress
Nutrients help control and improve the condition
Chromium picolinate
and blood sugar
In this study, 71 people with type
2 diabetes and poorly controlled longterm average blood sugar levels took
600 mcg of chromium picolinate per
day, or a placebo. After four months, the
chromium picolinate group saw long-
term average blood sugar (A1C) lowered
by 1.9 while the placebo group declined
1.0.
The chromium picolinate group also
saw fasting blood sugar levels decline by
31 mg/dL compared to 14 for placebo,
and after-meal blood sugar levels
were 37 mg/dL lower for chromium
picolinate compared to 11.5 for placebo.
Discussing the findings, doctors said
they don’t know exactly how chromium
picolinate improves blood sugar control
but that research suggests chromium
may play a role in insulin resistance and
sensitivity by helping replace failing
insulin receptor cells.
Berberine, blood sugar,
lipids, and pressure
Doctors in this study reviewed 27
trials covering 2,569 people with type
2 diabetes, elevated lipids and blood
pressure who typically took 500 mg of
berberine two to three times per day or
a placebo.
Overall, those who took berberine
along with lifestyle interventions such
as diet and exercise counseling had
lower fasting, after-meal, and long-term
average blood sugar levels. Berberine
with oral lipid-lowering drugs lowered
triglycerides more, and raised HDL—
the “good” cholesterol—more than oral
lipid drugs alone.
For blood pressure, those taking
berberine together with lifestyle
interventions tended to have lower blood
pressure than either placebo or lifestyle
interventions alone.
Reference: Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine
and Biology; October, 2015, Vol. 32, 66-72
Sports Performance
Nutrients improve sports endurance and muscle function
L-citrulline and endurance
Increasing blood flow is key to
increasing endurance. Nitric oxide (NO)
helps relax and dilate blood vessels, and
arginine can produce NO, but only 1
percent of ingested arginine is available
for absorption. Citrulline can increase
arginine levels.
In this study, 10 healthy men
completed a moderate to severe cycling
exercise on days six and seven of a 7-day
supplementation period with placebo,
6 grams of arginine, or 6 grams of
citrulline per day, in three alternating
phases.
L-arginine increased during
the citrulline phases, as did signs of
increased NO production. The men
taking citrulline performed better
during the exercise, had greater muscle
oxygenation and faster oxygen uptake.
natural insights for well being ®
Blood pressure was lower during the
citrulline phases compared to arginine
or placebo.
supplements on neuromuscular function
and performance, and that omega-3s
may have a positive effect in athletes.
Seal-oil omega-3
and muscle function
Reference: Journal of Applied Physiology; 2015, Vol.
119, No. 4, 385-95
In this study, 30 male athletes,
average age 25 and typically training for
17 hours per week, took 375 mg of EPA,
230 mg of DPA, and 510 mg of DHA
from seal oil per day, or a placebo.
After three weeks, while there was
no change for placebo, thigh muscle
function increased by 20 percent for
those taking seal oil. Also, 50 percent
of the omega-3 men had improved
time trials compared to 33 percent for
placebo.
Commenting on the findings,
doctors said this is the first study
to measure the effects of omega-3
January 20163
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What Causes Dizziness?
Correcting vitamin D deficiency may help
Several earlier studies had found a
link between vitamin D deficiency and
sudden, non-life-threatening dizziness
triggered by head movement, known as
benign paroxysmal positional vertigo
(BPPV), but no studies had tested
treating with vitamin D supplements. In
BPPV, calcium crystals embedded in the
inner ear dislodge and flow into inner
ear fluid, sending false movement signals
to the brain.
In this study, 93 people with singleear BPPV and vitamin D levels of 10
nanograms per milliliter of blood (ng/
mL) or less, took 50,000 IU of vitamin
D once every two weeks, plus 600 mg of
calcium twice per day.
After three months, 14 percent
of those whose vitamin D levels
had increased by at least 10 ng/mL
4
experienced a recurrence of BPPV
compared to 43 percent of those whose
vitamin D levels had increased less than
10 ng/mL, leading doctors to conclude
that raising vitamin D levels can
significantly reduce chances of BPPV
recurring.
Reference: International Journal of ORL & HNS;
September, 2015, Published Online
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January 2016
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natural insights for well being ®