Archive for March, 2010

Addiction is the new eating disorder of the 21^st century.

Eating Disorders

The list of eating disorders is reduced to either starving yourself, or stuffing yourself and purging. What if there are reasons to call our obsession with and binging on junk food one of the most dangerous trends. The shocking part it is a growing movement, making its way to the most vulnerable victims our children.

U.S. researchers working with rats have shown for the first time the compulsion to overeat has the same biological mechanism as the addiction to drugs such as cocaine and heroin. It affects the brain’s pleasure circuitry in a similar way.

The study was conducted by Scripps Research Associate Professor Paul J Kenny and graduate student Paul M Johnson. The Scripps Research Institute is in Jupiter, Florida. It was published in the online issue of Nature Neuroscience.

Addiction

According to a statement from the Scripps Research Institute the study confirms what many obesity patients have been saying for years binging on junk food is just about impossible to control.

Kenny and Johnson show that as pleasure centers in the brain become less responsive, rats quickly develop compulsive overeating habits. This is the same progressively deteriorating chemical balance in reward brain circuits seen in rats that over consume cocaine or heroin.

Kenny said the study confirms that junk food can become “addictive.” One of the tests of addictive behavior is to train lab animals to anticipate an electric shock. At first the animals receive the mild shocks at the same time as light coming on, eventually they learn to anticipate the shock when they see the light and avoid doing the thing that triggers the shock.

In rats that become “addicted’ to junk food ignored the light and continued to binge. The junk food consisted of what people eat: cheesecake, bacon, sausage, and Ding-Dongs a chocolate like cake.

Junk Food Wins

Junk food wins even with rats. Lab rats were divided into three groups. The first group got a balanced healthy diet, the second group had access to high-calorie “junk” food for one hour a day, and the third group was fed healthy food, but had unlimited access to the high-calorie “junk food.”

The third group quickly showed a preference for the junk food, eating it all day long and becoming obese.

“They always went for the worst type of food,” Kenny said. “As a result, they took in twice the calories as the control rats,” when they removed the junk food and left the healthy diet, they refused to eat.

“ The change in the diet preference was so great that they basically starved themselves for two weeks after they were cut off from junk food,” said Kenny.

Conclusion

It doesn’t take a genius to know what group we belong to. We are in the third group minus the healthy food. What will it do to us, just look around. The next eclipse will be because we block the view.

Understanding this should make us realize we are being left without the power, or ability to withstand the temptations.

Acne treatment is a good diet. Teenagers who eat the least processed foods have the best chance of avoiding this condition. What that says is diet is an essential element in the treatment of acne. For all intents and purpose, diet is the best defense and treatment of acne.

Acne Study

A recent acne study by two professors of nutrition and anthropology proved there is a connection between the industrialized diet and acne. For the study professor Loren Cardain of Colorado State University and Michael Richards of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany looked at the diets of two remote communities in Paraguay and Papua New Guinea.

“We examined more than 3000 people in total and we didn’t find any acne in those communities. That led us to the conclusion that acne is indeed a disease of civilization.” Dr. Cordain said.

“We then back-engineered the biochemistry and physiology behind it and the final step was to do a dietary intervention in which we gave teenagers a diet comprised entirely of fresh fruits, vegetables, lean meats and seafood.”

“We then gave them no cereal grains, no dairy products and no processed food and lo and behold the acne went into remission.”

Did anyone think that our distant relatives suffered from acne, or any of our man-made conditions?

Low Glycemic Diet For Acne

There are studies that seem to show that high glycemic loads are involved in the formation of acne. Foods with a high glycemic load (high levels of glucose) such as white bread, potatoes, cakes, pies, cookies, and most processed food cause a rapid surge in sugar levels.

Dr. Robyn N. Smith, from the RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, and colleagues assessed acne symptoms in 43 male patients, between 15 and 25 years, who were randomly assigned to a low glycemic load diet or a “normal” diet for 12 weeks. The load glycemic diet consisted of 25% energy from protein and 45% from low-glycemic-index carbohydrates, such as high fiber beans, and grains.

The low-glycemic diet was associated with a significant reduction in total acne. The low-glycemic diet produced a reduction in body weight and mass with an increase in insulin sensitivity.

 ”The improvement in acne and insulin sensitivity after a low-glycemic-load diet suggests that nutrition-related lifestyle factors may play a role in the pathogenesis of acne,” the authors write. “However, further studies are needed to isolate the independent effects of weight loss and dietary intervention and to further elucidate the underlying pathophysiologic mechanisms.”

Summary

There is not much to say except let’s wait for another study. One of the most dangerous affliction facing Americas is the idea that another study will answer the question. Overcoming obstacles to a clear complexion means nutritional intervention.

We need a fresh take on niacin; most of the information is from a pharmaceutical prospective.

Niacin

Overall niacin or nicotinic acid is used under the care and monitoring of a health care provider. It is used to increase good cholesterol (HDL)

HDL is known as the good cholesterol because of its protective effect on the heart and blood vessels. Its role in heart health is undisputed. This role that it plays is straightforward. The multiple health benefits come from its ability to remove excess cholesterol in the blood and bring it to the liver for disposal. By doing so it may remove excess cholesterol from arterial plaque, and slow its buildup. In fact high LDL and total cholesterol dangers can be offset by a high HDL reading.

The fact that niacin raises HDL doesn’t mean that it is capable, cost effective or compelling enough to be used by itself for this purpose. Niacin is remarkable as a naturally occurring B3 vitamin present in food sources. It is established, and proven that niacin in the form of B3 restores HDL levels.

Niacin is a type of B vitamin that also aids in the function of the digestive system, skin, nerves and heart health. An adult needs at the very least 14-16mg of niacin daily to function properly. Niacin was first used in the1950’s and as such is the oldest of today’s treatment for lowering cholesterol.

Vitamin B3

Vitamin B3 plays an essential role in energy metabolism. This vitamin works with vitamin B1, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, pantothenic acid, and biotin to break the carbohydrates, fats, and proteins into energy. Vitamin B3 aids in the production of hydrochloric acid for digestion. This is the anti-pellagra vitamin.

Natural occurring vitamin B3 is somewhat different than pure niacin. The optimal form of any vitamin comes from a source that integrates all the diverse components that compliment it, Vitamin B3 is no different.

The best dietary sources of vitamin B3 are found in beets, brewer’s yeast, beef liver, beef kidney, pork, turkey, chicken, veal, fish, salmon, swordfish, tuna, sunflower seeds, and peanuts.

Niacin is in a wide variety of foods both animal and vegetable sources contain this nutrient. Vitamin B3 can also be found in brewer’s yeast, broccoli, carrots, cheese, dandelion greens, dates, potatoes, tomatoes, wheat germ, and whole wheat. Herbs such as alfalfa, burdock root, catnip, cayenne, chamomile, chickweed, eyebright, fennel seeds, hops, licorice, nettle, oat straw, parsley, peppermint, raspberry leaf, rose hips, and slippery elm.

The liver is the main storage area for vitamin B3 and the absorption takes place in the intestines. B3 is required by the body for digestion, activation of enzymes that nourish the brain, to regulate blood pressure and cholesterol.

Vitamin B3 is usually found in combination with other B vitamins such as thiamine, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, pyridoxine, cyanocobalamin, and folic acid. Vitamins are not isolated in nature.

Niacin Side Effects  

Large doses of niacin can cause liver damage, peptic ulcers, and skin rashes. In the high doses that are used for controlling cholesterol levels, nicotinic acid can cause skin flushing, skin itching, headaches, lightheadedness, and low blood pressure. People who are pregnant, diabetic, or have ulcers have to very careful.

A high dose of vitamin B3 is not without problems. Besides serious liver damage, people who suffer from asthma, liver disease, gallbladder disease, gout, glaucoma or ulcers should be extremely careful with taking this in a supplement form.

High dose of nicotinic acid (about 3 grams daily) has caused impaired glucose tolerance in healthy individuals.

Summary   

In nature very little appears in isolation. Natural occurring substance are packaged to have dual purposes, so that they posses both economy of purpose and the greatest yield. The only guarantee that you are getting the vitamin B3 in the safest optimal form is by consuming a diversified diet of whole foods.