The Telangana Science Journal, December 2003, Issue 72

Contents

Epigenetics
Fear Kills
   Young and Fit Have Less Risk in their Middle Age
   Potty Training
   Child Cry

Diet and Exercise
    Alcohol Shrinks Your Brain
    Mounting Death Toll Due to High Sugar and Fat Diets
    Sugar and birth defects
    Fats
    Calcium and Vitamin D
    Oranges
    Cinnamon
    Ginger
    Garlic

Smoking
More Bad News for Female Smokers

Cardiovascular Health
Gender Differences
Pollution and Heart Disease

Recipes
RASPBERRY PASSION FRUIT SWIRLS

Epigenetics
Fear Kills
Fearful rats lived an average of 20 percent shorter lives than more adventurous rats.
Fearfulness was apparent in rats early in life, even before they were weaned, and it persisted into adulthood. Compared to other rats, fearful rats experienced a surge in hormones called glucocorticoids after being exposed to something new. The association between increased secretion of stress hormones and a shorter life suggests that the hormones may gradually cause damage that accelerates aging, according to the researchers, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2003.

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Young and Fit Have Less Risk in their Middle Age
In a new study, people who were in the best cardiovascular shape as young adults were least likely to develop high blood pressure, diabetes and other cardiovascular risk factors later in life. And people who got in better shape during the 15-year study were able to reduce some of their risks, according to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, December 17, 2003. Fitness during young adulthood, ages 18 to 30, plays an important role in the development of heart disease risk factors in middle age.
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Potty Training
Parents may do well to focus on the positive when toilet training their children, according to the results of a new study in Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, December 2003. Children whose parents do not use negative words about poop tended to become toilet-trained sooner.

Child Cry
Researchers at the University of Basel, Switzerland, found that parents' brains fired up more in response to sobs than giggles. The cries activated one brain region in particular, called the amygdala, which is involved in processing emotions. Tears signify to parents that something is amiss, generating emotions such as concern or fear, which prompt parental care. Childless men, by contrast, reacted more to infant laughter than whimpers. This shows that the parental brain activity is learned. However, women respond to cries and wails whether or not they are mothers themselves, suggesting that their responses, unlike those of men, are innate. This sex difference is wired rather than acquired. Biological Psychiatry, 54, 1367 - 1375, (2003).
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Diet and Exercise

Alcohol Shrinks Your Brain
A recent study reported in the advance online edition of Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association found low-to-moderate drinking reduced brain size. Chronic alcohol abuse and heavy drinking are known to raise the risk of both brain atrophy and stroke. Some studies have found that light-to-moderate drinking reduces the risk of stroke in some people. However, it doesn’t protect brain. The researchers also found that such alcohol consumption does not lower the risk of a stroke, contradicting findings from previous studies. Among drinkers, each additional drink consumed per week was associated with a decrease in brain volume. This association was seen in men and women and in blacks and whites. The study is not the first to suggest that drinking can affect brain volume, but it does provide evidence that the process may begin sooner than expected.
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Mounting Death Toll Due to High Sugar and Fat Diets
Alarmed at mounting deaths linked to high sugar and fatty diets, the World Health Organization (WHO) presented its recipe on December 4th for a healthy world. Incidence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and certain types of cancer due to unhealthy diets and inactivity have soared to 60 percent of the some 56.5 million of preventable deaths a year worldwide. In a draft plan to be put to member states at the spring 2004 session of the World Health Assembly, its governing body, the WHO called for governments, food firms and non-governmental organizations to work together to change eating habits. WHO's recommendation earlier this year that sugar should not account for more than 10 percent of the energy intake in an average diet sparked angry response from mighty sugar industry.
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Sugar and birth defects
Women who eat lots of foods that tend to make blood sugar soar may be more likely to have a baby with birth defects of the brain or spine, a new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, November 1, 2003 suggests. These foods are known as high glycemic index foods such white bread and other highly processed grains, potatoes and soft drinks. The carbohydrates in foods with a high index are quickly digested and absorbed, creating a surge in blood sugar levels. In stark contrast, the carbohydrates in foods like fiber-rich whole grains, beans, fruits, vegetables, and some dairy products typically cause a slower release of sugar into the blood and hence are healthy.
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Fats
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a common eye disease in older people that causes blindness. AMD is the leading cause of irreversible visual impairment and blindness in the United States and in other developed countries. High intake of dietary fats increase the risk of progression of age-related macular degeneration, according to an article in the December issue of The Archives of Ophthalmology. The researchers found that consumption of animal fats and fat-containing food groups caused progression to advanced AMD, whereas oil containing nut consumption reduced the risk. Saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and transunsaturated fats were also related to progression. Food groups with higher levels of these fats, particularly processed baked goods, were also associated with a higher rate of progression of AMD, except for nuts, which were protective.
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Calcium and Vitamin D
According to new findings presented in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, December 3, 2003, at higher levels calcium use was associated with a 29 percent reduction in the risk of polyp recurrence. At low levels of vitamin D, calcium use had no effect on polyp formation. It was found that vitamin D levels only had an effect on recurrence when subjects used calcium supplements. Among calcium users, the risk of recurrence fell as vitamin D levels increased.
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Oranges
Eating an orange a day can keep certain cancers away, according to a new Australian study. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) found consuming citrus fruits could reduce the risk of mouth, larynx and stomach cancers by up to 50 percent. One extra serve of citrus a day, in addition to the recommended five daily servings of fruit and vegetables, could also reduce the risk of a stroke by 19 percent. The Australian study also found "convincing evidence" that citrus could reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, obesity and diabetes. The study was based on 48 international studies on the health benefits of citrus fruits.
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Cinnamon
People with diabetes can help keep their bodies healthy by simply adding a dash of spice to their diet, new research reports in Diabetes Care, December 2003. In a study, diabetics who incorporated one gram, equivalent to less than one-quarter teaspoon, of cinnamon per day for 40 days into their normal diets experienced a decrease in levels of blood sugar, cholesterol and blood fats.

Ginger
Ginger has long been thought to ease nausea, and research has found it may aid motion sickness and other forms of queasiness. But as with any medicinal product, safety is a particular concern in pregnancy. Using ginger to quell morning sickness does not appear to raise the risk of birth defects, according to a new study in American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, November 2003.
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Garlic
Plant compounds have evolved over millions of years as chemical defense agents against infection. Garlic has been used in medicine for centuries. Antibiotics are increasingly ineffective, but we do have a powerful natural ally. It should be no surprise that it is effective against a very modern infection- MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) that causes an estimated 2,000 deaths in UK hospitals each year, mainly by infecting surgical wounds. Allicin, which occurs naturally in garlic, not only killed known varieties of MRSA, but also new superbug generations resistant to "last resort" antibiotics such as vancomycin. Results from the British research are due to appear in the Journal of Biomedical Science in the New Year, reports the Age.

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Smoking
More Bad News for Female Smokers
Women have double the risk of developing lung cancer from tobacco use than do men, according to 10 years of research using computed tomography (CT) screening. The study also found that the risk for lung cancer increases with the amount of tobacco smoked and as a smoker ages. The research was presented at the 89th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

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Cardiovascular Health
Gender Differences
According to a study in the Dec. 17, 2003 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, there are differences between men and women with respect to cardiovascular diseases. Among the gender differences seen in this analysis:
1) For each 1 percent increase in heart pumping function (LVEF), there was a 1 percent decrease in mortality in men, but for women the reduction in mortality was 4 percent;
2) The presence of coronary artery disease was associated with a 1.5-fold increase in the risk of death for men, but a 2.5-fold increase in death risk for women;
3) Women had lower rates of atrial fibrillation, lower levels of plasma norepinephrine (also known as noradrenaline), faster heart rates, and a higher prevalence of left bundle branch block (a type of electrical abnormality of the heart).

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Pollution and Heart Disease
A study published in the American Heart Association journal Circulation finds that air pollution in the United States is twice as likely to cause death from heart disease as death from respiratory illness. The researchers found that more than two-thirds of deaths related to air pollution were from cardiovascular disease, significantly more than were from respiratory diseases. Air pollution does not directly cause heart disease, but it causes pulmonary inflammation that may in turn contribute to plaque buildup in the arteries.

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Health and Nutrition

Issue 72