Boost the production of the brain's stem cells

( tea, beer, grapes, wine, olive oil, cocoa, nuts and other fruits and vegetables )

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Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) researchers have confirmed that a diet rich in polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids, patented as an LMN diet, helps boost the production of the brain's stem cells -neurogenesis- and strengthens their differentiation in different types of neuron cells. The research revealed that mice fed an LMN diet, when compared to those fed a control diet, have more cell proliferation in the two areas of the brain where neurogenesis is produced, the olfactory bulb and the hippocampus, both of which are greatly damaged in patients with Alzheimer's disease. These results give support to the hypothesis that a diet made up of foods rich in these antioxidant substances could delay the onset of this disease or even slow down its evolution.

The study will be published in the December issue of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and was directed by Mercedes Unzeta, professor of the UAB Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Participating in the study were researchers from this department and from the departments of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, and of Psychiatry and Legal Medicine, all of which are affiliated centres of the Institute of Neuroscience of Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. The company La Morella Nuts from Reus and the ACE Foundation of the Catalan Institute of Applied Neurosciences also collaborated in the study.

Polyphenols can be found in tea, beer, grapes, wine, olive oil, cocoa, nuts and other fruits and vegetables. Polyunsaturated fatty acids can be found in blue fish and vegetables such as corn, soya beans, sunflowers and pumpkins. The LMN cream used in this study was composed of a mixture of natural products: dried fruits and nuts, coconut, vegetable oils rich in polyunsaturated fat and flour rich in soluble fiber. These creams were created and patented by the company La Morella Nuts, located in Reus near Tarragona. Previous studies had verified their effects on regulating cholesterol levels and hypertension, two risk factors commonly associated with heart disease and Alzheimer's disease.

During the development of the brain, stem cells generate different neural cells (neurons, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes) which end up forming the adult brain. Until the 1960s it was thought that the amount of neurons in adult mammals decreased with age and that the body was not able to renew these cells. Now it is known that new neurons are formed in the adult brain. This generative capacity of the cells however is limited to two areas of the brain: the olfactory bulb and the hippocampus (area related to the memory and to cognitive processes). Although the rhythm of cell proliferation decreases with age and with neurodegenerative diseases, it is known that exercise and personal well being can combat this process.

The main objective of this research was to study the effect of an LMN cream-enriched diet on the neurogenesis of the brain of an adult mouse. Scientists used two groups of mice for the study. One group was given a normal diet and the other was given the same diet enriched with LMN cream. Both groups were fed during 40 days (approximately five years in humans). The analyses carried out in different brain regions demonstrated that those fed with LMN cream had a significantly higher amount of stem cells, as well as new differentiated cells, in the olfactory bulb and hippocampus.

The second objective was to verify if the LMN cream could prevent damage caused by oxidation or neural death in cell cultures. Cultures of the hippocampal and cortical cells were pretreated with LMN cream. After causing oxidative damage with hydrogen peroxide, which killed 40% of the cells, scientists observed that a pretreatment with LMN cream was capable of diminishing, and in some cases completely preventing, oxidative damage. The hippocampal and cortical cells were also damaged using amyloid beta (anomalous deposits of this protein are related to Alzheimer's disease). The results obtained were similar to those obtained using hydrogen peroxide.

These results demonstrate that an LMN diet is capable of inducing the generation of new cells in the adult brain, and of strengthening the neural networks which become affected with age and in neurogenerative processes such as Alzheimer's disease, as well as protecting neurons from oxidative and neural damage, two phenomena which occur at the origin of many diseases affecting the central nervous system.

In this study researchers have used different biochemical and molecular analysis techniques, with the help of specific antibodies, to detect different neuronal markers implied in the process of differentiation. The group of researchers led by Dr Unzeta has spent years studying the effects oxidases have on oxidative stress as a factor implied in neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson and Alzheimer's disease, and the effects of different natural products with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties in different experimental models of Alzheimer's disease. ...http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

Chia EU novel foods approval beckons bread deals

The omega-3 and omega-6 laden ancient grain, chia, has had its European Union novel foods status confirmed for use in bread products. ...http://www.nutraingredients.com

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The link between apple-shaped women and dementia

( an association between having a waist-to-hip ratio greater than 0.80 )

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Apple-shaped women face a doubled risk of dementia, according to the Daily Mail.
This news is based on Swedish research that measured the physical dimensions of 1,500 women and followed them for an average of 32 years. Those women with an “apple shape” (broader in the middle than the hips) faced an increased risk of dementia if they lived beyond 70 years. This study was well designed and collected data over several years. However, the researchers were surprised to find no link between body mass index (BMI) and stroke risk, an association found in other studies. Other results also suggest the findings may have occurred by chance. Overall, this large study has not convincingly shown the link between apple-shaped women and dementia, and raises more questions than it answers. Further research into this area is needed.

Where did the story come from?This research was carried out by Dr Deborah Gustafson and colleagues from the Institute for Neuroscience and Physiology in Sweden. The study was supported by the US National Institutes of Health and the Swedish Research Council. The study was published in the peer-reviewed medical journal Neurology. Other newspapers reported this research in a similar way to the Daily Mail. The Daily Telegraph also highlighted that the researchers found no link between dementia and high BMI. What kind of research was this? This was a report of data from a cohort study conducted in Sweden between 1968 and 2000. This research report focuses on the links between physiological measurements and the risk of dementia.

The researchers explain that the relationship between weight and dementia is complex. Higher body fat in middle age and later life is thought to increase dementia risk, but there is also a trend for the elderly to lose weight within a few years of being diagnosed with dementia. The researchers feel that these relationships needed further study. Given dementia sufferers’ shifts in body fat over time, it was important that this study included analysis of these changes over time. These types of factor can only reliably be analysed using an inception cohort study, which recruits people at the same stage in the development of a disease. In this case, the researchers performed an inception cohort study that recruited only women who had no diagnosis of dementia and followed them over time to see who might develop the condition.

What did the research involve?In this study, called the Prospective Population Study of Women (PPSW), a representative sample of 1,462 women without dementia was recruited in 1968. They ranged in age from 38 to 60 years. At entry into the study, they underwent a range of clinical and psychiatric tests, and had various body measurements taken (weight, height, waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio). These same tests were performed again in 1974, 1980, 1992 and 2000.

Dementia was diagnosed according to DSM-III-R criteria, a recognised diagnosis method of the American Psychiatric Association. The researchers also included a category for “probable and possible Alzheimer’s dementia”, and diagnosed the sub-types of dementia using recognised criteria and CT scanning where necessary. They particularly looked at a condition called Alzheimer’s dementia with cerebrovascular disease (ADCVD), in which Alzheimer’s was diagnosed in the presence of a history of stroke. Stroke is known to be linked to both dementia and BMI. The researchers noted whether there was a history of previous heart attack, stroke or diabetes based on the participants’ self-reports. They also conducted blood tests, ECG assessments and assessments of lifestyle factors, including physical activity, alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking. They also asked about level of education and socioeconomic status, which they then defined as working class, middle class or upper class (based on 1968–69 survey responses). The researchers used all these factors to adjust their analysis in order to minimise the influence of factors linked to dementia. This would increase their ability to detect any link, if one existed, with the weight and fat distribution measures. The measurements in this study appear to have been carefully conducted, and the study’s findings were well reported.

What were the basic results?Over 32 years, dementia occurred in 161 participants. The average age at diagnosis was 75.6 years (range 48 to 91 years). There were 75 cases of Alzheimer’s, 108 cases of Alzheimer’s in people with previous stroke (ADCVD) and 37 cases of pure vascular dementia. There was an association between having a waist-to-hip ratio greater than 0.80 at the start of the study (e.g. 80cm waist with100cm around the hips) and a 2.2-fold higher risk of dementia among surviving participants aged 70 or older. The result reported by the researchers was an odds ratio of 2.22 (95% confidence interval 1.00 to 4.94), meaning that it was only just statistically significant. The other measure of statistical significance, the p-value, was 0.04. This confirmed the borderline significance of the result, as a p-value of less than 0.05 is generally considered significant. This finding was one of 40 statistical results relating to the relationship between physical factors measured in midlife and late life and dementia. The only other statistically significant result showed that a low BMI or waist circumference in examinations later in life (between the ages of 62 to 92) was associated with an increased risk of dementia. This was consistent with the researchers’ earlier suspicions that the closer a person gets to a diagnosis of dementia, the less likely they are to be overweight.

How did the researchers interpret the results?The researchers say that, in the Swedish women, they observed an approximately twofold increase in the odds of later dementia in those with a high midlife measure of central body fat. They note that this finding is only true for those who survived for 32 years (to at least the age of 70) and who participated in the neuropsychiatric examination.

Conclusion: This well-designed study was reported accurately by researchers and news sources. It ran over a long period of time with careful follow-up and measurements. However, only one of the “adiposity” (relating to fat) measurements that the researchers looked at was significant, which suggests that the findings should be treated cautiously. In addition, as the single positive finding was only just statistically significant, it may have occurred by chance alone.

Other cautions are raised by the researchers: It is often difficult to diagnose different types of dementia, and the researchers used strict criteria combined with reviews by psychiatrists. However, this review of notes, particularly among those who were lost to follow-up, might have reduced the accuracy of diagnosis. There were small numbers of people with the sub-types of dementia, which limits the ability of the researchers to analyse these specific sub-groups. The researchers note that, as the study was carried out in a group of Swedish women with similar characteristics (average weight 64.5kg and BMI 24.1), its results may not apply to other more varied groups. They say that, ideally, the study should be repeated in other populations. Overall, this large study conducted over a long time has not convincingly shown the link between apple-shaped women and dementia, and it raises more questions than it answers. These questions can only be answered through further study. ...http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

Study links DASH diet to lower blood pressure

A diet consisting of low fat dairy foods, wholegrains, and fruit and vegetables has been linked to lower blood pressure in the first British study of the DASH diet. ...http://www.nutraingredients.com

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A costly diagnosis

( $191-$219/day )

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Alzheimer's disease takes a devastating emotional toll on families but it also is one of the most expensive conditions to treat because of its progressive nature, requiring increasing assistance with eating, bathing and other basic activities over up to 20 years.

However, financial planning at the disease's early stages can stretch available dollars and ensure that those afflicted with Alzheimer's receive the best care they and their families can afford. Every Friday afternoon Ward Campbell takes his wife Peggy to happy hour. Often a local musician plays and the two sample appetizers. He has a beer or two and she sips a cola.

The location, however, is not a restaurant but Morningside of Charlottesville, Va., an assisted-living community operated by Newton, Mass.-based FiveStar Senior Living. Peggy is one of 20 residents in Morningside's memory care unit and most of the time she doesn't recognize Ward as her husband.

"There's a lot of guilt," Ward said. "Am I visiting her enough? Have I cared for her enough? Is she in the best place? Should I do more?"

Married for 46 years, Ward and Peggy Campbell, both age 72, had very different plans for their savings than $4,600 per month for her care and board at Morningside.

"I'm skimping and saving," Ward said. "I'd hoped to pay $4,600 on something else. It would buy a lot of trips, a lot of Porsches and a lot of fun."

Currently 5.3 million Americans live with Alzheimer's disease and someone new develops it every 70 seconds. Since the main risk factor is age, that number could accelerate to nearly a million new cases annually by 2050, when the youngest of the baby boomers turns 84. November is National Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month.

In 2008, average yearly expenditures on health care and other long-term-care services for someone with Alzheimer's totaled $33,007, more than triple the amount for other seniors 65 and older, according to 2009 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures, an annual report by the Alzheimer's Association. Of these costs, Medicare covered a little less than half ($15,145) and Medicaid about one fifth ($6,605).

One reason why people with dementia face higher costs is that most also have one or more additional serious medical conditions such as diabetes or coronary heart disease, said Dr. Jae Pak, a geriatric psychiatrist at Healthcare for Seniors Center in Atlanta.

"Alzheimer's exacerbates other illnesses and vice versa," he added. "People may not take their medications correctly. Diabetics may forget to eat unless somebody is there to make sure that they eat."

Alzheimer's also is the sixth leading cause of death for Americans. In its final stages, complications include immobility, swallowing disorders and malnutrition -- all of which significantly raise the risk of developing pneumonia.

Lots of assistance

Still the most challenging financial hit for patients and their families comes not from direct health-care costs but the increased need for assistance with just about every task of daily activity from getting dressed to using the bathroom as the disease progresses to its middle and late stages.

Because that care is not typically covered by government or private health plans, 8.5 billion hours of unpaid care valued at $94 billion was provided by almost 10 million family members and friends last year. Many cut work hours or even quit their job to help loved ones.

But as the person with Alzheimer's becomes increasingly confused and requires 24-hour care, most families eventually require outside help. In 2008, the average home care rate for personal care and homemaker services was $144 for an eight-hour day. Adult day care cost an average of $64/day.

Specialized Alzheimer's care in assisted-living cost an average of $4,267 a month or $51,204 a year, while average nursing home rates run from $191-$219/day or from about $70,000-$80,000/year depending on whether one opts for a semiprivate or private room or is in an Alzheimer's special care unit. ...http://www.medicalnewstoday.com

Diet rich in polypenols might delay onset of Alzheimer’s

A diet rich in polyphenols and polyunsaturated fatty acids could delay the onset of Alzheimer’s disease through the production of new brain cells and the strenghtening of neural networks, according to a new Spanish study. ...http://www.nutraingredients.com

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Catching a cold or the flu could speed memory loss

( a sudden infection or injury that led to inflammation )

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Catching a cold or the flu could speed memory loss in people with Alzheimer's disease, researchers reported Tuesday.

In a study of patients with mild to severe Alzheimer's disease, they found that people who suffered acute or chronic infections, or even bumps and bruises from a fall, were much more likely to have high blood levels of a protein involved in inflammation and also experienced faster memory loss than people who did not have infections and who had low levels of this protein.

It's possible that finding a way to reduce inflammation in the body "could be beneficial for people with Alzheimer's disease," study chief Dr. Clive Holmes, from the University of Southampton, UK, said in a prepared statement. Over about 6 months, Holmes and colleagues measured the cognitive abilities and blood levels the inflammatory protein TNF-alpha of 222 people with Alzheimer's disease. They also interviewed each subject's main caregiver several times during the study.

During follow up, roughly half of the study subjects experienced a sudden infection or injury that led to inflammation, and a spike in TNF-alpha levels. These people, the researchers found, experienced memory loss that was at twice the rate of those who did not have infections or injuries. People who had high levels of TNF-alpha in their blood at the beginning of the study, a sign of chronic, ongoing inflammation, had memory loss at four times the rate of those with low levels of the protein at the start of the study. By contrast, subjects with low levels of TNF-alpha throughout the study showed no decline in brain function, the report indicates.

"One might guess that people with a more rapid rate of cognitive decline are more susceptible to infections or injury, but we found no evidence to suggest that people with more severe dementia were more likely to have infections or injuries at the beginning of the study," Holmes noted in a prepared statement. ...http://www.canada.com

Flaxseed oil cuts osteoporosis risk in diabetic women

Flaxseed oil may reduce the risk of osteoporosis in women with diabetes and those who are post-menopausal, according to a new study. ...http://www.nutraingredients.com

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Go to a party to cut dementia risk

( a 50 percent lower risk of developing dementia )

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Keeping a full social calendar may help protect you from dementia, researchers said on Monday. Socially active people who were not easily stressed had a 50 percent lower risk of developing dementia compared with men and women who were isolated and prone to distress, they reported in the journal Neurology. "In the past, studies have shown that chronic distress can affect parts of the brain, such as the hippocampus, possibly leading to dementia," Hui-Xin Wang of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, who led the study, said in a statement. "But our findings suggest that having a calm and outgoing personality in combination with a socially active lifestyle may decrease the risk of developing dementia even further."

An estimated 24 million people worldwide have the memory loss, problems with orientation and other symptoms that signal Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.

Researchers believe the number of people with dementia may quadruple by 2040, underlining the importance of better understanding the condition.

The Swedish study involved 506 elderly people who did not have dementia when first examined. The volunteers were given questionnaires about their personality traits and lifestyles and then tracked for six years. Over that time, 144 people developed dementia with more socially active and less stressed men and women 50 percent less likely to be diagnosed with the condition. "The good news is, lifestyle factors can be modified as opposed to genetic factors which cannot be controlled," Wang said. "But these are early results, so how exactly mental attitude influences risk for dementia is not clear." ...http://www.canada.com

Resveratrol could prove HRT alternative

Treatment based on resveratrol could be a safer alternative to hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in postmenopausal women and could help prevent breast cancer, according to a new study. ...http://www.nutraingredients.com

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Alzheimer's research is attempting to identify biomarkers

( a threshold that needs to increase )

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Alzheimer's disease is the only major disease without a prevention or cure, and fatalities are on the rise. Yet it is a disease that gets a fraction of federal research dollars when compared to other ailments, said Harry Johns, president and CEO of the national office of the Alzheimer's Association. Johns, who spoke Sunday at a fundraiser for the Alzheimer's Association, Greater Michigan Chapter, said the National Institutes of Health last year awarded billions of dollars in research funding, including $6 billion for cancer, $4 billion for cardiovascular disease and $3 billion for HIV/AIDS. But NIH funds for Alzheimer research reached $428 million -- a threshold that needs to increase, he said. "We've made excellent progress, despite underfunding," said Johns. "But there are still many unknowns. We'll get to the answers. The question is, will we get to the answers soon enough."
More than 5.3 million Americans are succumbing to Alzheimer's, an incurable, degenerative disease. With the aging of baby boomers, the disease is expected to explode to 16 million Americans who slowly lose bodily functions and the ability to recognize loved ones and perform daily tasks. The federal Alzheimer's Study Group, co-chaired by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Sen. Bob Kerrey, released a report in May projecting Alzheimer's-related costs to Medicare and Medicaid alone to reach $20 trillion over the next 40 years. "If we do nothing, this disease is going to bankrupt our health care system," said Stephen Aronson, a clinical professor at the University of Michigan Medical School.
Current Alzheimer's research is attempting to identify biomarkers to help diagnose the disease in individuals before symptoms appear. Aronson is enrolling patients in the third phase of a clinical trial investigating a new drug, Dimebon, at the Mood and Memory Clinic in Ann Arbor, one of several sites across the United States and in Europe, Australia and New Zealand. No data are available on the third stage, but Aronson is hopeful that Dimebon will win approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration within the next few years.
Mary Ellen Geist, a New York broadcast journalist who left her career in 2005 and came home to northern Michigan to help her mother care for her father, has hope for Dimebon and more research for the disease. The burden, she said, isn't just on individuals or the nation's economy.
"Some people think that Alzheimer's Alzehimer's only affects one person," said Geist, who wrote a memoir, "Measure of the Heart." "But it takes a whole family. All of us are suffering from the disease." ...http://www.ocala.com

Ocean Spray launches whole cranberries

Ocean Spray is now offering whole dried cranberries as ingredients, to help raise confectionery and snack products into the premium category. ...http://www.nutraingredients.com

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