Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant documents that answer the question.
Query: alkaline diet
The average American diet, which is high in protein and low in fruits and vegetables, generates a large amount of acid, mainly as sulfates and phosphates. The kidneys respond to this dietary acid challenge with net acid excretion, as well as ammonium and titratable acid excretion. Concurrently, the skeleton supplies buffer by active resorption of bone. Indeed, calciuria is directly related to net acid excretion. Different food proteins differ greatly in their potential acid load, and therefore in their acidogenic effect. A diet high in acid-ash proteins causes excessive calcium loss because of its acidogenic content. The addition of exogenous buffers, as chemical salts or as fruits and vegetables, to a high protein diet results in a less acid urine, a reduction in net acid excretion, reduced ammonium and titratable acid excretion, and decreased calciuria. Bone resorption may be halted, and bone accretion may actually occur. Alkali buffers, whether chemical salts or dietary fruits and vegetables high in potassium, reverse acid-induced obligatory urinary calcium loss. We conclude that excessive dietary protein from foods with high potential renal acid load adversely affects bone, unless buffered by the consumption of alkali-rich foods or supplements.
A comprehensive ecologic survey of dietary, life-style, and mortality characteristics of 65 counties in rural China showed that diets are substantially richer in foods of plant origin when compared with diets consumed in the more industrialized, Western societies. Mean intakes of animal protein (about one-tenth of the mean intake in the United States as energy percent), total fat (14.5% of energy), and dietary fiber (33.3 g/d) reflected a substantial preference for foods of plant origin. Mean plasma cholesterol concentration, at approximately 3.23-3.49 mmol/L, corresponds to this dietary life-style. The principal hypothesis under investigation in this paper is that chronic degenerative diseases are prevented by an aggregate effect of nutrients and nutrient-intake amounts that are commonly supplied by foods of plant origin. The breadth and consistency of evidence for this hypothesis was investigated with multiple intake-biomarker-disease associations, which were appropriately adjusted. There appears to be no threshold of plant-food enrichment or minimization of fat intake beyond which further disease prevention does not occur. These findings suggest that even small intakes of foods of animal origin are associated with significant increases in plasma cholesterol concentrations, which are associated, in turn, with significant increases in chronic degenerative disease mortality rates.
Increasing dietary protein results in an increase in urinary calcium. Despite over 80 y of research, the source of the additional urinary calcium remains unclear. Because most calcium balance studies found little effect of dietary protein on intestinal calcium absorption, it was assumed that the skeleton was the source of the calcium. The hypothesis was that the high endogenous acid load generated by a protein-rich diet would increase bone resorption and skeletal fracture. However, there are no definitive nutrition intervention studies that show a detrimental effect of a high protein diet on the skeleton and the hypothesis remains unproven. Recent studies from our laboratory demonstrate that dietary protein affects intestinal calcium absorption. We conducted a series of short-term nutrition intervention trials in healthy adults where dietary protein was adjusted to either low, medium or high. The highest protein diet resulted in hypercalciuria with no change in serum parathyroid hormone. Surprisingly, within 4 d, the low protein diet induced secondary hyperparathyroidism that persisted for 2 wk. The secondary hyperparathyroidism induced by the low protein diet was attributed to a reduction in intestinal calcium absorption (as assessed by dual stable calcium isotopes). The long-term consequences of these low protein-induced changes in calcium metabolism are not known, but they could be detrimental to skeletal health. Several recent epidemiological studies demonstrate reduced bone density and increased rates of bone loss in individuals habitually consuming low protein diets. Therefore, studies are needed to determine whether low protein intakes directly affect rates of bone resorption, bone formation or both.
INTRODUCTION: Although epidemiological evidence seems to support a role for lifestyle factors in the pathogenesis of erectile dysfunction (ED), limited data are available suggesting that dietary changes may improve ED. AIM: To provide an update on clinical evidence regarding the role of dietary factors in ED. METHODS: A systematic literature search was performed using MEDLINE and other database (EMBASE, SCOPUS) with MeSH terms and keywords for "erectile dysfunction", "diet", "dietary patterns", "Mediterranean diet", and "lifestyle". MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: To examine the data relating to erectile dysfunction with dietary factors, its relationship and the impact of dietary treatment. RESULTS: Only few studies assessed the role or the effect of diet on ED. A dietary pattern which is high in fruit, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, and fish but low in red and processed meat and refined grains is more represented in subjects without ED. Mediterranean diet has been proposed as a healthy dietary pattern based on evidence that greater adherence to this diet is associated with lower all-cause and disease-specific survival. In type 2 diabetic men, those with the highest adherence to the Mediterranean diet had the lowest prevalence of ED and were more likely to be sexually active. In clinical trials, Mediterranean diet was more effective than a control diet in ameliorating ED or restoring absent ED in people with obesity or metabolic syndrome. CONCLUSION: The adoption of a Mediterranean diet may be associated with an improvement of erectile dysfunction.
It is likely that plant food consumption throughout much of human evolution shaped the dietary requirements of contemporary humans. Diets would have been high in dietary fiber, vegetable protein, plant sterols and associated phytochemicals, and low in saturated and trans-fatty acids and other substrates for cholesterol biosynthesis. To meet the body's needs for cholesterol, we believe genetic differences and polymorphisms were conserved by evolution, which tended to raise serum cholesterol levels. As a result modern man, with a radically different diet and lifestyle, especially in middle age, is now recommended to take medications to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Experimental introduction of high intakes of viscous fibers, vegetable proteins and plant sterols in the form of a possible Myocene diet of leafy vegetables, fruit and nuts, lowered serum LDL-cholesterol in healthy volunteers by over 30%, equivalent to first generation statins, the standard cholesterol-lowering medications. Furthermore, supplementation of a modern therapeutic diet in hyperlipidemic subjects with the same components taken as oat, barley and psyllium for viscous fibers, soy and almonds for vegetable proteins and plant sterol-enriched margarine produced similar reductions in LDL-cholesterol as the Myocene-like diet and reduced the majority of subjects' blood lipids concentrations into the normal range. We conclude that reintroduction of plant food components, which would have been present in large quantities in the plant based diets eaten throughout most of human evolution into modern diets can correct the lipid abnormalities associated with contemporary eating patterns and reduce the need for pharmacological interventions.
BACKGROUND: Alzheimer's disease (AD) rates in Japan and developing countries have risen rapidly in recent years. Researchers have associated factors such as the Western diet, obesity, alcohol consumption, and smoking with risk of AD. OBJECTIVE: This paper evaluates whether the dietary transition might explain the rising trend of AD prevalence in Japan and in developing countries, evaluating other factors when possible. METHODS: This study used two approaches to see whether dietary or other changes could explain AD trends in Japan and developing countries. One approach involved comparing trends of AD in Japan with changes in national dietary supply factors, alcohol consumption, and lung cancer mortality rates from zero to 25 years before the prevalence data. The second compared AD prevalence values for eight developing countries with dietary supply factors from zero to 25 years before the prevalence data. RESULTS: For Japan, alcohol consumption, animal product, meat and rice supply, and lung cancer rates correlated highly with AD prevalence data, with the strongest correlation for a lag of 15-25 years. In the eight-country study, total energy and animal fat correlated highly with AD prevalence data, with a lag of 15-20 years. Mechanisms to explain the findings include increased obesity for the eight countries, and increases in cholesterol, saturated fat, and iron from increases in animal products and meat supply for Japan. CONCLUSION: Evidently AD rates will continue rising in non-Western countries for some time unless we address major risk factors involving diet, obesity, and smoking.
The effect of diet on tear function is illustrated clearly by malnutrition-induced xerophthalmia. Dietary habits in well nourished North American society have been implicated as a cause of some tear dysfunction. A review of the ocular literature suggests that sufficient dietary protein, vitamins A, B6 and C, potassium, and zinc may be necessary for normal tear function. Excesses of dietary fats, salt, cholesterol, alcohol, protein, and sucrose have been associated with or suggested as causes of tear dysfunction. No unequivocal link has been established between diet and remission of dry eye states in a well nourished population.
We examined the correlation between the incidence of Crohn disease and dietary change in a relatively homogeneous Japanese population. The incidence and daily intake of each dietary component were compared annually from 1966 to 1985. The univariate analysis showed that the increased incidence of Crohn disease was strongly (P < 0.001) correlated with increased dietary intake of total fat (r = 0.919). animal fat (r = 0.880), n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (r = 0.883), animal protein (r = 0.908), milk protein (r = 0.924), and the ratio of n-6 to n-3 fatty acid intake (r = 0.792). It was less correlated with intake of total protein (r = 0.482, P < 0.05), was not correlated with intake of fish protein (r = 0.055, P > 0.1), and was inversely correlated with intake of vegetable protein (r = -0.941, P < 0.001). The multivariate analysis showed that increased intake of animal protein was the strongest independent factor with a weaker second factor, an increased ration of n-6 to n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. The present study in association with reported clinical studies suggests that increased dietary intake of animal protein and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids with less n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids may contribute to the development of Crohn disease.
Oral aluminum (Al) bioavailability from drinking water has been previously estimated, but there is little information on Al bioavailability from foods. It was suggested that oral Al bioavailability from drinking water is much greater than from foods. The objective was to further test this hypothesis. Oral Al bioavailability was determined in the rat from basic [26Al]-sodium aluminum phosphate (basic SALP) in a process cheese. Consumption of ~ 1 gm cheese containing 1.5 or 3% basic SALP resulted in oral Al bioavailability (F) of ~ 0.1 and 0.3%, respectively, and time to maximum serum 26Al concentration (Tmax) of 8 to 9 h. These Al bioavailability results were intermediate to previously reported results from drinking water (F ~ 0.3%) and acidic-SALP incorporated into a biscuit (F ~ 0.1%), using the same methods. Considering the similar oral bioavailability of Al from food vs. water, and their contribution to the typical human’s daily Al intake (~ 95 and 1.5%, respectively), these results suggest food contributes much more Al to systemic circulation, and potential Al body burden, than does drinking water. These results do not support the hypothesis that drinking water provides a disproportionate contribution to total Al absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract.
We studied the effect on fecal hydrolytic activities of adopting an uncooked extreme vegan diet and readopting a conventional diet. Eighteen subjects were randomly divided into test and control groups. In the test group subjects adopted the uncooked extreme vegan diet for 1 mo and then resumed a conventional diet for a second month. Controls consumed a conventional diet throughout the study. Phenol and p-cresol concentrations in serum and daily output in urine and fecal enzyme activities were measured. The activity of fecal urease significantly decreased (by 66%) as did cholylglycine hydrolase (55%), beta-glucuronidase (33%) and beta-glucosidase (40%) within 1 wk of beginning the vegan diet. The new level remained throughout the period of consuming this diet. Phenol and p-cresol concentrations in serum and daily outputs in urine significantly declined. The fecal enzyme activities returned to normal values within 2 wk of resuming the conventional diet. Concentrations of phenol and p-cresol in serum and daily output in urine had returned to normal after 1 mo of consuming the conventional diet. No changes were observed in the control group during the study. Results suggest that this uncooked extreme vegan diet causes a decrease in bacterial enzymes and certain toxic products that have been implicated in colon cancer risk.
The world's advanced countries have easy access to plentiful high-fat food; ironically, it is this rich diet that produces atherosclerosis. In the world's poorer nations, many people subsist on a primarily plant-based diet, which is far healthier, especially in terms of heart disease. To treat coronary heart disease, a century of scientific investigation has produced a device-driven, risk factor-oriented strategy. Nevertheless, many patients treated with this approach experience progressive disability and death. This strategy is a rear-guard defensive one. In contrast, compelling data from nutritional studies, population surveys, and interventional studies support the effectiveness of a plant-based diet and aggressive lipid lowering to arrest, prevent, and selectively reverse heart disease. In essence, this is an offensive strategy. The single biggest step toward adopting this strategy would be to have United States dietary guidelines support a plant-based diet. An expert committee purged of industrial and political influence is required to assure that science is the basis for dietary recommendations. (c)2001 CHF, Inc.
The effect of a mixed Western, high meat diet or a nonmeat diet on the intestinal bacterial beta-glucuronidase activity was studied in human volunteers. This enzyme was significantly higher in stools of subjects on a high meat diet as compared to the nonmeat regimen. Thus, intestinal flora of subjects on a high meat diet was more able to hydrolyze glucuronide conjugates than that of individuals on a nonmeat diet. This, in turn, may raise the amount of substances, such as carcinogens, within the colonic lumen.
Many changes in diet and in physical activity are occurring simultaneously in the developing world. These diet shifts include large increases in energy density, in the proportion of the population consuming a high fat diet and in animal product intake. Animal source foods (ASF) play a major role in these diet shifts. This article documents the large shifts in the composition of diets and obesity across the developing world and notes that these changes are accelerating. Using China as a case study, evidence of the speeding up of this process is presented in descriptive and more rigorous dynamic longitudinal analysis. The implications of these changes for dietary and obesity patterns and cardiovascular disease are great. Indeed, developing countries are at a point where the prevalence of obesity is greater than that of undernutrition and concerns related to intake of saturated fat and energy imbalance must be considered more seriously by the agriculture sector. Current agriculture development policy in many developing countries focuses on livestock promotion and does not consider the potential adverse health consequences of this strategy. Although linkages between ASF intake and obesity cannot be established as clearly as they are for high ASF intakes, heart disease and cancer, the potential adverse health effects linked with an increased ASF intake should no longer be ignored.
The Mediterranean tradition offers a cousine rich in colors, aromas and memories, which support the taste and the spirit of those who live in harmony with nature. Everyone is talking about the Mediterranean diet, but few are those who do it properly, thus generating a lot of confusion in the reader. And so for some it coincides with the pizza, others identified it with the noodles with meat sauce, in a mixture of pseudo historical traditions and folklore that do not help to solve the question that is at the basis of any diet: combine and balance the food so as to satisfy the qualitative and quantitative needs of an individual and in a sense, preserves his health through the use of substances that help the body to perform normal vital functions. The purpose of our work is to demonstrate that the combination of taste and health is a goal that can be absolutely carried out by everybody, despite those who believe that only a generous caloric intake can guarantee the goodness of a dish and the satisfaction of the consumers. That should not be an absolute novelty, since the sound traditions of the Mediterranean cuisine we have used for some time in a wide variety of tasty gastronomic choices, from inviting colors and strong scents and absolutely in line with health.
It is estimated that most colon cancers can be attributed to dietary causes. We have hypothesized that diet influences the health of the colonic mucosa through interaction with the microbiota and that it is the milieu interior that regulates mucosal proliferation and therefore cancer risk. To validate this further, we compared colonic contents from healthy 50- to 65-y-old people from populations with high and low risk, specifically low risk Native Africans (cancer incidence <1:100,000; n = 17), high risk African Americans (risk 65:100,000; n = 17), and Caucasian Americans (risk 50:100,000; n = 18). Americans typically consume a high-animal protein and -fat diet, whereas Africans consume a staple diet of maize meal, rich in resistant starch and low in animal products. Following overnight fasting, rapid colonic evacuation was performed with 2 L polyethylene glycol. Total colonic evacuants were analyzed for SCFA, vitamins, nitrogen, and minerals. Total SCFA and butyrate were significantly higher in Native Africans than in both American groups. Colonic folate and biotin content, measured by Lactobacillus rhamnoses and Lactobacillus plantarum ATCC 8014 bioassay, respectively, exceeded normal daily dietary intakes. Compared with Africans, calcium and iron contents were significantly higher in Caucasian Americans and zinc content was significantly higher in African Americans, but nitrogen content did not differ among the 3 groups. In conclusion, the results support our hypothesis that the microbiota mediates the effect diet has on colon cancer risk by their generation of butyrate, folate, and biotin, molecules known to play a key role in the regulation of epithelial proliferation.
The effect of dietary protein on the level of plasma cholesterol in young, healthy, normolipidemic women was investigated in two separate studies by feeding either a conventional diet containing mixed protein, or a plant protein diet in which the animal protein of the first diet was replaced by soy protein meat analogues and soy milk. The diets were similar with respect to carbohydrate, fat and sterol composition. The first study, lasting 73 days and involving six subjects, gave an indication that plasma cholesterol levels were lower on the plant protein diet. The second study, which incorporated a number of improvements based on experience, lasted 78 days and used a cross-over design involving two groups of five subjects each. In this study, the mean plasma cholesterol level was found to be significantly lower on the plant protein diet.
Statistics compiled by the National Cancer Institute indicate that, between 1935 and 1974, age-adjusted mortality from most 'Western' cancers (those of the breast, colon, prostate, pancreas, ovary, and kidney) rose dramatically in African-Americans. This phenomenon is paralleled by marked increases in the incidence of these cancers in Asia and Southern Europe during the latter 20th century, in conjunction with increased intakes of dietary animal products. A credible case can be made that diets rich in animal products work in various complementary ways to up-regulate serum levels of insulin, free IGF-I, and free sex hormones: hormones that appear to have important promotional activity for Western cancers. It seems likely that dietary animal product intake by black Americans increased substantially during the 20th century, and that this fact is primarily responsible for their concurrent marked increase in mortality from Western cancers. A whole-food vegan diet rich in fruits and vegetables, especially if coupled with regular exercise and smoking avoidance, could be expected to have a remarkably positive impact on African-American cancer risk, reversing the increases in cancer risk incurred during the 20th century. Copyright 2001 Harcourt Publishers Ltd.
OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to evaluate the possible influence of acetic acid (administered as vinegar) on the postprandial glucose and insulin responses, and the potential involvement of a modified gastric emptying rate was studied by use of paracetamol as a marker. DESIGN: The white bread reference meal as well as the corresponding meal supplemented with vinegar had the same content of starch, protein and fat. The meals were served in the morning after an over-night fast and in random order. Capillary blood samples for analysis of glucose, insulin and paracetamol were collected postprandially. SETTING: The study was performed at the Department of Applied Nutrition and Food Chemistry, Lund University, Sweden. SUBJECTS: Ten healthy volunteers, seven women and three men, aged 22-51 y, with normal body mass indices were recruited. RESULTS: The presence of acetic acid, given as vinegar, significantly reduced the postprandial glucose (GI=64) and insulin responses (II=65) to a starchy meal. As judged from lowered paracetamol levels after the test meal with vinegar, the mechanism is probably a delayed gastric emptying rate. CONCLUSIONS: Fermented foods or food products with added organic acids should preferably be included in the diet in order to reduce glycaemia and insulin demand.
Longevity is a very complex phenomenon, because many environmental, behavioral, socio-demographic and dietary factors influence the physiological pathways of aging and life-expectancy. Nutrition has been recognized to have an important impact on overall mortality and morbidity; and its role in extending life expectancy has been the object of extensive scientific research. This paper reviews the pathophysiological mechanisms that potentially link aging with diet and the scientific evidence supporting the anti-aging effect of the traditional Mediterranean diet, as well as of some specific foods. The diet and several of its components have additionally been shown to have beneficial effects on the co-morbidities typical of elderly populations. Furthermore, the epigenetic effects of diet on the aging process - through calorie restriction and the consumption of foods like red wine, orange juice, probiotics and prebiotics - have attracted scientific interest. Some, such as dark chocolate, red wine, nuts, beans, avocados are being promoted as anti-aging foods, due to their anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. Finally, an important moderator in the relationship between diet, longevity and human health remains the socio-economic status of individual, as a healthy diet, due to its higher cost, is closely related to higher financial and educational status. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
OBJECTIVE: Since conventional food questionnaires are not precise in assessing the dietary fatty acids, the purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between the salivary fatty acid profile and the alimentary habits of two different groups in an attempt to develop a more reliable way to determine the lipidic intake. DESIGN: Twenty adults of both sexes, with mixed (M) or vegetarian (V) diets were studied. Data about the fat intake were obtained by means of a Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) and the presence of the main salivary fatty acids was determined by gas chromatography. RESULTS: A greater salivary concentration of alpha-linolenic acid (18:3 n-3) (2.82) was found in V than in M subjects (1.65) (p = 0.001), whilst arachidonic acid (20:4 n-6) was lower in V (3.93) than in M (4.52) (p = 0.045). The same difference regarding arachidonic acid was observed in the dietary fatty acid intake, also showing a significant correlation between its dietary and salivary levels in vegetarian subjects. CONCLUSIONS: These results show that salivary arachidonic acid, relevant for their eicosanoid production related to the tumourigenesis process and cardiovascular diseases, is influenced by dietary fats.
Diet is a major environmental source of proinflammatory AGEs (heat-generated advanced glycation end products); its impact in humans remains unclear. We explored the effects of two equivalent diets, one regular (high AGE, H-AGE) and the other with 5-fold lower AGE (L-AGE) content on inflammatory mediators of 24 diabetic subjects: 11 in a 2-week crossover and 13 in a 6-week study. After 2 weeks on H-AGE, serum AGEs increased by 64.5% (P = 0.02) and on L-AGE decreased by 30% (P = 0.02). The mononuclear cell tumor necrosis factor-α/β-actin mRNA ratio was 1.4 ± 0.5 on H-AGE and 0.9 ± 0.5 on L-AGE (P = 0.05), whereas serum vascular adhesion molecule-1 was 1,108 ± 429 and 698 ± 347 ng/ml (P = 0.01) on L- and H-AGE, respectively. After 6 weeks, peripheral blood mononuclear cell tumor necrosis factor-α rose by 86.3% (P = 0.006) and declined by 20% (P, not significant) on H- or L-AGE diet, respectively; C-reactive protein increased by 35% on H-AGE and decreased by 20% on L-AGE (P = 0.014), and vascular adhesion molecule-1 declined by 20% on L-AGE (P < 0.01) and increased by 4% on H-AGE. Serum AGEs were increased by 28.2% on H-AGE (P = 0.06) and reduced by 40% on L-AGE (P = 0.02), whereas AGE low density lipoprotein was increased by 32% on H-AGE and reduced by 33% on L-AGE diet (P < 0.05). Thus in diabetes, environmental (dietary) AGEs promote inflammatory mediators, leading to tissue injury. Restriction of dietary AGEs suppresses these effects.
The present pilot study analyzed, for the first time, the in vivo effect of Medjool or Hallawi date consumption by healthy subjects on serum glucose, lipids, and oxidative stress. Total phenolics concentration in the Hallawi versus Medjool dates was greater by 20-31%. The major proportion of the soluble phenolics in both date varieties consisted of phenolic acids, mainly ferulic acid and coumaric acid derivatives, and also chlorogenic and caffeic acid derivatives. Unlike the Medjool dates, Hallawi dates contained a significant proportion of catechins as well. In addition, both varieties contained a quercetin derivative. Both date varieties possess antioxidative properties in vitro, but the ferric ion reducing antioxidant power of Hallawi versus Medjool dates was higher by 24%. Ten healthy subjects consumed, for a period of 4 weeks 100 g/day of either Medjool or Hallawi dates. The date consumption did not significantly affect the subjects' body mass index (BMI), their serum total cholesterol, or their cholesterol levels in the VLDL, LDL, or HDL fractions. Most important, fasting serum glucose and triacylglycerol levels were not increased after consumption of either date variety, and serum triacylglycerol levels even significantly (p < 0.05) decreased, by 8 or 15% after Medjool or Hallawi date consumption, respectively. Basal serum oxidative status was significantly (p < 0.01) decreased by 33%, as compared to the levels observed before consumption, after Hallawi (but not Medjool) date consumption. Similarly, the susceptibility of serum to AAPH-induced lipid peroxidation decreased by 12%, but only after Hallawi date consumption. In agreement with the above results, serum activity of the HDL-associated antioxidant enzyme paraoxonase 1 (PON1) significantly increased, by 8%, after Hallawi date consumption. It is concluded that date consumption (and mainly the Hallawi variety) by healthy subjects, despite their high sugar content, demonstrates beneficial effects on serum triacylglycerol and oxidative stress and does not worsen serum glucose and lipid/lipoprotein patterns, and thus can be considered an antiatherogenic nutrient .
OBJECTIVES: Patients with chronic constipation due to food hypersensitivity (FH) had an elevated anal sphincter resting pressure. No studies have investigated a possible role of FH in anal fissures (AFs). We aimed to evaluate (1) the effectiveness of diet in curing AFs and to evaluate (2) the clinical effects of a double-blind placebo-controlled (DBPC) challenge, using cow's milk protein or wheat. METHODS: One hundred and sixty-one patients with AFs were randomized to receive a "true-elimination diet" or a "sham-elimination diet" for 8 weeks; both groups also received topical nifedipine and lidocaine. Sixty patients who were cured with the "true-elimination diet" underwent DBPC challenge in which cow's milk and wheat were used. RESULTS: At the end of the study, 69% of the "true-diet group" and 45% of the "sham-diet group" showed complete healing of AFs (P<0.0002). Thirteen of the 60 patients had AF recurrence during the 2-week cow's milk DBPC challenge and 7 patients had AF recurrence on wheat challenge. At the end of the challenge, anal sphincter resting pressure significantly increased in the patients who showed AF reappearance (P<0.0001), compared with the baseline values. The patients who reacted to the challenges had a significantly higher number of eosinophils in the lamina propria and intraepithelial lymphocytes than those who did not react to the challenges. CONCLUSIONS: An oligo-antigenic diet combined with medical treatment improved the rate of chronic AF healing. In more than 20% of the patients receiving medical and dietary treatment, AFs recurred on DBPC food challenge.
Reducing the concentration of polyamines (spermine, spermidine, and putrescine) in the body pool may slow the cancer process. Because dietary spermine, spermidine, and putrescine contribute to the body pool of polyamines, quantifying them in the diet is important. Limited information about polyamine content of food is available, especially for diets in the United States. This brief report describes the development of a polyamine database linked to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Values for spermine, spermidine, and putrescine were calculated and reported per serving size (nmol/serving). Of the foods from the database that were evaluated, fresh and frozen corn contain the highest levels of putrescine (560,000 nmol/serving and 902,880 nmol/serving) and spermidine (137,682 nmol/serving and 221,111 nmol/serving), and green pea soup contains the highest concentration of spermine (36,988 nmol/serving). The polyamine database and FFQ were tested with a convenience sample (n=165). Average daily polyamine intakes from the sample were: 159,133 nmol/day putrescine, 54,697 nmol/day spermidine, and 35,698 nmol/day spermine. Orange and grapefruit juices contributed the greatest amount of putrescine (44,441 nmol/day) to the diet. Green peas contributed the greatest amount of spermidine (3,283 nmol/day) and ground meat contributed the greatest amount of spermine (2,186 nmol/day). Development of this database linked to an FFQ provides a means of estimating polyamine intake and contributes to investigations relating polyamines to cancer.
Background: The American Heart Association (AHA), Institute of Medicine (IOM), and US Departments of Health and Human Services and Agriculture (USDA) Dietary Guidelines for Americans all recommend that Americans limit sodium intake and choose foods that contain potassium to decrease the risk of hypertension and other adverse health outcomes. Objective: We estimated the distributions of usual daily sodium and potassium intakes by sociodemographic and health characteristics relative to current recommendations. Design: We used 24-h dietary recalls and other data from 12,581 adults aged ≥20 y who participated in NHANES in 2003–2008. Estimates of sodium and potassium intakes were adjusted for within-individual day-to-day variation by using measurement error models. SEs and 95% CIs were assessed by using jackknife replicate weights. Results: Overall, 99.4% (95% CI: 99.3%, 99.5%) of US adults consumed more sodium daily than recommended by the AHA (<1500 mg), and 90.7% (89.6%, 91.8%) consumed more than the IOM Tolerable Upper Intake Level (2300 mg). In US adults who are recommended by the Dietary Guidelines to further reduce sodium intake to 1500 mg/d (ie, African Americans aged ≥51 y or persons with hypertension, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease), 98.8% (98.4%, 99.2%) overall consumed >1500 mg/d, and 60.4% consumed >3000 mg/d—more than double the recommendation. Overall, <2% of US adults and ∼5% of US men consumed ≥4700 mg K/d (ie, met recommendations for potassium). Conclusion: Regardless of recommendations or sociodemographic or health characteristics, the vast majority of US adults consume too much sodium and too little potassium.