April 2, 2022 Nutrition Notes

 SUBJ: cerebrovascular rejuvenation

SUBtitle: lots of AARP reminders of easy steps for healthspan

Snowing hard April 2nd.  I saw wonderful people in NYC last weekend.  I am so grateful for my life, and so sorry for what much of the world is suffering. See past newsletters here   

SHORT NOTES: Cerebrovascular Rejuvenation: Resveratrol and vitamins C and E reduce vascular cognitive impairment; Register for free for NIH conference on nutrition to prevent cancer, July 26-28; AREDs contains double the upper limit of zinc;  Modest modulation of oxygen intake, either by inducing mild intermittent hypoxia or hyperoxia appears to induce modest rejuvenative changes in mammals; “Our study demonstrates that the U.S. health care workforce is in peril. If even one-third to one-half of nurses and physicians carry out their expressed intensions to cut back or leave, we won’t have enough staff to meet the needs of patients.”; Air pollution  and cigarette smoke can harm the brain, and contribute to Alzheimer’s; Health sustaining role of fruits in aging and age-related disorders;  Melatonin use skyrocketing with improper dosing; AARP: For your brain, B-vitamins, omega-3s, and vitamin D are important; Healthiest salty snacks: nuts, popcorn, seeds, etc; Breakfast mistakes: skipping it, not enough, etc; Dangers of sitting too much: it doubles harm to your heart, shortens your life, , etc; Worst habits for belly fat- eating white bread, diet soda, etc; Keeping your mind sharp-use it or lose it, Since your five senses are key to learning, if you're right-handed, try using your left hand. Close your eyes and see if you can recognize food by taste, etc.

 LONG NOTES:

Resveratrol and vitamins C and E reduce vascular cognitive impairment.  Cerebrovascular Rejuvenation: Novel Strategies for Prevention of Vascular Cognitive Impairment.  Vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) represents the second most common cause of dementia after Alzheimer's disease (AD). Estimates place about 36 million individuals worldwide currently affected by age-related dementia, and this number is expected to reach 150 million by 2050 with a societal cost of nearly $4 trillion.  The brain utilizes >20% of the body's energy budget.  In preclinical studies, treatments designed to attenuate ROS production, increase cellular oxidative stress resilience, and/or enhance cellular energetics were shown to successfully reverse aspects of age-related microvascular impairment in the brain. Specifically, there are studies showing that attenuation of mitochondrial oxidative stress (either by the mitochondria-targeted antioxidative peptide SS-315 or mitochondria-specific overexpression of catalase8) is associated with significant improvement of NVC responses. Similarly, endothelium-specific delivery of resveratrol, a potent polyphenol with antioxidant properties (including activation of Nrf2-dependent antioxidative defense mechanisms9), generated promising results by improving vascular endothelial function and rescuing NVC responses.1

Register for free for NIH conference on nutrition to prevent cancer, July 26-28.

AREDs contains double the upper limit of zinc.  The Upper Limit (safe) level of zinc is 40mg daily.  The UL is the highest recommended daily amount of a nutrient. For most people, 80 mg is unlikely to cause negative side effects ( 1 , 2)  The investigators did not find a difference in the benefits of AREDS if zinc level was reduced to 25 mg. So getting a lower dose of zinc makes sense.  EyePromise has a much lower dose of zinc, and costs $38.95 for 30 days.  However, it has a substantially different formulation with many other vitamins but much less vitamins C and E.  AREDsII costs $25.79. 

Modest modulation of oxygen intake, either by inducing mild intermittent hypoxia or hyperoxia appears to induce modest rejuvenative changes in mammals, in part, by activating key regulator hypoxia-induced factor 1a (HIF-1a).

From Kevin’s newsletter: “Our study demonstrates that the U.S. health care workforce is in peril. If even one-third to one-half of nurses and physicians carry out their expressed intensions to cut back or leave, we won’t have enough staff to meet the needs of patients.” [Please consider my supplements and exercise to stay healthy.] Nearly 100 Medical Societies Advocate Medicare Reform – In a letter dated February 24, 2022, almost 100 professional healthcare societies signed onto a request of Congress advocating reform of the Medicare physician payment system. In their letter, they stated: "We respectfully request that your committees collaborate with the provider community to immediately initiate formal proceedings (hearing, roundtables, expert panels, etc.) to discuss potential reforms to the Medicare physician payment system to ensure continued beneficiary access to care…"; 20% of physicians or, 1 in 5 MDs indicated that they intend to exit practice within the next two years! 

Air pollution  and cigarette smoke can harm the brain, and contribute to Alzheimer’s.

Role of fruits in aging and age-related disorders. Aging is a collection of changes that contribute to decline in maximum function and ultimately death of an organism. This process is controlled and initiated by several mechanisms including telomere shortening, oxidative stress, AMP-activated protein kinase and sirt-1. Several therapies have been reported to relieve the process of aging. Among these, diet therapy seems to be the most appropriate approach. Fruits are an important part of regular diet. They contain several compounds which have potential to handle the problem of aging and its related disorders.

Melatonin use skyrocketing with improper dosing.  I use 3mg 4x weekly.

AARP: [I summarize these as they take too much time for me to enjoy]

1)    For your brain, B-vitamins, omega-3s, and vitamin D are important.

2)    Healthiest salty snacks: nuts, edamame, string cheese, veggies and healthy dip (Greek yogurt recipe), popcorn, seeds, kale chips, minipizzas, roasted chick peas, ants on a log, baked potato, hard boiled egg, low sodium chips and salsa

3)    Breakfast mistakes: skipping it, not enough, eating too fast, not enough protein, complex carbs, healthy fats, or eggs, drinking sweetened juice, not drinking enough water, choosing a poor smoothie or breakfast bar,

4)    Dangers of sitting too much: it doubles harm to your heart, shortens your life, quickens dementia, deep vein thrombosis, weight gain, anxiety, back pain, varicose veins, osteoporosis, cancer, and diabetes, Even if you work out 7 hours a week -- far more than the suggested 2-3 hours -- you can’t reverse the effects of sitting 7 hours at a time.

5)    Worst habits for belly fat- eating white bread, diet soda, low and fat-free foods, skipping meals, while distracted, too fast, too late, poor sleep, smoking, eating on a big plate, not moving enough, being stressed.

6)    Keeping your mind sharp-use it or lose it, neurobics," which challenge your brain to think in new ways. Since your five senses are key to learning, use them to exercise your mind. If you're right-handed, try using your left hand. Drive to work by another route. Close your eyes and see if you can recognize food by taste, exercise, healthy food (not fried), play an instrument, talk with other people, stay calm, sleep 7-8 hrs, Write things down, Use a calendar, one task at a time, always repeat a person’s name while talking with them.