June 2006 Newsletter

Prof Mark Wahlqvist AO, MD, FRACP Immediate Past President International Union of Nutritional Science

Welcome to the June edition of the HEC newsletter This edition looks at scientific studies published on: eggs and diabetes, buckwheat and health, ketogenic diets, recommended beverage intake, rice and oat milk, advanced glycation end products (AGEs), 2006 Australian Recommended Dietary Intakes, common drug nutrient/herb interactions also: read abstracts of the new edition vol15 (2) of the Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Dr Antigone Kouris-Blazos PhD, Grad Dip Diet, BSc (Hons) Honorary Nutrition Research Fellow, Monash University

Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition Subscribe to APJCN for only $195 hardcopy and online or $150 on-line only

WHAT'S NEW IN NUTRITION RESEARCH
Eggs and diabetes

A study on over 1000 people with diabetes reported that a high intake of eggs and saturated fat were associated with a significant increase in mortality (Trichopoulos et al., J Intern Med. 2006 Jun;259(6):583-91). This finding is in agreement with other studies. For example, in 1999 Hu et el (JAMA. 1999 Apr 21;281(15):1387-94) reported that people with diabetes might have an increased risk of developing coronary heart disease (CHD) or stroke if they eat one or more eggs per day. For the study, 37,851 men and 80,082 women were observed as part of the Health Professionals follow-up study (1986 to 1994) and the Nurses' Health Study (1980 to 1994). Participants eating more than one egg per day were unlikely to develop coronary heart disease (CHD) or stroke, except in the subgroup of people with diabetes. Researchers suggest that the apparent increased risk of CHD and stroke associated with higher egg consumption among participants with diabetes warrants further research.
Read more about eggs

Buckwheat flour and honey: ancient foods that may become superfoods of the future

Several types of honey have been found to contain antioxidants. "Buckwheat" honey, however, has been found to have much higher levels of antoxidants than other honeys, and when consumed actually translates to an increased antioxidant activity of blood (J Agric Food Chem. 2003 Mar 12;51(6):1732-5). but whether this relates to improved health is unknown J Agric Food Chem. 2003 Feb 26;51(5):1500-5. In Australia, buckwheat honey is hard to find. America produces this honey and China produces a blend of buckwheat honey and other honey called "bamboo" honey. Buckwheat is not a form of wheat. Though it’s similar to wheat in nutrition, buckwheat isn’t actually a more..

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Low carb diets: ketogenic versus non-ketogenic

There is quite convincing evidence that low carbohydrate diets result in faster weight loss and better diabetic control (improved insulin sensitivity) in the short term than higher carbohydrate/low fat diets. But how "low" should one go when it comes to carbohydrate? If you go very low do you lose more weight than if you have a moderate but restricted intake? Do you need to go in to "ketosis" to lose weight faster?

A study by Johnston et al (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 83, No. 5, 1055-1061) investigated whether a
low carbohydrate (<50g) diet (which resulted in ketosis) compared with a moderate carbohydrate (>100g) (did not result in ketosis) was more effective at inducing weight loss. After 6 weeks on the diets, both groups lost similar amounts of weight (6kg) and both groups had improvements in insulin action/sensitivity. However the ketogenic diet resulted in adverse metabolic effects(increased inflammatory risk). The authors conclude that the use of ketogenic diets for weight loss is not warranted.

Read more about low carb diet

Recommended intakes of Beverages - by Popkin et al. American Journal Clinical Nutrition 2006; 83:529-42

	Suggested Pattern	Acceptable range
Water	1500ml/day	600-1500ml/day
Tea, coffee (unsweetened)	800ml/day	0-1200ml/day
Low fat milk and soy milk	500ml/day	0-500ml/day
Non-calorically sweetened soft drinks	0 ml/day	0-900ml/day
Caloric beverages with nutrients
- fruit juice, vegetable juice, full fat milk, sports drinks	120ml/day	120ml/day
- alcoholic beverages	0ml/day 0ml/day	1-2 drink/day for women 0-2 drinks/day for men
Calorically sweetend soft drinks		0-250ml/day

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NUTRITION RESOURCES ON THE WEB

Food Standards Australia New Zealand - Media Release on RICE AND OAT "MILK" - not suitable for children under 5 because they are much lower in protein than cow's milk.

ABC HEALTH REPORT - The latest in Diabetes Research from the Baker Institute-
Advanced Glycation End Products or AGEs. These are formed when excess glucose in the blood reacts with protein forming byproducts that have been linked to diabetes complications like kidney disease, blindness, amputation and heart disease. However, it is also possible to consume AGEs from foods that have been cooked at high temperatures (grilled,roasted,fried foods), fermented foods (soy sauce), coffee and caramelised/browned foods (cola drinks). Having a high intake of AGEs could potentially increase one's risk of developing diabetes-like complications even in the absence of diabetes (especially in people with reduced liver or kidney function). Eating more raw/boiled/casseroled foods and less grilled/fried foods will reduce your intake of AGEs.

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HEC NUTRITION RESOURCES

The Australian Recommended Dietary Intakes (RDIs) have been updated this year - the recommended amounts for most vitamins and minerals have increased which means we need to eat more nutrient dense foods and less nutrient poor foods to achieve these higher RDIs.

SUMMARY RDI TABLE adapted from Australian Government Dept of Health and Ageing and National Health and Medical Research Council - click here

Common Drug/Nutrient Herb Interactions - check your medications against this list to see which nutrients/herbs you need to avoid or have more of. Consult you doctor/nutritionist before you take any supplements.

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