Genetic risk for obesity grew stronger in 'obesogenic' environment

Lending support to the idea that high-calorie diets, sedentariness and other aspects of the contemporary American lifestyle may be driving the obesity epidemic, UC San Francisco researchers have found that people who carry greater genetic risk for obesity were more likely to have a higher body mass index if they were born later in the 20th century.

The study, published Tuesday, July 5 in JAMA, looked at 7,482 white and 1,306 black participants in the U.S. nationwide Health and Retirement Study who were born between 1900 and 1958. Researchers calculated a genetic risk score for each participant, based on whether they had any of 29 genetic variants that are associated with obesity, and looked to see how this score compared with their BMI.

The number of variants each person had did not increase in the population over time, while their effects on people did, pointing to environmental influences. 

Dietary glycemic index modulates the behavioral and biochemical abnormalities associated with autism spectrum disorder. - PubMed - NCBI

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder
of unknown etiology, but very likely resulting from both genetic and
environmental factors. There is good evidence for immune system
dysregulation in individuals with ASD. However, the contribution of
insults such as dietary factors that can also activate the immune system
have not been explored in the context of ASD. In this paper, we show
that the dietary glycemic index has a significant impact on the ASD
phenotype. By using BTBR mice, an inbred strain that displays behavioral
traits that reflect the diagnostic symptoms of human ASD, we found that
the diet modulates plasma metabolites, neuroinflammation and brain
markers of neurogenesis in a manner that is highly reflective of ASD in
humans. Overall, the manuscript supports the idea that ASD results from
gene-environment interactions and that in the presence of a genetic
predisposition to ASD, diet can make a large difference in the
expression of the condition.Molecular Psychiatry advance online
publication, 9 June 2015; doi:10.1038/mp.2015.64

Seasons influence the methylation profiles of newborns: more evidence that mom's diet during pregnancy has lasting effects in her offspring. |EpiBeat

Metastable epialleles (ME) are gene alleles that are differentially expressed through epigenetic regulatory mechanisms. The DNA methylation status of an ME is established during embryonic development, and can be maintained later into life. The differential methylation of these MEs contribute to phenotypic diversity between individuals and provides an explanation for the epigenetic variability observed in monozygotic twins. In laboratory animals, studies have shown that maternal dietary intake strongly influences ME epigenetic status. Increased dietary exposure to a methyl-donor prior to, and during pregnancy, leads to hypermethylation at MEs and permanent phenotypic variance. In humans however, it has been challenging to elucidate the potential influence of maternal methyl-donor intake on ME methylation level due to methodological difficulties in precise dietary control in pre-gestational women.

A new study demonstrates for the first time, in human subjects, that maternal diet intake at gestation has long lasting effects on the epigome of the offspring! Unfortunately, the study was not able to provide further insights on the overall fitness of infants born in different season or the duration of the maternal diet-induced ME methylation. Future investigations addressing these questions is likely to deepen the current understanding on mechanisms of epigenetics as well as possess a substantial socioeconomic impact on the general public.

Here's the paper:-

Maternal nutrition at conception modulates DNA methylation of human metastable epialleles

 Nature Communications

Discovery of anti-appetite molecule released by fibre could help tackle obesity

(Medical Xpress)—New research has helped unpick a long-standing mystery
about how dietary fibre supresses appetite. In a study led by Imperial
College London and the Medical Research Council (MRC), an international
team of researchers identified an anti-appetite molecule called acetate
that is naturally released when we digest fibre in the gut. Once
released, the acetate is transported to the brain where it produces a
signal to tell us to stop eating.
Here's the paper summary

Increased intake of dietary carbohydrate that is fermented in the colon
by the microbiota has been reported to decrease body weight, although
the mechanism remains unclear. Here we use in vivo¹¹C-acetate and PET-CT scanning to show that colonic acetate crosses the blood–brain barrier and is taken up by the brain. Intraperitoneal acetate results in appetite suppression and hypothalamic neuronal activation patterning. We also show that acetate administration is associated with activation of acetyl-CoA carboxylase
and changes in the expression profiles of regulatory neuropeptides that
favour appetite suppression. Furthermore, we demonstrate through ¹³C high-resolution magic-angle-spinning that ¹³C acetate from fermentation of ¹³C-labelled carbohydrate in the colon increases hypothalamic ¹³C acetate above baseline levels. Hypothalamic ¹³C acetate regionally increases the ¹³C labelling of the glutamate–glutamine and GABA neuroglial cycles, with hypothalamic ¹³C lactate reaching higher levels than the ‘remaining brain’. These observations suggest that acetate has a direct role in central appetite regulation.

Healthy midlife diet may prevent dementia later -- ScienceDaily

The researchers assessed the link between diet and dementia using a
healthy diet index based on the consumption of a variety of foods.
Vegetables, berries and fruits, fish and unsaturated fats from milk
products and spreads were some of the healthy components, whereas
sausages, eggs, sweets, sugary drinks, salty fish and saturated fats
from milk products and spreads were indicated as unhealthy.

Whole grains, rather than dietary fibre, found to be fundamental to the prevention of chronic disease

"The apparent links between various food types and the prevention of chronic diseases - such as type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease (CHD) and hypertension - are well established. In particular, dietary fibre has long been regarded as a powerful means of reducing health risks. However, this study finds that it is not fibre, but whole grain cereals specifically, which prevent chronic disease."

'via Blog this'

The ISME Journal - Abstract of article: Gut microbiome composition is linked to whole grain-induced immunological improvements

The involvement of the gut microbiota in metabolic disorders, and the ability of whole grains to affect both host metabolism and gut microbial ecology, suggest that some benefits of whole grains are mediated through their effects on the gut microbiome. Nutritional studies that assess the effect of whole grains on both the gut microbiome and human physiology are needed. We conducted a randomized cross-over trial with four-week treatments in which 28 healthy humans consumed a daily dose of 60 g of whole-grain barley (WGB), brown rice (BR), or an equal mixture of the two (BR+WGB), and characterized their impact on fecal microbial ecology and blood markers of inflammation, glucose and lipid metabolism. All treatments increased microbial diversity, the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio, and the abundance of the genus Blautia in fecal samples. The inclusion of WGB enriched the genera Roseburia, Bifidobacterium andDialister, and the species Eubacterium rectale, Roseburia faecis andRoseburia intestinalis. Whole grains, and especially the BR+WGB treatment, reduced plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) and peak postprandial glucose. Shifts in the abundance of Eubacterium rectale were associated with changes in the glucose and insulin postprandial response. Interestingly, subjects with greater improvements in IL-6 levels harbored significantly higher proportions of Dialister and lower abundance of Coriobacteriaceae. In conclusion, this study revealed that a short-term intake of whole grains induced compositional alterations of the gut microbiota that coincided with improvements in host physiological measures related to metabolic dysfunctions in humans.

Top 10 Killers in Your Kitchen | Medical News and Health Information

(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Calories, fat, sugar, (fructose) and salt. They are four food landmines that add pounds and add to your risk of diabetes, heart disease and death. Add to this, the bisphenol (BPA)  in tins. 

Consuming Avocado With A Burger May Neutralize Interleukin-6

English: Pit of an avocado Deutsch: Kern einer Avocado der Sorte "Hass". (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Consuming half of a fresh Hass avocado with a burger may counteract the protein Interleukin-6 (IL-6), a measure of inflammation, compared to eating a burger without the vegetable.

Dieting Can Lead To Food Withdrawal And Depression

Eating fatty and sugary foods can cause chemical changes in the brain, making a person on a diet feel like they are having drug withdrawals.The chemicals changed by diet are associated with depression. A change of diet then causes withdrawal symptoms and a greater sensitivity to stressful situations, launching a vicious cycle of poor eating." MNT

New evidence for epigenetic effects of diet on healthy aging

The study showed that whilst age had the biggest effects on epigenetic changes, selenium and vitamin D status reduced the accumulation of epigenetic changes, and high blood folate and obesity increased them. These findings support the idea that healthy ageing is affected by what we eat.

Read more at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-12-evidence-epigenetic-effects-diet-healthy.html#jCp

Saturated fats encourage bacteria and promote inflammatory defence: Good fats are antimicrobial

Some fats—mostly unsaturated fats have strong antimicrobial properties. They react chemically with bacterial cell membranes, weakening them. "If you expose unsaturated fats on bacteria, the bacteria have a tendency to lyse. The combination of long chain unsaturated fats, especially omega-3 fatty acids, and innate host defenses like gastric acid and antimicrobial peptides, is particularly lethal to pathogenic bacteria," Alcock said. Saturated fats on the other hand generally lack those antimicrobial properties, and in fact can provide a carbon source that bacteria need to grow and flourish.

Read more at: http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-fats-worse.html#jCp

Good mood foods: Some flavors in some foods resemble a prescription mood stabilizer (valproate)

New evidence reveals the possibility of mood-enhancing effects associated with some flavors, stemming at least in part from natural ingredients bearing a striking chemical similarity to valproic acid, a widely used prescription mood-stabilizing drug, scientists reported in Philadelphia. This effect joins those previously reported for chocolate, teas and some other known comfort foods.(chocolate, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, teas and certain other foods)

Cancer group asks U.S. to study sugary drinks, obesity | Reuters

A leading U.S. cancer lobby group is urging the Surgeon General to conduct a sweeping study of the impact of sugar-sweetened beverages on consumer health, saying such drinks play major role in the nation's obesity crisis and require a U.S. action plan.

Junk-food diets spur inflammation more than saturated fats alone

(Medical Xpress) -- A diet based on American junk food could lead to more obesity-induced inflammation than a diet high in animal fat, according to a new study by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Dietary-fat-induced taurocholic acid promotes pathobiont expansion and colitis in Il10(-/-) mice.

The composite human microbiome of Western populations has probably changed over the past century, brought on by new environmental triggers that often have a negative impact on human health. Here we show that consumption of a diet high in saturated (milk-derived) fat, but not polyunsaturated (safflower oil) fat, changes the conditions for microbial assemblage and promotes the expansion of a low-abundance, sulphite-reducing pathobiont, Bilophila wadsworthia. This was associated with a pro-inflammatory T helper type 1 (T(H)1) immune response and increased incidence of colitis in genetically susceptible Il10(-/-), but not wild-type mice. These effects are mediated by milk-derived-fat-promoted taurine conjugation of hepatic bile acids, which increases the availability of organic sulphur used by sulphite-reducing microorganisms like B. wadsworthia. When mice were fed a low-fat diet supplemented with taurocholic acid, but not with glycocholic acid, for example, a bloom of B. wadsworthia and development of colitis were observed in Il10(-/-) mice. Together these data show that dietary fats, by promoting changes in host bile acid composition, can markedly alter conditions for gut microbial assemblage, resulting in dysbiosis that can perturb immune homeostasis. The data provide a plausible mechanistic basis by which Western-type diets high in certain saturated fats might increase the prevalence of complex immune-mediated diseases like inflammatory bowel disease in genetically susceptible hosts.

Western diet changes gut bacteria and triggers colitis in those at risk

Certain saturated fats that are common in the modern Western diet can initiate a chain of events leading to complex immune disorders such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in people with a genetic predisposition, according to a study to be published early online in the journal Nature.

Influence of red wine polyphenols and ethanol on the gut microbiota ecology and biochemical biomarkers

Ihe objective was to evaluate the effect of a moderate intake of red wine polyphenols on select gut microbial groups implicated in host health benefits.

Design: Ten healthy male volunteers underwent a randomized, crossover, controlled intervention study. After a washout period, all of the subjects received red wine, the equivalent amount of de-alcoholized red wine, or gin for 20 d each. Total fecal DNA was submitted to polymerase chain reaction(PCR)–denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and real-time quantitative PCR to monitor and quantify changes in fecal microbiota. Several biochemical markers were measured.

Results: The dominant bacterial composition did not remain constant over the different intake periods. Compared with baseline, the daily consumption of red wine polyphenol for 4 wk significantly increased the number of Enterococcus, Prevotella, Bacteroides, Bifidobacterium, Bacteroides uniformis, Eggerthella lenta, and Blautia coccoides–Eubacterium rectale groups (P < 0.05). In parallel, systolic and diastolic blood pressures and triglyceride, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, and C-reactive protein concentrations decreased significantly (P < 0.05). Moreover, changes in cholesterol and C-reactive protein concentrations were linked to changes in the bifidobacteria number.

Conclusion: This study showed that red wine consumption can significantly modulate the growth of select gut microbiota in humans, which suggests possible prebiotic benefits associated with the inclusion of red wine polyphenols in the diet.

Reverse engineering epilepsy's 'miracle' diet

For decades, neurologists have known that a diet high in fat and extremely low in carbohydrates can reduce epileptic seizures that resist drug therapy. But how the diet worked, and why, was a mystery—so much so that in 2010, The New York Times Magazine called it "Epilepsy's Big, Fat Miracle."

What Are The Top 10 Healthy Foods? Medical News Today

Apples, almonds, broccoli, blueberries, oily fish, leafy greens, sweet potatoes, wheat germ, avocados and oatmeal figure among the top foods thought to play a role in disease prevention