healthbriefs
Eggs’ Sunny Upside O
ften considered one of nature’s most perfect foods, eggs are an excellent source of protein, lipids, vitamins and minerals. Now, researchers at the University of Alberta, in Canada, have discovered that they also contain antioxidant properties that help in the prevention of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Jianping Wu and his team of researchers at the
university’s Department of Agricultural Food and Nutritional Science examined egg yolks produced by hens that were fed typical diets of either primarily wheat or corn. They found the yolks contained two amino acids; tryptophan and tyrosine, which have high antioxidant properties. The researchers found that two raw egg yolks offer almost twice as many antioxidant properties as one apple and about the same as half a serving (25 grams) of cranberries. When the eggs were fried or boiled, how- ever, the beneficial properties were reduced by about half. “It’s a big reduction, but it still leaves eggs equal to apples in their antioxidant value,” says Wu. In prior research, Wu found that egg proteins converted by digestive enzymes produced peptides that work in the same way as ACE inhibitors, prescription drugs used to reduce high blood pressure. That finding contradicted the notion that eggs increase high blood pressure because of their cholesterol content.
CAN CANNED BPA T
hink twice before sipping soda or soup that comes in a can. A recent study by Harvard School of Public Health researchers discovered peo- ple that ate one serving of canned food daily for five days had significantly elevated levels of bisphenol-A
(BPA), an endocrine disrupter sometimes found in plastic bottles, that also lines most food and drink cans. Studies have linked high urine levels of BPA to cardiovascular disease, diabetes and other health conditions. The spike in BPA levels recorded by the Harvard researchers was one of the highest seen in any study.
Source: Journal of the American Medical Association
C
CONTROL MIDLIFE BLOOD PRESSURE TO IMPROVE HEART HEALTH
hanges in blood pressure during middle age can affect the lifetime risk for heart disease and stroke, ac- cording to a recent study published in Circulation, the American Heart Association’s weekly journal. Data from nearly 62,000 individuals whose blood pressure readings were tracked for an average of 14 years confirms that people who kept or lowered their blood pressure to normal levels by age 55 had the lowest lifetime risk for heart disease—22 to 41 percent, compared with 42 to 69 percent for those with high blood pressure.
natural awakenings June 2012
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