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healthbriefs


Battle of the Bulge A


ccording to the American Heart Associa- tion, about one in three American kids and


teens is overweight or obese today, nearly triple the rate in 1963. A new report by the Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood John- son Foundation advises that if adult obesity rates continue on their current trajectories, by 2030, 13 states could have rates above 60 percent; 39 states above 50 percent; and all 50 states above 44 percent. A study published in the International Journal of Obesity, based on research


R


WHY WE MIGHT NEED MORE VITAMIN C


esearchers at the Linus Pauling In- stitute at Oregon State University, a leading global authority on the role of vitamin C in optimum health, forward compelling evidence that the recom- mended dietary allowance (RDA) of vitamin C should be raised to 200 milligrams per day for U.S. adults, up from its current levels of 75 mg for women and 90 mg for men. The RDA of vitamin C is less than half of what it should be, scientists argue, because medical experts insist on evaluating this natural, but critical, nutrient in the same way they do for pharma- ceutical drugs, and consequently reach faulty conclusions. The researchers base their rec- ommendations on studies showing that higher levels of vitamin C could help reduce chronic health problems including heart disease, stroke and cancer, as well as underlying causal issues such as high blood pressure, chronic inflammation, poor immune response and atherosclerosis. Even at the current low RDA, U.S. and Cana- dian studies have found that a quarter to a third of the total population is marginally deficient in vitamin C and up to a fifth of those in such groups as students, smokers and older adults are severely deficient in it.


8 NA Twin Cities Edition


at 10 universities, points to the use of hormones in factory meat production as a major reason for this trend. Pesticides are another culprit; the average American is exposed to 10 to 13 different types each day via food, beverages and drinking water, and nine of the 10 most commonly used are endocrine disrupters linked to weight gain. Genetically modified U.S. food crops are also sprayed heavily with biocides. Findings presented at the 2007 annual meeting of the American Asso- ciation for the Advancement of Science linked bisphenol A (BPA)—an industrial chemical contained in plastic soda, drinking and baby bottles—with abnormal estrogen function. To win the battle of the bulge, Americans need to eat balanced diets and exer-


cise regularly, but additional steps can further help: choose organic, grass-fed meat instead of corn-fed; use glass instead of plastic containers for beverages and food storage; avoid canned food unless the label states BPA-free; and consume yogurt daily or take a high-quality probiotic to help restore healthy intestinal flora.


Drinks Tied to Tooth Trouble W


hen replacing lost fluids during or after a workout, consider how beverage choices can affect the health of teeth. A recent study published in General


Dentistry, the journal of the Academy of General Dentistry, found that increased consumption of sports and energy drinks is causing irreversible damage to teeth, especially among adolescents. A reported 30 to 50 percent of U.S. teens regularly imbibe energy drinks,


and as many as 62 percent down at least one sports drink a day. “Young adults consume these drinks assuming that they will improve their sports performance and energy levels and that they are ‘better’ than soda,” says Associate Professor Poonam Jain, lead author of the study, who serves as director of community and preventive dentistry at the Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine. “Most of these patients are shocked to learn that the drinks are essentially bathing their teeth with acid.”


In testing the effect of acidity levels on samples of human tooth enamel immersed in 13 sports and nine energy beverages, researchers found that damage to enamel was evident after only five days of expo- sure. Moreover, energy drinks were twice as harmful as sports drinks. “These drinks erode or thin out the enamel of the teeth, leaving them more susceptible to decay and sensitivity,” says Jain.


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