Whole-grain breakfast cereals 'good for the heart'

To some it is like chewing soggy cardboard. To others it is the only way to start the day. Now researchers have come to the defence of lovers of muesli, Weetabix, Shredded Wheat and similar breakfast cereals with a study showing they really are better for the heart.
People who eat whole grain breakfast cereals seven or more times a week have a 28 per cent lower risk of developing heart failure, researchers found.
The risk of heart failure falls 22 per cent in those who eat the cereals two to six times a week and by 14 per cent in those who eat them up to once week.
The findings add to growing evidence for the health benefits of breakfast. Nutritionists say starting the day with an intake of complex carbohydrates, which take longer to be digested and release their energy more slowly, boosts concentration as well as being better for the body.
Previous research has shown that a bowl of high-fibre cereal in the morning can reduce blood pressure and lower cholesterol.
Results from the Physician's Health Study in the US, one of the longest examining the link between health and diet, were presented at the American Heart Association's conference in Florida yesterday - and they seem to confirm the link. More than 10,000 doctors were monitored for 25 years with detailed annual questionnaires, including details of heart events and breakfast cereal consumption.
Four out of five said they chose whole grain cereals, with a third saying they ate them seven or more times a week, and a quarter eating them up to once a week. The study was conducted from 1982 to 2006.
Luc Djoussé, the assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School who led the study, said: "There are good and powerful arguments for eating a whole grain cereal for breakfast. The benefits are not just for kids but also for adults. A whole grain, high-fibre breakfast may lower blood pressure and bad cholesterol and prevent heart attacks."

Source - Independent

Diet high in cholesterol can trigger onset of Alzheimer's, warn scientists

An unhealthy diet filled with high-cholesterol foods can increase your risk of Alzheimer's Disease, say scientists.

Studies have found that eating lots of foods containing saturated fats, such as butter and red meat, can boost levels of proteins in the brain linked to dementia. Now scientists have discovered this may be because such a diet affects cholesterol-clearing substances in the brain.

They hope the discovery could lead to new drugs which allow the clogging fats to be cleared more effectively and so help slow down the progression of the debilitating brain condition.

In Britain 500,000 people have Alzheimer's Disease in which the progressive loss of their brain cells leads to memory loss, mood changes and eventually death.
One of the key characteristics of people with the condition is the formation of clumps, or 'plaques' of beta amyloid proteins which are thought to destroy brain cells.

Scientists increasingly believe diet and lifestyle may affect the build up of these damaging proteins.

Studies have found a Mediterranean-style diet rich in plant foods and fish and low in red meat cuts the risk of developing the brain disease by up to two-thirds.
Research in mice has also found that those given high-cholesterol diets have more amyloid beta proteins in their brain.

And there is growing evidence that taking cholesterol-lowering statins makes people less likely to develop Alzheimer's later in life.

Source - Daily Mail

Garlic cannot cut your cholesterol, says study

This is bound to cause a stink among those who adhere to the centuriesold belief that garlic is good for the heart.
According to the latest research, consuming the wonder bulb makes no difference whatsoever to cholesterol levels. Almost 200 volunteers were put on a garlic-rich diet for six months, but the only notable change was an increase in bad breath and body odour.
The study by researchers at Stanford University's school of medicine in California, assessed the effects of raw garlic and two commercial garlic supplements on LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, and HDL, the "good' variety".
Dr Christopher Gardner, who led the team, said: "There were no statistically significant effects of the three forms of garlic on LDL cholesterol concentrations." Levels of other types of cholesterol were also unaffected, he said.
Garlic has long been thought to have benefits ranging from the prevention of colds to cutting the risk of developing cancer. Previous tests found the plant could "reverse" fatty build-up in the arteries.
Dr Gardner warned the lack of benefit found in this trial did not mean garlic did not have other healthy effects.