Crozier SJ, Preston AG, Hurst JW, Payne MJ, Mann J, Hainly L, Miller DL.

The Hershey Center for Health & Nutrition, 1025 Reese Avenue, Hershey, PA, 17033, USA. scrozier@hersheys.com.

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND: Numerous popular media sources have developed lists of “Super Foods” and, more recently, “Super Fruits”. Such distinctions often are based on the antioxidant capacity and content of naturally occurring compounds such as polyphenols within those whole fruits or juices of the fruit which may be linked to potential health benefits. Cocoa powder and chocolate are made from an extract of the seeds of the fruit of the Theobroma cacao tree. In this study, we compared cocoa powder and cocoa products to powders and juices derived from fruits commonly considered “Super Fruits”.

RESULTS: Various fruit powders and retail fruit products were obtained and analyzed for antioxidant capacity (ORAC (µM TE/g)), total polyphenol content (TP (mg/g)), and total flavanol content (TF (mg/g)). Among the various powders that were tested, cocoa powder was the most concentrated source of ORAC and TF. Similarly, dark chocolate was a significantly more concentrated source of ORAC and TF than the fruit juices.

CONCLUSIONS: Cocoa powder and dark chocolate had equivalent or significantly greater ORAC, TP, and TF values compared to the other fruit powders and juices tested, respectively. Cacao seeds thus provide nutritive value beyond that derived from their macronutrient composition and appear to meet the popular media’s definition of a “Super Fruit”.

PMID: 21299842 [PubMed - in process]PMCID: PMC3038885Free PMC Article

Purnell JQ, Klopfenstein BA, Stevens AA, Havel PJ, Adams SH, Dunn TN, Krisky C, Rooney WD.

Department of Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA. purnellj@ohsu.edu

Abstract
AIMS: In animals, intracerebroventricular glucose and fructose have opposing effects on appetite and weight regulation. In humans, functional brain magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies during glucose ingestion or infusion have demonstrated suppression of hypothalamic signalling, but no studies have compared the effects of glucose and fructose. We therefore sought to determine if the brain response differed to glucose vs. fructose in humans independently of the ingestive process.

METHODS: Nine healthy, normal weight subjects underwent blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) fMRI measurements during either intravenous (IV) glucose (0.3 mg/kg), fructose (0.3 mg/kg) or saline, administered over 2 min in a randomized, double-blind, crossover study. Blood was sampled every 5 min during a baseline period and following infusion for 60 min in total for glucose, fructose, lactate and insulin levels.

RESULTS: No significant brain BOLD signal changes were detected in response to IV saline. BOLD signal in the cortical control areas increased during glucose infusion (p = 0.002), corresponding with increased plasma glucose and insulin levels. In contrast, BOLD signal decreased in the cortical control areas during fructose infusion (p = 0.006), corresponding with increases of plasma fructose and lactate. Neither glucose nor fructose infusions significantly altered BOLD signal in the hypothalamus.

CONCLUSION: In normal weight humans, cortical responses as assessed by BOLD fMRI to infused glucose are opposite to those of fructose. Differential brain responses to these sugars and their metabolites may provide insight into the neurologic basis for dysregulation of food intake during high dietary fructose intake.

© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Cassidy A , O’Reilly EJ , Kay C , Sampson L , Franz M , Forman J , Curhan G , Rimm EB .

School of Medicine, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom and Renal Division, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.

BACKGROUND: Dietary flavonoids have beneficial effects on blood pressure in intervention settings, but there is limited information on habitual intake and risk of hypertension in population-based studies.

OBJECTIVE: We examined the association between habitual flavonoid intake and incident hypertension in a prospective study in men and women.

DESIGN: A total of 87,242 women from the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) II, 46,672 women from the NHS I, and 23,043 men from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (HPFS) participated in the study. Total flavonoid and subclass intakes were calculated from semiquantitative food-frequency questionnaires collected every 4 y by using an updated and extended US Department of Agriculture database.

RESULTS: During 14 y of follow-up, 29,018 cases of hypertension in women and 5629 cases of hypertension in men were reported. In pooled multivariate-adjusted analyses, participants in the highest quintile of anthocyanin intake (predominantly from blueberries and strawberries) had an 8% reduction in risk of hypertension [relative risk (RR): 0.92; 95% CI: 0.86, 0.98; P < 0.03] compared with that for participants in the lowest quintile of anthocyanin intake; the risk reduction was 12% (RR: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.84, 0.93; P < 0.001) in participants =60 y of age and 0.96 (0.91, 1.02) in participants >60 y of age (P for age interaction = 0.02). Although intakes of other subclasses were not associated with hypertension, pooled analyses for individual compounds suggested a 5% (95% CI: 0.91, 0.99; P = 0.005) reduction in risk for the highest compared with the lowest quintiles of intake of the flavone apigenin. In participants =60 y of age, a 6% (95% CI: 0.88, 0.97; P = 0.002) reduction in risk was observed for the flavan-3-ol catechin when the highest and the lowest quintiles were compared.

CONCLUSIONS: Anthocyanins and some flavone and flavan-3-ol compounds may contribute to the prevention of hypertension. These vasodilatory properties may result from specific structural similarities (including the B-ring hydroxylation and methyoxylation pattern).

PMCID: PMC3021426 [Available on 2012/2/1]
PMID: 21106916 [PubMed - in process]

Giovannucci E.

Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. edward.giovannucci@channing.harvard.edu

J Natl Cancer Inst. 1999 Feb 17;91(4):317-31.

Materials and Methods: We investigated the association between prediagnostic serum carotenoids (lycopene, {alpha}-carotene, ß-carotene, ß-cryptoxanthin, lutein, and zeaxanthin) and risk of prostate cancer in the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal, and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial, a multicenter study designed to examine methods of early detection and risk factors for cancer. The study included 692 incident prostate cancer cases, diagnosed 1 to 8 years after study entry, including 270 aggressive cases, with regional or distant stage (n = 90) or Gleason score ≥7 (n = 235), and 844 randomly selected, matched controls. As study participants were selected from those who were assigned to annual standardized screening for prostate cancer, results are unlikely to be biased by differential screening, a circumstance that is difficult to attain under non–trial conditions.

Results: No association was observed between serum lycopene and total prostate cancer [odds ratios (OR), 1.14; 95% confidence intervals (95% CI), 0.82-1.58 for highest versus lowest quintile; P for trend, 0.28] or aggressive prostate cancer (OR, 0.99; 95% CI, 0.62-1.57 for highest versus lowest quintile; P for trend, 0.433). ß-Carotene was associated with an increased risk of aggressive prostate cancer (OR, 1.67; 95% CI, 1.03-2.72 for highest versus lowest quintile; P for trend, 0.13); in particular, regional or distant stage disease (OR, 3.16; 95% CI, 1.37-7.31 for highest versus lowest quintile; P for trend, 0.02); other carotenoids were not associated with risk.

Conclusion: In this large prospective study, high serum ß-carotene concentrations were associated with increased risk for aggressive, clinically relevant prostate cancer. Lycopene and other carotenoids were unrelated to prostate cancer. Consistent with other recent publications, these results suggest that lycopene or tomato-based regimens will not be effective for prostate cancer prevention.

(Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2007;16(5):962–8)

Full Text

Ulrike Peters1,2,3, Michael F. Leitzmann3, Nilanjan Chatterjee3, Yinghui Wang1, Demetrius Albanes3, Edward P. Gelmann4, Marlin D. Friesen5, Elio Riboli6 and Richard B. Hayes3

1 Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center; 2 University of Washington, Seattle, Washington; 3 Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Department of Health and Human Services, Rockville, Maryland; 4 Department of Oncology, Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia; 5 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland; and 6 Nutrition and Cancer Unit, International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France

Requests for reprints: Ulrike Peters, Cancer Prevention Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, P.O. Box 19024, 1100 Fairview Avenue North M4-B402, Seattle, WA 98109-1024. Phone: 206-667-2450; Fax: 206-667-7850. E-mail: upeters@fhcrc.org

Lutein was found to be present in a concentrated area of the macula, a small area of the retina responsible for central vision. The hypothesis for the natural concentration is that lutein helps protect from oxidative stress and high-energy light. Various research studies have shown that a direct relationship exists between lutein intake and pigmentation in the eye. Several studies also show that an increase in macula pigmentation decreases the risk for eye diseases such as Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD).

Lutein is a natural part of human diet when fruits and vegetables are consumed. For individuals lacking sufficient lutein intake, lutein-fortified foods are available, or in the case of elderly people with a poorly absorbing digestive system, fortification via a sublingual spray ensures maximum benefit to the eyes. As early as 1996, lutein has been incorporated into dietary supplements. While no recommended daily allowance currently exists for lutein as for other nutrients, positive effects have been seen at levels of 6 mg/day. The only definitive side effect of excess lutein consumption is the same observed for β-carotene overdose, namely bronzing of the skin (carotenodermia). The normal levels of Lutein found in a daily vitamin tablet can be as low as 0.25 mg.