Latest News – For our clients and customers to keep up to date with current health and herbal medicine research and their conditions
- Natural compound found to increase longevity in yeast, worms, and cultured human cells Wednesday February 20th, 2019
The compound was found in a herbal plant from Japan. So far, it has been shown to be effective on yeast, worms, and cultured human cells.
Aging causes very specific changes in cells. Most anti-aging treatments attempt to combat these changes, usually targetting a process called autophagy. Autophagy is the cells’ recycling program, removing damaged cellular components so that new, healthier ones can take their place. Compromised autophagy can also result in degenerative diseases.
Frank Madeo and colleagues from Graz University in Austria screened a group of flavonoids, a group of plant-derived molecules known to promote cellular health and associated with a wide variety of potential health benefits. They identified a particular flavonoid, 4,4’-dimethoxychalcone (DMC) as a potential life-span extending treatment.
The compound is commonly found in Angelica keiskei koidzumi leaves, a plant also known by its native Japanese name of Ashitaba (meaning “tomorrow’s leaf”). Ashitaba belongs to the carrot family and has long been used in traditional Japanese medicine. However, its alleged beneficial properties haven’t been thoroughly demonstrated in living animals — until now.
“Notably, we identify DMC in the plant Angelica keiskei koidzumi, to which longevity- and health-promoting effects are ascribed in Asian traditional medicine,” researchers write in the study.
They tested it on yeast, worms, and fruit flies, confirming its potential. They then moved on cultured to human cells and mice studies. Treatment with DMC protected heart cells in mice after prolonged myocardial ischemia (reduced blood flow to the heart) leading to a smaller area of tissue death. The protective effects were found to be associated with increased autophagy, leading to systemic metabolic changes.
However, this doesn’t mean that you should start eating Ashitaba every day. For starters, researchers harvested the DMC and administered the concentrated compound. This isn’t a new wonder compound, it’s not amazing natural therapy — it’s a promising preliminary study, but it’s still just that: a preliminary study. Proving its efficacy on yeast and worms is one thing, and turning to live humans is a completely different thing. Even studies on mammals rarely translate to humans and cultured cells are also rarely a good substitute — many treatments work in a Petri dish without necessarily translating to a living body.
These observations offer promising potential. Promoting autophagy can result in longevity extension, but aditional research is required to confirm just how useful and efficient this treatment can be in humans.
The study “The flavonoid 4,4′-dimethoxychalcone promotes autophagy-dependent longevity across species” has been published in Nature. DOI 10.1038/s41467-019-08555-w
Source: ZME Science
Continue reading → - Could cranberry juice help relieve arthritis pain? Women who drank it for three months reported fewer swollen and tender joints Monday February 18th, 2019
- Study suggests daily half-litre of juice may help those with rheumatoid arthritis
- Quercetin, a compound in cranberries, may reduce inflammation-causing genes
- The condition affects 400,000 people in the UK, but is more common in women
- 41 women who took part in the study were tracked for 90 days
Cranberry juice may relieve painful joints for women with arthritis.
A small study suggests a daily half-litre of low-calorie cranberry juice could help women with rheumatoid arthritis, which affects 400,000 people in the UK.
Women who consumed cranberry juice for three months showed lower levels of antibodies which attack the immune system and damage joints.
They also reported fewer swollen and tender joints when questioned on their symptoms.
The antioxidants in cranberries could help prevent some of the immune reaction which causes pain and stiffness in people with rheumatoid arthritis.
The authors of the study, which was led by the University of Londrina in Brazil, state: ‘The present study indicated that cranberry juice decreases disease activity and therefore has beneficial effects for rheumatoid arthritis patients, although larger and long-term studies are needed to definitively probe this effect and to clarify the mechanisms involved.’
Researchers recruited 41 women with rheumatoid arthritis, which mainly affects the hands, feet and wrists and is more common in females.
They were tracked for 90 days, while 23 drank half a litre of cranberry juice every day and 18 stuck to their normal diet.
Blood samples taken from the women measured their levels of anti-CCP – antibodies which are produced by an overactive immune system and attack the joints.
Study participants also answered a questionnaire on how swollen and tender each of their 28 joints were.
The results, published in the journal Nutrition, show women drinking cranberry juice had improved symptoms.
They also had lower levels of anti-CCP antibodies, which are used to diagnose rheumatoid arthritis and can also indicate how fast it is progressing.
If the results are repeated in larger studies, this would be more evidence that cranberry can improve health because of its antioxidant properties.
There is evidence that quercetin, a compound found in large amounts in cranberries, may prevent inflammation in the body by ‘dialling down’ the genes that cause it.
However this study found cranberry juice may not have reduced inflammation, as chemical signs of this harmful immune reaction were not altered in the blood.
Ailsa Bosworth, chief executive of the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Society, said: ‘Significantly more research would need to be done to be able to support a recommendation of cranberry consumption as a nutritional intervention for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
‘There is no evidence that alternative or complimentary therapies can control rheumatoid arthritis.
Irreversible joint damage without the right drug treatment happens very quickly and there is no evidence-based substitute for taking disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs.’
Source: Daily Mail
Continue reading → - Short bursts of intense exercise ‘better for weight loss’ Saturday February 16th, 2019
Bursts of high intensity interval training (Hiit) may be more effective for weight loss than longer less intense workouts, a study suggests.
The research, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, analysed results from 36 earlier studies.
Although all the participants lost weight, those doing Hiit saw a 28.5% greater weight loss.
The researchers cautioned that Hiit may not be suitable for everyone.
“Hiit might increase the risk of injury and impose higher cardiovascular stress,” they said.
What does the study say?
Researchers from the Federal University of Goias, Brazil, analysed data from 576 men and 522 women of varying levels of fitness.
Interval training was defined as cardiovascular exercise which involved repeated brief bursts of intense effort, interspersed with recovery periods. Cycling, swimming, running and boxing were included.
These workouts were compared with longer continuous moderate intensity workouts, most of which were between 30 and 45 minutes. All participants exercised for at least four weeks.
Those doing interval training lost on average 1.58kg (3.48lb) compared with the 1.13kg (2.49lb) lost by those doing lower intensity workouts.
Sprint interval training seemed to be particularly effective for weight loss, although researchers did caution that the wide variety of training programmes made it difficult to recommend one regime in particular.
The NHS currently recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity, such as cycling or brisk walking, every week.
‘Results impressive’
Dr Niels Vollaard, a lecturer in health and exercise science at the University of Stirling, said the results were counterintuitive as most people burned more calories during longer moderate exercise.
“There are two possible explanations,” he said.
“Firstly, Hiit may lead to greater energy expenditure after exercise – metabolism may be increased for up to a day following a Hiit session.
“Secondly, after a Hiit session, you may be less hungry.
“In our research, we have shown that appetite hormones are indeed affected.
“It is, however, not easy to study whether energy intake is reduced as a result of this in the longer term when following a Hiit routine, so at the moment we are still unsure exactly what the reason is.”
Michael Mosley, who was introduced to Hiit seven years ago while making the BBC Horizon documentary The Truth about Exercise, said: “In 2012, I tested three lots of 20-second high intensity workouts on an exercise bike, three times a week.
“My insulin sensitivity improved by 24%.
“In the programme, we again saw very impressive results with younger, unfit people.
“The biggest problem with exercise is compensatory eating and relaxing afterwards.
“People go on a treadmill for 30 minutes, burn around 120 calories, then lie around and reward themselves with a muffin.
“The theory with Hiit seems to be that it suppresses your appetite and targets the visceral fat in your gut.
“It’s not the calories you burn that matter – it’s what you do next.”
Source: BBC
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