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04/27/2022

05/31/2019

Cell-based meat— will consumers accept it as meat?

No one likes factory farming. But most people still eat meat regardless. Put another way, persuading consumers to change their behavior hasn’t really moved the needle, says cell-cultured meat enthusiast and author Paul Shapiro. Offering a technological solution (growing meat without killing animal...

01/04/2019

As a visionary organization, IFT is feeding the minds that feed the world.

01/02/2019

Genetic clue into peanut allergy

Peanut ButterResearchers have discovered a new gene associated with peanut allergy, giving them a greater understanding into the genetic component of food allergic reactions and even eventually helping them to diagnose children at risk, according to an article in the Institute of Food Technologists newsletter.

Peanut allergy is the result of both genes and the environment, says Denise Daley, associate professor of medicine at the University of British Columbia, and a corresponding author of the study. The findings in the recently published study give the researchers new insights into the gene’s role as a genetic risk factor for peanut allergy and in modifying gene expression in response to environmental exposures. The study was published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

Previously published research shows that the gene, c11orf30/EMSY, is involved in other allergic conditions such as asthma, hay fever, and eczema, and the new study’s results show that the gene is associated with a food allergy, in this case peanut allergy, says Daley. The results also show that there is a common set of genes that predispose a person to an allergic phenotype, but which one (or more than one) is expressed (i.e., peanut allergy, asthma, eczema, etc.) may be dependent on exposure early in life, she adds.

The next step in the research that will build on the knowledge learned about the gene c11orf30/EMSY, says Daley, will involve investigating if the process by which genes are turned on or turned off (methylation) is different in individuals who have peanut allergy versus those who do not

01/02/2019

Anna Resurreccion says: The Institute of Food Technologists Newsletter published the story that Scientists created broccoli extract that kills cancer cells. Read about it here:

A team of scientists in the department of biochemistry at National University of Singapore Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine have engineered a concoction made from bacteria and broccoli that finds and destroys colorectal cancer cells.

Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts contain plant compounds that have anticancer properties when they are broken down. However, it is unclear how effective those compounds are after they enter the human digestive system. Scientists at National University of Singapore’s school of medicine found a way to improve the bioavailability of the anticancer plant compounds in broccoli by combining them with a type of bacteria normally present in the colon: Escherichia coli Nissle. “We programmed E. coli Nissle to enable colorectal cancer cell-binding so that the reprogrammed E. coli can specifically recognize and localize on the surface of tumors,” says Matthew Wook Chang, an associate professor at National University of Singapore and a co-author of the study explaining the discovery. “Furthermore, we included in the E. coli the ability to produce an enzyme from horseradish to convert a dietary compound from cruciferous plants … to an anticancer compound.” The enzyme converts glucosinolates in broccoli (and other cruciferous vegetables) to sulphoraphane, which is known to have anticancer activity.

Chang and his research colleagues showed that the engineered cocktail could inhibit the proliferation of colorectal cancer cells in vitro. “The microbial cells are able to recognize cancer biomarkers and localize on the surface of cancer/dysplastic tissue. Following this binding, the produced enzyme facilitates the conversion of the dietary compound around the cancer site to enhance availability of the anticancer compound, thus increasing absorption of the anticancer compound by the cancer tissue. Consequently, the proliferative cancer cells undergo cell-cycle arrest, … inhibiting the cancer growth. The anticancer compound also increases pro-apoptotic factors and decreases anti-apoptotic factors, hence encouraging the cancer cells to naturally perish,” Chang explains.

Chang says that the engineered cocktail could be used to help reduce the risk of colorectal development in high-risk populations. “These probiotic cells could be ingested as a supplement or a drink, which could allow the probiotic cells to monitor the state of the gut and target cancer cells in their early stages,” Chang concludes

01/02/2019

Anna Resurreccion posts an article from the Institute of Food Technologists Newsletter on BRAIN FOGGINESS or IMPAIRED COGNITION IS FOUND RELATED TO PROBIOTICS.

New research associates probiotics with brain fogginess A team of health professionals at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University has published research that documents a link between brain fogginess and probiotic use. What happens, explains Dr. Satish S. C. Rao, professor of medicine and director of the Digestive Health Clinical Research Center at the college, is that taking probiotics can lead to an overgrowth of bacteria in the small intestine, and the bacteria produce high levels of D-lactic acid, which has been associated with impaired cognition (i.e., brain fogginess).

In a study that tracked his patients’ experiences, Rao found that among a group of 38 patients, the 30 who reported problems with concentration and confusion were all taking at least one kind of probiotic. After discontinuing probiotic use and receiving treatment with bacteria-targeting antibiotics, 85% of the patients said they no longer suffered from brain fogginess. An article detailing the researchers’ findings appeared in the journal Clinical and Translational Gastroenterology.

“What we now know,” says Rao, “is that probiotic bacteria have the unique capacity to break down sugar and produce D-lactic acid. So if you inadvertently colonize your small bowel with probiotic bacteria, then you have set the stage for potentially developing D-lactic acidosis and brain fogginess.”

Such inadvertent colonization may be occurring if someone takes a probiotic and it breaks down in the small intestine, releasing live bacteria before it reaches the large intestine (colon), where they are supposed to work. “There is a high likelihood that the bacteria may just latch itself onto the small bowel and then linger there forever,” Rao says. “If that were to happen, then when we consume foods like carbohydrate foods, when those carbohydrates are exposed to the probiotics, the probiotics will ferment the carbohydrate foods, leading to the D-lactic acid production.”

While probiotics can be beneficial in a variety of instances (after a course of antibiotics diminishes normal gut bacteria, for example), Rao believes that the increasingly frequent complaints of brain fogginess that he’s seeing in his medical practice are related to the surge in popularity of probiotics and the fact that many people self-prescribe them. “Probiotics should be taken with caution under medical direction,” Rao counsels. “Don’t take probiotics like you would take a multivitamin pill.”

Rao further notes that probiotic use can be particularly problematic for individuals with reduced gut motility, which can slow the transit of probiotics to the large intestine. Drugs and medications including antidepressants, opioids, and proton pump inhibitors (prescribed to help relieve heartburn and reflux) can either slow gut motility or facilitate colonization of bacteria.

Rao says that the Medical College of Georgia research team has plans in place for rigorous follow-up research, which would start by establishing a definition for brain fogginess based on patient input using a validated questionnaire. Then, he continues, “Once we’ve identified that a patient that has brain fogginess has bacterial overgrowth … we want to then remove probiotics and give them antibiotics and then re-administer all these questionnaires and tests one more time. We want to show that they no longer produce D-lactic acid [in the small intestine] coinciding with symptom improvement.”

Correspondence submitted to the journal and a statement posted on the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics website titled “‘Brain Fogginess’ and D-Lactic Acidosis: Probiotics Are Not the Cause” takes issue with the Rao research findings, noting that “the misleading paper title suggests an intention to indict probiotics even in the absence of evidence.” The Clinical and Translational Gastroenterology publication by Rao and his team is titled “Brain fogginess, gas and bloating: a link between SIBO, probiotics and metabolic acidosis.”

12/18/2018

The chemopreventive benefits of Reseveratrol have been studied and published. Resveratrol is a compound found in wine, grapes, and peanut skins. Recent animal studies have shown cancer inhibitory activity in a number of models, including adenoma, skin, breast, colon, esophagus, glioma, intestinal, liver, and neuroblastoma. Biomarkers are known. Dietary administration is feasible.

12/13/2018

A high-salt diet could raise atrial fibrillation risk.
A study suggests that consuming high levels of salt may increase the risk for atrial fibrillation (A-fib), which is ”a quivering or irregular heartbeat that can lead to blood clots or other complications. “

A-fib affects millions of people worldwide, puts them at higher risk for stroke and, in rare cases, can lead to heart failure.

— Foodiedoc
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The study published in the Annals of Medicine included 716 middle-aged men and women in Finland who were followed for an average of 19 years. During that time, 74 of the participants were diagnosed with atrial fibrillation. Those with the highest levels of salt in their diet had a higher rate of atrial fibrillation than those with the lowest salt intake. After accounting for several other risk factors—including age, body fat, blood pressure, and smoking—the researchers found that salt consumption was independently associated with the risk of atrial fibrillation. However, it should be noted that the study only found an association—it did not prove that a high-salt diet causes the heart rhythm disorder.

“This study provides the first evidence that dietary salt may increase the risk of new-onset atrial fibrillation, adding to a growing list of dangers from excessive salt consumption on our cardiovascular health,” said study author Tero Paakko, from the University of Oulu in Finland. “Although further confirmatory studies are needed, our results suggest that people who are at an increased risk of atrial fibrillation may benefit from restricting salt in their diet.”

Source: The Institute of Food Technologists.

12/13/2018

Red meat consumption may increase levels of chemical linked to heart disease. The chemical is TMAO. Eating less red meat, lowers TMAO. TMAO levels can be determined by a blood test.
—FoodieDoc
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A study published in the European Heart Journal, a publication of the European Society of Cardiology, suggests that people who eat a diet rich in red meat may have high levels of a gut-generated chemical called trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) that also is linked to heart disease. TMAO is a dietary byproduct that is formed by gut bacteria during digestion and is derived in part from nutrients that are abundant in red meat.

For the study, researchers enrolled 113 healthy men and women in a clinical trial to examine the effects of dietary protein—in the form of red meat, white meat, or non-meat sources—on TMAO production. All subjects were placed on each diet for a month in random order. When on the red meat diet, the participants consumed roughly the equivalent of about 8 oz of steak daily, or two quarter-pound beef patties. After one month, researchers found that, on average, blood levels of TMAO in these participants tripled, compared to when they were on the diets high in either white meat or non-meat protein sources.

While all diets contained equal amounts of calories, half of the participants were also placed on high-fat versions of the three diets, and the researchers observed similar results. Thus, the effects of the protein source on TMAO levels were independent of dietary fat intake.

Importantly, the researchers discovered that the TMAO increases were reversible. When the subjects discontinued their red meat diet and moved to either a white meat or non-meat diet for another month, their TMAO levels decreased significantly.

The findings suggest that measuring and targeting TMAO levels—something doctors can do with a simple blood test—may be a promising new strategy for individualizing diets and helping to prevent heart disease.

source: The Institute of Food Technologists.

12/11/2018

Specific nutrition interventions such as short term fasting and carbohydrate restriction may interfere with tumor cell metabolism.

Proceedings from the 2017 ACN Annual Conference highlight the role nutrition & supplementation can play in cancer prevention.

12/11/2018

Cell-cultured Wagyu beef?
Cultured meat is meat produced by in vitro cultivation of animal cells, instead of from slaughtered animals. It is a form of cellular agriculture.
Extensive R&D needed.
Will consumers accept it?
- Foodiedoc

San Francisco-based JUST - best-known for its plant-based eggs and mayo – has struck a deal with Japanese Wagyu beef producer Toriyama, and meat and seafood supplier Awano Food Group, to develop, sell, and market cell-cultured Wagyu beef products.

12/10/2018

STRATEGIC NUTRITION FOR HEART HEALTH

Read this review on nutrients that contribute to heart health, presented in layman’s terms. While the article was written for food industry formulators, the content is informative and useful to the general public.

Read on: