Nutrient Deficiency

Older Adults Who Use Vitamin/Mineral Supplements

By Frank M. Painter|August 1, 2017|Nutrient Deficiency, Nutrition|

Older Adults Who Use Vitamin/Mineral Supplements Differ from Nonusers in Nutrient Intake Adequacy and Dietary Attitudes

SOURCE: J Am Diet Assoc. 2007 (Aug); 107 (8): 1322–1332

Rhonda S. Sebastian, MA, Linda E. Cleveland, MS, RD,
Joseph D. Goldman, MA, Alanna J. Moshfegh, MS, RD

US Department of Agriculture,
Agricultural Research Service,
Food Surveys Research Group,
Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.

OBJECTIVE: To measure nutrient intake adequacy of vitamin/mineral supplement users and nonusers aged 51 years and older, determine the efficacy of supplement practices in compensating for dietary deficits, and identify predictors of supplement use.

DESIGN: Analyses of two 24-hour recalls, demographic variables, and attitude questions collected during the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals and Diet and Health Knowledge Survey in 1994 to 1996. Data were weighted to be representative of older Americans.

SUBJECTS: Four thousand three hundred eighty-four adults aged 51 years and older (1,777 daily supplement users, 428 infrequent users, and 2,179 nonusers) residing in households in the United States.

STATISTICAL ANALYSES: Usual nutrient intake distributions were estimated using the Iowa State University method. The Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) cutpoint method was applied to determine the proportion of older adults not meeting requirements before and after accounting for nutrient intake from supplements. Student t tests were used to assess differences between users and nonusers. Logistic regression was used to determine sociodemographic and attitudinal predictors of supplement use.

RESULTS: For one or more of the sex-age groups studied, a significantly smaller proportion of supplement users than nonusers had intakes from food alone below the EAR for vitamins A, B-6, and C; folate; zinc; and magnesium. Even so, less than 50% of both users and nonusers met the EAR for folate, vitamin E, and magnesium from food sources alone. Overall, supplements improved the nutrient intake of older adults. After accounting for the contribution of supplements, 80% or more of users met the EAR for vitamins A, B-6, B-12, C, and E; folate; iron; and zinc, but not magnesium. However, some supplement users, particularly men, exceeded Tolerable Upper Intake Levels for iron and zinc and a small percentage of women exceeded the Tolerable Upper Intake Level for vitamin A. Significant sociodemographic factors related to supplement use for older men were age group, metropolitan area, and educational status. Race, region, smoking status, and vegetarian status were significant factors for women. Attitude about the importance of following a healthful diet was a consistent predictor of supplement use for both men and women.

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Mediterranean Diet and Telomere Length in Nurses’ Health Study

By Frank M. Painter|March 8, 2015|Nutrient Deficiency, Nutrition|

Mediterranean Diet and Telomere Length in Nurses’ Health Study: Population Based Cohort Study

The Chiro.Org Blog

SOURCE: British Medical Journal 2014 (Dec 2) ~ FULL TEXT

Marta Crous-Bou, Teresa T Fung, Jennifer Prescott,
Bettina Julin, Mengmeng Du, Qi Sun, Kathryn M Rexrode,
Frank B Hu, Immaculata De Vivo

Channing Division of Network Medicine,
Department of Medicine,
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
and Harvard Medical School,
Boston, MA 02115, USA

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with longer telomere length, a biomarker of aging.

DESIGN: Population based cohort study.

SETTING: Nurses’ Health Study, an ongoing prospective cohort study of 121,700 nurses enrolled in 1976; in 1989-90 a subset of 32,825 women provided blood samples.

PARTICIPANTS: 4676 disease-free women from nested case-control studies within the Nurses’ Health Study with telomere length measured who also completed food frequency questionnaires.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Association between relative telomere lengths in peripheral blood leukocytes measured by quantitative real time polymerase chain reaction and Alternate Mediterranean Diet score calculated from self reported dietary data.

RESULTS: Greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with longer telomeres after adjustment for potential confounders. Least squares mean telomere length z scores were -0.038 (SE 0.035) for the lowest Mediterranean diet score groups and 0.072 (0.030) for the highest group (P for trend = 0.004).

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Nutritional Factors Affecting Postpartum Depression

By Frank M. Painter|August 5, 2014|Nutrient Deficiency, Postpartum Depression, Supplementation|

Nutritional Factors Affecting Postpartum Depression

The Chiro.Org Blog

SOURCE: J Clin Chiropractic Pediatrics 2011 (Jun); 12 (1): 849–860

Lia M. Nightingale, PhD

Assistant Professor, Division of Life Sciences,
Palmer College of Chiropractic,
1000 Brady Street, Davenport, IA 52803, USA.
Email: lia.nightingale@palmer.edu

Pregnancy and lactation represent a period of substantial physiological changes for the mother and increased nutritional requirements to meet these adjustments. A number of nutritional depletions occur during pregnancy. Serum concentrations of iron and folate take months before they normalize to pre-pregnancy levels. Additionally, many micronutrients required during pregnancy interfere with each other, making absorption difficult. Postpartum depression is the primary complication of childbirth, possibly caused by several nutritional and non-nutritional factors. The current review highlights the impact nutrition may have on the etiology of this debilitating disorder, most notably on prevention of inflammation and maintenance of a healthy central nervous system. The most notable nutritional deficiencies associated with postpartum depression include omega-3 fatty acids, folate, iron, and zinc; however, supplementation trials for prevention of postpartum depression are severely lacking. Practical recommendations are given to minimize micronutrient interference and reduce the risk of postpartum depression.

Key Words: postpartum depression, nutrition, diet, folate, essential fatty acids, iron, zinc

From the Full-Text Article:

Introduction

Depression is the second leading cause of disability for those of reproductive age. [1] Although all forms of depression are devastating, postpartum depression (PPD) has long-lasting consequences for all family members involved. Postpartum depression is the most common complication of childbirth, defined as having major or minor depressive episodes that occur within 12 months after delivery. [2, 3] Postpartum depression has been associated with impaired mother-child interactions, poorer child development, and more violent behavior in children with mothers displaying PPD. [4-6]

Pregnancy is a time of increased nutritional requirements to support fetal growth and development. There are several lines of thought concerning the cause of PPD, including the link between nutritional intake and risk of depression. Therefore, the goal of this review is to examine maternal depletion of nutrients, assess whether these nutritional factors may play a role in PPD, and summarize simple recommendations to implement in practice.

Prevalence

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The Consequences of Zinc Deficiency

By Frank M. Painter|July 21, 2013|Nutrient Deficiency, Nutrition|

The Consequences of Zinc Deficiency

The Chiro.Org Blog

SOURCE: Dynamic Chiropractic

By James P. Meschino, DC, MS

A study published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry [1] underscores the importance of zinc supplementation, especially as we get older, as an important means to help prevent cancer, support immune function, and control inflammation associated with many health problems, including cancer, heart disease, autoimmune disease and diabetes.

Previous studies by the same researchers showed that, in both animal and human studies, zinc deficiency can cause DNA damage linked to cancer risk. The latest study suggests that zinc deficiency also leads to systemic inflammation. In addition, immune system cells are also particularly vulnerable to zinc deficiencies, and zinc is essential to protect against oxidative stress and help repair DNA damage.

The Latest Findings

Based on findings with laboratory animals, the researchers found that the mechanisms to transport zinc are disrupted by age-related epigenetic changes, which can cause an increase in DNA methylation and histone modifications related to cancer development. More specifically, zinc transporters were significantly dysregulated in old animals. They showed signs of zinc deficiency and had an enhanced inflammatory response, even though their diet supposedly contained adequate amounts of zinc.

When the animals were given about 10 times their dietary requirement for zinc, the biomarkers of inflammation were restored to those of young animals.

Why You Should Supplement With Zinc

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