11 posts · 10,888 views
Investigating foods, drugs, and chemicals.
Melinda Moyer
11 posts
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- January 21, 2011
- 04:10 PM
- 782 views
How many omega-3s does your dinner have?
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
As I approach my third trimester, I’m becoming a bit of an omega-3 fiend. The unsaturated fatty acids have not only been tied to lower heart disease risk in adults, but they have also been shown to boost fetal brain development, especially when consumed in the final few months of pregnancy. Given that I’m not much of a cold water fish fan—the thought of chewing a mouthful of sardines makes me want to gag—I’ve been looking into how else to get them, and what I’ve uncov........ Read more »
PSOTA, T., GEBAUER, S., & KRISETHERTON, P. (2006) Dietary Omega-3 Fatty Acid Intake and Cardiovascular Risk. The American Journal of Cardiology, 98(4), 3-18. DOI: 10.1016/j.amjcard.2005.12.022
JACOBSON, J., JACOBSON, S., MUCKLE, G., KAPLANESTRIN, M., AYOTTE, P., & DEWAILLY, E. (2008) Beneficial Effects of a Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid on Infant Development: Evidence from the Inuit of Arctic Quebec. The Journal of Pediatrics, 152(3), 356-3640. DOI: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2007.07.008
- January 6, 2011
- 08:11 AM
- 802 views
Why pregnant women deserve drug trials
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
It’s easy to gloss over health care disparities until they start really affecting you or your loved ones. When I became pregnant this summer, I discovered that there is a dearth of information available about drug safety during pregnancy. (I wrote a little about it in this Slate article published in July.) Women who rely on medication get pregnant—for instance, one in eight pregnant women takes antidepressants—and pregnant women develop complications that require medicine. Yet the only........ Read more »
Zaman, K., Roy, E., Arifeen, S., Rahman, M., Raqib, R., Wilson, E., Omer, S., Shahid, N., Breiman, R., & Steinhoff, M. (2008) Effectiveness of Maternal Influenza Immunization in Mothers and Infants. New England Journal of Medicine, 359(15), 1555-1564. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa0708630
Brown, A. (2005) Prenatal Infection as a Risk Factor for Schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 32(2), 200-202. DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbj052
- November 10, 2010
- 07:32 AM
- 843 views
Eggs, KFC Double Downs, and Heart Disease
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
Last week, my husband sent me a link to a press release. (He loves sending me press releases that he thinks will incense me.) This one was a doozy: “One Egg Yolk Worse than a KFC Double Down When it Comes to Cholesterol,” the headline read. Um. Wow.
Intrigued (and, I’ll admit, a little incensed), I looked up the study—which actually turned out to be a review article—published in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology. I also looked up what I could find in the scientific literat........ Read more »
JD Spence, DJ Jenkins, J Davignon. (2010) Dietary cholesterol and egg yolks: Not for patients at risk of vascular disease. The Canadian Journal of Cardiology, 26(9). info:/
Dawber TR, Nickerson RJ, Brand FN, & Pool J. (1982) Eggs, serum cholesterol, and coronary heart disease. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 36(4), 617-25. PMID: 7124663
Hu, F. (1999) A Prospective Study of Egg Consumption and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in Men and Women. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 281(15), 1387-1394. DOI: 10.1001/jama.281.15.1387
Djoussé L, & Gaziano JM. (2008) Egg consumption in relation to cardiovascular disease and mortality: the Physicians' Health Study. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 87(4), 964-9. PMID: 18400720
Song WO, & Kerver JM. (2000) Nutritional contribution of eggs to American diets. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 19(5 Suppl). PMID: 11023007
Taubes, G. (2001) NUTRITION: The Soft Science of Dietary Fat. Science, 291(5513), 2536-2545. DOI: 10.1126/science.291.5513.2536
- October 19, 2010
- 09:53 AM
- 1,277 views
If BPA exposure is so low, why should we be worried?
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
In response to my earlier post about bisphenol A in soda and beer, reader Skeptic had an insightful comment:
As someone involved in environmental health myself, I have been following the BPA controversy from north of the 49th parallel with some interest. I have often wondered whether the actual data supports regulation of BPA. The first study you cite, for example, hides this line in its discussion: “Thus, median and 95th percentile intake estimates were approximately two to three orders of ma........ Read more »
Lakind JS, & Naiman DQ. (2010) Daily intake of bisphenol A and potential sources of exposure: 2005-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Journal of exposure science . PMID: 20237498
VOMSAAL, F., AKINGBEMI, B., BELCHER, S., BIRNBAUM, L., CRAIN, D., ERIKSEN, M., FARABOLLINI, F., GUILLETTEJR, L., HAUSER, R., & HEINDEL, J. (2007) Chapel Hill bisphenol A expert panel consensus statement: Integration of mechanisms, effects in animals and potential to impact human health at current levels of exposure. Reproductive Toxicology, 24(2), 131-138. DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2007.07.005
Calabrese EJ. (2009) Getting the dose-response wrong: why hormesis became marginalized and the threshold model accepted. Archives of toxicology, 83(3), 227-47. PMID: 19234688
- October 15, 2010
- 04:43 PM
- 968 views
Soda, beer, and BPA (and hey, congrats to Canada!)
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
Canada deserves a big pat on the back: On Wednesday, our northerly neighbor added bisphenol A (BPA) to its list of known toxic substances. Canada still has to iron out how it will regulate the chemical, but this is definitely a step in the right direction. (Bryan Walsh over at Time just posted a great piece about this, too—among other things he explains why BPA is “a litmus test for environmental health and for risk tolerance.”)
Let me use this news as an excuse to talk some more a........ Read more »
LaKind, J., & Naiman, D. (2010) Daily intake of bisphenol A and potential sources of exposure: 2005–2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology. DOI: 10.1038/jes.2010.9
Cao XL, Corriveau J, & Popovic S. (2010) Sources of low concentrations of bisphenol A in canned beverage products. Journal of food protection, 73(8), 1548-51. PMID: 20819371
- October 6, 2010
- 11:16 AM
- 1,023 views
How not to fight colds: is it really that clear cut?
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
The most popular piece in the New York Times today is an Op-Ed published on Monday by Jennifer Ackerman, “How Not to Fight Colds.” It’s an interesting piece and points out something that a lot of people probably don’t know—it’s the immune system, not the virus itself, that causes the cold’s nasty symptoms. But in my opinion, Ackerman takes her assertions a little too far, in the process confusing multiple aspects of the immune response. While it’s prob........ Read more »
Proud, D., Turner, R., Winther, B., Wiehler, S., Tiesman, J., Reichling, T., Juhlin, K., Fulmer, A., Ho, B., Walanski, A.... (2008) Gene Expression Profiles during In Vivo Human Rhinovirus Infection: Insights into the Host Response. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 178(9), 962-968. DOI: 10.1164/rccm.200805-670OC
Proud D, Sanders SP, & Wiehler S. (2004) Human rhinovirus infection induces airway epithelial cell production of human beta-defensin 2 both in vitro and in vivo. Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950), 172(7), 4637-45. PMID: 15034083
- October 2, 2010
- 08:30 AM
- 546 views
Cell phones, cancer, and scientific oversimplification
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
I’ve always been a big fan of Michael Shermer’s Skeptic column in Scientific American, but this month I have to say I’m disappointed. In his piece (which is not yet online), titled “Can You Hear Me Now? Physics shows that cell phones cannot cause cancer,” Shermer argues that it is “virtually impossible” for cell phones to cause cancer because they “do not emit enough energy to break the molecular bonds inside cells.” While this latter stateme........ Read more »
Belyaev IY, Markovà E, Hillert L, Malmgren LO, & Persson BR. (2009) Microwaves from UMTS/GSM mobile phones induce long-lasting inhibition of 53BP1/gamma-H2AX DNA repair foci in human lymphocytes. Bioelectromagnetics, 30(2), 129-41. PMID: 18839414
Belyaev, I., Hillert, L., Protopopova, M., Tamm, C., Malmgren, L., Persson, B., Selivanova, G., & Harms-Ringdahl, M. (2005) 915 MHz microwaves and 50 Hz magnetic field affect chromatin conformation and 53BP1 foci in human lymphocytes from hypersensitive and healthy persons. Bioelectromagnetics, 26(3), 173-184. DOI: 10.1002/bem.20103
Wang, B. (2002) 53BP1, a Mediator of the DNA Damage Checkpoint. Science, 298(5597), 1435-1438. DOI: 10.1126/science.1076182
LAI, H. (1996) Single-and double-strand DNA breaks in rat brain cells after acute exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation. International Journal of Radiation Biology, 69(4), 513-521. DOI: 10.1080/095530096145814
- September 24, 2010
- 08:30 AM
- 1,382 views
Goodbye, milk—hello, added sugar!
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
As usual, my readers are raising interesting questions in the comments section (thanks, guys! You’re awesome). In response to my post yesterday highlighting how our food portions have changed (as in, exploded) over the past 20 years, commenter AEK said, “It would be interesting to note how much added sugar was in the foods at both measurement periods.” It’s a point I’ve frequently considered myself, so I decided to do some digging.
As it turns out—and you might g........ Read more »
Ock K. Chun, Chin E. Chung , Ying Wang, Andrea Padgitt, Won O. Song. (2010) Changes in Intakes of Total and Added Sugar and their Contribution to Energy Intake in the U.S. Nutrients, 834-854. info:/10.3390/nu2080834
- September 23, 2010
- 08:00 AM
- 1,024 views
America’s ever-expanding meal portions
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
A hamburger today is a lot more than it used to be.... Read more »
Herrmann C. (2008) Raising awareness of women and heart disease--women's hearts are different. Critical care nursing clinics of North America, 20(3), 251-63. PMID: 18644507
- September 14, 2010
- 07:42 AM
- 1,321 views
Breastfeeding may prevent disease by changing gene expression in the gut flora
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
Let’s face it: breast milk is pretty amazing. It contains antibodies that help wee ones establish strong immune systems, and some studies suggest the act of breastfeeding even lowers mom’s breast cancer risk. Now researchers at the Universities of Chicago, Maryland, and Illinois have another potential bonus to add to the mix: according to a study they conducted in pigs, breast milk shapes the expression of bacterial genes in the infant gut, potentially boosting antioxidant activity ........ Read more »
De Silva M, Senarath U, Gunatilake M, & Lokuhetty D. (2010) Prolonged breastfeeding reduces risk of breast cancer in Sri Lankan women: a case-control study. Cancer epidemiology, 34(3), 267-73. PMID: 20338838
Poroyko V, White JR, Wang M, Donovan S, Alverdy J, Liu DC, & Morowitz MJ. (2010) Gut microbial gene expression in mother-fed and formula-fed piglets. PloS one, 5(8). PMID: 20805981
Turnbaugh, P., Ridaura, V., Faith, J., Rey, F., Knight, R., & Gordon, J. (2009) The Effect of Diet on the Human Gut Microbiome: A Metagenomic Analysis in Humanized Gnotobiotic Mice. Science Translational Medicine, 1(6), 6-6. DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.3000322
Penders, J. (2006) Factors Influencing the Composition of the Intestinal Microbiota in Early Infancy. PEDIATRICS, 118(2), 511-521. DOI: 10.1542/peds.2005-2824
AYCICEK, A., EREL, O., KOCYIGIT, A., SELEK, S., & DEMIRKOL, M. (2006) Breast milk provides better antioxidant power than does formula. Nutrition, 22(6), 616-619. DOI: 10.1016/j.nut.2005.12.011
SHAH, V. (2004) Nitric oxide in gastrointestinal health and disease. Gastroenterology, 126(3), 903-913. DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2003.11.046
Shah P, & Shah V. (2007) Arginine supplementation for prevention of necrotising enterocolitis in preterm infants. Cochrane database of systematic reviews (Online). PMID: 17636753
LUCAS, A. (1990) Breast milk and neonatal necrotising enterocolitis. The Lancet, 336(8730-8731), 1519-1523. DOI: 10.1016/0140-6736(90)93304-8
- September 9, 2010
- 06:09 PM
- 920 views
Could dieting pollute us?
by Melinda Moyer in Body Politic
I just stumbled across a thought-provoking study that I have to share. Korean researchers publishing in the International Journal of Obesity have found that weight loss is associated with higher blood levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs)—chemicals used to make pesticides and solvents that are notorious for accumulating in our bodies and in the environment. The researchers believe that POPs, which typically build up in fat, get released into the bloodstream when fat is burned. There, ........ Read more »
Lim JS, Son HK, Park SK, Jacobs DR Jr, & Lee DH. (2010) Inverse associations between long-term weight change and serum concentrations of persistent organic pollutants. International journal of obesity (2005). PMID: 20820170
Chevrier, J., Dewailly, �., Ayotte, P., Mauriège, P., Després, J., & Tremblay, A. (2000) Body weight loss increases plasma and adipose tissue concentrations of potentially toxic pollutants in obese individuals. International Journal of Obesity, 24(10), 1272-1278. DOI: 10.1038/sj.ijo.0801380
Hue, O., Marcotte, J., Berrigan, F., Simoneau, M., Doré, J., Marceau, P., Marceau, S., Tremblay, A., & Teasdale, N. (2006) Increased Plasma Levels of Toxic Pollutants Accompanying Weight Loss Induced by Hypocaloric Diet or by Bariatric Surgery. Obesity Surgery, 16(9), 1145-1154. DOI: 10.1381/096089206778392356
Sørensen, T., Rissanen, A., Korkeila, M., & Kaprio, J. (2005) Intention to Lose Weight, Weight Changes, and 18-y Mortality in Overweight Individuals without Co-Morbidities. PLoS Medicine, 2(6). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.0020171
Drøyvold WB, Lund Nilsen TI, Lydersen S, Midthjell K, Nilsson PM, Nilsson JA, Holmen J, & Nord-Trøndelag Health Study. (2005) Weight change and mortality: the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study. Journal of internal medicine, 257(4), 338-45. PMID: 15788003
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