A recent UCLA study on the actions of a cellular antioxidant regulator, Nrf2, found that it had some connection to the formation of atherosclerotic plaque, and that reducing Nrf2 decreased atherosclerosis. But should these study findings scare you away from eating Nrf2-promoting dietary antioxidants found in broccoli, blueberries, and dark chocolate, or from taking the [...]

UCLA.edu – Boosting of a cellular protein, Nrf2, that is thought to play a key role in some antioxidant therapies, may not be as effective for enhancing heart health because of additional mechanisms that seem to cause it to promote atherosclerosis, or clogging of the arteries, according to UCLA research scientists. Published in the January [...]

ACS.org – Findings from a new metabonomics study of 141 adults add to an ongoing medical debate over which patients with symptoms of celiac disease should go on a gluten-free diet. Published in ACS’ Journal of Proteome Research, the study concludes that people currently diagnosed as “potential” celiac disease patients and not advised to follow [...]

Older adults with even mildly decreased sodium levels in the blood (hyponatremia) experience increased rates of fractures and falls, according to a study presented at the American Society of Nephrology’s 43rd Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition. Falls are a serious health problem for the elderly and account for about 50 percent of deaths due to [...]

Low levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D were linked to muscle weakness and frailty in the elderly, according to two separate studies recently published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. The study carried out with older women as participants saw an improvement in muscle strength from vitamin D supplementation in the group that originally had [...]

JAMA / Archives – High levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), also known as “good” cholesterol, appear to be associated with a reduced risk for Alzheimer’s disease in older adults, according to a report in the December 2010 issue of Archives of Neurology. “Dyslipidemia [high total cholesterol and triglycerides] and late-onset Alzheimer’s disease are highly frequent [...]