Very Low Fat Diet is Inappropriate

The current nutritional paradigm for the prevention of heart disease often emphasise eating a low-fat diet.  Unfortunately new studies released recently show beyond any shadow of doubt that low fat diets are not the optimal dietary strategy for reducing heart disease.  In fact, the Mediterranean diet is quite promising for heart disease prevention.  Why?  Because this diet provides good quality dietary fats.

Good Dietary Fats Reduce Heart Disease Risk

According to Professor Jennie Brand Miller of Sydney University, the conventional low fat diets are inappropriate for reducing the risk of heart disease.  In fact, in 2009, Jakobsen et al. pooled the data from  11 observational studies involving 344, 696 subjects, over a 4-10 year follow up with 5249 cases of heart attack and they found that replacing saturated fat (from meat sources) with polyunsaturated fat (from plant sources like nuts and seeds) significantly reduced the risk of heart disease.  Here, we are talking about an amazing 26% reduction in heart disease risk which is very exciting!

Tables for Quality Dietary Fats

The tables below list the food items in order of decreasing density of each nutrient:

Specific Foods for Best Dietary Fats

As you can see from the table above, some of the most nutrient-dense plant sources of omega 6, omega 3 fatty acids and vitamin E, are found in walnuts, sunflower seeds and almonds!  Why not have a handful of them daily?  Just substitute saturated fats with nutrient-rich polyunsaturated dietary fats.

References

Commonwealth Department of Health and Aging (Aust), Ministry of Health (NZ) and National Health and Medical Research Council.  Nutrient Reference Values for Australia and New Zealand. 2006.

Shrapnel B, Baghurst K. Adequacy of essential fatty acid, vitamin D and vitamin E intake: implications for the ‘core’ and ‘extras’ food group concept of the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating. 2007; 64: 7885.

Shrapnel B.  The importance of nutrient density in implementing recommendations for fats.  Nutr Diet 2007; 64(Suppl.1): S40.

Jakobsen M U, Eilis J O, Heitmann B L, Pereira M A, Balter K B, Fraser G E, Goldbourt U, Hallmans G, Knekt P, Liu S, Pietinen P, Spiegelman D, Stevens J, Virtamo J, Willett W and Ascherio A.  Major Types of dietary fat and risk of coronary heart disease: a pooled analysis of 11 cohort studies.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2009, 89 (5)

Delbridge E A, Prendergast L A, Pritchard J E and Proiette J.  One –year weight maintenance after significant weight loss i healthy overweight and obese subjects: does diet composition matter?  The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2009; 90: no. 5: 1203 to 1214.

Rest & Relaxation

Have you ever wondered how to look younger without surgery?  Why do some people look so young for their chronological age while others look much older?

Read on for some very quick and effective tips on how to look younger.

Looking Younger Without Surgery

Is it all in their genes? Or could they live, think and feel differently and therefore look different? Why do sages or gurus like Jay Krishnamuti look half their age while others fast track their way to their graves with chronic diseases like diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolaemia, cancer and finally early onset dementia?

Your Biological Age

Take a short lifestyle questionnaire and find out your biological age here:
The Heart Age Calculator

7 Steps to Look Younger Without Surgery

If you are not happy with your age and are committed to looking younger naturally, here are 7 health pillars to consider adding to your life to turn back the clock:

1. Ensure you have good quality sleep each night (what they say about beauty sleep is true)
2. Maintain a healthy weight to reduce your chances of developing insulin resistance and accompanying chronic diseases
3. Choose a healthy balanced diet each day – at least 3 serves of fruit and 5 serves of vegetables
4. Engage in a daily relaxation exercise like meditation or yoga – cultivate a quiet mind, learn to still the mind and empty it at will.
5. Maintain good oral health by flossing, brushing and rinsing, your oral health is a reflection of your overall health status.  It is not an over statement when they say that your mouth is a mirror of your body.
6. Exercise at the moderate to high intensity level for at least 30minutes each day; aim to do this everyday, if not at least 5 days a week.
7. Development mindfulness and create a new level awareness around working, eating, exercising, sleeping and playing – the balanced mind is nimble, relaxed and alert; such a mental state does not happen by accident.  It takes years of discipline to create such a state everyday.

Now that you know how to look younger without surgery, the only thing left on your path to rejuvenation is to take the first step!  As the old adage goes, “Beginning is half done.”  Once you get started, half the battle is won.  No doubt, the rest is simple but still not easy.  However, the results will be well worth it.  You know you have done well when others seek your advice on how to look younger without surgery.

Warfarin is the most commonly prescribed anti-coagulant. It is often given to people with irregular heart beat or people who have suffered a heart attack/stroke or pulmonary embolism. How it works is that it prevents clots from forming or existing clots from growing in you blood vessels. Needless to say, these clots obstruct your blood flow and put your life in peril. Warfarin powerfully decreases these clots, enhances the smooth flow of blood and keeps you healthy.

Vitamin K (phylloquinone) is a vitamin that affects the blood clotting process in our body. Foods rich in vitamin K can reduce the anti-blood clotting effects of Warfarin. Listed below are common food items that may assert a medium to strong influence on the effects of warfarin:

Questions are frequently asked about the interaction between warfarin and herbal medicines. Often, ‘natural’ is regarded as ‘safe’ to most people; unfortunately this is not the case with Warfarin and herbs. There are a host of herbal medicines that possess natural anti-coagulant properties. Taken with warfarin, herbs may have additive effects and increase the potential for bleeding. Others, however, may antogonise the effects of Warfarin.

Below are herbs that increase the anti-coagulant effects of warfarin and cause bleeding:

Listed below are herbs that antogonise the effects of Warfarin, making you more at risk of forming clots:

It is best to avoid ‘coumarin – derivatives’ containing herbal teas as they may also interfere with Warfarin. Examples of these teas include the tonka beans, melot (sweet clover) and sweet woodruff.

Grapefruit juice, a common breakfast beverage in Europe, can adversely affect a drug’s absorption. It can cause a drug to be absorbed from the intestine and reaching toxic levels. Sometimes, it can prevent a drug from working at all. Therefore it is best to avoid eating grapefruit or drinking grapefruit juice 2 hours before or after taking medication. Studies on the interaction between grapefruit juice and Warfarin are inconclusive, so consume this juice with caution when taking Warfarin.

In conclusion, if you are on Warfarin, before taking any herbal, mineral or vitamin supplements, consult a dietitian or pharmacist. Please be warned that some effects may take 2-4 weeks before becoming apparent. It is important to inform your doctor of any changes.

References
1. Booth SL, Sadowski JA, Weibrauch JL, Ferland G. Vitamin K (Phylloquinone) contents of food: A provisional table. J Food Comp Anal 1993; 6: 109-20.

2. Suvarna R, Pirmohamed M, Henderson L. Possible interaction between Warfarin and cranberry juice. BMJ 2003; 327: 1454.

3. Cambria-Kiely JA. Effect of soy milk on Warfarin efficacy. Ann Pharmacother 2002: 36; 1893-6.

4. Stockley IH. Drug Interactions, 5th Edn. London: Pharmaceutical Press, 1999.

5. Makjeha AB. Bailey JM. A platelet phospholipase inhibitor from the medicinal herb feverfew (Tanscetum parthenium) Prostaglandins Leukot Med 1983; 8: 653-660.