9 spices Decrease Triglyceride levels By 30 percent

These 9 Spices Decrease Triglyceride Levels By 30 Percent

Antioxidant-rich spices and herbs could help to improve triglyceride concentrations and other blood lipids, according to new research.



 The paper analyses the metabolic effects of herbs and spice blends -- focusing in particular on the potential cardiovascular benefits of the ingredients that are traditionally used to add flavour to foods -- before testing whether meals prepared with a spice blend offer functional benefits.

Led by Professor Sheila West from Penn State, they noted that triglyceride levels rise after eating a high-fat meal -- which can lead to an increased risk of heart disease. If a high-antioxidant spice blend is incorporated into the meal, triglyceride levels may be reduced by as much as 30 percent when compared to eating an identical meal without the spice blend. The spiced meal included:

1) Garlic powder
2) Rosemary
3) Oregano
4) Cinnamon
5) Cloves
6) Paprika
7) Turmeric
8) Ginger
9) Black pepper

"The metabolic effects of spices and herbs and their efficacy and safety relative to traditional drug therapy represent an exciting area for future research given the public health significance of cardiovascular disease," wrote the team.

Daily supplementation of curcumi n alone combined with diet and exercise strategies are known to be associated with more than a 60% reduction in triglyceride levels

"We live in a world where people consume too many calories every day," said West. "Adding high-antioxidant spices might be a way to reduce calories without sacrificing taste."

West and her colleagues are now working on a further study that will monitor study participants for eight hours after eating a meal with a high-antioxidant spice blend in order to test what happens to the fat in such a meal.

"If (the fat) isn't being absorbed when spices are included in the meal, it might be excreted instead," she suggested. "We will examine whether spices affect how rapidly the meal is processed through the stomach and intestines."

Study Details

In the study West and her colleagues conducted their initial study after reviewing the literature for evidence of spices and herbs benefits on heart health. The review suggested that cinnamon may have benefit for lowering cholesterol in people with diabetes, while garlic was also suggested to have benefits for cholesterol and heart disease risk.

As part of their study, the team prepared meals for six men between the ages of 30 and 65 who were overweight, but otherwise healthy, on two separate days.

The meals were identical - consisting of chicken, bread and a dessert biscuit - except that the researchers added two tablespoons of a high-antioxidant culinary spice blend to the test meal.

The spiced meal included garlic powder, rosemary, oregano, cinnamon, cloves, paprika, turmeric, ginger and black pepper. West and colleagues then followed the participants for three hours after each meal, drawing blood every 30 minutes.

Antioxidant activity in the blood increased by 13% after the men ate the test meal when compared to the control meal, which may help prevent cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases, they suggested.

The addition of spices and herbs to the test meal also significantly decreased postprandial insulin responses by 21% and triglycerides by 31% as shown in the

Total blood cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, and glucose levels were not affected, they added.

"These findings suggest that a blend of spices and herbs may help improve levels of postprandial insulin and triglyceride concentrations after a high-fat meal while also enhancing the antioxidative capacity of blood," wrote West and her colleagues.

Mae Chan holds degrees in both physiology and nutritional sciences. She is also blogger and and technology enthusiast with a passion for disseminating information about health .

60 Percent Reduction In Triglycerides By Using Curcumin and Lifestyle Changes

What is diabetes?

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. Insulin is a hormone that regulates blood sugar. Hyperglycaemia, or raised blood sugar, is a common effect of uncontrolled diabetes and over time leads to serious damage to many of the body's systems, especially the nerves and blood vessels.

In 2014, 8.5% of adults aged 18 years and older had diabetes. In 2015, diabetes was the direct cause of 1.6 million deaths and in 2012 high blood glucose was the cause of another 2.2 million deaths.

Type 1 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes (previously known as insulin-dependent, juvenile or childhood-onset) is characterized by deficient insulin production and requires daily administration of insulin. The cause of type 1 diabetes is not known and it is not preventable with current knowledge.

Symptoms include excessive excretion of urine (polyuria), thirst (polydipsia), constant hunger, weight loss, vision changes, and fatigue. These symptoms may occur suddenly.

Type 2 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes (formerly called non-insulin-dependent, or adult-onset) results from the body’s ineffective use of insulin. Type 2 diabetes comprises the majority of people with diabetes around the world, and is largely the result of excess body weight and physical inactivity.

Symptoms may be similar to those of type 1 diabetes, but are often less marked. As a result, the disease may be diagnosed several years after onset, once complications have already arisen.

Until recently, this type of diabetes was seen only in adults but it is now also occurring increasingly frequently in children.

Gestational diabetes

Gestational diabetes is hyperglycaemia with blood glucose values above normal but below those diagnostic of diabetes, occurring during pregnancy.

Women with gestational diabetes are at an increased risk of complications during pregnancy and at delivery. They and their children are also at increased risk of type 2 diabetes in the future.

Gestational diabetes is diagnosed through prenatal screening, rather than through reported symptoms.

Impaired glucose tolerance and impaired fasting glycaemia

Impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG) are intermediate conditions in the transition between normality and diabetes. People with IGT or IFG are at high risk of progressing to type 2 diabetes, although this is not inevitable.

What are common consequences of diabetes?

Over time, diabetes can damage the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys, and nerves.

1. Adults with diabetes have a two- to three-fold increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.
2. Combined with reduced blood flow, neuropathy (nerve damage) in the feet increases the chance of foot ulcers, infection and eventual need for limb amputation.
3. Diabetic retinopathy is an important cause of blindness, and occurs as a result of long-term accumulated damage to the small blood vessels in the retina. 2.6% of global blindness can be attributed to diabetes.
4. Diabetes is among the leading causes of kidney failure.

How can the burden of diabetes be reduced?

Prevention

Simple lifestyle measures have been shown to be effective in preventing or delaying the onset of type 2 diabetes. To help prevent type 2 diabetes and its complications, people should:

1. achieve and maintain healthy body weight;
2. be physically active – at least 30 minutes of regular, moderate-intensity activity on most days. More activity is required for weight control;
3. eat a healthy diet, avoiding sugar and saturated fats intake; and
4. avoid tobacco use – smoking increases the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

Diagnosis and treatment

Early diagnosis can be accomplished through relatively inexpensive testing of blood sugar.

Treatment of diabetes involves diet and physical activity along with lowering blood glucose and the levels of other known risk factors that damage blood vessels. Tobacco use cessation is also important to avoid complications.

Interventions that are both cost-saving and feasible in developing countries include:

1. blood glucose control, particularly in type 1 diabetes. People with type 1 diabetes require insulin, people with type 2 diabetes can be treated with oral medication, but may also require insulin;
2. blood pressure control; and
3. foot care.

Other cost saving interventions include:

1. screening and treatment for retinopathy (which causes blindness)
2. blood lipid control (to regulate cholesterol levels)
3. screening for early signs of diabetes-related kidney disease and treatment.

WHO response

WHO aims to stimulate and support the adoption of effective measures for the surveillance, prevention and control of diabetes and its complications, particularly in low and middle-income countries. To this end, WHO:

1. provides scientific guidelines for the prevention of major noncommunicable diseases including diabetes;
2. develops norms and standards for diabetes diagnosis and care;
3. builds awareness on the global epidemic of diabetes, marking World Diabetes Day (14 November); and
4. conducts surveillance of diabetes and its risk factors.

The WHO "Global report on diabetes" provides an overview of the diabetes burden, the interventions available to prevent and manage diabetes, and recommendations for governments, individuals, the civil society and the private sector.

The WHO "Global strategy on diet, physical activity and health" complements WHO's diabetes work by focusing on population-wide approaches to promote healthy diet and regular physical activity, thereby reducing the growing global problem of overweight people and obesity.

* Defined as fasting blood glucose equal to or higher than 7 mmol/L, or on medication for raised blood glucose, or with a history of diagnosis of diabetes.

** High blood glucose is defined as a distribution of fasting plasma glucose in a population that is higher than the theoretical distribution that would minimize risks to health (derived from epidemiological studies). High blood glucose is a statistical concept, not a clinical or diagnostic category.

Key facts

1. The number of people with diabetes has risen from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014 (
2. The global prevalence of diabetes* among adults over 18 years of age has risen from 4.7% in 1980 to 8.5% in 2014 (1).
3. Diabetes prevalence has been rising more rapidly in middle- and low-income countries.
4. Diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, stroke and lower limb amputation.
5. In 2015, an estimated 1.6 million deaths were directly caused by diabetes. Another 2.2 million deaths were attributable to high blood glucose in 2012
6. Almost half of all deaths attributable to high blood glucose occur before the age of 70 years. WHO projects that diabetes will be the seventh leading cause of death in 2030 /
7. Healthy diet, regular physical activity, maintaining a normal body weight and avoiding tobacco use are ways to prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes.
8. Diabetes can be treated and its consequences avoided or delayed with diet, physical activity, medication and regular screening and treatment for complications.

antibiotics

Antibiotics tainted with a chemical used in rat poison may have caused the death of 13 women at a government sterilization camp in Chhattisgarh this week, officials suggested Friday after preliminary testing of the drugs.

An analysis of the antibiotic tablet Ciprofloxacin 500 revealed the medicine was adulterated with zinc phosphide, a chemical used in rat poison.

The drug had been seized from Raipur-based pharmaceutical company Mahawar Pharma on Thursday and has been sent for further tests.

Officials said a significant quantity of burnt medicines was found on the premises.

The symptoms shown by the women who became unwell after undergoing botched sterilizations is similar to how the body reacts to zinc phosphide, doctors in Bilaspur said.

After the surgery, the women had complained of nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. The 13 died of cardiac arrest, kidney failure and respiratory breakdown. “Such a chemical results in high mortality,” health officials stated.

“We have conducted raids across the state and seized over 43 lakh similar tablets prepared by Mahawar Pharma,” Bilaspur commissioner Sonmoni Borah told HT.

Mahawar Pharma director Ramesh Mahawar and his son Sumit were arrested by Raipur police on Friday.

“Prima facie, there is strong suspicion of zinc phosphide adulteration in the antibiotic. But it can be confirmed only after we get final reports from the national drug laboratories in Kolkata and Delhi where the sample has been sent,” said state health principal secretary Dr Alok Shukla told HT. The final report of the laboratory tests are likely to reach by Sunday.

This is the first time the toxin has been traced in preliminary findings. “The initial tests were done at Bilaspur science college. We were surprised though it is just the first impression of zinc phosphide in the tablet,” said Borah.