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http://www.webmedcentral.com/images/Header_Logo.giftext/html2011-12-03T20:05:49+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Dr. Bill MisnerDrinking Distilled Water- Are the effects Positive or Negative? - An Opinion
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/2554
IntroductionThe rule of 3’s states that humans can live 3 minutes without oxygen; 3 days without water; and 3 weeks without food. Because adequate hydration is so important to both quality and quantity of life, what we drink is important. The human body is 60-70% water requiring fluids continuously to maintain optimum health. Humans require approximately ½ ounce water for every pound body weight daily or to prevent compromised health. Twenty percent of our fluid needs come from food. What water we drink provides the remaining 80%. It is commonly observed that distilled water is the fluid-of-choice when only pure substance-free H2O-solutions are required, such as for flushing surgical wounds, a solvent for medications, for vaccines, or intravenous solutions. Why therefore do we use only distilled water for delicate refined research solutions, but for our own health we drink water from unknown origins including the tap and man-made bottled solutions? For 56 years, I drank largely tap water, but for the last 15-years I drank only distilled pure water. Drinking distilled pure water, in my opinion, is less toxic, absorbs rapidly, prevents dehydration, and supports optimum health better than tap water. Tap Water ToxinsTap water has been reported to deliver several harmful substances. Tap water in the USA has been shown to contain 19 "inorganic metals of concern"(1994 Safe Water Drinking Act), for which maximum contaminant levels have been set.(1) Most American tap water tested falls between the ranges of 350 parts per million to over 1000 parts per million total contaminants.(2) Ralph Nader reported that over 2,110 different contaminants have been detected in tap water. Some were lead, asbestos, trihalomethanes, nitrates, nitrites, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, chlorine, fluoride, lithium, and sulphates (3,4). Tap water may also carry and incubate harmful microbes, resulting in infection. Microbial plate counts of seven tap water specimens (controls) ranged from 4.0 CFU/mL to 95.0 CFU/mL. Even using tap water alone or tap water with bleach fails to improve water quality in dental unit waterlines. The American Dental Association (ADA) standard for reduced microbial contamination of dental unit waterlines was met using Bio2000 and distilled water treated with Bio2000. These results were well below both the 500 CFU/mL standard for public drinking water (5). In other words tap water is good for drinking, but it still introduces microbes into our body’s internal system, where as distilled water reduces microbial contamination.(6,7) The less microbial contamination introduced by air, fluids, or foods, the less toxic load on an already-taxed immune system. How does tap water provide a breeding ground for bacteria? Bacteria prefer mineral-rich water for growth. The behavior of 12 strains of gram-negative bacteria was analyzed in media having a low content of nutrients. Sterile tap water, de-ionized water, aqua bidestillata and mineral salt solution were used in this analysis. Serratia marcescens, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterobacter, Klebsiella and Citrobacter were the most frequently observed growths. Providencia, E. coli, Erwinia, Hafnia, and Alkaligenes reached maximal colony numbers of some 100000/ml survived in mineral salt solutions. When the salts were added stepwise both potassium phosphate and especially magnesium sulfate demonstrated a growth-promoting effect (8). This is not to suggest that organisms do not grow in distilled water, but in the absence of growth-promoting mineral compounds, they appear to grow less vigorously, if at all. Some agree with Herbst’s concerns regarding the pollution potential from tap water (9,10,11). He [Herbst] wrote about the toxic contaminates in tap water:“Organic pollution is still the most important anthropogenic stress factor influencing the usability of ground and surface water as drinking water for cattle. Organic pollution is decomposed in several distinct heterotrophic processes that cause oxygen deficit, and finally end in the production of ammonia, hydrogen sulphide or methane. Even after the oxygen balance being restored higher nutrient concentrations (eutrophication) will remain. Eutrophication itself often leads to secondary pollution processes that adversely affect oxygen availability. Certain bluegreen bacteria growing under highly eutrophic conditions may generate toxins. Due to the concentrations of organic substances bacterial growth is forced, sometimes including faecal indicators and pathogenic species originating from the effluents of most of the communal sewage treatment works. Another kind of man-made pollution concerns certain toxic substances. Disregarding the effects of accidental spills, the industrial production and use of pesticides in agriculture as well as other industrial chemicals or heavy metals may cause concentrations beyond acceptable limits. The use of surface water for cattle may become a problem for this reason. Accidental spills must be reckoned with as well, so the technical equipment for providing alternative sources of drinking water in emergencies must be available. Whereas the use of groundwater is normally not affected by toxic substance or pathogenic bacteria, high concentrations of iron, humic acids or salination may affect the suitability of water for cattle.” (12)Tap Water MineralsDo we need to drink tap water for our minerals? Tap water does indeed deliver a variety of minerals, which our body may have difficulty absorbing without the specific amino acids required for transition across intestinal walls. Minerals without amino acid carriers in drinking water are suspects mentioned in hardening of the arteries, arthritis, kidney stones, gallstones, glaucoma, cataracts, hearing loss, emphysema, diabetes, and obesity. What minerals are available in "hard" tap water, are poorly absorbed, or rejected by cellular levels, and, if not evacuated, their presence may contribute to arterial obstruction, or internal deposit (13,14). If (for example) the mineral content from tap water from Reno, Nevada were modified so that it would convert the daily Calcium requirement (RDA) from its calcium content, it would require drinking 7.4 gallons of tap water a day. Distilled Water Medium and EffectsDistilled water (Unlike tap water) is microbe-free and is a superb medium for multiple forms of whole life growth, proliferation, and lifespan. How long simple life forms can live in a give solution is associated with the health-effects of that solution. Brine shrimp larvae are commonly used for cytotoxicity assays in pharmacology. These larvae are sensitive to toxic substances. The ratio between dead larvae (no motility) and living larvae (high motility) in comparison to a control without any toxic substances is used to estimate the toxicity of the test solutions. Brine shrimp larvae incubated in 1g in 4ml-distilled water at 37 degrees C for 48 hours to determine solution toxicity (15). Distilled water is therefore the best medium for whole life forms growth and proliferation rate. Distilled water reduces the toxic impact on the human immune system. Researchers also presented data to identify a previously unrecognized role for water quality on the severity of neuropathology induced by elevated cholesterol levels:“Agent(s) occurring in tap water, excluded by distillation, promoting accumulation of neuronal Abeta immunoreactivity is (are) yet undisclosed, but arsenic, manganese, aluminum, zinc, mercury, iron and nitrate have tentatively been excluded because they were not identifiable (below detection limits) in the tap water of the three locales where the cholesterol-induced neuropathologic difference was observable. Neuronal accumulation of Abeta induced by increased circulating concentrations of cholesterol in the New Zealand white rabbit is attenuated when distilled drinking water is administered compared to use of tap water. The numbers of neurons in cholesterol-fed rabbits that exhibited Abeta immunoreactivity, relative to normal chow-fed controls, increased approximately 2.5 fold among animals on tap water but only approximately 1.9 fold among animals on distilled water. This yielded a statistically significant approximately 28% reduction due to the use of distilled water. These findings suggest that water quality may impact on human health in the setting of increased circulating cholesterol levels, and could illustrate a truly simple life-style change that could be of benefit in Alzheimers Disease.” (16)Distilled water is rapidly absorbed and has been proven effective for preventing exercise-induced dehydration: Five trained men were studied during 2 hours of cycling exercise at 67% peak oxygen uptake at 20-22 degrees C to examine the effect of fluid ingestion on muscle metabolism. On one occasion, the subjects completed this exercise without fluid ingestion (NF) while on the other they ingested a volume of distilled deionized water that prevented loss of body mass (FR). No differences in oxygen uptake during exercise were observed between the two trials. Heart rate was lower throughout exercise when distilled deionized fluid was ingested, and rectal temperature after 2 h of exercise was lower (38.0 and 38.6 degrees C for FR and NF, respectively, as was muscle (vastus lateralis) temperature (38.5 and 39.1 degrees C for FR and NF, respectively. Resting muscle ATP, creatine phosphate, creatine, glycogen, and lactate levels were similar in the two trials, as were the postexercise ATP, creatine phosphate, and creatine levels. In contrast, muscle glycogen was higher and muscle lactate was lower after 2 hours exercise in distilled water hydration that prevented loss of body compared with exercise without fluid intake. Net muscle glycogen utilization during exercise was reduced by 16% when fluid was ingested (318 and 380 mmol/kg dry weight for FR and NF, respectively. These results indicate that fluid ingestion reduces muscle glycogen use during prolonged exercise, which may account, in part, for the improved performance previously observed with fluid ingestion. (17)text/html2011-12-30T16:27:19+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Dr. Mohammadreza Vafa14-Effects of Apple Consumption on Lipid Profile of Hyperlipidemic and Overweight Men
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/2376
Objectives: Fruits and vegetables may be beneficial on lipid profile of hyperlipidemic subjects. The present study was aimed to verify the effect of golden delicious apple on Lipid Profile in hyperlipidemic and overweight men.Methods: Forty six hyperlipidemic and overweight men were randomly divided into two groups. Intervention group received 300g golden delicious apple per day for 8 weeks. Control group had the regular dietary regimen for the same period of time. Blood samples were analyzed for serum triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C), very low density lipoprotein- cholesterol (VLDL), apolipoprotein B (Apo B), lipoprotein a (Lp a) and LDL/HDL ratio at baseline and after intervention.Results: Total polyphenols and fibers were 485 mg/kg and 4.03 g/100g in fresh apple respectively. After 8 weeks, significant statistical differences were observed considering the TG and VLDL levels between two groups, but no significant differences were observed regarding TC, LDL-C, HDL-C, Apo (B), Lp (a) and LDL/HDL ratio.Conclusions: Consumption of Golden delicious apple may be increased serum TG and VLDL in hyperlipidemic and overweight men.We need more studies to assay the effect of apple consumption on serum TC, LDL-C, HDL-C, Apo (B), Lp (a) and LDL/HDL ratio.Keywords: Malus, Hyperlipidemia, Dietary fiber, Polyphenols,Overweight, Lipid profile.
text/html2010-10-05T20:07:19+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Dr. Robert T DavidsonReduction of ovariectomy-induced bone loss in rats by menaquinone-4, cholecalciferol, and (n-3) polyunsaturated fats
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/894
Menopause and ovariectomization both lead to a rapid loss of bone mineralization. Conflicting reports exist concerning the ability of menaquinone-4, a form of vitamin K routinely used in Japan, to successfully ameliorate the bone mineral loss associated with overiectomization in rats. We hypothesized that menaquinone-4 may be acting in conjunction with other nutrients, specifically vitamin D3 or (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), to affect bone mineral loss in the ovariectomized state. Two experiments were performed using 6-month-old ovariectomized rats placed on diets containing normal or supraphysiological levels of menaquinone-4 while also varying the dietary content of vitamin D3 or (n-3) PUFA for eight months. Femur bone mineral density was monitored by DXA. Additionally, femur bone mineral ash and femur bone strength was measured in the second experiment. Supraphysiological levels of menaquinone-4 with either twice the recommended level of Vitamin D3 or a high n-3/n-6 ratio in the diet significantly reduced bone mineral loss in ovariectomized rats after eight months of treatment. Additionally, rats fed either a high n-3/n-6 ratio diet or supraphysiological levels of menaquinone-4 for eight months maintained bone strength measures compared to ovariectomized control animals. Supraphysiological levels of menaquinone-4 did ameliorate the bone mineral loss associated with ovariectomization when used in conjunction with vitamin D or (n-3) PUFA.text/html2011-02-24T21:23:19+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Ms. Neha B KanthariaEfficacy of Using Who\'s Steps Approach to Identify \"At Risk\" Subjects for Diet Related Non-Communicable Diseases
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/1596
Aim: The efficacy of using non invasive method of WHO’s STEP approach as compared to traditional biochemical assessment to identify “at risk” subjects (having constellation of ≥3 risk factors) was determined in productive industrial population.Methods and Materials: Information on the presence of metabolic risk factors in the employee’s was collected from the existing medical records and subjects with ≥3 risk factors by using NCEP ATP III definition of Metabolic Syndrome were identified. The behavioral and physical measurements of the identified metabolic syndrome subjects was done using pre tested and adapted WHO STEPS Questionnaire.Results: Out of 1059 employees, 251 employees (23.5%) were identified at risk through medical records. The most common (37.85%) combination prevalent was hypertension, obesity with dyslipidemia. The leading risk factors in them were overweight and obesity (89.54%), followed by low intake of fruits and vegetables (79.74%), high waist circumference (73.20%) and Physical inactivity (52.29%). The prevalence of hypertension was 46.41 % and pre hypertension was 57.52%. Tobacco usage in any form and alcohol consumption was 33.33% and 25.49% respectively. Conclusion: By non invasive STEPS methodology, 87.58% of the metabolic syndrome subjects were identified “at risk subjects”. Thus, it can be inferred that in place of routine biochemical assessment of the entire population, WHO STEPS methodology could be used for the identification of “at risk” subjects. This measure will also reduce the biochemical assessment costs. STEPS approach could thus be recommended to industries as an occupational safety measure to identify at risk subjects for diet related non communicable diseases.
text/html2011-10-28T09:16:03+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Dr. A SahooNutrition for Wool Production
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/2384
The amount of wool that a sheep produces depends upon its breed, genetics, nutrition, and shearing interval. Lambs produce less wool than mature animals. Due to their larger size, rams usually produce more wool than ewes of the same breed or type. Wool can account for as much as a 20% of the total gross income. Generally, wool traits are highly heritable and that most directly influence the value of a fleece include fleece weight, fiber diameter, and length of staple. Feed represents the largest single cost in all types of sheep production and thus the rations must be formulated to support optimum production, must be efficient and economical to feed, and must minimize the potential for nutrition related problems. Wool growth is usually maximized irrespective of the stage of pregnancy or lactation if sheep is immunized against nutritional deprivation. In this review attempts are made to highlight nutritional role in maintenance of wool yield and quality and catalytic intervention to maximize output as a whole.text/html2012-01-05T11:04:19+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Dr. Naveen K PeraImplementation of Diet Therapy Program in a Healthcare Facility
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/2851
Good nutrition is important for health as body is designed to use the nutrients to the good life of a health consumer or client. But, knowing these aspects alone will lead us to have only half-a-knowledge on the subject of Applied Nutrition & Dietetics. Nutrition in disease or a diseased state of condition, will have to be focused in order to enhance the health status of an unhealthy client. Therapeutic nutrition or Diet therapy involves applying dietary change as a result of illness and/or to encourage independence or improve a handicapped individual’s quality of life. Nutrition is rarely a primary treatment, and, food is not used as a medicine, but is a very important part of medical care. The diet may be changed to help make a certain treatment as effective as possible. Normal nutrition becomes therapeutic nutrition when something goes wrong. Frequently, the first persons to help a client adjust to a new diet are the persons in a healthcare facility, such as a hospital, health center, residential school for handicapped individuals, or a nursing home. The body may become less able to receive, utilise, breakdown, control or excrete some nutrient or nutrients. The problem may be caused by disease, allergy, psychosocial questions, a physical handicap or a combination of factors. A therapeutic diet is one that controls certain nutrients. Some therapies involve control of one or two nutrients; other therapies require a rearrangement or many factors. When a client is placed on a certain diet, it may be of more immediate importance to learn exactly what this means, in terms of menu planning, than to fully understand the disease. Once his health stabilizes, then there is time to understand the disease in more detail. Therapeutic nutrition usually begins when a client receives some type of medical care. He may not change his normal eating habits (his diet) unless the physician says that change is necessary. [1]A study, published in year 2002, undertaken on geriatric in-patients aged 60 years and above, in a medical college teaching hospital, 28% of study population gave a frank opinion on dietary services (precisely on diet provided) as not satisfactory and this was the highest unsatisfactory rate amongst queries on Nursing Care, Ward Boys hospitality, Doctor’s care etc. When additional facilities and needs required were asked 70% of them said they would require one prayer hall in the hospital and 62% of the study population asked for a separate dining room. In both these situations the dietary requirements were stressed highest by the patients & visitors. [2] This stresses the importance of ideal dietary department and the preferences of people when they visit healthcare institutions. Our article discusses the immense need in streamlining the Dietary services in a multi-specialty tertiary care teaching hospital. There is urgent need to change the mindset of the people administering the dietary services in a hospital and look at the subject more as a holistic approach to the good health of an ailing patient. As Accreditation Boards across the world currently impart heavy importance on nutritional assessment of each and every in-hospital stay patient, the results are being monitored by the number of cases that are being missed any kind of nutritional assessment in the medical records within 2 hours to 6 hours of getting admitted into the hospital. This is being requiring mandatory verification during the regular medical care review meetings or mortality care audits by the Medical care review committee of the hospitals. Objectives: This study has its objectives as: 1) The composition of Dietary Team in a hospital and their responsibilities.2) The Diet Order - Preparation & implementation of a Diet Order, for both regular and special diets for a patient. 3) The importance of Nutritional assessment and the types of assessment that needs to be done to have a holistic idea of dietary therapy. 4) Growing importance of food preparation in hospital with an idea of cultural influence on dietary intake of people. The methods used to study are the observations in a multi-specialty hospital, on the practices of the dietary team of a hospital. There were regular panel of discussions held with the Chief Dietitian in understanding how these practices came into existence. The implementation of diet order for each patient was observed. The importance of Nutritional Counseling and the methods used in assessment of nutritional assessment of client was studied. The timings of service and the processing of food was observed.text/html2012-07-03T16:43:48+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Dr. Jayeeta Choudhury, PhD, FICN, FACN (USA)Effect Of Soy and Glutamine as Substrate for Enteral Nutrition Compared to Standard Hospital Regimen Among Surgical Patients - A randomized , Single Blind Controlled Trial.
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/3511
Surgical stress affects whole body protein kinetics, demands increased need for optimal nutrition. Data suggests glutamine (Gln) as metabolic fuel for the G.I tract cells and its supplementation has important effects in catabolic surgical patients. Routinely practiced conventional Hospital Enteral Nutrition (EN) regimes for such subjects fail to provide both. Objective: To examine the impact of postoperative polymeric kitchen – based Soy enriched EN regimen and substrate enriched with Enteral Gln versus Routine Hospital EN /enriched with Gln on overall nutritional status in surgical G.I subjects.Methods: Seventy-one surgical G.I subjects were randomised to receive either one of the supplemented polymeric kitchen-based enteral diets - [Soy rich EN (EnS), Routine Hospital EN with (EnR)], substrate enriched with enteral Gln (0.35 g kg-1day-1) [Gln-soy rich EN (GEnS), Routine Hospital EN enriched with Gln (GEnR)]. Impact on overall nutritional status [Total protein (TP), Albumin (Alb), Weight gain / loss, Length of stay (LOS)] for the groups and ‘severely malnourished subjects’(Sm) were studied. Results: Sm were 57.15% of the total (NRI score). EnS had a significant weight gain (3.98 %), shorter LOS (16.5 days), higher percentage had an upward trend in TP [52.4%], Alb [66.7%] levels as compared to control (EnR). Better results were elucidated by the patients of GEnS with significant weight gain (3.87%), shorter stay (14.5days), higher percentage with significant improvement in TP 93.3%; Alb 86.7% as compared to GEnRs. Sm subjects of both the study groups had an upward trend of Alb with a significant weight gain [EnS (+2.42 Kg), GEnS (+3.24 Kg)] to a significant weight loss noted in Sm controls [EnR -3.77 Kg; GEnR -1.15 Kg]. Sm-subcategory of EnR’s to EnS had longer pre-operative stay (3.9 vs 3.0 days) and total LOS (19.9 vs. 16.7 days). Sm-subcategory of GEnS to GEnR reflected shorter LOS (15.8 vs. 18.0 days). Thus, GEnS and Sm had an overall improvement in nutritional status with significant shorter stay.Conclusion: Early post-operative substrate-enriched EN can improve postoperative outcomes beyond standard routinely practiced EN even in Sm subjects.text/html2012-07-03T16:43:24+01:00http://www.webmedcentral.com/Dr. Jayeeta Choudhury, PhD, FICN, FACN (USA)Impact of Enteral Glutamine Enriched Polymeric Kitchen-Based EN on Nutritional, Functional and Quality of Life in Severely-Malnourished Postoperative Gastrointestinal Patients
http://www.webmedcentral.com/article_view/3545
Objective: This study investigates whether polymeric kitchen-based glutamine supplemented EN can improve nutritional, functional and quality of life (QOL) in terms of changes in body weight, early recovery from illness through decreasing hospital stay in severely malnourished G.I subjects. Methods: Thirty-five surgical G.I subjects fulfilling the inclusion criteria, participated in this prospective, randomised study were randomly allocated to receive either polymeric kitchen-based EN containing protein from skimmed milk source(control), the most commonly used protein source or a polymeric kitchen-based EN with substrate enriched with enteral glutamine, 0.35g kg-1day-1 (study group).Results: On admission, NRI score rated 54.15 % of the total patients as severely malnourished (Sm). Comparison in adequacies of post-operative diet intake between the glutamine-group and control group especially Sm subcategory reflected no significant difference in energy and protein intakes. Comparing baseline levels, overall a higher percentage (73.3 %) of glutamine-group patients had a significant improvement in albumin levels, (TP: 6.29 gdl-1 vs 6.23 gdl-1, Alb: 3.10 gdl-1 vs 3.04 gdl-1) with a significant tendency for weight gain (1.36 Kg vs (-) 1.5 Kg) and a shorter length of stay (LOS) by 2.3days compared to control group. Further, with significant improvement in enteral diet intake postoperatively, Sm subcategory of both the groups, especially study group patients elucidated better improvement in the protein status (TP: 5.91 gdl-1 vs 5.64 gdl-1, Alb: 3.03 gdl-1 vs 2.66 gdl-1) as compared to their controls (TP: 5.62 gdl-1 vs 5.44 gdl-1, Alb: 2.83 gdl-1 vs 2.67 gdl-1). Even Sm subcategory in both the study groups recorded a significant weight gain (3.4 % vs 2.2 %) shorter LOS by 2.1days.Conclusion: Inexpensive polymeric kitchen-based glutamine–enriched tube feed supplement produces positive biochemical and clinical effects even in severely-malnourished surgical G.I patients. We speculate that positive energy balance, and subsequent substrate enrichment with gln might have acted as a benefit for the patients with malnutrition or nutritional depletion and thereby an indicated improvement.