New Research: Vitamin D May Lower Heart Disease Risk

Medical researchers are discovering a greater relationship between heart disease and vitamin D -- a nutrient already linked to reducing certain cancers.

Studies announced Wednesday at an American Heart Association's conference on cardiovascular health showed an increased association between people with high levels of vitamin D and a lower risk of heart disease.

Adolescents in particular could face long-term implications if they don't get enough of the vitamin, which can be absorbed through exposure to the sun and is found in certain fishes and in popular fortified foods, including milk and cereal.

One study found that American teens with low levels of vitamin D in their blood were almost four times more likely to have metabolic syndrome, a cluster of heart disease risk factors such as high blood pressure and abdominal fat.

"If you have other risk factors like obesity, you should be hyper-vigilant," said Jared Reis, a post-doctoral research fellow at The Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health in Baltimore. His study, presented at the conference at the Innisbrook Resort, looked at health data of more than 3,500 American teens from 2001-2004.

Although cardiovascular research about the nutrient is still evolving, previous studies have linked vitamin D intake to lower risks of colon, prostate and breast cancers, according to the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements. Together with calcium, it also has been historically used to supplement bone health.

This news comes at a time when Americans appear to be decreasing their vitamin D intake. The percentage of Americans deficient in the nutrient increased to 9.2 percent in 2005-06, from 2.6 percent in 1988-94, said researcher Sandy Saintonge of the New York Hospital Queens.

If you aren't taking vitamin D I recommend at least 1000 IUs daily, preferably 2000IUs. Carlson's Vitamin D is cheap ($5.50) and easy to take, so why wouldn't you?

(Acknowledgments: McClatchy-Tribune Information Services and Mary Shedden of the Tampa Tribune)

Exercise Lowers Breast Cancer Risk

A new study by University of South Carolina researchers indicates aerobically fit women are three times less likely to die of breast cancer than those who seldom exercise.

The latest addition to the growing evidence on the benefits of aerobic exercise is reported in the April issue of the scientific journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

Researchers from USC's Arnold School of Public Health studied 14,000 women who were given preventive medical exams and treadmill tests at the Cooper Clinic in Houston from 1970-2001. At the time of their exams, the women, ages 20 through 83, had no history of breast cancer.

Based on the treadmill tests, the women's fitness was classified as low, moderate or high. Researchers compared the fitness levels of the 68 women in the study group who had died of breast cancer through 2003.

"Women in the study's lowest fitness category were nearly three times more likely to die from breast cancer than women in the most fit group," said Dr. Steve Blair, a USC researcher and a past president of the American College of Sports Medicine.

To reach the moderate fitness category, women need to exercise about 150 minutes per week. High fitness translates to 300 minutes per week.

"With more than 40,000 women dying each year from this disease, finding a strong association between fitness, which can be improved by the relatively inexpensive lifestyle intervention of regular physical activity, such as walking, is exciting," Blair said.

Exercise should be a standard part of preventive treatment for a number of health problems, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.

The new study also backed up previous findings that exercise helps control cholesterol levels, lowers blood pressure and lessens the likelihood for diabetes and heart disease.

7 Foods That Reduce Heart Disease by Double Digits

A few years ago some researchers published a paper in the British Medical Journal with an interesting hypothesis. They postulated that if we could somehow combine six or seven basic medications into one pill and get everybody to take it we could wipe out about an impressive percentage of heart disease and add about nine years to everybody's life.

They called this mythical combo pill the polypill.

The six basic medications in the polypill were various blood pressure medications, plus folic acid, a statin drug, and aspirin. Theoretically, if everyone were to take those six medications a day, voila, major reduction in heart disease.

Well, these guys were traditional doctors and to them, the only way to impact the rate of heart disease (and dying) was to use drugs. (If the only tool you've got is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.)

But some other researchers took a different approach.

These researchers said Okay, that polypill thing, sounds like a good idea, but dudes, medicine and pharmaceuticals are not the only way to accomplish this. They took a different approach, examining all the research that showed that people who eat certain foods had significantly lower rates of various degenerative diseases.

Using this research and some very sophisticated statistical projections, they put together what they called a polymeal-consisting of seven foods that had been well-studied for their effects on longevity and disease. And they postulated that if we could get everyone in the world to eat that meal a few times a week, we could reduce cardiovascular disease by more than 75 percent!

The polymeal was the basis of the recipes in my book, "The Healthiest Meals on Earth". And the polymeal looks, tastes and sounds an awful lot better than a bunch of medicines- and has a lot less side effects (unless you count satisfaction as a side effect!)

What are these seven "magic" ingredients that- if we consumed them regularly- could reduce heart disease by double digits?

1. fish,
2. garlic,
3. vegetables,
4. nuts,
5. fruit,
6. red wine, and
7. dark chocolate.

Why these seven?

Because they each contribute certain vital nutrients that can extend your life, improve your health, and contribute mightily to your overall well-being and Youngevity.

This article in an excerpt from my latest project that reveals how baby boomers can live a longer, better, healthier, more exciting life than ever thought possible.

Our parents' generation succeeded in increasing the life span of the average person. Now our generation has the chance to improve upon their work by making longer lives into better lives.

Learn more»