According to medical researchers, today's leading causes of death have shifted from infectious diseases to chronic diseases. These include cardiovascular disease and cancer.
Both of these illnesses may be affected by diet a study published in the January 2011 issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association reveals.
Researchers examined data regarding the associations of dietary patterns with mortality through analysis of the eating patterns of over 2500 adults between the ages of 70 and 79 over a ten-year period. They found that diets favoring certain foods were associated with reduced mortality.
By 2030, an estimated 973 million adults will be aged 65 or older worldwide according to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance. This study sought to determine the dietary patterns of a large and diverse group of older adults, and to explore connections between these dietary patterns with survival over a 10-year period.
Researchers were able to group the participants into six different clusters according to predominant food choices including healthy foods, high-fat dairy products, meat, fried foods, and alcohol and sweets and desserts.
The "Healthy foods" cluster was characterized by relatively higher intake of low-fat dairy products, fruit, whole grains, poultry, fish, and vegetables, and lower consumption of meat, fried foods, sweets, high-calorie drinks, and added fat. The "High fat dairy products" cluster had higher intake of foods such as ice cream, cheese, and 2% and whole milk and yogurt, and lower intake of poultry, low-fat dairy products, rice, and pasta.
The study was unique in that it evaluated participants' quality of life and nutritional status, through detailed biochemical measures, according to their dietary patterns.
After controlling for gender, age, race, clinical site, education, physical activity, smoking, and total calorie intake, the "High-fat dairy products" cluster had a 40% higher risk of mortality than the "Healthy foods" cluster. The "Sweets and desserts" cluster had a 37% higher risk. No significant differences in risk of mortality were seen between the "Healthy foods" cluster and the "Breakfast cereal" or "Refined grains" clusters.
Monday, December 27, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Milk, Cheese, Dairy Products May Cut Diabetes Risk
Harvard scientists have identified a natural substance in dairy fat that may substantially reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes.
According to the researchers, the compound, trans-palmitoleic (TP) acid, is a fatty acid found in milk, cheese, yogurt, and butter. It is not produced by the body and so only comes from the diet. Diabetes is an increasingly common condition that can result in disability for older individuals according to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.
A report in the Annals of Internal Medicine explains that TP acid may underlie epidemiological evidence in recent years that diets rich in dairy foods are linked to lower risk of type 2 diabetes and related metabolic abnormalities. Health experts generally advise reducing full-fat dairy products, but TP acid is found in dairy fat.
The researchers examined nearly 4,000 participants and followed them for 20 years in an observational study to evaluate risk factors for cardiovascular diseases in older adults. Metabolic risk factors such as blood glucose and insulin levels, and also levels of circulating blood fatty acids, including trans-palmitoleic acid, were measured using stored blood samples in 1992, and participants were followed for development of type 2 diabetes.
At baseline, higher circulating levels of TP acid were associated with healthier levels of blood cholesterol, inflammatory markers, insulin levels, and insulin sensitivity, after adjustment for other risk factors.
During follow-up exams, individuals with higher circulating levels of trans-palmitoleic acid had a much lower risk of developing diabetes, with about a 60% lower risk among participants in the highest quintile (fifth) of TP acid levels, compared to individuals in the lowest quintile.
Support for the study was provided by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health and the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary Supplements and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Medicaid Must Change; Middle Class Most Impacted
The following is from an excellent story in the New York Times (link below). The inability of taxpayer-paid programs (Medicaid specifically) to pay mounting bills for long-term care will mandate changes in the current system.
For that reason, the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance urges education and advocates planning. If you are age 50-to-60, and middle class this is especially vital. If Medicaid (taxpayers) are strapped today ... you can only imagine what it will be in 20 or 30 years.
Here's the blurb from the NY Times and the link to the full article.
Last year, more than 1,200 people in New York City officially turned their backs on their husbands and wives to qualify for Medicaid, triple the number of people five years ago. The practice, known as “spousal refusal,” is becoming more common as the population ages and the cost of nursing care rises — and it is coming under increasing attack by government officials looking to curb ballooning Medicaid expenses.
In a recent report, Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch warned that spousal refusal could be abused as “an entitlement for the less needy” and urged state officials to rethink it, noting that long-term care accounts for nearly half the state’s Medicaid spending.
Lawyers for the elderly argue the tactic of spousal refusal is legal nationwide, and it is most commonly used in New York and Florida, where 136 people refused to support a sick spouse last year.
Without the option of spousal refusal, lawyers say, American health care is like a ghoulish lottery. Those who need doctors’ care for illnesses like cancer or heart disease are covered by Medicare, the insurance program for the elderly, while those who need more custodial care for Alzheimer’s or stroke must pay for it themselves or dispose of their assets to qualify for Medicaid.
The federal government allows a healthy spouse to keep a house, a car, up to about $2,700 a month in income and up to about $110,000 in other resources. Anything above that must be spent on nursing care before Medicaid kicks in.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/12/nyregion/12medicaid.html?_r=1
Read the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance's guide about reducing the cost of long-term care insurance. Click here. http://www.aaltci.org/free-guide.
For that reason, the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance urges education and advocates planning. If you are age 50-to-60, and middle class this is especially vital. If Medicaid (taxpayers) are strapped today ... you can only imagine what it will be in 20 or 30 years.
Here's the blurb from the NY Times and the link to the full article.
Last year, more than 1,200 people in New York City officially turned their backs on their husbands and wives to qualify for Medicaid, triple the number of people five years ago. The practice, known as “spousal refusal,” is becoming more common as the population ages and the cost of nursing care rises — and it is coming under increasing attack by government officials looking to curb ballooning Medicaid expenses.
In a recent report, Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch warned that spousal refusal could be abused as “an entitlement for the less needy” and urged state officials to rethink it, noting that long-term care accounts for nearly half the state’s Medicaid spending.
Lawyers for the elderly argue the tactic of spousal refusal is legal nationwide, and it is most commonly used in New York and Florida, where 136 people refused to support a sick spouse last year.
Without the option of spousal refusal, lawyers say, American health care is like a ghoulish lottery. Those who need doctors’ care for illnesses like cancer or heart disease are covered by Medicare, the insurance program for the elderly, while those who need more custodial care for Alzheimer’s or stroke must pay for it themselves or dispose of their assets to qualify for Medicaid.
The federal government allows a healthy spouse to keep a house, a car, up to about $2,700 a month in income and up to about $110,000 in other resources. Anything above that must be spent on nursing care before Medicaid kicks in.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/12/nyregion/12medicaid.html?_r=1
Read the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance's guide about reducing the cost of long-term care insurance. Click here. http://www.aaltci.org/free-guide.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)