Sugary beverages boosts metabolic risk
It’s important to know which type of sugar in what food is doing you serious harm — stoking inflammation, building belly fat and promoting obesity and fatty liver disease — and which kind you can enjoy. A new review published in JAMA Open Network discovered that it’s added fructose, especially in beverages, that promotes development of metabolic syndrome, a group of conditions that includes high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar and low levels of good-for-you HDL.
But other sources of fructose found in foods such as yogurt and fresh fruit are associated with a reduced risk of metabolic syndrome. That’s because the naturally present fructose is balanced by healthful nutrients and fiber, and those foods satisfy your hunger, while the calories in a beverage with added sugar don’t. So you don’t have to give up all sweets to stay healthy, just go for two to three servings of fruit, especially berries, daily with a dollop of lowfat yogurt.
Omega-3-rich fish for the brain
According to a new study published in the journal Neurology, which tracked more than 1,300 women with an average age of 70, eating baked or broiled, omega-3-rich fish once or twice a week helps protect your brain from shrinkage caused by exposure to air pollution. Yup, air pollution does that too!
Research had established that omega-3 fatty acids, found in salmon and sea trout for example, fight inflammation, protect the aging brain and reduce damage from neurotoxins like lead and mercury. But this study expands what we know about the remarkable powers of omega-3 fatty acids.
The study showed that women exposed to significant air pollution who had the highest amount of omega-3 fatty acids in their blood had a greater volume of the brain’s white matter — it contains nerve fibers and myelin sheaths — and a larger hippocampus (the center of emotion, memory and the autonomic nervous system) than women with lower blood levels. The researchers also found that as exposure to air pollution increased incrementally, people with lower blood levels of omega-3s had white matter volume that was 11.52 centimeters cubed smaller, but folks with high levels of the lipid only lost 0.12 cm.
So, here’s one more reason to enjoy fish regularly — just make sure it’s not fried. Frying adds unnecessary calories and loads on unhealthy fat from the fry oil.
Email questions for Mehmet Oz and Mike Roizen to youdocsdaily@sharecare. com.