20 January 2014
A new study from China has found that the blood vitamin D concentration may help to predict the risk of short-term disability and death in people who have suffered an acute ischemic stroke.
The case control study measured blood vitamin D concentrations and documented cases of disability and death in 220 patients who had suffered an acute ischemic stroke (AIS) (1). The study results showed that patients with lower vitamin D values had a significantly increased risk of death and disability for 90 days after the stroke event. The AIS patients had significantly lower vitamin D levels; 14.2 ng/ml compared to 17.0 ng/ml, which was measured in comparable participants who had not suffered a stroke.
The researchers concluded that blood vitamin D levels seem to be an independent prognostic marker for death and short-term functional handicaps (e.g., inability to move the limbs, talk or see) after AIS. Previous research has linked an insufficient supply of vitamin D with an elevated risk of a variety of cardiovascular events, such as a stroke, and mortality (2). Acute ischemic stroke – a situation in which the blood supply to the brain is cut off because of blockage in the arteries or blood vessels – is the most common type of stroke. In the United States, around 800,000 people suffer from strokes every year and 80% to 90% of those are ischemic.
13 January 2016
A new case-control study of a cohort of middle-aged/elderly men has revealed for the first time that the severity and frequency of gout attacks is related to blood plasma omega-3 levels. The results suggest omega-3 fatty acid interventions could be useful in the prevention and treatment of gout.
1 May 2014
According to a new analysis of an earlier study, vitamin E may not increase the risk of prostate cancer among men with high selenium status but may elevate the risk in men with low levels. On the contrary, other studies have shown that increased intakes of vitamin E may prevent prostate cancer.
1 December 2014
Optimizing vision throughout the lifespan is a public health priority worldwide, not only because of its central importance to quality of life, but also because of the health care costs associated with the loss of vision in an aging population. Oxidative stress is thought to be a key pathogenic mechanism of compromised vision, and the antioxidant properties of some nutrients show the capacity to modulate disease conditions linked to oxidative stress. Considerable evidence has accumulated showing that vitamins A, C, E, beta-carotene and zinc help support vision and may be protective against the development or progression of some common – especially age-related – eye diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and cataracts. In addition, increased intakes of the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin and the omega-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) – all concentrated in the eye – have been associated consistently with lower likelihood of sight-threatening conditions. There has also been some promising research with B vitamins in age-related eye diseases and with vitamin A and DHA in the rare disease retinitis pigmentosa (see also Key nutrients for healthy vision).
