News
Increased vitamin D intake may lower blood pressure
24 January 2014
Consumption of dairy products fortified with vitamin D may reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure in healthy young women, reports a new study from Spain.
01 December 2010
According to a new review, giving vitamin A capsules to children with vitamin A deficiency can reduce the overall risk of death by 24%.
The meta-analysis of data from 43 randomized controlled trials, representing 215,633 children aged six months to five years, yielded results indicating that vitamin A supplementation is effective in reducing all-cause mortality by 24 percent compared to no treatment, mainly due to a reduction in the number of measles and diarrhea cases (1). The researchers concluded that child morbidity and mortality risk among the 190 million children suffering from vitamin A deficiency around the globe could be reduced and could lead to saving nearly a million lives every year.
Deficiency in vitamin A pre-disposes children to an increased risk of health problems such as respiratory diseases, diarrhea, measles and vision problems, and can eventually lead to death. Thus, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends vitamin A supplements for pregnant mothers and children.
There have been recent disputes regarding the effectiveness of supplementation programs in developing countries. In the new review, supplementation was seen to reduce the incidence of diarrhea by preventing acute diarrhea from becoming chronic. In addition, vitamin A supplementation reduced night blindness and potential precursors to blindness. Moreover, there was a consistent trend supporting the therapeutic effects of vitamin A in reducing measles.
However, the researchers commented that supplementation is not a permanent solution to the problem of vitamin A deficiency: while supplementation may be an immediate solution to deficiency, adequate nutrition and long term solutions to underlying problems are needed in low and middle income countries. To increase dietary intake of vitamin A, fortification of food staples such as rice could provide more permanent relief.
24 January 2014
Consumption of dairy products fortified with vitamin D may reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure in healthy young women, reports a new study from Spain.
14 October 2015
A new paper from a distinguished group of academic experts on the effects of LCPUFAs on neural development has challenged a 2014 EFSA recommendation on the fatty acid composition of infant formula, which stated that ARA is not required in infant formula, even if DHA is present. The authors pointed out a range of shortcomings in the scientific review that gave rise to the recommendation, including the fact that papers prior to 2000 were not considered, which disqualified many of the key papers including those of the 1982 Nobel Prize winners Bergstrom, Samuelson and Vane. Further, they point out that ARA is ubiquitous in human milk throughout the world and that the consequences of its removal from infant formula are unknown.
24 February 2010
Dietary vitamin B9 (folate) protects against the development of colon cancer, says a new study.