Hazelnuts may be the key to disease prevention

A new research suggests that adding hazelnuts to your daily diet could bode well for long-term health.

The new study, found that older adults who added hazelnuts to their diet for 16 weeks significantly improved their levels of two key micronutrients.

Results showed increased blood concentrations of magnesium and elevated urinary levels of a breakdown product of alpha-tocopherol, commonly known as vitamin E.

Older adults are at increased risk of various chronic diseases where inadequate levels of vitamins and minerals may play a significant role, including cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, liver disease and cancer. Tree nuts, including hazelnuts, contain a wide variety of vitamins and minerals and are an excellent source of vitamin E and a good source of magnesium, two "shortfall nutrients" that are lacking in the typical American diet.

Researchers stated the objective of the study was to determine whether daily hazelnut consumption by healthy older adults for 16 weeks improves biomarkers of micronutrient status, especially vitamin E and magnesium.

Participants including women consumed hazelnuts for 16 weeks. Blood and urine samples and anthropomorphic measures were taken at the start and end of the intervention to determine plasma and serum concentrations of magnesium, lipids, glucose, insulin, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein along with urinary vitamin E metabolites, several other micronutrients were measured by a lymphocyte proliferation assay.

A one-ounce serving (28.35 g) of raw hazelnuts contains 27 percent (4 mg) of your daily value (15 mg) of vitamin E . Vitamin E is a shortfall micronutrient, which frequently is consumed at levels less than the Estimated Average Requirement of 15 mg/day.

These new findings complement existing knowledge about the role of nuts in heart health.

Compared to people who didn't eat nuts, people who ate nuts saw benefits that increased along with the number of servings of nuts they ate. Those who ate nuts seven times a week had nearly twice the benefit compared to those who ate nuts once a week, once a week nut eaters had a small, but still significant benefit.

This observational study is an important addition to the body of research on nuts and heart health.

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Neighbourhoods flanked with greenery promote a healthy heart

According to a recent study, people who live in leafy, green neighbourhoods are at a lower risk of developing heart diseases and strokes.

As part of the study,  researchers investigated the impact of neighbourhoods with green spaces on individual-level markers of stress and cardiovascular disease risk. Over five years, blood and urine samples were collected from 408 people of varying ages, ethnicities and socioeconomic levels, and then assessed for biomarkers of blood vessel injury and the risk of having cardiovascular disease.

The risk was calculated using biomarkers measured from blood and urine samples. The participants were recruited from the  outpatient cardiology clinic and were largely at elevated risk for developing cardiovascular diseases.

The density of the green spaces near the participants’ residences was measured using the Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a tool that indicates levels of vegetation density created from satellite imagery collected by NASA and USGS. Air pollution levels were also assessed using particulate matter from the EPA and roadway exposure measurements.

Researchers found that living in areas with more green vegetation was associated with:
* Lower urinary levels of epinephrine, indicating lower levels of stress
* Lower urinary levels of F2-isoprostane, indicating better health (less oxidative stress)

* Higher capacity to repair blood vessels
The researchers also found that associations with epinephrine were stronger among women, study participants not taking beta-blockers — which reduce the heart’s workload and lower blood pressure — and people who had not previously had a heart attack.

“Our study shows that living in a neighbourhood dense with trees, bushes and other green vegetation may be good for the health of your heart and blood vessels,” said the lead author of the study.

“Indeed, increasing the amount of vegetation in a neighbourhood may be an unrecognised environmental influence on cardiovascular health and a potentially significant public health intervention,” she added.

The findings were independent of age, sex, ethnicity, smoking status, neighbourhood deprivation, use of statin medications and roadway exposure.

Previous studies have also suggested that neighbourhood green spaces are associated with positive effects on overall physical and psychosocial health and well-being, as well as reduced rates of death from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, and improved rates of stroke survival, according to her.

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