Low cholesterol levels weaken the heart

This study was published in Circulation Journal 2014 Oct 30

 

Study title and authors:

Low Blood Pressure, Low Serum Cholesterol and Anemia Predict Early Necessity of Ventricular Assist Device Implantation in Patients With Advanced Heart Failure at the Time of Referral From Non-Ventricular Assist Device Institutes.

Fujino T, Kinugawa K, Hatano M, Imamura T, Muraoka H, Minatsuki S, Inaba T, Maki H, Kinoshita O, Nawata K, Yao A, Ono M, Komuro I.

Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo.

 

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25354551

A ventricular assist device (VAD) is a mechanical pump that's used to support heart function and blood flow in people who have weakened hearts. The device takes blood from a lower chamber of the heart and helps pump it to the body and vital organs, just as a healthy heart would.

This study analysed the factors predicting early necessity of a ventricular assist device in patients with advanced heart failure. The study included 46 patients who had a history of hospitalisation for heart failure management.

Regarding cholesterol levels, the study found that patients with cholesterol less than 144 mg/dL (3.7 mmol/L) had a 709% increased risk of early necessity of a ventricular assist device compared to patients with higher cholesterol levels.  

Is Meat Unhealthy? Part II

Over time, animals adapt to the foods they regularly consume.  This is how archaeologists can, for example, determine that Triceratops was an herbivore and Tyrannosaurus was a carnivore just by looking at the structure of the skeleton.  Adaptations to diet extend beyond skeletal structure, into digestion, metabolism, the brain, musculature, and other aspects of physical function.  What is our evolutionary history with meat?

Human Evolutionary History with Meat: 200 to 2.6 Million Years Ago

Mammals evolved from ancestral "mammal-like reptiles" (therapsids, then cynodonts) approximately 220 million years ago (Richard Klein. The Human Career. 2009).  Roughly 100 million years ago, placental mammals emerged.  The earliest placental mammals are thought to have been nocturnal shrew-like beasts that subsisted primarily on insects, similar to modern shrews and moles.  Mammalian teeth continued to show features specialized for insect consumption until the rise of the primates.

65 million years ago, coinciding with the evolution of the first fruiting plants, our ancestors took to the trees and became primates.  For most of the time between then and now, our ancestors likely ate the prototypical primate diet of fruit, seeds, leaves/stems, and insects (1).  Some primates also hunt smaller animals and thus eat the flesh of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish in addition to insects.  However, the contribution of non-insect meat to the diet is usually small.

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Vanilla Protein Bliss Balls

Bliss balls... Little bites of gooey, chewy, sweet deliciousness. Nut butters, superfood powders, dried fruit, seeds, grains. The possibilities are - quite literally - endless! So quick and easy to make, bliss balls is one of my favourite vegan treats. This batch was made yesterday, as a result of an intense craving for something sweet that struck, well, by noon. What can I say, my sweet tooth is unstoppable.

Not only are these delicious, they also pack a punch of raw protein from the Purple Balance protein powder that I like to use in my recipes. Hope you like them as much as I do! (Ehrm, make that 'did'. I'm afraid they're all gone now.)

Vanilla Protein Bliss Balls

Ingredients:

200 g soft/medjool/soaked dates (about 18 small)

3 tbsp oat or coconut flour

3 scoops (tbsp) Purple Balance Vanilla Protein (or vegan protein powder of your choice)

A pinch of pure vanilla powder

1 tbsp coconut oil

Coatings:

Raw Lucuma powder, carob/cacao powder and desiccated coconut

How to:

1. Put all ingredients in your food processor and blend until smooth.

2. Scoop the dough out with a spoon and roll into small balls.

3. Place in an airtight container in the fridge to let the coconut oil set, about 30 min-1 hour should suffice. (That is, if they're too soft to roll immediately after blending)

4. Coat the balls by placing a small amount of your powder of choice in a cupped hand, then use both hands to coat the balls, without putting too much pressure on them to keep the round shape.

5. Store in the fridge! 

Food Reward Friday

This week's lucky "winner"... the pumpkin spice latte!!

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Double Trouble Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream

Another banana ice cream recipe that I hope you'll enjoy as much as I do! Prepare for DOUBLE trouble with peanuts both in the ice cream and on top...

Banana Ice Cream:

3 medium sized sliced and frozen bananas

1/4 cup of almond milk

1 1/2 tbsp all natural peanut butter

Pinch of salt

Peanut Butter Sauce:

1 tbsp peanut flour

3/4 tbsp almond milk

1 tsp liquid sweetener of choice (I use date syrup)

Optional: 1 tsp of cacao/cocoa and 1 tbsp almond milk (instead of 3/4) for a chocolate peanut butter sauce

How to:
1. Start by making your peanut butter sauce. In a small bowl (Well. I use a shot glass but that's just me.), mix all of the ingredients with a fork until no clumps remain. Easy peasy.
2. If you want your peanut butter to be evenly divided throughout the ice cream, thin it out with a  the almond milk first. Stir in little by little until you have a runny sauce. If you'd rather have peanut butter chunks, feel free to skip this step.
3. Place your bananas and a sprinkle of salt in your high speed blender/food processor and blend on high for about a minute or until there are no bigger pieces of banana left.
4. Carefully remove the top cap/lid on your nana ice cream maker and slowly, as you blend, pour in the almond milk and peanut butter mixture. (Or each of them separately if you skipped the second step.)
5. Blend until you have a wonderfully creamy and smooth consistency. Stop to scrape down the sides if necessary.
6. Spoon up in a bowl/jar, top with the peanut butter sauce and a handful of crushed peanuts and cacao nibs if you so wish, eat and enjoy!

Statins have a significant negative impact on quality-of-life

This study was published in Pharmacotherapy 2009 Jul;29(7):800-11

 

Study title and authors:

Statin-associated adverse cognitive effects: survey results from 171 patients.

Evans MA, Golomb BA.

Department of Medicine, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0995, USA.

 

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19558254

The objective of the study was to characterize the adverse cognitive effects of statins. In the study, a survey was completed by 171 patients (age range 34-86 yrs) who had self-reported memory or other cognitive problems associated with statin therapy.

The study found:
(a) Of 143 patients who reported stopping statin therapy, 128 (90%) reported improvement in cognitive problems, sometimes within days of statin discontinuation.
(b) In some patients, a diagnosis of dementia or Alzheimer's disease reportedly was reversed.
(c) 19 patients whose symptoms improved or resolved after they discontinued statin therapy and who underwent rechallenge with a statin exhibited cognitive problems again (multiple times in some).
(d) Higher potency statins led to higher rates of cognitive-specific adverse drug reaction.
(e) Quality of life was significantly adversely affected.

Evans concludes: "Findings from the survey suggest that cognitive problems associated with statin therapy have variable onset and recovery courses, a clear relation to statin potency, and significant negative impact on quality-of-life".

Is Meat Unhealthy? Part I

Introduction

At Dr. McDougall's Advanced Study Weekend, I had the opportunity to hear a number of researchers and advocates make the case for a "plant-based diet", which is a diet containing little or no animal foods.  Many of them voiced the opinion that animal foods contribute substantially to the primary killers in the US, such as heart disease and cancer.  Some of the evidence they presented was provocative and compelling, so it stimulated me to take a deeper look and come to my own conclusions.

No matter what the health implications of meat eating turn out to be, I respect vegetarians and vegans.  Most of them are conscientious, responsible people who make daily personal sacrifices to try to make the world a better place for all of us.

My Experience with Vegetarian and Vegan Diets

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Strawberry Vanilla Nana Ice Cream

So. Only today did I realise that there is not a single banana ice cream recipe to be found on this blog.   This shan't be the case on a blog owned by nana ice cream's no. 1 fan! (Me!) Please accept my sincerest apologies. Let's just pretend this recipe has been here since the dawn of time lalala. Just smile and wave boys, just smile and wave. 

÷

I may not be the most dedicated blogger but I do care a lot about my followers and I appreciate you all so incredibly much, you literally have no idea. In the future there will be a thorough step-by-step guide uploaded on here but for now, this will have to do. Hope you enjoy the recipe!

Strawberry Vanilla Nana Ice Cream (Finally!)

Serves: 1

Cook time: 5 minutes, tops.

Ingredients:

3 medium sized ripe bananas, sliced and frozen

1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract or a pinch of pure vanilla powder

1/2 cup frozen strawberries

How to:

1. Place all of the ingredients except for the almond milk in your food processor/high speed blender.

2. Blend on high until there are only very small pieces of frozen fruit left. This should take about a minute or so.

3. Now, carefully remove the small top lid/cap on your food processor/blender and slowly pour in the almond milk, while blending on high.

4. Watch magic happen. (Ok, you may have to stop and scrape down from the sides a few times but seriously, let the blender do the job. No need to poke around in there too much.)

5. Once the ice cream has turned into a creamy, luscious swirl of amazingness, turn the blender off, spoon up in a jar, bowl or whatever floats your boat, top with coconut chips and devour immediately!

Obesity → Diabetes

A new study adds to the evidence that the prevalence of type 2 diabetes is rapidly increasing in the US, and our national weight problem is largely to blame.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) currently estimates that a jaw-dropping 33 percent of US men, and 39 percent of US women, will develop diabetes at some point in their lives (1).  Roughly one out of three people in this country will develop diabetes, and those who don't manage it effectively will suffer debilitating health consequences.  Has the risk of developing diabetes always been so high, and if not, why is it increasing?

In the same issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine as the low-carb vs. low-fat study, appears another study that aims to partially address this question (2).

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Pasta con Funghi

Pasta con Funghi

Yields one big serving or two small ones.

Cooking time: Approximately 25 min.

2/3 cup uncooked brown rice fusilli or pasta of your choice

Sauce:

1 1/2 cups sliced brown mushrooms

1/2 cup almond milk

2 tbsp vegan cream substitute (I used Oatly's oat cream)

1/2 tbsp brown rice flour or thickening of your choice

1 tsp dijon mustard

1/2 tsp vegetable bouillon powder

1 tbsp nutritional yeast

Salt, pepper and lemon juice (optional) to taste

Start by bringing a pot of water to the boil, to cook your pasta in later.

How to:
1. Place all of the above ingredients except for the brown rice flour, mushrooms and nutritional yeast in a small saucepan.
2. Bring the mixture to the boil.
3. Stir, then lower the heat and let simmer for a few minutes.
4. Next, add the brown rice flour (preferably through a sieve) and whisk as you go.
5. Put the nutritional yeast in, whisk again and leave the sauce to thicken over low heat while you prepare your mushrooms. (At this stage you could put your pasta in the boiling water so the all the components can be ready at the same time!)
6. In a separate pan, lightly sauté the mushrooms to cook some of the liquid off. You might want to use a bit of cooking oil in the bottom unless you have access to a non-stick pan.
7. Fold the sautéed mushrooms into the sauce, have a taste and add more seasoning if it needs it. Let simmer for a few more minutes for a thicker consistency.
8. Toss the pasta in the sauce and top with a few sun-dried tomatoes if you'd like!

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

Pumpkin Pie Pancakes

Dry ingredients:

1/3 cup buckwheat flour

2 tbsp coconut flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Wet ingredients:

1 chia or flax egg (1 tbsp ground chia/flax seeds mixed with 3 tbsp water)

1 ripe banana, mashed

1/3 cup pumpkin purée 

3 tbsp almond milk

How to:
1. Start by preparing your chia egg. Grind the seeds either using a coffee blender or by hand with a mortar and pestle. Put the ground seeds in a small glass/bowl with 3 tbsp of water and whisk vigorously for 30 seconds or so to prevent clumping if you're using ground chia seeds. let sit and swell while you prepare the rest.
2. In a small bowl, mix all the dry ingredients with a fork until the baking powder is evenly divided.
3. Add the mashed banana, pumpkin puree and almond milk to the dry ingredients and stir until smooth.
4. Lastly, add in the chia/flax egg.
5. Let sit on the countertop for a few minutes (the batter should be THICK) and pre-heat a pan over low to medium heat.
6. Fry in a little coconut oil (unless you have a non-stick frying pan) on medium heat for a couple of minutes on each side.

Chocolate sauce:

2 tbsp plant-based yoghurt
1/2 tbsp cacao or cocoa powder
1/2 tbsp liquid sweetener of your choice (I used date syrup)

How to:
1. Simply mix all of the above with a fork/spoon until smooth. Pour on top of your pancake stack and decorate with a spoonful of plain yoghurt to create the cobweb pattern.

Enjoy!

Food Reward Friday

This week's lucky "winner"... profiteroles!!

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Vegan Cinnamon Rolls

Hey there! It's been a while, I know. I have unfortunately run out of excuses so a humble apology will have to do. But these utterly scrumptious cinnamon rolls make up for it, I swear. Super easy to make and only require three quarters of an hour to prove. No gluten, refined sugar or any nasty ingredients at all. Just pure, sinless deliciousness.

They ARE kind of miniature so you might want to double the recipe. Or triple. Or whatever you want. So what are you waiting for? Get baking!

Vegan Cinnamon Rolls (Gluten Free!)

Dry ingredients:

1/3 cup + 1 tbsp (65 g) brown rice flour

1/3 cup + 1 tbsp (65 g) buckwheat flour

2 tbsp potato- or cornstarch (25 g)

3 tbsp (40 g) raw sugar or granulated sweetener of your choice 

1 tsp psyllium husk

1 tsp cardamom

2 tsp dry yeast

A pinch of salt

Wet ingredients:

1/2 cup + 1 tbsp almond milk

2 tbsp (30 g) coconut oil

Filling:

8 small dates (85g)

1 tbsp coconut oil (15 g)

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

A pinch of vanilla bean powder

1/2 tbsp of almond milk

How to:

1. In a bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and stir well. (Sifting the potato starch before you stir it in will prevent clumping). 
2. Melt the coconut oil over low heat and pour in the almond milk. Once lukewarm, transfer the oil/milk mix to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Don't let the temperature go over 37C or you WILL kill the yeast. No bueno.
3. Stir. Stir, stir, stir. Then knead the dough until it forms a moist ball, not too sticky, not too dry. If it is, add a bit more flour or almond milk. Leave to prove under a damp kitchen cloth for 45 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, start preparing the filling. Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and blend with a hand blender. I find that blending small quantities like this works best without a food processor but feel free to give that a try if you want to double the recipe.
5. That's about it for the filling. Now you'll have to wait for the dough.
6. Once the proving time is up, roll the dough out into a rectangle on a floured surface (however thin you want it to be) and spread the filling out on top.
7. Roll the dough into a tight spiral lengthwise and cut up in 1-inch sections.
8. Place the rolls on a lined baking tray and once again let them prove under a damp kitchen cloth for 30 minutes and pre-heat your oven to 190C
9. Next, brush on a bit of water-diluted syrup if you want to and bake in the oven for about 10-12 minutes depending on size.
10. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. 
11. Eat.

Healthy World Café partners with York County School of Technology for construction of cafe

Sept. 25, 2014 — Healthy World Café, York’s “Pay How You Can” community café, is thrilled to announce it will partner with York County School of Technology for construction at its location at 24 S. George St., York.

Healthy World Cafe, which has been serving freshly made, locally sourced lunches once a month at First Moravian Church, catering and popping up at community events since 2012, intends to open for business five days a week in the late fall.

York County School of Technology has graciously agreed to undertake the carpentry, plumbing and electrical work needed for the cafe to open full time. Students in the Engineering and Construction Academy will assist with duties including wainscoting, modifying existing counters and a knee wall, drywall repair and building shelving.

“We're excited for this fantastic partnership and for the ability to provide York County School of Technology students with hands-on opportunities in their program fields while supporting our progress toward opening five days a week in downtown York,” said Healthy World Cafe director Liza Naylor.

Students began work Sept. 23 and continue 9 a.m. to noon today the cafe at 24 S. George St. in downtown York under the supervision of carpentry instructor Joe Hudak.

Healthy World Cafe is dedicated to supporting the local farming and business community while working to address hunger and food insecurity head on. The 501(c)3 nonprofit aims to build a sustainable community by providing nourishing food for all: Some patrons pay the suggested prices, while some pay more or less. Diners can also volunteer their time at the cafe in exchange for a meal.

 

Metabolic Effects of a Traditional Asian High-carbohydrate Diet

A recent study supports the notion that an 'ancestral diet' focused around high-starch agricultural foods can cultivate leanness and metabolic health.

John McDougall gave Christopher Gardner a hard time at the McDougall Advanced Study Weekend.  Dr. Gardner conducts high-profile randomized controlled trials (RCTs) at Stanford to compare the effectiveness of a variety of diets for weight loss, cardiovascular and metabolic health.  The "A to Z Study", in which Atkins, Zone, Ornish, and LEARN diets were pitted against one another for one year, is one of his best-known trials (1).

Dr. McDougall asked a simple question: why haven't these trials evaluated the diet that has sustained the large majority of the world's population for the last several thousand years?  This is an agriculturalist or horticulturalist diet based around starchy foods such as grains, tubers, legumes, and plantains, and containing little fat or animal foods.  Researchers have studied a number of cultures eating this way, and have usually found them to be lean, with good cardiovascular and metabolic health.  Why not devote resources to studying this time-tested ancestral diet?  I think it's a fair question.

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