This Week's Healthy Fun Facts!

Fact #1:
If it’s purple, blue or red, eat it.
The structure of anthocyanins, the antioxidant pigments from a range of fruit and vegetables, is key to the cancer fighting abilities, reports a new study from the US. The study adds to a growing body of science that indicates the potential anti-cancer benefits of the antioxidant compounds most commonly associated with berries. In 2006, researchers from UCLA's Center for Human Nutrition, characterized the phenolic content of six berries and found that, while many different forms of phenolics are present in the berry extracts, anthocyanins are the major contributors toward programmed cell death.

Bilberry fruit is particularly high in anthocyanins, especially MirtoSelect used in DFH’s OcuForce. Anthocyanins have a stabilizing effect on collagen, prevent capillary fragility, and improve microcirculation. Aside from its purported role in improving night vision, bilberry has been used to help in the treatment of glaucoma, cataracts, retinopathy, diabetes mellitus, and arthritis. Clinical evidence shows Mirtoselect® protects the connective tissue of the vascular wall - particularly collagen and elastin from degradation - and by stimulating mucopolysaccharide synthesis.

DFH’s PaleoReds has a veritable cornucopia of anthocyanin and polyphenol rich fruits and berries.

Source: Structure-Function Relationships of Anthocyanins from Various Anthocyanin-Rich Extracts on the Inhibition of Colon Cancer Cell Growth.

Fact #2:
“Mrs. Jones, I’m writing you a prescription for a day at the water park.”
Patients suffering from fibromyalgia could benefit significantly from regular exercise in a heated swimming pool, a recent study shows. "The addition of an aquatic exercise program to the usual care for fibromyalgia in women, is cost-effective in terms of both health care costs and societal costs," the researchers conclude, "appropriate aquatic exercise is a good health investment."

Source: Cost-utility of an 8-month aquatic training for women with fibromyalgia: a randomized controlled trial.

Fact #3:
Did you ever think of melatonin for GERD?
In a randomized, single-blind clinical trial of subjects with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), the combination of melatonin with other natural supplements was found to be superior to omeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor (PPI). How much melatonin? 6 mg melatonin daily resulted in symptom relief where 3 mg melatonin resulted in symptoms.

DFH’s 3 mg Melatonin tablet comes with 10 mgs. of vitamin B6 which was also given to subjects in this study.

Source: Melatonin for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Fact #4:
You may want to skip dessert but don’t skip the exercise.
A new study showed that when older people diet without exercising, they lose more lean muscle compared to those who exercise, said senior researcher Bret H. Goodpaster. When they combined weight loss with exercise, it nearly completely prevented the loss of lean muscle mass. The results are important because older people tend to lose muscle mass as they age and too much muscle loss may interfere with activities of daily living.


Source: Separate and combined effects of exercise training and weight loss on exercise efficiency and substrate oxidation.

Fact #5:
Green tea for hemoglobin A1c!!!!
Green tea-extract lowered the hemoglobin A1c level in individuals with borderline diabetes in a recent study. DFH’s green tea extract EGCg has many clinical applications and is decaffeinated.

Source: Randomized controlled trial for an effect of green tea-extract powder supplementation on glucose abnormalities.