(12-02-11) Lack of vitamins C and E linked to metabolic syndrome

by S. L. Baker, features writer

(NaturalNews) What do millions of Americans who have plenty to eat have in
common with poverty level Ecuadorians consuming a limited diet? A lot, when it
comes to poor health. A new epidemiological study has revealed that low-income,
older residents of Ecuador have high rates of metabolic syndrome -- a cluster
of conditions including high blood pressure, elevated insulin and cholesterol
levels, and excess fat around the middle -- just like countless folks in the U.
S. who consume too much junk food and too little fruits and vegetables.

Researchers from the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging
(USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University and the Corporacion Ecuatoriana de
Biotecnologia found that metabolic syndrome, which increases the risk of heart
disease and type 2 diabetes, was wide-spread in a low-income urban community in
Ecuador. The scientists believe a diet low in micronutrients and especially
lacking vitamins C and E is the cause.

The investigators reached this conclusion after studying the relationship
between metabolic syndrome and micronutrients such as folate, zinc and vitamins
C, B12 and E. They enrolled 225 women and 127 men, all 65 or older, who lived
in three low-income neighborhoods on the outskirts of Quito, the capital of
Ecuador. During biweekly interviews, the research subjects reported what they
ate and they also provided blood samples.

Using the International Diabetes Foundation (IDF) definition of metabolic
syndrome, the research team found that 40% of the research participants had
metabolic syndrome, with far more women (81%) having the condition compared to
men (18%). The scientists believe this is because the women in the study group
tended to be more obese than their male counterparts.

"In this population of low-income Ecuadorians, we observed a pattern of high
carbohydrate, high sodium diets lacking in healthy fats and good sources of
protein. Our blood analyses indicate a significant number of participants
weren't consuming enough of a range of micronutrients," senior author Simin
Nikbin Meydani, PhD, DVM, director of the USDA HNRCA and the Nutritional
Immunology Laboratory at the USDA HNRCA said in a statement to the media.
"After adjusting for age and sex, we observed significant relationships between
the metabolic syndrome and two of the micronutrients, vitamins C and E." Dr.
Meydania added that having higher blood levels of vitamin E may offer
protection from metabolic syndrome.

The low blood levels of vitamin C, found in 82% of the participants, are
believed to be the result of not eating enough fresh fruits and vegetables.
Instead, the research subjects lived mostly off white rice, potatoes, sugar and
white bread. The researchers found that, overall, 55% of the women and 33% of
the men were overweight.

While the study of older, poor and urban Ecuadorians, which was just published
online in the journal Public Health Nutrition, does not directly discuss the U.
S. epidemic of metabolic syndrome, the research bolsters the idea you can be
fat and yet malnourished -- as are countless American junk food junkies of all
ages -- and that can result in poor health.

"With high-calorie foods lacking essential nutrients serving as pillars of the
diet, it is possible to be both overweight and malnourished," stated Dr.
Meydani, who is a professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and
Policy and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts
University. "Our data suggests that limited consumption of nutrient dense foods
such as chicken, vegetables and legumes makes this small population of
Ecuadorian elders even more susceptible to the metabolic syndrome."

Dr. Meydani's research team concluded that sound nutrition was the best
strategy for curbing the growing metabolic syndrome risk in Latin America.
"Presently, there are about 59 million Latin American and Caribbean men and
women over the age of 60 and the United Nations predicts the population will
reach 101 billion by 2025,"Dr. Meydani said. "Medical resources are minimal in
developing countries and those that are in place are usually not directed
toward older adults. Nutrition interventions, such as encouraging older adults
to consume more nutrient dense foods, for example, locally grown produce, could
reduce the strain on the health care system.".

For more information:
http://news.tufts.edu/releases/rele...
http://www.naturalnews.com/metaboli...

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