Caffeine addiction/Fish-Preparation- for Omega 3 Fatty Acids

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<arnoldgore

 

DAVID BEATS GOLIATH AGAIN

 

Health Sciences Institute e-Alert

 

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Dear Reader,

 

In previous e-Alerts I've mentioned my love/hate

relationship with coffee - that is: I love it, and I hate to

think of going without it. I know it's probably not the best

thing for me, but as health vices go (I rationalize) it's a

small infraction. Especially because I usually drink only a

cup or two each day. Okay - a couple of large mugs each day.

But still, I lead an otherwise healthy lifestyle, and coffee

doesn't seem to create any problems, so I let myself

indulge.

 

But now I'm having second thoughts, because of a friend of

mine named David who reminded me how important it may be for

those at risk for type 2 diabetes to consider giving up the

java.

 

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Kicking it

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Like a lot of us, David has been a daily coffee drinker for

many years. He never drank a lot of coffee, but first thing

every morning, he started his day with a cup or two. Over

the years he noticed that if he missed his morning cup he

would develop a dull headache that lasted most of the day.

This is typical of regular coffee drinkers, of course, and a

reminder that caffeine is a drug - and as with any drug,

your body reacts with an unpleasant response when the usual

dose is not administered.

 

A few weeks ago David went on a much-needed vacation.

Knowing that there would be several days when he would not

be able to get his wake-up cup of java, David slowly weaned

himself off coffee by drinking less and less over a two week

period. By the time his vacation started, he was able to

pass on the morning cup without suffering the headache side

effect.

 

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Missing, but not missed

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When David returned from his trip, he decided to extend his

coffee hiatus, just to see if it made any difference in the

way he felt in the morning. After several days he noticed

something that amazed him.

 

For the past 5 years, David has been dogged by two or three

painful headaches almost every week. He attributed these to

eye-strain (he spends his days working in front of a

computer screen), and noticed that he seemed most vulnerable

to the headaches when he wasn't getting enough sleep.

 

But now those headaches are mostly a thing of the past.

David isn't very happy about living without his morning cup

o' joe, but as you might imagine, he doesn't miss the

headaches at all.

 

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Health bonus

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Coffee can have a dehydrating effect, which could very well

have been the source of those chronic headaches. But beyond

getting rid of the headaches, David may have done another

very important favor for his health.

 

David is in his early 50s, and he has what he himself

describes as " that expanding middle-aged gut. " And while

that " apple " shape is typical of many middle-aged people, it

should be held in check as much as possible with diet and

exercise regimens because studies have shown that people who

carry excess weight predominantly in the abdomen are at

greater risk for decreasing insulin sensitivity that leads

to type 2 diabetes.

 

In an e-Alert I sent you last year ( " One Small Change You

Can Make Today To Improve Insulin Sensitivity " 2/26/02) I

told you about a Dutch study that examined the effects of

caffeine on insulin sensitivity. The research revealed that

moderate caffeine intake may decrease insulin sensitivity by

as much as 15 percent. Which is significant enough to evolve

into a real problem for someone like David who shows at

least one sign of a potential pre-diabetic condition.

 

A further concern is the growing number of young people who

are overweight (another pre-diabetic condition). There was a

time when coffee was considered strictly an adult's drink,

but recently I've noticed more and more teenagers - and even

younger kids - lining up at Starbucks for their café lattes

and Grande Mochaccinos. Besides the fact that they're

getting hooked on a stimulant, they're also consuming plenty

of sugar with their brew-of-the-day. Throw in a carb-heavy

scone or a muffin, and it's easy to imagine that the fight

against obesity and type 2 diabetes (now a far greater

problem in young people than ever before) is headed in the

wrong direction.

 

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Ciao, Italian roast

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Okay, so - I have to admit, I'm inspired. I'm going to try

David's method of slowly easing out of the daily java fix. I

don't want to. I don't like it. But it obviously seems like

the right thing to do.

 

So if you should notice that the e-Alerts are a little more

irritable in the coming weeks, or if Starbucks' stock

plunges to an all-time low, you'll know I'm winning the

battle.

 

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....and another thing

 

How do you like your fish?

 

I hope you said " baked " or " broiled. "

 

A recent University of Washington study reports that how you

prepare your fish does make a difference.

 

As I mentioned in Monday's e-Alert about flax seed ( " Guess

Who's Coming To Dinner? " 5/12/03) the most common dietary

source of omega-3 fatty acids is fish, especially dark-meat

fish like swordfish and tuna. And while a high intake of

these deep-water fish presents the problem of ingesting too

much mercury, the importance of omega-3 to our overall

health (and heart health in particular) can't be emphasized

too often.

 

The Washington study examined the diets of almost 4,000

adults over the age of 65 who showed no signs of

cardiovascular disease. Researchers followed up nine years

later to record the subjects' incidence of non-fatal heart

attacks, and deaths due to the narrowing of arteries that

causes coronary heart disease (CHD).

 

The study results showed that those who regularly ate tuna

and other baked or broiled fish (3 or more times per week)

had a significantly lower risk of CHD than those who ate the

same fish infrequently. Those who regularly ate fried fish,

however, had a higher risk of both heart attack and death

due to CHD.

 

I expect that most HSI members won't be shocked to learn

that fried fish (or any food that's deep fried) is not a

good nutrition choice. Nevertheless, it's still a good idea

to get the word out so that those who sometimes order a

fried fish in hopes of getting the benefits of omega-3 fatty

acids won't be led astray.

 

To Your Good Health,

 

Jenny Thompson

Health Sciences Institute

 

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Click below to read this free report:

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(if you can't click here use the HTML links listed below)

 

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Sources:

" Caffeine Can Decrease Insulin Sensitivity in Humans "

Diabetes Care, 25:364-369, 2002, care.diabetesjournals.org

" Not Any Old Fish Food Will Reduce Heart Attacks " Dr. Joseph

Mercola, 4/30/03, mercola.com

" Cardiac benefits of fish consumption may depend on the type

of fish meal consumed: the Cardiovascular Health Study. "

Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, 2003

Mar 18;107(10);1372-7, circ.ahajournals.org

 

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<A HREF= " http://www.agora-inc.com/reports/AVIS/W600D552/home.cfm " >THROW YOUR

GLASSES AWAY FOR LIFE!</A>

href= " http://www.agora-inc.com/reports/ATAI/W600D564/home.cfm " >300-YEAR-OLD

CHINESE SECRET TO A HEALTHY HEART

 

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