Interesting New Research (especially for Joanna and Marsha)

[Polly]

Hi Good Buddies!

For Joanna and others who might be interested, here is the link to the info on tea (especially black vs. green tea). This is from the Vital Choice website, where I order my low-mercury salmon and tuna. You might want to get on their email list - they offer lots of updated research findings. Scroll down to the second item on the website.

Also, for Marsha and others, check out the article that follows the one on tea, titled "Low Vitamin D Levels Linked to M.S., Lupus, and Fibromyalgia" For some time now I have been a believer in vitamin D, and the evidence for its importance just keeps growing. As you know, I am not a big vitamin-taker (because on the paleo diet the RDA for all vitamins, except D, is greatly exceeded each day.....thus, no supplementation seems necessary for the others).

OK, here's the URL:

http://www.imakenews.com/vitalchoiceseafood

Love,

Polly

[tex]

Hi Polly,

Since I seem to have some of the symptoms of fibromyalgia, this information interests me, also. I take a supplement with 400IU vitamin D, so I wonder if more would be beneficial. (Of course, it could just be old age, or misinterpreted RA symptoms).

Also, as usual, nothing is perfect - there's a conflict with the use of tea, namely the fact that teas are contraindicated for calcium absorption. Both the tannins and the oxalates in tea, promote calcium excretion. I'm unsure how severe this effect is, but it is definitely there. Hopefully, the beneficial effects outweigh the negative effects. The following quote from this World's Healthiest Foods page, shows some nutritional relationships that should be of interest:

Nutrient Interactions

The following nutrients impact the absorption, utilization and/or excretion of calcium:

* Vitamin D accelerates the absorption of calcium from the gastrointestinal tract.
* High consumption of potassium reduces the urinary excretion of calcium.
* High intakes of sodium, caffeine, or protein cause an increase in the urinary excretion of calcium.
* Certain types of dietary fiber like the fiber found in wheat and oat bran, may interfere with calcium absorption by decreasing transit time (the amount of time it takes for digested foods to move through the intestines), limiting the amount of time during digestion for calcium to be absorbed. Dietary fiber also stimulates the proliferation of "friendly" bacteria in the gut, which bind calcium and make it less available for absorption.
* Phytic acid, found in whole grains, nuts, and legumes, can bind to calcium to form and insoluble complex, thereby decreasing the absorption of calcium.
* Oxalic acid, found in spinach, beets, celery, pecans, peanuts, tea and cocoa, can bind to calcium and form an insoluble complex that is excreted in the feces. While research studies confirm the ability of phytic acid and oxalic acid in foods to lower availability of calcium, the decrease in available calcium is relatively small.

Calcium impacts the absorption of the following nutrients:

* Calcium in food and supplements decreases the absorption of heme and nonheme iron.
* Magnesium and calcium compete with each other for intestinal absorption. Consequently, calcium supplements should not be taken at the same time as magnesium supplements.

This if from this site. (Note that there's a chart of calcium sources near the bottom of the page):

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tnam ... ent&dbid=4

I note that the article you mentioned says, "No association was found between vitamin D from food and MS incidence, probably because the average American diet contains so little." That's rather profound.

Love,
Tex

[artteacher]

Hi Polly,

Thank you for thinking of me. I'm totally with you on the Vit. D philosophy. Twenty minutes a day of sunshine for Chuck and me both from this time forward . . . (ever since I read the D chapter in the Protein Power Life Plan book).

I thought the Eades did a really good job explaining the benefits vs the downside of sunshine. They say you need enough sun to get Vit D, but not so much that you trigger an autoimmune or cancerous reaction. The trick is DAILY sun, never enough to burn, just enough to make you cheeks pink (not from a burn or tan) from Vit D's metabolism raising effect. And it depends on what latitude you live at, the filtering effects of your particular atmosphere, etc.

Thanks Polly . .