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Computer, smart phone users could benefit from lutein, zeaxanthin
July 12 2017. A report published in the journal Foods on June 29, 2017 adds evidence to a protective effect for the macular carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin against damage to the eye caused by exposure to high-energy blue light from computer or smart phone screens. The two carotenoids act as a natural filter for high-energy blue light.
In the randomized, double-blind, Blue Light User Exposure (B.L.U.E.) study, 48 adults aged 18 to 25 years with six or more hours of daily near-field screen time exposure received a placebo or 24 milligrams lutein plus zeaxanthin daily for six months. Visual performance measures, physical indicators of excessive screen time, sleep quality and macular pigment optical density were assessed before and after the treatment period.
At the end of the treatment period, participants who received the carotenoids experienced improvement in all visual performance measures, macular pigment optical density, eye strain, eye fatigue, headache frequency, and sleep quality compared to the placebo group. Improved sleep was not associated with macular pigment optimal density increase and was suggested to be the result of decreased oxidative stress and inflammation.
"The effects of blue light on vision isn't new,” noted lead author Dr James Stringham, of the University of Georgia’s Department of Psychology. “However, 10 years ago we saw a surge in near field technology holding or using devices within arm's length, resulting in increased complaints around high screen use -- neck pain, eye strain and fatigue, headaches. This has led to an opportunity with supplementation -- a simple mode of therapy with specific nutrients that have a wealth of benefits as they deposit in the eye. After six months of supplementation we saw significant reduction around 30% in these symptoms and significant improvement in measures of visual performance and protection."
Sunburn remedy found in vitamin D
July 10 2017. The role of sun exposure in the formation of vitamin D in the body is well known. Now it appears that the vitamin may also play a role in protecting the skin from burning after being exposed to potentially damaging amounts of the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays.
In a randomized trial reported on May 30, 2017 in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, 20men and womenwere given 50,000 international units (IU), 100,000 IU or 200,000 IU vitamin D3, or a placebo one hour following ultraviolet UV lamp sunburn to the inner arm. The patients were examined 24 hours, 48 hours, 72 hours and 1 week after irradiation.
Forty-eight hours after undergoing irradiation, skin biopsy specimens analyzed for the proinflammatory mediators tumor necrosis factor-alpha and inducible nitric oxide synthase revealed lower levels of these factors among those who received the highest dose of vitamin D3 compared to the placebo group. Furthermore, beginning at 72 hours, there was a lower amount of swelling among those who received the two highest doses of vitamin D. Those whose serum vitamin D3 levels were significantly higher after treatment had increased skin expression of the anti-inflammatory enzyme arginase-1 as well as a sustained decrease in skin redness, while those with lower vitamin D3 levels had greater expression of pro-inflammatory genes.
"We found benefits from vitamin D were dose-dependent," reported senior author Kurt Lu, MD, who is an Assistant Professor of Dermatology at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center. "We hypothesize that vitamin D helps promote protective barriers in the skin by rapidly reducing inflammation. What we did not expect was that at a certain dose, vitamin D not only was capable of suppressing inflammation, it was also activating skin repair genes."
Study finds anti-inflammatory effect for lutein
July 7 2017. The July 2017 issue of Atherosclerosis published an article by Swedish researchers which describes an anti-inflammatory effect for the carotenoid lutein in patients with coronary artery disease.
"A considerable number of patients who have experienced myocardial infarction still have low-level chronic inflammation in the body, even after receiving effective treatment with revascularization, drugs and lifestyle changes,” remarked lead researcher Lena Jonasson, who is a professor in the Department of Medical and Health Sciences at Linkoping University. “We know that chronic inflammation is associated with a poorer prognosis."
The study included 59 patients with acute coronary syndrome and 134 patients with stable angina. Blood samples were analyzed for interleukin-6, a marker of inflammation, and the carotenoids lutein plus zeaxanthin, alpha and beta carotene, lycopene and beta-cryptoxanthin. In 42 patients, plasma levels of these factors were reanalyzed three months after coronary intervention to open narrowed blood vessels. Additionally, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (types of white blood cells) from stable angina patients were treated with lutein for 24 hours followed by incubation with an inflammation-inducing compound and measurement of markers of inflammation.
In the heart disease patients, having a lower level of lutein plus zeaxanthin was associated with a higher level of interleukin-6 before and after coronary intervention. "The patients were receiving the best possible treatment for their disease according to clinical guidelines, but even so, many of them had persistent inflammation," Dr Jonasson observed.
In peripheral blood mononuclear cells, lutein pretreatment was associated with a reduction in interleukin-6, interleukin-1 beta, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF).
"Our study confirms that one particular carotenoid, lutein, can suppress long-term inflammation in patients with coronary artery disease,” concluded first author Rosanna Chung. “We have also shown that lutein is absorbed and stored by the cells of the immune system in the blood."
Trial finds reduction in depressive symptoms following magnesium supplementation
July 5 2017. A randomized, crossover trial reported on June 27, 2017 in the journal PLoS One resulted in a reduction in symptoms of depression and anxiety among participants who received magnesium for a six week period.
The trial included 126 men and women diagnosed with mild to moderate depression. Sixty-two participants received a daily supplement that contained 248 milligrams elemental magnesium from magnesium chloride for six weeks followed by a six week period during which no supplement was consumed. The remainder of the group received no supplementation during the first six weeks and a magnesium supplement during the latter portion of the trial. Questionnaires in which subjects rated their depression and anxiety were administered at the beginning of the study and every two weeks during the treatment periods.
Six weeks of magnesium supplementation was associated with a significant reduction in depression scores, however, scores did not improve during the control periods. Anxiety also improved during magnesium supplementation, but worsened during the control portion of the trial. In addition, headaches were less likely to be experienced in association with magnesium supplementation in comparison with no treatment.
“This is the first clinical trial done on magnesium for depression in the U.S.,” authors Emily K. Tarleton and her colleagues at the University of Vermont announce. “There are many barriers to treatment for depression including stigma associated with diagnosis, cost, side effects, non-adherence, and loss to follow-up. Magnesium supplements do not come with the added stigma associated with other therapies and, while monitoring response is still important, the risk of side effects is not as great as from antidepressants.”
“Although improvement in symptoms occurred within two weeks and was maintained while on treatment, long-term effectiveness is unknown and longer trials are needed,” they conclude.
Lipoic acid shows brain protective effect in MS
July 3 2017. On June 28, 2017, the journal Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation published the results of a pilot study which found a slower rate of brain atrophy among multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who received a daily supplement of lipoic acid.
The trial included 27 MS patients who received 1,200 milligrams R-lipoic acid per day for two years and 24 who received a placebo. Subjects were of an average age of 58.5 years and had an average disease duration of 29.6 years. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain was conducted upon enrollment between May 2011 and October 2013, at one year, and at the end of the two-year study.
At the end of two years, participants who consumed lipoic acid had 68% reduction in annualized percent brain change volume in comparison with the controls. Those who received lipoic acid also had improved walking times and fewer falls. The authors remark that the reduction in brain atrophy rate achieved in the current trial among those who received lipoid acid compares favorably with that observed in a recent trial that evaluated the effects of the drug ocrelizumab, which found a 17.5% reduction over a 120-week period.
The pilot trial’s findings will form the basis of an expanded multisite clinical trial that will begin later this year.
"These are high doses," noted lead author Rebecca Spain, MD, MSPH, who is an assistant professor of neurology at the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine. "And while it seems safe, we won't know whether it actually improves the lives of people with MS until we can replicate the results in the pilot study through a much bigger clinical trial. Fortunately, we're going to be able to answer that question with the participation of kind volunteers."