LIFE EXTENSION NEWS

We’ve all read reports from researchers that certain foods are good for our health, and six months down the road, another researcher comes to a different conclusion. The truth is that over the years, new information casts a new light on certain foods and drinks. And sometimes those findings are overstated, misinterpreted or even contradictory.

Red wine, tuna, blueberries, olive oil, and tea, have all had varying claims made about them in recent years. To set the record straight, and to show how health claims about food can vary, nutritionists were asked for the latest thinking about these popular items.

Quantity: 1 cup, raw

Calories: 81

Benefit: High in fiber and certain vitamins, may improve coordination. They’re high in anti-oxidants, shown to reduce free radicals that can contribute to heart disease, cancer and the effects of aging.

Drawback: Expensive, a pint may cost $4 or more, and benefits have mostly been shown in the lab. They also can stain teeth.

Consensus: A good food, but other foods provide similar benefits such as strawberries and spinach.

Quantity: 1 tablespoon

Calories: 119

Benefit: Olive oil is a monounsaturated fat and contains anti-oxidants. These fats are thought to lower a person’s LDL, or harmful cholesterol level.

Drawback: It’s still a fat, and high in calories.

Consensus: Along with canola oil, it’s better than cooking with animal fats, but don’t overdo it.

Quantity: 6 ounces

Calories: 119

Benefit: Recent studies suggest that tea can boost the immune system, and help protect the body against various forms of disease.

Drawback: Study results are mixed, and scientists are skeptical the effect, if proven, will turn out to be that strong.

Consensus: Fine in moderation, just don’t expect to be disease free.

Quantity: 1 can, water packed (172 grams)

Calories: 220

Benefit: High in Omega 3 fats, which are good for the heart. The American Heart Association recommends eating fish twice a week.

Drawback: Certain types of fish, including tuna may store heavy metals such as mercury, and toxins such as dioxins and PCBs. These can damage your nervous system, and may contribute to heart disease.

Consensus: It’s safer from the can! Canned tuna comes from younger fish, which haven’t had a chance to store a lot of toxins. Pregnant and nursing women are often advised to limit their tuna intake.

Quantity: One glass (3.5 ounces)

Calories: 74

Benefit: Wine may reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke when consumed in moderation.

Drawback: Wine’s health benefits are hotly debated, and possibly outweighed by the health risks associated with alcohol consumption, which includes liver damage and automobile accidents.

Consensus: There may be better ways to improve ones health, but if used responsibly and in moderation, your doctor won’t complain.

Adapted from FLORIDA TODAY

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The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute redefined the upper limits for "normal" blood pressure from 130/85 millimeters of mercury to 120/80. Now, patients over the new limits are being told they need to exercise more, and eat less to keep their blood pressure in check.

Often called the "silent killer" because there are no symptoms, hypertension affects about 50 million Americans, or one in four adults. The new limits place another 45 million on alert as prehypertensives.

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A 43 year old Williston, (FL.) woman had an allergic reaction to the anti-wrinkle drug Botox and died, according to autopsy results.

Donna Kulp died Jan. 24 after receiving an injection of Botox. Kulp went into cardiac arrest according to transcripts of the 911 call, and could not be revived. Kulp died from anaphylactic shock due to Botox and Lidocaine injections, according to a representative from the Medical Examiners office in Gainsville. Emergency workers give Lidocaine to people who are in cardiac arrest. She was a supervisor for telecommunications at the University of Florida, and an Avon representative.

Botox was approved in April 2002 for cosmetic purposes to smooth wrinkles on the face. Adapted from FLORIDA TODAY

Thousands of Americans face the heart-valve surgery that Senator Bob Graham underwent last month, open heart surgery that is likely to dramatically increase as the population ages.

But what if a simple pill could slow the rusting of the aortic heart valve, and let patients postpone, or perhaps even avoid the surgery that is today’s only fix?

Scientists have uncovered tantalizing evidence that statins, those pills so popular to lower cholesterol, might do just that---and not through any cholesterol effect, but by an action that suggests even patients with low cholesterol might benefit.

"It’s very exciting," according to Dr. Ann Bolger of the American Heart Association, who is monitoring early research that suggests bad valves are half as likely to worsen if patients take statins.

The aortic valve shunts oxygen rich blood from the heart’s main pumping chamber to the rest of the body. It looks something like a rounded tulip, with three leaflets open and closing with each heartbeat.

But it can start to shut, causing the heart to pump harder to force blood through the narrowed opening. Eventually, patients with this "aortic stenosis" require open heart surgery to replace the faulty valve or face life threatening heart damage. Adapted from FLORIDA TODAY