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New Frontiers
NEW FRONTIERS NEW FRONTIERS: RESEARCH ROUND UP
INTERESTING NEW RESEARCH OF INTEREST TO HOLISTIC THERAPISTS AND THEIR CLIENTS…
BRAIN AND BEHAVIOUR: A CONNECTION BETWEEN THE OPIOID SYSTEM AND EATING BEHAVIOUR
Finnish researchers at the University of Turku have discovered that there is a connection between the function of the opioid system and food craving triggered by appetitive external stimuli. Previously, animal studies have shown that the brain’s opioid and endocannabinoid systems are important in regulating eating behaviour and mediate the food reward experience. Malfunctions in this signalling system have been associated with obesity.
The Finnish study concluded that the function of the opioid system is connected to eating triggered by external stimuli. The fewer the number of binding sites there were for the opioids, the greater was the tendency to eat in response to external stimuli, such as seeing appetizing food. It is thought that the opioid system could be a potential target for anti-
obesity drugs. Ref: 10.1038/s41398-021-01559-5
More research from the University of Turku has established a connection between standing more and better insulin sensitivity and may have a role to play in preventing chronic lifestyle diseases.
Insulin function is known to be adversely affected by being overweight, leading to decreased insulin sensitivity and an increased risk level for developing cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
Lifestyle has a strong impact on insulin resistance and the development of type 2 diabetes, and regular physical activity is known to have an important role in the prevention of these issues. However, so far, little is known about the impact of sedentary behaviour, breaks in sitting, and standing on insulin resistance.
The researchers observed that standing is associated with better insulin sensitivity independently of the amount of daily physical activity or sitting time, fitness level, or being
overweight. Ref: 10.1016/j.jsams.2021.08.009
ADHD AND DEMENTIA: A LINK ACROSS THE GENERATIONS
A large study conducted by a research team at Sweden’s Karolinska Institutet shows that parents and grandparents of individuals with ADHD were at higher risk of dementia than those with children and grandchildren without ADHD.
This suggests that there are common genetic and/or environmental contributions to the association between ADHD and dementia. The study looked at more than two million people born in Sweden between 1980 and 2001, of whom around 3.2 percent were diagnosed with ADHD. Using national registries, the researchers linked these persons to over five million biological relatives, including parents, grandparents and uncles and aunts, and investigated to what extent these relatives developed dementia.
The researchers found that parents of individuals with ADHD had 34 percent higher risk of dementia than parents of individuals without ADHD. The risk of Alzheimer’s disease, the most common type of dementia, was 55 percent higher in parents of individuals with ADHD. Individuals with ADHD were more likely to have parents with early-onset dementia than late-onset.
The researchers note that the absolute risk of dementia was low for the parent cohort; only 0.17 percent of the parents were diagnosed with dementia during the follow-up period.
It is hoped that further studies will explore whether there are undiscovered genetic variants that contribute to both traits, or family-wide environmental risk factors, such as socioeconomic status, that may have an impact
on the association. Ref: 10.1002/alz.12462
COVID AND NUTRITION: PLANTBASED DIETS MAY REDUCE RISK AND SEVERITY OF COVID-19
A new study from Massachusetts General Hospital suggests that those with a healthy plant-based diet had a lower risk of getting COVID-19, and, among people with COVID-19, were less likely to experience severe symptoms.
Previous studies have shown that obesity, smoking and type 2 diabetes were all linked to an increased risk of COVID-19, as well as an increased risk of experiencing serious symptoms once infected. Poor nutrition was found to be a common feature amongst groups who were disproportionally affected by the pandemic.
The new study, published in Gut, showed that people whose diets were based on healthy plant-based foods had lower risks on both counts. The beneficial effects of diet on COVID-19 risk seemed especially relevant in individuals living in areas of high socioeconomic deprivation.
Data from almost 600,000 UK and US based participants in the smartphone-based COVID-19 Symptom Study was used. Of these, 31,831 participants developed COVID-19. Compared with individuals in the lowest quartile of the diet score, those in the highest quartile had a 9% lower risk of developing COVID-19 and a 41% lower risk of developing severe COVID-19.
FIBROMYALGIA: CBD FINDS FAVOUR WITH SUFFERERS
A study from the University of Michigan suggests that many US fibromyalgia patients are turning to CBD treatments in preference to opioid painkillers.
CBD, short for cannabidiol, is the second most common cannabinoid in the cannabis plant, and has been marketed for everything from mood stabilization to pain relief, without the intoxicating effects produced by the most common cannabinoid, THC. THC, which stands for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, is the ingredient in marijuana that causes people to feel high.
Previous research shows that some people substitute medical cannabis (often with high concentrations of THC) for opioids and other pain medications, reporting that cannabis provides better pain relief and fewer side effects. However, there is far less data on CBD use.
The research team focused on 878 people with fibromyalgia who said they used CBD in order to get more insight into how they used CBD products. More than 70% of people with fibromyalgia who used CBD substituted CBD for opioids or other pain medications. Of these participants, many reported that they either decreased use or stopped taking opioids and other pain medications as a result. Ref:
10.1016/j.jpain.2021.04.011
BREASTFEEDING: PFAS EXPOSURE CAN AFFECT WOMEN’S ABILITY TO BREASTFEED
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are chemicals used as oil and water repellents and coatings for common products including cookware, carpets and textiles. These endocrine-disrupting chemicals do not break down when they are released into the environment, and they continue to accumulate over time. PFAS chemicals have been shown to affect pregnancy outcomes, the timing of puberty and other aspects of reproductive health.
Now a Danish research team have discovered that women with higher levels of PFAS in their system may be 20% more likely to stop breastfeeding early, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
The researchers analysed blood samples for PFAS and prolactin concentrations from almost 1300 pregnant women. The women provided information about the duration of breastfeeding in weekly text messages or questionnaires at three and eighteen months postpartum. The researchers found women with higher levels of PFAS in their system were 20% more likely to stop breastfeeding
early. Ref: 10.1210/clinem/dgab638 n
