Turmeric extract may protect heart after surgery

Extracts from turmeric spice, known for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, may help ward off heart attacks in people who have had recent bypass surgery, according to a study from Thailand.

During bypass surgery the heart muscle can be damaged by prolonged lack of blood flow, increasing the patient's risk of heart attack. But the new findings, published in the peer-reviewed American Journal of Cardiology, suggest that curcumins - the yellow pigment in turmeric - may ease those risks when added to traditional drug treatment.

The conclusions are based on a relatively small group of subjects and needs to be confirmed in larger studies, said researchers led by Wanwarang Wongcharoen from Chiang Mai University. Turmeric extracts have long been used in traditional Chinese and Indian medicine.

Research has suggested inflammation plays an important role in the development of a range of diseases, including heart disease, and curcumins could have an effect on those pathways, said Bharat Aggarwal, who studies the use of curcumins in cancer therapy at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas.

"It's very, very encouraging," said Aggarwal of the study, which he did not take part in.

The researchers studied 121 patients who had non-emergency bypass surgery at their hospital between 2009 and 2011.

Half of those patients were given one-gram curcumin capsules to take four times a day, starting three days before their surgery and continuing for five days afterwards. The other half took the same number of drug-free placebo capsules.

The researchers found that during their post-bypass hospital stays, 13 percent of patients who'd been taking curcumins had a heart attack, compared to 30 percent in the placebo group.

After accounting for any initial pre-surgery differences, Wongcharoen and his colleagues calculated that people on curcumins had a 65 percent lower chance of heart attack.

Researchers said it's likely that the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of curcumins may have helped limit heart damage in the patients.

"Curcumin has for many years now been shown to reduce inflammation and to reduce oxygen toxicity or damage caused by free radicals in a number of experimental settings," said Jawahar Mehta, a cardiologist at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, who didn't work on the study.

"But that doesn't mean that this is a substitute for medication," he said, noting that drugs like aspirin, statins and beta blockers have been proven to help heart patients and people in the current study were taking those as well.

One limitation was that the study was relatively small. Another is that while curcumins are thought to be safe, there could be side effects at very large doses.

"Taken in moderation or used in cooking, (curcumins) are quite useful. But I wouldn't go to a health food store and start taking four grams of curcumin a day, as was done in this study," Mehta said.

CONSUMERS WEIGH IN ON BEST, WORST GROCERY STORES

Wegmans, Trader Joe's, Publix and Fareway earned top scores from U.S. consumers for having the best grocery store experiences, according to Consumer Reports’ 2011 Annual Questionnaire that rated customer satisfaction among 52 of the nation's major grocery stores. While most respondents were quite satisfied with their experiences, the survey also revealed some of the high-rated chains gave plenty of shoppers something to complain about.

The survey, based on responses from 24,203 Consumer Reports’ subscribers who made more than 42,695 visits to grocery stores, revealed more than half the readers had at least one complaint about their current store; almost one-third cited two or more. The biggest gripe overall: Not enough open checkouts (cited by 27% of shoppers), followed by congested or cluttered aisles and advertised specials that were out of stock. Other complaints included inept bagging, missing prices and scanner overcharges.

When it came to the worst shopping experiences, 75% of those surveyed had major complaints with Walmart Supercenter, Pathmark (Northeast) and Pick 'n Save (Wisconsin). Shoppers who frequented Walmart, the nation's largest grocer and the chain with the most shoppers in our survey, were most likely to be upset about the lack of open checkouts, out-of-stock regular items, indifferent employees, spotty pricing, and confusing store layout. Thirteen percent of respondents shopping at Pathmark said they'd been overcharged, almost twice the average rate in Consumer Reports survey.

National grocers Costco and Trader Joe's, along with Fareway Stores (Midwest) and Wegmans, earned props for offering quality meat and produce, a clean shopping environment, and very good or exceptional prices. All but Costco also earned the highest possible marks for service, defined as employee courtesy and checkout speed. Service is minimal at warehouse clubs such as Costco, and lengthy lines are a trade-off for day-in, day-out deals.

One-third of those surveyed said stopped shopping at their local grocery store—43% changed in search of lower prices; 25% cited poor selection, long lines or lousy food; 17% blamed employee rudeness; and 14% blamed the crowds.

CHINA OVERTAKES U.S. TO BECOME WORLD’S LARGEST FOOD MARKET

Fueled by rapid economic growth, population and rising food inflation, China has overtaken the United States as the world’s biggest food and grocery retail market, according to market data from food and grocery market analyst IGD. China's grocery sector was worth $970 billion in 2011, while U.S. market value was $913.5 billion.

China's grocery market is forecast to expand to nearly $1.46 trillion by 2015, nearly a threefold increase in value from 2006; the United States is forecast to expand to $1.07 trillion by 2015. IGD predicts Brazil, Russia, India and China will make up four of the top five grocery markets by 2015.

“China’s grocery growth story is phenomenal. Between 2006 and 2015, the Chinese grocery market is forecast to triple in value and to be worth nearly 1 trillion pounds. This rapid expansion has been fueled by three main factors—rapid economic growth, population and rising food inflation," said Joanne Denney-Finch, chief executive, IGD. “Despite its various logistical and bureaucratic challenges, China is a crucial growth market for many of the world’s largest grocery retailers. Even beyond the major cities there are huge opportunities: forecasts suggest there will be over 200 Chinese cities with a population over 1 million people by 2025. But given China’s size and diversity, it’s essential not to treat the country as one homogenous market."

PROTEIN-RICH BREAKFAST INCREASES SATIETY, REDUCES CALORIC INTAKE

Individuals who eat a protein-rich breakfast have increased satiety and decreased caloric intake at later meals, according to new research presented at IFT Wellness 12. The findings are especially important for children who tend to skip nutritious breakfasts.

University of Missouri researchers conducted a clinical trial involving teen girls who had a habit of skipping breakfast. By having them eat a normal protein breakfast and then a protein-rich breakfast after a wash-out period, they were able to observe the positive results that protein was making in their ability to concentrate and their diet throughout the rest of the day.

For the trail, the “normal protein" breakfasts consisted of ready-to-eat cereals and contained 13 grams of protein. The protein-rich meals consisted of protein-enhanced waffles or breakfast burritos and contained 35 grams of protein. Both the normal protein and protein-rich breakfasts contained 350 calories. While both breakfast meals led to increased feelings of fullness throughout the morning compared to those who skipped breakfast, the protein rich breakfasts also led to an even greater feeling of satiety and less snacking throughout the day.

“This shows that while eating breakfast is beneficial, the calories are not the most important factor – a breakfast containing higher amounts of quality protein takes the health benefits of breakfast a step further," the researchers said. “Parents and children must be sure to select breakfasts that are higher in protein in order to help regulate food intake for the rest of the day."

“When selecting a higher protein breakfast, it’s important to remember that it doesn’t have to be complicated," said Colleen Conley, lead sensory scientist and associate science fellow, Solae. “During a recent children’s taste test, Solae found that both parents and children focused on flavor and taste as important qualities affecting whether they would buy something again. Sugar content, price and protein content also were very high on the list of parent priorities."

During the testing, children between the ages of 8 and 14 sampled a selection of three soy protein bars prepared by Solae. Children conducted blind taste tests on the bars at home and were able to score them on a range from “super good" to “super bad" and then record how much of the bars they were able to finish. The same bar scored high with both parents and children.

“Children will give detailed feedback if asked in the right way. If you ask why they like something and why they don’t like it you’ll get a better idea of what appeals to them," she said. “Parents can read labels and select a few options at the store and conduct taste tests at home to get the children more invested in their

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