Latest news with #plantbaseddiet
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Truth about La Toya Jackson's VERY slender frame after fans claimed she lost too much weight
La Toya Jackson has broken her silence after fans claimed that she'd lost too much weight. The legendary entertainer, 69, first sparked concerns in December after fans noticed her looking thinner than usual. The Hearts Don't Lie hitmaker then continued to raise eyebrows with a series of skinny social media posts, sparking concern among her followers. Speaking to on Wednesday ahead of her two shows at the Catalina Jazz Club, Jackson said that her svelte figure was all down to her plant-based diet. 'I'm strictly organic. I make sure that everything I eat is organic and my diet is basically based on plants,' she explained. 'So it's a cruciferous diet basically and that's what I stick to because this is what God put on the earth for us,' she continued. A cruciferous diet emphasizes the consumption of cruciferous vegetables, which include broccoli, arugula, kale, and cabbage. While La Toya sticks to her veggies, she did admit that she occasionally eats chicken too. The fifth child and middle daughter of the legendary Jackson family raised eyebrows recently when she appeared frail in a series of recent social media posts. 'Gosh you are beautiful but so tiny!' asked one concern fan. 'You are extremely skinny,' asked another, while a third wrote, 'Sticks and stones might break your bones, but carbs and bread wont hurt you.' La Toya is still active in the entertainment industry but chooses to stay out of the limelight and makes infrequent public appearances. She gave fans a glimpse behind the scenes with her 2011 memoir Starting Over, and has appeared on multiple reality TV shows, including Life With La Toya. However, the legendary diva is currently planning to launch her own luxury lifestyle brand in the Middle East. Speaking to about the venture, La Toya said, 'I've been working on it for quite a while now, for over a year actually, and it's gonna show a mixture of everything we have. 'Men's clothing, women's clothing, shoes, purses, hats, accessories, everything. You name it, dresses, everything,' she continued. 'I love the men's line. It's so beautiful. It's right down my alley, so that's good.' La Toya recently appeared on the Australian version of The Masked Singer, where she was unveiled as Burger Gal. The Grammy winner managed to fool all the judges except ex Spice Girl, Mel B, who guessed correctly. Reflecting on growing up as a Jackson, La Toya admitted on The Project that she doesn't know any different, confessing the worldwide fame is normal to her. 'I want to say it's weird. But when you're in a situation meaning a family you've been in all your life, whatever it is, it's normal to you,' she said. 'I don't know any different. Any other way. This is all I've known my life,' she continued. 'It's not weird or strange because this is your life. Our parents told us when we were very young that if you're not willing to give autographs or smile or be kind to people, then get out of the business. This is the business that you're in.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Eating more of these plant-based foods could lower your risk of heart disease and diabetes
Eating more nuts, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains may help to reduce your risk of contracting deadly heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Researchers said this week that people who consumed more phytosterols — a natural compound found in plant foods — significantly delayed both of the conditions. Furthermore, eating more of them was linked to reduced inflammation, markers of better insulin regulation, and differences in the gut microbiome that may contribute to healthy metabolism. The study was not designed to confirm why this is the case, but the researchers said their findings strengthen the evidence. More than 7000,000 Americans die from heart disease and some 101,000 die from diabetes. 'Our findings support the dietary recommendation of adhering to healthy plant-based dietary patterns that are rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts and whole grains,' Dr. Fenglei Wang, a research associate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said in a statement. 'These findings can help people make informed dietary choices.' Wang presented the observational findings on Tuesday at the flagship annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition. Some phytosterol-rich foods include corn, almonds, broccoli, bananas, and wheat bread. Previous research had found that eating foods with phytosterols can help to improve peoples' health by lowering bad cholesterol, and may reduce the risk of cancer. However, most clinical trials have used high doses of the phytosterols that were beyond what someone might get through just their own diet. The new research is the first to show the benefits as part of a normal diet. To reach these conclusions, Wang and his colleagues looked at data from more than 200,000 American adults that were a part of three studies. All of the participants were nurses or other health professionals and nearly 80 percent were women. Over the course of 36 years, more than 20,000 of them developed type 2 diabetes and nearly 16,000 developed heart disease. The participants' answers to food-frequency questionnaires allowed the researchers to estimate their individual intake of phytosterols, as well as three individual phytosterols known as β-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol. Those who ate the most consumed the most phytosterol had about four to five servings of vegetables, two to three servings of fruits, two servings of whole grains, and half a serving of nuts each day. This made them 9 percent less likely to develop heart disease and 8 percent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes compares to those in the bottom fifth percentage for phytosterol intake, the research showed. Looking at the individual phytosterols, similar associations were observed for β-sitosterol. But, the same was not true for campesterol or stigmasterol. In addition, the researchers analyzed blood samples, looking at the products of metabolism — also known as metabolites — from more than 11,000 people and other metabolic biomarkers in blood samples from over 40,000 participants. They found that phytosterol and β-sitosterol levels were tied to favorable metabolites and metabolic markers relevant to heart disease and diabetes. That signaled a possible reason for the association. 'Our clinical biomarker and metabolomic results suggest the involvement of insulin activity, inflammation and the metabolism of metabolites associated with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease,' said Wang. 'This suggests that phytosterol might reduce risk by alleviating insulin resistance and inflammation.' In a group of just 465 participants, they examined the gut microbiome, or the trillions of microscopic organisms inside the intestines. They found several microbial species and related enzymes linked to higher intake of phytosterols that may affect the production of metabolites associated with a lower risk of diseases. 'We found that the gut microbiome might play a role in the beneficial associations. Some species, such as Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, carry enzymes that could help degrade phytosterol, potentially influencing host metabolism,' Wang said.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Eating more of these plant-based foods could lower your risk of heart disease and diabetes
Eating more nuts, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains may help to reduce your risk of contracting deadly heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Researchers said this week that people who consumed more phytosterols — a natural compound found in plant foods — significantly delayed both of the conditions. Furthermore, eating more of them was linked to reduced inflammation, markers of better insulin regulation, and differences in the gut microbiome that may contribute to healthy metabolism. The study was not designed to confirm why this is the case, but the researchers said their findings strengthen the evidence. More than 7000,000 Americans die from heart disease and some 101,000 die from diabetes. 'Our findings support the dietary recommendation of adhering to healthy plant-based dietary patterns that are rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts and whole grains,' Dr. Fenglei Wang, a research associate at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said in a statement. 'These findings can help people make informed dietary choices.' Wang presented the observational findings on Tuesday at the flagship annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition. Some phytosterol-rich foods include corn, almonds, broccoli, bananas, and wheat bread. Previous research had found that eating foods with phytosterols can help to improve peoples' health by lowering bad cholesterol, and may reduce the risk of cancer. However, most clinical trials have used high doses of the phytosterols that were beyond what someone might get through just their own diet. The new research is the first to show the benefits as part of a normal diet. To reach these conclusions, Wang and his colleagues looked at data from more than 200,000 American adults that were a part of three studies. All of the participants were nurses or other health professionals and nearly 80 percent were women. Over the course of 36 years, more than 20,000 of them developed type 2 diabetes and nearly 16,000 developed heart disease. The participants' answers to food-frequency questionnaires allowed the researchers to estimate their individual intake of phytosterols, as well as three individual phytosterols known as β-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol. Those who ate the most consumed the most phytosterol had about four to five servings of vegetables, two to three servings of fruits, two servings of whole grains, and half a serving of nuts each day. This made them 9 percent less likely to develop heart disease and 8 percent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes compares to those in the bottom fifth percentage for phytosterol intake, the research showed. Looking at the individual phytosterols, similar associations were observed for β-sitosterol. But, the same was not true for campesterol or stigmasterol. In addition, the researchers analyzed blood samples, looking at the products of metabolism — also known as metabolites — from more than 11,000 people and other metabolic biomarkers in blood samples from over 40,000 participants. They found that phytosterol and β-sitosterol levels were tied to favorable metabolites and metabolic markers relevant to heart disease and diabetes. That signaled a possible reason for the association. 'Our clinical biomarker and metabolomic results suggest the involvement of insulin activity, inflammation and the metabolism of metabolites associated with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease,' said Wang. 'This suggests that phytosterol might reduce risk by alleviating insulin resistance and inflammation.' In a group of just 465 participants, they examined the gut microbiome, or the trillions of microscopic organisms inside the intestines. They found several microbial species and related enzymes linked to higher intake of phytosterols that may affect the production of metabolites associated with a lower risk of diseases. 'We found that the gut microbiome might play a role in the beneficial associations. Some species, such as Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, carry enzymes that could help degrade phytosterol, potentially influencing host metabolism,' Wang said.
Daily Mail
7 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Doctors discover food that prevents heart disease and diabetes... and 90% of Americans don't eat enough of it
Regularly eating a combination of fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains may reduce your risk of developing two of the most deadly chronic diseases, a study suggests. A group of American researchers discovered phytosterols, a compound found naturally in a variety of foods like nuts, seeds, grains and vegetable oils, can help improve metabolism and reduce inflammation - keeping both heart disease and type 2 diabetes at bay. However, up to 90 percent of Americans don't eat the recommended daily serving of fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains. Phytosterols are compounds similar to cholesterol and are promoted as a way to improve heart health and decrease blood levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol as they are known to absorb the fat-like substance. Now, the new study suggests high phytosterol intake can also improve insulin regulation, reduce heart inflammation and contribute to a healthy metabolism. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes globally and over 37million American adults suffer from it. The American Heart Association reports about 48 percent of Americans are living with some type of cardiovascular disease and CVD is the number one killer in the US - accounting for about one in five deaths. Dr Fenglei Wang, lead author and research associate at Harvard University, said the findings support claims that eating a healthy plant-based diet with plenty of vegetables and whole grains can be beneficial for humans. While phytosterols are found in all plant foods, the highest concentrations are found in unrefined plant oils, including vegetable, nuts and olive oils. Nuts such as almonds, pistachio and cashews; seeds such as pumpkin, sunflower and watermelon; whole grains such as oats and barley as well as legumes such as chickpeas, lentils and soybeans are also good dietary sources of phytosterols. The compound is also found in vegetables such as artichokes, broccoli, green beans, sweet potatoes and cauliflower as well as fruits such as pineapples, oranges, berries and bananas. The researchers followed over 200,000 American adults for 36 years. The participants were asked to periodically answer questionnaires on dietary intake to measure how much phytosterol-rich food they were consuming. Their answers were then evaluated using a variety of statistical models to discover their likelihood of developing Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. During the follow-up period, the researchers noted over 20,000 study participants developed Type 2 diabetes and nearly 16,000 developed heart disease. Results showed those who consumed about five servings of vegetables, three servings of fruit, two servings of whole grains and half a serving of nuts - all of which are high in phytosterols - per day were about 10 percent less likely to develop either conditions. But nearly no American reaches these benchmarks. The researchers also analyzed metabolites - products of metabolism - and other metabolic biomarkers present in blood samples from about 40,000 people to understand the effect of phytosterols on the calorie-burning process. They discovered those who consumed phytosterols had better metabolism - which helped control insulin levels and inflammation around the heart. Dr Wang noted the results showed consuming phytosterols may reduce the risk for Type 2 diabetes by reducing insulin resistance in the body and stave off heart disease by preventing inflammation. The foods studied as part of the research are recommended as part of a healthy and well-rounded diet and have been linked to multiple health benefits also because of their antioxidants and fiber. The scientists in the most recent study, however, did not specify how they observed the benefits stemmed from the consumption of phytosterols specifically. The study was presented today at the Bioactives for Brain and Cardiometabolic Health session in Orange County, Florida and will later be published in the journal Nutrition.
Medscape
19-05-2025
- Health
- Medscape
The Role of Primary Care in Plant-Based Nutrition
BIRMINGHAM — Plant-rich diets offer well-established health benefits, and primary care professionals are perfectly placed to help patients make better nutritional choices, experts said last week at the Primary Care Show 2025. Daisy Lund, a general practitioner (GP) and medical educator with 20 years working in the NHS, and Claire Lynch, a registered dietitian and education lead for Plant-Based Health Professionals UK, shared strategies for how to help people incorporate more plant-based foods into their diet. Tackling a Health Crisis 'We are in a little bit of a health crisis,' Lund stated. 'I think we will know this in primary care: we look after a lot of people in chronic ill health, and often these can be lifestyle-related conditions'. Dr Daisy Lund Lund noted an alarming trend: 'I'm diagnosing people with chronic conditions like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and even certain cancers, at a younger and younger age.' She added that 'because of the prevalence of these chronic conditions, we are living the last decade, or sometimes two or three decades, in poor health'. According to the 2019 Global Burden of disease report, the average life expectancy is 83 years for women and 79 years for men, but the respective healthy lifestyle expectancy is 64 and 63 years. According to the World Health Organization, 80% of the estimated 43 million deaths worldwide from non-communicable diseases could be prevented through risk factor modification. 'Unbalanced diets are actually responsible for 26% of deaths globally, and then in Europe, that's 35% of premature deaths' Lund said, citing the 2022 Global Nutrition Report. Research, including the Adventist Health Study-2 (AHS-2) and the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC )-Oxford, have shown that vegan or vegetarian diets lead to greater reductions in body mass index (BMI), hypertension, and total cholesterol compared to diets including red meat and poultry. Talk About Lifestyle Lund encouraged healthcare professionals to address at least one of the six lifestyle pillars—nutrition, exercise, tobacco and alcohol use, stress management, sleep, and healthy relationships—during appropriate consultations. 'Just add one sentence about lifestyle, not forgetting that general practice is a series of small encounters over time; plant the seed and then come back and water it every so often when you see your patient again', she said. Lund advocated knowing where to 'signpost your patients' towards resources that could guide them to make healthy plant-based nutritional choices. 'Ask your patient: 'what have you had for breakfast, lunch, and dinner yesterday?' I think that gets a lot better answers than just saying, 'Do you eat fruit, vegetables?',' Lund said. What is a Healthy Plant-based Diet? The Eatwell Guide is a well-established and well-known tool for promoting healthy eating and a balanced diet. It recommends at least five portions of a variety of fruits and vegetables daily, more beans and pulses than animal protein, and wholegrain or high-fibre foods while limiting dairy and sugary foods. A plant-based adaptation of the Eatwell guide is also available. 'If people followed what we currently have, we would be in a better position than we currently are,' Lund said. Similar guidelines from countries such as Canada and Denmark suggest that two-thirds to half of a plate should consist of vegetables, with the remainder divided between protein and carbohydrate sources. Quality matters, cautioned Lund, who noted that plant foods can be healthy and unhealthy; think fruit juice and refined grains for the latter. 'My top thing would be suggesting [patients] eliminate processed meat and that they reduce their red meats as a first step.' Consider the Whole Food Package Claire Lynch Lynch emphasised the importance of the total food 'package'. 'The nutrients that you get in whole plant foods come wrapped in fibre, complex carbohydrates, healthy unsaturated fats, and many other nutrients that have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.' By contrast, ultra-processed plant foods 'tend to be nutrient poor, but they're high in energy from added sugars and added fats', she added. As for animal foods, they 'come in a package with saturated fats, which raises our cholesterol' and 'pro-inflammatory and pro-oxidant compounds, such as heme iron, bacteria in meat, toxins like heavy metals and PCBs in fish, and of course, there's no fibre at all in meat, fish, and dairy.' Concerns about plant proteins being less complete than animal proteins are unfounded, Lynch noted. 'All plants contain all nine essential amino acids'. Protein deficiency only arises from inadequate calorie intake or reliance on a single food source. Good plant protein sources include beans, lentils, peas, soya, seitan, whole grains, nuts, and seeds. Key Nutrients Diets, whether plant-based or not, must include key nutrients, Lynch stated. These include iron, calcium, vitamin B12, vitamin D, iodine, and omega-3 fatty acids. Plant-based sources of iron include tofu, lentils, beans, seeds, dark leafy vegetables such as broccoli and kale, oats, dried fruit, and nuts. Pairing vitamin C with iron-rich food can help to increase iron uptake, she advised. Moreover, soaking, fermenting, and sprouting can help to increase the absorption of iron and other micronutrients such as zinc. Calcium sources include fortified plant milks and yoghurts, calcium-set tofu, beans, low oxalate vegetables, such as rocket, broccoli, bok choy and kale, and dried fruit such as figs, as well as certain nuts (almond) and seeds (sesame). Vitamin B12supplementation is essential for plant-based diets, especially for older adults and those on certain medications. Vitamin D supplementation is recommended for everyone, especially those with limited sun exposure, Lynch said. Practical Tips for Plant-Based Eating 'Most of us only eat a handful of meals on repeat', Lynch observed. 'Try plant-based versions of them. Try a few different recipes. Find the ones that you like, the ones that are simple and easy to cook, and get them onto your repeating meal plan', she suggested. Lynch suggested simple meals like baked potatoes with various fillings and preparing enough food for leftovers to avoid unhealthy choices when tired. Aim for 'progress over perfection', she said. Build meals around wholegrain foods or starchy vegetables, add more vegetables or salad, and include a plant-based protein. Also, consider 'easy swaps', such as 'beans over beef, chickpeas over chicken, tofu over eggs'. Lynch also encouraged adding more plants to meals, whether it be some rocket leaves or seeds, or a slice of tomato on the side. 'Try and throw more plants in where you can'. She suggested a goal of consuming at least 30 plants per week. 'You can gamify that.' A 21-day plant-based food challenge is available on the Plant-based Healthcare Professionals website, offering daily emails with recipes to help people get started with a more plant-rich diet. Lund and Lynch reported no relevant financial relationships. Lynch is the founder of Plant Life Nutrition .
