Apple cider vinegar helps with weight loss: Myth or fact?

Agencies
July 21, 2017

Atlanta, Jul 21: If you have ever searched the Internet for weight loss information, you would have definitely come across the following tip: Apple cider vinegar has been considered beneficial when it comes to keeping your weight down.applecider

But is it true?

"A lot of this is marketing," nutritionist Lisa Drayer said, "and it's been around a long time. I remember, probably 15 years ago, covering the apple cider vinegar diet. When you looked closely, the diet paired apple cider vinegar pills with a low-calorie menu. It's no wonder people lost weight.

"So I think there's been a lot of advertising about the benefits of apple cider vinegar for weight loss," she added, "and consumers get those messages, and they think, 'Oh, this must be the next magic bullet.' But whether it's based on science is another matter."

-What's the research say?

A lot of the research on vinegar's relationship with weight loss is in animals, mainly mice and rats. Studies show that acetic acid, the main component of apple cider vinegar, can suppress body fat accumulation and metabolic disorders in obese rats. But of course, mice are not men, and rats are not women, so these findings prove little.

Studies in humans have been small, which limits their validity.

"But they do suggest a weight loss from apple cider vinegar is plausible," Drayer said. "For example, some research suggests that it might promote satiety and make you consume fewer calories throughout the day."

A 2005 study of 12 people found that to be true when vinegar was consumed with a bread meal. A 2013 study of 16 folks found the same, but only because the vinegar caused nausea when ingested. "On this basis, the promotion of vinegar as a natural appetite suppressant does not seem appropriate," that study concludes.

The most-cited study to prove a connection to weight loss was done in 2009 with 175 "obese" Japanese subjects, ages 25 to 60, who were split into three groups. Considered "obese" by Japanese standards, each subject's BMI was between 25 and 30; in the United States, people aren't considered obese until their BMI exceeds 30. Anyone who had high cholesterol or diabetes or was using medications was excluded.

Over a 12-week period, the groups consumed a beverage that contained either one tablespoon of vinegar, two tablespoons of vinegar or no vinegar at all. At the end of the three months, those who consumed any amount of vinegar had a lower body weight, a smaller body mass index, less visceral fat, a smaller waist measurement and lower triglyceride levels than the placebo group that drank no vinegar.

That sounds fantastic until you look closely at the amount of weight that was lost.

"Only 2 to 4 pounds in three months over a placebo," Drayer explained. "That's only a third of a pound a week. Most diets have a much bigger result. So you would you definitely have to do many other things to accomplish any significant weight loss."

Dietitian Carol Johnston has been studying the effects of acetic acid on diabetic blood glucose levels since 2004. While she believes the Japanese study's findings make sense due to animal research, she too is quick to point out that the weight loss in humans was "very, very modest."

"In fact, I would say most people who are on a diet for 12 weeks and only lose a couple of pounds aren't going to be very happy," Johnston said.

-Regulating blood sugar

Where Johnston's research has shown significant benefits from vinegar, however, is in blood sugar control. Over the years, she's done a number of studies that show vinegar helps control blood sugar spikes for people with type 2 diabetes and those who are prediabetic, also known as insulin-resistant. She's even seen a slight benefit for healthy control subjects.

"Vinegar had an impact in all groups, but the most significant impact was in the prediabetic group," she said. "In prediabetics, it was too good to be true; (blood sugar) fell a good bit and stayed that way. It may be this is the group that could benefit the most."

The theory, according to Johnston, is that acetic acid appears to interfere with enzymes that break down starch molecules. This antiglycemic response can be induced by any sort of vinegar, such as red and white wine vinegars, pomegranate vinegar or even white distilled vinegar. It's the acetic acid in the vinegar, not the type, that produces the result.

"Basically, what acetic acid is doing is blocking the absorption of starch," said Johnston, who is associate director of the Arizona State University's School of Nutrition and Health. "If my study subjects eat a starch and add vinegar, glucose will go down. But if they drink sugar water and add vinegar, nothing happens. So if you're having bacon and eggs, don't bother. It only helps if you are consuming a starch."

It's possible that blocking starch absorption may help with weight loss as well, Drayer says, because starches cause blood sugar spikes and therefore act as an appetite stimulant.

"So if acetic acid is interfering with the breakdown of starch, what that means is that starch is not being digested," she explained. "If it's not getting digested, it's not causing the same rise in blood sugar, which can help control appetite. And if it's not being digested, it's not being absorbed into the bloodstream, and therefore it's not contributing to calories."

-The jury is still out

Though the research on acetic acid's benefits looks promising, nothing's definitive. It could be that other elements in apple cider and other vinegars also play a role. Take the trace chemicals in vinegar that vary based on where each brand was fermented.

"It could be that some of those ingredients are important or part of the effect we are seeing," Johnson said. She added that it will take much larger randomized scientific trials to prove any cause and effect between vinegar and weight loss, and especially between vinegar and diabetes or cardiovascular risks.

"Somebody, probably the federal government, is going to have to fund a multimillion-dollar grant and recruit hundreds of people at risk for diabetes and metabolic disorders to truly determine if vinegar is going to make a difference," Johnston said.

But until those occur, Johnston sees no harm in using vinegar to control blood sugars after starchy meals. After all, balsamic and wine vinegars are part of the Mediterranean diet, long associated with heart health and other benefits.

"Even in healthy people, that post-meal surge in blood sugar is a risk factor for heart disease, so in my mind, everyone should take advantage of the benefit that vinegar may provide. But I'd do it the way people have done for centuries, by adding it to their food," she said.

"What I would recommend is using salad dressings that contain vinegar, as it contains no calories," Drayer agreed. "When you make a dressing, use three parts oil to one part vinegar. Or reverse it and do one part oil and three parts vinegar."

You can also use it with food preparation, says Drayer.

"Dip your chicken with egg whites and bread crumbs mixed with balsamic vinegar for poultry or fish," she said. "Or you can drink it in water, which is good, as water makes you feel full."

But she stresses that if you choose to drink your vinegar, make sure that the tablespoon is added to a full glass of water. Properly diluting vinegar is key. Otherwise, it can damage your teeth, throat and stomach lining.

"Vinegar has that strong smell and puckering taste, so if you take a breath, you could inhale it into your lungs and burn those a little, because it's an acid," Johnston said. "So never drink it straight. Dilute it in water, and drink before you eat or with the first bites of your meal.

"You want the acetic acid in stomach before the meal to do the most good," she said. "Mediterranean people ate the salad with vinegar, then they ate the pasta."

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Agencies
June 21,2020

Lower neighbourhood socioeconomic status and greater household crowding increase the risk of becoming infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, warn researchers.

"Our study shows that neighbourhood socioeconomic status and household crowding are strongly associated with risk of infection," said study lead author Alexander Melamed from Columbia University in the US.

"This may explain why Black and Hispanic people living in these neighbourhoods are disproportionately at risk for contracting the virus," Melamed added.

For the findings, published in the journal JAMA, the researchers examined the relationships between COVID-19 infection and neighbourhood characteristics in 396 women who gave birth during the peak of the Covid-19 outbreak in New York City. Since March 22, all women admitted to the hospitals for delivery have been tested for the virus, which gave the researchers the opportunity to detect all infections -- including infections with no symptoms -- in a defined population

The strongest predictor of COVID-19 infection among these women was residence in a neighbourhood where households with many people are common.The findings showed that women who lived in a neighbourhood with high household membership were three times more likely to be infected with the virus. Neighbourhood poverty also appeared to be a factor, the researchers said.Women were twice as likely to get COVID-19 if they lived in neighbourhoods with a high poverty rate, although that relationship was not statistically significant due to the small sample size.

The study revealed that there was no association between infection and population density.

"New York City has the highest population density of any city in the US, but our study found that the risks are related more to density in people's domestic environments rather than density in the city or within neighbourhoods," says co-author Cynthia Gyamfi-Bannerman."

The knowledge that SARS-CoV-2 infection rates are higher in disadvantaged neighbourhoods and among people who live in crowded households could help public health officials target preventive measures," the authors wrote.

Recently, another study published in the Journal of the American Planning Association, showed that dense areas were associated with lower COVID-19 death rates.

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News Network
July 10,2020

Toronto, Jul 10: Pasteurising breast milk at 62.5 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes inactivates the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19, making it safe for consumption by babies, a study claims.

According to the research published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, current advice for women with Covid-19 is to continue to breastfeed their own infants.

In Canada, it is standard care to provide pasteurised breast milk to very-low-birth-weight babies in hospital until their own mother's milk supply is adequate, the researchers said.

"In the event that a woman who is Covid-19-positive donates human milk that contains SARS-CoV-2, whether by transmission through the mammary gland or by contamination through respiratory droplets, skin, breast pumps and milk containers, this method of pasteurisation renders milk safe for consumption," said Sharon Unger, a professor at the University of Toronto in Canada.

The Holder method, a technique used to pasteurise milk in all Canadian milk banks at 62.5 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes, is effective at neutralising viruses such as HIV, hepatitis and others that are known to be transmitted through human milk, the researchers said.

In the latest study, the researchers spiked human breast milk with a viral load of SARS-CoV-2 and tested samples that either sat at room temperature for 30 minutes or were warmed to 62.5 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes.

They then measured for active virus, finding that the virus in the pasteurised milk was inactivated after heating.

More than 650 human breast milk banks around the world use the Holder method to ensure a safe supply of milk for vulnerable infants, the researchers said.

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Agencies
May 14,2020

COVID-19 mostly kills through an overreaction of the immune system, whose function is precisely to fight infections, say scientists who have decoded the mechanisms, symptoms, and diagnosis of the disease caused by the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus.

In a study published in the journal Frontiers in Public Health, the researchers explained step-by-step how the virus infects the airways, multiplies inside cells, and in severe cases causes the immune defences to overshoot with a "cytokine storm".

This storm is an over-activation of white blood cells, which release too-great amounts of cytokines -- inflammation-stimulating molecules --into the blood, they said.

"Similar to what happens after infection with SARS and MERS, data show that patients with severe COVID-19 may have a cytokine storm syndrome," said study author Daishun Liu, Professor at Zunyi Medical University in China.

"The rapidly increased cytokines attract an excess of immune cells such as lymphocytes and neutrophils, resulting in an infiltration of these cells into lung tissue and thus cause lung injury," Liu said.

The researchers explained that the cytokine storm ultimately causes high fever, excessive leakiness of blood vessels, and blood clotting inside the body.

It also causes extremely low blood pressure, lack of oxygen and excess acidity of the blood, and build-up of fluids in the lungs, they said.

The researchers noted that white blood cells are misdirected to attack and inflame even healthy tissue, leading to failure of the lungs, heart, liver, intestines, kidneys, and genitals.

This multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) may worsen and shutdown the lungs, a condition called acute respiratory distress syndrome, (ARDS), they said.

This, the researchers explained, happens due to the formation of a so-called hyaline membrane -- composed of debris of proteins and dead cells -- lining the lungs, which makes absorption of oxygen difficult.

Most deaths due to COVID-19 are therefore due to respiratory failure, they said.

The researchers explained that in the absence of a specific antiviral cure for COVID-19, the goal of treatment must be to the fight the symptoms, and lowering the mortality rate through intensive maintenance of organ function.

For example, an artificial liver blood purification system or renal replacement therapy can be used to filter the blood through mechanical means, they said.

The team noted that especially important are methods to supplement or replace lung function, for example with non-invasive mechanical ventilation through a mask, ventilation through a tube into the windpipe, the administration of heated and humidified oxygen via a tube in the nose, or a heart-lung bypass.

The researchers stressed the importance of preventing secondary infections.

They noted that SARS-Cov-2 also invades the intestines, where it causes inflammation and leakiness of the gut lining, allowing the opportunistic entry of other disease-causing microorganisms.

The researchers advocate that this should be prevented with nutritional support, for example with probiotics -- beneficial bacteria that protect against the establishment of harmful ones -- and nutrients and amino acids to improve the immune defences and function of the intestine.

"Because treatment for now relies on aggressive treatment of symptoms, preventative protection against secondary infections, such as bacteria and fungi, is particularly important to support organ function, especially in the heart, kidneys, and liver, to try and avoid further deterioration of their condition," Liu added.

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