You know, Kathryn, this sort of suggestion is like ones I've made in the
area......... you won't believe...... of foreign language teaching. The
field is rent by just the same sort of claims and counterclaims and intense
emotions over how to teach fl as the "science" of diet is. I read Taube's
book with horror - how could so-called scientists be not only so sloppy, but
so blinded by their "paradigm"?
As in fl teaching, it would take millions of dollars to set up such an
experiment. Better to spend billions repairing bodies and minds than
millions finding an answer. Keeps the economy going, I guess.
Pat Barrett [log in to unmask]
http://ideas.lang-learn.us/barrett.php
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kathryn Rosenthal" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, June 21, 2008 10:40 AM
Subject: Lifestyle Changes Affect Cancer Genes
Every time I think we are done hearing about Dean Ornish, he pops up again.
This is this kind of "science" that so many people accept. I wonder what
Gary Taubs would say about this? I'd like to see a study involving an
organic paleo diet, exercise and stress management.
Kath
1.. Lifestyle Changes Affect Cancer Genes [HealthDay News]
TUESDAY, June 17 (HealthDay News) - Genes may not fully control your
destiny when it comes to cancer risk, according to a new study of men with
prostate cancer.
New research suggests that stringent dietary changes, getting more
exercise and practicing stress reduction can change the expression of
hundreds of genes. Some of the changes positively affect genes that help
fight cancer, while others help turn off genes that promote cancer
development, according to the study, which is in this week's issue of the
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"These findings are very exciting. They counter the genetic nihilism I
hear so often. People say, 'It's all in my genes, there's nothing I can do,'
but actually you can do quite a lot," said the study's lead author, Dr. Dean
Ornish, president of the Preventive Medicine Research Institute and a
clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, San
Francisco.
Previous epidemiological studies have found that the incidence of prostate
cancer is significantly lower in areas of the world where people eat a more
plant-based, low-fat diet instead of the higher-fat, higher-protein diet
often consumed in the United States. Because of these findings, Ornish and
his colleagues initially set out to see if altering diet and lifestyle could
decrease the amount of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in men who'd been
diagnosed with early prostate cancer. PSA is a blood marker for prostate
growth.
In September 2005, they reported that after intensive lifestyle changes -
consuming a vegan diet with about 10 percent of calories from fat, walking
30 minutes six times a week, and practicing stress management one hour
daily - men with early prostate cancer lowered their PSA scores by 4
percent, while men in the control group saw their PSA score rise by 6
percent.
But, the researchers didn't know what the mechanism behind the change was,
according to Ornish. The current study was designed to elucidate the reasons
behind the improvement.
Thirty men diagnosed with early prostate cancer were enrolled in the
study. The men were predominantly white (84 percent), with an average age of
62.3 years, and an average PSA score of 4.8 nanograms per milliliter
(ng/ml). Their Gleason scores - another measure of the severity of the
cancer - were an average of six.
All of the men had already declined immediate surgery, hormonal therapy or
radiation. Instead, they chose to have their tumors periodically monitored
to ensure that they remained slow-growing.
The lifestyle interventions began with a 3-day residential retreat,
followed by weekly telephone consultations and a one-hour group support
session each week. The study participants were provided all of their food
and were asked to follow a plant-based diet containing about 10 percent of
calories from fat. They were also told to walk for 30 minutes a day, six
days a week.
Additionally, the study volunteers practiced stress management for 60
minutes a day. Stress management techniques included yoga-based stretching,
breathing exercises, meditation, imagery, and progressive relaxation. The
study volunteers were also given additional soy, three grams of fish oil,
100 units of vitamin E, 200 milligrams of selenium and 2 grams of vitamin C
daily.
The researchers compared genetic expression from baseline samples to those
taken after three months of study intervention and found positive changes in
more than 500 genes, according to Ornish.
"I thought younger people with milder disease would show the most
improvement, but neither age nor disease severity made as much difference as
adherence," said Ornish. That means that the more people are able to change,
the better. And, these findings suggest that you're never too old to make
changes that can positively affect your health.
"It's encouraging to see that by going on a very low-fat diet that you can
change gene expression in the prostate itself, but just because changes can
happen, you don't yet know if it would mean anything for cancer risk," said
Dr. Simon J. Hall, director of the Deane Prostate Health and Research
Center, and the chairman of urology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New
York City.
[NOTE: For the full article, please follow the supplied link.]
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