3. The Dietetics and Food
1. n-3 fatty acid and Health
2. The Dietary Fiber and Health
3. The Relation Between the
Trace Elements and Various Diseases.
Recently, "Healthy
Food" is in fashion. Various types of nutritive substances
and chemical elements influence on metabolism and healing process
of human body though they are very small quantity. This time,
by obtaining the cooperation of Dr.
Yoshiaki Tanaka, a lecturer of Dept. of pediatric surgery, Kurume
university school of medicine, the
topics of recent dietetics are introduced in this home page.
The data from Dr. Tanaka are based on the expert knowledge, so
the description in this page is simplified in order that everyone
can understand, but a person who wants to know in detail can get
the PDF file here (written in Japanese) which
Dr. Tanaka announced on the education lecture at the 49th meeting
of the Dietetics for Improvement Society of Japan held in November
2002 in Okinawa.
Dr.Tanaka's paper (Summary written in Japanese)
The nutritional
control which subject is to increase patients' immunity supplementing
special nutrients is being watched now. There are some special
nutrients of which effectiveness are reported, and they are (1)n-3-fatty-acid
group which has the anti-inflammatory action and anti-coagulant
action etc, (2)the dietary fiber which is effective for improvement
of constipation, for the supplementary therapy for diabetes and
hyperlipidemia etc, and for the increase of immunity in human
body by improving the balance of the intestinal bacterial flora
etc, (3)arginine and nucleic acid which strengthen immunity, and
glutamine which is the energy source for the mucous membrane of
small intestine and some immunocytes, and glutamine assists to
repair damaged mucous membrane of small intestine and prevents
the membrane from bacterial infection, (4)the trace elements as
Zinc, Copper, Mangane and Selenium etc which are necessary to
remove the free-radical※, (5)Catechin(polyphenol) and Vitamin
C and Vitamin E which have direct anti-oxidation action, and(6)
growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor (IGF) which
are one of the growth factor of the intestine etc.
※ The free radical (Supplementary
explanation)
There is a free radical theory;
The oxygen free radical which appears during the
metabolic process oxidizes protein and DNA etc and gives the irreversible
damages to them and so aging would occur in consequence.
Food contains the free radical, while some free
radical grows in human body. They would be one of the cause of
arterial sclerosis bringing about the oxidation reaction of lipid
which consists of cell membrane. Also, the reaction of the free
radical with DNA can be a cause of cancer. Some enzyme in human
body can decompose some free radicals after trapping them, and
some materials in food can make them be harmless reacting these
free radicals. For example, the polyphenol which is contained
in grapes and wine can inactivate these harmful free radicals.
The polyphenol is seen in plant as catechin, flavonoid and tannin
etc. These materials are well known as the antioxidant which can
trap the free radicals chemically. Red wine and chocolate are
very popular as healthy food which are effective to prevent arteriosclerosis
and cancers, because the seed and pericarp of grapes, and cacao
beans contain a many polyphenol and they have the inhibitory action
to the oxidation of cholesterol and to some enzymes being related
with carcinogenesis.
The theme of this page is the relation between the
clinical effect and n-3 fatty acid, dietary fibers and trace elements.
1. n-3 fatty acid and Health
The
n-3 fatty acid group (oleic acid) and diseases
a. Anti-inflammatory action
An epidemiological
research shows that morbidity of cerebral hemorrhage and cerebral
infarction, myocardial infarction and angina pectoris, and allergic
diseases etc is small in the Innuits who take a plenty of fish
oil which are rich in n-3 fatty acid group, and this fact has
attracted a great deal of researchers' and public attention.
About the metabolism of fatty acid, linoleic acid
of n-6 fatty acid group brings some metabolic products such as
leukotriene(LT)-4 group, prostaglandin(PG)-2 group and thromboxane(TX)-A2
etc through arachidonic acid. Excessive taking of n-6 fatty acid
group brings various disorders to the living body such as excessive
inflammatory reaction and the obstruction of arterioles, and they
can be one of the cause of serious obstructive diseases such as
cerebral infarction and myocardial infarction etc in consequence.
However, some metabolic products of n-3 fatty acid group and alfa-linoleic
acid block the metabolic reaction of n-6 fatty acid group competitively,
and they suppress the inflammatory reaction and so production
of free radicals would be suppressed in consequence.
b. Immunity control action
Excessive taking
of n-6 fatty acid group restrains the proliferation of the immunocytes,
and n-3 fatty acid group invigorates the cellular immunity in
addition to the anti-inflammatory action mentioned above. On the
other hand, n-6 fatty acid group has activating action to leukocytes,
so it is thought to be important that immunity control of living
body can work well under the condition with good balance of n-3
fatty acid group and n-6 fatty acid group. There is a report that
increase of taking alfa-linoleic acid as n-3 fatty acid and decrease
of linolic acid as n-6 fatty acid at the same time in cases with
allergic diseases, chronic inflammatory diseases, inflammatory
intestinal diseases and cerebral infarction etc. at the practical
treatment has brought good therapeutic result. There is another
report that administration of n-3 fatty acid to the patients with
myocardial infarction, angina, renal disorders and autoimmune
diseases had brought good effectiveness such as decrease of mortality
rate and recurrence rate, improvement of clinical and examination
data, reduction of days of hospital treatment, and reduction of
dose of medication etc.
It is important
in the alimentation therapy to keep the allergic reaction of living
body be low, and the latest nutritional requirement in Japanese
is recommended to be 4 as n-3/n-6 ratio. For example, beefsteak
plant oil (slightly expensive than other oil), olive oil and sesame-seed
oil have good n-3/n-6 ratio.
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2. The Dietary Fiber and Health
In a case of fasting for long by
drip infusion therapy including IVH, and in a case under excessive
stress by operation and serious injury, the mucous membrane of
intestine doesn't work and becomes atrophic. The intestine is
one of the immunity organ which occupies about 50% of lymph-system
of whole body, and the atrophy of the intestinal mucous membrane
breaks preventive function of the intestine due to reduction of
intestinal immunity. The enteral nutrition using liquid food pouring
into the intestine directly by tube is more natural and physiological
than drip infusion therapy, but liquid food without any dietary
fiber doesn't stimulate the intestine well and reduction of the
intestinal immunity will occur if this therapy is continued. Therefore,
the dietary fiber is being watched as special nutritional material.There
are two types of dietary fiber, one is water-soluble fiber and
the other is insoluble fiber. The insoluble dietary fiber increases
the amount of feces and activates intestinal function, and then
constipation will improve. Also it increases intestinal peristalsis
and contact duration to the carcinogenic substance produced in
the intestine will shorten, so the incidence of cancer will decrease.
While, water-soluble dietary fiber absorbs cholesterol and sugariness,
so it is applied to the treatment for cases with diabetes, hyperlipidemia
and cardiac diseases etc. The oligosaccharides, one of water-soluble
dietary fiber, is activated directly by Lactobacillus bifidus
and helps to suppress bad Enterobacteriaceae by good Enterobacteriaceae
in intestinal bacterial flora of Lactobacillus bifidus dominant.
Then reinforcement of anti-inflammatory action and suppress the
formation of carcinogenic materials by the mechanism mentioned
above will help to keep living body healthy.
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3. The Relation Between the Trace Elements
and Various Diseases.
a. Disorders of the internal organs and the trace
elements
The active oxygen is formed from
leukocytes etc in human body, and it is necessary to for bactericidal
action and proteolytic reaction etc. But excessive amount of active
oxygen will peroxidate lipid of human body by its high reactivity
(lipid peroxidation) and give tissue damages. It will be one of
the cause of aging, cancer, arteriosclerosis, hepatic disorders
(becoming chronic state, carcinogenesis, alcoholic hepatitis and
fatty liver etc, almost all hepatic disorders), diabetes, leukemia,
pulmonary emphysema and allergic diseases. For example, deterioration
of skin condition in a case with allergic diseases as atopic state
by lowering of skin moisture, and atherosclerosis of vessels etc
are seen practically.
The active oxygen produces
other free radicals in living body. Superoxide dismutase (SOD)
is important to eliminate the active oxygen in human body. Some
metals as Copper, Zinc and Mangane etc combine with the active
part of this SOD, and SOD decomposes the active oxygen by help
of Iron and Selenium. SOD density is the highest in liver, and
SOD combined with Copper and Zinc exists much in red blood cells.
Higher SOD density in human body is, much longer a person can
live. In cases of deficiency diseases of these trace elements
as Copper, Zinc and Selenium etc, the activity of SOD and other
enzymes would drop, also the production of enzyme itself would
reduce under poor nutritive condition, so it will be insufficient
to delete the active oxygen. Under the condition like this, the
active oxygen combines other materials and produces other radicals,
and they will be causes of organs disorders. Human body has no
enzyme to exterminate there free radicals, so taking anti-oxydation
materials as Vitamine C and E, catechin and grape seed polyphenol
is important for prevention of oxidation stress.
The
trace elements are expected to increase anti-oxidation action
of living body, and so they are important to prevent and cure
diseases.
b. Protein metabolism
and the trace elements
Zinc takes an important role for
protein metabolism by binding the enzyme which is indispensable
for protein synthesis and nucleic acid like DNA etc. Copper take
an important role for wound healing as well as the epithelium
formation and collagen formation by Zinc. Seventy percent of Iron
in adult human body is working as the functional iron in blood,
and remaining iron is stored as deposit iron in the liver. The
functional iron is one of the component of hemoglobin in red blood
cell, and take an important role to transport oxygen.
Recent
eating habits occur various adult diseases. Even in children,
the same diseases are seen. If you have a well-balanced diet now,
but you cannot take enough trace elements by present food. Then
you may complain of general fatigue and no enough improvement
of disease treated. You should chose well-balanced and effective
supplement food now, and our clinic deal in a kind of supplemental
food which Dr. Tanaka recommends. It is "TEZON" of TERUMO
Inc.
TERUMO Inc. "TEZON"
TEZON includes
well-balanced Copper, Zinc, Manganese, Selenium, Chromium and
some vitamins. Its calorie is very low and it is only 15 kcal,
so a patient with diabetes can take it. It will be effective as
supplemental treatment on diabetes, liver diseases, allergic diseases
and anemia etc without any side-effects.
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