Combo Regimen Best to Keep Obese Seniors Going

By Todd Neale, Staff Writer, MedPage Today

Exercise and weight loss both appear to help obese older adults maintain function, although combining the two provides the most benefit, a randomized controlled trial showed.

After one year, participants 65 and older who participated in both a diet and exercise program had greater gains in physical performance than those who did either one alone, according to Dennis Villareal, MD, of the New Mexico VA Health Care System in Albuquerque, and colleagues.

The combined strategy also resulted in the most consistent gains on several secondary endpoints, including strength, balance, gait, and quality of life, the researchers reported in the March 31 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Fiber-Full Diet Lengthens Life

By Crystal Phend, Senior Staff Writer, MedPage Today

Getting lots of dietary fiber appears to reduce the risk of dying -- particularly from cardiovascular, infectious, or respiratory diseases -- according to a large observational study.

The study of more than 500,000 people found those with the highest dietary fiber intake -- an average of 29.4 grams per day for men and 25.8 for women -- had a 22% lower risk of dying from any cause over nine years of follow-up compared with those with the lowest fiber intake -- a mean of 12.6 grams per day for men and 10.8 for women -- (P<0.001 for trend), Yikyung Park, ScD, of the National Cancer Institute in Rockville, Md., and colleagues found.

Higher fiber consumption lowered the risk of death from cardiovascular, infectious, and respiratory diseases by 24% to 56% in men and by 34% to 59% in women, Park and co-authors reported online in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
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Berries Keep Parkinson's at Bay

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By Kristina Fiore, Staff Writer, MedPage Today

The tiniest fruits may pack a big punch against Parkinson's -- berries were associated with a decreased risk of the disease among those who ate the greatest amounts, according to an analysis of data from two large prospective cohort studies.

Dietary data from almost 130,000 men and women revealed that those with the highest intakes of anthocyanins -- a type of flavonoid found in berries -- had a 22% reduced risk of Parkinson's disease compared with those who ate the least (P=0.02), Xiang Gao, MD, PhD, of Harvard, and colleagues reported in an early release from the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting, to be held in Honolulu in April.
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Fish May Explain Notches in Stroke Belt

By Todd Neale, Staff Writer, MedPage Today

Differences in fish consumption may help explain the existence of the so-called Stroke Belt covering eight states in the southeastern U.S., a cross-sectional study showed.

Residents of those states ate fewer servings of fish overall (2.01 versus a national average of 2.11 per week), and when they do consume fish, it is most often fried (0.68 servings of fried fish versus 0.62 servings nationwide per week), Fadi Nahab, MD, of Emory University in Atlanta, and colleagues reported online ahead of the Jan. 11 print issue of Neurology.

Living in the Stroke Belt -- which includes North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Louisiana -- was independently associated with eating less than the recommended minimum of two servings of nonfried fish per week, even after adjustment for potential confounders (OR 1.32, 95% CI 1.17 to 1.50).
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