Steaming food may reduce chronic disease

[The Straight Story]

Steaming food may reduce chronic disease

NEW YORK, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Inflammatory markers declined by as much as 60 percent in those eating poached, stewed or steamed meals, U.S. researchers found.

Lead author Dr. Helen Vlassara of New York City's Mt. Sinai School of Medicine said inflammatory markers have been linked to increased risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease.

The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, suggested inflammation linked to oxidants -- in particular those that proliferate in fried, grilled or baked food -- may overwhelm the body's defenses.

"The good news is that unlike genetics, we can control oxidant levels," Vlassara said in a statement.

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2009/11/06/Steaming-food-may-reduce-chronic-disease/UPI-37771257543956/

[renate]

1. I absolutely believe this

It's true with meat, and there are amino acids in vegetables too, so this makes sense.

Thank you for this! I love vegetables and would eat them in any shape or form, but a lot of people eat them only under duress and for the health benefits, so it'd be silly for the non-vegetable-loving folks to accidentally be cooking them counterproductively.

[jbnow]

2. Baked being less healthy surprises me! nt

[FarCenter]

3. Abstract of the study -- Vlassara appears to have been studying AGEs for a decade

http://jcem.endojournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/94/11/4483

Protection against Loss of Innate Defenses in Adulthood by Low Advanced Glycation End Products (AGE) Intake: Role of the Antiinflammatory AGE Receptor-1

Helen Vlassara, Weijing Cai, Susan Goodman, Renata Pyzik, Angie Yong, Xue Chen, Li Zhu, Tina Neade, Michal Beeri, Jeremy M. Silverman, Luigi Ferrucci, Laurie Tansman, Gary E. Striker and Jaime Uribarri

Context: Increased oxidant stress and inflammation (OS/infl) are linked to both aging-related diseases and advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Whereas AGE receptor-1 (AGER1) reduces OS/infl in animals, this has not been assessed in normal humans.

Objective: The objectives of the study were to determine whether AGER1 correlates with AGEs and OS/infl and a reduction of dietary AGEs (dAGEs) lowers OS/infl in healthy adults and chronic kidney disease (CKD-3) patients.

Design: This study was cross-sectional with 2-yr follow-up studies of healthy adults and CKD-3 patients, a subset of which received a reduced AGE or regular diet.

Setting: The study was conducted at general community and renal clinics.

Participants: Participants included 325 healthy adults (18–45 and >60 yr old) and 66 CKD-3 patients.

Intervention: An isocaloric low-AGE (30–50% reduction) or regular diet was given to 40 healthy subjects for 4 months and to nine CKD-3 patients for 4 wk.

Main Outcome: Relationships between age, dAGEs, serum AGEs, peripheral mononuclear cell AGE-receptors, and OS/Infl before and after reduction of dAGE intake were measured.

Results: AGEs, oxidant stress, receptor for AGE, and TNF were reduced in normal and CKD-3 patients after the low-AGE diet, independently of age. AGER1 levels in CKD-3 patients on the low-AGE diet resembled 18- to 45-yr-old normal subjects. Dietary, serum, and urine AGEs correlated positively with peripheral mononuclear cell AGER1 levels in healthy participants. AGER1 was suppressed in CKD-3 subjects, whereas receptor for AGE and TNF were increased.

Conclusions: Reduction of AGEs in normal diets may lower oxidant stress/inflammation and restore levels of AGER1, an antioxidant, in healthy and aging subjects and CKD-3 patients. AGE intake has implications for health outcomes and costs and warrants further testing.

---

See also
http://en.scientificcommons.org/helen_vlassara

[JoeyT]

4. Interesting

The study wasn't really a large enough group to take it as gospel, but it's interesting all the same.

Fried grilled and baked foods also contain a couple of carcinogens that poached, stewed and steamed foods don't.

[tridim]

5. I love my $20 rice steamer

It's pretty damn versitile.

As Alton Brown would say, a multitasker.

[Froward69]

6. I suffered from severe

Depression and nothing snapped me out of it. Until I started steaming all my veggies and threw out all Teflon and Aluminum pots and pans. I also like all meat well done.

I now only cook with Stainless Steel and Cast Iron.

oh and Happy as a clam in Cabo. these days. :bounce: :7

[surrealAmerican]

8. Steaming is a great way to cook vegetables.

For meat, it's not so good.

[elleng]

7. Of course! Gramma's chicken soup!!!!

Some of us have known that forever!!!

[2Design]

9. marking for good health n/t