(NaturalNews) It's no secret that a nutritious diet is the
key to living a healthy life; however, until now, scientists hadn't produced
any studies directly linking poor nutrition to the development of multiple
chronic diseases over time.
Researchers from the University of Adelaide's School of
Medicine studied more than 1,000 Chinese people over a five-year period. During
the analysis, scientists accounted for the participant's overall health, diet
and lifestyle.
They found that the proportion of those in the study already
having more than one chronic disease increased from 14 percent to 34 percent
over the five-year period, as stated in a press release by the University of
Adelaide.
"Risk factors such as smoking, lack of physical
activity and nutrition are already known to be linked to the development of
chronic disease," said the study's co-author, Dr. Zumin Shi.
"But this is the first time research has shown that
nutrition itself is directly associated with the development of multiple
chronic diseases over time."
The research, which was published in this month's issue of
the journal Clinical Nutrition, showed that the people who consumed more fresh
fruits and vegetables, and more portions of grains besides just wheat and rice,
experienced better overall healthiness.
Consuming whole grains, rather than refined grains, offers a
host of benefits including reducing your risk for stroke, type 2 diabetes and
heart disease. Whole-wheat pasta, brown rice, quinoa and wheat berries are all
exemplary sources for getting the nutrition you need.
Refined grains, such as white rice, bread or pasta and many
breakfast cereals, cookies and cakes, are fattening and can increase
inflammation, worsening conditions like arthritis.
Eating healthy carbohydrates transforms the way you
metabolize food, providing you with more energy while simultaneously reducing
high blood pressure.
Healthy whole grains offer many other benefits like:
reducing your risk
of asthma
healthier carotid
arteries
reduction of
inflammation disease risk
lower risk of
colon cancer
less gum disease
and tooth loss
The participants' rice intake proved to be a significant
characteristic in the researcher's study.
"Rice intake was significantly lower in the healthy
group. This could be because rice is mainly refined and deprived of the
benefits associated with fibres, and the kinds of phytochemicals that you find
in whole grains," said Dr. Shi.
Through the research, Dr. Shi highlighted the role that
micronutrients play in protecting humans from disease. "A higher daily
intake of iron, magnesium, phosphorous, vitamin C, potassium and vitamin B1 was
associated with healthier participants," he added.
"Based on our results, it seems that a higher intake of
fruit helps to prevent against the onset of the first chronic disease, while a
higher intake of vegetables helps to protect against developing more than one
chronic disease," said Dr. Shi.
He discovered this by focusing on the transition that people
go through from having one disease to multiple diseases and comparing it with
their food intake.
"There is already a lot of general nutrition awareness
among the population but this study reinforces the need for broad education
programs about the benefits of healthy eating," concluded Dr. Shi.
The condition of having multiple chronic diseases is called
multimorbidity, which is characterized by "complex interactions of
co-existing diseases." Some experts think multimorbidity correlates with
age, with elderly people often showing signs of multiple medical conditions.
The new research suggests that maintaining a healthy diet
filled with fresh fruits and vegetables may treat multimorbidity more safely
than prescription drugs, particularly since sometimes taking one drug alters
the effect of another, or creates an unhealthy environment for a patient's other
chronic illnesses.
Wednesday, June 25, 2014 by: Julie Wilson
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