Study Reveals Neurological Effects of Reused Frying Oils

The AHA! Team — Fri, 24 May 2024 08:05:23 +0000

American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology via News-Medical – A new study found higher levels of neurodegeneration in rats that consumed reused deep fried cooking oils and their offspring compared to rats on a normal diet. Deep frying, which involves completely submerging food in hot oil, is a common method of food preparation around the world. Results from the study also suggest that the increased neurodegeneration is tied to the oil’s effects on the bidirectional communication network between the liver, gut and brain. The liver–gut–brain axis plays a crucial role in regulating various physiological functions, and its dysregulation has been associated with neurological disorders. Kathiresan Shanmugam, an associate professor from Central University of Tamil Nadu in Thiruvarur, led the research team. Deep-frying at high temperatures has been linked with several metabolic disorders “Deep-frying at high temperatures has been linked with several metabolic disorders, but there have been no long-term investigations on the influence of deep-fried oil consumption and its detrimental effects on health,” said Shanmugam, formerly at Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai. “To our knowledge we are first to report long-term deep-fried oil supplementation increases neurodegeneration in the first-generation offspring.” Sugasini Dhavamani, a research collaborator from the University of Illinois at Chicago, will present the research at Discover BMB, the annual meeting of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, which will be held March 23–26 in San Antonio. Deep frying food not only adds calories; reusing the same oil for frying, a common practice in both homes and restaurants, removes many of the oil’s natural antioxidants and health benefits. Oil that is reused also can contain harmful components such as acrylamide, trans fat, peroxides and polar compounds. To explore the long-term effects of reused deep-fried frying oil, the researchers divided female rats into five groups that each received either standard chow alone or standard chow with 0.1 ml per day of unheated sesame oil, unheated sunflower oil, reheated sesame oil or reheated sunflower oil for 30 days. The reheated oils simulated reused frying oil. Compared with the other groups, the rats that consumed reheated sesame or sunflower oil showed increased oxidative stress and inflammation in the liver. These rats also showed significant damage in the colon that brought on changes in endotoxins and lipopolysaccharides -; toxins released from certain bacteria. “As a result, liver lipid metabolism was significantly altered, and the transport of the important brain omega-3 fatty acid DHA was decreased. This, in turn, resulted in neurodegeneration, which was seen in the brain histology of the rats consuming the reheated oil as well as their offspring.” Additional studies in which MSG was used to induce neurotoxicity in the offspring showed that the offspring that consumed the reheated oils were more likely to show neuronal damage than the control group receiving no oil or those that received unheated oil. Although more studies are needed, the researchers say that supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids and nutraceuticals such as curcumin and oryzanol might be helpful in reducing liver inflammation and neurodegeneration. They added that clinical studies in humans are needed to evaluate the adverse effects of eating fried foods, especially those made with oil that is used repeatedly. As a next step, the researchers would like to study the effects of deep-frying oil on neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s as well as on anxiety, depression and neuroinflammation. They would also like to further explore the relationship between gut microbiota and the brain to identify potential new ways to prevent or treat neurodegeneration and neuroinflammation. Source: American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology To read the original article click here.

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Do You Find Processed Foods Utterly Irresistible? Here’s Why

AHA Publisher — Mon, 05 Apr 2021 07:00:07 +0000

Lorie Johnson via CBN News – Many doctors call processed foods the number one enemy of our health. They are extremely high in calories, which is bad enough, but combined with the fact that a lot of people simply can’t stop eating them leads to a worldwide weight problem that’s only getting worse. Obesity can lead to a number of chronic health problems like heart disease, cancer, and depression to name just a few. In fact, the second leading risk factor for developing complications from Covid-19 behind age is obesity. Rapid Take-Over Processed foods barely existed just fifty years ago, yet now rake in about one trillion dollars each year and are projected to increase their market share by 4% annually in the coming years. In just a generation, we’ve witnessed these packaged products being virtually unseen at the local market to now making up ninety percent of grocery store shelves. Health experts say three-fourths of the calories most Americans consume come from processed foods. Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Michael Moss looked into why we as a culture have become increasingly obsessed with processed foods. He discovered it’s not an accident, but rather a deeply manipulative plan on the part of the food industry giants to make more money regardless of the health implications. “I’ve been crawling through the underbelly of the processed food industry for ten years now,” he told CBN News, “And I continue to be shocked by the level of their cunning, deviousness, if you will, in being able to figure out what draws us to the products…to not just like them…but want more and more.” Exploiting Our Weaknesses In his book, Hooked: Food, Free Will and How the Food Giants Exploit Our Addictions, Moss claims food companies intentionally make their products addictive by first understanding our vulnerabilities and then taking advantage of them. “Biologically, these deep instincts we have make us incredibly vulnerable to overeating,” he said. For example, our bodies are designed to naturally crave sugar, fat, and salt. Processed food is packed with highly condensed amounts of each, much more than we use in home cooking. “They get the brain excited,” Moss explained, “And it sends a signal saying, ‘Wow, Michael, I love that. Can I have some more of that?'” To feed that craving, food manufacturers can add som 56 different types of sugar to their products creating an expectation that everything we consume should taste sweet. “Our brain doesn’t say, ‘Oh wait a minute, Michael, you just ate two-thousand calories in that snack bag. Stop. Wait a minute.’ Your brain is going to be put to sleep and say, ‘OK, let’s have some more. Great taste,'” Moss said. Texture, Low Price, Lots of Choices Getting us hooked on great taste is only the beginning. The processed food industry also spends a lot of time and money engineering just the right texture in their foods and drinks. Smooth, bubbly, crunchy or an irresistible blend of different textures can trigger our brains to crave more. Food makers even have a term for it: “mouthfeel” and a ranking system. The greater the “mouthfeel,” the greater the consumption, the more money made. Getting the price down, often by using less healthy ingredients, is another strategy because it increases a product’s likeability. “But it’s also something that sends that signal to the brain, ‘Wow I love the cheapness of this food. I want more of it,'” Moss said. Food manufacturers understand we get excited by anything new. So they constantly add to an already wide variety, knowing it’ nearly impossible to resist all the choices. “It’s called the ‘smorgasbord effect,'” Moss explained, “And its why you can eat at a smorgasbord, fill up until you’re stuffed, but then look down the table and see something new and go, “OK, I can fit that in.'” Disguised As Healthy, Convenient These food giants take advantage of our desire to feel like we’re making healthy choices. Believe it or not, they also make some of our most popular diet foods using the same tricks to get us hooked. “But really when you looked at the ingredients and the nutrition they weren’t all that different from their full-calorie foods,” Moss said. Plastering healthy-sounding buzz words like “protein” and “fiber” on packages can also mislead. “And so they’re adding protein to sugary cereal that’s still probably not so healthy for you,” Moss said, “They are putting in lots of fiber in products and touting that on the label even though a lot of that fiber really doesn’t work to fill you up like fiber should.” Food companies exploit our desire to make eating easy. “Convenience is another one of those big driving forces,” Moss said. Protect Your Health So now that we understand the tricks of the trade, how do we defend ourselves? Whenever possible, cook at home from scratch. It doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. For example, it only takes five minutes to cook fish in a pan on the stove while microwaving a sweet potato. Moss says the opposite of processed foods is whole foods. These are foods that closely resemble their natural form. They can generally be found around the perimeter of the grocery store such as in the produce, fish, meat, and dairy departments. Generally, the processed foods are in the center of the store. There are some exceptions, however, such as canned fish, tomatoes, and beans as well as frozen blueberries, raw nuts, and olives. To read the original article click here. For more articles from CBN News click here.

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Study Reveals Neurological Effects of Reused Frying Oils

Do You Find Processed Foods Utterly Irresistible? Here’s Why