By Mark Messina, PhD, MS, Newly published epidemiologic research goes a long way toward addressing two highly debated issues related to the health implications of dietary fat. More specifically, Chinese researchers provide evidence which supports a considerable amount of clinical data showing that the consumption of omega-6 polyunsaturated fat (PUFA) is not proinflammatory. In addition, U.S. researchers show that dairy fat can increase risk of cardiovascular disease but whether it does depends upon the macronutrient that replaces it in the diet. Read More

By Mark Messina, PhD, MS, Since the early 1990s soyfoods have been widely investigated for their potential role in cancer prevention. Much of this research has been conducted because soyfoods are uniquely-rich sources of isoflavones. Most of the cancer research involving soy has focused on breast and prostate cancer because these cancers are known to be hormonally regulated and countries that consume soyfoods have low incidence rates of both cancers. Previous issues of this newsletter have addressed these two cancers and the reader is referred to the references for additional information on breast and prostate cancer. Read More