Researchers investigated the health effects of white-, yellow-, or purple-flesh potatoes, and they found that purple potatoes significantly decrease both inflammation and DNA damage in healthy males.
The authors show that purple and red-skinned potatoes have 2-3 times more antioxidant potential than white potatoes as their red color signifies that they contain anthocyanins. Anthocyanins lower LDL (bad) cholesterol, improve visual and neurological health, and protect against various diseases.
The authors found that people lost weight even while eating 5-7 servings of potatoes per week if they followed healthy recipes. Hence, potatoes are healthy but the way of preparation and what we eat with them is what matters.
Researchers from the University of Nottingham have conducted a comprehensive systematic review (219 articles, 199 randomized controlled trials, 21,191 participants, and 98 Ayurvedic medicines) and discovered that several traditional medicines and approaches commonly used in South Asia (lifestyle modification, Ayurvedic detoxifying and purifying therapies, and Ayurvedic medicines) are effective in maintaining blood sugar levels in patients with type 2 diabetes. These traditional medicines and approaches were found to improve body weight, blood pressure, cholesterol, and other diabetes-related parameters.
Study: 🔗https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2022.821810🔗
Non-violent video games are quite good for mental health.
A recent study shows playing video games each week can increase brain activity by boosting the cognitive skills required for decision-making, thus, the study suggests that video games could even be used as a training method to improve rapid-fire decision-making processes in the brain (e.g. in brains with some neural damage). The authors used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure neural activity in participants (28 people who regularly played video games and 19 people who did not play). Gamers were both faster and more accurate in responding, with fMRI scans showing stronger neural activity than non-gamers.
Study: 🔗https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ynirp.2022.100112🔗
The authors developed a non-toxic adhesive by combining glucose and citric acid (an orange juice ingredient) into a strong, water-resistant wood glue for plywood, which adhesives hold promise for the wood products industry.
The authors proposed the first graphene synthesis technique (i.e. chemical vapor deposition) that uses carbon monoxide as the carbon source, which is a fast and cheap way to produce high-quality graphene.
This systematic review of 18 randomized control studies supports that the consumption of beans and legumes provided improvement in type 2 diabetes markers, including fasting glucose, insulin, and HbA1c.
The study suggests that the consumption of beans is a good strategy for decreasing weight, even without calorie restriction, as beans are low in dietary fat but high in protein so their consumption can decrease body fat percentage.
The authors discovered that people who ate beans regularly had a 22% lower risk of obesity and were more likely to have a smaller waist than people who didn’t eat beans. This is probably because beans are high in soluble fiber, which slows digestion and prolongs the feeling of being full.
This study proves that decreasing the amount of protein in the diet produces many favorable health effects (even prolonged lifespan), which depend on a liver-derived metabolic hormone called Fibroblast Growth Factor 21.
The authors conducted clinical trials with 1,716 participants between 2008 and 2015, where the combination therapy patient group underwent pelvic lymph node radiation and androgen deprivation treatment, as well as salvage prostate bed radiation. They found that over 87% of patients did not have prostate cancer progression for 5 years.
Researchers investigated the long-term effects (9.4 years long study with 749 participants over 65 years of age) of diet soda on waist size, which is an indicator of visceral or belly fat, and found that the waist circumference increased significantly when participants drank diet soda for a long period.
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