Dr. Grossman’s Blog

The findings provide hope for treating blindness caused by optic-nerve damage, but
also look promising for spurring similar regeneration in the spinal cord and brain.
Researchers said Monday a newly discovered growth factor could hold the key to regenerating damaged optic nerves — and more. The research team at Children’s Hospital in Boston say they have found a naturally occurring, previously unrecognized growth factor that stimulates regeneration in injured optic nerves.
The findings provide hope for treating blindness caused by optic-nerve damage, but
also look promising for spurring similar regeneration in the spinal cord and brain,
they said.

The growth factor is called oncomodulin and when it was added to retinal nerve cells
in the lab, with known growth-promoting factors already present, the growth of axons
– or cells in the optic nerves — nearly doubled.

No other growth factor was as potent, the researchers said.

More Nerve Regeneration

In live rats with optic-nerve injury, oncomodulin released from tiny sustained-release
capsules increased nerve regeneration five- to seven-fold when given along with
a drug that helps cells respond to oncomodulin, the team said.

Oncomodulin also appears to switch on a variety of genes associated with axon growth,
the researchers said.

“Out of the blue, we found a molecule that causes more nerve regeneration than
anything else ever studied,” said one of the study investigators. We expect
this to spur further research into what else oncomodulin is doing in the nervous
system and elsewhere.

The data are published in the May 14 online edition of Nature Neuroscience.

For more related research, go to www.naturaleyecare.com (see “Research” section).

Researchers with the Hordaland Health Study reviewed the relationship between consumption of different amounts of fish (and fish products) and cognitive performance.

In this study, 2031 subjects in Norway aged 70 to 74 underwent a battery of six cognitive tests and completed food-frequency questionnaires that identified both the quantity and the type of fish consumed in their diet. Researchers then studied the associations between cognitive performance and the main types of consumed seafood, i.e., fatty fish, lean fish, processed fish, fish sandwich, and fish or cod liver oil.

They found that fish eaters had significantly better results on all cognitive tests than did the non-consumers, even after adjustment for several non-nutritional factors with a proven association with cognition (e.g., education levels).

The protective effect of eating fish and fish products extended to almost all of the tested cognitive abilities. In addition, the associations between fish and fish product intake and cognition were dose-dependent: those who ate greater amounts of fish showed better test results.

The researchers also observed that the results depend on the type of fish consumed: the effect was more pronounced for non-processed lean fish and fatty fish.

Read other studies that link fish consumption to improved eye health

Learn more about natural fish oil products

SOURCE: “Cognitive performance among the elderly and dietary fish intake: the Hordaland Health Study”, Nurk, et. al., Am J Clin Nutr; 86:1470-1478 (November 2007).

Researchers studied food and vitamin/mineral supplement consumption of adults in the United States in an effort to measure whether older adults were consuming enough nutrients.

In this study, 4,384 adults aged 51 years and older were evaluated.  1,777 reported taking supplements daily, 428 took them infrequently, and 2179 did not take daily supplements.  Nutrient intake distributions were estimated using the Iowa State University Method.

The results? 

Overall, less than 50% of adults evaluated met the Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) for folate, vitamin E, and magnesium from food sources alone.

Of those who were taking supplements, 80% or more met the EAR for vitamins A, B-6, B-12, C, and E; folate; iron; and zinc, but not magnesium.  However, it was noted that some supplement users, particularly men, exceeded Tolerable Upper Intake Levels for iron and zinc and a small percentage of women exceeded the Tolerable Upper Intake Level for vitamin A.

The researchers concluded that a large proportion of older adults do not consume sufficient amounts of many nutrients from foods alone. Supplements can help compensate for this deficiency, but only an estimated half of this population uses them daily.

Learn tips for taking vitamins and maintaining good digestion

Read about good food sources for nutrients

SOURCE: “Older adults who use vitamin/mineral supplements differ from nonuser in nutrient intake adequacy and dietary attitudes”, Sebastian, et al, Journal of the American Dietetic Assoc 107(8):1322-32, 2007.