People are quick to blame fast food for the increased prevalence of lifestyle-related diseases amongst America’s poorest communities, but new research shows that we’re jumping to the wrong conclusions.

There’s no doubt that people in lower income brackets have a higher instance of lifestyle-related diseases. A 2010 Canadian study showed that people earning under $15,000 a year doubled their risk of contracting type-2 diabetes, and a 2009 study in Current Cardiology Reviews showed that the longer that a person lived in poverty, the more likely he or she was to contract heart disease, with an 82 percent increase in the risk for those who were disadvantaged as children.

But while people have been quick to point fingers at fast food for this problem – for instance, encouraging the city of Los Angeles to instate a ban on new fast food restaurants in low income neighborhoods in South L.A. in 2008 – it turns out that correlation does not prove causality in this case.

Mythbusting the Link Between Fast Food and Income

New research from Jay Zagorsky of Ohio State University and Patricia K. Smith of the University of Michigan proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that the common conviction that fast food is the reason for health problems amongst America’s poor is unfounded. Their research found not only that low-income and high-income adults consume almost the same amount of fast food, but that members of the middle class are more likely to indulge in a Big Mac and fries than the poorest Americans, albeit not by much.

Seventy-nine percent of 8,000 people reported eating fast food at least once during the three-week survey; 23 percent ate three or more fast food meals per week. When broken down by socio-economic status, the survey reflected that about 80 percent of those with the lowest 10 percent of income ate at least once at a fast food restaurant, compared to about 85 percent of those who were ranked near the middle and 75 percent in the richest 10 percent.

“Everyone eats fast food,” says Zagorsky. “The poor, the rich, the middle class. It’s not just poor people.”

The common misconception, he says, stems in large part from what L.A. was attempting to avoid with its legislation: the fact that fast food restaurants are far more likely to crop up in low-income neighborhoods.

“People associate fast food with poorer neighborhoods,” says Zagorsky, “and they sort of make the logical connection that since fast food came from poor neighborhoods, it must be poor people who eat fast food… except for me, who happens to be popping in here.”

Why Do People Turn to Fast Food?

Even though people know that fast food is unhealthy, they keep going back to it – even when they can afford something healthier. But the reasoning behind this trend doesn’t boil down to income, but rather time.

The study revealed that while socio-economic status doesn’t contribute to likelihood of chowing down on Burger King, the time crunch resulting from long hours at work and not much downtime does. Given the “fast” in its name, it’s perhaps no surprise that people who are short on time are more likely to opt for fast food, but Trudy Scott, Food Mood Expert and Certified Nutritionist, suggests that it’s more complicated than that. She says that it’s not just ease, but also comfort, that makes time-crunched individuals choose the drive through.

“When you work long hours, you have less time for leisure, no time to exercise or do yoga, and little time to get outdoors into nature,” she says. “This can lead to low serotonin and low GABA levels causing you to stress-eat carbs, self-soothe with comfort food, and self-medicate with fast-food.”

Low serotonin and low GABA (gamma-Aminobutyric acid – the neurotransmitter that reduces neuronal excitability) can make people anxious and stressed, something that they then instinctively try to fix by eating starchy, fatty foods, according to a 2016 study in the International Review of Neurobiology.

“Chronic stress can negatively affect hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis functioning, thus influencing eating behavior and increasing desirability of highly palatable foods,” reads the study.

Long-term, however, serotonin and GABA are better raised by eating a whole food diet, exercising, and reducing stress through yoga or meditation, according to Scott, so by choosing fast food, people are renewing, rather than solving, the problem.

So Why Are Poorer People Getting Sicker?

This study unfortunately puts us back at square one when it comes to the reasons behind the higher instances of lifestyle-related diseases amongst America’s poorest.

Zagorsky doesn’t have the answer, but he does have a hypothesis linking lifestyle-related illness less with what poor Americans are eating but rather when they’re eating it.

“Poor people tend to get money at irregular intervals,” he says. With the SNAP program, for instance, people receive their income once a month. Because of this, Zagorsky notes, they tend to eat a lot of food at the beginning of the month, when they can afford it, “and then they sort of diet – not willingly” at the end of the month. This cycle of bingeing and starving is “not really good for maintaining a nice, stable weight,” according to Zagorsky.

Solving the Fast Food Problem

While the city of Los Angeles had its heart in the right place when it attempted to reduce fast food establishments in poorer neighborhoods, this isn’t the right way to go about solving the problem of lifestyle-related disease amongst America’s poorest – nor is it a great way to encourage middle- and upper-class Americans to steer clear of Happy Meals.

“If government wants to get involved in regulating nutrition and food choices,” said Zagorsky in a University news release, “It should be based on facts.”

The Conversation suggests that government intervention would be better put to use by making nutritious foods more readily available more easily, for example by reducing red tape required for food trucks or mobile soup kitchens serving real foods. Legislation to revitalize food deserts would also be helpful, bringing inexpensive healthy food options to neighborhoods where healthy food tends to be more expensive, and the introduction of free or inexpensive programs encouraging people to get outside and exercise could reduce instances of stress and anxiety, making people less likely to reach for fast food as a temporary solution to this problem.

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For those of you contemplating whether or not to roll out of bed for that morning jog or whether you’re too tired after to work to hit your spin class, this one is for you. A group of two new studies, one out of Australia and the other France, found that exercise in people over the age of 30 is the most important factor in heart disease prevention.

A sedentary lifestyle is the single most important contributing factor to heart disease between age 30 and 90. Getting enough exercise was more important than keeping your weight in check, high blood pressure, and not smoking.

One study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, looked at the risk factors of more than 32,000 women in Australia. For women younger than 30, smoking was the most important risk factor, but for women over 30, it was exercise. In all, the study found that 2,000 women could be saved every year just by getting the recommended weekly allowance of 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week, as reported on New York Daily News. Exercise is the key to heart disease prevention.

Another French study found that men between the ages of 55 and 70 greatly benefited from exercise later in life. In fact, the study found no difference in men who started later in life versus men who started earlier.

“[I]t’s never too late to change your way of life and get more physically active,” said lead author David Matelot, reported on New York Daily News.

According to the CDC, if your exercise is more vigorous, you only need 1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes) every week. It’s well worth the sacrificed sweat in heart disease prevention, especially as you age.

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With a science-hostile Congress moving into Washington next month, now – before reactionary attempts to turn back the nascent clock – is a good time to revisit the benefits of stem cell research.

By way of a quick review, work here in the United States is still in a relatively embryonic stage, so to speak, as it was only in March 2009 that President Barack Obama issued Executive Order 13505 – “Removing Barriers to Responsible Scientific Research Involving Human Stem Cells.” The EO revoked one signed by President George W. Bush in 2007, as well as Presidential statement in 2001 that limited federal funding of research involving human embryonic stem cells. Obama’s order instructed the Director of NIH to “develop guidelines for the support and conduct of responsible, scientifically worthy human stem cell research, including human embryonic stem cell research, to the extent permitted by law.”

It’s that last bit about the law where the new Congress has the ability to stop and reverse forward motion. Here’s a primer on the progress and opportunities we stand to lose if backward thinkers have their way:

1.  Cures for common diseases

Topping the list is the role that stem cell research and regenerative medicine might – most researchers, in fact, say will likely – play in developing cures for disease that might otherwise be incurable. (Note that: otherwise incurable.) Here’s a short list:

• Parkinson’s Disease
• Alzheimer’s Disease
• Heart Diseases
• Diabetes
• Cancer

Know anyone suffering from something on this list? Most people do. And how about this recent headline from the peer-reviewed journal Blood, a publication of the American Society of Hematology: “Evidence for the cure of HIV infection by CCR5 32/32 stem cell transplantation.” Know what that means? Yeah. The AFP reported this just yesterday: “A US cancer patient who received a stem cell transplant has been cured of HIV.” Stay tuned on this one.

2. Reversing birth defects

Studies are showing that by injecting stem cells directly into the brain, neural birth defects may be reversible. This research into treating birth defects is pretty new, but teams have been developing therapies for rodents with real or simulated birth defects in the brain, says MIT’s Technology Review. “Even though most of the transplanted cells did not survive, they induced the brain’s own cells to carry out extensive repairs.”

3. Repairing stroke damage

Science Daily reports that according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine, neural cells from human embryonic stem cells “helped repair stroke-related damage in the brains of rats and led to improvements in their physical abilities after a stroke.” This is big news. “The great thing about these cells is that they are available in unlimited supply and are very versatile,” said a senior scientist on the project. “The neural cells the group generated grew indefinitely in the lab and could be an ongoing source of cells for treating stroke or other injuries.”

4. Dealing with spinal cord injuries

Just this fall, a patient suffering from a spinal cord injury was injected with two million human embryonic stem cells. “The hope,” says CBS News Healthwatch, is that “one day this treatment may help the paralyzed walk again.” The procedure took place at the Shepherd Center spinal cord and brain injury rehabilitation facility in Atlanta. The idea is that the cells will become specialized nerve cells which can then be injected directly into the injured area of the spinal cord.  If the treatment works, the progenitor cells will produce new oligodendrocytes (cells that produce myelin, which allows impulses to move along nerves) in the injured area of the patient’s spine, allowing for new movement.

5. Organ repair and replacement

Growing whole organs and critical tissue is a seemingly sci-fi scenario that’s a lot closer than we think – with the help of stem cell research. This new technology could make possible “a virtually inexhaustible supply of organ replacements, thereby doing away with the need to wait for organ donors and removing the risk of rejection.” Entire hearts, lungs, etc., aside, tissue generation has an entire host of curative possibilities.

6. Burn victim relief

Here’s an area where there’s already been a significant payoff as cultivated stem cells are today being used to generate skin grafts. Also, patients whose eyes have been damaged in chemical accidents have had their sight restored using their own stem cells. Embryonic stem cell research plays a significant role helping scientists understand and put to use adult stem cells, as well.

7. Developing new drugs

New drugs can be tested on stem cells to test safety before testing on humans, or even animals, for that matter. In fact, as CNN reports, some researchers are saying embryonic stem cells could end animal testing altogether. Says one expert, “It could save a lot of time and effort of taking the wrong drugs through, or it may allow drugs through which are lost at an early stage, because they affect the animal cells but don’t have an effect on human cells.”

8. (If the science isn’t enough) It’s the economy, stupid

States that support stem cell research have seen significant corporate investment and job creation. Estimates in California, for example, are that $1 billion in investment in stem cell research is not unreasonable. The commercial potential is overwhelming, according those who are in the business.

9. It’s the economy, stupid II

Oh, and don’t we have a little problem with healthcare expenditures in this country? Don’t most experts believe that the amount of money we’re paying out as a society for the sick and dying is going to bankrupt us if action is not taken? How about more healthy people? Seems like something we should be looking into.

10. (If the economics isn’t enough) It’s just the right thing to do

Stem cell research is inherently innovative and efficient, and a practical and a conscious demonstration of caring for those who are sick. These people are not only taxing the system, but they are taxing themselves and their families with trauma and anguish. Scientific progress and human quality of life are inexorably linked in our times and acting to improve and care for the entire system, the whole connected fabric of our existence, is a moral imperative. Consider that more than 100 million Americans suffer from ailments and diseases that may be cured with embryonic stem cell therapy. Alleviating human suffering. It’s the right thing to do.

Image: kaibara87

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Remember how much fun it was to shoot watermelon pits out of your mouth as a kid? Who knew then that you were also building up an arsenal of amino acids to fight pre-hypertension, a precursor to cardiovascular disease.

Sweet, low-calorie, high in fiber, and nutrient rich watermelon (which is in season from late July through November) is now a hot topic in medicine with data coming out of Florida State University. Evidence from a pilot study led by food scientists is suggesting that watermelon can be an effective natural weapon, in keeping with the theory of food as medicine. It’s also noteworthy to mention that this is the first investigation of its kind being studied on humans.

FSU Assistant Professor Arturo Figueroa and Professor Bahram H. Arjmandi found that when six grams of the amino acids L-citrulline/L-arginine from watermelon extract were administered daily for six weeks, there was improved function in the arteries, which in turn caused lower aortic blood pressure in all nine of the pre-hypertensive subjects (four men and five postmenopausal women, ages 51-57).

Taking L-arginine as a dietary supplement isn’t an option for many hypertensive adults, says Figueroa, because it can cause nausea, gastrointestinal tract discomfort, and diarrhea.

In addition to the vascular benefits, watermelon provides abundant vitamin A, B6, C, fiber, potassium and lycopene, a powerful antioxidant. Findings from Figueroa’s latest pilot study at Florida State are described in the American Journal of Hypertension.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) continues to be the leading cause of death in the United States, so start slicing. And here are a few recipes to get you started, from a Mediterranean Watermelon Salad to Grilled Scallop and Watermelon Kabobs.

For more information on heart disease visit the American Heart Association.

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Americans are eating 50 percent more salt than they were in the 1970s, and eating too much salt is related to heart disease. The culprit? Yet again, processed food.

First it was trans-fats and now it’s salt. I mentioned the need to retrain your palette to keep from craving junk food in the Junk Food Jones. Turns out we all need to retrain our palettes to enjoy food with less salt.

The amount of salt contained in processed food has gradually increased over time and our palettes have adjusted accordingly. Apparently, three quarters of the salt we eat comes from processed food as people have become accustomed to eating such “food” as the bulk of their diet. What’s the result? We’re all eating too much salt.

The focus on salt is yet another indication that we need to start cooking again. Changing our habits isn’t easy. But it can be done. The trick is to continue educating ourselves (reading books like Food Matters) and learning how to cook and appreciate home cooked food. Instead of watching Top Chef while eating take-out, spend that hour cooking a meal with your friends and create your own drama.

Image: Daniel Y. Go

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