DECREASING THE NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES MAY BE A CONCERN.

For years, the debate has raged on the benefits and drawbacks of modern farming techniques. Industrial agriculture or “hyper-agriculture” has led to great advances in crop yields, but many claim that the nutrient content, and therefore their total nutritional value to humans, has been suffering.

Average yield in terms of bushels per acre for major crops in the US has skyrocketed since the 1950s. Corn is up 342%! Wheat was up 290%, while both soybeans and alfalfa were up 170%. Similar types of performance gains have also occurred in Europe, Australia, Japan and other regions of the world.

Data presented by researchers from the Department of Soil Sciences at the University of Wisconsin Madison show that while these great advances in crop yield have occurred over the past 50 years, nutrient content has been under siege and in slope. Similarly, a review of data published by USDA’s ARC Nutrient Data Laboratory shows “a sharp decline in minerals, vitamins, and other nutrients in foods since the last full survey,” about 20 years ago.

NEW EVIDENCE ON NUTRIENT DEPLETION

Recent data published by Dr David Thomas, a primary care physician and independent researcher, looked at the difference between the tables published by the UK governments for nutrient content published in 1940 and again in 2002. The comparison was revealing. It showed that the iron content of 15 different varieties of meat had decreased by 47%. Dairy products had shown similar drops; a 60% drop in iron and up to 90% in copper.

GREATER AVAILABILITY VERSUS LESS VALUE.

It is true that in the modern world of industrialized nations, the availability of fruits and vegetables is at an all-time high. If we want it, it is there. On the other hand, despite this greater availability, the consumption of fruits and vegetables has not increased in the population. In fact, in many population subgroups it has declined. When this knowledge is combined with reported decreases in nutrient levels in foods, many healthcare providers, scientists, researchers, and government officials seek answers about how we can expect to maintain the nutritional value and balance of our foods while we need to produce each. more and more of the same soils to feed an ever-growing population. So far, the way forward is uncertain at best.

NEW STUDIES SHOW THE PROTECTIVE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE CONSUMPTION OF TEA, FRUITS AND VEGETABLES AND THE HEALTH OF WOMEN.

Tea and ovarian cancer risk: Researchers from the Division of Nutritional Epidemiology at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden, conducted a 15-year follow-up study of more than 61,000 women aged 40 to 76 years. Their evidence, published in the archives of Internal Medicine (2005; 165 (22): 2683-2686) showed that women who consumed tea on a regular basis had a dramatically lower risk of ovarian cancer. Tea drinkers who averaged less than one cup per day equaled an 18% risk reduction. One or more cups a day provided a 24% risk reduction and 2 or more cups a day showed a 46% risk reduction. Unsurprisingly, these findings led the researchers to conclude: “The results suggest that tea consumption is associated with a reduced risk of ovarian cancer.”

Soy and Women’s Health: Publishing their work in the January 15, 2006 issue of Cancer Research, a team of researchers from West Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA concluded that soy phytoestrogens may protect against breast cancer risk in postmenopausal women. . According to John Hopkins University researchers who presented data at the November 15, 2005 meeting of the American Heart Association, consumption of soy protein (20 grams per day for 6 weeks) reduced two strong indicators of coronary heart disease in women postmenopausal African-American women. The result shows that LDL cholesterol and another cholesterol marker known as LDL-P (P = number of particles) decreased in women taking soy protein, regardless of age or race.

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