What we eat and drink can affect chronic disease, it can make chronic diseases worst like eating too much salt (sodium) can worsen high blood pressure. Diet can also improve chronic disease like non-starchy vegetables in diabetes. Healthy foods can also help prevent chronic diseases as part of a healthy lifestyle. The relation between chronic disease and nutrition is undeniable and in more recent times health professionals started recommending food as medicine.
The whole idea of food as medicine is to use a healthy version of the thing that is creating the chronic diseases, to prevent and treat them. Seven of the top ten causes of death in the United States including the top four are directly related to the types of food we eat. These conditions include heart disease, cancer, lung disease, cerebrovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes and kidney disease.
Most people know that smoking is bad for you, but the majority of people are not aware of the impact nutrition has on their health. Good nutrition as part of a healthy lifestyle has the power to prevent about 80% of chronic diseases. Nutrition is at the top of the list of healthy lifestyle habits that can help prevent disease, then why is it that not a lot of people embrace these habits? Many people are very resistant about making changes to their diets, I often get patients who tell me “give me whatever medicine you need to get my diabetes under control but I am not changing what I eat” Or they will say “I have been eating this way all my life, I am not changing now” or I often also hear “vegetables and healthy foods are too expensive, I can’t afford it”
Prevention
Cardiovascular disease: To reduce cardiovascular disease, increase the number of vegetables and fruit you eat. Just two and a half servings of fruits and vegetables a day lowered your risk of coronary heart disease by 8%, stroke by 16% and dying of anything by 10%.
Type 2 Diabetes: Processed meat is the most closely linked cause to type 2 diabetes risk, conferring a 37% increased risk. The risk of type 2 diabetes is also increased when non-starchy carbohydrates are replaced with protein.
Cancer: Consuming 100 grams of red meat per day increases the risk of colorectal cancer by 17% and 50 grams of processed meat per day increases the risk by 18%. Eating seven and a half servings of fruits and vegetables each day is associated with a significant 14% reduction in total cancer risk.
Obesity: Obesity is a risk factor for diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and many more. A diet high in plant foods has been linked to lower (healthy) BMI. Fiber will make you feel full without the extra calories. Adding just 14 grams of fiber per day to your diet will lower your calorie intake naturally by about 10 to 18%. That’s what we want, to eat fewer calories without realizing it and you are still feeling full
Osteoporosis and bone fractures: Adequate intakes of calcium (500 mg per day or more) and of vitamin D in populations with high osteoporosis rates helps to reduce fracture risk, so does sun exposure and physical activity to strengthen bones and muscles.
Dental disease: caries is preventable by limiting the frequency and amount of consumption of sugars and by appropriate exposure to fluoride. Erosion of teeth by dietary acids in beverages or other acidic foods may contribute to tooth destruction.
Improving Chronic Disease
A disease that persists for a long time. Chronic diseases generally cannot be prevented by vaccines or cured by medication, nor do they just disappear. Eighty-eight percent of Americans over 65 years of age have at least one chronic health condition (as of 1998). Health damaging behaviors – particularly tobacco use, lack of physical activity, and poor eating habits – are major contributors to the leading chronic diseases. Chronic diseases tend to become more common with age.
Recently US News and World Report published the best diets for 2020, including the best diets for some chronic diseases. An expert panel assessed 35 diets to come up with the final results, examining the evidence behind each diet’s claims. Specifically, they evaluated the likelihood of short-term and long-term weight loss, how easy the diet was to follow, how well it conformed to current nutrition standards, and whether it could be an effective tool for diabetes and cardiovascular disease prevention.
The Mediterranean Diet was picked as the best diet overall for 2020, diets that rounded out the top spots for best overall included the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) Diet (#2), the Flexitarian Diet (a mostly vegetarian diet; tied for #2), the WW (formerly Weight Watchers) Diet (#4), the Mayo Clinic Diet (#5), the MIND (Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) Diet (tied for #5), and the Volumetrics Diet (food is divided into categories based on energy density; tied for #5).
The Keto Diet, which focuses on strict carbohydrate limitations and high-fat intake, was ranked at #34, with some experts noting that it could lead to nutritional imbalances and that there was insufficient evidence to suggest long-term weight loss. Other diets that made the bottom of the list included the Raw Food Diet (#31), the Atkins Diet (#32), the Whole30 Diet (#33) and the Dukan Diet (#35), which the experts thought was too restrictive, difficult to follow, and unlikely to result in long-term success.
Diabetes: People with diabetes must carefully plan the amount and type of foods they eat and the timing of meals and snacks to avoid high levels of sugar in the blood. High blood sugar levels can lead to other problems, including nerve damage, eye damage, kidney failure, heart disease, and problems with blood flow. For diabetes prevention and management, the Mediterranean Diet (#1), DASH Diet (tied for #2), Flexitarian Diet (tied for #2), Mayo Clinic Diet (tied for #2), and Vegan Diet (tied for #2) were at the top of the list, while the Ornish Diet (#1), Mediterranean Diet (#2) and DASH Diet (#3) were voted best heart-healthy diets.
High Blood Pressure: For people with high blood pressure, it’s important to eat more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and less salt and fat. Medications and diet restrictions can cause nausea, loss of appetite, diarrhea, constipation, and other digestive problems. The DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) Diet (#2).
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): COPD is a group of lung diseases that cause the airways of the lungs to become inflamed and narrowed. People with COPD often experience shortness of breath, which can make preparing and eating meals a challenge. In addition, eating foods high in carbohydrates may make breathing difficult for people with COPD because these foods produce more carbon dioxide when broken down than proteins or fats.
Osteoporosis: Osteoporosis, a decline in the thickness of the bones because of age or illness, increases the risk that a bone will break. Taking more calcium to strengthen the bones can lessen this risk. Vitamin D helps the body use calcium, while minerals such as phosphorus and magnesium work together with calcium to improve bone strength.
For weight loss: the experts chose the HMR (Health Maintenance Resources) Program (delivered meal replacement; #1), the Optavia Diet (similar to Medifast products; #2), the Atkins Diet (tied #3), the Jenny Craig Diet (tied for #3), the Keto Diet (tied for #3), and the WW Diet (tied for #3).
Common barriers to nutrition counseling include lack of knowledge and training, time pressures, food environment, cultural and financial issues. A HEALTHY DIET DOESN’T require a lot of money, newfangled appliances or subsisting on any kind of scheme that sounds like a gimmick. Because it’s true what they say about what seems too good to be true: Eating well means listening to that little voice inside that knows what healthy foods generally look like – fresh and recognizable in nature – and what they don’t: prepackaged and processed. That means a diet that’s nutritious and delicious, and that will take a bit of planning and commitment from you.
References
McMacken M. Food as medicine: Nutrition to prevent and reverse chronic disease. Presented at: ACP Internal Medicine Annual Meeting; April 19-21, 2018; New Orleans.
Best Diets Overall. US News and World Report’s 2020 ranking of best diets.
