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CRP

Is That Wonder Bread with Whole Grains Good for Me?

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Ok, so this is the perfect example of marketing taking a good idea and messing it all completely up.

Refined carbs, as I have written about many times in the past, are when you take the whole grain and lop off about 2/3 of the grain, removing 90% of the nutrients and leaving all the calories.  So, while “enriched wheat flour” sounds like it might be a healthy thing (isn’t “enriched” a good thing??), if it is on the label, it’s off the list.

Just because something says “made with whole grains” on the front of the package does NOT mean it’s now a health food because you added a gram or two of whole grains into a pound of crap.

In this particular article, to further reinforce the idea that whole grains are the only option, researchers found that whole grains actually lowered levels of hsCRP, a marker of inflammation in the body.  Less inflammation = less chronic disease.  Pretty simple equation.

CMV, CRP Have Predictive Value in Patients w/ Coronary Artery Disease – (11-12-00)

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CMV, CRP Have Predictive Value in Patients w/ Coronary Artery Disease

Inflammation continues to be a strong link in many chronic diseases in man. Lowering levels of inflammation is critical in dealing with, preventing and managing chronic disease.

Circulation — Abstracts: Muhlestein et al. 102 (16): 1917

Read entire article here

Serum levels of YKL-40 and CRP in patients with hip osteoarthritis – (10-26-00)

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Serum levels of YKL-40 and CRP in patients with hip osteoarthritis

This article is a little technical. For most of medical history, despite the use of the ending “itis,” osteoarthritis has not been considered an inflammatory disease. However, recent research has shown that inflammation is indeed a factor. This can change the entire was we view the treatment of OA. And opens up new therapies for dealing with and preventing OA. Many researchers are begining to show that the underlying cause of OA is a nutritional problem of the bone underneath the joint.

Ann Rheum Dis — Abstracts: Conrozier et al. 59 (10): 828

Read entire article here

CRP as Predictor for Incident Diabetes Mellitus Among Middle-aged Men – (01-18-03)

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CRP as Predictor for Incident Diabetes Mellitus Among Middle-aged Men

It’s very nice to finally see the mainstream medical journals viewing inflammation as a factor in many (actually all…) chronic diseases. Much press was given to CRP as an independent risk factor for heart disease and now we see the same association with diabetes. What I do find amusing is the “chicken with their head cut off” mentality looking for drugs to lower CRP. A huge trial is underway to see if statin drugs can lower CRP. Hey…save the money and have patient avoid refined carbs and exercise. That should do it most of the time!!

Read entire article here

Long-Term alpha-Tocopherol and Vit C Have No Detectable Anti-Inflammatory Effects in Healthy Men – (04-16-03)

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Long-Term alpha-Tocopherol and Vit C Have No Detectable Anti-Inflammatory Effects in Healthy Men

Thought I would comment on this one in case any readers come across this article first. Basically, Vit E and C had no effect on inflammatory markers such as TNF-alpha, IL-6 or CRP. Many would use this as another opportunity to denounce these supplements in disease prevention, but I would disagree. I generally do not consider these supplements as having direct anti-inflammatory effects. Rather, these antioxidants serve more of a protective function; protecting cells and cellular components from damage from oxidation from both normal and pathological processes.

nutrition.org — Abstracts: Bruunsgaard et al. 133 (4): 1170

Click here for more information.

Differential effects of oral vs transdermal ERT on CRP in postmenopausal – (04-23-03)

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Differential effects of oral vs transdermal ERT on CRP in postmenopausal

Hate to rely all my sad stories, but I had a woman in this week; 60 years old, multiple open heart surgeries, stent placement in both renal arteries and 3 strokes. You would think her cardiologists (a long stream of them) would at some point have discussed insulin management, homocysteine and CRP with her. Appearantly not. She is also currently on oral ERT which, as we see in this study raises CRP levels.

Cardiosource

CRP Concentrations Correlate With the Severity of Atherosclerosis – (07-24-00)

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CRP Concentrations Correlate With the Severity of Atherosclerosis

C-Reactive Protein is a marker for chronic inflammation in the body. Many experts believe that inflammation is a major contributor to heart disease. Make sure that CRP levels are checked with your cholesterol if you are at risk for heart disease.

Eur Heart J 2000;21:958-960,1000-1008 Dr. Mira-Christine Tataru from Herz- und Gefassklinik, in Bad Neustadt/Saale, and colleagues analyzed the relationship between plasma C-reactive protein levels and the severity of atherosclerosis in 1,112 male and 299 female survivors of acute myocardial infarction and in 326 male and 138 female age-matched controls without coronary disease. Confirming prior studies, Dr. Tataru and colleagues report that plasma C-reactive protein levels increase with age and are higher in smokers than in nonsmokers. Additionally, they report that C-reactive protein concentrations are higher in coronary heart disease patients than in control patients. Among survivors of acute myocardial infarction, C-reactive protein levels correlate with the angiographically detected severity of coronary heart disease. It is also noteworthy, the authors say, that C-reactive protein levels were higher not only in patients with clinically manifest atherosclerosis, but also in patients with preclinical stenoses of the pelvic and leg arteries as well as the extracranial arteries supplying the brain, or aneurysm of the abdominal aorta.

CRP–Mediated Low Density Lipoprotein Uptake by Macrophages – (03-22-01)

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CRP–Mediated Low Density Lipoprotein Uptake by Macrophages

I may need to clarify what this article is talking about. First, it is current theory that macrophages become foam cells once they take up LDL cholesterol from the bloodstream. These foam cells are what lead to the buildup of plaque on the arteries. This article is suggesting that CRP (a marker of chronic inflammation) increases the attraction (“opsonizes”) between the LDL and the macrophages. Low level chronic inflammation can come from so many different sources; and can in turn lead to a multitude of chronic diseases.

Circulation — Abstracts: Zwaka et al. 103 (9): 1194

Read entire article here