Newsletter #044: What happens to the body due to a lack of vitamin D and protein? ☀️💪
Hello Friends!
Welcome to the latest edition of the humanOS newsletter! We spent this week at the Natural Products Expo West, so we took a little break from the blog. But, as hopeless science nerds, we continue to follow the research regardless, so below are the cool studies and media that we spotted this week. 🤓
This Week’s Research Highlights
🥗 A Mediterranean diet pattern might enhance endurance performance.
Researchers recruited seven women and four men to run five kilometers on a treadmill on two occasions - once after four days on a Mediterranean diet, and on another occasion after four days on a Western diet. A period of 9-16 days separated the two tests. The 5K run time was 6% faster after the Mediterranean diet than the Western diet — despite similar heart rates and ratings of perceived exertion.
😴 Sleep deprivation increases levels of tau - the protein associated with Alzheimer's disease.
Researchers found that tau levels in mice were about twice as high at night (when they were awake — mice are nocturnal) than during the day. Disrupting their sleep caused daytime tau levels to double. Remarkably, a similar effect was found in humans. The researchers obtained cerebrospinal fluid from 8 people after a normal night of sleep, and then after a night of no sleep. After the sleepless night, tau levels rose by 50%. Sleep loss may allow tau to build up without being released, increasing likelihood that it will aggregate into tangles.
🏃 High cardiorespiratory fitness is inversely related to all-cause mortality in apparently healthy adults.
Researchers directly measuring cardiorespiratory fitness in 4137 participants, who were then followed for an average of 24 years. Participants in the low-fitness group were more likely to die early from any cause, and low-fitness men had a three-fold greater risk for cardiovascular mortality compared with high-fitness men.
🤰 Low Vitamin D is common in pregnancy, especially during winter in northern latitudes.
Researchers analyzed data from a longitudinal study of 855 healthy pregnant women in Norway. They found that 34% of women had vitamin D insufficiency (<50 nmol/L) in the third trimester. During wintertime, this jumped to nearly 50% of women.
💪 More than one out of every three adults over the age of fifty may not be getting enough protein.
Researchers analyzed macronutrient data from 11680 NHANES participants. Dietary protein intakes were significantly lower in older age groups — with up to 46% of the oldest adults failing to meet protein intake recommendations (0.8 g/kg/day). Furthermore, those who were below the protein recommendation had more functional limitations across all age groups.
Podcasts We Loved This Week
- Lyle McDonald: Female Physiology 101 and Setting Up a Fat Loss Diet. Via The Muscle Engineer Podcast.
- Joan Vernikos: The Effects of Gravity on Humans in Space and on Earth. Via STEM-Talk.
- Daniel Owens: Vitamin D, Immunity, and Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage. Via Dr. Bubbs Performance Podcast.
Products We Are Enjoying
Seaweed snacks.
Ginny says: These add a rich, savory flavor to soups, salads, and whatever else you like to eat, while adding very little salt or fat. They are also relatively nutritious (well, for something with only 25 calories). They contain a decent amount of vitamin C, iron, and about 50 mcg of iodine (31% of daily value). We like this brand because they’re easy to find at grocery stores and Amazon, but there are plenty of options out there.
Media Featuring humanOS
• Dan Pardi: How To Get The Most From Your Sleep Cycle. Via Health Theory with Tom Bilyeu.