Newsletter #145: Stretching & Drinking Coffee for a Healthy Heart ❤️
Welcome to the newest edition of the humanOS newsletter!
This week, we learned that stretching may have unique benefits for blood pressure; consuming more ultra-processed foods is linked to higher risk of being diagnosed with depression; and drinking coffee is linked to reduced risk of heart failure.
To learn more, scroll down 👇🏼
This Week’s Research Highlights
🧘 Stretching is surprisingly effective for lowering blood pressure.
Researchers randomly assigned 40 older adults to two groups: one group performed a whole-body stretching routine for 30 minutes a day, five days a week. The other group walked briskly, for the same amount of time and frequency. All participants had elevated blood pressure, or stage 1 hypertension (systolic pressure 130-139 mmHg or a diastolic pressure of 80-89 mmHg). Both interventions resulted in blood pressure reductions, but the stretching was more effective (though the walking group lost more body fat around their waist, as you would expect from a more energetically demanding activity). Why though? When a muscle is stretched, blood vessels are also stretched. This appears to induce structural changes within blood vessels that can decrease arterial stiffness. Animal models have also shown that stretching blood vessels may trigger the release of metabolites from the cells lining the blood vessels, which can cause the blood vessels to dilate. Any of these mechanisms would reduce resistance to blood flow, which in turn would reduce blood pressure.
☕ Drinking caffeinated coffee daily is linked to reduced risk of heart failure.
Researchers used machine learning to examine data from the original cohort of the Framingham Heart Study (n=2,732) and referenced it against data from both the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study (n=14,925) and the Cardiovascular Health Study (n=3,704). Each study included at least ten years of follow-up. In all three studies, people who reported drinking at least one cup of caffeinated coffee daily had a lower long-term heart failure risk. In the Framingham Heart and the Cardiovascular Health studies, the risk of heart failure over the course of decades decreased by 5-12% per cup of coffee daily, compared with no coffee consumption. In the ARIC cohort, risk of heart failure was ~30% lower in those who drank at least two cups daily. Interestingly, decaffeinated coffee was not associated with reduced risk of heart failure, suggesting that caffeine specifically may play a role in the apparent benefit of coffee here. Worth noting that no standard unit of measure seems to have been used in these studies and consumption was self-reported, so “cup” could mean a lot of different things - I wouldn’t get too hung up about the exact dose of coffee here.
🍟 Consumption of ultra-processed food is associated with depression.
Researchers followed 14,907 university graduates in Spain who were free of depression at baseline for an average of 10.3 years. Consumption of ultra-processed foods, as defined by the NOVA food classification system, was assessed at baseline through a validated semi-quantitative 136-item food-frequency questionnaire. They divided subjects into four different groups based on their intake of ultra-processed foods, and determined that participants in the highest quartile of ultra-processed food had a 33% higher risk of developing depression, compared to those in the lowest quartile, after adjusting for confounders. These findings closely mirror a similar recent study in the US, which found that those consuming the highest amounts of ultra-processed foods were at 34% greater risk of exhibiting depressive symptoms. Poor diet quality is obviously bad for the body, but we are increasingly recognizing that it is also bad for the mind, and has emerged as a risk factor for depression.
Question of the Week
🤔 Where did Valentine’s Day actually come from? (Its origins are...not super romantic to say the least 😬)
💡 Answer
Podcasts We Loved This Week
- Alan Flanagan: Alcohol & health - is zero better than some? Via Sigma Nutrition. (We also explored this complicated topic a few years ago in a blog, check that out for some perspective on why this is a hard question to answer)
- James Hamblin & Katherine Wells: Can you get reinfected? Via Social Distance.
- Linsey Marr: Two masks are better than one. Via Science Friday.
Products We Are Enjoying
Clif Energy Bars
These bars are cheap, easy to find at grocery stores everywhere, and tasty. They have plenty of carbs for energy (40+ grams), and are pretty much perfect if you are looking for something light on the stomach to eat before working out. They also have zillions of different flavors. I’m personally a fan of Blueberry Crisp but they’re all pretty good - I haven’t had one that I didn’t like yet.
