27Using Diet to GuardAgainst Disease

I will follow a healthful diet that reduces the risk of disease.

Your diet affects your health status right now, as well as in thefuture. Having a healthful diet right now helps reduce your risk ofdeveloping certain diseases as an adult, including cancer, cardiovas-cular disease, diabetes, hypoglycemia, and osteoporosis. It also is impor-tant to know how to deal with food allergies and intolerances.

What Youll Learn 1. Discuss dietary guidelines to

reduce the risk of developingcancer. (p. 303)

2. Discuss dietary guidelines toreduce the risk of developingcardiovascular diseases. (p. 304)

3. Discuss dietary guidelines toreduce the risk of developingosteoporosis. (p. 306)

4. Discuss diet recommendationsfor people with diabetes orhypoglycemia. (p. 307)

5. Discuss ways to avoidreactions to food allergies andintolerances, including lactoseintolerance and celiac diseaseand reactions to MSG. (p. 308)

Why Its ImportantA healthful diet can reduce your risk of getting cancer,cardiovascular diseases, diabetes,hypoglycemia, and osteoporosis.

Key Terms antioxidant cardiovascular disease atherosclerosis sodium osteoporosis diabetes hypoglycemia food allergy food intolerance lactase deficiency celiac disease

302 UNIT 5 NutritionAaron Haupt

Writing About Using Diet to Guard Against Disease Supposethat several people in your family have had osteoporosis, and you wantto lower your chances of having it. After you read the information aboutdiet and osteoporosis on page 306, write an entry in your health journalto answer this question: How could you change your diet to help youprevent this disease?

LESSON 27 Using Diet to Guard Against Disease 303(tt)Photodisc/Getty Images; (tc)Thomas Del Brase/Getty Images, (others)Photodisc/Getty Images

TABLE 27.1 Tips to Reduce the Risk of Cancer

Eat several servings anda variety of fruits,vegetables, and fiber-rich foods each day.

Especially eat cruciferous (kroo SIH fuh ruhs) vegetables such as cauliflower,broccoli, and brussels sprouts. Fruits and vegetables provide antioxidants thatreduce the risk of developing cancers. Fiber is the part of grains and plant foodsthat cannot be digested. Eating fiber-rich foods helps you have a daily bowelmovement, which reduces the risk of developing cancer of the colon and rectum.

Avoid obesity. Obesity is a body weight that is 20 percent or more than desirable bodyweight. Being obese increases the risk of developing cancers of the uterus,breast, gallbladder, prostate gland, and colon.

Dietary Guideline Description

Limit fat intake and theconsumption of foodsthat are smoked, salted,or nitrate-cured.

Limiting the amount of fat you eat helps reduce the risk of developing cancersof the breast, prostate gland, and colon. Limiting your consumption of foodsthat are smoked, salted, or nitrate-cured helps reduce the risk of developingcancers of the esophagus and stomach.

Do not drink alcohol as a teen.

Alcohol consumption robs the body of vitamins needed for optimal health.When you avoid drinking alcohol, you reduce the risk of developing cancers ofthe liver, throat, mouth, breast, and stomach.

The National Academy of Sciences, the National Cancer Institute, and the

American Cancer Society are organizations that have examined the role of

diet in preventing cancer. You can reduce the risk of developing cancer by

practicing the following dietary guidelines.

What to Know About Diet and CancerDiets high in antioxidants have beenassociated with decreased rates ofesophagus, lung, colon, and stomachcancer. An (an tee AHKsuh duhnt) is a substance that pro-tects cells from being damaged by oxi-

dation. Antioxidants prevent celldamage and repair damaged cells.Their actions help prevent healthycells from becoming cancerous cells.Vitamins C, E, and A, and the min-eral selenium are antioxidants.

antioxidant

Limit fat and cholesterol intake. A fat-like substance made by the body andfound in some foods is cholesterol.Eating foods that are high in saturatedfats and cholesterol may cause plaque toform on artery walls. Plaque is made upof cholesterol, fatty substances, cellularwaste products, calcium, and other sub-stances. A disease in which there is a

build up of plaque on artery walls is(ah thuh roh skluh

ROH suhs). When a person has athero-sclerosis, the diameter of the arterybecomes narrow. Blood pressureincreases because blood is flowingthrough a narrower opening in theartery. Pressure may rupture the plaquecausing a blood clot that blocks theartery or that breaks off, circulates in thebloodstream, and lodges in the blood-stream.An is the blockage ofan artery by a clump of material travel-ing in the bloodstream. If the blockage isin an artery in the brain, a person couldhave a stroke. If the blockage is in anartery in the heart, a heart attack couldoccur. A blockage in the lung is called apulmonary embolism.

Increase your intake of foods and beverages containing antioxidants.Antioxidants help prevent wear andtear in blood vessels. You can obtainantioxidants in your diet by: eatingcarrots, sweet potatoes, and squash toobtain vitamin A; eating citrus fruits,such as oranges and pineapples, toobtain vitamin C; and eating greenvegetables, nuts, and whole-grain cere-als and breads to obtain vitamin E.

embolism

atherosclerosis

How to Limit Fat IntakeLess than 30 percent of total calories per day should come from fat.Below are suggestions to limit fat intake.

Limit your intake of cookedlean meat, poultry, and fishto 5 1/2 oz per day.

Broil, bake, or steam foodrather than fry it.

Trim fat from meats beforecooking.

Trim fat from poultry beforecooking.

Limit your intake of egg yolks;consider using egg substitutes.

Limit your intake of high-fatprocessed meats, such as hotdogs and bologna.

Substitute fruits and low-fatyogurt for high-fat desserts.

Substitute turkey, such asturkey hot dogs and turkeychili, for red meat.

Substitute nonfat or low-fatdairy products for whole-milkdairy products, such as low-fat yogurt for ice cream, skimmilk for whole milk, reduced-fat mayonnaise for regular mayonnaise, low-fat or non-fat cheese for regular cheese.

Substitute fruits and vegeta-bles for high-fat snacks, suchas potato chips.

Adisease of the heart and blood vessels is

which also is called heart disease. Cardiovascular diseases are a leading

cause of premature death and disability. You can reduce the risk of

developing premature cardiovascular diseases by practicing the following dietary guidelines.

What to Know About Diet andCardiovascular Disease

cardiovascular disease (CVD),

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304 UNIT 5 Nutrition

Make theConnection

CVD For moreinformation oncardiovascular disease,see page 515 inLesson 47.

Limit your intake of sodium. A min-eral your body needs only in smallamounts is The recom-mended daily allowance of sodium isthree grams. Some teens consumemany times this amount.

Too much sodium can affect peoplein different ways. It may cause somepeople to retain body fluid and, as aresult, have increased blood pressure.You can limit your sodium intake byeating fresh rather than cannedfoods. Salt is usually added to cannedfoods as a preservative. Select pre-pared foods that are labeled low-saltor salt-free, such as canned corn thatis low-salt and unsalted popcorn.Avoid eating foods on which you cansee the salt, such as pretzels and nutscoated with pieces of salt. Do not addsalt to food. Season foods with herbsand spices rather than with salt andlimit your intake of salty foods, suchas bacon, barbecue sauce, chips,crackers, hot dogs, processed meats,ketchup, canned meat, and mus-tard. Sodium appears in food assodium bicarbonate, monosodiumglutamate, sodium nitrite, sodiumpropionate, and sodium citrate.

Include flax, soy, canola, olive, andfish oils in your diet. The unsatu-rated fats in these foods can helpprevent heart disease, lower badcholesterol (LDL) and increasegood cholesterol (HDL). LDL isassociated with an increased riskof CVD, while HDL lowers therisk of CVD. Substitute oils highin soy, canola, and olive oil forpolyunsaturated oils (e.g., corn,safflower, sunflower), saturatedoils (e.g., palm, coconut), and transfats. High levels of favorable fishoils are found in salmon, trout,mackerel, and sardines.

sodium.

The Benefits of Having Fish in Ones Diet

Omega-3Did you know that eating fish at least twice a week helps keep yourheart healthy? Some fish, such as mackerel, lake trout, herring,sardines, albacore tuna, and salmon are high in two omega-3 fattyacids. A third, less potent omega-3 fatty acid comes from soybeans,canola, walnuts, and flaxseed, as well as from the oils made fromthose beans, nuts, and seeds. Omega-3 fatty acids are used by thebody to make nerve tissue in the retina of the eye and the brain.The body cannot manufacture omega-3 fatty acids. Our only sourceis from the foods we eat.

Omega-3 fatty acids decrease the incidence of blood clotformations, which can cause heart attacks and strokes. They areinvolved in the reduction of fat and cholesterol levels as well asslowing the rate at which plaque may be deposited on the interiorwalls of arteries. The deposition of plaque in arteries can lead toconditions such as heart disease, angina, and heart attack. Omega-3fatty acids also decrease the risk of irregular heartbeat, which cancause death. They are also noted to be involved in lowering bloodpressure slightly. The American Heart Association recommends thatpeople eat at least one serving of fish that are high in omega-3fatty acids at least two times per week.

LESSON 27 Using Diet to Guard Against Di