9.5. From Long Life for Healthy Longevity \ Dietary Prevention of Lifestyle related Diseases

p. 170 in Bioethics and the Impact of Human Genome Research in the 21st Century

Author: Yukio Yamori (Kyoto University)

Editors: Norio Fujiki, Masakatu Sudo, and Darryl R. J. Macer
Eubios Ethics Institute

Copyright 2001, Eubios Ethics Institute All commercial rights reserved. This publication may be reproduced for limited educational or academic use, however please enquire with the author.
Since 1983, we have carried out a WHO-Coordinated Cardiovascular Diseases and Alimentary Comparison (CARDIAC) Study and studied for the past 15 years the relationship between nutrition and cardiovascular diseases (CVD), the most prevalent life style-related diseases in 60 communities of 25 countries in the world. MONALISA (MONEO ALIMENTATIONIS SANAE = Reminding of healthy nutrition) Study is a follow up of selected CARDIAC Study populations to monitor changes in CVD risk factors in search for making a real contribution towards identifying the way to better health.

This study successfully, demonstrated that the mortality rates of ischemic heart diseases (IHD) were positively related with serum cholesterol (Cho) level and inversely related with 24-hour urinary (24hu) taurine excretion, and the rates of n-3 fatty acids in the plasma phospholipids, the indices of sea food consumption as well as 24hu isoflavonoid excretion, the marker of soy product intake. On the other hand stroke mortality was positively related to 24hu Na exertion and Na / K ratio, and was inversely related to serum Cho levels.

Since the age adjusted mortality rates of stroke and IHD in CARDIAC Study populations were inversely related significantly with their average life expectancy, human longevity could be realized by preventing these CVD through nutritional improvements such as reducing Na intake and dietary Na / K ratio, maintaining the medium serum Cho levels (180-200 mg in average) to keep both stroke and IHD mortalities lowest, and increasing soy bean and sea food consumptions. These epidemiological data, together with previously obtained experimental data on the beneficial effect of soy-bean, fish and seaweed which lowered serum Cho, led us to a clinical intervention study to observe the effect of these popular Japanese nutrients on the Japanese immigrants living in Brazil after comparative migrant studies among Okinawans living in Okinawa, Hawaii and Brazil. Among 3 populations, Okinawans in Hilo, Hawaii attained the present-day long life expectancy of the Japanese already in early 1980's but in contrast Okinawans living in Brazil had rather shorter life span because of high risks of hypertension. hypercholesterolemia and diabetes, and were invited to a dietary intervention study of typical Japanese nutrients such as 3g of DHA 5g of seaweed wakame powder and 50mg of isoflavonoids from soybeans for 10 weeks. In these selected high risk people aged 47 -S7, 10 males and 10 females given DHA showed a significant reduction in blood pressure (BP), the same number of people given seaweed powder showed significant reduction of serum Cho, and 20 menopausal females given isoflavonoids showed significant reduction in BP, Cho and 24hu pyidinoline and deoxypyridinoline, markers of Ca resumption from the bone. Since risk factors in Japanese immigrants were beneficially affected within j. to 10 weeks by typical nutrients from fish, seaweed and soybeans common in Japanese diet5. CVD are expected to be prevented by these nutritional factors. Moreover, CARDIAC Study recently demonstrated that 24hu isoflavonoid excretions were inversely related significantly with the age-adjusted mortality rates of both prostate and breast cancers increasing with the westernization of life style in Japan. Therefore, nutritional improvement will hopefully contribute to healthy longevity with the lower prevalence of bed-ridden disability and dementia through the prevention of CVD, osteoporosis and common cancers among the elderly population.

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