Dietary Supplements as Surrogate of Mediterranean Diet in Healthy Smoking Subjects.

The interventions to slow aging, favoring active life expectancy, represent the new perspectives in ageing investigation. Some mechanisms that delay or prevent the onset of aging pathologies have been identified. Between them, a healthy lifestyle seems to reduce many risk factors. In particular, eating habits represent the most concrete, low-cost way to act on aging process. Mediterranean diet has received much attention since its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects have been consistently demonstrated. Unfortunately, many people follow a Western diet, poor in phytochemicals that represent the main source of beneficial effects of this dietary pattern. So, supplements administration should be considered, especially in subjects exposed to high level of oxidative stress and inflammation. So, we tested the properties of a commercial food supplement containing a series of plant polyphenols in combination with caffeine, bioperine (black pepper extract), and selenium in smoking healthy volunteers. Fifty participants have been recruited and hematochemical analyses and biochemistry tests have been performed, before and after 60 days of supplement intake. Thirteen subjects dropped out of the study. At the end of the intervention, the variation of inflammatory and oxidant markers has been evaluated, measuring urinary isoprostanes, serum advanced glycation end products, and oxidized low-density lipoproteins. The results showed that this supplement exhibits promising antioxidant and anti-inflammatory responses, especially in women, highlighting the role of supplementation in certain groups of subjects, for the control of oxidative stress as well as inflammatory status. So, its intake should be useful in delaying the onset of age-related diseases.

Mediterranean diet and longevity: an example of nutraceuticals?

The Mediterranean diet (Mediet) is an eating pattern characterizing a lifestyle and culture that has been reported to contribute to better health and quality of life. The Mediet reflects food patterns typical of Mediterranean regions, where olive oil plays an essential role in the food pyramid. Olive oil is located in the middle and it is considered the principal source of dietary fat because of its high nutritional quality (particularly extra virgin olive oil). Several studies have shown the effect of the Mediet on healthy status by lowering the rates of coronary heart disease, certain cancers, and some other age-related chronic diseases. Although the scientific literature regarding diet and life span is complex and with different opinions, there are studies that demonstrate the beneficial effects of the Mediet on longevity. Therefore, the Mediet may be considered as including several nutraceuticals that favourably influence health. In the present review we discuss two Mediterranean populations from the island of Ikaria (Greece) and the Sicani Mounts (Sicily, Italy) whose longevity is attributed to a close adherence to the Mediet.

Inflammation, cytokines, immune response, apolipoprotein E, cholesterol, and oxidative stress in Alzheimer disease: therapeutic implications.

Alzheimer disease (AD) is a heterogeneous and progressive neurodegenerative disease, which in Western society mainly accounts for senile dementia. Today many countries have rising aging populations and are facing an increased prevalence of age-related diseases, such as AD, with increasing health-care costs. Understanding the pathophysiology process of AD plays a prominent role in new strategies for extending the health of the elderly population. Considering the future epidemic of AD, prevention and treatment are important goals of ongoing research. However, a better understanding of AD pathophysiology must be accomplished to make this objective feasible. In this paper, we review some hot topics concerning AD pathophysiology that have an important impact on therapeutic perspectives. Hence, we have focused our attention on inflammation, cytokines, immune response, apolipoprotein E (APOE), cholesterol, oxidative stress, as well as exploring the related therapeutic possibilities, i.e., nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, cytokine blocking antibodies, immunotherapy, diet, and curcumin.