Cardiovascular health and arterial stiffness: the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study

Ideal cardiovascular health is a recently defined construct by the American Heart Association (AHA) to promote cardiovascular disease reduction. Arterial stiffness is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. The extent to which the presence of multiple prevalent cardiovascular risk factors and health behaviors is associated with arterial stiffness is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between the AHA construct of cardiovascular health and arterial stiffness, as indexed by pulse wave velocity (PWV) and pulse pressure. The AHA health metrics, comprising of four health behaviors (smoking, body mass index, physical activity and diet) and three health factors (total cholesterol, blood pressure and fasting plasma glucose), were evaluated among 505 participants in the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study. Outcome measures were carotid-femoral PWV and pulse pressure measured at 4- to 5-year follow-up. Better cardiovascular health, comprising both health factors and behaviors, was associated with lower arterial stiffness, as indexed by PWV and pulse pressure. Those with at least five health metrics at ideal levels had significantly lower PWV (9.8 m s(-1)) than those with two or less ideal health metrics (11.7 m s(-1)) (P < 0.001). This finding remained with the addition of demographic and PWV-related variables (P = 0.004).

Relation between dairy food intake and cognitive function: The Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study

Diet modification to alter the course of age-related cognitive decline is becoming increasingly important. Few observational findings suggest that dairy food intake may be positively related to cognitive function, but research in this novel area is limited. The aim of this study was to investigate whether dairy food intake is associated with cognitive function, before and after adjustment for cardiovascular, lifestyle and dietary factors. To do this, a cross-sectional analyses of a subset of the community-based Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS) sample (N = 972) was undertaken. It was determined that participants who consumed dairy products at least once per day had significantly higher scores on multiple domains of cognitive function compared with those who never or rarely consumed dairy foods, adjusting for cardiovascular risk factors, lifestyle and dietary factors. Frequent dairy food intake is associated with better cognitive performance but underlying causal mechanisms are still to be determined.

Dairy consumption and metabolic syndrome: a systematic review of findings and methodological issues

A growing body of observational research suggests that dairy consumption may have a beneficial effect on the metabolic syndrome (MetS). MetS is a clustering of cardiometabolic risk factors within an individual that carries with it an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease. A systematic search of electronic databases identified cross-sectional studies (n = 10) and prospective cohort studies (n = 3) that assessed dairy intake in relation to MetS. The quality of the included studies was assessed based on study methodology, measurement and reporting of dietary intake, use of standardized MetS diagnostic criteria and statistical analysis. Dairy intake was inversely associated with incidence or prevalence of MetS in seven out of 13 studies. Three studies found no association between dairy and MetS. Three studies reported mixed relationships between specific dairy foods and MetS. The majority of studies suggested a potential benefit of dairy consumption on the risk of having MetS, but methodological differences, potential biases and other limitations in the studies conducted prevent conclusions to be drawn. Future randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm the effect of dairy consumption on MetS.