Posts Tagged “pear consumption”
By The Northwest Pear Bureau
PORTLAND, Ore. — An abstract of an ongoing study, “Fresh pear (Pyrus communis) consumption may improve blood pressure in middle-aged men and women with metabolic syndrome,” presented at Experimental Biology in San Diego recently indicates regular fresh pear consumption may improve blood pressure and vascular function in middle-aged men and women with metabolic syndrome (MetS.)1 MetS, a cluster of major cardiovascular risk factors highly associated with the development of chronic disease such as cardiovascular disease and type II diabetes, affects more than one in three U.S. adults. 2
The randomized, placebo-controlled crossover clinical trial evaluated the antihypertensive effects of fresh pear consumption in middle-aged men and women with MetS. Fifty men and women aged 45 to 65 years with three of the five features of MetS were randomly assigned to receive either 2 medium-sized fresh pears (~178 g) or 50 g pear-flavored drink mix (placebo) per day for 12 weeks. Preliminary analyses of 36 participants show that after 12 weeks of fresh pear consumption, systolic blood pressure and pulse pressure were significantly lower than baseline levels, whereas there were no changes in the control group. Further research is needed to confirm the antihypertensive effects of fresh pears as well as to assess their impact on vascular function.
“These initial results are very promising,” said Dr. Sarah A. Johnson, PhD, RDN, lead author and now Assistant Professor and Director of the Functional Foods & Human Health Laboratory in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Colorado State University. “With metabolic syndrome being of such high prevalence in the U.S., we feel it is important to explore the potential for functional foods such as pears to improve cardiovascular risk factors such as blood pressure in affected middle-aged adults. Elevated systolic blood pressure and pulse pressure, which is the difference between systolic and diastolic blood pressure, are strong predictors of cardiovascular disease. Age-related vascular dysfunction has been shown to be accelerated in individuals with metabolic syndrome and contributes to these increases in blood pressure.”
The study is from the Department of Nutrition, Food and Exercise Sciences and the Center for Advancing Exercise and Nutrition Research on Aging (CAENRA) at Florida State University by Dr. Bahram H. Arjmandi, Professor and Director of CAENRA and Dr. Sarah A. Johnson, previous Assistant Director of CAENRA.
Among the most popular fruits in the world, Pears are an excellent source of fiber and a good source of vitamin C, for only 100 calories per serving. One medium pear provides 24 percent of daily fiber needs. Plus they are sodium-free, cholesterol-free, fat-free, and contain 190 mg of potassium. A balanced diet rich in fruits and vegetables, including pears, provides beneficial micronutrients, vitamins, dietary fiber, potassium, phytochemicals, and more.
Pear Bureau Northwest continues to collaborate with researchers to support additional studies highlighting the relationship between pears and positive health outcomes. Visit www.usapears.org for additional pear research, nutrition resources and recipes.
About Pear Bureau Northwest Pear Bureau Northwest was established in 1931 as a nonprofit marketing organization to promote the fresh pears grown in Oregon and Washington. Today, the United States is the third largest pear-producing country in the world, and Oregon and Washington comprise the nation’s largest pear growing region with 1,600 growers producing 84% of all fresh pears grown in the United States. Pears grown in these two Pacific Northwest states are distributed under the “USA Pears” brand. Pears are an excellent source of fiber (24% DV) and a good source of vitamin C (10% DV) for only 100 calories per medium sized pear. Sweet and juicy with no fat, no sodium, and no cholesterol, pears are a perfect choice for a snack as well as for any course of any meal of the day. For more information, visit www.usapears.org, www.facebook.com/USApears, and follow @USApears on Twitter.
By The Northwest Pear Bureau
A study has found that adult pear consumers had a lower body weight than non-pear consumers and they were 35 percent less likely to be obese.
In the new study, Fresh Pear Consumption is Associated with Better Nutrient Intake, Diet Quality, and Weight Parameters in Adults: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2001-2010, published in Nutrition and Food Science, revealed new information regarding the health benefits of pear consumption, particular interest is given the high rates of obesity in the United States,
“We believe fiber intake may have driven the lower body weights that were seen in this study because there was no difference in energy intake or level of physical activity found between the fresh pear consumers and non-consumers,” the study states.
The epidemiologic study, led by Carol O’Neil of the Louisiana State University Agricultural Center, used a nationally representative analytic sample to examine the association of fresh pear consumption with nutrient intake, nutrient adequacy, diet quality, and cardiovascular risk factors in adults.
“The association between pears and lower body weight is very exciting,” said Dr. O’Neil. “We believe fiber intake may have driven the lower body weights that were seen in this study because there was no difference in energy intake or level of physical activity found between the fresh pear consumers and non-consumers.”
In addition to discovering a correlation between fresh pear consumers and lower body weight, the study found that pear consumption was associated with higher diet quality (as defined by the Healthy Eating Index). Moreover, the consumption of one medium fresh pear per day had a positive effect on nutrient intake since consumers had higher usual intakes of dietary fiber, vitamin C, magnesium, copper, and potassium, and higher mean intakes of total sugars; consumers of fresh pears also had lower intakes of total, monounsaturated fatty acids, saturated fatty acids, and added sugars.
Pears are an excellent source of fiber and a good source of vitamin C. One medium pear provides about 24 percent of daily fiber needs for only 100 calories. They are sodium-free, cholesterol-free, fat-free and contain 190 mg of potassium. The USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans state that people who eat more fruit as part of an overall healthy diet are likely to reduce their risk of some chronic diseases, although little is published on the health outcomes associated with individual fruits, including pears.
Pear Bureau Northwest, the nonprofit marketing association that promotes fresh pears grown in Oregon and Washington, recently commissioned nutrition research examining fresh pear consumption and the associated nutrition and health benefits.
The research, which was led by Victor Fulgoni III, Ph.D, was presented at Experimental Biology in San Diego and revealed that when compared with non-consumers, fresh pear consumers had a better nutrition profile and overall better quality of diet (for example, more dietary fibre, vitamin C, copper, magnesium and potassium). Fresh pear consumers also had lower added sugar intake, as well as lower intake of total fat, mono-unsaturated fat and saturated fat. Furthermore, the likelihood of being obese was 35 percent lower among fresh pear consumers than among their non-consumer counterparts.
The association between fresh pear consumption with nutrient intake, dietary quality and risk of obesity was examined in adults 19 years old and older participating in the 2001-10 National Health & Nutrition Examination Survey. Energy and nutrient intakes were calculated using the USDA’s Food & Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies.
“We are pleased to see healthy pears as part of the greater scientific conversation and look forward to growing our nutrition research and communications program,” Kevin Moffitt, president and chief executive officer of Pear Bureau Northwest, said in a press release.