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Published ahead of its print appearance in Diabetes Care Journal, this new study offers help to those concerned with Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Type 2 Diabetes in the form of a novel grain called “SALBA”

Winter Springs, FL - September, 2007

Every once in a great while a true nutritional star comes shining through. Such is the case with the new-to-the-US whole food sensation from Florida-based Core Naturals called Salba®. Salba is an amazing nutrient-dense whole food – all neatly contained in a tiny white seed –  with a growing body of scientific evidence to substantiate its numerous health benefits, from one of the leading universities in the world. This latest study, conducted by a team led by Dr. Vladimir Vuksan, PhD, is promising news for the millions of people who are concerned with cardio-vascular risk factors in type 2 diabetes. It can be found online at www.pubmed.gov keyword “Salba,” and http://www.vitasearch.com/get-clp-summary/36580

Salba’s exceptional nutritional profile was discovered from research conducted by Dr. Vladimir Vuksan, PhD, Professor of Endocrinology and Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. Dr. Vuksan is renowned worldwide for developing novel alternative therapies for obesity, diabetes, and heart disease, and was instrumental in the creation of the term “Glycemic Index.” Dr. Vuksan has conducted numerous clinical studies using Type 2 diabetic patients and healthy individuals, and this is his latest: “Supplementation of Conventional Therapy with the Novel Grain Salba (Salvia hispanica L.) Improves Major and Emerging Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Type 2 Diabetes: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial.”

Salba is a variety of an ancient plant species belonging to the mint family, and got its name from the unique combination of its botanical name “ Salvia hispanica L, ” and the Latin name for white, “Alba.” Gram for gram, Salba seeds offer six (6) times more calcium than whole milk, fifteen (15) times more magnesium than broccoli, and three (3) times more antioxidant strength than blueberries. Salba is all-natural, has no trans-fat, and is neutral in taste. That means it blends perfectly with almost every food, plus it absorbs from 8 to 12 times its weight. And, as if that isn’t enough great nutritional news, Salba is Certified Non-GMO, Certified Kosher, Certified Vegan by the American Vegetarian Association, and Certified Gluten-Free by the GFCO (Gluten-Free Certification Organization), whose certification allows Salba to carry their label. This serves as assurance to millions of people who suffer from Celiac disease that this nutrient-dense whole food source can be safely consumed as part of a healthy diet. It’s also ideal for all those who are concerned with gluten consumption.

This study, a single-blind, crossover design study involving 20 subjects (mean age = 64 years) with well-controlled type 2 diabetes, has results which indicate that long-term supplementation with Salba – a novel whole-grain (Salvia hispanica L.), rich in fiber, alpha-linolenic acid and minerals – may lower systolic blood pressure and certain other cardiovascular risk factors.

Using a crossover design, the subjects were randomized to receive either 37 g/day Salba or wheat bran (control) for a period of 12 weeks, while remaining on their conventional diabetes therapies. Salba supplementation was found to significantly reduce systolic blood pressure (-6.3 mm Hg), hs-CRP (-40%) and von Willebrand factor (-21%), compared with the control. Additionally, significant decreases in A1c and fibrinogen were observed at Salba-intervention end, compared to Salba-intervention baseline. No changes in safety parameters were associated with Salba supplementation.

Thus, the authors of this study conclude, “Long-term supplementation with Salba attenuated a major cardiovascular risk factor (SBP) and emerging factors (hs-CRP and vWF) safely beyond conventional therapy, while maintaining good glycemic and lipid control in people with well-controlled type 2 diabetes.”

In previous research on Salba, Dr. Vuksan conducted clinical studies using Type 2 diabetic patients and healthy individuals. He made the following observations:

*Salba reduced after meal blood glucose and plasma insulin levels, thus improving the Glycemic Index of any food consumed with Salba  *C- Reactive Protein, a marker for low grade body inflammation was significantly lowered (40 per cent) * Salba significantly lowered systolic blood pressure (10 over 5) * Salba significantly decreased coagulation (blood thinning) by 30%  *No adverse effect was noted on glycemic control or blood lipids as previously seen with high doses of Omega-3 Fatty Acids. (NOTE: Copies of these studies are available upon request.)

The others members of this research team are from The Risk Factor Modification Centre at St.Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, Canada, and from the Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, and the Department of Medicine, St. Michael’s Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto. They include Dana Whitham, MSC, RD, John L Sievenpiper PhD, Alexandra L Jenkins, RD, PhD, Alexander L Rogovik, MD, PhD, Richard P Bazinet, PhD, Edward Vidgen, BSC, and Amir Hanna MD, FRCPC.

Salba can be mixed with juice, or water, or tea, stirred into all sauces & gravies, sprinkled on cereals, pastas, rice, vegetables, blended into smoothies, yogurt, or just about any food you can think of!  It is now available in natural food stores nationwide, and through health practitioners. The company, headed by Mitch Propster, is a developer and marketer of premium ingredients for the nutrition, nutraceutical, and functional food markets.

Salba® is rich in Calcium! This latest study provides solid evidence that supplements cannot compete with real food – it’s only natural…

Women who get most of their daily calcium from dietary sources have healthier bones than women whose calcium comes mainly from supplements, says new research;

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, followed 168 healthy postmenopausal white women and reports that the benefits of dietary sources even held true when supplement takers have higher average calcium intake.

The use of calcium supplements is widely accepted by the general public, with the mineral reported to be the biggest seller in the US supplements industry, with annual sales of about $993 (Euros 836) million in 2004, according to the Nutrition Business Journal.

The new study, led by Reina Armamento-Villareal, from Barnes-Jewish Hospital, has implications for the supplements industry with the researchers indicating that consumers may not be aware that calcium carbonate, for example, should be taken with meals to improve calcium absorption. Calcium citrate tablets don’t have this limitation.

“Only about 35 per cent of the calcium in most supplements ends up being absorbed by the body,” said Armamento-Villareal. “Calcium from the diet is generally better absorbed, and this could be another reason that women who got a high percentage of calcium in their food had higher bone densities.”

The researchers evaluated the average total daily calcium intake from dietary and supplemental sources of the postmenopausal women. Measures of oestrogen metabolites in the urine, and spine and proximal femur bone mineral density (BMD) were also taken.

The women were divided into three groups: the “supplement group,” got at least 70 per cent of their daily calcium from tablets or pills (average 1,030 mg/d); the “diet group,” got at least 70 per cent of their calcium from dairy products and other foods (average 830 mg/d); and the “diet plus supplement group,” obtained calcium from both sources in between these ranges (average 1,620 mg/d).

Despite having the lowest calcium intakes, the women in the “diet group” were found to have higher bone density in their spines and hip-bones than women in the “supplement group”. Women in the “diet plus supplement group” had the highest bone mineral density.

When the researchers looked at levels of the oestrogenic metabolites, they found that women with dietary sources or mixed sources of calcium had higher rations of the active metabolite (1/16-hydroxyestrone) to the inactive (2-hydroxyestrone) than women who received most of their calcium from supplemental sources.

“Calcium from dietary sources is associated with a shift in oestrogen metabolism toward the active 16-hydroxyl metabolic pathway and with greater BMD and thus may produce more favourable effects in bone health in postmenopausal women than will calcium from supplements,” concluded the researchers.

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the General Clinical Research Centre at Washington University. Osteoporosis is estimated to affect about 75m people in Europe, the USA and Japan. According to the International Osteoporosis Foundation, the total direct cost of osteoporotic fractures is €31.7bn in Europe and 17.5bn in the US (2002 figure). The total annual cost of osteoporosis in the UK alone is over £1.7bn (€2.5bn), equivalent to £5m (€7.3m) each day!

Source: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Volume 85, Pages 1428-1433
“Effects of dietary calcium compared with calcium supplements on estrogen metabolism and bone mineral density” Authors: N. Napoli, J. Thompson, R. Civitelli, R.C. Armamento-Villareal