Sunday Times 2
Could grapefruit beat lung disease?
Eating grapefruit, bananas, fish and cheese could help patients suffering one of the most common lung conditions in Britain, say scientists.
Research showed a direct link between the foods and improvements in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Scientists from the US and Europe used diet records for 2,167 COPD sufferers over a three-year period.
Those who had eaten the products within 24 hours showed improvement in a range of measures such as lung function, fitness scores and white blood cell count.
Lead study author Dr Corrine Hanson said patients should now be offered dietary and nutritional counselling as part of their treatment.
It usually affects people over the age of 35, although most people are not diagnosed until they are in their fifties.
Those who had eaten the products within 24 hours showed improvement in a range of measures such as lung function, fitness scores and white blood cell count. Lead study author Dr. Corrine Hanson said patients should now be offered dietary and nutritional counselling as part of their treatment.
It is thought there are more than 3 million people living with the disease in Britain, of which only about 900,000 have been diagnosed.
This is because many people who develop symptoms of COPD do not get medical help because they often dismiss their symptoms as a ‘smoker’s cough’.
COPD affects more men than women, although rates in women are increasing.
The study’s lead author Doctor Corinne Hanson said: ‘Diet is a potentially modifiable risk factor in the development and progression of many diseases, and there is evidence that diet plays a role in both the development and clinical features of COPD.
‘This study aimed to evaluate that association.’
© Daily Mail, London