Physical Activity and the Common Cold in Men Administered Vitamin E and β-Carotene

Background and Purpose: It has been proposed that moderate regular aerobic training may enhance immunocompetence, whereas excessive training may cause immunosuppression. We evaluated whether physical activity at work, or at leisure, is associated with the risk of the common cold, and whether the antioxidants vitamin E and β-carotene affect common cold risk in physically active people. Methods: A cohort of 14,401 men aged 50–69 yr and working at study entry was drawn from the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention (ATBC) Study, which examined the effect of vitamin E, 50 mg·d-1, and β-carotene, 20 mg·d-1, on lung cancer in smokers using a 2 × 2 factorial design. The trial was conducted in southwestern Finland in 1985–1993; the intervention lasted for 6.1 yr (median). Physical activity at work, and the type and frequency of leisure-time exercise were recorded at study entry. The subjects were questioned about common cold episodes 3× yr-1. We modeled the cumulative incidence of colds during a 2-yr follow-up period with Poisson regression, adjusting for potential confounders. Results: Physical activity at work and at leisure had no association with common cold risk. In subjects with physically load-bearing jobs, neither vitamin E nor β-carotene affected significantly the risk of common cold. In subjects carrying out heavy exercise at leisure, vitamin E and β-carotene increased the risk of colds when compared with placebo. Conclusions: Contrary to previous suggestions, moderate physical activity is not associated with lower risk of common cold in middle-aged male smokers. It has been previously proposed that antioxidant supplementation might be beneficial for subjects carrying out heavy exercise, but in our study vitamin E and β-carotene increased the risk of colds in subjects carrying out heavy exercise at leisure

Physical Activity and the Risk of Pneumonia in Male Smokers Administered Vitamin E and β-Carotene

It has been proposed that moderate exercise may enhance the immune system. We evaluated whether physical activity at work or at leisure is associated with the risk of pneumonia, and whether the antioxidants vitamin E and β-carotene affect pneumonia risk in physically active people. A cohort of 16 804 male smokers aged 50 – 69 years and working at study entry was drawn from the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention (ATBC) Study, which examined the effect of vitamin E, 50 mg/day, and β-carotene, 20 mg/day, on lung and other cancers. Physical activity at work, an

Physical activity and the common cold in men administered vitamin E and beta-carotene

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The effect of vitamin E on common cold incidence is modified by age, smoking and residential neighborhood

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Vitamin C, Vitamin E and Beta-Carotene in Relation to Common Cold Incidence in Male Smokers

We evaluated the role of dietary vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene, as well as long-term vitamin E and beta-carotene supplementation, on the incidence of common cold episodes. A cohort of 21,796 male smokers was drawn from the Alpha-Tocopherol Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study, which examined the effects of 50 mg per day vitamin E and 20 mg per day beta-carotene on lung cancer. Diet and background characteristics were recorded at the study entry, and subjects were queried three times per year on common cold episodes. We modeled the total number of colds during a 4-year follow-up period with Poisson regression, adjusting for covariates of dietary intake. Dietary vitamins C and E and beta-carotene had no meaningful association with common cold incidence. Long-term vitamin E and beta-carotene supplementation had no overall effect. Among subjects 65 years of age or older, the incidence of colds was slightly lower in the vitamin E group (RR = 0.95; 95% CI = 0.90–1.00); this reduction was greatest among older city dwellers who smoked fewer than 15 cigarettes per day (RR = 0.72; 95% CI = 0.62–0.83). In this male smoking population, vitamins C and E and beta-carotene had no overall association with the incidence of common cold episodes

Vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta-carotene in relation to common cold incidence in male smokers

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Improved Imputation of Common and Uncommon Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) with a New Reference Set

Statistical imputation of genotype data is an important technique for analysis of genome-wide association studies (GWAS). We have built a reference dataset to improve imputation accuracy for studies of individuals of primarily European descent using genotype data from the Hap1, Omni1, and Omni2.5 human SNP arrays (Illumina). Our dataset contains 2.5-3.1 million variants for 930 European, 157 Asian, and 162 African/African-American individuals. Imputation accuracy of European data from Hap660 or OmniExpress array content, measured by the proportion of variants imputed with R^2^>0.8, improved by 34%, 23% and 12% for variants with MAF of 3%, 5% and 10%, respectively, compared to imputation using publicly available data from 1,000 Genomes and International HapMap projects. The improved accuracy with the use of the new dataset could increase the power for GWAS by as much as 8% relative to genotyping all variants. This reference dataset is available to the scientific community through the NCBI dbGaP portal. Future versions will include additional genotype data as well as non-European populations

Alcohol Intake and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Younger, Middle-Aged, and Older Adults

BACKGROUND: Light-to-moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a reduced risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). This protective effect of alcohol, however, may be confined to middle-aged or older individuals. CHD Incidence is low in men younger than 40 and in women younger than 50 years and for this reason, study cohorts rarely have the power to investigate effects of alcohol on CHD risk in younger adults. This study examined whether the beneficial effect of alcohol on CHD depends on age. METHODS AND RESULTS: A pooled analysis of eight prospective studies from North America and Europe including 192,067 women and 74,919 men free of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and cancers at baseline. Average daily alcohol intake was assessed at baseline using a food frequency or diet history questionnaire. An inverse association between alcohol and risk of coronary heart disease was observed in all age groups: hazard ratios among moderately drinking men (5.0–29.9 g/day) aged 39–50, 50–59, and 60+ years were 0.58 (95% C.I. 0.36 to 0.93), 0.72 (95% C.I. 0.60–0.86), and 0.85 (95% C.I. 0.75 to 0.97) compared with abstainers. However, the analyses indicated a smaller incidence rate difference (IRD) between abstainers and moderate consumers in younger adults (IRD=45 per 100,000; 90% C.I. 8 to 84), than in middle-aged (IRD=64 per 100,000; 90% C.I. 24 to 102) and older adults (IRD=89 per 100,000; 90% C.I. 44 to 140). Similar results were observed in women. CONCLUSIONS: Alcohol is also associated with a decreased risk of CHD in younger adults; however, the absolute risk was small compared with middle-aged and older adults

Food and nutrient intake in relation to mental wellbeing

BACKGROUND: We studied food consumption and nutrient intake in subjects with depressed mood, anxiety and insomnia as indices of compromised mental wellbeing. METHODS: The study population consisted of 29,133 male smokers aged 50 to 69 years who entered the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study in 1985–1988. This was a placebo-controlled trial to test whether supplementation with alpha-tocopherol or beta-carotene prevents lung cancer. At baseline 27,111 men completed a diet history questionnaire from which food and alcohol consumption and nutrient intake were calculated. The questionnaire on background and medical history included three symptoms on mental wellbeing, anxiety, depression and insomnia experienced in the past four months. RESULTS: Energy intake was higher in men who reported anxiety or depressed mood, and those reporting any such symptoms consumed more alcohol. Subjects reporting anxiety or depressed mood had higher intake of omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings conflict with the previous reports of beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acids on mood