Summer Vegetable Sauces By MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN Tomatoes arent the only vegetable that you can turn

into a sauce or condiment. Onions and fennel cook down to a thick, sweet, jammy confit. Roasted peppers can be simmered until theyre soft and saucy, then tossed with pasta, piled onto bruschetta or spooned over fish or chicken. Mediterranean cooks have always been my inspiration when it comes to vegetable-based sauces. Traditionally theyve had to be clever about putting by, taking the abundance of one season and cooking it down (into a tomato sauce, for instance, or puree) or blending it with olive oil (pesto) so that it lasts until winters end. Use this weeks recipes to gussy up a simple bowl of grains and vegetables, enjoy the sauces with crusty bread or atop a good piece of fish or chicken, or serve with anything grilled. They all keep well in the refrigerator, and they also can be frozen, perfect for pulling out on a summer day when the heat has sapped your desire to cook. Pungent Tomato Sauce With Capers and Vinegar There are so many ways to enjoy this sauce. You can serve it with pasta or grains, over vegetables (try it with cauliflower) or on a bruschetta. I recently tried it with Israeli couscous, sauted in olive oil then simmered in stock and topped with this sauce. 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped 1 large garlic clove, minced 1 pound fresh tomatoes, grated, or 1 can chopped tomatoes 1 basil sprig 1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and finely chopped Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar (more to taste) 1 to 2 tablespoons minced parsley or slivered basil (optional) 1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a medium, heavy saucepan. Add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until tender, about five minutes. Stir in the garlic. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the tomatoes, basil sprig, capers, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stir and reduce the heat. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes until cooked down and very fragrant. Remove the basil sprig. Stir in the vinegar, the remaining

tablespoon of olive oil and the optional parsley or basil. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve hot or cold. Yield: About 1 1/4 cups, serving four to six. Advance preparation: You can keep this sauce for about a week in therefrigerator. It freezes well. Nutritional information per serving (four servings): 87 calories; 1 gramsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 0milligrams cholesterol; 6 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 70milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 1 gram protein Nutritional information per serving (six servings): 58 calories; 1 gramsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 0milligrams cholesterol; 4 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 47milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 1 gram protein

In Eyes, a Clock Calibrated by Wavelengths of Light By LAURA BEIL Just as the ear has two purposes hearing and telling you which way is up so does the eye. It receives the input necessary for vision, but the retina also houses a network of sensors that detect the rise and fall of daylight. With light, the body sets its internal clock to a 24-hour cycle regulating an estimated 10 percent of our genes. The workhorse of this system is the light-sensitive hormone melatonin, which is produced by the body every evening and during the night. Melatonin promotes sleep and alerts a variety of biological processes to the approximate hour of the day. Light hitting the retina suppresses the production of melatonin and there lies the rub. In this modern world, our eyes are flooded with light well after dusk, contrary to our evolutionary programming. Scientists are just beginning to understand the potential health consequences. The disruption of circadian cycles may not just be shortchanging our sleep, they have found, but also contributing to a host of diseases. Light works as if its a drug, except its not a drug at all, said George Brainard, a neurologist at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and one of the first researchers to study lights effects on the bodys hormones and circadian rhythms.

Any sort of light can suppress melatonin, but recent experiments have raised novel questions about one type in particular: the blue wavelengths produced by many kinds of energy-efficient light bulbs and electronic gadgets. Dr. Brainard and other researchers have found that light composed of blue wavelengths slows the release of melatonin with particular effectiveness. Until recently, though, few studies had directly examined how blue-emitting electronics might affect the brain. So scientists at the University of Basel in Switzerland tried a simple experiment: They asked 13 men to sit before a computer each evening for two weeks before going to bed. During one week, for five hours every night, the volunteers sat before an old-style fluorescent monitor emitting light composed of several colors from the visible spectrum, though very little blue. Another week, the men sat at screens backlighted by light-emitting diodes, or LEDs. This screen was twice as blue. To our surprise, we saw huge differences, said Christian Cajochen, who heads the Center for Chronobiology at the University of Basel. Melatonin levels in volunteers watching the LED screens took longer to rise at night, compared with when the participants were watching the fluorescent screens, and the deficit persisted throughout the evening. The subjects also scored higher on tests of memory and cognition after exposure to blue light, Dr. Cajochen and his team reported in the May issue of The Journal of Applied Physiology. While men were able to recall pairs of words flashed across the fluorescent screen about half the time, some scores rose to almost 70 percent when they stared at the LED monitors. The finding adds to a series of others suggesting, though certainly not proving, that exposure to blue light may keep us more awake and alert, partly by suppressing production of melatonin. An LED screen bright enough and big enough could be giving you an alert stimulus at a time that will frustrate your bodys ability to go to sleep later, said Dr. Brainard. When you turn it off, it doesnt mean that instantly the alerting effects go away. Theres an underlying biology thats stimulated. Still, nobody is suggesting that we all turn off the lights at dusk and sit in the dark; research into this area is in its infancy. We are only beginning to understand what really happens under natural conditions, said Mark Rea of the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York. Artificial light has been around for more than 120 years. But the light emitted by older sources, like incandescent bulbs, contains more red wavelengths. The problem now, Dr. Brainard and other researchers fear, is that our world is increasingly illuminated in blue. By one estimate, 1.6 billion

new computers, televisions and cellphones were sold last year alone, and incandescent lights are being replaced by more energy-efficient, and often bluer, bulbs. In January in the journal PLoS One, the University of Basel team also compared the effects of incandescent bulbs to fluorescents modified to emit more blue light. Men exposed to the fluorescent lights produced 40 percent less melatonin than when they were exposed to incandescent bulbs, and they reported feeling more awake an hour after the lights went off. In addition, the quantity of light necessary to affect melatonin may be much smaller than once thought. In research published in March in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, a team at the Harvard Medical School reported that ordinary indoor lighting before bedtime suppressed melatonin in the brain, even delaying production of the hormone for 90 minutes after the lights were off, compared with people exposed to only dim light. What do these findings mean to everyday life? Some experts believe that any kind of light too late into the evening could have broad health effects, independent of any effect on sleep. For example, a report published last year in the journal PNAS found that mice exposed to light at night gained more weight than those housed in normal light, even though both groups consumed the same number of calories. Light at night has been examined as a contributor to breast cancer for two decades. While there is still no consensus, enough laboratory and epidemiological studies have supported the idea that in 2007, the World Health Organization declared shift work a probable carcinogen. Body clock disruptions can alter sleep-activity patterns, suppress melatonin production and disregulate genes involved in tumor development, the agency concluded. Blue lights effects might be particularly pronounced for shift workers and others who get little natural daylight, some researchers say. Consider one small trial that appears the June issue of The Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. Among 28 elderly nursing home residents, those exposed to just 30 minutes of blue light on weekdays for four weeks showed improvement in cognitive abilities, compared with patients exposed only to red. Researchers like Dr. Brainard hope the science may lead to a new generation of lights and screens designed with wavelengths that adjust according to the hour of the day. Among those interested are officials at NASA, who have approached the neurologist about designing light on the International Space Station in a way that promotes alertness during waking hours and encourages sleep during times of rest.

I think were on the verge of a lighting revolution, said Dr. Brainard. If the hormone-sparing lights can be made to work during spaceflight, he said, people will use it here on the ground.

La melatonina como actua sobre el sueo

Al igual que el odo tiene dos propsitos - la audiencia y le dice que es arriba - tambin lo hace el ojo. Se recibe la informacin necesaria para la visin, pero la retina tambin cuenta con una red de sensores que detectan el ascenso y cada de la luz del da. Con la luz, el cuerpo comienza su reloj interno para un ciclo de 24 horas que regula un 10 por ciento de nuestros genes. El caballo de batalla de este sistema es la melatonina, la hormona sensible a la luz, que es producida por el cuerpo todas las noches y durante la noche. La melatonina favorece el sueo y alerta a una gran variedad de procesos biolgicos a la hora aproximada del da. Luz que llega a la retina suprime la produccin de melatonina - y all radica el problema. En este mundo moderno, los ojos se inundan de luz y despus del atardecer, en contra de nuestra programacin evolutiva. Los cientficos estn empezando a comprender las consecuencias potenciales para la salud. La interrupcin de los ciclos circadianos, no puede ser slo estafando nuestro sueo, que han encontrado, sino que contribuye a una serie de enfermedades. "La luz funciona como si fuera un medicamento, excepto que no es un medicamento a todos", dijo George Brainard, un neurlogo de la Universidad Thomas Jefferson de Filadelfia y uno de los primeros investigadores en estudiar los efectos de la luz sobre las hormonas del cuerpo y los ritmos circadianos. Cualquier tipo de luz puede suprimir la melatonina, pero experimentos recientes han planteado nuevas cuestiones acerca de un tipo en particular: las longitudes de onda azules producidas por muchos tipos de bombillas energticamente eficientes y aparatos electrnicos. Dr. Brainard y otros investigadores han encontrado que la luz de longitudes de onda azules compuesto disminuye la liberacin de la melatonina con especial eficacia. Hasta hace poco, sin embargo, pocos estudios haban examinado directamente lo azul de emisin electrnica puede afectar el cerebro. As que los cientficos de la Universidad de Basilea en Suiza, intent un experimento simple: Se pidi a 13 hombres que se sientan delante de un ordenador cada noche durante dos semanas antes de ir a la cama. Durante una semana, durante cinco horas cada noche, los voluntarios se

sentaron delante de un viejo estilo que emiten una luz fluorescente del monitor compuesto de varios colores del espectro visible, aunque muy poco azul. Una semana ms, los hombres se sentaron en las pantallas retroiluminadas por diodos emisores de luz, o LEDs. Esta pantalla fue el doble de color azul. "Para nuestra sorpresa, vimos grandes diferencias", dijo Christian Cajochen, quien dirige el Centro de Cronobiologa de la Universidad de Basilea. Los niveles de melatonina en voluntarios viendo las pantallas LED llev ms tiempo a subir por la noche, en comparacin con cuando los participantes observaban las pantallas fluorescentes, y el dficit se mantuvo durante la noche. Los participantes tambin tuvieron mejores calificaciones en las pruebas de memoria y la cognicin despus de la exposicin a la luz azul, el Dr. Cajochen y su equipo en la edicin de mayo de la Journal of Applied Physiology. Mientras que los hombres fueron capaces de recordar los pares de palabras parpadeaban en la pantalla fluorescente de la mitad del tiempo, algunos resultados se elev a casi el 70 por ciento cuando se qued mirando los monitores LED. El hallazgo se suma a una serie de otros lo que sugiere, aunque ciertamente no demuestra, que la exposicin a la luz azul puede mantenernos ms despierto y alerta, en parte por la supresin de la produccin de la melatonina. Una pantalla LED lo suficientemente grandes y lo suficientemente brillante "puede ser que le da un estmulo de alerta a la vez que frustrar la capacidad del cuerpo para ir a dormir ms tarde," dijo el Dr. Brainard. "Cuando se apaga, no significa que de inmediato los efectos de alertar a desaparecer. Hay una biologa subyacente que es estimulado. " Sin embargo, nadie est sugiriendo que todos apaguen las luces al anochecer y se sientan en la oscuridad, la investigacin en esta rea est en su infancia. "Estamos slo empezando a comprender lo que realmente sucede en condiciones naturales", dijo Mark Rea del Lighting Research Center del Instituto Politcnico Rensselaer en Nueva York. La luz artificial ha sido de alrededor de ms de 120 aos. Sin embargo, la luz emitida por las fuentes antiguas, como las bombillas incandescentes, contiene longitudes de onda ms rojas. El problema ahora, el Dr. Brainard y el miedo de otros investigadores, es que nuestro mundo es cada vez ms iluminado en azul. Segn una estimacin de 1,6 millones de ordenadores, televisiones y telfonos celulares se vendieron el ao pasado, y las luces incandescentes estn siendo sustituidos por otros ms eficientes energticamente, ya menudo ms azul, los bulbos. En enero en la revista PLoS One, la Universidad de Basilea equipo tambin compar los efectos de las bombillas incandescentes a fluorescentes modificadas para emitir luz azul. Los hombres expuestos a las luces fluorescentes producen melatonina 40 por ciento menos que cuando eran expuestas a las bombillas incandescentes, y dijeron sentirse ms despiertos una hora despus las luces se apagaron. Adems, la cantidad de luz necesaria para afectar la melatonina puede ser mucho ms pequeo que se pensaba. En una investigacin publicada en

marzo en la revista Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, un equipo de la Facultad de Medicina de Harvard inform que la iluminacin de interior ordinaria antes de acostarse suprimi la melatonina en el cerebro, incluso retrasar la produccin de la hormona durante 90 minutos despus de que las luces estaban apagadas, en comparacin con las personas expuestas a slo la luz tenue. Qu significan estos resultados significan para la vida cotidiana? Algunos expertos creen que cualquier tipo de luz demasiado tarde en la noche podra tener efectos amplios de salud, independiente de cualquier efecto sobre el sueo. Por ejemplo, un informe publicado el ao pasado en la revista PNAS encontraron que los ratones expuestos a la luz en la noche ganaron ms peso que los alojados en la luz normal, a pesar de que ambos grupos consumieron la misma cantidad de caloras. Luz en la noche se ha examinado como un contribuyente al cncer de mama hace dos dcadas. Aunque todava no hay consenso, lo suficiente como laboratorio y estudios epidemiolgicos han apoyado la idea de que en el ao 2007, la Organizacin Mundial de la Salud declar turno de trabajo un probable carcingeno. Interrupciones en el cuerpo del reloj "puede alterar la actividad del sueo-los patrones, suprimir la produccin de melatonina y disregulate genes implicados en el desarrollo del tumor", concluy la agencia. Efectos de la luz azul es puede ser particularmente pronunciado para los trabajadores por turnos y otros que reciben poca luz natural, dicen algunos investigadores. Considere la posibilidad de un ensayo pequeo que aparece el nmero de junio de la Revista de la Asociacin Americana de Directores Mdicos. Entre los 28 ancianos residentes en asilos de ancianos, las personas expuestas a tan slo 30 minutos de luz azul de lunes a viernes durante cuatro semanas mostraron una mejora en las capacidades cognitivas, en comparacin con los pacientes expuestos slo a rojo. Investigadores como el Dr. Brainard Esperamos que la ciencia puede dar lugar a una nueva generacin de luces y pantallas diseadas con longitudes de onda que se ajustan de acuerdo con la hora del da. Entre los interesados son funcionarios de la NASA, que se han acercado al neurlogo sobre el diseo de la luz en la Estacin Espacial Internacional en una manera que promueva el estado de alerta durante las horas de vigilia y sueo alienta en momentos de reposo. "Creo que estamos al borde de una revolucin de iluminacin", dijo Brainard. Si las luces de la hormona de preservacin pueden ser obligados a trabajar durante los vuelos espaciales, dijo, "la gente lo uso aqu en la tierra."