Dietary patterns are associated with overweight and obesity in Mexican school-age children

In Mexico, about one third of school-age population is overweight or obese and the diet is one of the main determinants. The purpose of this study was to identify the dietary patterns of Mexican school-age children and to determine their association with the risk of overweight/obesity. This study included 8252 school-age children who participated in the 2006 National Health and Nutrition Survey (ENSANUT-2006). Dietary data were collected using a 7-day Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ). Foods were classified into 25 groups and dietary patterns were defined by cluster analysis. Body Mass Index and prevalence of overweight/obesity were calculated. Logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between dietary patterns and overweight/obesity. Five dietary patterns were identified: Rural dietary pattern (high intake of tortilla and legumes), sweet cereal and corn dishes pattern (high intake of sugary cereals, tortilla, and maize products); diverse pattern (intake of several food groups); western pattern (high intake of sweetened beverages, fried snacks, industrial snack cakes, and sugary cereals), and whole milk and sweet pattern (high intake of whole milk and sweets). We found that children with sweet cereal and corn dishes and western dietary patterns showed an association with overweight and obesity (prevalence ratio 1.29 and 1.35, respectively, using as reference the rural dietary pattern). Patterns characterized by high intakes of sugary cereals, sweetened beverages, industrial snack, cakes, whole milk, and sweets were associated with a higher risk of overweight/obesity among in Mexican school-age children.     

Dietary patterns of adults living in Ouagadougou and their association with overweight

Background  

Urbanization in developing countries comes along with changes in food habits and living conditions and with an increase in overweight and associated health risks. The objective of the study was to describe dietary patterns of adults in Ouagadougou and to study their relationship with anthropometric status of the subjects.     

Eating characteristics of Chilean indigenous and non-indigenous adolescent girls

During childhood and adolescence, eating habits become established which are instrumental in determining eating behavior later in life. Various authors have described the acculturation of the Mapuche people toward Western culture. The objective of this study was to analyze the eating characteristics of indigenous and non-indigenous adolescent girls in the Araucania Region of Chile. A cross-sectional design was used with a probabilistic sample of 281 adolescents comprised of 139 indigenous and 142 non-indigenous girls attending 168 elementary schools. A modified food frequency questionnaire was applied, designed to obtain information about eating habits and consumption of Mapuche foods. The eating schedules are similar in both ethnic groups, with dinner being the meal that is least consumed. Total snack consumption per week has a mean of 7 with an interquartile range (IQR) of 5 to 10 without any differences between ethnic groups; of these snacks, only 2 were healthy (IQR = 1 to 3). The indigenous girls had a higher probability of consumption of native foods including mote (boiled wheat) (OR = 2.00; IC = 0.93-4.29), muday (fermented cereal alcohol) (OR = 3.45; IC = 1.90-6.27), and yuyo (field mustard) (OR = 4.40; IC = 2.06-9.39). The study's conclusion is that the the eating habits and behavior of indigenous adolescents are similar to those of non-indigenous girls, though the former still consume more indigenous foods.     

Dietary factors associated with obesity indicators and level of sports participation in Flemish adults: a cross-sectional study

Background  

Obesity develops when energy intake continuously exceeds energy expenditure, causing a fundamental chronic energy imbalance. Societal and behavioural changes over the last decades are held responsible for the considerable increase in sedentary lifestyles and inappropriate dietary patterns. The role of dietary fat and other dietary factors in the aetiology and maintenance of excess weight is controversial. The purposes of the present study were to investigate the dietary factors associated with body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC), and to analyse whether dietary intake varies between subjects with different levels of sports participation.     

The impact of overweight and obesity on public health

The global prevalence of obesity and overweight is increasing, bringing with it increases in mortality and morbidity from a constellation of diseases or comorbidities. In addition major increases in health care costs can be anticipated. At first sight many of the obesity and overweight comorbidities do not seem to have any common mechanism but the metabolic syndrome or the insulin resistance syndrome may provide a unifying mechanism for at least some of them. The public health case for addressing this progressive epidemic of overweight and obesity is unanswerable but this will require a solution to the seemingly intractable problem of persuading people to change their lifestyle.     

Measurements of the urban low socioeconomic level in families with malnourished infants

Two measurements of low socioeconomic level (LSL) were compared in a group of families of low socioeconomic strata from the Metropolitan Area of Santiago, Chile. The purpose was to search for an instrument capable of discriminating the more deprived sectors. The sample included 85 families with infant, the experimental group consisted of 42 families with severely malnourished infant, and the control group was formed by 43 families with healthy infant. The modified Graffar Scale and a Specific Index to measure LSL were applied throughout a survey carried out in the mothers. The study also comprised health and sociocultural aspects. Results indicated that the modified Graffar Scale does not discriminate at the level of an apparently homogeneous group. In contrast, the Specific Index does detect significant differences between both groups, as well as correlations between the health and sociocultural variables. The Specific Index is therefore a helpful and easy to use instrument when applied to urban groups of low socioeconomic level.     

Prevalence of overweight and obesity in Ecuadorian adolescent students in the urban area

This is the first study to establish the prevalence of overweight and obesity among Ecuadorian adolescent students. The population studied was made up of 2.829 students, 1.461 females and 1.368 males between 12 and <19 years of age. One thousand four hundred and thirty five students were registered in 60 schools, public and private, in the six main cities of the Coastal Region; the remaining 1.394 students were registered in 60 schools, public and private, in the six main cities in the Andean Region. Height and weight were measured in all participants and the body mass index (BMI) of each individual was calculated. Overweight was diagnosed in those adolescents whose BMI was between percentiles 85 and < 95, and obesity was diagnosed in the subjects whose BMI was > 95. Results indicate that 21.2% of adolescents had excess weight: 13.7% were overweight and 7.5% had obesity. Excess weight was higher in the Coast (24.7%) than in the Andean Region (17.7%; P < 0.0001). In the same way, excess weight was higher among students attending private schools (25,3%) than in those attending public schools (18.9%; P < 0.0001). Data also indicate that excess weight was more common in women than in men, 21.5% versus 20.8%, respectively (P < 0.02). The study also indicated that 16.8% of adolescents were underweight. Taken together, these data indicate that 38% of the studied population was malnourished. It is necessary to take measures to prevent and treat these important public health problems in Ecuador.     

Dietary patterns and quality in West-African immigrants in Madrid

Background  

Eating patterns of immigrants deserve to be better documented because they may reflect the extent of acculturation and associated health risks. The study assessed dietary patterns and quality in Bubi immigrants (from Equatorial Guinea) using cluster analysis and comparing different diet quality indexes.     

Prevalence of obesity and level of activity physical in school adolescents

Prevalence of obesity and level of activity physical in school adolescents. The objective of the work was to quantify the prevalence of overweight and obesity in a group of students of Ourense and its relation with the physical activity levels during school. 111 schoolares in the 5th and 6th year of primary school, with an average age of 11.3 years participated. 42.3% were women and 57.7% men. Weight, height and body mass (BMI) index were determined. Overweight and obesity were defined using as criteria the value of BMI-specific percentiles for age and sex. Physical activity (PA) level was assessed using an interview-questionnaire designed to be used with Spanish child population. 38.7% of the population presented overweight or obesity, and although the prevalence was higher in girls, no significant differences for the BMI between sexes were found. Results revealed the 61.2% of the adolescents to be inactive or very inactive, this percentage was higher for the girls than for the boys; for which the average energy expenditure (metabolic equivalent METS expressed in Kcal.kg-1 hour) is significantly smaller than the average for boys.     

Iron absorption of the habitual diet in a population of low socioeconomic level

Iron absorption using the extrinsic double-tag method was determined in the habitual diet consumed by a group of 32 volunteers of both sexes, pertaining to the low socioeconomic strata. The diet was made up of bread, spaghetti, vegetables and meat, totalling 2,022 kcal, 65.0 g protein, 17.57 mg iron, and 28.75 mg ascorbic acid. According to our findings, men were found to be neither anemic nor iron-deficient. Among the women, however, 4.8% had anemia and 57.1% suffered from iron deficiency. The non-heme iron absorption was very low: 1.35% at breakfast, 3.29% at lunch, and 3.82% at dinner. Among those subjects found to be normal, the absorption was half the above figures, whereas among those with iron deficiency it was threefold, the differences being highly significant. The absorption of heme-iron for lunch and dinner was 17.53%. The iron deficient group had an absorption value four times greater than the normal group, the differences also being highly significant. The daily availability of non-heme, heme and total iron was 0.44, 1.13 and 1.57 mg, respectively. In the subjects who formed the normal group, total iron available was 1.14 mg, barely covering a man's daily requirements, but not those of a woman. In the iron-deficient group, it was 4.31 mg, that is, four times greater than in the normal group; while this value improves the balance, it does not prevent deficiency in women, with great blood losses. Bearing these results in mind, it is suggested that measures tending to improve dietary iron content and bio-availability, be enforced.     

Prevalence of overweight and obesity in northwest Mexico by three references of body mass index: differences in classification

The objective of this study was to compare the prevalence of overweight and obesity in children from northwest of Mexico based on BMI/age and three criteria of growth reference standards. Six hundred and four children, 6 to 10 years of age, from 17 municipalities of the state of Sonora were measured for weight and height and age established from birth certificate school records. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was determined by the new version of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC/NCHS), the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) and the values proposed by The World Health Organization (WHO) that was utilized in the National Nutrition Survey of 1999 in Mexico (ENN). Using the WHO reference, prevalence of overweight and obesity was 39%. This was higher than the CDC/NCHS (20%) and IOTF (17%) references, respectively. Prevalence of overweight and obesity by CDC/NCHS and IOTF criteria, showed the best agreement (Kappa >80); this was not the case when prevalence from CDC/NCHS and IOTF were compared to the WHO criteria (Kappa <40). For overweight and obesity frequencies, no sex or urban-rural differences were observed (p>0.05). In conclusion, the use of these 3 reference values systems using BMI/ age did not show the same prevalence estimates of overweight and obesity. The use of the WHO method can overestimate the prevalence of obesity in children, therefore the use of these 3 references should be considered for future comparisons.     

Dietary patterns in clinical subtypes of multiple sclerosis: an exploratory study

Backround  

Multiple sclerosis is a neurodegenerative disorder with a wide range in disease course severity. Many factors seem to be implicated in multiple sclerosis disease course, and diet has been suggested to play a role. Because limited data is present in the literature it was investigated whether variations in dietary intake may be related to the severity of the disease course in multiple sclerosis.     

Calcium and magnesium concentrations in mature human milk: influence of calcium intake, age and socioeconomic level

Concentrations of calcium and magnesium were measured in mature milk, collected between 30 and 90 days after childbirth, from a group of 90 mothers between 14 and 39 years of age, exclusively breastfeeding. The group was divided into three sub-groups: low socioeconomic-level adolescents (LSAd), low socioeconomic-level adults (LSA), and high socioeconomic-level adults (HSA). Each mother's nutritional status was determined using the body-mass index (BMI) and her eating habits, obtained on the basis of a 24-h dietary recall. Adolescent and adult mothers in the low socioeconomic-level group had lower average calcium intake (LSAd = 618.4 +/- 555.2 mg and LSA = 679.4 +/- 411.4 mg) than adult mothers in the higher socioeconomic-level group (853.6 +/- 415.5 mg). The average concentration of calcium in the adolescent mothers' milk (LSAd) was significantly lower (5.30 +/- 1.42 mmol Ca/L, P = 0.01) than that of the two adult groups (LSA = 5.82 +/- 1.55 mmol Ca/L and HSA = 6.40 mmol Ca/L). The average magnesium concentrations for all groups did not show significant differences (LSAd = 1.06 +/- 0.18, LSA = 1.16 +/- 0.23 and HSA = 1.11 +/- 0.23 mmol Mg/L, for P= 0.16). These results indicate that magnesium concentrations in mature human milk do not seem to depend on maternal nutritional status. The condition of adolescence, however, associated with lower calcium intake by the mother, resulted in lower calcium concentrations in the milk secreted when compared to that of adult mothers.     

Antioxidant activity of brazilian vegetables and its relation with phenolic composition

Vegetables are widely consumed in Brazil and exported to several countries. This study was performed to evaluate the phenolic content and antioxidant activity of vegetables commonly consumed in Brazil using five different methods, namely DPPH and ABTS free radical, β-carotene bleaching, reduction of Fe³⁺ (FRAP), oxidative stability in Rancimat, and the chemical composition using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The content of phenolic compounds ranged from 1.2 mg GA/g (carrot) to 16.9 mg GA/g (lettuce). Vegetables presenting the highest antioxidant activity were lettuce (77.2 μmol Trolox/g DPPH^•; 447.1 μmol F²⁺/g FRAP), turmeric (118.6 μmol Trolox/g ABTS^•+; 92.8% β-carotene), watercress and broccoli (protective factor 1.29—Rancimat method). Artichoke, spinach, broccoli, and asparagus also showed considerable antioxidant activity. The most frequent phenolic compounds identified by GC-MS were ferulic, caffeic, p-coumaric, 2-dihydroxybenzoic, 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acids, and quercetin. We observed antioxidant activity in several vegetables and our results point out their importance in the diet.     

Compatibility between PVC and plasticizer blends and its relation with processing

The compatibility of suspension PVC with various plasticizer blends was determined by means of calculated compatibility predictors, such as solubility parameters and polarity parameters, as well as actual measurements of compatibility. Then, with a torque rheometer, the temperature at the fusion peak was obtained for various PVC/plasticizer blend compositions. Finally, empirical equations were derived to relate compatibility parameters with the temperature at the fusion peak, predicting the effect of plasticizer blend on processability.     

Seasonal patterns of phosphate uptake in relation to comparisons between fertilizers

Pot experiments, and field trials with temperate pastures, were used to compare pelleted Citraphos (ground calcined Christmas Island C rock phosphate) with soluble phosphates. The relative effectiveness of Citraphos increased markedly with time during a growing season. This increase occurred with residual Citraphos, topdressed twelve months previously and more, as well as with freshly applied Citraphos. It was not observed when Citraphos was compared with residual superphosphate.The apparent improvement of Citraphos thus derived very largely from the seasonal pattern of phosphorus uptake associated with soluble phosphate sources. As the availability of the latter decreased progressively after the early part of the season, the effectiveness of the more constant Citraphos improved by comparison. There is considerable arbitrariness in values of relative effectiveness assigned to slow acting phosphate fertilizers on the basis of single measurements. Direct assessments of the residual values of phosphatic fertilizers, by comparison with freshly applied soluble phosphates, appear to suffer similar limitations.The sharply decreasing availability of soluble phosphates has implications for the production of improved, long lasting phosphatic fertilizers.     

Dietary patterns are associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus among middle-aged adults in Zhejiang Province,China

Background

Although some studies have shown the associations between dietary patterns and the risk T2DM in a general population, the associations in middle-aged Chinese have been rarely studied to date. In this study, we aimed to characterize dietary patterns in Chinese adults aged 45-59y (n?=?1918) and to evaluate the relationship between dietary patterns and the risk of T2DM.

Methods

The study population was a part of the population-based the Nutrition and Health Study conducted in the city of Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. Dietary intake was assessed by using a validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to estimate the associations between dietary patterns and the risk of T2DM, adjusting for potential confounders.

Results

Three major dietary patterns were identified using factor analysis, including the traditional southern Chinese, the Western, and the grains-vegetables patterns. After adjusting for the potential confounders, subjects in the highest quartile of the Western dietary pattern scores had greater odds ratio(OR) for T2DM(OR?=?1.28; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.103–1.697; P?=?0.02) than did those in the lowest quartile. Compared with those in the lowest quartile, subjects in the highest quartile of the grains-vegetables dietary pattern scores had a lower OR for T2DM (OR?=?0.72; 95% CI:0.596–0.952; P?=?0.04). Moreover, no significant association was found between the traditional southern Chinese dietary pattern and risk of developing T2DM.

Conclusions

Our findings indicated that the Western dietary pattern was associated with an elevated risk, whereas the grains-vegetables dietary pattern was associated with a reduced risk of T2DM. Further researches are needed to confirm these findings.

     

多晶硅生产概况及其与氯碱工业的关系

论述了多晶硅的生产工艺、生产特点、国内建设情况、面临的问题,以及多晶硅工业与氯碱工业相结合的趋势。     

Relationships of low serum vitamin D<Subscript>3</Subscript>with anthropometry and markers of the metabolic syndrome and diabetes in overweight and obesity

Low serum 25 hydroxyvitamin D₃ (vitamin D₃) is known to perturb cellular function in many tissues, including the endocrine pancreas, which are involved in obesity and type II diabetes mellitus (TIIDM). Vitamin D₃ insufficiency has been linked to obesity, whether obesity is assessed by body mass index (BMI) or waist circumference (waist). Central obesity, using waist as the surrogate, is associated with the metabolic syndrome (MetSyn), insulin resistance, TIIDM and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD). We tested how vitamin D₃ was related to measures of fat mass, MetSyn markers, haemoglobin A_1c (HbA_1c) and MetSyn in a cross-sectional sample of 250 overweight and obese adults of different ethnicities. There were modest inverse associations of vitamin D₃ with body weight (weight) (r = -0.21, p = 0.0009), BMI (r = -0.18, p = 0.005), waist (r = -0.14, p = 0.03), [but not body fat % (r = -0.08, p = 0.24)], and HbA_1c (r = -0.16, p = 0.01). Multivariable regression carried out separately for BMI and waist showed a decrease of 0.74 nmol/L (p = 0.002) in vitamin D₃ per 1 kg/m² increase in BMI and a decrease of 0.29 nmol/L (p = 0.01) per 1 cm increase in waist, with each explaining approximately 3% of the variation in vitamin D₃ over and above gender, age, ethnicity and season.