Managing the Everyday Health Puzzle in Swedish Families With Children

In this article, issues of children, food, and health are discussed with the help of the concept of a “health puzzle,” which is defined as the many pieces of family life that need to be put together to reach the goal of a healthy family lifestyle. The data derives from a qualitative study, where parents and children in twelve Swedish families were interviewed at three occasions. The aim was to find out how the healthy life of the family is defined, created, and sustained. The healthy family showed to be composed of different practices and drew on values of bodily, emotional, and social well-being. The dilemmas mentioned concerned how to serve “proper food” and have “proper meals,” and making this fit into a tight time schedule. Solutions to the dilemmas were, for example, to prioritize spending time together; to promote healthy eating by having a weekly menu or a fruit bowl available; and to mark the contrast between weekdays and weekends with the help of “Cosy Friday,” “Saturday Sweets,” and an elaborate weekend dinner. Depending on the family economy, working hours, and the number of children's leisure activities, the solutions were mainly dictated by either money or time.     

Effect of time and temperature of storage after cooking on the sensory quality of Bintje potatoes.

Seventeen trained judges used a scoring technique with nine-point scales to evaluate sensory attributes of cooked potatoes (variety: Bintje) that had been kept hot after cooking for different lengths of time at different temperatures. Maximal storage times before the potatoes were considered unacceptable were determined for each temperature. In addition, comparisons were made with preference data obtained for 55 untrained consumers. For all sensory attributes significant differences in average scores were obtained among samples stored for different periods of time (0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 h) and different temperatures (60, 75 and 90°C), as well as significant interactions between time and temperature. In general the effect of time was largest at the highest temperature. The differences were largest for flavour and smallest for appearance. The maximum times the potatoes could be kept at 60, 75 and 90°C before becoming unacceptable in flavour were 2.9, 2.2 and 1.3 h, respectively. The corresponding values for texture and appearance were higher. Generally potatoes that had been kept hot were described as ‘dark, greyish or brownish, and dry on the surface', and having a 'strong and musty odour; musty, old and bitter flavour, and watery, soggy, and spongy texture ’For 55 untrained consumers, (highly) significant differences were obtained in preference frequencies for appearance, flavour, and texture for pairs of samples stored after cooking at 75°C for different periods of time. The differences were largest for flavour, and smallest for appearance. Generally, the freshly prepared sample was preferred, and the difference in preference increased with increased storage time. The results from the untrained consumers are in close agreement with the results obtained by the trained panel. It was concluded that consumers in general also consider the sensory changes of keeping potatoes hot after cooking as deleterious, and that the unacceptability limits determined by the trained panel were not unreasonably small.     

Influence of soil phosphorus and manure on phosphorus leaching in Swedish topsoils

In Sweden, subsurface transport of phosphorus (P) from agricultural soils represents the primary pathway of concern for surface water quality. However, there are mixed findings linking P in leachate with soil P and limited understanding of the interactive effects of applied P sources and soil test P on P leaching potential. Identifying soils that are susceptible to P leaching when manure is applied is critical to management strategies that reduce P loadings to water bodies. Intact soil columns (20 cm deep) from five long-term fertilization trials across Sweden were used in leaching experiments with simulated rainfall to explore the interactive effects of dairy cow (Bos taurus L.) manure application, soil test P and cropping system. Strong relationships were observed between ammonium lactate-extractable P in soil and dissolved reactive P (DRP) concentrations in leachate, although regression slopes varied across soils. For three soils, application of manure (equal to 21–30 kg P ha^?1) to the soil columns significantly increased DRP leaching losses. The increase in DRP concentration was correlated to soil test P, but with wide variations between the three soils. For two soils leachate P concentrations after manure addition were independent of soil P status. Despite variable trends in P leaching across the different soils, P concentrations in leachate were always moderate from soils at fertilization rates equivalent to P removal with harvest. Results clearly stress the importance of long-term P balance to limit P leaching losses from Swedish agricultural soils.     

The magnitude of signal errors introduced by ISIS in quantitative31P MRS

It is well known that the quality of a quantitative³¹P MRS measurement relies largely on the performance of the volume selection method, and that image selected in vivo spectroscopy (ISIS) suffers from contaminating signal caused mostly by Tl smearing. However, these signal errors and their magnitude are seldom addressed in clinical studies. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the magnitude of signal errors in³¹P MRS when using ISIS. The results from the measurements with a homogeneous head phantom are as follows: at low TR/T1 ratios the contamination increases rapidly, especially for small (< 27 cm³) VOI sizes; at TR/T1 = 1, the signal from a 27 cm³ VOI was 20% too high, and from an 8 cm³ VOI 150% too high. The signal obtained from different VOI positions varied between 80 and 127%. The signal varied linearly with the³¹P concentration in the object. However, a too high signal was obtained when the concentration was lower in the region of interest (inner container) than in the rest of the phantom. The agreement between the simulations and measurements shows that the results of this study are generally applicable to the measurement geometry and the ISIS experiment order rather than being specific for the MR system studied. The errors obtained both experimentally and in computer simulations are too large to be ignored in clinical studies using the ISIS pulse sequence.     

Behavior of fluoroquinolones and trimethoprim during mechanical, chemical, and active sludge treatment of sewage water and digestion of sludge

The behavior and fate of three fluoroquinolones (norfloxacin, ofloxacin, and ciprofloxacin), one sulfonamide (sulfamethoxazole), and trimethoprim were investigated at a sewage treatment plant in Ume?, Sweden, in 2004. This plant uses conventional mechanical, chemical, and activated sludge methods to treat the sewage water and digest the sludge; the dewatered digested sludge is pelleted (dry weight > 90% of total weight). Raw sewage water and particles as well as effluents and sludge from specific treatment areas within the plant were sampled. In addition to quantifying the antibiotics within the plant, we characterized the sample matrixes to facilitate evaluation of the results. Of the five substances examined, only norfloxacin, ciprofloxacin, and trimethoprim were present in concentrations higher than their limits of quantification. Norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin sorbed to sludge in a manner that was independent of changes in pH during sewage treatment, and more than 70% of the total amount of these compounds passing through the plant was ultimately found in the digested sludge. The results suggest that fluoroquinolones undergo thermal degradation during pelleting, but more studies are needed to confirm this. Trimethoprim was found in the final effluent at approximately the same concentration and mass flow as in the raw sewage, and could not be quantified in any solid sample. Predicted environmental concentrations, based on consumption data for Ume? municipality, correlated well with the results obtained, especially when the predicted concentrations were corrected to account for the amount of each active substance excreted in urine. The results obtained were compared to those of previous studies of these three substances' behavior and fate and were found to be similar, although some of the other plants studied employed the various treatment steps in different orders.     

Propylene polymerisations with novel heterogeneous combination metallocene catalyst systems

Propylene was polymerised with novel combination metallocene catalyst systems prepared by an emulsion-based heterogenisation method in liquid monomer conditions. The catalyst combinations investigated were rac-dimethylsilanylbis(2-methyl-4-phenyl-1-indenyl)zirconium dichloride/rac-[ethylenebis(2-(tert-butyldimethylsiloxy)indenyl)]zirconium dichloride/methylaluminoxane (MAO) (1 + 2) and rac-dimethylsilanylbis(2-methyl-4-phenyl-1-indenyl)zirconium dichloride/rac-dimethylsilanylbis(2-isopropyl-4-[3,5-dimethylphenyl]indenyl)zirconium dichloride/MAO (1 + 3). The effects of polymerisation temperature and hydrogen on catalyst performance and polymer properties, as well as copolymerisation with hexene and ethylene were investigated. Depending on the polymerisation conditions, M_w of polypropylene varied from 144 to 286 kg/mol for 1 + 2 and from 200 to 390 kg/mol for 1 + 3. Combination 1 + 2 produced broader molecular weight distribution (MWD) than 1 + 3, and a bimodal MWD with clearly separated low- and high-M_w polymer fractions was observed with 1 + 2. The two catalyst systems showed similar hydrogen and hexene responses. Each metallocene precursor showed individual response towards the polymerisation conditions, especially polymerisation temperature, suggesting that interaction between the catalyst active sites was negligible in the studied systems.     

Copolymerization of propene with low amounts of ethene in propene bulk phase

Propene homopolymers and propene-ethene copolymers with small amount of ethene were synthesized using three catalyst systems [p-CH₃OPh₂C(2,7-di-^tertBuFlu)(Cp)]ZrCl₂/Me₂HNPh][B(C₆F₅)₄] (Cat I), [p-CH₃OPh₂C(2,7-di-^tertBuFlu)(Cp)]ZrCl₂/[Ph₃C][B(C₆F₅)₄] (Cat II) and [p-CH₃OPh₂C(2,7-di-^tertBuFlu)(Cp)]ZrCl₂/MAO (Cat III) in propene bulk phase. The activity of the catalyst was dependent on the formed ion pair: Cat I showed the highest activity, up to 96,000 kg_pol/mol_Zr h, at the used polymerization conditions. The produced homo- and copolymers have high molecular weights, between 400 and 600 kg/mol. The ethene incorporation rate was nearly the same with the different catalyst systems; the amount of ethene in the copolymer was increasing linearly with the amount of ethene in feed. The syndiotacticity of the homopolymer was highest, [rrrr]>90%, with Cat I when it was 81.4 with Cat II and 80.8 with Cat III. The small amount of ethene in the copolymer allows the control of the melting and crystallization behavior. Also the crystallization temperatures of the copolymers were found to depend on the used catalyst system.     

Freezing–thawing effects on phosphorus leaching from catch crops

It is suggested that catch crops be grown to reduce phosphorus (P) losses. However, after exposure to freezing–thawing cycles (FTCs), catch crop material can become a source of P losses to waters in moderately cold climates. This study screened potential P leaching from intact plant material of eight catch crop species: chicory (Cichorium intybus L.), cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.), perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), red clover (Trifolium pratense L.), phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia L.), white mustard (Sinapis alba L.), oilseed radish (Raphanus sativus L. oleiformis) and white radish (R. longipinnatus). The catch crops were grown in six field experiments on clay soils, where soil lysimeters (0.25 m deep) with intact crops were extracted in autumn and used for leaching experiments before and after seven FTCs in the laboratory. The eight catch crops did not reduce P leaching before FTCs. After FTCs, leachate total-P concentrations from ryegrass, oilseed radish and red clover lysimeters were significantly (p = 0.0022) higher than those from the other species and the control without a catch crop. FTCs significantly (p = 0.0064) altered total-P concentration and the proportions of different forms of P. There was a significant increase in total-P concentration in leachate from ryegrass (p = 0.0008) and oilseed radish (p = 0.02). Thus the potential risk of P leaching from ryegrass and oilseed radish material after FTCs must be considered, since they are commonly grown as nitrogen catch crops in the Nordic countries. Moreover, the roots of the tested catch crops contained 7–86 % total-P, which is important when evaluating P leaching risks.