The benefits of zinc in treating certain gastrointestinal (GI) diseases have been recognized for over two decades. This review aims to explore zinc deficiency (ZD) and the potential therapeutic value ...and safety of zinc supplementation in pediatric GI diseases. A systematic review of published articles on ZD and zinc as adjuvant treatments for GI diseases was conducted using various databases. Children with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), celiac disease, and those receiving long-term proton pump inhibitor treatments are particularly susceptible to ZD. ZD in children with celiac disease and IBD is attributed to insufficient intake, reduced absorption, and increased intestinal loss as a result of the inflammatory process. Zinc plays a crucial role in maintaining the integrity of the gastric mucosa and exerts a gastroprotective action against gastric lesions. Although considerable evidence supports the use of zinc as adjuvant therapy for certain GI diseases in adults, its use is unspecified in children except for infectious diarrhea. Current evidence suggests that zinc supplementation with well-documented dosages helps reduce the duration of diarrhea in children with acute or persistent diarrhea, while there are no specific guidelines for zinc supplementation in children with IBD and celiac disease. Zinc supplementation appears to be beneficial in peptic ulcer disease or gastroesophageal reflux disease. The available evidence highlights the need for intervention programs to enhance zinc status and reduce the morbidity of certain GI diseases in children.
This study aimed to assess the prevalence of picky eating among preschool children and to evaluate the association between eating behavior and growth, physical activity, development, and health ...status.
A structured questionnaire was used to conduct a cross-sectional descriptive study of 300 primary caregivers of children aged 2-4 years in Taiwan. Data collected included: demographics, food preferences, eating behavior, body weight, and height, development, physical activity, and records of medical illness. Data from children defined as picky or non-picky eaters based on parental' questionnaire responses were analyzed and compared using standard statistical tests.
The mean age of the children was 2.95 years; 162 (54%) were picky eaters. Compared with non-picky eaters,
-score of weight-for-age, height-for-age, and body mass index (BMI)-for-age in picky eaters was 0.91, 0.73, and 0.44 SD lower, respectively. There were significant differences of rates in the weight-for-age, height-for-age, and BMI-for-age percentiles <15, between picky and non-picky eaters (
= 0.04, 0.023, and 0.005, respectively). Fear of unfamiliar places, poor physical activity, constipation, and high frequency (>2 times in the past 3 months) of medical illness were significantly higher in picky eaters (
= 0.01, 0.001, 0.044, and <0.001, respectively).
The prevalence of picky eaters in preschool children was high, resulting in significant detrimental impacts on growth, nutritional status, development, physical activity, and health status.
Objectives
Hepatic steatosis has become a considerable concern in the pediatric population. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of using ultrasound Nakagami imaging to produce ...a parametric image for analyzing the echo amplitude distribution to assess pediatric hepatic steatosis.
Methods
A total of 68 pediatric participants were enrolled in healthy control (
n
= 26) and study groups (
n
= 42). Raw data from ultrasound imaging were acquired for each participant analysis using AmCAD-US, a software approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for ultrasound Nakagami imaging. The Nakagami parameters were compared with the hepatic steatosis index (HSI) and the steatosis grade (G0: HSI < 30; G1: 30 ≤ HSI < 36; G2: 36 ≤ HSI < 41.6; G3: 41.6 ≤ HSI < 43; G4: HSI ≥ 43) using correlation analysis, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.
Results
The Nakagami parameter increased from 0.53 ± 0.13 to 0.82 ± 0.05 with increasing severity of hepatic steatosis from G0 to G4 and were significantly different between the different grades of hepatic steatosis (
p
< .05). The areas under the ROC curves were 0.96, 0.92, 0.85, and 0.82 for diagnosing hepatic steatosis ≥ G1, ≥ G2, ≥ G3, and ≥ G4, respectively.
Conclusions
The Nakagami parameter value quantifies changes in the echo amplitude distribution of ultrasound backscattered signals caused by fatty infiltration, providing a novel, noninvasive, and effective data analysis technique to detect pediatric hepatic steatosis.
Key Points
•
Ultrasound Nakagami imaging enabled quantification of the echo amplitude distribution for tissue characterization
.
•
The Nakagami parameter increased with the increasing severity of pediatric hepatic steatosis
.
•
The Nakagami parameter demonstrated promising diagnostic performance in evaluating pediatric hepatic steatosis
.
Background
Zinc supplementation has varied effects on the linear growth of children who exhibited stunted growth.
Materials and Methods
This observational study involved 761 undernourished children, ...aged 2–10 years, who received a 24‐week course of 10‐mg elemental zinc per day. The clinical parameters for evaluation included appetite, height, weight, and body mass index (BMI). Evaluation of the effect of zinc supplementation was stratified by the initial serum zinc concentration.
Results
The enrolled participants comprised 390 boys and 371 girls. The mean age was 5.63 years. The height‐for‐age, weight‐for‐age, and BMI‐for‐age z scores increased gradually during the study period. When compared with the children with a serum zinc concentration ≥75 μg/dL, the height, weight, weight‐for‐age, and BMI‐for‐age z scores increased significantly in the patients with serum zinc concentrations of <75 μg/dL after 12‐ and 24‐week zinc supplementation (all P < .001). BMI, height‐for‐age z score, and appetite also increased significantly in patients with serum zinc concentrations of <75 μg/dL after 24‐week zinc supplementation (P = .003, .019, and <.001, respectively).
Conclusion
The findings of this study indicate that undernourished children with serum zinc concentrations of <75 μg/dL experienced greater increments in appetite and growth as a result of zinc supplementation.
Although previous research has shown that servant leaders can inspire their subordinates to perform better, few studies have investigated the mechanisms that influence supervisor-subordinate guanxi ...(SSG). In line with theories of social exchange, conservation of resources, and social identity, this research proposes a moderated mediation framework testing the links among servant leaders, psychological safety, SSG, and organizational identification. The bootstrap findings from 323 hotel staff in China showed that 1) servant leadership directly promotes SSG and psychological safety; 2) psychological safety mediated the relationship between servant leadership and SSG; and 3) subordinates’ positive organizational identification moderated the relationship between psychological safety and SSG. Moreover, the moderated mediation analysis demonstrates that the mediated relationship linking servant leadership with SSG via psychological safety is stronger when subordinates identify closely with their organization. This research sheds light on how servant leaders in the lodging industry can improve SSG.
•Servant leadership directly promotes SSG and psychological safety.•Psychological safety has a mediating effect on supervisor-subordinate guanxi.•Organizational identification moderates the relationship between psychological safety and SSG.•Organizational identification moderates the indirect effect of servant leadership on SSG.
PDF
