Abstract Animals do not eat whatever food item they encounter, but choose different foods that best match their requirements. Fish exhibit such “nutritional wisdom” and adapt their feeding behaviour ...and food intake according to their needs and the nutritional properties of diets. In this paper, we tested the ability of Nile tilapia to select between diets with a balanced or unbalanced composition of essential amino acids. To this end, three different diets were prepared: a gelatine based diet (D1 ), a gelatine diet supplemented with three essential amino acids (EAA, l -tryptophane, l -methionine, l -threonine) (D2 ), and a diet containing only cellulose and the three crystalline EAA (D3 ). In addition, the putative role of both orosensorial factors (using pellets vs capsules) and social interactions (single vs groups of ten fish) was investigated. To this end, a total of 68 male tilapia of about 141 ± 48 g (mean ± S.D.) were challenged, individually or in groups, to select between D1 vs D2 using pellets dispensed by self-feeders (exp. 1). In another experiment (exp. 2), 11 individual fish were challenged to select encapsulated diets with non flavour or smell proprieties (D1 vs D2) , and in exp. 3 fish were challenged to self-supplementation in EAA (D1 vs D3 ). The results showed the ability of tilapia to avoid the EAA-deficient diet, choosing 82.2% D2 in the case of individual fish, and 80.8% D2 in the case of fish groups. Dietary selection was not directly driven by the orosensorial characteristics of food, since tilapia sustained a higher preference for D2 when fed with encapsulated diets. Finally, in exp. 3 tilapia self-supplemented the EAA deficiency by selecting a synchronised combination of D1 and D3 that matched their nutritional requirements. These findings highlighted the capacity of fish to make dietary selection based on the EAA content, which should be considered when discussing food intake regulation mechanisms, and diet formulation and supplementation with EAA.
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•Novel and high-performance WO3 nanostructures were formed in a very simple way.•Their photocatalytic behavior is influenced by their morphology and size.•The best nanostructure ...completely degraded methyl orange in just 1 h.•This nanostructure is an excellent photocatalyst for environmental applications.
WO3 nanoplatelets have been synthesized by electrochemical anodization in acidic electrolytes containing two different complexing agents: fluorides and hydrogen peroxide. The influence of the morphology and size of these nanoplatelets on their photoelectrocatalytic performance has been studied following the degradation of a model organic recalcitrant compound, such as methyl orange (MO). The effect of several supporting electrolytes on this photodegradation process has also been checked. The best MO decoloration was observed for nanoplatelets fabricated in the presence of low H2O2 concentrations, whose distribution and small size made them expose a very high surface area to the problem solution. With this nanostructure, decoloration efficiencies of ca. 100% were obtained after just 60 min. This result is considerably better than others reported in similar works, indicating the excellent behavior of these WO3 nanoplatelets as photoelectrocatalysts.
INTRODUCTIONPatient associations form part of health care systems, but little is known about how their members' view the functionality of these associations and whether they endorse their goals and ...activities.OBJECTIVETo study how the members of the leading Spanish association of patients with psoriasis and their relatives view the group's functioning.MATERIAL AND METHODSSurvey study using a self-administered questionnaire answered by members of the association (total membership, 26 349 persons). The credibility of the association and respondents' confidence in and satisfaction with it were studied and compared with their attitudes toward other agents in the health care system. A Rasch model was used to analyze respondents' ranking of functions. Analysis of variance was used to study between-group differences.RESULTSA total of 746 members participated (response rate 2.83%). The association's credibility was rated in second place, after that of specialists who treat psoriasis. Support for the association functions was good (7.53 on a scale of 0 to 10). The function the members rated highest was the raising of societal awareness of psoriasis and its problems. Rated lowest were functions related to personal services for members. Educational level was the only participant factor associated with significant differences in evaluations (P<.05).CONCLUSIONSThe psoriasis association contributes by disseminating information about the disease and patient care, and it serves to represent patients. Health professionals and institutions should take the association into account in their efforts to deal with the disease and in designing effective policies.
Abstract Introduction Patient associations form part of health care systems, but little is known about how their members view the functionality of these associations and whether they endorse their ...goals and activities. Objective To study how the members of the leading Spanish association of patients with psoriasis and their relatives view the group's functioning. Material and methods Survey study using a self-administered questionnaire answered by members of the association (total membership, 26 349 persons). The credibility of the association and respondents’ confidence in and satisfaction with it were studied and compared with their attitudes toward other agents in the health care system. A Rasch model was used to analyze respondents’ ranking of functions. Analysis of variance was used to study between-group differences. Results A total of 746 members participated (response rate 2.83%). The association's credibility was rated in second place, after that of specialists who treat psoriasis. Support for the association functions was good (7.53 on a scale of 0 to 10). The function the members rated highest was the raising of societal awareness of psoriasis and its problems. Rated lowest were functions related to personal services for members. Educational level was the only participant factor associated with significant differences in evaluations ( P < .05). Conclusions The psoriasis association contributes by disseminating information about the disease and patient care, and it serves to represent patients. Health professionals and institutions should take the association into account in their efforts to deal with the disease and in designing effective policies.
Over 177,000 ha of woodlands in Minnesota, USA are grazed. In general, these woodlands are not managed specifically for timber or cattle benefits. This lack of management often leads to decreased ...timber value and reduced forage yields. Silvopasture is a potential alternative to overcome this lack of land management on Minnesota woodlots. However, very limited information are available about silvopasture use in Minnesota. This three-year study evaluated the potential for silvopasture in Minnesota by comparing the production of unmanaged woodland grazing, silvopastoral, and open pasture systems. Three farmers from Central Minnesota collaborated in this study to assess these grazing systems. Silvopasture paddocks were established when thinning and seeding were performed on woodland areas. We assessed forage production, forage quality, and livestock performance. Forage production was generally greater in silvopastoral systems compared with unmanaged woodland grazing systems, while forage quality was lower in open pasture systems, at least during the first year. Livestock performance was similar between the grazing systems. Results indicate that silvopasture has potential in Minnesota, but more research is required to develop specific management guidelines as well as to monitor silvopasture production systems for longer periods of time.
Summary
Background Chronic stress is associated with a dysfunctional hypothalamic‐pituitary‐adrenal (HPA) axis consisting on disturbances on the cortisol response and lipid metabolism.
Objective To ...evaluate the HPA axis activity in women from a Mediterranean area, comparing three different measurements: daily cortisol secretory variability, postprandial cortisol secretion and glucocorticoid feedback sensitivity. In addition, HPA axis disturbance is correlated with dietary habits and plasma fatty acid profiles.
Design The participants were 41 women born during the first 6 months of 1960 and living in a Mediterranean area (Murcia, Spain). They were of normal weight, with a waist circumference of 80·5 ± 9·3 cm. Their salivary cortisol levels, 7‐day dietary record and plasma fatty acid profile were evaluated. Daily cortisol variability and postlunch cortisol secretion were recorded and a dexamethasone suppression test is performed in order to detect possible HPA disturbance.
Results Both the methods used for HPA axis evaluation were positively correlated (r = 0·448, P = 0·004). Subjects with normal diurnal curves (high cortisol variability) showed significantly higher cortisol values in the morning and postprandial cortisol secretion than women with pathological curves (medium and low variability). Cortisol variability was inversely correlated with waist circumference (r = –0·312, P = 0·047), suggesting that a disturbed HPA axis response may lead to an android pattern of body fat distribution. Dietary fat and saturated fatty acid intake were lower in the high cortisol variability group, while monounsaturated fatty acid intake was higher (P < 0·05). No major differences were reported in plasma fatty acid profile.
Conclusions A disturbed HPA axis is associated with abdominal fat distribution and a higher content of fat and saturated fatty acids in the diet. Women who chose a dietary pattern closer to the Mediterranean diet, with high monounsaturated fatty acid intake, showed lower levels on HPA axis disturbance.
OBJECTIVE: To correlate anthropometric, computed tomography and fat cell data from abdominal regions with the levels of serum insulin, C-peptide, leptin, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), ...testosterone, 17beta-estradiol, androstenedione, dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEA-S) and sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG). DESIGN AND METHODS: The sample consisted of 84 obese patients (29 men, 22 premenopausal women and 33 postmenopausal women) who had undergone abdominal surgery. Weight, height, percentage of body fat by skinfolds, waist, hip and thigh circumferences, sagittal and coronal diameters, visceral and subcutaneous area, serum hormones and fat cell data were studied. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Premenopausal women showed the lowest values in most abdominal distribution parameters, although, depending on the waist circumference criteria at the umbilicus level perimeter (W1) or midway between lower rib margin and iliac crest perimeter (W2), the population was classified differently, as gynoid or android. Although there were no differences in fat cell size between genders, gynoid women had smaller and more numerous fat cells than the android type. Perivisceral fat cell size was significantly smaller than subcutaneous fat cell size. In women, central obesity was significantly correlated with an increase in serum insulin, leptin, TNF-alpha, testosterone and androstenedione levels, and a decrease in 17beta-estradiol and DHEA-S, while in men significant correlations were positive with insulin and negative with testosterone and androstenedione. Fat cell size was positively correlated with serum levels of leptin, insulin, DHEA-S, androstenedione and inversely correlated with SHBG. These data indicate that hormones seem to interact not only with body fat distribution but also with fat cell size. This interaction differs between genders and between the different abdominal adipose tissue regions.
The present study investigated the effects of toluene inhalation and the restorative effects of melatonin on branching and basal dendritic outgrowth of superficial pyramidal neurons in rat’s frontal, ...parietal, and occipital cortices. At postnatal day 21 (P21), Sprague-Dawley male rats were randomly assigned to either an air-only group or a toluene group. From P22 to P32 the animals were exposed to either clean air or toluene vapors (5000–6000
ppm) for 10
min/day. This strategy simulated common toluene abuse in humans, which consists of 15–20 rapid inhalations of highly concentrated solvent. Once the inhalation period was over (P32), toluene exposed animals were randomly reassigned to one of following experimental groups: (i) air-control/saline; (ii) toluene/saline; (iii) toluene/melatonin 0.5
mg/kg; (iv) toluene/melatonin 1.0
mg/kg; (v) toluene/melatonin 5.0
mg/kg; and (vi) toluene/melatonin 10
mg/kg. Seven days after the last inhalation (P39), all the animals were sacrificed under deep anesthesia; brains were dissected out and stained according to the Golgi-Cox-Sholl procedure. Layer II/III pyramidal neurons were morphologically analyzed by measuring their basilar dendritic length and the number of branches. The results obtained revealed that (i) toluene inhalation significantly reduced dendritic outgrowth and branching in all cortical areas studied, and (ii) intraperitoneal administration of melatonin (0.5–10
mg/kg) was able to restore the dendritic impairment induced by toluene exposure.
How to cite this article: López‐Contreras M.‐J., Torralba C., Zamora S. & Pérez‐Llamas F. (2012) Nutrition and prevalence of undernutrition assesed by different diagnostic criteria in nursing homes ...for elderly people. J Hum Nutr Diet. 25, 239–246
Background: Undernutrition is the state produced by the intake of insufficient energy, macronutrients or micronutrients. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of undernutrition using 10 different diagnostic criteria described in the literature and to assess its association with energy intake in an institutionalised elderly population.
Methods: The cross‐sectional study included 213 subjects, aged 65–96 years (135 women and 78 men), who lived in seven nursing homes in the province of Murcia, on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. Dietary intake and anthropometric and biochemical parameters were assessed, and 10 different diagnostic criteria, taken from studies of elderly subjects similar to our population, were applied.
Results: The mean dietary intakes appeared to cover the recommended dietary intake for a Spanish elderly population. However, only 58.2% of the studied subjects consumed 100% of the recommended dietary intake and 15.5% of the subjects had an energy intake below 80% of the recommended dietary intake. Depending on the criteria used for the diagnosis, the proportion of patients with undernutrition varied between 2% and 57%. When the relationship between undernourishment, as defined by the different methods and intake deficiency, was assessed, a statistically significant relationship was only found for five of the 10 diagnostic criteria assessed.
Conclusions: Research needs to focus on the development and evaluation of specific nutritional assessment tools for application to older people aiming to improve the detection of those suffering (or who are at risk of suffering) undernutrition.
Abstract Objective To evaluate the clinical utility of genetic testing for cystic fibrosis (CF) and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in sperm donors. Study design We studied the results of the genetic ...tests for CF and SMA applied to 372 sperm donor candidates. The CF carrier screening test analysed 32 mutations on the CFTR gene. Regarding SMA, the carrier test studied possible deletions of SMN1/2 by Multiplex Ligation-dependent Probe Amplification (MLPA) methodology. Results The carrier frequency obtained was greater for SMA than for CF. After adjusting the results obtained for the sensitivity of the tests, and taking into account the prevalence of female carriers in our population, the probability of transmission of the disease to the child from a donor with a negative genetic test was about five times lower in the case of SMA than in CF, although this difference was not statistically significant. The number of donors needed to screen (NNS) to avoid the occurrence of a child being affected by CF and SMA in our population was similar in both cases (1591 vs. 1536). Conclusions This study demonstrates the need to include SMA among the diseases for which genetic screening is performed in the process of sperm donor selection. We believe that testing donors for SMA is as important and as useful as doing so for CF.
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