Plant-based foods are the main source of phytochemicals, including polyphenols, a large family of compounds with highly diverse chemical structures ....
Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) is largely appreciated for its proven nutritional properties. Additionally, organic foods are perceived as healthier by consumers. In this context, the aim of the ...present study was to compare the phenolic profiles of EVOO from olives of the Hojiblanca variety, cultivated under organic and conventional systems. The quantification and identification of individual polyphenols was carried out by liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry in tandem mode (LC-MS/MS). Significantly higher levels (
< 0.05) of phenolic compounds were found in organic EVOOs. The methodology used was able to detect previously unreported differences in bioactive components between organic and conventional EVOOs.
Scope
Excessive visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is associated with higher secretion of pro‐inflammatory molecules, contributing to systemic inflammation and obesity‐related metabolic disturbances.
...Methods and results
This prospective analysis includes 117 overweight/obese adults (55–75 years) from the PREDIMED‐Plus study. Fourteen inflammatory markers and adipokines are measured using a Bio‐Plex assay with multiplex technology: insulin, glucagon, IL‐6, visfatin, ghrelin, GLP‐1, TNF‐α, MCP‐1, PAI‐1, resistin, C‐peptide, leptin, adipsin, and adiponectin. Participants are categorized into tertiles according to changes in VAT after 1‐year of follow‐up, determined by dual‐energy X‐Ray absorptiometry. Participants allocate in tertile 3, which represent an increase of VAT content after 1‐year of follow‐up compared to tertile 1, show significant differences in insulin (T3 vs T1, fully adjusted model: p = 0.037, p for trend 0.042), PAI‐1 (fully adjusted model: p = 0.05, p for trend 0.06), c‐peptide (fully adjusted model: p = 0.037, p for trend 0.042), and TNF‐α (fully adjusted model p = 0.037, p for trend 0.042).
Conclusion
The results evidence that a reduction in VAT is associated with clinical improvements in several inflammatory and adiposity markers, mainly in insulin, c‐peptide, and PAI‐1 levels, and these improvements may contribute to a reduction in cardiometabolic disturbances observe in obesity.
Excessive visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is associated with inflammation. Our results evidence that a reduction in VAT is associated with improvements in inflammatory and adiposity markers in participants with metabolic syndrome.
Organic food and the impact on human health Hurtado-Barroso, Sara; Tresserra-Rimbau, Anna; Vallverdú-Queralt, Anna ...
Critical reviews in food science and nutrition,
02/2019, Volume:
59, Issue:
4
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
In the last decade, the production and consumption of organic food have increased steadily worldwide, despite the lower productivity of organic crops. Indeed, the population attributes healthier ...properties to organic food. Although scientific evidence is still scarce, organic agriculture seems to contribute to maintaining an optimal health status and decreases the risk of developing chronic diseases. This may be due to the higher content of bioactive compounds and lower content of unhealthy substances such as cadmium and synthetic fertilizers and pesticides in organic foods of plant origin compared to conventional agricultural products. Thus, large long-term intervention studies are needed to determine whether an organic diet is healthier than a diet including conventionally grown food products. This review provides an update of the present knowledge of the impact of an organic versus a conventional food diet on health.
Dietary phytoestrogens are bioactive compounds with estrogenic activity. With the growing popularity of plant-based diets, the intake of phytoestrogen-rich legumes (especially soy) and legume-derived ...foods has increased. Evidence from preclinical studies suggests these compounds may have an effect on hormones and health, although the results of human trials are unclear. The effects of dietary phytoestrogens depend on the exposure (phytoestrogen type, matrix, concentration, and bioavailability), ethnicity, hormone levels (related to age, sex, and physiological condition), and health status of the consumer. In this review, we have summarized the results of human studies on dietary phytoestrogens with the aim of assessing the possible hormone-dependent outcomes and health effects of their consumption throughout a lifespan, focusing on pregnancy, childhood, adulthood, and the premenopausal and postmenopausal stages. In pregnant women, an improvement of insulin metabolism has been reported in only one study. Sex hormone alterations have been found in the late stages of childhood, and goitrogenic effects in children with hypothyroidism. In premenopausal and postmenopausal women, the reported impacts on hormones are inconsistent, although beneficial goitrogenic effects and improved glycemic control and cardiovascular risk markers have been described in postmenopausal individuals. In adult men, different authors report goitrogenic effects and a reduction of insulin in non-alcoholic fatty liver patients. Further carefully designed studies are warranted to better elucidate the impact of phytoestrogen consumption on the endocrine system at different life stages.
Scope
Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is considered a promising therapeutic candidate for the treatment of obesity. Since FGF21 production is regulated by various nutritional factors, we analyze ...the impact of low protein intake on circulating levels of this growth hormone in mice and in a sub cohort of the PREDIMED (Prevención con Dieta Mediterránea) trial. We also describe the role of hepatic FGF21 in metabolic adaptation to a low‐protein diet (LPD).
Methods and results
We fed control and liver‐specific Fgf21 knockout (LFgf21KO) mice a LPD. This diet increased FGF21 production by inducing its overexpression in liver, and this correlated with a body weight decrease without changes in food intake. The LPD also caused FGF21‐dependent browning in subcutaneous white adipose tissue (scWAT), as indicated by an increase in the expression of uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1). In a subgroup of 78 individuals from the PREDIMED trial, we observed an inverse correlation between protein intake and circulating FGF21 levels.
Conclusion
Our results reinforce the involvement of FGF21 in coordinating energy homeostasis under a range of nutritional conditions. Moreover, here we describe an approach to increase the endogenous production of FGF21, which if demonstrated functional in humans, could generate a treatment for obesity.
In mice, a low protein diet induces a huge increase in liver FGF21 expression and serum levels, which correlates with enhanced ATF4 protein levels. Also, this diet caused an FGF21‐dependent browning of subcutaneous white adipose tissue. The observation of an inverse relationship between serum levels of FGF21 and dietary protein content also in humans suggests that the induction of hepatic FGF21 expression by a low protein diet could offer an effective treatment for obesity and type 2 diabetes.
The effect of resveratrol (RV) intake has been reviewed in several studies performed in humans with different health status. The purpose of this review is to summarize the results of clinical trials ...of the last decade, in which RV was determined in biological samples such as human plasma, urine, and feces. The topics covered include RV bioavailability, pharmacokinetics, effects on cardiovascular diseases, cognitive diseases, cancer, type 2 diabetes (T2D), oxidative stress, and inflammation states. The overview of the recent research reveals a clear tendency to identify RV in plasma, showing that its supplementation is safe. Furthermore, RV bioavailability depends on several factors such as dose, associated food matrix, or time of ingestion. Notably, enterohepatic recirculation of RV has been observed, and RV is largely excreted in the urine within the first four hours after consumption. Much of the research on RV in the last 10 years has focused on its effects on pathologies related to oxidative stress, inflammatory biomarkers, T2D, cardiovascular diseases, and neurological diseases.
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