Nutrition research
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Comparative Study
Association between household income and overweight of Korean and American children: trends and differences.
The prevalence of overweight in children has been dramatically increasing worldwide, and socioeconomic status is an important risk factor. The purpose of this study was to examine the hypothesis that household income is negatively associated with overweight in Korean and American girls and boys. In the study, 2117 children 7 to 12 years of age from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2001 and 2007 and 3016 children from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2001 and 2006 were included. ⋯ On the other hand, as household income increased, energy intake from carbohydrates was increased and energy intake from proteins decreased in American boys. In conclusion, positive association between household income and overweight was found in Korean boys, but not in Korean girls and American boys and girls. Effects solely targeting reduction in income disparities cannot effectively reduce sex disparities in overweight of children.
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Anthropometric and classical biologic markers of malnutrition, such as serum albumin, are limited because they are influenced by nonnutritional factors. We propose that a biologic parameter that both predicts nutritional status and is unaffected by nonnutritional factors would facilitate the diagnosis of malnutrition in the elderly. This cross-sectional study included 179 randomized elderly patients. ⋯ Sex, weight, and triglyceride were the best predictors of serum leptin (all P < .001). The optimal cutoff value of serum leptin to detect malnutrition was 4.3 ng/mL in men and 25.7 ng/mL in women. Serum leptin may be a good predictor of nutritional status in elderly patients.
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Investigations suggest a protective role of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) but opposing roles of n-6 PUFA in inflammation, but the effects in vivo the human are not clear. We therefore tested the hypothesis that higher intakes of n-3 PUFA and n-6 PUFA are associated with lower levels of inflammation among a population consuming a diet high in PUFA. This study aimed to assess the association between PUFA intake and serum C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations in a group of Japanese employees. ⋯ In men, there were statistically significant inverse relationships between dietary intake of n-3 or n-6 PUFA and serum CRP concentrations (P for trend = .03 and .008, respectively). Among specific PUFA, only alpha-linolenic acid and linoleic acid showed clear inverse relationships (P for trend = .001 and .003, respectively) in men. The results suggest that increased intake of not only alpha-linolenic acid (n-3 PUFA) but also linoleic acid (n-6 PUFA) has a beneficial effect on systemic inflammation in men.
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Excess body fat is associated with increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The hypothesis of the study was that physical activity and omega-3 index, a marker of past long chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids consumption, counteract the negative associations between fatness and CVD risk factors in young overweight and obese adults. A total of 324 subjects (20-40 years, body mass index [BMI], 27.5-32.5 kg/m(2), from Iceland, Spain, and Ireland) were investigated cross-sectionally. ⋯ The highest physical activity quartile had a lower fat mass (P = .005, at a given BMI), leptin (P = .008, in male participants only), and interleukin 6 (P = .021) but higher high-density lipoprotein (P = .020) than other quartiles; however, an approximate dose-response relationship could only be observed for leptin. The omega-3 index was not associated with lower low-density lipoprotein (P = .056), but docosahexaenoic acid in erythrocyte membrane was associated to it (P = .016). It is concluded that physical activity and docosahexaenoic acid diminish some of the negative health effects associated with overweight and obesity; however, body fatness remains the most important variable associated with increased CVD risk factors in young overweight and obese adults.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Flavocoxid is as effective as naproxen for managing the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis of the knee in humans: a short-term randomized, double-blind pilot study.
Flavocoxid (Limbrel), a proprietary mixture of flavonoid molecules (baicalin and catechin), was tested against a traditional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, naproxen, for the management of the signs and symptoms of moderate osteoarthritis (OA) in humans. Discomfort and global disease activity were used as the primary end points, and safety assessments were also taken for both treatments as a secondary endpoint. In this double-blind study, 103 subjects were randomly assigned to receive either flavocoxid [500 mg twice daily (BID)] or naproxen (500 mg BID) in a 1-month onset of action trial. ⋯ Similarly, there were no statistically detectable differences between the groups with respect to any adverse event, although there was a trend toward a higher incidence of edema and nonspecific musculoskeletal discomfort in the naproxen group. In this short-term pilot study, flavocoxid was as effective as naproxen in controlling the signs and symptoms of OA of the knee and would present a safe and effective option for those individuals on traditional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors. A low incidence of adverse events was reported for both groups.