Nutrition
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Stunting is a major global public health problem, associated with physical and cognitive impairments. Spatial variations in childhood stunting were observed due to changes in contextual variables from area to area, implying that geography is a crucial component in the development of strategies against childhood stunting. However, to our knowledge, there are no up-to-date studies on the distribution of childhood stunting and its determinants in Ethiopia. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the spatial distribution and determinants of stunting among children aged <5 y in Ethiopia. ⋯ Stunting significantly varies across Ethiopia, with the highest prevalence in Northern Ethiopia. Older age, poor family wealth, maternal illiteracy, and community illiteracy level were the significant determinants of stunting in children aged <5 y in this study. Policymakers should design interventions to reduce stunting among children aged <5 y through accessing education for women and applying economic empowerment strategies in the hot spot areas.
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The aim of this study was to investigate food purchasing behaviors, choice determinants, and opinions about on-campus food availability by a university community and to analyze differences in these aspects between students, education and/or research staff (ERS), and administrative and services staff (ASS), and between males and females. ⋯ Interventions that improve sustainability and the affordability of products with high nutritional quality, price-manipulation directives, and allergen information on labeling would be well received among this community.
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Numerous smartphone-based applications that guide parenting, child nutrition, and child health-related knowledge are available. Here, we reviewed the applications available in the Google Play Store for child nutrition, primarily focused on children aged <5 y. The keywords used in the search were "child nutrition," "child nutrition status assessment," and "parenting." We identified 370 apps from the play store and 33 qualified for the review. ⋯ Findings from this review suggest that the apps do not follow any uniform guidelines for delivering the child nutrition information to the caregivers. About 50% of apps did not mention the consulted source for its development, indicating the unavailability of uniform guidelines or policy documents for child nutrition app development. App-based intervention studies are recommended to assess the effectiveness of child nutrition/health smartphone applications.
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Review Meta Analysis
Influence of age, sex, and type of exercise on the efficacy of creatine supplementation on lean body mass: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.
Creatine supplementation has been shown to increase measures of lean body mass (LBM); however, there often is high heterogeneity across individual studies. Therefore, the aim of this study was to systematically review and meta-analyze randomized controlled trials (RCTs) investigating creatine supplementation on LBM. Subanalyses were performed based on age, sex, and type of exercise. Based on PRISMA guidelines, we searched the following databases: Pubmed, SPORTDiscus, Web of Science, and Scopus (PROSPERO register: CRD42020207122) until May 2022. ⋯ Further subanalyses found that males on creatine increased LBM by 1.46 kg (95% CI, 0.47-2.46), compared with a non-significant increase of 0.29 kg (95% CI, -0.43 to 1.01) for females. In conclusion, the addition of creatine supplementation to a resistance training program increases LBM. During a resistance training program, males on creatine respond more favorably than females.
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Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains one of the most frequently occurring cancers worldwide. Current standard therapeutic drugs have been associated with serious side effects that can be life-threatening for some patients. Extensive efforts have been undertaken to find alternative therapies. ⋯ Recent studies have shown that consumption of lactobacillus strains, alone or in combination with standard chemotherapy drugs for CRC have exerted beneficial effects on tumor development and growth via several mechanisms, including induction of apoptosis, immunomodulation of inflammatory cytokines, and changing profile of gut microbial community. They affect the signaling pathways involved in cell migration and invasion leading to hampering of tumor metastatic behavior. This review summarizes recent experimental findings regarding antitumor function of the most used lactobacillus species in CRC, providing more supporting data for introducing probiotics as new encouraging therapeutic strategy in cancer prevention and treatment.