The Journal of nutrition
-
The Journal of nutrition · Feb 2015
Randomized Controlled TrialIncreased whole grain consumption does not affect blood biochemistry, body composition, or gut microbiology in healthy, low-habitual whole grain consumers.
Whole-grain (WG) foods have been suggested to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, but studies are inconsistent and effects on cardiovascular risk markers are not clear. ⋯ A combination of dietary advice and provision of commercially available food items enabled subjects with a low-moderate habitual consumption of WG to substantially increase their WG intake, but there was little effect on blood biochemical markers, body composition, BP, fecal measurements, or gut microbiology. This trial was registered at www.controlled-trials.com as ISRCTN36521837.
-
The Journal of nutrition · Feb 2015
More than half of US youth consume seafood and most have blood mercury concentrations below the EPA reference level, 2009-2012.
Consuming seafood has health benefits, but seafood can also contain methylmercury, a neurotoxicant. Exposure to methylmercury affects children at different stages of brain development, including during adolescence. ⋯ Few US youth have blood mercury concentrations ≥5.8 μg/L, although more than half of US youth consumed seafood in the past month.
-
The Journal of nutrition · Feb 2015
Comparative StudyProtein digestibility-corrected amino acid scores and digestible indispensable amino acid scores differentially describe protein quality in growing male rats.
The FAO has recommended replacing the protein digestibility-corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) with the digestible indispensable amino acid score (DIAAS). ⋯ Untruncated PDCAAS values were generally higher than a DIAAS values, especially for the poorer quality proteins; therefore, the reported differences in the scores are of potential practical importance for populations in which dietary protein intake may be marginal.
-
The Journal of nutrition · Feb 2015
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program participation is associated with an increase in household food security in a national evaluation.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides nutrition assistance benefits to low-income families in an effort to reduce hunger and improve health and well-being. Because 1 in 7 Americans participate in the program each month, policymakers need to know whether the program is meeting these objectives effectively. ⋯ SNAP serves a vital role in improving the health and well-being of households by increasing food security. Given recent legislation to reduce program size and limit program eligibility, this study underscores SNAP's continued importance in affecting households' well-being. Future research is needed to determine whether specific groups of households experience differential improvements in food security.
-
The Journal of nutrition · Feb 2015
Lycopene and apo-10'-lycopenoic acid have differential mechanisms of protection against hepatic steatosis in β-carotene-9',10'-oxygenase knockout male mice.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is positively associated with obesity and cardiovascular disease risk. Apo-10'-lycopenoic acid (APO10LA), a potential oxidation product of apo-10'-lycopenal that is generated endogenously by β-carotene-9',10'-oxygenase (BCO2) cleavage of lycopene, inhibited hepatic steatosis in BCO2-expressing mice. ⋯ Our data suggest that lycopene and APO10LA inhibit HSFD-induced steatosis in BCO2-KO male mice through differential mechanisms. Sex disparity of BCO2-KO mice was observed in the outcomes of HSFD-induced liver steatosis and plasma lipids.