PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

F Lifshitz

Publications and source records attributed to F Lifshitz.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1995

Carbohydrate absorption from fruit juice in young children.

OBJECTIVE: To compare carbohydrate absorption following ingestion of apple juice and white grape juice in 28 healthy children. DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind crossover study. SETTING: Outpatient pediatric clinic at Maimonides Medical Center. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 18 healthy infants (mean age 6.3 months) and 10 toddlers (mean age 18.0 months), representing those ages when juice is first introduced (6 months) and when juice comprises a large portion of the diet (18 months). METHODS: Breath hydrogen (H2) testing was performed after age-specific servings of white grape juice or apple juice, 4 and 8 ounces respectively, were consumed. These portions provided approximately 1 g of fructose per kg of body weight. Breath H2 responses of > 20 ppm were considered positive, indicating incomplete absorption of fruit juice carbohydrates. RESULTS: In the combined age groups, carbohydrate malabsorption occurred more frequently after apple juice consumption (54%) than after white grape juice (19%; P < .001). Significant differences in area under the breath H2 curve (AUC) were also found between the two juices in both age groups. Among toddlers, the differences between the mean peak breath H2 responses were significant (48 ppm after apple juice consumption compared with 12 ppm after white grape juice; P < .001). These differences were not significant in the infant group. Significant differences (P < .05) were seen between the two age groups after consumption of apple juice; the toddlers exhibited a greater number of positive breath H2 responses and higher peak responses compared with the infants. Data from the children who drank both juices showed significant differences in peak breath H2 responses after consumption of apple juice compared with white grape juice (P < .005). CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrated less carbohydrate malabsorption following ingestion of white grape juice compared with apple juice in healthy 6- and 18-month-old children.

Beverages↗
PubMed1994

Body composition and spontaneous growth hormone secretion in normal short stature children.

This study was designed to compare the relationship of measured and estimated indices of adiposity with the spontaneous GH secretion (SGHS) in 37 normal short stature children. Fifteen of the 37 patients (10 males and 5 females) were pubertal, and 22 (17 males and 5 females) were prepubertal. All patients underwent a review of their medical history, a physical exam, laboratory tests, and a nutritional assessment that included anthropometry and evaluation of body composition by bioelectric impedance. The percentage of body fat and body fat mass index were used as measured indices of adiposity. The weight for height ratio, body mass index, and body mass index z-scores were calculated and used as estimated indices of adiposity. Our results showed that SGHS is greatly influenced by variations in adiposity in normal short stature children, and measured indices of adiposity demonstrated the strongest negative correlation with SGHS. Gender differences were apparent in the degree of adiposity that modified SGHS, and it appears that adiposity altered the amplitude of GH pulses in pubertal patients and the number of pulses in prepubertal children. These results suggest that interpretation of SGHS must take into account body composition and gender in addition to pubertal status.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1994

Excess fruit juice consumption as a contributing factor in nonorganic failure to thrive.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether excessive consumption of fruit juice is a contributing factor in nonorganic failure to thrive in early childhood. METHODS: Eight patients, aged 14 to 27 months, referred for failure to thrive were evaluated by medical history, physical examination, and biochemical assessment. Growth patterns were reviewed and anthropometric measurements including skinfold thickness and midarm circumference were obtained. Diet history included 3-day food records and 24-hour diet recalls. An open-ended interview explored factors associated with fruit juice consumption. Breath hydrogen testing of fructose, sorbitol, or fruit juice was performed in three children who had a history of diarrhea or gastrointestinal complaints. Nutritional intervention focused on reducing fruit juice consumption and increasing the energy and nutrient density of the children's diets. RESULTS: In each case, deterioration of weight and linear growth progression coincided with excessive juice consumption. All children exhibited weights < 5th percentile and five also had lengths < -5th percentile. Weight-for-length deficits ranged from 11% to 25%. Two patients demonstrated low arm muscle mass and five children had diminished fat stores. Organic disease was ruled out in all cases. Three children had iron deficiency. The children's diets were hypocaloric, providing 78% to 92% of recommended energy intake for age and weight. Dietary intake included considerable juice consumption (12 to 30 oz/d). Fruit juice, primarily apple juice, contributed 25% to 60% of daily energy intake. As a result, food consumption was reduced; lowering dietary protein, fat, and micronutrient intakes. Excessive juice was consumed for various reasons including children's preferences, parental health beliefs, behavioral feeding difficulties, and financial considerations. Breath hydrogen testing revealed malabsorption of fructose and/or sorbitol. After nutritional intervention, dietary intake increased to 96% to 116% of recommended intakes. Weight gain increased significantly in the first month and persisted for follow-up of 5 to 18 months. CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that large intakes of fruit juices may displace more calorie- and nutrient-dense foods. Additionally, fructose and sorbitol malabsorption may occur. Excess fruit juice consumption may present a contributing factor in nonorganic failure to thrive.

Beverages↗
PubMed1993

Nutrition in adolescence.

Adolescence is often considered a nutritionally vulnerable period because of its characteristic rapid physical and psychological changes. Nutritional risks for both undernutrition and overnutrition are present and may be increased during physiologic stress such as athletics and pregnancy. Appropriate nutrition is important for maintaining optimal health and normal growth and development, as well as for preventing future chronic disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Body weight progression and nutritional status of patients with familial short stature with and without constitutional delay in growth.

To determine whether suboptimal nutrition affected growth deceleration in patients with constitutional delay of growth (CDG), retrospective weight and growth data and a cross-sectional nutritional assessment was performed. Patients studied included 52 CDG children with delayed bone age and 15 children with familial short stature without bone age delay. Body weight and length-height progression were evaluated from birth to 12 years using z scores. Clinical anthropometry, biochemical, and dietary evaluation were performed at the initial evaluation. Significant differences were noted between patients with CDG and familial short stature in their W/L ratio and W/H ratio profiles from 4 months to 12 years. Mean creatinine-height index, retinol binding protein, serum iron, and transferrin saturation values were lower among young CDG patients. These data suggest that suboptimal nutrition early in infancy may contribute to the course of CDG.

Body Height↗
PubMed1992

Children on adult diets: is it harmful? Is it healthful?

Physicians and parents are very concerned about providing children with the best nutrition and optimal diets. The pursuit of better health is one of the prime reasons for individual food choices. Often the main determinant in selecting food is a desire for a healthful diet that will foster longevity and prevent the devastating consequences of chronic degenerative disease. However, unlike nutritional deficiencies, which undoubtedly afflict those who consume an inadequate diet, the underlying causes of these chronic disorders are complex and poorly understood. Thus, no one can predict at present what the effects of the current recommendations will be, particularly when implemented in childhood. By implying that such nutritional strategies against chronic diseases of middle adulthood are necessary and should be applicable to the population at large, including growing children, health officials have shaken confidence in our Western diets and may have created a widespread fear of food. Strict adherence to low-fat, low-cholesterol diets in childhood may result in nutritional growth failure, while long-term benefits in reducing coronary heart disease may not be accomplished for the majority of the population who may not need marked dietary changes. Moderation is the theme for adequate nutrition in childhood.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

The relationship between beta-endorphin and the growth hormone (GH) response to GH releasing hormone in prepubertal children.

Endogenous opioids are thought to participate in the regulation of growth hormone (GH) release through the mediation of growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH). This study was intended to investigate whether the endogenous opioid beta-endorphin could modulate the GH response to GHRH and if this hypothesis could be demonstrated in children with familial short stature with or without constitutional growth delay. Seventeen children (6 female and 11 male) with stature below the fifth percentile were studied to rule out disorders in growth hormone dynamics. All had normal growth velocities, had appropriate predicted heights for their families and had normal GH levels on standard testing. Eight were prepubertal and 9 were Tanner II. All were given 0.1 mcgm/kg (1-44)hpGHRH-NH2 IV. Blood for growth hormone was obtained at 0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 90 and 120 minutes. Blood for beta-endorphin and cortisol was obtained at 0 and 60 minutes. The basal beta-endorphin level significantly correlated with the peak GH level (r = 0.868, p less than 0.05) in the prepubertal group only. In the same group of children, the degree of the negative feedback on the beta-endorphin level correlated significantly with the rise in GH level (r = 0.912, p less than 0.01). However, there was no correlation between the basal beta-endorphin and the peak GH level nor between the rise in GH level and the change in beta-endorphin in the pubertal children. These data are compatible with the hypothesis that beta-endorphin levels affect the GH response to GHRH in prepubertal children, but have no discernible effect on the GH response to GHRH in pubertal children.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Development of the neonatal rat small intestinal barrier to nonspecific macromolecular absorption. II. Role of dietary corticosterone.

The role of oral corticosterone (C) in the maturation of the neonatal rat jejunal barrier to the absorption of nonspecific macromolecules was evaluated. This was done by adding C to the diet of rat pups weaned at an early age, 17 d, from maternal milk (MM) to either a protein hydrolysate (PH) or soy (S) artificial formula. Both PH and S are known to cause a delay in small intestinal closure to the absorption of a 40-kD glycoprotein tracer, horseradish peroxidase (HRP), on d 21 of age. C was added to PH and S formulas from d 17 to 21 at 0.26 mumol/L (10 micrograms/dL), a level found in the MM of lactating rat dams, or at 10.29 mumol/L (400 micrograms/dL) (PH + 10C, PH + 400C) (S + 10C, S + 400C). Controls consisted of rat pups fed PH or S without C and animals remaining with the dam on MM. The delay in jejunal closure to HRP on d 21 in both PH- and S-fed pups was prevented by C supplementation at both the higher and lower concentrations. Geometric mean (95% confidence intervals) jejunal HRP absorption in PH + 10C pups was 74 (32,167) IU HRP/mL x cm x min, less than in pups fed PH without C [353 (200,615); p less than 0.05] and indistinguishable from HRP absorption in MM-fed animals [111 (79,154)]. HRP absorption in PH + 400C pups [52 (23,115)] was also less than that in animals fed PH without C (p less than 0.01) and indistinguishable from those fed MM.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Alterations in spontaneous growth hormone (GH) secretion and the response to GH-releasing hormone in children with nonorganic nutritional dwarfing.

The effects of suboptimal nutrition on the spontaneous overnight GH secretion (SGHS) and the GH response to GHRH were studied. Sixteen patients with nonorganic nutritional dwarfing (ND) were compared with 25 healthy short children with familial short stature with or without constitutional growth delay (FC). The effects of puberty were also assessed. All patients underwent an overnight study to assess SGHS with serum GH levels sampled every 20 min for 12 h, and a GHRH stimulation test was administered. Pubertal ND children had a blunted SGHS with a mean overnight GH level of 4.9 +/- 1.1 micrograms/L, significantly less than the level of 6.2 +/- 1.8 micrograms/L of the pubertal FC children (P less than 0.05). Also, prepubertal ND patients had an area under the curve in GH secretion after GHRH which was greater than that of the pubertal ND patients (2483 +/- 1581 vs. 1600 +/- 1056, P less than 0.05). The peak GH response to GHRH in the prepubertal ND patients was also higher than that of the pubertal ND patients (51.8 +/- 22.1 micrograms/L vs. 22.5 +/- 15.4 micrograms/L, P less than 0.05). This study shows that the SGHS is attenuated in ND patients during puberty but their GH response to GHRH is increased before adolescence. These abnormalities may represent compensatory mechanisms to energy restriction and may increase our understanding of the poor growth seen in ND patients.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Sustained improvement in growth velocity and recovery from suboptimal growth hormone (GH) secretion after treatment with human pituitary GH-releasing hormone-(1-44)-NH2.

The sustained effect of human pancreatic GH-releasing hormone [hpGHRH-(1-44)-NH2] on growth rate and GH secretory patterns was studied in 14 patients (10 males and 4 females; aged 10-16 yr; all Tanner stage I or II). Nine children had inadequate spontaneous GH secretion (ISGHS), while 5 had classic GH deficiency. Seven of 9 patients with ISGHS and 1 of 5 patients with GH deficiency were given 2 sc injections/day of 5 micrograms/kg GHRH for 2-3 months; the others received 5 pulses of GHRH (5 micrograms/kg BW.pulse) for 6 nights a week for 2-13 months, given every 3 h. Six of the nine ISGHS patients increased their growth velocity in response to GHRH therapy. These same six patients maintained an increased growth velocity for up to 24 months after GHRH was discontinued. The remaining three ISGHS patients did not show a significant growth response to GHRH administration. Neither a temporary nor a sustained growth response was correlated with spontaneous overnight GH secretion in these patients. In contrast, three of five classical GH deficiency patients exhibited increased growth velocity while undergoing GHRH therapy, but growth returned to preintervention rates upon discontinuation of treatment. The other two of the five classic GH deficiency patients failed to demonstrate any growth response to GHRH treatment. The increased growth velocity that was sustained for long intervals even after discontinuation of GHRH in ISGHS patients may indicate restoration of normal regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary GH secretion axis.

Child↗
PubMed1992

Is there compensated hypothyroidism in infancy?

The state-mandated newborn thyroid screening program may uncover infants who exhibit normal thyroxine (T4) levels with various degrees of hyperthyrotropinemia. To elucidate further the thyroid status, the basal metabolic rate (BMR) of 10 infants (7 boys, 3 girls; aged 9 to 63 days) was studied by indirect calorimetry. They were clinically euthyroid and healthy with no evidence of overt biochemical hypothyroidism (low T4, high thyroid-stimulating hormone [TSH]). Confirmatory testing indicated that all infants had normal serum T4 levels for age (mean +/- SD: 10.3 +/- 3.2 micrograms/dL). However, serum TSH levels varied from 2.3 to 99.2 microU/mL. In 4 infants (2 boys, 2 girls) the BMR was low (38.1 +/- 4.1 kcal/kg per day), while the other 6 patients (5 boys, 1 girl) demonstrated BMRs within the normal range (49.6 +/- 1.9 kcal/kg per day, P less than .001). The serum TSH levels were above 7.0 microU/mL among those infants with a low BMR, whereas the serum TSH levels were always below 6.0 microU/mL among the normometabolic infants. All infants who had a low BMR received thyroid therapy and promptly became normometabolic (BMR: 48.7 +/- 1.0 kcal/kg per day) with suppression of TSH levels (3.2 +/- 1.3 microU/mL) within 3 weeks of therapy, while their serum T4 levels remained within the normal range. The observed normalization of BMR in parallel to reduction of TSH levels following thyroid replacement therapy strongly suggests that these patients demonstrated a hypometabolic state, despite normal serum T4 levels. Therefore, the assessment of BMR may help define subclinical hypothyroidism in infancy in conjunction with a close monitoring of TSH concentration.

Basal Metabolism↗