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Biomedical subjects

L H McArthur

Publications and source records attributed to L H McArthur.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Dietetics majors' weight-reduction beliefs, behaviors, and information sources.

One hundred twenty-eight female dietetics majors aspiring to be registered dietitians were surveyed to identify and assess their reasons for wanting to lose weight and the weight-loss techniques and information sources they used and would recommend to clients. Fisher's exact tests were used to analyze behavioral data, and binomial tests to determine whether proportions of students achieving their desired weight-loss outcomes were significantly greater than 50%. Most dieters wanted to lose weight to improve their appearance and increase their self-esteem. Sound weight-loss techniques that were used and recommended include increased exercise, low-fat foods and snacks, and portion control. Accurate information sources used and recommended included food labels and college nutrition courses. Unsound weight-loss techniques and potentially inaccurate information sources were also used and would be recommended by a few students. Findings suggest a need for more learning opportunities focusing on enhancement of self-esteem and weight management.

Dietetics↗
PubMed1993

The role of palatability in the food intake response of rats fed high-protein diets.

Male albino rats, trained to eat over a 3-h period, reduced their food intake from 0.38 +/- 0.04 g of a low-protein diet to 0.14 +/- 0.03 g of a high-protein diet, within 1 min following diet presentation. Since this occurred before the metabolic effects of a high-protein diet should be seen, we suggest that, although neophobia could play a role, poor initial palatability may be a significant factor in this early depression in food intake. To differentiate initial palatability from responses to metabolic feedback, we designed a feeding paradigm using positive or negative taste cues and a 6-h feeding period. Pre-treatment with a 6% casein diet containing 0.15% quinine HCl resulted in near equal consumption of a 75% casein and a 6% casein unadulterated diet during the first 30 min after introduction of the diets. Later, the rate of consumption of the high-protein diet was lower than of the lower-protein diet, likely the result of post-absorptive factors. We suggest that prevention of the early reduction in food intake due to initial palatability may facilitate study of post-absorptive response(s) to high-protein diets.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Learned preference and aversion for complete and isoleucine-devoid diets in rats.

Choice tests using flavored solutions were conducted to demonstrate a learned preference or aversion in rats fed replete (complete) or isoleucine (ILE)-devoid diets. In the first learning trial, rats demonstrated a preference for the flavored solutions paired with the replete diet at 6 and 24 h (p < 0.001), and an aversion for the solutions paired with the ILE-devoid diet at 6 h (p < 0.05). In the second trial, using a different concentration of tastant, rats ingested significantly more of the flavored solution paired with the replete diet at 24 h (11.4 +/- 3.0 g vs. 5.4 +/- 1.0 g, respectively; p < 0.05), and significantly more of a novel flavored solution than of the solution paired with the ILE-devoid diet at 24 h (12.4 +/- 2.4 g vs. 1.7 +/- 0.6 g, respectively; p < 0.001). These results suggest that learning contributes to the rat's ability to self-select diets that promote growth, and that a learning paradigm pairing flavored solutions with complete and indispensible amino acid-devoid diets may be used to demonstrate learned preferences and aversions for such diets in rats.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Effectiveness of a college course focused on evaluation of health claims.

This study measured the effectiveness of a college course designed to instruct students to make critical evaluations of therapeutic claims for foods, nutrient supplements, weight-reduction products and diets, and alternative healthcare systems. Experimental and comparison groups were pretested and posttested to determine changes in source reliance and cognitive learning. The experimental group received instruction in five cognitive areas: (1) health and nutrition quackery, (2) consumer protection, (3) basic concepts in health and nutrition, (4) nutritional supplements and health foods, and (5) conventional and unconventional treatment of chronic diseases. The experimental group scored significantly higher in all five conceptual areas on the posttest, and in each case scored significantly higher than the comparison group did. Both groups rated medical/scientific sources of health and nutrition information as highly accurate during the two survey periods. The experimental group showed a change in source reliance, moving from dependence on the popular print media and individuals without formal education in a health field to medical/scientific sources, whereas the comparison group continued to use the popular press and electronic media. Findings suggest that a source targeted to the needs and interests of a specific group can bring about significant increases in knowledge gain and desirable changes in source reliance.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Learned preference for the limiting amino acid in rats fed a threonine-deficient diet.

Preference for an odor associated with protein is only seen in protein-deprived rats. We hypothesized that rats depleted of the amino acid threonine (THR) would prefer a flavored solution paired with a THR replete diet. Rats were given a flavored drink paired with THR-deficient (DEV) diet followed by a second flavor paired with a corrected (COR) diet. In choice testing, the animals clearly selected the COR-paired flavor, while control rats preferred the other flavor. This did not, however, differentiate between aversion to the DEV-paired flavor and learned preference for the COR-paired flavor. In subsequent tests, an unpaired flavor was given rather than the DEV-paired flavor. The COR-paired flavor was included in the test as before. In the second and third trials, using either DEV or a less profoundly deficient diet, animals depleted of THR selected the COR-paired flavor to a greater extent than control rats. We conclude that animals deficient in the essential amino acid, THR, show a learned preference for the flavor paired with repletion.

Amino Acids, Essential↗