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Short- and long-periods of neonatal maternal separation differentially affect anxiety and feeding in adult rats: gender-dependent effects.

Environmental manipulations during early development can induce permanent alterations in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) and behavioral responses to stressors. However, little is known about the impact of early life experiences on appetitive responses. The present investigation assessed the effects of brief handling/separation or protracted separation from the dams, on feeding and anxiety responses during development. During the first 3 weeks post-partum, Sprague-Dawley rat pups were exposed daily to either brief (15 min) handling/isolation (H), a more protracted (3 h) period of maternal separation (MS), or were not handled (NH). When tested on the elevated plus-maze (at 5-6 weeks) H groups displayed less anxiety than NH gender-matched controls. Surprisingly, so did the MS females. At weaning (Day 22), the MS rats weighed significantly less than both the H and NH animals; the difference between the H and MS was more robust and persisted throughout the experiment (D 62). The H animals of both genders, and the females of the MS group, consumed more of the palatable 'snack' than their NH counterparts. The feeding suppressant response to the various satiety peptides (bombesin, cholecystokinin, and amylin) was not affected by the early life experience, with exception of cholecystokinin (CCK) effects, which were more pronounced in H and MS males. These results suggest that early life events may contribute to anxiety and/or ingestive disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia and obesity.

Amyloid↗

The association of exercise, diet and other factors with owner-perceived obesity in privately owned dogs from metropolitan Perth, WA.

Randomly selected dog-owning households (n=657) were interviewed to identify exercise, dietary and other factors associated with obesity in dogs. Dogs (n=860) were categorised by their owners as underweight, correct-weight or overweight and the weight of 386 dogs was also recorded. Twenty five percent of dogs were reported as overweight. In random-effects logistic regression, overweight dogs had higher odds of being neutered (OR=2.8), fed snacks (OR=1.5), fed once a day (OR=1.4) or living in single-dog households (OR=1.6). For each year of age, the odds of obesity increased (OR=1.1) and for each hour of weekly exercise the odds of obesity decreased (OR=0.9).

Animals↗

Nutritional management of eating disorders.

Abnormal nutritional status and dietary patterns are central features of the eating disorders. Normalization of these features are key components of treatment and recovery because they are powerful perpetuating factors. Restrictive diets, fat avoidance, and abnormal cognitive and perceptual patterns are typically present, in addition to altered nutritional parameters because of hormonal and metabolic factors. The primary goal of nutrition intervention in the patient with anorexia nervosa is to promote weight gain through increased energy intake, expansion of the diet, and knowledgeable and empathetic dietary counseling. A regular pattern of nutritionally balanced, planned meals and snacks, and the avoidance of restrictive dieting, are essential elements of treatment for the patient with bulimia nervosa. As a member of the multidisciplinary treatment team, the dietitian or nutrition professional with knowledge of nutritional science, counseling skills, and a nonjudgmental attitude can provide expertise in this area.

Anorexia Nervosa↗

Predictors of reported consumption of low-nutrient-density foods in a 24-h recall by 8-16 year old US children and adolescents.

The purpose of this study was to develop an explanatory model to predict the number of low-nutrient-density (LND) foods reported in a 24-h recall by US children and adolescents using data from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The reported number of LND foods was estimated from 24-h dietary recall data for 8-16 year old respondents (n=4137; 2024 males and 2113 females). The LND foods included--baked and dairy desserts, sweeteners, salty snacks, visible/discretionary fat, and miscellaneous. The predictive ability of socio-demographic, family, weight/dieting related, life-style or food consumption related subject characteristics was determined using multiple linear regression analyses. The strongest independent negative predictor of the reported number of LND foods was the amount of nutrient-dense foods from the five major food groups. In addition, number of eating occasions reported was a significant independent positive predictor, and the weekly frequency of consuming a complete school lunch was a significant independent negative predictor of the reported number of LND foods. These models explained approximately 55% of the variance in LND food reporting in both males and females. Socio-demographic, family, body weight, or lifestyle characteristics contributed little to predicting the number of LND foods reported in a 24-h recall.

Adolescent↗

Dietary self-selection and meal patterns of obese and lean Zucker rats.

Following two weeks of baseline measures on laboratory chow, young obese and lean male Zucker rats were given access to separate macronutrients for 18 weeks. First, the rats were given access to soybean meal, dextrinized starch, and lard for eight weeks. Daily caloric intake of obese rats was greater on laboratory chow than that of lean rats and remained so following the switch to the self-selection diet. While obese and lean rats consumed similar proportions of each macronutrient over the eight-week period, there were substantial changes in the pattern of intake across weeks. Obese rats decreased daily caloric intake primarily by decreasing lard consumption. In contrast, lean rats maintained daily caloric intake while increasing the proportion of calories from fat. The addition of a 25% sucrose solution (weeks 11-18) produced an elevated daily caloric intake for both obese and lean rats, achieved through an increased carbohydrate intake with a simultaneous decrease in fat intake. A diurnal pattern of intake was maintained for each macronutrient. Compared to controls, rats on the self-selection diet did not show differential growth. Measurement of daily meal patterns for soybean meal, sucrose, and lard during the last four days of the experiment showed that obese rats ate significantly larger meals comprised of all three food components than did lean rats. For both obese and lean rats, one-component meals were primarily sucrose with greater intake during the light period. Lean rats showed a greater tendency to indulge in these between-meal "snacks" than did obese rats. These data suggest that palatability and nutrient source as well as length of exposure are critical determiners of nutrient selection and total daily caloric intake.

Animals↗

Contributions of obesity, gender, hunger, food preference, and body size to bite size, bite speed, and rate of eating.

College students ate two high preference or two low preference doughnuts under high or low hunger conditions. Subjects were led to believe that we were interested in preference ratings made after eating the doughnuts. The number of bites and the total snack time were covertly recorded. Having weighed the doughnuts previously, we calculated the bite size (amount per bite), bite speed (time per bite), and eating rate (amount per second). Eating rate increased as obesity, body size, hunger, and preference increased; men ate at a faster rate than women. Larger bites accounted for the increased rate of the obese, the high preference subjects, and those having a larger body size. The hungry subjects increased their eating rate by taking faster bites. Men ate faster than women by taking both larger but slower bites. Thus eating rate is under multiple control. The data also suggest that the effects of obesity and, in part, gender on these eating responses may be more parsimoniously explained as body size effects. Modification of these within-session eating responses in order to regulate food intake will be successful only when the relationships among these measures are understood.

Adolescent↗

Acculturation to Canadian Foods by Chinese immigrant boys: changes in the perceived flavor, health value and prestige of foods.

Acculturation changes in the perceived qualities of foods was demonstrated in a group of first and second generation Chinese adolescent immigrants. The type and degree of change in perceived flavor, health value and prestige ratings varied for individual foods. The second generation subjects and those with more accultured patterns of language use, gave higher hedonic flavor and prestige ratings to dessert, snack and fast foods. This same group exhibited better discrimination between nutrient rich and poor foods as assessed by changes in perception of health value. Food perceptions of the more accultured second generation Chinese group were also found to approach those of an age and sex matched group of Canadian Anglophones. The results suggest that on immigration diet westernization may have nutritionally undesirable effects.

Acculturation↗

Dietary fat intake and taste responses to fat in milk by under-, normal, and overweight women.

Dietary fat intake, with special emphasis on dairy products, was estimated from questionnaires for 42 underweight, 80 normal weight, and 64 overweight adult women. Frequency of consumption of fresh and processed meats, frozen dairy desserts, pastries, and snacks such as potato chips was greater for the overweight than for the underweight subjects. However, preferences between verbally-described high- and low-fat versions of 14 food pairs did not differ by body size. Overweight subjects reported that they consumed more non-fat milk and less whole milk than did the other groups. Discrimination, perceived intensity, paired preference, and hedonic rating of fat in milk and in chocolate milk did not differ significantly according to body size, fat intake, or type of milk consumed. Ad libitum mixing of non-fat milk and "half and half" (12% fat) to individual levels of liking also showed no significant variation with body size. However, subjects with higher dietary fat intakes mixed to higher fat-preference levels in milk than did the low- and medium-fat intake subjects. Those reporting consumption of regular milk (3.5% fat) mixed to higher fat levels than did those who consumed low-fat (2% fat) or non-fat milk. The ad libitum procedure gave better reproducibility and appeared to be a more realistic measure of liking than the hedonic rating or paired-preference tests.

Adolescent↗

Obesity and food intake in children: evidence for a role of metabolic and/or behavioral daily rhythms.

Food intake was studied in 339 French children, aged 7-12 years. Daily energy consumption and distribution of intake over the waking hours estimated from dietary histories were compared in children of five corpulence categories. The categories (lean, slim, average, fat, obese) were defined on the basis of the weight/height2 index. No difference in estimated daily energy intake was observed between corpulence groups; however, the reported distribution of intake over the waking hours varied. Obese and fat children ate less at breakfast and more at dinner than leaner peers. The traditionally larger meals of the day (lunch and dinner) represented higher proportions of daily intake in fat and obese children; the energy value of breakfast and afternoon snack was inversely related to corpulence. Although these effects do not rule out hyperphagia or increased 'externality' in some overweight subjects, the results suggest a possible contribution of disturbed metabolic and/or behavioral daily cycles in the development of overweight. This hypothesis, which should be investigated further, suggests prevention strategies.

Child↗

Effects of slow release carbohydrates in the form of bean flakes on the evolution of hunger and satiety in man.

This study was undertaken to test the effects of plausible meals containing slow release starches in the form of bean flakes on plasma glucose and hunger in man. In a first study, volunteers consumed a hachis paramentier (shepherd's pie) containing either bean purée or potato purée. After the meal containing potato, plasma glucose levels rose sharply, peaked at 30-45 min and fell below initial levels 2 to 3 h later. With bean purée there was a low, sustained increase in blood glucose. In a second study, volunteers consumed six hachis parmentier (three with bean purée, three with potato purée, topped with spinach, ratatouille or tomatoes). Relative to potato, the bean purée delayed the return of hunger and decreased ratings for propensity to eat a tasty snack.

Adult↗

Hunger-induced finickiness in humans.

Two experiments were conducted to examine the effect of hunger on finickiness in humans. Subjects (a total of 157 undergraduate female dieters and non-dieters) were food-deprived and then subsequently either given a snack (not-hungry group) or left food-deprived (hungry group) before being given ad libitum access to either good-tasting or bad-tasting (quinine-adultered) milkshake. Common sense predicted that hungry subjects would drink more milkshake than would not-hungry subjects, regardless of milkshake palatability. Hungry subjects did in fact drink more of the good-tasting milkshake than did not-hungry subjects, but they also drank less of the bad-tasting milkshake. We discuss possible reasons why hunger might increase rejection of bad-tasting food, as well as the limiting conditions of the effect.

Animals↗

Smoking and pregnancy outcome of adolescents.

The interrelationship between dietary intake, smoking behavior, and weight again during pregnancy was studied and compared with pregnancy outcomes of infant birth weight and Apgar scores of infants born to smokers. Nonsmokers (N = 28) and smokers (N = 39) were volunteers attending secondary schools in an urban area. Both groups received prenatal and tertiary care at free or reduced fees and participated in free lunch and other assistance programs at their schools. Smoking was not statistically related to maternal weight gain, infant birth weight, dietary inadequacy, or Apgar scores. Smoking was significantly related to low pregravid weight (P less than or equal to .05). Dietary iron and folic acid were deficient in both groups. Snacking represented a major source of calories, and 25-50% of foods consumed were eaten away from home.

Adolescent↗

Food allocation in rural Peruvian households: concepts and behavior regarding children.

Intrahousehold food allocation is an important determinant of child health and survival. In this paper I explore the ways in which food is distributed to young children in Ura Ayllu, a farming community located in the southern Peruvian highlands (Province of Sandia, Department of Puno, Peru). Quantitative data on energy intake and growth status are analyzed for two groups of children: toddlers (one through three years) and preschoolers (four through six years). The analyses indicate no gender differences in energy intake or growth among toddlers (one through three years) and preschoolers (four through six years) and that young children do not appear to be deprived of food relative to older household members, especially adults. Relative to standards specific to Andean populations, the mean caloric content of the toddler diet falls slightly below the estimated requirement for the age group while the preschooler diet is found to be calorically adequate. This paper also examines the ideological bases that shape food allocation within households. Regarding the local concepts and cultural rules that guide food allocation to children, Ura Ayllinos view young children as developmentally immature and believe their dietary and health needs are different from those of older children and adults. Infants and young children are considered weak (debil) and vulnerable to illness. Parents state that young children should not feel hunger which is thought to weaken a person and make him more susceptible to the natural and supernatural agents that cause illness. Certain dietary practices, such as on-demand breastfeeding and snacking between meals, suggest that parents try to avoid the experience of hunger and the potential for illness by making food available to their children. This study suggests that young Ura Ayllu children are viewed as having a right to food based on local concepts of child development, personhood, and general health maintenance.

Adult↗

Class differences in the food rules mothers impose on their children: a cross-national study.

Many studies indicate that children in middle-class families have healthier eating habits than children in lower class families. Class differences in food rules, which parents and especially mothers impose on their children, may underlie these social inequalities in food consumption. The present study uses education as a classifying variable and analyses whether mothers with higher education prescribe more "healthy" foodstuffs for their children and whether they restrict more "unhealthy" food items than less educated mothers. Moreover, the study examines whether higher class mothers consider health aspects more often and the preferences of their family members less often in their choice of food, and whether class differences in these considerations explain class differences in food rules. To answer these questions, questionnaires on the food practices of 849 women living in middle-class or lower class districts in Maastricht (the Netherlands), Liège (Belgium) and Aachen (Germany) were collected and analysed. The majority of mothers in each city prescribed primarily foods that were served at dinner like meat and vegetables, and most mothers limited their children's consumption of sweet foods, soft drinks and snacks. Higher class mothers restricted more foods, but prescribed as many food items as their lower class counterparts. Class differences in the number of restricted foods were partly, but not completely, explained by class differences in health and taste considerations. Despite national variations in dietary habits and possibly in the education of children, class differences in food rules and the explanatory power of health and taste considerations were comparable in the three cities.

Adolescent↗

Women's strategies to alleviate nutritional stress in a rural African society.

Many agricultural populations are subject to chronic or seasonal undernutrition, reproductive women and children often being most vulnerable. This paper presents quantitative and qualitative data on food consumption, food distribution practices, food taboos, garden sizes and work effort to show how Lese horticulturalist women living in the Ituri Forest of northeast Democratic Republic of Congo attempt to alleviate nutritional stress. The Lese experience an annual hunger season when approximately one quarter of the population suffer from energy deficiency. Nutritional intake is also compromised by a complex system of food taboos against meat from wild forest animals. Anthropometric data collected over several years suggest that Lese women suffer from nutritional stress more than men during the hunger season. They also have more food taboos particularly during pregnancy and lactation. Their low fertility is compounded by nutritional stress. Despite these inequities, Lese women use several strategies to improve their food intake. Since they are responsible for all household cooking, they manipulate food portions. During the hunger season, they snack frequently, and increase their consumption of palliative foods. Women with more food taboos plant larger gardens to supplement their diet with vegetable foods. Although this results in their consumption of more daily protein, they work harder compared to women with smaller gardens. Women cheat in their adherence to specific food taboos by actively discounting them, or by eating prophylactic plants that supposedly prevent the consequences (usually illness) of eating tabooed foods. In addition, women resort to subterfuge to access desirable resources. Lese women do not reduce work effort during the hunger season, but adapt physiologically by reducing resting metabolic rates during periods of weight loss. These results point to the ability of Lese women to minimize the ecological and cultural constraints on their nutrition. More data, however, are required to assess the long-term effectiveness of these strategies.

Adult↗

Acrylamide exposure from foods of the Dutch population and an assessment of the consequent risks.

At the end of April 2002, the Swedish Food Administration reported the presence of acrylamide in heat treated food products. Acrylamide has been shown to be toxic and carcinogenic in animals, and has been classified by the WHO/IARC among others as 'probably carcinogenic for humans'. The purposes of this study were firstly to analyse acrylamide contents of the most important foods contributing to such exposure, secondly, to estimate the acrylamide exposure in a representative sample of the Dutch population, and thirdly to estimate the public health risks of this consumption. We analysed the acrylamide content of foods with an LC-MS-MS method. The results were then used to estimate the acrylamide exposure of consumers who participated in the National Food Consumption Survey (NFCS) in 1998 (n=6250). The exposure was estimated using the probabilistic approach for the total Dutch population and several age groups. For 344 food products, acrylamide amounts ranged from <30 to 3100 microg/kg. Foods with the highest mean acrylamide amounts were potato crisps (1249 microg/kg), chips (deep-fried) (351 microg/kg), cocktail snacks (1060 microg/kg), and gingerbread (890 microg/kg). The mean acrylamide exposure of the NFCS participants was 0.48 microg/kg bw/day. Risk of neurotoxicity is negligible. From exposure estimations it appears that the additional cancer risk might not be negligible.

Acrylamides↗

Dietary intake of acrylamide in Sweden.

High levels of acrylamide have been found in foods heated at high temperatures, especially in carbohydrate rich foods. Several kinds of foods (industrially produced) representing different food/product groups available on the Swedish market have been analysed for acrylamide. A considerable variation in levels of acrylamide between single foodstuffs (different brands) within food categories were found, which also applies for levels in different food categories. Using recent Swedish food consumption data the dietary intake of acrylamide for the Swedish adult population was assessed based on foodstuffs with low to high levels of acrylamide (<30-2300 microg/kg), such as processed potato products, bread, breakfast cereals, biscuits, cookies, snacks and coffee. The estimated dietary intake of acrylamide per person (total population) given as the 5th, 50th and 95th percentile were 9.1, 27 and 62 microg/day respectively, from those food/product groups (mean 31 microg/day). No acrylamide was found in many other foodstuffs analysed and those were therefore not included in the dietary intake assessment of acrylamide. However, an additional minor contribution of a few microg/day of acrylamide from foods/products like poultry, meat, fish, cocoa powder and chocolates cannot be excluded. An average daily intake of 35 microg corresponds to 0.5 microg per kg body weight and day (body weight 70 kg). Risk assessments of acrylamide, made by US EPA and WHO, imply that this dietary intake of acrylamide could be associated with potential health risks.

Acrylamides↗

Differential effects of cooking in open cups and in sealed cellophane bags on the residual cyanide content of moi-moi, a processed legume product.

Bean pastes from the black eyed bean (Vigna unguiculata), pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) and Ife brown (V. unguiculata) were processed into a popular West African snack moi-moi, cooked in open aluminium cups and in sealed, thin, transparent cellophane bags. The residual total, free and bound cyanide levels of moi-moi from both processes were determined using a combination of enzymatic and colorimetric procedures. Results showed that in all cases, cooking of moi-moi in open aluminium cups caused retention of significantly higher (P<0.05) residual free cyanide than cooking in sealed cellophane bags. Loss of bound cyanide was unaffected by cooking procedure. These results suggest that cooking of moi-moi in cellophane bags reduces the risks of cyanide exposure from legumes.

Cellophane↗