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Circulation. Heart Failure Apr 2016
Topics: Female; Health Behavior; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Heart Failure; Humans; Male; Risk Reduction Behavior
PubMed: 27072862
DOI: 10.1161/CIRCHEARTFAILURE.116.003155 -
Food Research International (Ottawa,... Jul 2024The presence of contaminants in cacao-derived products, especially in chocolates, has raised concerns regarding food safety and human health. The study assessed the...
The presence of contaminants in cacao-derived products, especially in chocolates, has raised concerns regarding food safety and human health. The study assessed the concentration variation of 16 elements in 155 chocolate samples from the US market by cacao content and country of geographic origin. The study further examined the potential health risks posed by toxic metals and determined the contribution of essential elements to the Daily Recommended Intake (DRI), estimated based on an ounce (∼28.4 g) of daily chocolate consumption. Dark chocolates with ≥50 % cacao exhibited consecutively increasing mean levels from 1.2 to 391 µg/kg for U, Tl, Th, As, Pb, Se, Cd, and Co. Similarly, Ni, Sr, Cu, Mn, Zn, Fe, Ca, and Mg had mean concentrations from 4.0 to 1890 mg/kg. Dark chocolates sourced from Central and South America exhibited the highest mean levels of Cd, and South America samples also contained elevated Pb, whereas those from West Africa and Asia had low Cd and Pb, respectively. Cacao contents showed increasingly strong association with Cd, Co, Mn, Sr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and Mg (r = 0.60-0.84), and moderately with Se, Fe, As, and Tl (r = 0.35-0.49), indicating these elements are primarily derived from cacao beans. Weak association of cacao contents with Pb, Th, and U levels (r < 0.25), indicates post-harvest contaminations. Hazard Quotient (HQ) > 1 was found only for Cd in 4 dark chocolates, and Hazard Index (HI) > 1 for cumulative risk of Cd, Pb, Ni, As, and U was found in 33 dark chocolates, indicating potential non-carcinogenic risks for 15 kg children but none for 70 kg adults. Dark chocolate also substantially contributed to 47-95 % of the DRI of Cu for children and 50 % for adults. Dark chocolates also provided notable Fe, Mn, Mg, and Zn contributions to the DRI. These essential elements are recognized to reduce the bioavailability of toxic metals such as Cd, Pb, or Ni, thereby potentially lowering associated health risks. This study informs consumers, food industries, and regulatory agencies to target cacao origins or chocolate brands with lower toxic metal contents for food safety and minimizing adverse health effects.
Topics: Metals, Heavy; Risk Assessment; Chocolate; Humans; Cacao; Food Contamination; United States; Trace Elements; Recommended Dietary Allowances
PubMed: 38763644
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2024.114360 -
Netherlands Heart Journal : Monthly... Jan 2024
PubMed: 38085508
DOI: 10.1007/s12471-023-01839-3 -
JACC. Clinical Electrophysiology Oct 2020
Topics: Atrial Fibrillation; Catheter Ablation; Humans; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease; Risk Factors
PubMed: 33092756
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacep.2020.06.029 -
JMIR Research Protocols Feb 2023Social and behavioral determinants of health are increasingly recognized as central to effective person-centered intervention in clinical practice, disease management,...
BACKGROUND
Social and behavioral determinants of health are increasingly recognized as central to effective person-centered intervention in clinical practice, disease management, and public health. Accordingly, social prescribing (SP) has received increased attention in recent times. The rampant global prevalence of obesity indicates that the customary, reductionistic, and disease-oriented biomedical approach to health service delivery is inadequate/ineffective at arresting the spread and mitigating the damaging consequences of the condition. There is an urgent need to shift the focus from reactive downstream disease-based treatments to more proactive, upstream, preventive action. In essence, this requires more effort to affect the paradigm shift from the traditional "biomedical approach of care" to a "biopsychosocial model" required to arrest the increasing prevalence of obesity. To this end, an SP approach, anchored in systems thinking, could be an effective means of moderating prevalence and consequences of obesity at a community level.
OBJECTIVE
The proposed SP intervention has the following three key objectives: (1) build a sustainable program for Circular Head based on SP, peer education, and health screening to minimize the incidence of obesity and related lifestyle diseases; (2) increase service and workforce connectivity and collaboration and initiate the introduction of new services and activities for obesity prevention and community health promotion; and (3) enhance health and well-being and minimize preventable adverse health outcomes of obesity and related lifestyle diseases through enhancement of food literacy and better nutrition, enhancement of physical literacy and habitual personal activity levels, and improvement of mental health, community connectedness, and reduction of social isolation.
METHODS
This paper describes a prospective SP strategy aimed at obesity prevention in Circular Head, a local government area in Northwest (NW) Tasmania. SP is a prominent strategy used in the Critical Age Periods Impacting the Trajectory of Obesogenic Lifestyles Project, which is an initiative based in NW Tasmania focused on assessing obesity prevention capacity. A social prescription model that facilitates the linkage of primary health screening with essential health care, education, and community resources through a dedicated "navigator" will be implemented. Four interlinked work packages will be implemented as part of the initial plan with each either building on existing resources or developing new initiatives.
RESULTS
A multimethod approach to triangulate insights from quantitative and qualitative research that enables the assessment of impact on individuals, community groups, and the health care system will be implemented within the initial pilot phase of the project.
CONCLUSIONS
Literature is replete with rhetoric advocating complex system approaches to curtail obesity. However, real-life examples of whole-of-systems interventions operationalized in ways that generate relevant evidence or effective policies are rare. The diverse approach for primary prevention of obesity-related lifestyle diseases and strategies for improvement of health and well-being described in this instance will contribute toward closing this evidence gap.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID)
PRR1-10.2196/41280.
PubMed: 36800232
DOI: 10.2196/41280 -
PloS One 2022Taxes are increasingly used as a policy tool aimed at reducing consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), given their association with adverse health outcomes...
INTRODUCTION
Taxes are increasingly used as a policy tool aimed at reducing consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), given their association with adverse health outcomes including type 2 diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease. However, a potential unintended consequence of such a policy could be that the tax induces substitution to alcoholic beverages. The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of the $0.0175 per ounce Seattle, Washington, Sweetened Beverage Tax (SBT) on volume sold of alcoholic beverages.
METHODS
A difference-in-differences estimation approach was used drawing on universal product code-level food store scanner data on beer (N = 1059) and wine (N = 2655) products one-year pre-tax (February-November, 2017) and one and two-years post-tax (February-November, 2018 and 2019) with Portland, Oregon, as the comparison site.
RESULTS
At two-years post-tax implementation, volume sold of beer in Seattle relative to Portland increased by 7% (ratio of incidence rate ratios [RIRR] = 1.07, 95% CI:1.00,1.15), whereas volume sold of wine decreased by 3% (RIRR = 0.97, 95% CI:0.95,1.00). Overall alcohol (both beer and wine) volume sold increased in Seattle compared to Portland by 4% (RIRR = 1.04, 95% CI:1.01,1.07) at one-year post-tax and by 5% (RIRR = 1.05, 95% CI:1.00,1.10) at two-years post-tax. The implied SSB cross-price elasticities of demand for beer and wine, respectively, were calculated to be 0.35 and -0.15.
CONCLUSIONS
There was evidence of substitution to beer following the implementation of the Seattle SSB tax. Continued monitoring of potential unintended outcomes related to the implementation of SSB taxes is needed in future tax evaluations.
Topics: Alcoholic Beverages; Commerce; Consumer Behavior; Costs and Cost Analysis; Government Regulation; Health Plan Implementation; Humans; Sugar-Sweetened Beverages; Taxes
PubMed: 35041717
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0262578 -
Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders Sep 2016Black adolescents are at increased risk of cardiometabolic disease but have lower fasting triglyceride, which is usually associated with decreased risk. No one has...
BACKGROUND
Black adolescents are at increased risk of cardiometabolic disease but have lower fasting triglyceride, which is usually associated with decreased risk. No one has studied racial differences in triglycerides or free fatty acids (FFAs) after a high-fat meal.
METHODS
Oral glucose tolerance testing was used to assess insulin secretion, sensitivity, and disposition index (DI). Endothelial function, triglycerides, FFA, c-reactive protein, interleukin 6 (IL6), and adiponectin were measured both pre- and 3 hr postprandially (McDonald's Big Breakfast(®) and 12 ounce Sprite(®)) in obese adolescents (10-13 years, 9 black and 7 white). Endothelial function was assessed using reactive hyperemic changes in forearm vascular resistance (FVR).
RESULTS
Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) showed no difference in insulin sensitivity, but blacks tended to have (P = 0.08) higher insulin secretion and had increased DI (P = 0.003). After a high-fat meal, triglycerides increased in both groups (P < 0.001), tended to be lower in blacks compared with whites preprandially (64 ± 33 mg/dL vs 110 ± 80, P = 0.064), and was lower postprandially (112 ± 63 vs 188 ± 112, P = 0.039). Pre- and postprandial FFA (Black: 0.58 ± 0.15 and 0.39 ± 0.18 vs. white: 0.44 ± 0.14 and 0.26 ± 0.06, P = 0.020) and adiponectin (P = 0.002) were increased in blacks. FFA decreased in both groups postprandially (P = 0.002). IL6 increased after the meal (P = 0.022). Endothelial function decreased postprandially (P < 0.02), but this was due to a decrease in preocclusion FVR.
CONCLUSIONS
These results indicate that differences in fat metabolism are present in both black and white obese adolescents. How these differences explain higher rates of cardiometabolic disease in blacks is unclear.
Topics: Adolescent; Black People; Child; Fasting; Fatty Acids, Nonesterified; Female; Glucose Tolerance Test; Humans; Insulin; Insulin Resistance; Male; Meals; Pediatric Obesity; Postprandial Period; Vasodilation
PubMed: 27419255
DOI: 10.1089/met.2015.0122 -
Early Childhood Research QuarterlyEven with rapid and widespread expansion of states' quality rating and improvement systems (QRIS)-tiered frameworks that assess, communicate, and improve early childhood...
Even with rapid and widespread expansion of states' quality rating and improvement systems (QRIS)-tiered frameworks that assess, communicate, and improve early childhood education (ECE) quality-there exists no population-level information regarding which providers choose to participate in these primarily voluntary systems. We use a nationally representative survey of ECE centers to examine how the characteristics of ECE centers and the communities in which they are located predict participation in QRIS to understand the scope of QRIS policy implementation and the extent to which QRIS may be equity enhancing. We find that approximately one-third of centers nationwide participated in QRIS in 2012. Selection model results reveal that participation is more likely among centers that blend multiple funding sources and who are NAEYC accredited, and in communities with high poverty rates. However, QRIS participation is less likely in communities with relatively higher proportions of Black residents. Findings raise questions about how QRISs can equitably engage programs in all communities.
PubMed: 33041498
DOI: 10.1016/j.ecresq.2020.09.005 -
The American Journal of Clinical... Dec 2022Whole-grain (WG) foods are defined by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), FDA, AHA, American Association of Cereal Chemists International (AACCI), and Whole... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
BACKGROUND
Whole-grain (WG) foods are defined by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), FDA, AHA, American Association of Cereal Chemists International (AACCI), and Whole Grains Council (WGC) in different ways with diverse focuses on grain components only, whole foods, or nutrient contents.
OBJECTIVES
We aimed to compare estimated WG food intake among US adults using different definitions.
METHODS
For each definition, we estimated the mean intake and trends of WG food consumption using survey-weighted 24-h dietary recalls from nationally representative samples of 39,755 US adults aged 20+ y from 8 cycles (2003-2018) of the NHANES. This is an observational study that used deidentified and publicly available datasets.
RESULTS
The estimated mean consumption of WG foods (ounces equivalents/2000 kcal/d, oz. eq./d) varied by definition. In 2017-2018, the AHA (mean [SEM]: 1.05 [0.07] oz. eq./d) and WGC (0.95 [0.07]) definitions yielded the highest amounts, followed by the DGA (0.81 [0.06]), AACCI (0.73 [0.05]), and FDA (0.53 [0.04]). Using all definitions except for WGC, US adults increased WG food intake from 2003-2004 to 2017-2018 with the largest increase (61.5%) using the AHA (from 0.65 to 1.05 oz. eq./d), followed by DGA (0.50 to 0.81) and AACCI (0.51 to 0.73) definitions. For each definition, the main sources of WG foods consumed by US adults were ready-to-eat cereals, cooked grains and cereals, and breads (including rolls and tortillas). For all definitions except the AHA, non-Hispanic White adults and individuals with college degrees or above consumed higher levels of WG foods than non-Hispanic Blacks and those with lower levels of education.
CONCLUSIONS
Different definitions affect the determination of WG foods, estimated intakes, and associated trends in WG food consumption among US adults. These findings call for a standardized definition of WG foods to guide consumers, industry, and policymakers in promoting WG intake in the US.Clinical Trial Registration: Not Applicable.
Topics: Adult; Humans; United States; Nutrition Surveys; Whole Grains; Diet; Nutrition Policy; Edible Grain; Eating
PubMed: 36446403
DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/nqac267 -
Journal of Nutrition Education and... Apr 2023To examine the dietary behaviors of mothers from very low food security (VLFS) households following the availability of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) unemployment...
OBJECTIVE
To examine the dietary behaviors of mothers from very low food security (VLFS) households following the availability of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) unemployment and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
METHODS
Diet and food security status were obtained from 2,584 California mothers during Federal Fiscal Year 2020. Fruits, vegetables, and 100% fruit juice (FV100%FJ), sugar-sweetened beverages, and water intake, and Healthy Eating Index-2015 scores, were compared across 4 groups (before vs after COVID-19 benefits by VLFS vs non-VLFS households) with race/ethnicity and age as covariates.
RESULTS
Before COVID-19 benefits, VLFS was associated with fewer cups of FV100%FJ (P = 0.010), more fluid ounces of sugar-sweetened beverages (P = 0.004), and poorer diet quality (P = 0.003). After COVID-19 benefits, mothers from VLFS vs non-VLFS households reported similar dietary outcomes. VLFS mothers reported 0.96 (95% confidence interval, 0.53-1.38) more cups of FV100%FJ after COVID-19 benefits.
CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS
Coronavirus disease 2019 benefits may have reduced dietary inequities among low-income families. Associations between increased Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and unemployment benefits and decreased costs associated with the negative health outcomes linked to food insecurity and poor diets would be of value.
Topics: Female; Humans; Feeding Behavior; Food Supply; COVID-19; Diet; Food Assistance; Food Insecurity
PubMed: 36739249
DOI: 10.1016/j.jneb.2022.10.009