Simple prompts reduce inadvertent energy consumption from lighting in office buildings

Building designs regularly fail to achieve the anticipated levels of in-use energy consumption. The interaction of occupants with building controls is often cited as a key factor behind this discrepancy. This paper examines whether one factor in inadvertent energy consumption might be the appearance of post-completion errors (when an intended action is not taken because a primary goal has already been accomplished) in occupants’ interactions with building controls. Post-completion errors have been widely studied in human-computer interaction but the concept has not previously been applied to the interaction of occupants with building controls. Two experiments were carried out to examine the effect of incorporating two different types of simple prompt to reduce post-completion error in the use of light switches in office meeting rooms. Results showed that the prompts were effective and that occupants switched off lights when leaving the room more often when presented with a normative prompt than with a standard injunction. Additionally, an over reliance on PIR sensors to turn off lights after meetings was observed, which reduced their intended energy savings. We conclude that achieving low carbon buildings in practice is not solely a technological issue and that application of user-models from human-computer interaction will encourage appropriate occupant interaction with building controls and help reduce inadvertent energy consumption.

Effects of increased wholegrain consumption on immune and inflammatory markers in healthy low habitual wholegrain consumers

Purpose Wholegrain (WG) consumption is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, but clinical data on inflammation and immune function is either conflicting or limited. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of increasing WG consumption to at least 80 g/d on markers of inflammation and glucose metabolism and on phenotypic and functional aspects of the immune system, in healthy, middle-aged adults with low habitual WG intake. Methods Subjects consumed a diet high in WG (> 80 g/d) or low in WG (< 16 g/d, refined grain diet) in a crossover study, with 6-week intervention periods, separated by a 4-week washout. Adherence to the dietary regimes was achieved by dietary advice and provision of a range of food products, with compliance verified through analysis of plasma alkylresorcinols (ARs). Results On the WG intervention, WG consumption reached 168 g/d (P < 0.001), accompanied by an increase in plasma ARs (P < 0.001) and fibre intake (P < 0.001), without affecting other aspects of dietary intake. On the WG arm there were trends for lower ex vivo activation of CD4+ T cells and circulating concentrations of IL-10, C-reactive protein, C-peptide, insulin and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1. The percentage of CD4+ central memory T cells and circulating levels of adipsin tended to increase during the WG intervention. Conclusions Despite the dramatic increase in WG consumption, there were no effects on phenotypic or functional immune parameters, markers of inflammation or metabolic markers.

Impact of palm date consumption on microbiota growth and large intestinal health: a randomised, controlled, cross-over, human intervention study

The reported inverse association between the intake of plant-based foods and a reduction in the prevalence of colorectal cancer may be partly mediated by interactions between insoluble fibre and (poly)phenols and the intestinal microbiota. In the present study, we assessed the impact of palm date consumption, rich in both polyphenols and fibre, on the growth of colonic microbiota and markers of colon cancer risk in a randomised, controlled, cross-over human intervention study. A total of twenty-two healthy human volunteers were randomly assigned to either a control group (maltodextrin-dextrose, 37·1 g) or an intervention group (seven dates, approximately 50 g). Each arm was of 21 d duration and was separated by a 14-d washout period in a cross-over manner. Changes in the growth of microbiota were assessed by fluorescence in situ hybridisation analysis, whereas SCFA levels were assessed using HPLC. Further, ammonia concentrations, faecal water genotoxicity and anti-proliferation ability were also assessed using different assays, which included cell work and the Comet assay. Accordingly, dietary intakes, anthropometric measurements and bowel movement assessment were also carried out. Although the consumption of dates did not induce significant changes in the growth of select bacterial groups or SCFA, there were significant increases in bowel movements and stool frequency (P<0·01; n 21) and significant reductions in stool ammonia concentration (P<0·05; n 21) after consumption of dates, relative to baseline. Furthermore, date fruit intake significantly reduced genotoxicity in human faecal water relative to control (P<0·01; n 21). Our data indicate that consumption of date fruit may reduce colon cancer risk without inducing changes in the microbiota.