The association between dietary patterns, diabetes and depression.

Type 2 diabetes and depression are commonly comorbid high-prevalence chronic disorders. Diet is a key diabetes risk factor and recent research has highlighted the relevance of diet as a possible risk for factor common mental disorders. This study aimed to investigate the interrelationship among dietary patterns, diabetes and depression.

The expression of pre- and postcopulatory sexually selected traits reflects levels of dietary stress in guppies

Environmental and ecological conditions can shape the evolution of life history traits in many animals. Among such factors, food or nutrition availability can play an important evolutionary role in moderating an animal's life history traits, particularly sexually selected traits. Here, we test whether diet quantity and/or composition in the form of omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (here termed 'n3LC') influence the expression of pre- and postcopulatory traits in the guppy (Poecilia reticulata), a livebearing poeciliid fish. We assigned males haphazardly to one of two experimental diets supplemented with n3LC, and each of these diet treatments was further divided into two diet 'quantity' treatments. Our experimental design therefore explored the main and interacting effects of two factors (n3LC content and diet quantity) on the expression of precopulatory (sexual behaviour and sexual ornamentation, including the size, number and spectral properties of colour spots) and postcopulatory (the velocity, viability, number and length of sperm) sexually selected traits. Our study revealed that diet quantity had significant effects on most of the pre- and postcopulatory traits, while n3LC manipulation had a significant effect on sperm traits and in particular on sperm viability. Our analyses also revealed interacting effects of diet quantity and n3LC levels on courtship displays, and the area of orange and iridescent colour spots in the males' colour patterns. We also confirmed that our dietary manipulations of n3LC resulted in the differential uptake of n3LC in body and testes tissues in the different n3LC groups. This study reveals the effects of diet quantity and n3LC on behavioural, ornamental and ejaculate traits in P. reticulata and underscores the likely role that diet plays in maintaining the high variability in these condition-dependent sexual traits.

Communication of scientific uncertainty : international case studies on the development of folate and vitamin D Dietary Reference Values.

Transparent evidence-based decision making has been promoted worldwide to engender trust in science and policy making. Yet, little attention has been given to transparency implementation. The degree of transparency (focused on how uncertain evidence was handled) during the development of folate and vitamin D Dietary Reference Values was explored in three a priori defined areas: (i) value request; (ii) evidence evaluation; and (iii) final values.

Experimental reduction in dietary omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids depresses sperm competitiveness

 The health benefits of diets containing rich sources of long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFA) are well documented and include reductions in the risk of several diseases typical of Western societies. The dietary intake of n-3 LC-PUFA has also been linked to fertility, and there is abundant evidence that a range of ejaculate traits linked to fertility in humans, livestock and other animals depend on an adequate intake of n-3 LC-PUFA from dietary sources. However, relatively few studies have explored how n-3 LC-PUFA influence reproductive fitness, particularly in the context of sexual selection. Here, we show that experimental reduction in the level of n-3 LC-PUFA in the diet of guppies (Poecilia reticulata) depresses a male’s share of paternity when sperm compete for fertilization, confirming that the currently observed trend for reduced n-3 LC-PUFA in western diets has important implications for individual reproductive fitness.

Dietary ALA, But not LNA, Increase Growth, Reduce Inflammatory Processes, and Increase Anti‑Oxidant Capacity in the Marine Finfish Larimichthys crocea

 Waiting for HERDC - Lisa B.

Dietary n-6/n-3 LC-PUFA ratio, temperature and time interactions on nutrients and fatty acids digestibility in Atlantic salmon

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the effects of altered dietary n-3/n-6 LC-PUFA ratio, adaptation to diet over time, different water temperatures, and their interactions on nutrients and fatty acids digestibility in juvenile Atlantic salmon. Three experimental diets were formulated to be identical, with the only exception of the ratio of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3) to arachidonic acid (ARA, 20:4n-6), and fed to triplicate groups of juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) of 55. g initial body weight. Fish were reared in a fully controlled recirculating aquaculture system, fed to apparent satiety twice daily and kept at 10. °C and for an initial period of 100. days, and faeces were collected for digestibility estimation. Then, half of the fish of each experimental tank were moved to a separate system, where the water temperature was gradually increased up to 20. °C. Fish were maintained in the two systems for an additional period of 50. days, and faeces were collected for digestibility estimation from both groups of fish at the two water temperatures. This study concluded that dietary treatments and time had only minor effects, whereas environmental temperature resulted in modified digestibility values, with increased nutrient digestibility with increasing temperature. Varying EPA/ARA ratio in the diet had only minor direct effects on digestibility, with no direct effect on overall nutrients digestibility, and fundamentally only statistically significant effects in the fatty acid digestibility of EPA and ARA themselves. Because of current increasing pressure for more efficient fish oil replacement strategies, increasing interest in dietary ARA in aquafeed and increasing relevance and occurrence of sub-optimal rearing temperature in commercial aquaculture, this study can be considered to be important as it provided a series of fundamental information, which are envisaged to be useful towards addressing these constraints and possible nutritional remedial strategies.

A cluster randomised controlled trial of a telephone-based intervention targeting the home food environment of preschoolers (The Healthy Habits Trial): the effect on parent fruit and vegetable consumption

Abstract
Background: The home food environment is an important setting for the development of dietary patterns in childhood. Interventions that support parents to modify the home food environment for their children, however, may also improve parent diet. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of a telephone-based intervention targeting the home food environment of preschool children on the fruit and vegetable consumption of parents.
Methods: In 2010, 394 parents of 3 – 5 year – old children from 30 preschools in the Hunter region of Australia were recruited to this cluster randomised controlled trial and were randomly assigned to an intervention or control group. Intervention group parents received four weekly 30-minute telephone calls and written resources. The scripted calls focused on; fruit and vegetable availability and accessibility, parental role-modelling, and supportive home food routines. Two items from the Australian National Nutrition Survey were used to assess the average number of serves of fruit and vegetables consumed each day by parents at baseline, and 2-, 6-, 12-, and 18-months later, using generalised estimating equations (adjusted for baseline values and clustering by preschool) and an intention-to-treat-approach.
Results: At each follow-up, vegetable consumption among intervention parents significantly exceeded that of controls. At 2-months the difference was 0.71 serves (95% CI: 0.58-0.85, p < 0.0001), and at 18-months the difference was 0.36 serves (95% CI: 0.10-0.61, p = 0.0067). Fruit consumption among intervention parents was found to significantly exceed consumption of control parents at the 2-,12- and 18-month follow-up, with the difference at 2-months being 0.26 serves (95% CI: 0.12-0.40, p = 0.0003), and 0.26 serves maintained at 18-months, (95% CI: 0.10-0.43, p = 0.0015).
Conclusions: A four-contact telephone-based intervention that focuses on changing characteristics of preschoolers’ home food environment can increase parents’ fruit and vegetable consumption.
(ANZCTR12609000820202)

Preventing mental health problems in offspring by targeting dietary intake of pregnant women

The concept of 'early life programming' considers the importance of very early environmental exposures throughout the gestational period on the subsequent health outcomes of offspring. The role of maternal dietary intake, specifically, has been highlighted after recent studies have shown maternal diet quality to predict mental health problems in offspring. Even in the pre-conception period, maternal nutrition can have permanent and sustained phenotypic consequences for offspring.

Dietary repletion with ω3 fatty acid or with COX inhibition reverses cognitive effects in F3 ω3 fatty-acid-deficient mice

Dietary deficiency of ω3 fatty acid during development leads to impaired cognitive function. However, the effects of multiple generations of ω3 fatty-acid deficiency on cognitive impairment remain unclear. In addition, we sought to test the hypothesis that the cognitive impairments of ω3 fatty-acid-deficient mice are mediated through the arachidonic acid-cyclooxygenase (COX) pathway. To address these issues, C57BL/6J mice were bred for 3 generations and fed diets either deficient (DEF) or sufficient (SUF) in ω3 fatty acids. At postnatal day 21, the F3 offspring remained on the dam's diet or were switched to the opposite diet, creating 4 groups. In addition, 2 groups that remained on the dam's diet were treated with a COX inhibitor. At 19 wk of age, spatial-recognition memory was tested on a Y-maze. Results showed that 16 wk of SUF diet reversed the cognitive impairment of F3 DEF mice. However, 16 wk of ω3 fatty-acid-deficient diet impaired the cognitive performance of the F3 SUF mice, which did not differ from that of the F3 DEF mice. These findings suggest that the cognitive deficits after multigenerational maintenance on ω3 fatty-acid-deficient diet are not any greater than are those after deficiency during a single generation. In addition, treatment with a COX inhibitor prevented spatial-recognition deficits in F3 DEF mice. Therefore, cognitive impairment due to dietary ω3 fatty-acid deficiency appears to be mediated by the arachidonic acid-COX pathway and can be prevented by 16 wk of dietary repletion with ω3 fatty acids or COX inhibition.

Associations between dietary iron and zinc intakes, and between biochemical iron and zinc status in women

Iron and zinc are found in similar foods and absorption of both may be affected by food compounds, thus biochemical iron and zinc status may be related. This cross-sectional study aimed to: (1) describe dietary intakes and biochemical status of iron and zinc; (2) investigate associations between dietary iron and zinc intakes; and (3) investigate associations between biochemical iron and zinc status in a sample of premenopausal women aged 18–50 years who were recruited in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia. Usual dietary intakes were assessed using a 154-item food frequency questionnaire (n = 379). Iron status was assessed using serum ferritin and hemoglobin, zinc status using serum zinc (standardized to 08:00 collection), and presence of infection/inflammation using C-reactive protein (n = 326). Associations were explored using multiple regression and logistic regression. Mean (SD) iron and zinc intakes were 10.5 (3.5) mg/day and 9.3 (3.8) mg/day, respectively. Median (interquartile range) serum ferritin was 22 (12–38) μg/L and mean serum zinc concentrations (SD) were 12.6 (1.7) μmol/L in fasting samples and 11.8 (2.0) μmol/L in nonfasting samples. For each 1 mg/day increase in dietary iron intake, zinc intake increased by 0.4 mg/day. Each 1 μmol/L increase in serum zinc corresponded to a 6% increase in serum ferritin, however women with low serum zinc concentration (AM fasting < 10.7 μmol/L; AM nonfasting < 10.1 μmol/L) were not at increased risk of depleted iron stores (serum ferritin <15 μg/L; p = 0.340). Positive associations were observed between dietary iron and zinc intakes, and between iron and zinc status, however interpreting serum ferritin concentrations was not a useful proxy for estimating the likelihood of low serum zinc concentrations and women with depleted iron stores were not at increased risk of impaired zinc status in this cohort.

Palinurid lobster aquaculture: nutritional progress and considerations for successful larval rearing

The closed-cycle rearing of palinurid lobsters in commercially relevant quantities currently represents one of the most difficult challenges facing modern-day aquaculture. The length and complexity of the larval life cycle exacerbate the problem, comprising the major bottleneck to their successful aquaculture. The general consensus is that developments in the key research area of nutrition will provide the necessary breakthroughs to make the closed-cycle rearing of lobster a reality. Due to the cryptic nature of feeding preferences and complex larval morphology, a commercially formulated feed for their culture does currently not exist. Nevertheless, there has been a wealth of research conducted to elucidate many of the unknowns concerning larval nutritional requirements. This review presents a synthesis of this information, ranging from investigations of larval morphology and feeding behaviour, hatchery nutrition practices, the elucidation of wild prey items and the nutritional content of wild-caught larval species. Based on the information available, this review culminates with a ‘best guess’ formulation for a larval spiny lobster diet, taking aspects concerning both the physical and chemical attributes of formulation into consideration. It is concluded that larval spiny lobsters are likely comparatively low in relation to other larval species with respect to their quantitative dietary requirements. Ultimately, the overall success of the larval cycle appears to be dictated by the stockpiling of lipids to fuel an energy-demanding metamorphosis and a subsequent nonfeeding puerulus phase. These insights provide valuable direction for the formulation of nutritionally complete feeds to permit the closed-loop culture of spiny lobster species.

Obesity, dietary choices, and sociocultural influences among Fijian adolescents

Obesity contributes to early deaths from non-communicable diseases in all Pacific Islands populations. Fiji is no exception; the prevalence of overweight and obesity has tripled since 1993 in both ethnic groups to different extents. This thesis provides better understanding of dietary patterns and relationships with body weight in adolescents, and their sociocultural influences, in order to identify effective and appropriate messages and messengers to motivate adolescents to improve their diets.