Ásia Oriental e Sudeste Asiático: modelos para a América Latina?

O artigo analisa a crescente influência dos modelos econômicos asiáticos - da Ásia Oriental e do Sudeste Asiático - na América Latina bem como sua possível aplicabilidade neste continente. A parte isso, mostra, também, algumas das prováveis retrições à adoção direta de tais modelos e algumas das principais abordagens a respeito do assunto.

China: a ascensão pacífica da Ásia Oriental

A China tem procurado associar sua emergência econômica e política atual a um processo de paz que beneficiaria os países vizinhos e relações com o exterior. Busca, também, identificar a Ásia Oriental como o espaço regional que favorece sua ascensão. Nesse sentido, resgata experiência histórica de relacionamento com o Sudeste Asiático que segundo Pequim teria sido pacífica e justificaria a expectativa de que a China rise, no século XXI, não representaria ameaça. Tal desenvolvimento coincide com esforço dos países membros da Asean para maior integração com a RPC.

Propriedades físicas do solo e sistema radicular do cacaueiro, da pupunheira e do açaizeiro na Amazônia oriental

O conhecimento das relações entre raízes das culturas e propriedades físicas do solo é de grande importância para o manejo adequado. Esta pesquisa avalia a distribuição das raízes das culturas do cacaueiro, da pupunheira e do açaizeiro, relacionando com as propriedades físicas do solo. O estudo foi desenvolvido em Latossolo Amarelo álico, e as amostras de raízes e de solos foram retiradas a cada 10 cm até 40 cm. O delineamento experimental utilizado para cada cultura foi em blocos ao acaso, em esquema fatorial (quatro profundidades e três classes de raízes), com quatro repetições. As amostras de raízes foram obtidas em monólitos e em dois pontos de distância entre as fileiras das plantas, separadas em três classes de diâmetro: < 1,0 mm, 1,0-3,0 mm e > 3,0 mm. O açaizeiro apresentou o dobro de raízes da pupunheira e 10 vezes mais que do cacaueiro. Entre as distâncias das plantas não houve diferença na quantidade de raízes da pupunheira. Houve correlação direta entre a quantidade de raízes, das três culturas, e o teor de areia grossa, e inversa com a densidade do solo e o teor de argila. O volume de poros grandes teve correlação direta com a quantidade de raízes do cacaueiro e do açaizeiro nas três classes de diâmetro. O açaizeiro, além de possuir o sistema radicular mais abundante, apresenta o maior número de correlações entre a quantidade de raízes e as propriedades físicas do solo, envolvendo as três classes de diâmetro de raízes.

Health promoting and sensory properties of phenolic compounds in food

Phenolic compounds have been extensively studied in recent years. The presence of these compounds in various foods has been associated with sensory and health promoting properties. These products from the secondary metabolism of plants act as defense mechanisms against environmental stress and attack by other organisms. They are divided into different classes according to their chemical structures. The objective of this study was to describe the different classes of phenolic compounds, the main food sources and factors of variation, besides methods for the identification and quantification commonly used to analyze these compounds. Moreover, the role of phenolic compounds in scavenging oxidative stress and the techniques of in vitro antioxidant evaluation are discussed. In vivo studies to evaluate the biological effects of these compounds and their impact on chronic disease prevention are presented as well. Finally, it was discussed the role of these compounds on the sensory quality of foods.

Entradas e Bandeiras: estratégia de interiorização das cadeias de fast-food

O presente trabalho analisa a estratégia de entrada de firmas da indústria de fast-food brasileira em novos mercados. Investigamos quais os atributos de uma cidade que atrai firmas dessa indústria e como firmas de diferentes cadeias interagem nas suas decisões de entrada. Os resultados indicam que as firmas adotam uma estratégia do tipo me-too: uma vez que uma firma entra em um mercado inexplorado, as demais tendem a também entrar nesse mercado. A hipótese do artigo é que há uma incerteza quanto ao potencial de um mercado, e a entrada de uma firma sinaliza para as demais que esse potencial é elevado Os ganhos da descoberta e da entrada em um novo mercado com alto potencial dissipam-se rapidamente com a entrada das firmas seguidoras, concedendo uma vantagem temporária para a firma pioneira.

Evolução do estado nutricional de menores de 5 anos em aldeias indígenas da Tribo Parakanã, na Amazônia Oriental Brasileira (1989-1991)

Foi estudada a recente evolução do estado nutricional de menores de 5 anos nas aldeias Parakanã, Maroxewara e Paranatinga. Dados antropométricos (peso, altura) foram obtidos em três estudos transversais para avaliação da prevalência de desnutrição e acompanhamento da evolução nutricional pelo incremento médio do índice peso/idade de 70 crianças (87,5% dos menores existentes). A desnutrição nas aldeias foi proporcional ao tempo de contato com nossa cultura e atribuível a fatores socioculturais relatados. Na Paranatinga, os valores médios dos indicadores antropométricos - peso/idade, altura/idade e peso/altura - foram os menores, principalmente nas crianças entre o sexto e o 24º mês. Reduziu-se em 76, 1 % a prevalência de desnutrição global no grupo estudado, não havendo mais casos de desnutrição aguda na última avaliação. O incremento do indicador peso/idade foi proporcional à severidade do caso, não havendo diferença significante entre as aldeias. Medidas de natureza preventiva adotadas foram eficazes em reduzir a prevalência de desnutrição infantil entre os Parakanã.

Staphylococcal food poisoning from cream-filled cake in a metropolitan area of South-Eastern Brazil

Twelve people became ill with vomiting and diarrhoea approximately four hours after eating cake with a cream filling at a birthday party and on the day following. The cake had been prepared by a food handler who had long experience in preparing foods for such functions. Staphylococcus aureus that produced enterotoxin A was isolated from the nose, the fingernails, and a healed infection on the neck of the food handler, and from the cake. Enterotoxin A was detected in the remaining portion of the cake. The cake, while still warm, had been refrigerated for one hour after it was prepared before it was removed for the party; it was refrigerated after the party. The cake was large (6 kg) and hence it was not adequately cooled in the hour during wich it was refrigerated before the party. The conclusion is that the cake was accidentally contaminated by the food handler and inadequately cooled before it was eaten.

Food frequency consumption and lipoproteins serum levels in the population of an urban area, Brazil

OBJECTIVE: To identify the association between food group consumption frequency and serum lipoprotein levels among adults. METHODS: The observations were made during a cross-sectional survey of a representative sample of men and women over 20 years old living in Cotia county, S. Paulo, Brazil. Data on food frequency consumption, serum lipids, and other covariates were available for 1,045 adults. Multivariate analyses adjusted by age, gender, body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio, educational level, family income, physical activity, smoking, and alcohol consumption were performed. RESULTS: Consumption of processed meat, chicken, red meat, eggs and dairy foods were each positively and significantly correlated with LDL-C, whereas the intake of vegetables and fruits showed an inverse correlation. Daily consumption of processed meat, chicken, red meat, eggs, and dairy foods were associated with 16.6 mg/dl, 14.5 mg/dl, 11.1 mg/dl, 5.8 mg/dl, and 4.6 mg/dl increase in blood LDL-C, respectively. Increases of daily consumption of fruit and vegetables were associated with 5.2 mg/dl and 5.5 mg/dl decreases in LDL-C, respectively. Alcohol beverage consumption showed a significant positive correlation with HDL-C. CONCLUSIONS: Dietary habits in the study population seem to contribute substantially to the variation in blood LDL and HDL concentrations. Substantially CHD risk reduction could be achieved with dietary changes.

Proposal of a short-form version of the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale

OBJECTIVE To propose a short version of the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale. METHODS Two samples were used to test the results obtained in the analyses in two distinct scenarios. One of the studies was composed of 230 low income families from Pelotas, RS, Southern Brazil, and the other was composed of 15,575 women, whose data were obtained from the 2006 National Survey on Demography and Health. Two models were tested, the first containing seven questions, and the second, the five questions that were considered the most relevant ones in the concordance analysis. The models were compared to the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale, and the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy parameters were calculated, as well as the kappa agreement test. RESULTS Comparing the prevalence of food insecurity between the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale and the two models, the differences were around 2 percentage points. In the sensitivity analysis, the short version of seven questions obtained 97.8% and 99.5% in the Pelotas sample and in the National Survey on Demography and Health sample, respectively, while specificity was 100% in both studies. The five-question model showed similar results (sensitivity of 95.7% and 99.5% in the Pelotas sample and in the National Survey on Demography and Health sample, respectively). In the Pelotas sample, the kappa test of the seven-question version totaled 97.0% and that of the five-question version, 95.0%. In the National Survey on Demography and Health sample, the two models presented a 99.0% kappa. CONCLUSIONS We suggest that the model with five questions should be used as the short version of the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale, as its results were similar to the original scale with a lower number of questions. This version needs to be administered to other populations in Brazil in order to allow for the adequate assessment of the validity parameters.

Association between food assistance program participation and overweight

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to investigate the association between food assistance program participation and overweight/obesity according to poverty level. METHODS A cross-sectional analysis of data from 46,217 non-pregnant and non-lactating women in Lima, Peru was conducted; these data were obtained from nationally representative surveys from the years 2003, 2004, 2006, and 2008-2010. The dependent variable was overweight/obesity, and the independent variable was food assistance program participation. Poisson regression was used to stratify the data by family socioeconomic level, area of residence (Lima versus the rest of the country; urban versus rural), and survey year (2003-2006 versus 2008-2010). The models were adjusted for age, education level, urbanization, and survey year. RESULTS Food assistance program participation was associated with an increased risk of overweight/obesity in women living in homes without poverty indicators [prevalence ratio (PR) = 1.29; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.06;1.57]. When stratified by area of residence, similar associations were observed for women living in Lima and urban areas; no associations were found between food assistance program participation and overweight/obesity among women living outside of Lima or in rural areas, regardless of the poverty status. CONCLUSIONS Food assistance program participation was associated with overweight/obesity in non-poor women. Additional studies are required in countries facing both aspects of malnutrition.

Evaluating the use of in-store measures in retail food stores and restaurants in Brazil

ABSTRACTOBJECTIVE To assess inter-rater reliability, test-retest reliability, and construct validity of retail food store, open-air food market, and restaurant observation tools adapted to the Brazilian urban context.METHODS This study is part of a cross-sectional observation survey conducted in 13 districts across the city of Sao Paulo, Brazil in 2010-2011. Food store and restaurant observational tools were developed based on previously available tools, and then tested it. They included measures on the availability, variety, quality, pricing, and promotion of fruits and vegetables and ultra-processed foods. We used Kappa statistics and intra-class correlation coefficients to assess inter-rater and test-retest reliabilities in samples of 142 restaurants, 97 retail food stores (including open-air food markets), and of 62 restaurants and 45 retail food stores (including open-air food markets), respectively. Construct validity as the tool’s abilities to discriminate based on store types and different income contexts were assessed in the entire sample: 305 retail food stores, 8 fruits and vegetable markets, and 472 restaurants.RESULTS Inter-rater and test-retest reliability were generally high, with most Kappa values greater than 0.70 (range 0.49-1.00). Both tools discriminated between store types and neighborhoods with different median income. Fruits and vegetables were more likely to be found in middle to higher-income neighborhoods, while soda, fruit-flavored drink mixes, cookies, and chips were cheaper and more likely to be found in lower-income neighborhoods.CONCLUSIONS The measures were reliable and able to reveal significant differences across store types and different contexts. Although some items may require revision, results suggest that the tools may be used to reliably measure the food stores and restaurant food environment in urban settings of middle-income countries. Such studies can help .inform health promotion interventions and policies in these contexts.

Periphyton used as food for Biomphalaria tenagophila (Gastropoda, Planorbidae)

Snails reared in cages colonized by periphyton grew from 5.0mm to 8.8mm shell diameter, each laid 0.5 batch of eggs per day and the overall survival during the period was 75%

Mansonelosis en el area sur-oriental de la Orinoquia venezolana

En 26 asentamientos selváticos del Estado Bolívar, Venezuela, fueron muestreados el 10% o más de sus residentes mediante examen físico, biopsias de piel y toma de sangre periférica. En 13 de las comunidades se detectaron 153 indígenas y un mestizo infectados con Mansonelosis, representando un índice global de 36,40% para el área endémica. La parasitosis se concentró en tres focos: El mayor situado en la región Suroccidental y formando parte de una extensa superficie infectada, que abarca territorios vecinos de Venezuela y Brasil; con aldeas de índices parasitarios colectivos de 80,76% y 94,44%. Un segundo foco está situado en la región Suroriental y los portadores, al igual que en el anterior, están infectados con Mansonela ozzardi. El tercer foco Centro-oriental presentó infecciones por M. pertans. No fue posible concretar un cuadro nosológico en los infectados por M.ozzardi, a pesar de haberse detectado densidades parasitarias individuales de 30.000 microfilarias por ml de sangre y de 22.000 por gr de piel.

Salmonella serovars in food poisoning episodes recorded in Brazil from 1982 to 1991

The Salmonella serovars involved in 25 food poisoning episodes which occurred in the Southeast and South of Brazil from 1982 to 1991 were identified. The most frequently detected serotype was S. Typhimurium (13/25, 52%), and the food most frequently involved in the transmission of Salmonella was homemade mayonnaise. The need to set up a permanent program of epidemiologic alert for food poisoning is emphasized.