Does milk consumption contribute to cardiometabolic health and overall diet quality?

Although milk consumption is recommended in most dietary guidelines around the world, its contribution to overall diet quality remains a matter of debate in the scientific community as well as in the public. This paper summarizes the discussion among experts in the field on the place of milk in a balanced, healthy diet. The evidence to date suggests at least a neutral effect of milk intake on health outcomes. The possibility that milk intake is simply a marker of higher nutritional quality diets cannot be ruled out. This review also identifies a number of key research gaps pertaining to the impact of milk consumption on health. These need to be addressed to better inform future dietary guidelines.

Astringency reduction in red wine by whey proteins

Whey is a by-product of cheese manufacturing and therefore investigating new applications of whey proteins will contribute towards the valorisation of whey and hence waste reduction. This study shows for the first time a detailed comparison of the effectiveness of gelatin and β-lactoglobulin (β-LG) as fining agents. Gelatin was more reactive than whey proteins to tannic acid as shown by both the astringency method (with ovalbumin as a precipitant) and the tannins determination method (with methylcellulose as a precipitant). The two proteins showed similar selectivity for polyphenols but β-LG did not remove as much catechin. The fining agent was removed completely or to a trace level after centrifugation followed by filtration which minimises its potential allergenicity. In addition, improved understanding of protein–tannin interactions was obtained by fluorescence, size measurement and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC). Overall this study demonstrates that whey proteins have the potential of reducing astringency in red wine and can find a place in enology.

Comparison of the portion size and frequency of consumption of 156 foods across seven European countries: insights from the Food4ME study

There are no standardised serving/portion sizes defined for foods consumed in the European Union (EU). Typical serving sizes can deviate significantly from the 100 g/100 ml labelling specification required by the EU legislation. Where the nutritional value of a portion is specified, the portion size is determined by the manufacturers. Our objective was to investigate the potential for standardising portion sizes for specific foods, thereby ensuring complementarity across countries. We compared portion size for 156 food items measured using a food frequency questionnaire across the seven countries participating in the Food4me study. The probability of consuming a food and the frequency of consumption differed across countries for 93% and 58% of the foods, respectively. However, the individual country mean portion size differed from the average across countries in only 16% of comparisons. Thus, although dietary choices vary markedly across countries, there is much less variation in portion sizes. Our results highlight the potential for standardisation of portion sizes on nutrition labels in the EU

Using NMR-based metabolomics to evaluate postprandial urinary responses following consumption of minimally processed wheat bran or wheat aleurone by men and women

Wheat bran, and especially wheat aleurone fraction, are concentrated sources of a wide range of components which may contribute to the health benefits associated with higher consumption of whole-grain foods. This study used NMR metabolomics to evaluate urine samples from baseline at one and two hours postprandially, following the consumption of minimally processed bran, aleurone or control by 14 participants (7 Females; 7 Males) in a randomized crossover trial. The methodology discriminated between the urinary responses of control, and bran and aleurone, but not between the two fractions. Compared to control, consumption of aleurone or bran led to significantly and substantially higher urinary concentrations of lactate, alanine, N-acetylaspartate acid and N-acetylaspartylglutamate and significantly and substantially lower urinary betaine concentrations at one and two hours postprandially. There were sex related differences in urinary metabolite profiles with generally higher hippurate and citrate and lower betaine in females compared to males. Overall, this postprandial study suggests that acute consumption of bran or aleurone is associated with a number of physiological effects that may impact on energy metabolism and which are consistent with longer term human and animal metabolomic studies that used whole-grain wheat diets or wheat fractions.

Impact of an intervention on the availability and consumption of fruits and vegetables in the workplace

Objective: To evaluate the impact of an educational and environmental intervention on the availability and consumption of fruits and vegetables in workplace cafeterias. Design: This was a randomized intervention study involving a sample of companies that were divided into intervention and control groups. The intervention, which focused on change in the work environment, was based on an ecological model for health promotion. It involved several different aspects including menu planning, food presentation and motivational strategies to encourage the consumption of fruits and vegetables. The impact of the intervention was measured by changes (between baseline and follow-up) in the availability of fruits and vegetables that were eaten per consumer in meals and the consumption of fruits and vegetables in the workplace by workers. We also evaluated the availability of energy, macronutrients and fibre. Settings: Companies of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Subjects: Twenty-nine companies and 2510 workers. Results: After the intervention we found an average increase in the availability of fruits and vegetables of 49 g in the intervention group, an increase of approximately 15 %, whereas the results for the control group remained practically equal to baseline levels. During the follow-up period, the intervention group also showed reduced total fat and an increase in fibre in the meals offered. The results showed a slight but still positive increase in the workers` consumption of fruits and vegetables (about 11 g) in the meals offered by the companies. Conclusions: Interventions focused on the work environment can be effective in promoting the consumption of healthy foods.

Consumption of a Flaxseed-Rich Food Is Not More Effective Than a Placebo in Alleviating the Climacteric Symptoms of Postmenopausal Women

Our objective in this work was to test the effects of daily intake of bread produced with partially defatted ground flaxseed on the climacteric symptoms and endometrial thickness of postmenopausal women. A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial was performed with 38 women who had been postmenopausal for 1-10 y and consumed 2 slices of bread containing 25 g of flaxseed (46 mg lignans) or wheat bran (<1 mg lignans; control) every day for 12 consecutive weeks. The outcome variables were the daily number of hot flashes, the Kupperman Menopausal Index (KMI), and endometrial thickness. The plasma lipid profile (total cholesterol and HDL, LDL, and VLDL cholesterol fractions and triglycerides) and the hormones estradiol, follicle-stimulating hormone, thyroid-stimulating hormone, and free thyroxine also were measured. Food intake was evaluated by means of 2 24-hrecalls, before and after the treatment. Twenty patients in the study group and 18 in the control group completed the study. The general characteristics did not differ between the 2 groups at the start of the study. Both had significant, but similar, reductions in hot flashes and KMI after 3 mo of treatment. Moreover, endometrial thickness was not affected in either group. Our findings clearly show that although flaxseed is safe, its consumption at this level (46 mg lignans/d) is no more effective than placebo for reducing hot flashes and KMI. J. Nutr. 140: 293-297, 2010.

Increasing consumption of ultra-processed foods and likely impact on human health: evidence from Brazil

Objective: To assess time trends in the contribution of processed foods to food purchases made by Brazilian households and to explore the potential impact on the overall quality of the diet. Design: Application of a new classification of foodstuffs based on extent and purpose of food processing to data collected by comparable probabilistic household budget surveys. The classification assigns foodstuffs to the following groups: unprocessed/minimally processed foods (Group 1); processed culinary ingredients (Group 2); or ultra-processed ready-to-eat or ready-to-heat food products (Group 3). Setting: Eleven metropolitan areas of Brazil. Subjects: Households; n 13 611 in 1987-8, n 16 014 in 1995-5 and n 13 848 in 2002-3. Results: Over the last three decades, the household consumption of Group 1 and Group 2 foods has been steadily replaced by consumption of Group 3 ultra-processed food products, both overall and in lower- and upper-income groups. In the 2002-3 survey, Group 3 items represented more than one-quarter of total energy (more than one-third for higher-income households). The overall nutrient profile of Group 3 items, compared with that of Group 1 and Group 2 items, revealed more added sugar, more saturated fat, more sodium, less fibre and much higher energy density. Conclusions: The high energy density and the unfavourable nutrition profiling of Group 3 food products, and also their potential harmful effects on eating and drinking behaviours, indicate that governments and health authorities should use all possible methods, including legislation and statutory regulation, to halt and reverse the replacement of minimally processed foods and processed culinary ingredients by ultra-processed food products.

Intake, water consumption, ruminal fermentation, and stress response of beef heifers fed after different lengths of delays in the daily feed delivery time

Four rumen-fistulated Holstein heifers (134 +/- 1 kg initial BW) were used in a 4 x 4 Latin square design to determine the effects of delaying daily feed delivery time on intake, ruminal fermentation, behavior, and stress response. Each 3-wk experimental period was preceded by 1 wk in which all animals were fed at 0800 h. Feed bunks were cleaned at 0745 h and feed offered at 0800 h (T0, no delay), 0900 (T1), 1000 (T2), and 1100 (T3) from d1 to 21 with measurements taken during wk 1 and 3. Heifers were able to see each other at all times. Concentrate and barley straw were offered in separate compartments of the feed bunks, once daily and for ad libitum intake. Ruminal pH and saliva cortisol concentrations were measured at 0, 4, 8, and 12 h postfeeding on d 3 and 17 of each experimental period. Fecal glucocorticoid metabolites were measured on d 17. Increasing length of delay in daily feed delivery time resulted in a quadratic response in concentrate DMI (low in T1 and T2; P = 0.002), whereas straw DMI was greatest in T1 and T3 (cubic P = 0.03). Treatments affected the distribution of DMI within the day with a linear decrease observed between 0800 and 1200 h but a linear increase during nighttimes (2000 to 0800 h), whereas T1 and T2 had reduced DMI between 1200 and 1600 h (quadratic P = 0.04). Water consumption (L/d) was not affected but decreased linearly when expressed as liters per kilogram of DMI (P = 0.01). Meal length was greatest and eating rate slowest in T1 and T2 (quadratic P <= 0.001). Size of the first meal after feed delivery was reduced in T1 on d 1 (cubic P = 0.05) and decreased linearly on d 2 (P = 0.01) after change. Concentrate eating and drinking time (shortest in T1) and straw eating time (longest in T1) followed a cubic trend (P = 0.02). Time spent lying down was shortest and ruminating in standing position longest in T1 and T2. Delay of feeding time resulted in greater daily maximum salivary cortisol concentration (quadratic P = 0.04), which was greatest at 0 h in T1 and at 12 h after feeding in T2 (P < 0.05). Daily mean fecal glucocorticoid metabolites were greatest in T1 and T3 (cubic P = 0.04). Ruminal pH showed a treatment effect at wk 1 because of increased values in T1 and T3 (cubic P = 0.01). Delaying feed delivery time was not detrimental for rumen function because a stress response was triggered, which led to reduced concentrate intake, eating rate, and size of first meal, and increased straw intake. Increased salivary cortisol suggests that animal welfare is compromised.

The importance of dietary calcium consumption in two species of semi-terrestrial grapsoid crabs

Calcium (Ca) is essential for crustaceans, due to calcium carbonate (CaCO(3)) deposition in the new exoskeleton to harden it. The purpose of this work was to study short term Ca balance in terms of dietary Ca ingestion in two phylogenetically related crabs (Superfamily Grapsoidea) showing different degrees of terrestrial adaptations: Sesarma rectum Randall, 1840 and Neohelice granulata (Dana, 1851). Dietary Ca ingestion was studied using purified diets with different Ca concentrations (0, 2.2 and 6.66% Ca), together with measurements of Ca excretion and Ca hemolymph levels. The results showed that both crabs had the same response to foods containing different levels of Ca, with both species eating more of the high Ca diet. However, S. rectum consumed more per mg body mass at all Ca concentrations (6 mg.g(-1) for S. rectum against 3 mg.g(-1) for N. granulata). Both species excreted/egested Ca differently: S. rectum excreted Ca proportionally to ingestion, whereas N. granulata maintained constant faecal Ca output at all dietary Ca levels. Moreover, Ca hemolymph levels for crabs fed the different diets were independent of dietary Ca. In conclusion, both S. rectum and N. granulata seem to regulate the consumption of diets containing more Ca, which suggests a fine balance for Ca intake.

Prolonged consumption of soy or fish-oil-enriched diets differentially affects the pattern of hypothalamic neuronal activation induced by refeeding in rats

We used c-Fos immunoreactivity to estimate neuronal activation in hypothalamic feeding-regulatory areas of 3-month-old rats fed control or oil-enriched diets (soy or fish) since weaning. While no diet effect was observed in c-Fos immunoreactivity of 24-h fasted animals, the acute response to refeeding was modified by both hyperlipidic diets but with different patterns. Upon refeeding, control-diet rats had significantly increased c-Fos immunoreactivity only in the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (PVH, 142%). In soy-diet rats, refeeding with the soy diet increased c-Fos immunoreactivity in dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus (DMH, 271%) and lateral hypothalamic area (LH, 303%). Refeeding fish-diet rats with the fish diet increased c-Fos immunoreactivity in PVH (161%), DMH (177%), VMH (81%), and ARC (127%). Compared to the fish-diet, c-Fos immunoreactivity was increased in LH by the soy-diet while it was decreased in ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMH) and arcuate hypothalamic nucleus (ARC). Based on the known roles of the activated nuclei, it is suggested that, unlike the fish-diet, the soy-diet induced a potentially obesogenic profile, with high LH and low VMH/PVH activation after refeeding.

Can physical exercise during gestation attenuate the effects of a maternal perinatal low-protein diet on oxygen consumption in rats?

A protocol of physical exercise, based on maximal oxygen uptake ((V) over dot(O2max)), for female rats before and during pregnancy was developed to evaluate the impact of a low-protein diet on oxygen consumption during gestation and growth rate of the offspring. Virgin female Wistar rats were divided into four groups as follows: untrained (NT, n = 5); trained (T, n = 5); untrained with low-protein diet (NT+LP, n = 5); and trained with low-protein diet (T+LP, n = 5). Trained rats were submitted to a protocol of moderate physical training on a treadmill over a period of 4 weeks (5 days week(-1) and 60 min day(-1), at 65% of (V) over dot(O2max)). At confirmation of pregnancy, the intensity and duration of the exercise was reduced. Low-protein groups received an 8% casein diet, and their peers received a 17% casein diet. The birthweight and growth rate of the pups up to the 90th day were recorded. Oxygen consumption ((V) over dot(O2)), CO(2) production and respiratory exchange ratio (RER) were determined using an indirect open-circuit calorimeter. Exercise training increased. (V) over dot(O2max) by about 20% when compared with the initial values (45.6 +/- 1.0 ml kg(-1) min(-1)). During gestation, all groups showed a progressive reduction in the resting (V) over dot(O2) values. Dams in the NT+LP group showed lower values of resting (V) over dot(O2) than those in the NT group. The growth rate of pups from low-protein-fed mothers was around 50% lower than that of their respective controls. The T group showed an increase in body weight from the 60th day onwards, while the NT+LP group presented a reduced body weight from weaning onwards. In conclusion, physical training attenuated the impact of the low- protein