Polyunsaturated fatty acids of the n-6 and n-3 series: effects on postprandial lipid and apolipoprotein levels in healthy men

OBJECTIVE: The present study was carried out to determine effects of test meals of different fatty acid compositions on postprandial lipoprotein and apolipoprotein metabolism. DESIGN: The study was a randomized, single blind design. SETTING: The study was carried out in the Clinical Investigation Unit of the Royal Surrey County Hospital. SUBJECTS: Twelve male normal subjects with an average age of 22.4 +/- 1.4 years (mean +/- SD) were selected from the student population of the University of Surrey; one subject dropped out of the study because he found the test meal unpalatable. INTERVENTIONS: The subjects were given three evening test meals on three separate occasions, in which the oils used were either a mixed oil (rich in saturated fatty acids and approximated the fatty acid intake of the current UK diet), corn oil (rich in n-6 fatty acids), or fish oil (rich in n-3 fatty acids) 40 g of the oil under investigation were incorporated into a rice-based test meal. Triacylglycerol-rich lipoproteins-triacylglycerol (TRL-TAG), TRL-cholesterol (TRL-cholesterol), plasma-TAG, plasma cholesterol (T-C), and serum apolipoprotein A-I and B (apo A-I and B) responses were measured. Postprandial responses were followed for 11 h. RESULTS: Postprandial plasma-TAG responses, calculated as incremental areas under the response curves (IAUC) were significantly reduced following the fish oil meal [365.5 +/- 145.4 mmol/l x min (mean +/- SD)[ compared with the mixed oil meal (552.0 +/- 141.7 mmol/l x min) (P < 0.05) and there was a strong trend towards the same direction in the TRL-TAG responses. In all instances, plasma-and TRL-TAG showed a biphasic response with increased concentrations occurring at 1h and between 3 and 7h postprandially. TRL-cholesterol, T-C, and serum apo A-I and B responses to the three meals were similar. CONCLUSIONS: The findings support the view that fish oils decrease postprandial lipaemia and this may be an important aspect of their beneficial effects in reducing risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). Further work is required to determine the mechanisms responsible for this effect.

Analysis of aluminium content and iron homeostasis in nipple aspirate fluids from healthy women and breast cancer-affected patients

Aluminium is not a physiological component of the breast but has been measured recently in human breast tissues and breast cyst fluids at levels above those found in blood serum or milk. Since the presence of aluminium can lead to iron dyshomeostasis, levels of aluminium and iron-binding proteins (ferritin, transferrin) were measured in nipple aspirate fluid (NAF), a fluid present in the breast duct tree and mirroring the breast microenvironment. NAFs were collected noninvasively from healthy women (NoCancer; n = 16) and breast cancer-affected women (Cancer; n = 19), and compared with levels in serum (n = 15) and milk (n = 45) from healthy subjects. The mean level of aluminium, measured by ICP-mass spectrometry, was significantly higher in Cancer NAF (268.4 ± 28.1 μg l−1; n = 19) than in NoCancer NAF (131.3 ± 9.6 μg l−1; n = 16; P < 0.0001). The mean level of ferritin, measured through immunoassay, was also found to be higher in Cancer NAF (280.0 ± 32.3 μg l−1) than in NoCancer NAF (55.5 ± 7.2 μg l−1), and furthermore, a positive correlation was found between levels of aluminium and ferritin in the Cancer NAF (correlation coefficient R = 0.94, P < 0.001). These results may suggest a role for raised levels of aluminium and modulation of proteins that regulate iron homeostasis as biomarkers for identification of women at higher risk of developing breast cancer. The reasons for the high levels of aluminium in NAF remain unknown but possibilities include either exposure to aluminium-based antiperspirant salts in the adjacent underarm area and/or preferential accumulation of aluminium by breast tissues.

Urban microclimate and renewable energy use in cities

This paper presents an experimental measurement campaign of urban microclimate for a building complex located in London, the United Kingdom. The experiment was carried out between 19 July and 16 August, 2010 at the Elephant & Castle site. The wind and solar energy distributions within the London urban experimental site were assessed in detail for their potential use in areas of high-rise urban building complexes. The climatic variables were measured at every five minutes for the air temperature, the wind speed and direction, the air humidity and the global solar radiation for a period of four weeks. The surface temperatures were also measured on the asphalt road, pavement and building walls at every hour for the first week of the campaign period. The effect of the building complex on the urban microclimate has been analyzed in terms of the solar radiation, the air temperature and velocity. The information and observation obtained from this campaign will be useful to the analysis of renewable energy implementations in dense urban situations.

Combined oral contraceptive pills containing desogestrel or drospirenone enhance large vessel and microvasculature vasodilation in healthy premenopausal women

OBJECTIVE: To determine the effects of different COCs on endothelial function. BACKGROUND: COCs all contain ethinylestradiol, but different progestins; three of the more common progestins are DSG, LN, and DR. Ethinylestradiol enhances some measures of vascular reactivity, but certain progestins may increase risk of vascular diseases and impair endothelial vasodilation. METHODS: Twenty-nine healthy women taking COCs containing 30 μg ethinylestradiol and 150 μg DSG (Marvelon, n = 10), 150 μg LN (Microgynon, n = 10), or 3 mg DR (Yasmin, n = 9) had their vascular reactivity measured using various techniques during their pill-free week (days 5-7) and the third week of active pills (days 26-28). A reference group (n = 10) underwent the same measurements on two consecutive cycles. RESULTS: FMD and LDI were significantly higher during active-pill visits than pill-free visits in women taking DSG and DR (p < 0.02), but not in women taking LN. There were no differences between the duplicate measures in the reference group. CONCLUSIONS: COCs containing 150 μg DSG or 3 mg DR significantly increase endothelium-dependent vasodilation in both large vessels and peripheral microvasculature. These effects may be due to the progestins exhibiting differential effects on eNOS expression.

Assessment of evaluations made to healthy eating policies in Europe: a review within the EATWELL Project

Objective: To identify and assess healthy eating policies at national level which have been evaluated in terms of their impact on awareness of healthy eating, food consumption, health outcome or cost/benefit. Design: Review of policy documents and their evaluations when available. Setting: European Member States. Subjects: One hundred and twenty-one policy documents revised, 107 retained. Results: Of the 107 selected interventions, twenty-two had been evaluated for their impact on awareness or knowledge and twenty-seven for their impact on consumption. Furthermore sixteen interventions provided an evaluation of health impact, while three actions specifically measured any cost/benefit ratio. The indicators used in these evaluations were in most cases not comparable. Evaluation was more often found for public information campaigns, regulation of meals at schools/canteens and nutrition education programmes. Conclusions: The study highlights the need not only to develop harmonized and verifiable procedures but also indicators for measuring effectiveness and success and for comparing between interventions and countries. EU policies are recommended to provide a set of indicators that may be measured consistently and regularly in all countries. Furthermore, public information campaigns should be accompanied by other interventions, as evaluations may show an impact on awareness and intention, but rarely on consumption patterns and health outcome.

Policies to promote healthy eating in Europe: a structured review of policies and their effectiveness

This review provides a classification of public policies to promote healthier eating as well as a structured mapping of existing measures in Europe. Complete coverage of alternative policy types was ensured by complementing the review with a selection of major interventions from outside Europe. Under the auspices of the Seventh Framework Programme's Eatwell Project, funded by the European Commission, researchers from five countries reviewed a representative selection of policy actions based on scientific papers, policy documents, grey literature, government websites, other policy reviews, and interviews with policy-makers. This work resulted in a list of 129 policy interventions, 121 of which were in Europe. For each type of policy, a critical review of its effectiveness was conducted, based on the evidence currently available. The results of this review indicate a need exists for a more systematic and accurate evaluation of government-level interventions as well as for a stronger focus on actual behavioral change rather than changes in attitude or intentions alone. The currently available evidence is very heterogeneous across policy types and is often incomplete.

Policy interventions to promote healthy eating: a review of what works, what does not and what is promising

Unhealthy diets can lead to various diseases, which in turn can translate into a bigger burden for the state in the form of health services and lost production. Obesity alone has enormous costs and claims thousands of lives every year. Although diet quality in the European Union has improved across countries, it still falls well short of conformity with the World Health Organization dietary guidelines. In this review, we classify types of policy interventions addressing healthy eating and identify through a literature review what specific policy interventions are better suited to improve diets. Policy interventions are classified into two broad categories: information measures and measures targeting the market environment. Using this classification, we summarize a number of previous systematic reviews, academic papers, and institutional reports and draw some conclusions about their effectiveness. Of the information measures, policy interventions aimed at reducing or banning unhealthy food advertisements generally have had a weak positive effect on improving diets, while public information campaigns have been successful in raising awareness of unhealthy eating but have failed to translate the message into action. Nutritional labeling allows for informed choice. However, informed choice is not necessarily healthier; knowing or being able to read and interpret nutritional labeling on food purchased does not necessarily result in consumption of healthier foods. Interventions targeting the market environment, such as fiscal measures and nutrient, food, and diet standards, are rarer and generally more effective, though more intrusive. Overall, we conclude that measures to support informed choice have a mixed and limited record of success. On the other hand, measures to target the market environment are more intrusive but may be more effective.