Twelve-month outcomes in overweight/obese users with mental disorders following a multi-element treatment including diet, physical activity, and positive thinking: The real-world "An Apple a Day" controlled trial.

The present study aimed to evaluate the 12-month effectiveness of a real-world weight loss transdiagnostic intervention in overweight/obese participants affected by mental disorders under psychopharmacological treatment. We conducted a real-world, controlled, pragmatic outpatient trial. We allocated 58 overweight/obese adults under psychopharmacological treatment from a mental health outpatient unit and 48 overweight/obese adults from a cardiovascular prevention outpatient unit, and assigned them to an intervention or treatment usual as condition (TAU) enriched by life-style advice.

Italian Investigation on Mental Health Workers' Attitudes Regarding Personal Recovery From Mental Illness.

This study aimed to investigate attitudes toward personal recovery in a sample of 436 healthcare professionals and students of psychiatric rehabilitation techniques through the Italian version of the recovery knowledge inventory (RKI). The sample in our study showed a good global orientation toward recovery. Statistically significant differences were found among mental health professionals based on gender difference, professional role, and level of experience.

Preliminary study of effects on paranoia ideation and jumping to conclusions in the context of group treatment of anxiety disorders in young people.

Background: People with anxiety disorders tend to focus on unpleasant and threatening stimuli. Our aims were to evaluate: (1) the presence of paranoid ideation, and the jumping to conclusions (JTC) bias in young suffering from an anxiety disorder and (2) the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioural intervention (CBT) to manage anxiety combined with 2 modules to reduce the JTC bias.

Methods: Psychopathology, social functioning, metacognition and the JTC bias were investigated in 60 subjects, randomly assigned to the experimental CBT group + treatment-as-usual (TAU) (n = 35) or to a wait-list group (n = 25) receiving only TAU.

Endothelium/nitric oxide mechanism mediates vasorelaxation and counteracts vasoconstriction induced by low concentration of flavanols.

Purpose: At relatively low concentrations, flavanols induce inconsistent effects on isolated arterial tone, sometimes explained as being due to a structure-activity relationship. The aim of our study was to investigate the effects of two flavanols at different doses on arterial functional state.

Methods: The effects of two catechins, (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) and (-)-epicatechin (EP), on rat-isolated aorta tone were investigated on resting tension and on precontracted preparations, both in the presence and in the absence of endothelium.

Oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction: say NO to cigarette smoking!

Smoking is a significant independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease and is a leading cause of structural and functional alterations of the cardiovascular system. Increasing evidence supports the hypothesis that oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction are the fundamental pathophysiological mechanisms linking cigarette smoking to cardiovascular disease. The cardiovascular system is a rich source of NADPH oxidase-derived reactive oxygen species, which under pathological conditions play a fundamental role in vascular damage.

Flavonoids, vascular function and cardiovascular protection.

A large body of evidence supports that the dietary intake of polyphenols - particularly of flavonoids and the specific class of flavonoids named flavanols - might be able to exert some beneficial vascular effects and reduce the risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The review of epidemiological and mechanistic studies supports the role of flavonoids, particularly cocoa and tea flavanols, in protecting the cardiovascular system against cardiovascular disease. Nevertheless, flavonoids are an heterogeneous group of natural molecules differently represented in fruit and vegetables and definitive data on cardiovascular benefits are lacking.

Tea, flavonoids, and nitric oxide-mediated vascular reactivity.

Epidemiological evidence supports the concept that diets rich in fruits and vegetables promote health and attenuate or delay the onset of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Although a variety of factors contribute to the beneficial effects of plant foods, much attention has been addressed to plant polyphenols. In this regard, in the daily Western diet, both black and green teas contribute to a relevant proportion of total phenol intake.

Role of nitric oxide in the impairment of circular muscle contractility of distended, uninflamed mid-colon in TNBS-induced acute distal colitis in rats.

Aim: To evaluate the role of nitric oxide (NO) in the motor disorders of the dilated uninflamed mid-colon (DUMC) from trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS)-induced acute distal colitis in rats.

Methods: Colitis was induced in male Sprague-Dawley rats by a single intracolonic administration of TNBS. Control rats received an enema of 0.

Peristalsis regulation by tachykinin NK1 receptors in the rabbit isolated distal colon.

In the gastrointestinal tract, tachykinin NK1 receptors are widely distributed in a number of neuronal and nonneuronal cells involved in the control of gut motor activity. In particular, in the rabbit isolated distal colon, which is a suitable model system to investigate the contribution of tachykinins as noncholinergic excitatory transmitters, the influence of NK1 receptors in the regulation of peristalsis is not known. The selective NK1-receptor antagonists SR-140333 (0.