Optimizing Patient Comfort: Palliative Pain Management for Nurses in Critical Care Settings.

Palliative care has evolved from its religious and historical roots to a specialized medical discipline, emphasizing quality of life for patients with serious illnesses. The foundational work of pioneers in palliative care has shaped modern practices in symptom management, emotional support, and holistic care. Despite challenges in integrating palliative care in critical care settings and overcoming barriers such as limited provider availability, enhancing training and broadening the application of palliative principles remain essential.

Navigating Pediatric Pain: Emerging Trends and Best Practice.

This article examines the pivotal role of critical care nurses in managing pediatric pain, emphasizing the multifaceted nature of care. It covers the challenges and opportunities nurses face, stressing the importance of education and training. The background section underscores the global issue of inadequately managed pediatric pain and the importance of addressing social determinants of health while recognizing perceptions, beliefs, stereotypes, and biases on pain management.

Diet Quality of Midwest Adolescents and Young Adults With Intellectual Disabilities and Overweight/Obesity Differs by Diagnosis but Not by Weight Category.

Background: Poor diet may contribute to high rates of overweight/obesity (OW/OB) in adolescents and young adults with intellectual disabilities (IDs).

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine diet quality as assessed by Healthy Eating Index 2015 (HEI-2015) scores in adolescents and young adults with IDs and OW/OB and to compare diet quality by ID diagnosis and weight.

Design: Three-day image-assisted food records from baseline assessments in an 18-month weight-loss trial for adolescents and young adults with IDs and OW/OB were used to calculate HEI-2015 scores, which were compared between ID diagnoses and weight categories.

Resting Energy Expenditure Equations Have Lower Accuracy for Adolescents with Overweight/Obesity Versus Healthy-Weight Adolescents.

The objectives of the study were (1) to assess whether resting energy expenditure (REE) equations have comparable validity for adolescents with overweight/obesity vs. adolescents with healthy weight and (2) to examine determinants of measured REE in adolescents with overweight/obesity vs. adolescents with healthy weight.

Pregnancy as a window of opportunity for dementia prevention: a narrative review.

Dementia is a debilitating condition with a disproportionate impact on women. While sex differences in longevity contribute to the disparity, the role of the female sex as a biological variable in disease progression is not yet fully elucidated. Metabolic dysfunctions are drivers of dementia etiology, and cardiometabolic diseases are among the most influential modifiable risk factors.

The Effect of Prenatal Docosahexaenoic Acid Supplementation on Offspring Fat Mass and Distribution at 24 Months Old.

Background: Excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) is related to increased offspring fat accrual, and increased fat mass (FM) is related to obesity development. Prenatal DHA supplementation has been linked to lower levels of offspring FM; however, conflicting data exist.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine if there is a protective effect of prenatal DHA supplementation on offspring fat accrual and adipose tissue deposition at 24 mo in offspring born to females who gain excessive weight compared with nonexcessive weight during pregnancy.

Weight management in rural health clinics: Results from the randomized midwest diet and exercise trial.

Introduction: Rural living adults have higher rates of obesity compared with their urban counterparts and less access to weight management programs. Previous research studies have demonstrated clinically relevant weight loss in rural living adults who complete weight management programs delivered by university affiliated interventionists. However, this approach limits the potential reach, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of weight management programs for rural residents.

Protocol for a single-arm, pilot trial of creatine monohydrate supplementation in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

Background: Impaired brain bioenergetics is a pathological hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and is a compelling target for AD treatment. Patients with AD exhibit dysfunction in the brain creatine (Cr) system, which is integral in maintaining bioenergetic flux. Recent studies in AD mouse models suggest Cr supplementation improves brain mitochondrial function and may be protective of AD peptide pathology and cognition.

A Cultural Humility Approach to Inclusive and Equitable Nursing Care.

The nursing workforce does not represent the diversity of patients in their care. Nursing students historically have been taught cultural competence, with a core value for diversity, equity, and inclusion, but health inequities remain a problem. Cultural humility goes beyond cultural competency, offering nurses a perpetual learning role from the individual patients in their care.

Treatment of functional bowel disorders in an integrative medicine clinic resulting in improved digestive tract symptoms.

Background And Aim: Functional bowel disorders (FBDs), including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and others, are conditions without a physically identifiable etiology that, as a result, are difficult to treat. Alternatives to traditional medical interventions are needed because IBS patients require more of physician time and higher healthcare spending. The goal of this study was to determine the efficacy of alternative lifestyle interventions for patients with FBDs seen in an integrative medicine (IM) clinic at an academic medical center.

Effectiveness of a paediatric weight management intervention for rural youth (iAmHealthy): Primary outcomes of a cluster randomised control trial.

Background: Youth in rural areas are disproportionally affected by obesity. Given the unique barriers rural populations face, tailoring and increasing access to obesity interventions is necessary.

Objective: This paper evaluates the effectiveness of iAmHealthy, a family-based paediatric obesity intervention delivered to rural children, compared to a Newsletter Control.

A high fiber diet intervention during pregnancy: The SPROUT (Single goal in PRegnancy to optimize OUTcomes) protocol paper.

Background: Interventions to prevent excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) have had a limited impact on maternal and infant outcomes. Dietary fiber is a nutrient with benefits that counters many of the metabolic and inflammatory changes that occur during pregnancy. We will determine if a high dietary fiber (HFib) intervention provides benefit to maternal and infant outcomes.

Creatine as a Therapeutic Target in Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disease, affecting approximately 6.5 million older adults in the United States. Development of AD treatment has primarily centered on developing pharmaceuticals that target amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques in the brain, a hallmark pathological biomarker that precedes symptomatic AD.

Development of a Culturally Adapted Dietary Intervention to Reduce Alzheimer's Disease Risk among Older Black Adults.

The objective of this study is to identify and understand knowledge and attitudes that influence dietary practices among older Black adults using a community-engaged approach. This is a non-interventional mixed methods study designed to inform the development of an adapted brain-healthy soul food diet intervention. A purposive sampling approach was used to conduct seven semi-structured focus group discussions and an online quantitative survey.

Micronutrient Gaps and Supplement Use in a Diverse Cohort of Pregnant Women.

Background: Micronutrition in pregnancy is critical to impact not only fetal growth and development but also long-term physical and psychiatric health outcomes.

Objective: Estimate micronutrient intake from food and dietary supplements in a diverse cohort of pregnant women and compare intake to the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs).

Design: Secondary analysis of women enrolled in a multi-site clinical trial of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation who provided their dietary intake using the diet history questionnaire-II ( = 843) or multiple 24 h recalls ( = 178) at baseline and their intake of nutritional supplements at baseline through 30 days postpartum.

Parent factors associated with BMI, diet, and physical activity of adolescents with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Background: Adolescents with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) experience overweight and obesity (OW/OB) up to 1.8 times the rate of their typically developing peers. Parents may influence adolescent weight management behaviors in this population, but the association between parent factors and adolescent weight management behaviors is unclear.

Developing a Healthy Lifestyle Program for Recent Kidney Transplant Recipients.

Introduction: Many kidney transplant recipients experience weight gain in the first year after transplantation.

Research Question: The objective of this research study was to assess the desires of recent kidney transplant patients about the design features of a healthy lifestyle program to counter unnecessary weight gain.

Design: In this descriptive study, recent recipients at 2 transplant centers were invited to participate in an online survey.

Factors Associated With Growth in Patients Treated With the Classic Ketogenic Diet for Drug-Resistant Epilepsy.

Background: Suboptimal growth and malnutrition are often cited as complications of ketogenic diet therapy in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy; however, there is conflicting evidence on the factors that contribute to growth.

Methods: This is an observational, case-based study to evaluate growth in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy treated with the classic ketogenic diet for at least 12 months. Age, gender, height, weight, and body mass index (BMI) were collected at baseline and epilepsy clinic standard-of-care visits (one month, six months, and 12 months after diet initiation).

Iodine Intake From Diet and Supplements and Urinary Iodine Concentration in a Cohort of Pregnant Women in the United States.

Background: The DRI Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) in pregnancy for Iodine (I), an essential nutrient for fetal neurodevelopment, is 160 μg/d. Supplementation with 150 μg/d I/day is recommended during pregnancy, however, neither dietary intake or the combination of diet and supplement intake has been reported in US pregnant women.

Objective: Determine iodine intake from diet and supplements and iodine status in pregnancy by urinary iodine concentration in a large cohort of pregnant women.

A Scoping Review of Iodine and Fluoride in Pregnancy in Relation to Maternal Thyroid Function and Offspring Neurodevelopment.

Iodine (I), an essential nutrient, is important for thyroid function and therefore growth and development. Fluoride (F), also an essential nutrient, strengthens bones and teeth, and prevents childhood dental caries. Both severe and mild-to-moderate I deficiency and high F exposure during development are associated to decreased intelligence quotient with recent reports associating high levels of F exposure during pregnancy and infancy to low intelligence quotient.

Interviews with parents of adolescents with intellectual and developmental disabilities in a weight management study.

Background: Adolescents and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities are at risk of obesity. Parents influence their diet and physical activity behaviours and therefore, can play important roles in weight management. The aims of this qualitative study were to explore parents' experiences assisting their son or daughter to participate in a weight management study.

Higher Diet Quality in Latina Women during Pregnancy May Be Associated with Sociodemographic Factors.

Acculturation contributes to low diet quality and can foster health inequities for Latina women during pregnancy. Conversely, nutrition literacy (NL) increases diet quality and could promote health equity. This study assessed the associations between the diet quality, acculturation, and NL of Latina women (n = 99) participating in the Assessment of Docosahexaenoic Acid On Reducing Early Preterm Birth (ADORE) study.

A randomized trial comparing diet and delivery strategies for weight management in adolescents with intellectual disabilities.

Background: The literature evaluating multi-component interventions for long-term weight loss in adolescents with intellectual disabilities (ID) is extremely limited.

Objectives: To compare the effectiveness of two delivery strategies, face-to-face (FTF) or remote delivery (RD), and two diets, enhanced Stop Light diet (eSLD) or conventional diet (CD) on weight change across 12 and 18 months. in response to an 18 months.

Milk intake enhances cerebral antioxidant (glutathione) concentration in older adults: A randomized controlled intervention study.

Background: A major antioxidant, glutathione (GSH), is a key factor in the antioxidant defense mechanism against oxidative stress and aging-related functional declines. Our previous observational study showed positive correlations between brain GSH concentrations and dairy food consumption, particularly milk ( < 0.001), in older adults.