Phytic acid degrading lactic acid bacteria in tef-injera fermentation.

Ethiopian injera, a soft pancake, baked from fermented batter, is preferentially prepared from tef (Eragrostis tef) flour. The phytic acid (PA) content of tef is high and is only partly degraded during the fermentation step. PA chelates with iron and zinc in the human digestive tract and strongly inhibits their absorption.

Sugar-sweetened beverages with moderate amounts of fructose, but not sucrose, induce Fatty Acid synthesis in healthy young men: a randomized crossover study.

Context: The impact of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) on lipid metabolism when consumed in moderate amounts by normal weight subjects is debated.

Objective: The objective of the study was to investigate the effect of different types of sugars in SSB on fatty acid metabolism (ie, fatty acid synthesis and oxidation) in healthy young men.

Design: Thirty-four normal-weight men were studied in a randomized crossover study.

Antioxidant supplements reduced oxidative stress and stabilized liver function tests but did not reduce inflammation in a randomized controlled trial in obese children and adolescents.

Oxidative stress and low-grade systemic inflammation may contribute to the pathogenesis of obesity-induced comorbidities, including nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Increasing intake of dietary antioxidants might be beneficial, but there are few data in obese children. To examine the effect of antioxidant supplementation on biomarkers of oxidative stress, inflammation, and liver function, we randomly assigned overweight or obese children and adolescents (n = 44; mean ± SD age: 12.

Pediatric adiposity stabilized in Switzerland between 1999 and 2012.

Purpose: Several countries have recently reported stabilization and/or a decrease in the prevalence of pediatric obesity. However, systematic, repeated national monitoring studies are scarce, and it is unclear whether this trend would be sustained. The objective was to present the latest overweight and obesity prevalence in Swiss children and to investigate trends in prevalence from 1999 to 2012.

Reduced insulin sensitivity as a marker for acute mountain sickness?

Reduced insulin sensitivity might increase the susceptibility to acute mountain sickness (AMS). The diabetogenic side effects of dexamethasone should therefore be considered for AMS treatment. To examine whether reduced insulin sensitivity is predictive of AMS and how it is affected by dexamethasone at high altitude, we analyzed endocrine and metabolic parameters obtained from healthy mountaineers in Zurich (LA; 490 m), and 2 and 4 days after fast ascent to the Capanna Regina Margherita (HA2, HA4; 4559 m).

Micronutrient supply and health outcomes in children.

Purpose Of Review: Multiple micronutrient deficiencies are still common worldwide and often occur at an early age, negatively affecting both physical and cognitive development. Even though specific effects of a variety of different micronutrients have been studied extensively, it is understood that a combination of multiple micronutrients may be more beneficial in most instances, as deficiencies usually do not occur in isolation. The aim of this review was to summarize the most recent evidence of the effects of micronutrient interventions on growth, mental, and physical performance as well as morbidity in children.

Thyroglobulin is a sensitive measure of both deficient and excess iodine intakes in children and indicates no adverse effects on thyroid function in the UIC range of 100-299 μg/L: a UNICEF/ICCIDD study group report.

Context: The median urinary iodine concentration (UIC) is a biomarker of iodine intake. According to the World Health Organization, a median UIC in the range 100-199 μg/L indicates adequate and 200-299 μg/L more than adequate intake. Thyroglobulin (Tg) may be a promising functional biomarker of both iodine deficiency and excess.

Moderate amounts of fructose consumption impair insulin sensitivity in healthy young men: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: Adverse effects of hypercaloric, high-fructose diets on insulin sensitivity and lipids in human subjects have been shown repeatedly. The implications of fructose in amounts close to usual daily consumption, however, have not been well studied. This study assessed the effect of moderate amounts of fructose and sucrose compared with glucose on glucose and lipid metabolism.

Swiss children consuming breakfast regularly have better motor functional skills and are less overweight than breakfast skippers.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the associations among eating behavior, body mass index (BMI), and motor functional skills in Swiss elementary school children.

Methods: In total, 656 schoolchildren, aged 7 to 10 years, participated in the study. Five different, normalized, and standardized motor function tests (sidewise jumping, tapping, standing long jump, 20-m sprint, and shuttle run) that determine the coordinative and conditional skills were carried out with each child at 1 of 4 time points (8, 9, 10, or 11 am) along with anthropometric measurements.

Disturbed eating at high altitude: influence of food preferences, acute mountain sickness and satiation hormones.

Purpose: Hypoxia has been shown to reduce energy intake and lead to weight loss, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. The aim was therefore to assess changes in eating after rapid ascent to 4,559 m and to investigate to what extent hypoxia, acute mountain sickness (AMS), food preferences and satiation hormones influence eating behavior.

Methods: Participants (n = 23) were studied at near sea level (Zurich (ZH), 446 m) and on two days after rapid ascent to Capanna Margherita (MG) at 4,559 m (MG2 and MG4).

Ten repeat collections for urinary iodine from spot samples or 24-hour samples are needed to reliably estimate individual iodine status in women.

Although the median urinary iodine concentration (UIC) is a good indicator of iodine status in populations, there is no established biomarker for individual iodine status. If the UIC were to be used to assess individuals, it is unclear how many repeat urine collections would be needed and if the collections should be spot samples or 24-h samples. In a prospective, longitudinal, 15-mo study, healthy Swiss women (n = 22) aged 52-77 y collected repeated 24-h urine samples (total n = 341) and corresponding fasting, second-void, morning spot urine samples (n = 177).

The thin-fat phenotype and global metabolic disease risk.

Purpose Of Review: There has been a great deal of interest in the thin-fat phenotype evident in Asian Indians and its risk associations in the epidemic of noncommunicable chronic disease associated with it. The cause of this phenotype is probably related to lifestyle and environment; however, genotypic and epigenetic modifications in utero also have been considered.

Recent Findings: The thin-fat phenotype occurs when fat is added to an already thin frame.

Evidence that the prevalence of childhood overweight is plateauing: data from nine countries.

Until quite recently, there has been a widespread belief in the popular media and scientific literature that the prevalence of childhood obesity is rapidly increasing. However, high quality evidence has emerged from several countries suggesting that the rise in the prevalence has slowed appreciably, or even plateaued. This review brings together such data from nine countries (Australia, China, England, France, Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland and USA), with data from 467,294 children aged 2-19 years.

Waist circumference and waist-to-height ratio percentiles in a nationally representative sample of 6-13 year old children in Switzerland.

Objectives: Central obesity, measured as waist circumference (WC), is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease and diabetes already in children. The ratio of waist circumference to height (WHtR) is a further indicator for body shape. International reference values, however, do not exist for any of the two measures and neither do references specific to Switzerland.

Low to moderate sugar-sweetened beverage consumption impairs glucose and lipid metabolism and promotes inflammation in healthy young men: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) have unfavorable effects on glucose and lipid metabolism if consumed in high quantities by obese subjects, but the effect of lower doses in normal-weight subjects is less clear.

Objective: The aim was to investigate the effects of SSBs consumed in small to moderate quantities for 3 wk on LDL particle distribution and on other parameters of glucose and lipid metabolism as well as on inflammatory markers in healthy young men.

Design: Twenty-nine subjects were studied in a prospective, randomized, controlled crossover trial.

Does obesity increase risk for iron deficiency? A review of the literature and the potential mechanisms.

Increasing obesity is a major global health concern while at the same time iron-deficiency anemia remains common worldwide. Although these two conditions represent opposite ends of the spectrum of over- and under-nutrition, they appear to be linked: overweight individuals are at higher risk of iron deficiency than normal-weight individuals. Potential explanations for this association include dilutional hypoferremia, poor dietary iron intake, increased iron requirements, and/or impaired iron absorption in obese individuals.

Sharply higher rates of iron deficiency in obese Mexican women and children are predicted by obesity-related inflammation rather than by differences in dietary iron intake.

Background: Obese individuals may be at increased risk of iron deficiency (ID), but it is unclear whether this is due to poor dietary iron intakes or to adiposity-related inflammation.

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the relations between body mass index (BMI), dietary iron, and dietary factors affecting iron bioavailability, iron status, and inflammation [C-reactive protein (CRP)] in a transition country where obesity and ID are common.

Design: Data from the 1999 Mexican Nutrition Survey, which included 1174 children (aged 5-12 y) and 621 nonpregnant women (aged 18-50 y), were analyzed.

Baseline leptin and leptin reduction predict improvements in metabolic variables and long-term fat loss in obese children and adolescents: a prospective study of an inpatient weight-loss program.

Background: It is unclear whether high plasma leptin in obese individuals represents leptin resistance or whether individuals with marked reductions in leptin concentrations in response to weight loss may be at greater risk of regaining weight. Moreover, whether changes in leptin predict metabolic improvements during weight loss is uncertain.

Objective: The objective was to prospectively examine associations between plasma leptin, body fat, and weight and metabolic risk factors in obese children during weight loss.

During rapid weight loss in obese children, reductions in TSH predict improvements in insulin sensitivity independent of changes in body weight or fat.

Background: Although serum TSH is often elevated in obesity and may be linked to disorders of lipid and glucose metabolism, the clinical relevance of these relationships remains unclear.

Subjects: Subjects were obese children and adolescents (n=206; mean age 14 yr) undergoing rapid weight and fat loss in a standardized, multidisciplinary, 2-month, in-patient weight loss program.

Design: This was a prospective study that determined thyroid function, glucose and lipid parameters, leptin, anthropometric measures, and body composition measured by dual-energy x-ray absorption at baseline and at the end of the intervention.

The Swiss iodized salt program provides adequate iodine for school children and pregnant women, but weaning infants not receiving iodine-containing complementary foods as well as their mothers are iodine deficient.

Background: If children and pregnant women in the population are iodine sufficient, it is generally assumed infants are also sufficient. But weaning infants may be at risk of iodine deficiency because iodized salt contributes little dietary iodine during this period. To fill this gap, iodine fortification of infant formula milk (IFM) and complementary foods (CF) is likely important.

Stabilization of the prevalence of childhood obesity in Switzerland.

Background: The prevalence of childhood obesity is increasing rapidly in most industrialised countries, but several countries, including Switzerland, have recently reported a levelling off or even a reversal of this alarming trend.

Study Aim: Our aim was to evaluate the prevalence of childhood obesity in a national sample of Swiss school children recruited to assess iodine nutrition and with this to reconfirm a recently shown stabilising trend.

Design: Using a probability-proportionate-to-size cluster sampling, 6 to 12 year old children (n = 907) were recruited in a study of iodine status in Switzerland.

Diet determines features of the metabolic syndrome in 6- to 14-year-old children.

Background/objectives: Insulin resistance (IR) and hypertension are common in overweight children, and the adipocyte-derived hormones resistin, adiponectin, and leptin may modulate IR and blood pressure (BP). Few data exist in children on dietary determinants of IR, BP, or leptin, and no data exist on dietary determinants of resistin and adiponectin. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate dietary determinants of IR, BP, resistin, adiponectin, and leptin concentrations, as well as the interrelationship among these variables, in normal and overweight children.

Decrease in the prevalence of paediatric adiposity in Switzerland from 2002 to 2007.

Objective: A national study in Switzerland in 2002 suggested nearly one in five schoolchildren was overweight. Since then, many programmes have been introduced in an attempt to control the problem. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of childhood overweight in Switzerland five years later.