An assessment of compliance with proposed regulations to restrict on-package marketing of packaged foods to improve nutrition in South Africa.

Background: Ultra-processed products (UPPs), high in sugar, fat and sodium, contribute to increasing burdens of obesity and non-communicable diseases in South Africa (SA). Increased consumption and acceptability of UPPs is driven, in part by aggressive marketing. Front of package labelling laws, particularly warning labels (WLs) coupled with marketing restrictions, have been recommended to improve consumer awareness of unhealthy products, incentivise reformulation and underpin other interventions.

Qualitative Comparison of Cultured Skin Microbiota From the Inguinal Region of Obese and Nonobese Patients Eligible for Hip Arthroplasty.

Background: With the rising prevalence of obesity, surgeons are frequently confronted with the problem of treating osteoarthritis of the hip via arthroplasty (total hip arthroplasty) in severely obese patients. To reduce the surgical impact, minimal-invasive approaches are often chosen. For this reason, the direct anterior approach has gained popularity but is suspected of leading to more wound complications in obese patients, especially by Gram-negative pathogens.

Nanodots of Transition Metal Sulfides, Carbonates, and Oxides Obtained Through Spontaneous Co-Precipitation with Silica.

The controlled formation and stabilization of nanoparticles is of fundamental relevance for materials science and key to many modern technologies. Common synthetic strategies to arrest growth at small sizes and prevent undesired particle agglomeration often rely on the use of organic additives and require non-aqueous media and/or high temperatures, all of which appear critical with respect to production costs, safety, and sustainability. In the present work, we demonstrate a simple one-pot process in water under ambient conditions that can produce particles of various transition metal carbonates and sulfides with sizes of only a few nanometers embedded in a silica shell, similar to particles derived from more elaborate synthesis routes, like the sol-gel process.

Using Food Composition Tables to Estimate Decreases in Sodium Intake Due to the Reformulation of Packaged and Ultra-Processed Foods in a Young Population in South Africa.

Objective: In response to increasing hypertension rates, South Africa implemented a regulation which set a maximum total sodium content for certain packaged food categories. We assess changes in reported sodium intake among 18-39 year old adults living in one township in the Western Cape as a result of the implementation of the regulation in 2016.

Design: By linking one set of 24 hour dietary recall data to two versions of the South Africa Food Composition Database which reflect the pre-regulation and post-regulation periods, we calculated changes in sodium intake due to reformulation of food products, not behavior change.

Antibiotic resistance and molecular characterization of non-invasive clinical isolates in Germany 2019 and 2020.

Background: (Hi) is known as a cause of invasive and non-invasive diseases. Especially ear, nose and throat (ENT) infections are common reasons for antibiotic prescriptions in outpatient settings in Germany. Therefore, antibiotic resistance surveillance is important to provide the basis of recommendations for the empirical usage of antibiotic agents.