Impact of daily avocado consumption on gut microbiota in adults with abdominal obesity: an ancillary study of HAT, a randomized controlled trial.

: This study aimed to investigate short-term and long-term impact of avocado consumption without caloric restriction on the gut microbiota of free-living adults with abdominal obesity. : The Habitual Diet and Avocado Trial (HAT) was a 26-week, multi-center, randomized, controlled trial involving 1008 individuals with abdominal obesity. Participants were randomly assigned to the Avocado Supplemented Diet Group (AVO), receiving one avocado per day, or the Habitual Diet group (HAB), maintaining their usual dietary habits.

Diet Quality is Positively Associated With Nature Relatedness in a U.S. Population: A Pilot Study.

Background: Sustainable dietary practices can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote planetary health. The importance of investigating how to promote sustainable dietary practices is therefore crucial. Nature Relatedness measures an individual's connection to nature and can predict environmental concern and stewardship.

Risk factors for long COVID syndrome in postmenopausal women with previously reported diagnosis of COVID-19.

Purpose: Long COVID-19 syndrome occurs in 10-20 % of people after a confirmed/probable SARS-COV-2 infection; new symptoms begin within three months of COVID-19 diagnosis and last > 8 weeks. Little is known about risk factors for long COVID, particularly in older people who are at greater risk of COVID complications.

Methods: Data are from Women's Health Initiative (WHI) postmenopausal women who completed COVID surveys that included questions on whether they had ever been diagnosed with COVID and length and nature of symptoms.

How parent stress and COVID-19 impact on the family are associated with parental pressure to eat during COVID-19.

This study aimed to assess how parent stress and COVID-19 impact on the family are associated with parental pressure to eat during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents of healthy preschool-aged children completed measures including pressure to eat (Child Feeding Questionnaire), parent perception of their stress (Perceived Stress Scale), household food insecurity (Hunger Vital Sign) and effects of COVID-19 on families (COVID-19 Exposure and Family Impact). Children (N = 228) were racially, ethnically, and socioeconomically diverse (34 % Black, 15 % Hispanic, and 29 % with household income <$20,000).

Differences in maternal and paternal pressure to eat and perception of household responsibilities.

Controlling feeding practices, such as pressure to eat, are associated with a child's disinhibited eating and extremes in bodyweight. We aimed to explore which factors are associated with parent dyads' pressuring feeding practices, including how mothers and fathers perceive the sharing of household tasks such as mealtime and child feeding responsibilities. In this cross-sectional study, parent dyads (mother and father) of healthy preschool-aged children completed an identical questionnaire consisting of measures of picky eating (food fussiness subscale of Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire), parental concern for undereating, and pressure to eat (Child Feeding Questionnaire).

Examining the Role of Nutrition in Cancer Survivorship and Female Fertility: A Narrative Review.

Female cancer survivors have a higher chance of experiencing infertility than females without a history of cancer diagnosis. This risk remains high despite advances in fertility treatments. There is a need to augment fertility treatments with cost-effective methods such as nutritional guidance to improve fertility chances.

Interactions with Nature, Good for the Mind and Body: A Narrative Review.

Interacting with nature may promote mental and physical health. There are multiple ways to interact with nature: indirectly, incidentally, and intentionally. How these types of interactions with nature may be associated with mental and physical health status and health behaviors is unclear.

Fatty Acid Intake and Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Biomarkers and Risk of Total Knee or Hip Arthroplasty Among Older Women in the Women's Health Initiative.

Objective: The objective was to determine whether baseline fatty acid intake and erythrocyte omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) can predict risk of total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA) in older women.

Methods: This was a prospective analysis of 34,990 women in the Women's Health Initiative. Dietary fatty acids were estimated from food frequency questionnaires.

Optimizing Fertility Treatment With Nutrition Guidance: Exploring Barriers and Facilitators to Healthful Nutrition Among Female Cancer Survivors With Fertility Challenges.

Introduction: Young women diagnosed with cancer are at an increased risk for infertility compared to women without a cancer diagnosis. Consuming a healthful diet comprised of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and unsaturated fats has been found to improve both fertility and cancer survivorship. Given this reason, dietary interventions tailored to support female cancer survivors with fertility challenges are of immense importance.

Rethinking family-based obesity treatment.

Emerging research in paediatric obesity has demonstrated that parental involvement in the weight management process can improve weight outcomes in children. Recent guidelines by the American Academy of Pediatrics note the importance of parent and family involvement in treatment. However, it is currently unknown if including the entire family in obesity treatment can supersede outcomes associated with participation of only one parent.

A Pilot Study Examining the Association of Parental Stress and Household Food Insecurity with Dietary Quality in Pre-School-Aged Children.

Adequate dietary quality is necessary for children's appropriate development and may be influenced by family factors. This study with 24 healthy 3-5-year-old children assessed the associations of parental stress and household food insecurity (HFI) with a child's dietary quality. Parents completed three 24 h dietary recalls, and the Healthy Eating Index was calculated to assess dietary quality.

Cost-effectiveness of : an adaptation of the diabetes prevention programme for delivery by community health workers in urban South Africa.

Background: is an adapted version of the Diabetes Prevention Program designed for delivery by community health workers to socioeconomically disadvantaged populations in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Results from the trial conducted in an under-resourced community in South Africa indicated that the programme had a significant effect on reducing haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c).

Objective: To estimate the cost of implementation and the cost-effectiveness (in cost per point reduction in HbA1c) of the programme to inform decision-makers of the resources required and the value of this intervention.

Impact of gene variation and dietary fatty acid exposure on biochemical and anthropomorphic phenotypes in a Hispanic/Latino cohort.

Introduction: Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and highly unsaturated fatty acid (HUFA) synthetic products and their signaling metabolites play vital roles in immunity, inflammation, and brain development/function. Frequency differences of variants within the fatty acid desaturase () gene cluster affect levels of HUFAs, their biologically active products, and numerous physiological phenotypes. Fundamental questions remain regarding the impact of this genetic variation on the health of Hispanic/Latino populations.

Reversion of breast epithelial polarity alterations caused by obesity.

Molecular links between breast cancer risk factors and pro-oncogenic tissue alterations are poorly understood. The goal of this study was to characterize the impact of overweight and obesity on tissue markers of risk, using normal breast biopsies, a mouse model of diet-induced obesity, and cultured breast acini. Proliferation and alteration of epithelial polarity, both necessary for tumor initiation, were quantified by immunostaining.

Differential effects of western versus mediterranean diets and psychosocial stress on ovarian function in female monkeys (Macaca fascicularis).

Ovarian dysfunction increases risk for chronic diseases of aging including cardiovascular disease, depression, cognitive impairment, as well as bone and muscle loss which promote frailty. Psychosocial stress can disrupt ovarian function, and recent observations suggest that consumption of a Western Diet may also. Determination of causal relationships among diet, psychosocial stress, and ovarian physiology is difficult in humans.

Frequency of Consuming Breakfast Meals and After-Dinner Snacks Is not Associated with Postmenopausal Breast Cancer Risk: Women's Health Initiative Observational Study.

Background: There has been little investigation into how the timing of meals and eating occasions associates with postmenopausal breast cancer risk.

Objective: We examined the association between the frequency of consuming breakfast meals and after-dinner snacks with the risk for postmenopausal breast cancer.

Methods: A prospective analysis of 74,825 postmenopausal women aged 49 to 81 y from the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study cohort.

The association of food insecurity with mental health in preschool-aged children and their parents.

Background: Household food insecurity (HFI) is associated with poor general and mental health. Prior studies assessed parent and child mental health separately and did not assess other social risks.

Objective: To assess the relationship between HFI and both parental and child mental health.

Parental concerns about picky eating and undereating, feeding practices, and child's weight.

Objective: Parents' concerns about their child's feeding may lead parents to pressure their child to eat, which may lead to a greater risk for obesity. We aimed to assess if parental concerns for picky eating and undereating are associated with pressure to eat and increased child BMI z-score (BMIz).

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study of 328 parents of healthy preschoolers assessing parent concerns about picky eating (Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire) and child undereating ("Are you concerned …doesn't eat enough?"), parent pressure to eat (Child Feeding Questionnaire), and covariates.

Continuity of Care Among Postmenopausal Women With Cardiometabolic Diseases in the United States Early During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Findings From the Women's Health Initiative.

Background: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, public health measures, including stay-at-home orders, were widely instituted in the United States by March 2020. However, few studies have evaluated the impact of these measures on continuity of care among older adults living with chronic diseases.

Methods: Beginning in June 2020, participants of the national Women's Health Initiative (WHI) (N = 64 061) were surveyed on the impact of the pandemic on various aspects of their health and well-being since March 2020, including access to care appointments, medications, and caregivers.

Research at the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: What, How, and Why?

Research is essential to further advance our understanding of the role of nutrition and dietetics in maintenance and improvement of health. Research is also essential for nutrition and dietetics practitioners to create and provide evidence-based interventions, including medical nutrition therapy provided by registered dietitian nutritionists. Given this critical role of research, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (Academy) has a variety of resources to assist its members in accessing, understanding, participating in, conducting, and disseminating nutrition research.

Effect of Incorporating 1 Avocado Per Day Versus Habitual Diet on Visceral Adiposity: A Randomized Trial.

Background Excess visceral adiposity is associated with increased risk of cardiometabolic disorders. Short-term well-controlled clinical trials suggest that regular avocado consumption favorably affects body weight, visceral adiposity, and satiety. Methods and Results The HAT Trial (Habitual Diet and Avocado Trial) was a multicenter, randomized, controlled parallel-arm trial designed to test whether consuming 1 large avocado per day for 6 months in a diverse group of free-living individuals (N=1008) with an elevated waist circumference compared with a habitual diet would decrease visceral adiposity as measured by magnetic resonance imaging.