Evaluation of health, nutrition and food security programmes in a complex emergency: the case of Congo as an example of a chronic post-conflict situation.

Objective: To describe the case of Congo as an example of the assessment and appropriateness of donor operational and sectoral strategies in a complex emergency.

Design And Setting: The paper reports the findings of an external evaluation of operations financed by the European Commission Humanitarian Office in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Results: The Congolese health system is suffering from severe deterioration.

The conceptual framework for estimating food energy requirement.

Objective: In anticipation of the revision of the 1985 Food and Agricultural Organization/World Health Organization/United Nations University (FAO/ WHO/UNU) Expert Consultation Report on 'Energy and Protein Requirements', recent scientific knowledge on the principles underlying the estimation of energy requirement is reviewed.

Design: This paper carries out a historical review of the scientific rationale adopted by previous FAO/WHO technical reports on energy requirement, discusses the concepts used in assessing basal metabolic rate (BMR), energy expenditure, physical activity level (PAL), and examines current controversial areas. Recommendations and areas of future research are presented.

Screening and recruitment procedure of late-middle aged and older subjects: the ZENITH study.

Objective: To report the rational, design, recruitment, baseline characteristics and preliminary overview of volunteers in the ZENITH study.

Design: A multicentre prospective intervention study employing a randomised double-blind design.

Setting: Clermont-Ferrand, Theix (France), Coleraine (Northern Ireland), Grenoble (France), Rome (Italy).

Estimation of intake and status of vitamin A, vitamin E and folate in older European adults: the ZENITH.

Objective: To report selected dietary intake and vitamin status at baseline of volunteers participating in the ZENITH study and the correlation of vitamin status with zinc.

Design: A multicentre prospective intervention study employing a randomised double-blind design.

Setting: Clermont-Ferrand, Theix (France), Coleraine (Northern Ireland), Grenoble (France), Rome (Italy).

Phenolic acids from beer are absorbed and extensively metabolized in humans.

In spite of the wide literature describing the biological effects of phenolic compounds, scarce data are available on their absorption from diet. In the present work, we studied the absorption in humans of phenolic acids from beer, a common beverage rich in different phenolic acids with related chemical structures. Beer was analyzed for free and total (free+bound) phenolic acids.

Nutritional status and poverty assessment of vulnerable population groups in Armenia.

Objectives: To produce estimates of main nutrition deficiencies to identify public health intervention priorities; to investigate the importance of urban-rural and resident-refugee differences; to validate the vulnerability indicators used for targeting humanitarian aid.

Design: Cross-sectional study with cluster design on a nationally representative sample of 2627 households (3390 children under five and 2649 mothers).

Results: Underweight was observed in 4% of the mothers, while more than one third of them showed different levels of overweight.

Assessment of dietary intake of flavouring substances within the procedure for their safety evaluation: advantages and limitations of estimates obtained by means of a per capita method.

The procedure for the safety evaluation of flavourings adopted by the European Commission in order to establish a positive list of these substances is a stepwise approach which was developed by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) and amended by the Scientific Committee on Food. Within this procedure, a per capita amount based on industrial poundage data of flavourings, is calculated to estimate the dietary intake by means of the maximised survey-derived daily intake (MSDI) method. This paper reviews the MSDI method in order to check if it can provide conservative intake estimates as needed at the first steps of a stepwise procedure.

Meat and meat products consumption in Italy: contribution to trace elements, heme iron and selected B vitamins supply.

This study was undertaken to estimate the contribution of meat and meat products consumption to the daily intakes of trace elements (Fe, Zn, Cu, Se), heme iron, and selected B vitamins (thiamine, riboflavin, niacin) in Italy. Meat and meat products were selected on the basis of their consumption frequency reported by the most recent nationwide dietary individual survey carried out in Italy (INN-CA study). The daily intakes of total iron and heme iron were 1.

Characterization of the hsp70 response in lymphoblasts from aged and centenarian subjects and differential effects of in vitro zinc supplementation.

Human centenarians attract increasing interest as they hold some still undefined molecular mechanisms resulting in the achievement of exceptional old age. Recent data suggest the ability of centenarians to efficiently counter the increased cellular stress normally associated with ageing. The ubiquitous heat shock (HS) protein HSP70, expressed under the control of the heat shock transcription factor 1 (HSF-1), is recognized as one of the main chaperones associated with cell protection against stresses.

Food consumption and nutrient intake in a sample of Italian secondary school students: results from the INRAN-RM-2001 food survey.

The present study was designed to estimate the average food and nutrient intake in a sample of Italian students living in the District of Rome. In the school year 1999-2000 all students belonging to the first, second or third year of nine randomly selected secondary public schools were contacted for filling in a food frequency questionnaire (3982 subjects). The next year, 233 of them (125 males and 108 females), randomly extracted, participated in a detailed food survey.

Exchangeable zinc ions transiently accumulate in a vesicular compartment in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The baker's yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was used as a model to visualize intracellular labile zinc under conditions of nutritional zinc imbalance. Zinc-specific staining was performed in yeast cells using both Zinquin fluorescence and zinc-selenium autometallography. Both techniques resulted in specific labeling of an intracellular vesicular compartment that was present in wild type cells as well as in the vacuolar Zn transporter mutants Deltazrc1 and Deltacot1.

Understanding the association between dietary antioxidants, redox status and disease: is the Total Antioxidant Capacity the right tool?

Total Antioxidant Capacity (TAC) considers the cumulative action of all the antioxidants present in plasma and body fluids, thus providing an integrated parameter rather than the simple sum of measurable antioxidants. The capacity of known and unknown antioxidants and their synergistic interaction is, therefore, assessed, thus giving an insight into the delicate balance in vivo between oxidants and antioxidants. There is new evidence indicating the importance of understanding the mechanisms of the homeostatic control of TAC in plasma and tissues and its modification during oxidative stress development.

Effect of domestic cooking on human bioavailability of naringenin, chlorogenic acid, lycopene and beta-carotene in cherry tomatoes.

Background: Epidemiological data showed that tomato and tomato product (sauce, paste) consumption is associated with a protective effect against the development of some chronic-degenerative diseases. Tomato antioxidant bioactive molecules such as carotenoids and polyphenols could be responsible, at least in part, for the healthy effect observed. The bioavailability of these compounds is an essential requirement to sustain their in vivo role.

Transgenic foods as a tool for malnutrition elimination and their impact on agricultural systems.

GMO crops were introduced for commercial production in 1996. Since then, their use has increased rapidly. GMOs have primarily benefited large farms and multinational companies in Industrialised Countries and now is more and more debating their utilisation in Developing World.

Dietary estimated intake of intense sweeteners by Italian teenagers. Present levels and projections derived from the INRAN-RM-2001 food survey.

In a previous study, Italian female teenagers regular consumers of sugar free soft drinks and table-top sweeteners were suggested to have a higher intake of intense sweeteners than other teenagers. A food frequency questionnaire designed to identify adolescents who were high consumers of these food products was filled in by a randomly extracted sample of teenagers (n=3982) living in the District of Rome (Italy) in year 2000. A consumer survey was then carried out in a randomly extracted sub-sample of males and females and in all females who reported high consumption of sugar-free soft drinks and/or table-top sweeteners.

Probabilistic modelling of human exposure to intense sweeteners in Italian teenagers: validation and sensitivity analysis of a probabilistic model including indicators of market share and brand loyalty.

For the assessment of exposure to food-borne chemicals, the most commonly used methods in the European Union follow a deterministic approach based on conservative assumptions. Over the past few years, to get a more realistic view of exposure to food chemicals, risk managers are getting more interested in the probabilistic approach. Within the EU-funded 'Monte Carlo' project, a stochastic model of exposure to chemical substances from the diet and a computer software program were developed.

Development of databases for use in validation studies of probabilistic models of dietary exposure to food chemicals and nutrients.

The data currently available in the European Union in terms of food consumption and of food chemical and nutrient concentration data present many limitations when used for estimating intake. The most refined techniques currently available were used within the European Union FP5 Monte Carlo project to estimate, as accurately as possible, the intake of food additives, pesticide residues and nutrients. Databases of 'true' intakes of food additives (based on brand level food consumption records and additive concentration data), pesticide residues (based on duplicate diet studies) and nutrients (based on biomarker studies) have thus been generated.

Determination of aminoethylcysteine ketimine decarboxylated dimer in human plasma and cultured cells by high-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection.

Aminoethylcysteine ketimine decarboxylated dimer (AECK-DD) is a natural compound with antioxidant properties of a new family of sulfur-containing amino acids. It has been detected in human urine and plasma, in mammalian cerebellum and, more recently, in dietary vegetables. In the present study, a simple, highly sensitive method using a high-performance liquid chromatography system with electrochemical detection (ECD) has been developed.

Biphasic effect of iron on human intestinal Caco-2 cells: early effect on tight junction permeability with delayed onset of oxidative cytotoxic damage.

Treatment of differentiated human intestinal Caco-2 cells with Fe(II) ascorbate altered tight junction permeability in a dose and time-dependent way for up to 3 hr of treatment Upon iron removal and transfer to complete culture medium, the effect was reversible up to 10 microM Fe(II), while at higher concentrations a late phase toxic effect was observed. Reduction of intracellular energy abolished the short term effect of iron on tight junction permeability without affecting its cellular uptake, suggesting that active processes, other than transport, were involved. The short term effect of iron the permeability of tight junctions did not appear to result from the generation of reactive oxygen species, as it was not prevented by antioxidant treatment under normal energy conditions.

Stochastic modelling of human exposure to food chemicals and nutrients within the "Montecarlo" project: an exploration of the influence of brand loyalty and market share on intake estimates of intense sweeteners from sugar-free soft drinks.

To get a more realistic view of exposure to food chemicals, risk managers are getting more interested in stochastic modelling as an alternative to deterministic approaches based on conservative assumptions. It allows to take into account all the available information in the concentration of the chemical present in foods and in food consumption patterns. Within the EC-funded "Montecarlo" project, a comprehensive set of mathematical algorithms was developed to take into account all the necessary components for stochastic modelling of a variety of food chemicals, nutrients and ingredients.

Grape seed proanthocyanidins prevent plasma postprandial oxidative stress in humans.

Postprandial hyperlipemia is a well-defined risk factor for atherosclerosis. A reasonable contributing mechanism could involve the postprandial increase of plasma lipid hydroperoxides (LPO) affecting the oxidant/antioxidant balance and increasing the susceptibility of LDL to oxidation. Wine has been shown to prevent both these events.

Impact of micronutrient deficiencies on growth: the stunting syndrome.

Stunting is a process that can affect the development of a child from the early stages of conception and until the third or fourth year of life, when the nutrition of the mother and the child are essential determinants of growth. Failure to meet micronutrient requirements, a challenging environment and the inadequate provision of care, are all factors responsible for this condition that affects almost 200 million children under 5 years of age. The timing and duration of the nutritional insult leads to different physiological consequences.

Naringenin from cooked tomato paste is bioavailable in men.

Naringenin has been shown to exert antiestrogenic, cholesterol-lowering and antioxidant activities, as well as an indirect modulation on the metabolism of many xenobiotics. It is one of the most abundant polyphenols in tomato. Given the widespread consumption of tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum) and tomato-based products, this study was designed to determine whether plasma levels of naringenin were detectable in five men after consumption of a test meal containing 150 mg of cooked tomato paste.