Stable Scheduling Increases Productivity and Sales

Variable schedules are now the norm for part-time workers in a variety of industries including retail, where schedules typically change every day and every week, with three to seven days' notice of the next week's schedule. In recent years, these scheduling practices have come under increasing scrutiny in state attorney general offices, state and local legislatures, and the media. In retail, unstable schedules for employees have been considered an inevitable outcome of stores' need for profitability. Operations researchers have found that matching labor to incoming traffic is a key driver of retail store profitability (Perdikaki et al., 2012). At the same time, social scientists have studied the deleterious effects of variable schedules on employee wellbeing (Henly & Lambert, 2014). What has been lacking is evidence that schedules in service-sector jobs can be improved in ways that benefit both employers and employees

USDA Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (FNDDS), 5.0

AbstractThe Food and Nutrient Database for Dietary Studies (FNDDS) is used to code and analyze dietary intakes for the What We Eat In America, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (WWEIA, NHANES). To create FNDDS 5.0 for WWEIA, NHANES 2009-2010, data for over 7,200 foods were updated to incorporate changes in the marketplace and information reported by survey participants. The updates include nearly 100 new foods and extensive changes to food descriptions, portions, weights, and recipes. The USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 24 is the basis for the 65 nutrient values for each FNDDS food. FNDDS 5.0 is available at http://www.ars.usda.gov/ba/bhnrc/fsrg

Efficacy and Safety of Sparsentan Compared With Irbesartan in Patients With Primary Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis: Randomized, Controlled Trial Design (DUET)

Primary focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) is a leading cause of nephrotic syndrome and end-stage renal disease. There are no US Food and Drug Administration−approved therapies for FSGS, and treatment often fails to reduce proteinuria. Endothelin is an important factor in the pathophysiology of podocyte disorders, including FSGS. Sparsentan is a first-in-class, orally active, dual-acting angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) and highly selective endothelin Type A receptor antagonist. This study is designed to evaluate whether sparsentan lowers proteinuria compared with an ARB alone and has a favorable safety profile in patients with FSGS. Methods: DUET is a phase 2, randomized, active-control, dose-escalation study with an 8-week, fixed-dose, double-blind period followed by 136 weeks of open-label sparsentan treatment. Patients aged 8 to 75 years with primary FSGS will be randomized to treatment with sparsentan or irbesartan for 8 weeks. Results: The primary efficacy objective is to test the hypothesis that sparsentan over the dose range (200 mg, 400 mg, or 800 mg daily) is superior to irbesartan (300 mg daily) in decreasing the urinary protein-to-creatinine ratio (UPC) from baseline to 8 weeks postrandomization. As secondary objectives, the trial will evaluate the proportion of patients who achieve prespecified targets of UPC reduction, changes in laboratory and quality-of-life indices, and detailed safety analysis. Analyses will be conducted at the end of the double-blind (week 8) and open-label (week 144) periods. Discussion: This study will provide important evidence on whether dual ARB and endothelin blockade may be an effective therapeutic strategy for FSGS and may provide the rationale for next-phase trials

Omega-3 Fatty Acid Dietary Supplements Consumed During Pregnancy and Lactation and Child Neurodevelopment: A Systematic Review

BackgroundMaternal nutrition during pregnancy and lactation has profound effects on the development and lifelong health of the child. Long-chain PUFAs are particularly important for myelination and the development of vision during the perinatal period.ObjectivesWe conducted a systematic review to examine the relationship between supplementation with omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy and/or lactation and neurodevelopment in children, to inform the Scientific Report of the 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.MethodsWe identified articles on omega-3 fatty acid supplementation in pregnant and lactating women that included measures of neurodevelopment in their children (0-18 y) by searching PubMed, CENTRAL, Embase, and CINAHL Plus. After dual screening articles for inclusion, we qualitatively synthesized and graded the strength of evidence using pre-established criteria for assessing risk of bias, consistency, directness, precision, and generalizability.ResultsWe included 33 articles from 15 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 1 prospective cohort study. Of the 8 RCTs that delivered omega-3 fatty acid dietary supplements during pregnancy alone (200-2200 mg/d DHA and 0-1100 mg/d EPA for approximately 20 wk), 5 studies reported ≥1 finding that supplementation improved measures of cognitive development in the infant or child by 6%-11% (P < 0.05), but all 8 studies also reported ≥1 nonsignificant (P > 0.05) result. There was inconsistent or insufficient evidence for other outcomes (language, social-emotional, physical, motor, or visual development; academic performance; risks of attention deficit disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, anxiety, or depression) and for supplementation during lactation or both pregnancy and lactation. Populations with a lower socioeconomic status and adolescents were underrepresented and studies lacked racial and ethnic diversity.ConclusionsLimited evidence suggests that omega-3 fatty acid supplementation during pregnancy may result in favorable cognitive development in the child. There was insufficient evidence to evaluate the effects of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation during pregnancy and/or lactation on other developmental outcomes