Validating Resonance Raman Spectroscopy: a Non-invasive Assessment of Skin Carotenoids as a Biomarker of Fruit and Vegetable Intake in Children

Background: Adult studies have found a strong correlation between serum carotenoids and skin carotenoids measured by resonance Raman spectroscopy (RRS). No published studies have examined correlations between skin and serum carotenoids among children. Objectives: (1) To validate skin RRS methodology against serum carotenoid measurements by high-performance liquid chromatography and (2) to determine if RRS skin carotenoids can be used as a valid biomarker of total fruit and vegetable (FV) intake among children. Design: Participants were 45 healthy children age 5-17 who provided 3 blood samples used to assess serum carotenoid concentrations and 3 RRS skin measurements (using a Biophotonic ScannerTM) within a 4 week period. Dietary intake of FV was assessed 3 times within 4 weeks using a 27 item food frequency questionnaires (FFQ) and the ASA24TM-Kids, an automated multiple-pass 24-hour recall (24HDR). Estimates of intake from three FFQ, completed at least 7 days apart, were averaged. Estimates of intake from 24HDR were collected on 2 weekdays and a weekend day and averaged. Results: Levels of skin and serum carotenoids were highly correlated (R2=.63,

Effects of the FIT Game on Physical Activity in Sixth Graders: A Pilot Reversal Design Intervention Study

Background: The FIT Game is a low-cost intervention that increases fruit and vegetable consumption in elementary school children. For this study, the FIT Game was adapted into an intervention designed to increase children’s physical activity at school. Objective: We aimed to evaluate if the FIT Game could increase children’s physical activity relative to their baseline levels. Methods: A total of 29 participants were recruited from a sixth-grade classroom. An ABAB reversal design was used. Participants wore an accelerometer while at school during pre/postintervention baseline (A) and intervention (B) phases. During the FIT Game intervention, daily physical activity goals encouraged the class to increase their median daily step count above the 60th percentile of the previous 10 days. When daily goals were met, game-based accomplishments were realized. Results: Children met their activity goals 80% of the time during the intervention phases. Physical activity at school increased from a median of 3331 steps per day during the baseline to 4102 steps during the FIT Game phases (P Conclusions: Preliminary evidence showed that playing the FIT Game could positively influence children’s physical activity at school

Effect of Choline Forms and Gut Microbiota Composition on Trimethylamine-N-Oxide Response in Healthy Men

Background: Trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO), a choline-derived gut microbiota-dependent metabolite, is a newly recognized risk marker for cardiovascular disease. We sought to determine: (1) TMAO response to meals containing free versus lipid-soluble choline and (2) effects of gut microbiome on TMAO response. Methods: In a randomized, controlled, double-blinded, crossover study, healthy men (n = 37) were provided meals containing 600 mg choline either as choline bitartrate or phosphatidylcholine, or no choline control. Results: Choline bitartrate yielded three-times greater plasma TMAO AUC (p = 0.01) and 2.5-times greater urinary TMAO change from baseline (p = 0.01) compared to no choline and phosphatidylcholine. Gut microbiota composition differed (permutational multivariate analysis of variance, PERMANOVA; p = 0.01) between high-TMAO producers (with ≥40% increase in urinary TMAO response to choline bitartrate) and low-TMAO producers (with \u3c40% increase in TMAO response). High-TMAO producers had more abundant lineages of Clostridium from Ruminococcaceae and Lachnospiraceae compared to low-TMAO producers (analysis of composition of microbiomes, ANCOM; p \u3c 0.05). Conclusion: Given that phosphatidylcholine is the major form of choline in food, the absence of TMAO elevation with phosphatidylcholine counters arguments that phosphatidylcholine should be avoided due to TMAO-producing characteristics. Further, development of individualized dietary recommendations based on the gut microbiome may be effective in reducing disease risk

Gamification of dietary decision-making in an elementary-school cafeteria.

Despite the known health benefits of doing so, most US children do not consume enough fruits and vegetables (FV). School-based interventions can be effective in increasing FV consumption, but the most effective of these require that schools allocate their time, effort, and financial resources to implementing the program: expenditures that schools may be reluctant to provide in climates of academic accountability and economic austerity. The present demonstration project used a behaviorally based gamification approach to develop an intervention designed to increase FV consumption while minimizing material and labor costs to the school. During the intervention, the school (N = 180 students in grades K-8) played a cooperative game in which school-level goals were met by consuming higher-than-normal amounts of either fruit or vegetables (alternating-treatments experimental design). School-level consumption was quantified using a weight-based waste measure in the cafeteria. Over a period of 13 school days, fruit consumption increased by 66% and vegetable consumption by 44% above baseline levels. Use of an alternating-treatment time-series design with differential levels of FV consumption on days when fruit or vegetable was targeted for improvement supported the role of the intervention in these overall consumption increases. In post-intervention surveys, teachers rated the intervention as practical in the classroom and enjoyed by their students. Parent surveys revealed that children were more willing to try new FV at home and increased their consumption of FV following the intervention. These findings suggest that a behaviorally based gamification approach may prove practically useful in addressing concerns about poor dietary decision-making by children in schools

Principales motivos de uso de los créditos personales adquiridos en la banca múltiple por los Millennials, económicamente activos de NSE B y C, que residen en Lima Metropolitana

El proyecto consiste en el estudio de los principales motivos de uso de los créditos personales adquiridos en la banca múltiple por los Millennials, económicamente activos de nivel socioeconómico B y C, que residen en Lima Metropolitana. La relevancia del tema radica en tres razones; en primer lugar, la relevancia del segmento en el sector de créditos personales en Lima, representa el 30%. Segundo, la actual segmentación tradicional cuantitativa que realizan los bancos en la evaluación de sus clientes; tercero, la no existencia de estudios previos del tema. Se tomaron dos principales conceptos para el desarrollo de la investigación; el primero es Millennials, ellos son las personas pertenecientes a una misma generación, nacidos entre los años 1,980 y 2,000 que comparten similares características, siendo el principal el uso del internet en su día a día. El segundo concepto es la banca múltiple, principalmente el sub segmento de banca personal que representa el 34% de la banca múltiple y está compuesto por créditos de consumo como tarjetas de créditos, préstamos en efectivo, créditos vehiculares; y créditos hipotecarios. La metodología investigación se desarrolla en cuatro etapas: la primera es el uso de información secundaria, fuente Sentinel (central de riesgo). Posteriormente se realizaron entrevistas a profundidad a expertos en el sector; luego se desarrollaron grupos de enfoque divido en cuatro sub segmentos. Finalmente se realizaron encuestas teniendo como objetivo de validar cuantitativamente las hipótesis desarrolladas en cada etapa.The following project analyses Lima´s economically active B and C Millennials and their decision making process when acquiring personal loans in multiple banking. Said topic is important because in Lima, the segment relevance in the personal credit sector is 30%. Moreover, the fact that banks are currently evaluating their customers through traditional quantitative segmentation; and lastly, the lack of investigation projects about this matter. While developing this research, two main concepts were closely studied. Firstly, Millennials: Members of a same generation, and who were born between the years of 1980 and 2000. Their most important characteristic is using internet as a tool for their daily activities. The second concept is multiple banking (specifically the personal banking segment), which represents 34% of multiple banking. This sub-group includes multiple types loans (credit cards, cash loans, vehicle loans, and mortgages). The methodology was divided into four stages: initially, analyzing Sentinels (risk center) data as a source of secondary information. Secondly, depth interviews were conducted with industry experts; then, focus groups were placed according to specific segmentation. And finally, the target audience was polled in order to validate quantitatively the stated hypothesis.Tesi