Associations between healthy eating patterns and indicators of metabolic risk in postmenopausal women

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Since human diets contain many components that may work synergistically to prevent or promote disease, assessing diet quality may be informative. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between quality diet, by using Healthy Eating Index (HEI), and metabolic risk indicators in postmenopausal women.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This cross-sectional study included a total of 173 Brazilian women, aged 45-75 years, seeking healthcare at a public outpatient center. Food consumption assessed by 24 h-recall food inquiry was used to calculate HEI scores: >80 implied diet good, 80-51 diet "needed improvement", and <51 diet poor. Anthropometric data included: body mass index (BMI = weight/height²), waist-circumference (WC), body fat (%BF) and lean mass (%LM). Data on total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLC), and triglycerides (TG) were also collected. Fisher's Exact test, and logistic regression method (to determine odds ratio, OR) were used in the statistical analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Overweight and obesity were observed in 75.7% of the participants. Excessive %BF (> 35%) was observed in 56.1%, while %LM was reduced (< 70%) in 78.1%. WC was elevated (≥88 cm) in 72.3%. Based on HEI values, diet quality was good in 3% (5/173), needed improvement in 48.5% (84/173), and was poor in 48.5% (84/173) of the cases. In this group, 75% of women had high intakes of lipids (> 35%), predominantly saturated and monounsaturated fat. On average, plasma TC, LDLC, and TG levels were higher than recommended in 57.2%, 79.2% and 45.1% of the women, respectively, while HDLC was low in 50.8%. There was association between HEI scores and the %BF that it was higher among women with HEI score < 80 (p = 0.021). There were not observed significant risk associations between HEI and lipid profile.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Among the Brazilian postmenopausal women attending a public outpatient clinic, diet was considered to need improvement or to be of poor quality, attributed to high saturated fat ingestion, which probably caused a negative impact on metabolic risk indicators, namely body composition.</p

Light-based technologies for management of COVID-19 pandemic crisis.

The global dissemination of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has accelerated the need for the implementation of effective antimicrobial strategies to target the causative agent SARS-CoV-2. Light-based technologies have a demonstrable broad range of activity over standard chemotherapeutic antimicrobials and conventional disinfectants, negligible emergence of resistance, and the capability to modulate the host immune response. This perspective article identifies the benefits, challenges, and pitfalls of repurposing light-based strategies to combat the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic

Effects of omega-3 on metabolic markers in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of diet alone or combined with omega-3 supplementation on metabolic and inflammatory markers in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome.Methods This randomized, controlled trial included 87 Brazilian women (age &gt;= 45 years and with amenorrhea &gt;= 12 months). Exclusion criteria were: cardiovascular disease, insulin-dependent diabetes, cancer, autoimmune diseases and use of either statins or hormone therapy. Participants were randomized to diet alone (n = 43, control) or diet plus omega-3 supplementation, 900 mg/day orally (n = 44). All women were provided with an individualized dietary prescription. Clinical, anthropometrical (body mass index and waist circumference) and biochemical variables were measured. The inflammatory profile included C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor a and interleukins (IL-1b and IL-6). The intervention time was 6 months, with assessments at initiation and completion. Data were analyzed according to intention-to-treat, using the independent t-test and ANOVA.Results There were significant reductions in body mass index and waist circumference in both groups (p &lt; 0.05) without significant changes in body fat or muscle mass. Intervention with diet plus omega-3 was associated with significant reduction in systolic (-12.2%) and diastolic (-8.2%) blood pressure, serum triglyceride concentration (-21.4%), and insulin resistance (-13.1%) (p &lt; 0.05), as well as a reduction in serum IL-6 concentration (-28.5%) (p = 0.034).Conclusion In postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome, dietary intervention plus supplementation of omega-3 resulted in a further decrease in triglycerides and blood pressure and also in an improvement in insulin resistance and inflammatory markers, important components of metabolic syndrome.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP