Is vitamin D-fortified yogurt a value-added strategy for improving human health? A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials.

Yogurt is a good source of probiotics, calcium, and proteins, but its content of vitamin D is low. Therefore, yogurt could be a good choice for vitamin D fortification to improve the positive health outcomes associated with its consumption. The primary aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to investigate the effect of vitamin D-fortified yogurt compared with plain yogurt on levels of serum 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25OHD). The secondary aim was to evaluate the effect of fortified yogurt on parathyroid hormone, anthropometric parameters, blood pressure, glucose metabolism, and lipid profile. We searched PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar for eligible studies; that is, randomized controlled trials (RCT) that compared vitamin D-fortified yogurt with control treatment without any additional supplement. Random-effects models were used to estimate pooled effect sizes and 95% confidence intervals. Findings from 9 RCT (n = 665 participants) that lasted from 8 to 16 wk are summarized in this review. The meta-analyzed mean differences for random effects showed that vitamin D-fortified yogurt (from 400 to 2,000 IU) increased serum 25OHD by 31.00 nmol/L. In addition, vitamin D-fortified yogurt decreased parathyroid hormone by 15.47 ng/L, body weight by 0.92 kg, waist circumference by 2.01 cm, HOMA-IR by 2.18 mass units, fasting serum glucose by 22.54 mg/dL, total cholesterol by 13.38 mg/dL, and triglycerides by 30.12 mg/dL compared with the controlled treatments. No publication bias was identified. Considerable between-study heterogeneity was observed for most outcomes. Vitamin D-fortified yogurt may be beneficial in improving serum 25OHD, lipid profile, glucose metabolism, and anthropometric parameters and decreasing parathyroid hormone level in pregnant women and adult and elderly subjects with or without diabetes, prediabetes, or metabolic syndrome

Almond, Hazelnut, and Pistachio Skin: An Opportunity for Nutraceuticals

Nuts are dry, single-seeded fruits, with a combination of beneficial compounds that aid in disease prevention and treatment. This review aims to summarize the antioxidant components and the nutraceutical properties and applications of hazelnut, almond, and pistachio skins, as well as discuss their ability to prevent and treat specific diseases based on in vitro and in vivo studies. The search strategy included searching PubMed database and Google Scholar for relevant articles published in English. Research articles focusing on hazelnut, pistachio, and almond were included. The nut skin extracts were considered and other by-products were excluded from this search. Pistachio and almond skin hydroalcoholic extracts have antibacterial effects and decrease the risk of liver cancer by eliminating reactive oxygen species. Moreover, hazelnut skin can lower plasma against low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, thus reducing the risk of colon cancer, and its polyphenolic extract can also decrease the formation of advanced glycation end products in vitro with multidimensional effects. Overall, hazelnut, pistachio, and almond skins are a great source of antioxidants, making them suitable for nutraceuticals’ development

Food Pyramid for Subjects with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases

Nutritional problems are an important part of rehabilitation for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. COPD patients often present with malnutrition, sarcopenia, and osteoporosis with possible onset of cachexia, with an inadequate dietary intake and a poor quality of life. Moreover, diet plays a pivotal role in patients with COPD through three mechanisms: regulation of carbon dioxide produced/oxygen consumed, inflammation, and oxidative stress. A narrative review based on 99 eligible studies was performed to evaluate current evidence regarding optimum diet therapy for the management of COPD, and then a food pyramid was built accordingly. The food pyramid proposal will serve to guide energy and dietary intake in order to prevent and treat nutritionally related COPD complications and to manage progression and COPD-related symptoms. The nutrition pyramid described in our narrative review is hypothetical, even in light of several limitations of the present review; the main limitation is the fact that to date there are no randomized controlled trials in the literature clearly showing that improved nutrition, via the regulation of carbon dioxide produced/oxygen consumed, inflammation and oxidative stress, improves symptoms and/or progression of COPD. Even if this nutritional pyramid is hypothetical, we hope that it can serve the valuable purpose of helping researchers focus on the often-ignored possible connections between body composition, nutrition, and COPD

Where to Find Leucine in Food and How to Feed Elderly With Sarcopenia in Order to Counteract Loss of Muscle Mass: Practical Advice

The term sarcopenia refers to the loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength that generally occurs during aging. The interventions that have proved most effective in reducing the severity and preventing the worsening of sarcopenia include physical exercise, especially resistance, and the administration of dietary supplements in association with a targeted diet; nutritional intervention is the main therapeutic approach for elderly people, since they are very often sedentary (also due to possible disabilities). Among the various nutrients, high biological value proteins and leucine are of particular interest for their demonstrated effects on the health of skeletal muscle. The intake of food containing proteins and leucine during meals stimulates muscle protein synthesis. Lower blood levels of leucine were associated with lower values of the skeletal muscle index, grip strength and performance. The international guidelines recommended that a leucine intake of 3 g at three main meals together with 25-30 g of protein is the goal to be achieved to counteract loss of lean mass in elderly. Food composition databases rarely show the amounts of leucine contained in foods and therefore it becomes difficult to build a diet that follows these guidelines. A table was therefore created for the first time in the literature to collect all the foods richest in leucine, thanks to the union of the most important Italian food databases. Moreover, in order to implement a diet that follows the right recommendations, another tables shows nutritional composition of breakfast, lunch and dinner (that each provide 3 grams of leucine and 25 grams of protein) for seven days

Diet and ideal food pyramid to prevent or support the treatment of diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, and cataracts

Many eye diseases, such as diabetic retinopathy (DR), age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and cataracts are preventable and treatable with lifestyle. The objective of this review is to assess the most recent research on the ideal dietary approach to prevent or support the treatment of DR, AMD, and cataracts, as well as to construct a food pyramid that makes it simple for people who are at risk of developing these pathologies to decide what to eat. The food pyramid presented here proposes what should be consumed every day: 3 portions of low glycemic index (GI) grains (for fiber and zinc content), 5 portions (each portion: ≥200 g/day) of fruits and vegetables (spinach, broccoli, zucchini cooked, green leafy vegetables, orange, kiwi, grapefruit for folic acid, vitamin C, and lutein/zeaxanthin content, at least ≥42 μg/day, are to be preferred), extra virgin olive (EVO) oil (almost 20 mg/day for vitamin E and polyphenols content), nuts or oil seeds (20–30 g/day, for zinc content, at least ≥15.8 mg/day); weekly: fish (4 portions, for omega-3 content and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) + docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) 0.35–1.4 g/day), white meat (3 portions for vitamin B12 content), legumes (2 portions for vegetal proteins), eggs (2 portions for lutein/zeaxanthin content), light cheeses (2 portions for vitamin B6 content), and almost 3–4 times/week microgreen and spices (saffron and curcumin). At the top of the pyramid, there are two pennants: one green, which indicates the need for personalized supplementation (if daily requirements cannot be met through diet, omega-3, and L-methylfolate supplementation), and one red, which indicates that certain foods are prohibited (salt and sugar). Finally, 3–4 times per week, 30–40 min of aerobic and resistance exercises are required

A Machine-Learning Approach to Target Clinical and Biological Features Associated with Sarcopenia: Findings from Northern and Southern Italian Aging Populations

Epidemiological and public health resonance of sarcopenia in late life requires further research to identify better clinical markers useful for seeking proper care strategies in preventive medicine settings. Using a machine-learning approach, a search for clinical and fluid markers most associated with sarcopenia was carried out across older populations from northern and southern Italy. A dataset of adults >65 years of age (n = 1971) made up of clinical records and fluid markers from either a clinical-based subset from northern Italy (Pavia) and a population-based subset from southern Italy (Apulia) was employed (n = 1312 and n = 659, respectively). Body composition data obtained by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) were used for the diagnosis of sarcopenia, given by the presence of either low muscle mass (i.e., an SMI 2 for males or 2 for females) and of low muscle strength (i.e., an HGS < 27 kg for males or <16 kg for females) or low physical performance (i.e., an SPPB ≤ 8), according to the EWGSOP2 panel guidelines. A machine-learning feature-selection approach, the random forest (RF), was used to identify the most predictive features of sarcopenia in the whole dataset, considering every possible interaction among variables and taking into account nonlinear relationships that classical models could not evaluate. Then, a logistic regression was performed for comparative purposes. Leading variables of association to sarcopenia overlapped in the two population subsets and included SMI, HGS, FFM of legs and arms, and sex. Using parametric and nonparametric whole-sample analysis to investigate the clinical variables and biological markers most associated with sarcopenia, we found that albumin, CRP, folate, and age ranked high according to RF selection, while sex, folate, and vitamin D were the most relevant according to logistics. Albumin, CRP, vitamin D, and serum folate should not be neglected in screening for sarcopenia in the aging population. Better preventive medicine settings in geriatrics are urgently needed to lessen the impact of sarcopenia on the general health, quality of life, and medical care delivery of the aging population

Bioactives Profile of Purple and Black Tomato: Potential Applications in the Pharmaceutical Field Purple and Black Tomato

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Efficacy and Safety of a Long-Term Multidisciplinary Weight Loss Intervention under Hospitalization in Aging Patients with Obesity: An Open Label Study

The effects of the hypocaloric diet under hospitalization on blood biochemical parameters (lipid, glycaemic, thyroid and liver profiles) were not reported in literature. This study aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a hypocaloric diet under hospitalisation in obese patients. A total of 151 obese subjects (49 males and 102 females, aged 69.38 +/- 14.1 years, BMI 41.78 +/- 7.1) were enrolled in this study. Participants were treated with an hypocaloric diet for a maximum period of 3 months. Outcomes were assessed at the beginning and at the end of the recovery period. The average duration of the hospitalisation was 47.5 days +/- 1.3. The effect of the diet on all the outcomes was evaluated using the Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and the predictors of weight loss were identified using linear regression. The diet induced a reduction in the anthropometric (BMI decrease of -2.713 points) and DXA body measurements in addition to serum lipids, glucose, Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels without affecting the muscle mass, liver and thyroid profiles. During the intervention, there was a positive shift in body composition favouring fat free mass (FFM). Lower insulin but higher serum calcium and potassium levels were predictors of weight loss

Practical dietary advices for subjects with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency

Congenital alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD) is a rare inherited disorder caused by the mutation of the SERPINA1 gene on chromosome 14. At pulmonary level, AAT deficiency leads to an increased risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and emphysema, starting from the third-fourth decade of life. At hepatic level, some variants of the allelic, in particular PI*Z, cause a conformational change of the AAT molecule, which polymerizes within the hepatocytes. Excessive hepatic accumulation of these abnormal molecules can lead to liver disease in both adults and children, with clinical presentation ranging from cholestatic jaundice in the newborn to abnormal blood indices of liver function in children and adults, up to fatty liver, cirrhosis and hepatocarcinoma. Nutritional interventions in AATD aim to provide the necessary calories, stop protein catabolism, prevent and treat malnutrition as in the case of common COPD, and even take into account any liver disease that is a distinctive trait, compared to common COPD. Actually, there is a lack of formal research regarding the effects of specific nutritional recommendations in patients with AATD, proper eating habits may help to preserve lung and liver function. For practical dietary advice in patients with AATD and COPD, recently a food pyramid proposal has been published. It has been observed that there is a marked overlap between AATD liver disease and obesity-related liver disease, suggesting shared molecular basis and, therefore, similar nutritional strategies. In this narrative review dietary advice for all possible stages of liver disease have been reported