Integration of functional and traditional food in emerging markets. Regulatory and substantive aspects of yerba mate and quinoa

Given the rising cost of healthcare, the increase in life expectancy and the wish for a better quality of life, the request for foods and beverages producing a beneficial effect on health has increased worldwide. “Functional food” is a new concept and may play a key role in diseases’ prevention and management. Although its meaning is currently under definition, its role in global health improvement is growing constantly. This article aims at giving a description of existing legislation on functional food in South America, identifying future directions for health and marketing policies. Furthermore, authors provide a literature revision on two products widely consumed in Latin American countries: Yerba Mate and Quinoa. Thanks to their beneficial health effects in terms of disease prevention and promotion of well-being, they may be considered as functional foods with a potential key role in health care

Handling missing continuous outcome data in a Bayesian network meta-analysis

Background: A Bayesian network meta-analysis (NMA) model is a statistical method aimed at estimating the relative effects of multiple interventions against the same disease. The method has recently gained prominence, leading to the synthesis of the evidence regarding rank probabilities for each treatment. In several cases, an NMA is performed excluding incomplete data of studies retrieved through a systematic review, resulting in a loss of precision and power.  Methods: There are several methods for handling missing or incomplete data in an NMA framework, especially for continuous outcomes. In certain cases, only baseline and follow-up measurements are available; in this framework, to obtain data regarding mean changes, it is necessary to consider the pre-post study correlation. In this context, in a Bayesian setting, several authors suggest imputation strategies for pre-post correlation. In other cases, a variability measure associated with a mean change score might be unavailable. Different imputation methods have been suggested, such as those based on maximum standard deviation imputation. The purpose of this study is to verify the robustness of Bayesian NMA models concerning different imputation strategies through simulations.  Results: Simulation results show that the bias is notably small for every scenario, confirming that rankings provided by models are robust concerning different imputation methods in several heterogeneity-correlation settings.  Conclusions: This NMA method seems to be more robust to missing data imputation when data reported in different studies are generated in a low-heterogeneity scenario. The NMA method seems to be more robust to missing value imputation if the expectation of the prior distribution, defined on the heterogeneity parameter, approaches the true value of the variability across studies.&nbsp

A first estimation of the impact of public health actions against COVID-19 in Veneto (Italy)

Veneto is one of the first Italian regions where the COVID-19 outbreak started spreading. Containment measures were approved soon thereafter. The present study aims at providing a first look at the impact of the containment measures on the outbreak progression in the Veneto region, Italy

Adherence to Mediterranean Diet and its main determinants in a sample of Italian adults: results from the ARIANNA cross-sectional survey

Introduction: Over the last years, many Mediterranean countries, including Italy, have witnessed a shift away from the Mediterranean Diet, thus contributing to the high rates of overweight and obesity. The survey "Adherence to Mediterranean Diet in Italy (ARIANNA)" aimed to evaluate the Adherence to Mediterranean Diet (AMD) and its main determinants in the Italian population. Materials and methods: This study started on March 2023 and was addressed to adults aged >= 17 years, born and resident in Italy, proficient in Italian. Data are collected electronically through a voluntary, anonymous and self-administered questionnaire on the project website. Univariate and then multivariate logistic regressions were performed to evaluate associations between AMD and demographic characteristics, socio-economic status, health status, and lifestyle. Results: On a total of 3,732 completed questionnaires, the 87.70% of the respondents was female and the 71.28% was 17-40 years old. The 83.82% of the respondents had medium AMD, 11.33% low and only 4.85% high. The multivariate analysis revealed that being male (p 40 years (p < 0.05), workers (p <= 0.001), and unemployed (p < 0.05), determined the probability of having a lower AMD. Vegans and vegetarian's diets positively contributed to a higher AMD (p < 0.001). Discussion: These results highlighted a medium AMD in the Italian adult participants and suggested the necessity to implement tailored public health intervention strategies to improve food habits

Impact of a natural versus commercial enteral-feeding on the occurrence of diarrhea in critically ill cardiac surgery patients. A retrospective cohort study

Diarrhea is an important complication in critically ill patients undergoing enteral feeding. The occurrence of diarrhea may lead to systemic and local complications and negatively impacts on nursing workload and patient's wellbeing. An enteral feeding based on blenderized natural food could be beneficial in reducing the risk of diarrhea. No study has compared natural and commercial enteral feedings in critically ill cardiac surgery patients