Use of dietary supplements, and awareness and knowledge of the recommended fruit and vegetable intakes and consumption of health food store customers in the Cape Town city bowl

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to determine the dietary supplement use and demographic characteristics of customers visiting health food stores in the Cape Town city bowl, and to determine their awareness and knowledge of the recommended fruit and vegetable intake servings and their fruit and vegetable consumption. Design and setting: A self-administered questionnaire was completed by customers visiting two health food stores in the Cape Town city bowl. Subjects: Participants were recruited systematically. One hundred and sixteen of the 146 invited customers participated in the survey (79.5%), but the sample consisted of 112 because four questionnaires were not completed fully. Results: The majority of the sample (81.3%) used supplements, and 79.1% of these were regular users. The demographics of the sample and of the supplement users were mainly female and white, with a higher education, and a younger age. Vitamin (63.2%), mineral (42.5%) and herbal (42.5%) supplements were consumed most. The two main reasons for use were to supplement the diet (68.1%) and to prevent disease (59.3%). A third of the sample (33.0%) was aware of the “5-a-day” concept, while only 21.4% understood the concept. Knowledge of the recommended daily fruit (92.0%) and vegetable (47.3%) intake servings was higher than the awareness of the “5-a-day” concept, although only 65.2% and 14.3% of the respondents consumed the recommended daily servings of fruit and vegetables respectively. Conclusions: The demographic profile of the supplement users was similar to that reported in other studies. Knowledge of the recommended daily fruit and vegetable intake servings was higher than the consumption behaviour, as fewer servings were consumed than were indicated should be consumed, especially regarding vegetable intake. More respondents who were aware of the “5-a-day” concept were consuming the recommended intake of five fruit and vegetables servings daily. SAJCN Vol. 21 (4) 2008: pp. 323-33

A Cosmic Ray Positron Anisotropy due to Two Middle-Aged, Nearby Pulsars?

Geminga and B0656+14 are the closest pulsars with characteristic ages in the ran ge of 100 kyr to 1 Myr. They both have spindown powers of the order 3e34 erg/s at present. The winds of these pulsars had most probably powered pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) that broke up less than about 100 kyr after the birth of the pulsars. Assuming that leptonic particles accelerated by the pulsars were confined in th e PWNe and were released into the interstellar medium (ISM) on breakup of the PW Ne, we show that, depending on the pulsar parameters, both pulsars make a non-ne gligible contribution to the local cosmic ray (CR) positron spectrum, and they m ay be the main contributors above several GeV. The relatively small angular dist ance between Geminga and B0656+14 thus implies an anisotropy in the local CR po sitron flux at these energies. We calculate the contribution of these pulsars to the locally observed CR electr on and positron spectra depending on the pulsar birth period and the magnitude o f the local CR diffusion coefficient. We further give an estimate of the expecte d anisotropy in the local CR positron flux. Our calculations show that within the framework of our model, the local CR posit ron spectrum imposes constraints on pulsar parameters for Geminga and B0656+14, notably the pulsar period at birth, and also the local interstellar diffusion co efficient for CR leptons.Comment: accepted for publication in ApJ

An exploratory investigation of food choice behavior of teenagers with and without food allergies

Background - Understanding food choice behavior in adolescence is important because many core eating habits may be tracked into adulthood. The food choices of at least 2.3% of teenagers living in the United Kingdom are determined by food allergies. However, the effect of food allergies on eating habits in teenagers has not yet been studied.Objective - To provide an understanding of how teenagers with food allergies make food choice decisions and how these differ from those of non–food-allergic teenagers.Methods - One focus group discussion with non–food-allergic teenagers (n = 11) and 14 semistructured interviewers (7 with food-allergic and 7 with non–food-allergic teenagers) were performed (age range, 12-18 years). The focus group discussion and interviews were audiorecorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using thematic content analysis.Results - Teenagers from both groups (food-allergic and non–food-allergic) named sensory characteristics of foods as the main reason for choosing them. Some food-allergic teenagers downplayed their allergy and frequently engaged in risk-taking behavior in terms of their food choices. However, they reported difficulties in trying new foods, especially when away from home. Parental control was experienced as protective by those with food allergies, whereas non–food-allergic teenagers felt the opposite. Most teenagers, including food-allergic ones, expressed the wish to eat similar foods to their friends. Other themes did not vary between the 2 groups.Conclusion - Food-allergic teenagers strive to be able to make similar food choices to their friends, although differences to non–food-allergic teenagers exist. It is important to address these differences to improve their dietary management

Knowledge sharing for the development of service learning champions

Published ArticleChampions engage in knowledge sharing within triad service learning partnerships. However, the role of knowledge sharing in the development of champions needs further exploration. This qualitative study within a constructivist paradigm, shares the effect of mutual learning at the University of the Free State in the nursing education field. Selected international, national, regional and local champions shared perceptions through semi-structured interviews, indicating that: (1) champions could be situated in any sector of the triad model; (2) sharing different kinds of knowledge develop different domains; and (3) connection, collaboration and continuous communication should guide knowledge sharing towards societal change and reciprocal empowerment

Systemic isotretinoin in the management of acne – a patient questionnaire survey

Background: The primary aim was to investigate the appropriateness (as outlined in the South African Acne Treatment Guideline1) for the prescription of systemic isotretinoin in the management and counselling of acne in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropole. Methods: A questionnaire was distributed to patients receiving systemic isotretinoin by 30 community pharmacies. The response rate was 29.2% (57 respondents). Results: The acne medication history revealed that commercial brands of beauty products were used by 57.9% of respondents, topical benzoyl peroxide by 22.8%, and systemic cotrimoxazole by 19.3%. Only nine females used an oral contraceptive as acne treatment prior to isotretinoin. The average daily dose of isotretinoin was 44.2 (SD=16.9) mg. Half of the respondents received a suboptimal cumulative dosage of isotretinoin. The average prescribed duration of isotretinoin therapy was 6.2 months. Adequate counselling was received by only 57.9% of patients. A third of the patients who were able to fall pregnant received recommendations for contraception. Pregnancy tests were conducted in only two females. Just over 40% of patients reported a complete clearance of acne lesions. Conclusions: Many prescribers did not follow the recommendations for isotretinoin prescription. The counselling of patients regarding isotretinoin therapy was substandard, especially with respect to pregnancy prevention

Tailoring IT Education for Effective IT Professionals in a Third World Setting

Small group learning combined with innovative teaching methods were introduced at tertiary level to teach computer-related subjects. Teams were constituted according to Belbin’s theory of effective team building. A study conducted over two years showed that certain qualities needed in the IT field were lacking in these students