Nefer, Sinuhe and clinical research assessing post COVID-19 condition

COVID-19; Clinical researchCOVID-19; Recerca clínicaCOVID-19; Investigación clínicaClinical research studies reporting on post COVID-19 condition should follow some basic recommendations

Flaxseed Ingestion Alters Ratio of Enterolactone Enantiomers in Human Serum

Enterolactone (EL) is an enterolignan found in human subjects. In this pilot study, the enantiomeric ratios of serum EL were determined in serum from healthy adults during consumption of habitual diet, and after an 8-day supplementation with flaxseed (25 g/day). (−)EL dominated in all serum samples collected during habitual diet consumption. However, the ratio of (−)EL and (+)EL enantiomers differed markedly between individuals. Flaxseed ingestion increased significantly the proportion of (+)EL in all subjects. Moreover, a small but significant increase in serum (−)EL concentration was measured. After flaxseed ingestion, (−)EL concentrations correlated with those of (+)EL suggesting that the stereochemistry of the parent plant lignan in flaxseed is not a major determinant of EL formation in human subjects. Comparison of EL concentrations obtained with the validated chromatographic methods (HPLC-MS/MS, HPLC-CEAD, and GC-MS) and the time-resolved fluoroimmunoassay (TR-FIA) revealed that the immunoassay method underestimates human serum EL concentrations after the flaxseed ingestion

Parental and self-reported dietary and physical activity habits in pre-school children and their socio-economic determinants.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the agreement between self-reported and parent-reported dietary and physical activity habits in children; and to evaluate the socio-economic determinants of healthier habits (Mediterranean diet and physical activity) among children. DESIGN: Cross-sectional analysis of children recruited to a cluster-randomized controlled trial (Program SI!). Information about children's and parents' dietary and physical activity habits was obtained through validated questionnaires (Program SI! questionnaires, Kidmed, Krece Plus and Predimed scores). SETTING: Twenty-four schools in Madrid, Spain. SUBJECTS: Children (n 2062) aged 3-5 years and their parents (n 1949). RESULTS: There was positive agreement between parental- and self-reporting for three of the six children's habits examined. Parents' dietary and physical activity patterns were associated with those of their children. The main determinants of higher scores in children were higher parental age, the mother's scores, Spanish origin and higher awareness of human health (P<0·005). Children from parents with a low educational level had lower odds for scoring positively on items such as using olive oil (OR=0·23; 95 % CI 0·13, 0·41) and not skipping breakfast (OR=0·36; 95 % CI 0·23, 0·55), but higher odds for meeting the recommendations for consuming pulses (OR=1·71; 95 % CI 1·14, 2·55). Other habits being influenced by parental socio-economic status included the consumption of vegetables, fish, nuts, avoidance of fast food, and consumption of bakery products for breakfast. CONCLUSIONS: Children's habits may be influenced by their parents' health awareness and other socio-economic characteristics. These findings suggest that intervention strategies, even in very young children, should also target parents in order to achieve maximum success

Factores asociados al cumplimiento de las recomendaciones sobre actividad física en población trabajadora de entre 40 y 55 años de edad

Fundamentos: La inactividad física continúa siendo un problema de salud pública a nivel mundial. El objetivo del presente estudio fue determinar la adherencia a las recomendaciones de actividad física (AF) establecidas por la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) de una muestra de trabajadores españoles, así como analizar su asociación con diferentes factores de riesgo cardiovascular (FRCV), indicadores sociodemográficos y de estilo de vida. Métodos: Estudio tranversal con 2.651 participantes en la cohorte del Aragon Workers' Health Study (AWHS) (2.428 varones y 133 mujeres), con edades comprendidas entre los 40-55 años. Se dividió a la población en dos grupos en función de si habían cumplido o no durante el último año las recomendaciones sobre AF establecidas por la OMS, teniendo en cuenta las actividades relacionadas con la ocupación, ocio y recreación y desplazamientos. Se registraron variables sociodemográficas, antropométricas, clínicas, farmacológicas y de estilo de vida entre los años 2011-2014. Se calcularon la mediana y el intervalo intercuartílico para variables cuantitativas y la distribución de frecuencias para las categóricas. Se estimó un modelo de regresión logística binaria crudo y ajustado para analizar la probabilidad de cumplir las recomendaciones de AF en función del número de FRCV (hipertensión, dislipemia, diabetes, obesidad y tabaquismo). Resultados: El 47,0% de participantes cumplían las recomendaciones. El cumplimiento fue del 39,7% en hipertensos, del 38,7% en dislipémicos y 32,7% en diabéticos. El 51,3% reportó no realizar AF o realizar una AF ligera, el 20,2% moderada y el 28,5% vigorosa o muy vigorosa. Los resultados mostraron cómo a medida que aumentaba el número de FRCV disminuía la probabilidad de adherirse a las recomendaciones: 1 FRCV (OR: 0,62; 95%CI: 0,49-0,78), 2 FRCV (OR: 0,49; 95%CI: 0,38-0,62), 3 FRCV (OR: 0,34; 95%CI: 0,25-0,46), 4 FRCV (OR: 0,19; 95%CI: 0,11-0,32). Conclusiones: El incumplimiento de las recomendaciones de AF en nuestra población es frecuente sobre todo en personas con mayor riesgo cardiovascular

The Program SI! intervention for enhancing a healthy lifestyle in preschoolers: first results from a cluster randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: Unhealthy lifestyles contribute to the development of cardiovascular risk factors, whose incidence is increasing among children and adolescents. The Program SI! is a long-term, multi-target behavioral intervention to promote healthy lifestyle habits in children through the school environment. The objective of the study is to evaluate the efficacy of this intervention in its first phase, preschoolers. METHODS: Cluster-randomized controlled trial in public schools in the city of Madrid, Spain. A total 24 schools, including 2062 children (3-5 years), 1949 families, and 125 teachers participated in the study. Schools were assigned to their usual school curriculum or to engage in an additional multi-component intervention (Program SI!). The primary outcome of this trial is 1-school year changes from baseline in scores for children's knowledge, attitudes and habits (KAH). Secondary outcomes are 1-school year changes from baseline in scores for knowledge, attitudes, and habits among parents, teachers, and the school environment. RESULTS: After 1-school year, our results indicate that the Program SI! intervention increases children's KAH scores, both overall (3.45, 95% CI, 1.84-5.05) and component-specific (Diet: 0.93, 95% CI, 0.12-1.75; Physical activity: 1.93, 95% CI, 1.17-2.69; Human body: 0.65, 95% CI, 0.07-1.24) score. CONCLUSIONS: The Program SI! is demonstrated as an effective and feasible strategy for increasing knowledge and improving lifestyle attitudes and habits among very young children. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT01579708, Evaluation of the Program SI! for Preschool Education: A School-Based Randomized Controlled Trial (Preschool-SI!)

Gender equality in STEM programs: a proposal to analyse the situation of a university about the gender gap

[EN]According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2020, most of the countries have achieved gender parity in educational attainment. Furthermore, Latin America and Europe have more women than men enrolled in tertiary education. The problem arises when those numbers are analysed by degree studies. There is a gender gap in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), with a low number of women enrolled in those programs and even lower numbers of graduates. The universities have a key role to steer new conceptions and understanding of the females in STEM . The higher education institutions have to define measures and policies to reduce the gender gap in the careers of the future. This work aims to provide a proposal to analyse the gender equality gap in STEM as a first step to define gender equality action plans focused on processes of attraction, access and retention and guidance in STEM programs. The proposal was applied in ten Latin American universities from Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Mexico, and five European universities from Finland, Ireland, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom

Un enfoque de informática de gestión para los estudios de Ingeniería Informática en el marco de Bolonia

La convergencia universitaria hacia un Espacio Europeo de Educación Superior supone cambios importantes en el tejido universitario en todos los países firmantes de la declaración de Bolonia. Las titulaciones de Ingeniería Informática en España figuran entre las que, presumiblemente, primero van sufrir las transformaciones necesarias. Por ello se están desarrollando diferentes estudios y propuestas dentro de un marco que, a fecha de hoy (abril de 2004), resulta todavía muy difuso. En este artículo se va a presentar una de estas propuestas, la cual se ha llevado a cabo entre la Universidad de Salamanca (España) y la Escuela Superior de Tecnología y Gestión de Bragança (Portugal) para definir un currículo de informática orientado hacia la informática de gestión y que cumpliese las directrices del marco de Bolonia.Este trabajo ha sido parcialmente financiado por la Unión Europea en la convocatoria de proyectos INTERREG III A

Kinetics of the appearance of cereal alkylresorcinols in pig plasma

Alkylresorcinols (AR) are phenolic lipids found in high amounts in wholegrain wheat and rye. They may be important as bioactive components and/or biomarkers of wholegrain wheat and rye intake. AR absorption was studied with pigs during a habitual diet and after a single meal of AR-rich diet. In study 1, four pigs were fed wholegrain rye (RD) and white wheat bread (WD) for 1 week in a cross-over design. Arterial and venous AR concentrations were determined over 540min after feeding on days 5 and 7. In study 2, four pigs were fed a synthetic, starch-based diet for 5d, and arterial and venous AR concentrations were determined over 960min after feeding a single meal of RD. In study 1, plasma AR concentrations after consuming RD peaked at 120min, remained elevated between 120 and 420min, and were re-elevated on refeeding at 480min. In study 2, AR appeared in the plasma after 60min, peaked at 180-240min, and remained elevated after 960min. The apparent elimination half-life was 3·93h, and the maximum plasma concentration was 666 (sem 35) nmol/l. Arterial and venous plasma AR concentrations were similar, suggesting that AR are absorbed via the lymphatic system. AR concentrations in pig plasma increase rapidly after a meal containing AR, and persist in plasma for at least 5d, indicating that AR may be a useful biomarker of wholegrain wheat and rye intak