The association between food preferences, eating behavior, and body weight among female university students in the United Arab Emirates

Introduction: This cross-sectional study investigated the associations between lifestyle, eating habits, food preferences, consumption patterns, and obesity among female university students in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Methods: Approximately 4,728 participants, including both Emirati and Non-Emirati students (International Students). Data collection involved face-to-face interviews and anthropometric measurements, showing an interrelated relationship between food preferences and obesity among female university students. Results: While sociodemographic factors and lifestyle habits contribute to obesity, this study uniquely focuses on the role of food preferences and food consumption patterns in body weight status. The findings reveal a significant correlation between the intake of high-sugar beverages–such as milk, juices, soft drinks, and energy drinks–and an increased risk of overweight and obesity among both Emirati and Non-Emirati populations. Notably, milk consumption was particularly associated with obesity in non-Emirati populations (F = 88.1, p < 0.001) and with overweight status in Non-Emiratis (F = 7.73, p < 0.05). The consumption of juices and soft drinks was linked to obesity. Additionally, a significant preference for fruits and vegetables among overweight and obese students was observed, indicating a trend toward healthier food choices. However, there was also a clear preference for high-calorie, low-nutrient foods such as processed meats, sweets, and salty snacks. Fast food items like burgers, fried chicken, fries, pizza, shawarma, chips, and noodles were significantly correlated with increased body weight status, especially shawarma, which showed a notably high correlation with both obesity and overweight statuses (F-values of 38.3 and 91.11, respectively). Conclusion: The study indicated that food choices shape weight-related outcomes is important for designing effective strategies to promote healthier dietary patterns

The satisfactory growth and development at 2 years of age of the INTERGROWTH-21st Fetal Growth Standards cohort support its appropriateness for constructing international standards.

Background: The World Health Organization recommends that human growth should be monitored with the use of international standards. However, in obstetric practice, we continue to monitor fetal growth using numerous local charts or equations that are based on different populations for each body structure. Consistent with World Health Organization recommendations, the INTERGROWTH-21st Project has produced the first set of international standards to date pregnancies; to monitor fetal growth, estimated fetal weight, Doppler measures, and brain structures; to measure uterine growth, maternal nutrition, newborn infant size, and body composition; and to assess the postnatal growth of preterm babies. All these standards are based on the same healthy pregnancy cohort. Recognizing the importance of demonstrating that, postnatally, this cohort still adhered to the World Health Organization prescriptive approach, we followed their growth and development to the key milestone of 2 years of age. Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine whether the babies in the INTERGROWTH-21st Project maintained optimal growth and development in childhood. Study Design: In the Infant Follow-up Study of the INTERGROWTH-21st Project, we evaluated postnatal growth, nutrition, morbidity, and motor development up to 2 years of age in the children who contributed data to the construction of the international fetal growth, newborn infant size and body composition at birth, and preterm postnatal growth standards. Clinical care, feeding practices, anthropometric measures, and assessment of morbidity were standardized across study sites and documented at 1 and 2 years of age. Weight, length, and head circumference age- and sex-specific z-scores and percentiles and motor development milestones were estimated with the use of the World Health Organization Child Growth Standards and World Health Organization milestone distributions, respectively. For the preterm infants, corrected age was used. Variance components analysis was used to estimate the percentage variability among individuals within a study site compared with that among study sites. Results: There were 3711 eligible singleton live births; 3042 children (82%) were evaluated at 2 years of age. There were no substantive differences between the included group and the lost-to-follow up group. Infant mortality rate was 3 per 1000; neonatal mortality rate was 1.6 per 1000. At the 2-year visit, the children included in the INTERGROWTH-21st Fetal Growth Standards were at the 49th percentile for length, 50th percentile for head circumference, and 58th percentile for weight of the World Health Organization Child Growth Standards. Similar results were seen for the preterm subgroup that was included in the INTERGROWTH-21st Preterm Postnatal Growth Standards. The cohort overlapped between the 3rd and 97th percentiles of the World Health Organization motor development milestones. We estimated that the variance among study sites explains only 5.5% of the total variability in the length of the children between birth and 2 years of age, although the variance among individuals within a study site explains 42.9% (ie, 8 times the amount explained by the variation among sites). An increase of 8.9 cm in adult height over mean parental height is estimated to occur in the cohort from low-middle income countries, provided that children continue to have adequate health, environmental, and nutritional conditions. Conclusion: The cohort enrolled in the INTERGROWTH-21st standards remained healthy with adequate growth and motor development up to 2 years of age, which supports its appropriateness for the construction of international fetal and preterm postnatal growth standards

The Effect of Therapeutic Doses of Culinary Spices in Metabolic Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) place a significant burden on global health and the healthcare systems which support it. Metabolic syndrome is a major risk factor for a large number of NCDs; however, treatments remain limited. Previous research has shown the protective benefits of edible dietary spices on key components of metabolic syndrome. Therefore we performed a 12-week double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, clinical trial to evaluate the effect of ginger (Zingiber officinale), cinnamon (Cinnamomum), and black seed (Nigella sativa) consumption on blood glucose, lipid profiles, and body composition in 120 participants with, or at risk of, metabolic syndrome. Each participant consumed 3 g/day of powder (spice or placebo). Data related to different parameters were collected from participants at the baseline, midpoint, and endpoint of the intervention. Over the 12-week interventions, there was an improvement in a number of biochemical indices of metabolic syndrome, including fasting blood glucose, HbA1c, LCL, and total cholesterol associated with supplementation with the spices when compared to a placebo. This study provides evidence to support the adjunct use of supplementation for those at risk of metabolic syndrome and its sequelae

INTERGROWTH-21st very preterm size at birth reference charts

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Lifestyle Interventions for Prevention and Management of Diet-Linked Non-Communicable Diseases among Adults in Arab Countries

The increased incidences of diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular diseases among adults are becoming the chief public health concern in most Arab countries. Economic expansion has contributed to a nutrition shift from a traditional seasonal diet to Westernized eating habits coupled with a sedentary lifestyle. Despite the rising concern for NCD mortality, public health policies are inadequately addressed. This narrative review aims to discuss the effectiveness of nutritional interventions focusing on diet and physical activity in the management of NCDs among Arab adults. A comprehensive literature search was performed using different database platforms such as Cochrane reviews, Scopus, and PubMed for articles published between 1 December 2012 and 31 December 2021. Fifteen recent research articles addressing NCDs, mainly diabetes and obesity, from different Arab countries were included in this review. Structured lifestyle interventions involving behavioral therapy approaches and personalized goals for diet and physical activity were found to improve specific health outcomes in most studies. Significant improvements in health outcomes were reported for longer-duration interventions with follow-ups. A combination of both online and face-to-face sessions was found to be effective. It is important to identify barriers to physical activity for a culturally acceptable lifestyle intervention and conduct further studies to evaluate interventions for the long-term maintenance of health outcomes

Effect of High Fiber Cereal Intake on Satiety and Gastrointestinal Symptoms during Ramadan.

(1) Background: Fasting during Ramadan involves large changes in daily eating patterns which strongly impacts the daily biorhythm and challenges the regular function of the digestive tract. The aim of this study was to assess satiety, bowel habits, body composition, blood glycaemia, and blood lipidemia after the consumption of high fiber cereal at dawn (Sohor) during the month of Ramadan; (2) Methods: A two-arm randomized, controlled, single-blinded, parallel-design study was conducted in Ramadan month. Participants were randomized to consume either 90 g of high fiber cereal (11 g fiber/90 g) at Sohor for 20 consecutive days (intervention group, n = 45) or to maintain their habitual diet intake (control group; n = 36); (3) Results: The intervention group reported higher satiety rating scores, improved bowel habits and reduced bloating frequency after the 20-day intervention. Significantly higher intake of carbohydrates and dietary fiber were observed in the intervention group. Total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol were significantly lower among the intervention group compared to the control group (p-value = 0.043, and p-value = 0.033, respectively) at the end of the intervention. No significant differences in body weight, body fat percentage, waist circumference, body mass index, blood glucose, high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and triglycerides were observed between the two groups; (4) Conclusions: Consuming high fiber cereal had a positive effect on health and well-being during the month of Ramadan with better satiety, improved bowel functions, and improved blood lipids

Neurodevelopmental milestones and associated behaviours are similar among healthy children across diverse geographical locations

It is unclear whether early child development is, like skeletal growth, similar across diverse regions with adequate health and nutrition. We prospectively assessed 1307 healthy, well-nourished 2-year-old children of educated mothers, enrolled in early pregnancy from urban areas without major socioeconomic or environmental constraints, in Brazil, India, Italy, Kenya and UK. We used a specially developed psychometric tool, WHO motor milestones and visual tests. Similarities across sites were measured using variance components analysis and standardised site differences (SSD). In 14 of the 16 domains, the percentage of total variance explained by between-site differences ranged from 1.3% (cognitive score) to 9.2% (behaviour score). Of the 80 SSD comparisons, only six were \u3e±0.50 units of the pooled SD for the corresponding item. The sequence and timing of attainment of neurodevelopmental milestones and associated behaviours in early childhood are, therefore, likely innate and universal, as long as nutritional and health needs are met

Healthy food and determinants of food choice on online food delivery applications.

Online food delivery applications (OFD apps) provide consumers with a wide range of options to choose from. The present study aimed to assess the usage of OFD apps and investigate the factors that affect food choices with a special emphasis on healthy food choices and hygiene. A cross-sectional study among food delivery application users in Jordan was conducted using an online questionnaire between March and May 2022. A total of 675 eligible subjects participated in the study. Consumers' demographic characteristics, data on consumers' use of OFD apps, consumers' perceptions of healthy food availability in OFD apps, and consumers' attitudes toward food safety and delivery hygiene were collected and analyzed. About 64% of the studied sample used OFD apps weekly. Fast food was the most popular option for ordering (87.1%) and lunchtime was the most preferred time to order food (67.3%) for most of the respondents. Respondents' perceptions of a "healthy meal" was associated with the presence of a variety of vegetables in the meal. Food price, food appearance, time of delivery, macronutrient content information, the availability of healthy options, and considering vegetables as part of a healthy meal were determinants of consumer food choice (p<0.05). The findings suggest that the online food environment in Jordan was perceived to be unhealthy. Nevertheless, the convenient nature and the popularity of OFD apps hold great potential to promote healthy eating among consumers

Effect of dietary fiber supplementation on metabolic endotoxemia: a protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials

Introduction: Metabolic endotoxemia (ME) is the main cause of sub-clinical chronic inflammation, which subsequently triggers the onset of several chronic diseases. However, recent reports have indicated that dietary fiber (DF) contributes significantly to ameliorating ME and inflammation. This protocol aims to provide an outline of all procedures in synthesizing the available data on the effect of DF against ME. Methods: Following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines for preparing protocols, this protocol was registered in the International Prospective Registry of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) with registration number (CRD42023417833). In this review, we specifically focused on the inclusion of clinical trials that met the following criteria: they were published or available as preprints, employed random, quasi-random, or cross-over designs, and were exclusively documented in the English language. Clinical medical subject headings (MeSH) as search terms were used on prominent databases such as MEDLINE, COCHRANE library, PubMed, World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platforms, and US National Institutes of Health Ongoing Trials Register Clinicaltrials.gov. Results and discussion: This protocol will guide the exploration of articles that report changes in ME biomarkers in subjects supplemented with DF. The findings of this protocol will ensure a comprehensive evaluation of available evidence, provide a quantitative summary, identify patterns and trends, enhance statistical power, and address heterogeneity, which collectively will clarify the optimal types, doses, and duration of DF interventions for managing ME and low-grade inflammation. Ethics and dissemination: The quantitative data of clinical trials will be collected, and a meta-analysis will be performed using RevMan V.5.3 software. Therefore, no ethical approval is required

Nutrition Situation Analysis in the UAE: A Review Study

This review study aimed to assess the nutrition situation in the UAE using published data from 2010 to 2022. It highlights the gaps and challenges that prevail in addressing the nutrition-related problems in the UAE and the opportunities that have been overlooked. The available literature indicates that the UAE is burdened with more than one form of nutrition-related problems, including being underweight, being overweight, obesity, micronutrient deficiencies, and nutrition-related chronic diseases. It is clear that data on micronutrient deficiencies, protein-energy malnutrition, obesity, diabetes, and other nutrition-related diseases among the UAE population are extremely scarce. The UAE has a high prevalence of obesity and diabetes; however, limited studies have been conducted to document this nutritional phenomenon. Few examples of published data are available assessing the burden of stunting, wasting, and being underweight among children under five years of age. Despite the importance of protein-energy malnutrition, no recent publications analyze its prevalence within the UAE population. Therefore, future studies must be conducted, focusing on malnutrition. Based on the literature, and bearing in mind the magnitude of the health issues due to the UAE population\u27s nutrition negligence, there is an urgent need to assess the population\u27s nutrient behaviors, to aid policy decision-makers in developing and implementing effective health policies and strategies