O folato ou vitamina B9 é essencial ao organismo sendo a alimentação a maior fonte deste nutriente. A deficiência nesta vitamina pode provocar alterações no crescimento e desenvolvimento de doenças como a anemia. A quinoa é um pseudocereal isento de glúten conhecido essencialmente pelo seu elevado valor nutritivo. Neste trabalho avaliou-se o efeito do processamento no teor em folatos naturais das sementes de quinoa. As amostras de quinoa recolhidas foram sujeitas a cozedura tradicional, cozedura a vapor e maltagem. A determinação simultânea de formas naturais de folatos, ácido fólico, 5-metiltetrahidrofolato, tetrahidrofolato, 5-formiltetrahidrofolato e 10-formiltetrahidrofolato foi realizada por cromatografia de ultra eficiência com deteção por espectrometria de massa com triplo quadrupolo (UPLCMS/ MS). A forma predominante encontrada em todas as amostras foi o 5- metiltetrahidrofolato. O teor de folatos totais mais elevado foi obtido nas amostras cruas (294 μg/100 g edível). A qui...

Abstract: In Ethiopia, adherence to iron-folic acid supplementation is disappointingly low were only 5% took more than 90 tablets during their pregnancy; however, only limited data are available on the determinant factors of non-adherence. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify determinants of adherence to iron-folic acid supplementation among postnatal mothers in three referral hospitals of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.Purpose:Methods: An institutional based unmatched case-control study was conducted on 240 women who have been at postnatal care. Data were collected using interviewer administered questionnaire. Data were entered and analyzed using EpiData and SPSS version 20.0, respectively. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were employed to identify the determinants at p-value < 0.25 and < 0.05 respectively.Results: The major determinant factors of adherence to iron-folic acid supplementation were, mothers age group 29-33 [AOR=1.66, 95% CI: 2.010-0.0492], ANC...

Anaemia, defined as a reduced haemoglobin concentration, is associated with increased perinatal mortality, increased child morbidity and mortality, impaired mental development, impaired immune competence, increased susceptibility to lead poisoning, and decreased performance at work. Iron deficiency is the most prevalent nutritional disorder worldwide. It occurs when iron absorption cannot compensate for iron requirements and losses. Requirements are especially high in pregnant women, infants, young children and ABSTRACT Background: Anaemia is a global public health problem affecting developing and developed countries with major consequences for human health and social and economic development. Methods: This paper attempted to understand the determinants of iron adherence among women of reproductive age during their last pregnancy in India and states/union territories, the iron deficiency being associated with anaemia, using multiple logistic regression analyses of data from the fourth (2015-16) and fifth (2019-21) rounds of the India National Family Health Survey. The individual unit-level data were analysed using Stata 17 software. Results: After adjusting for standard covariates, it was found that those who reported receiving counselling by a frontline health worker and/or antenatal care visits were much more likely to consume at least 90 days of ironcontaining supplements. Results shows that for NFHS-4 women who had received counselling from a frontline health and nutrition care worker were 1.489 times (95% CI: 1.429-1.553) to adhere to at least 90 days of iron tablets or syrup after adjusting for potential confounders and for NFHS-5 women who had received counselling from a frontline worker were 1.162 times (95% CI :1.124-1.200) more likely to adhere to IFA supplements or syrup for at least 90 days. Conclusions: Based on insights from these analyses, it appears that counselling seems to be effective in making women aware of the benefits of IFA, thus increasing the likelihood of intake of iron-containing supplements. Counselling seems to be an important predictor of adherence to iron intake in India.

People in India have a high prevalence of low vitamin B12 status and high plasma total homocysteine (tHcy) concentrations. In a proof of principle trial, we studied the effect of oral vitamin B12 (500 microg) and/or 100 g cooked green leafy vegetables (GLV) every alternate day in a 2x2 factorial design over a 6-week period. Forty-two non-pregnant vegetarian women (age 20-50 years) were randomly allocated to four study groups. Clinical measurements were made at the beginning and at the end of the study, and blood samples were collected before, and 2 and 6 weeks after commencement of intervention. Forty women completed the trial. Twenty-six women had low vitamin B12 status (<150 pmol/L) and 24 had hyperhomocysteinemia (>15 micromol/L). GLV supplementation did not alter plasma folate or tHcy. Vitamin B12 supplementation increased plasma vitamin B12 concentration (125 to 215 pmol/L, p <0.05) and reduced tHcy concentration (18.0 to 13.0 micromol/L, p <0.05) within first 2 wee...

Bone mass is influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Recent studies have highlighted associations between maternal nutritional status during pregnancy and bone mass in the offspring. We hypothesized that maternal calcium intakes and circulating micronutrients during pregnancy are related to bone mass in Indian children. Design/Setting/Participants/Main Outcome Measures: Nutritional status was measured at 18 and 28 wk gestation in 797 pregnant rural Indian women. Measurements included anthropometry, dietary intakes (24-h recall and food frequency questionnaire), physical workload (questionnaire), and circulating micronutrients (red cell folate and plasma ferritin, vitamin B12, and vitamin C). Six years postnatally, total body and total spine bone mineral content and bone mineral density (BMD) were measured using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) in the children (n ϭ 698 of 762 live births) and both parents. Results: Both parents' DXA measurements were positively correlated with the equivalent measurements in the children (P Ͻ 0.001 for all). The strength of these correlations was similar for fathers and mothers. Children of mothers who had a higher frequency of intake of calcium-rich foods during pregnancy (milk, milk products, pulses, nonvegetarian foods, green leafy vegetables, fruit) had higher total and spine bone mineral content and BMD, and children of mothers with higher folate status at 28 wk gestation had higher total and spine BMD, independent of parental size and DXA measurements. Conclusions: Modifiable maternal nutritional factors may influence bone health in the offspring. Fathers play a role in determining their child's bone mass, possibly through genetic mechanisms or through shared environment. (

Aims/hypothesis Raised maternal plasma total homocysteine (tHcy) concentrations predict small size at birth, which is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus. We studied the association between maternal vitamin B 12 , folate and tHcy status during pregnancy, and offspring adiposity and insulin resistance at 6 years. Methods In the Pune Maternal Nutrition Study we studied 700 consecutive eligible pregnant women in six villages. We measured maternal nutritional intake and circulating concentrations of folate, vitamin B 12 , tHcy and methylma-lonic acid (MMA) at 18 and 28 weeks of gestation. These were correlated with offspring anthropometry, body composition (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry scan) and insulin resistance (homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance [HOMA-R]) at 6 years. Results Two-thirds of mothers had low vitamin B 12 (<150 pmol/l), 90% had high MMA (>0.26 μmol/l) and 30% had raised tHcy concentrations (>10 μmol/l); only one had a low erythrocyte folate concentration. Although short and thin (BMI), the 6-year-old children were relatively adipose compared with the UK standards (skinfold thicknesses). Higher maternal erythrocyte folate concentrations at 28 weeks predicted higher offspring adiposity and higher HOMA-R (both p <0.01). Low maternal vitamin B 12 (18 weeks; p=0.03) predicted higher HOMA-R in the

The ability of egg white (EW) nanoparticles to bind folic acid (FA) and protect it through the gastrointestinal tract and the resulting properties of the mixtures as functional ingredient was investigated. Two kinds of EW nanoparticles (USN and TSN) were mixed with FA to generate nanocarriers (USF and TSF). The particle size distribution of USN remained unaltered after the binding of FA, while a little increase in particle size was observed for TSN. Zeta (ζ) potential and fluorescence intensity did not show any significant change after FA addition for both nanoparticles. The percentage of bound folic acid (% BFA) was 78.0 ± 9.1 and 79.7 ± 9.0, for USF and TSF, respectively. A slight formation of aggregates in the samples was observed after freeze-drying and redispersion of the nanocarriers, which was also confirmed by confocal laser scanning microscopy. Nanocarriers particle size did not change after adjusting the pH from 3 to 4, but strongly increased after adjusting it to 5, 6 or 7. The % BFA at pH 4 was similar to that at pH 3, but greatly decreased at pH 7. The bioavailability of FA for Lactobacillus rhamnosus was enhanced when the vitamin was incorporated in the form of digested nanocomplexes USF or TSF. The interaction of EW nanoparticles with FA has proven to be beneficial for the transport and release of FA after in vitro digestion.

Background & aims: The debated vascular risk potential of total homocysteine (tHcy), due to failed clinical trials designed on B vitamin supplementation, raises many possible explanations like the higher risk potential of the deleterious, free form of homocysteine (fHcy) or, the unchecked confounding effects of B-vitamins in tHcy-based association studies. Additionally, the cardiovascular risk probability of altered status of the homocysteine precursor, methionine (tMet) could shed light on the causality of association between tHcy and cardiovascular diseases. Hence, we aimed to evaluate the risk associations of elevated plasma levels of tHcy, fHcy and low levels of tMet with premature, ischemic stroke. Methods: We recruited 171 young, ischemic stroke patients (aged 45 years) and 249 age-and gendermatched healthy controls. Plasma levels of fHcy, tHcy, tMet and vitamin B6 were estimated using HPLC coupled with coulometric electrochemical detection. Plasma levels of vitamin B12 and folate were estimated by radioimmunoassay. Results: Elevated fHcy (>2.9 mmol/L) was independently and strongly associated with the risk of premature, ischemic stroke (OR ¼ 9.62, 95% CI ¼ 3.51e26.40). On the contrary, association between premature ischemic stroke and elevated tHcy (>15.0 mmol/L) was found to attenuate when adjusted for vitamin B6 values (OR ¼ 0.24, 95%, CI ¼ 0.03e1.69). Interestingly, compromised B6-status (<59.2 nmol/l) was found to confer high risk of premature ischemic stroke (OR ¼ 170.80, 95% CI ¼ 58.22e501.06). We could not establish any significant correlation between fHcy and B-vitamin levels (P > 0.05). Low tMet (<13.86 mmol/L) was also not significantly associated with premature, ischemic stroke (OR ¼ 2.53, 95% CI ¼ 0.613e10.38). Conclusion: Our results indicate significant but not-correlated, independent associations of fHcy and vitamin B6 with risk of premature, ischemic stroke. However, the causality of these associations need prospective and large scale validations. Further, our findings highlight the crucial confounding effects of B-vitamins on risk association between tHcy and premature ischemic stroke.

This phase II study determined response rate of patients with locally advanced or metastatic head and neck cancer treated with pemetrexed disodium, a new multitargeted antifolate that inhibits thymidylate synthase, dihydrofolate reductase and glycinamide ribonucleotide formyl transferase. 35 patients with local or metastatic relapse of squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (31 male, 4 female; median age 53 years) were treated with pemetrexed 500 mg m 2 administered as a 10-minute infusion on day 1 of a 21-day cycle. Patients received 1 to 8 cycles of therapy. 9 patients (26.5%) had an objective response, with a median response duration of 5.6 months (range 2.9-20 months). 15 (44.1%) had stable disease, and 8 (23.5%) had progressive disease. 2 patients were not assessable for response. Median overall survival was 6.4 months (range 0.7-28.1 months; 95% CI: 3.9-7.7 months). 24 patients (68.6%) experienced grade 3/4 neutropenia, with febrile neutropenia in 4 (11.4%). Grade 3/4 anaemia and thrombocytopenia occurred in 11 (34.3%) and 6 (17.1%) patients, respectively. The most frequent non-haematological toxicity was grade 3/4 mucositis (17.1%; 6 patients). In conclusion, pemetrexed is active in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck. Although substantial haematological toxicities were experienced by patients, subsequent studies have shown that these toxicities can be proactively managed by folic acid and vitamin B 12 supplementation.

Background. Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is rising in incidence but remains difficult to treat. This clinical trial evaluated the effects of pemetrexed (multitargeted antifolate, ALIMTA 1 ) for the treatment of metastatic RCC. Patients and methods. Patients were required to have histological diagnosis of metastatic RCC with measurable disease and no prior chemotherapy. In addition, patients were required to have a World Health Organization (WHO) performance status of 0±2 and adequate bone marrow reserve. Patients received pemetrexed at a dose of 600 mg/m 2 as a 10 min infusion every 3 weeks. Patients did not receive folic acid or vitamin B 12 supplementation. Results. Thirty-nine patients were enrolled and thirty two were evaluable for response. Three patients had a partial response for a response rate of 9% (95% CI 2±25%). The median time to progressive disease was 10.5 months. Of the nonresponders, twenty two had stable disease (median duration was 5.8 months; range 1.5±27.7) and seven had progressive disease (median time to progression was 5.4 months). Median time to progression for all qualified patients was 5.7 months. Common toxicities experienced were diarrhea and infection. Fatigue, stomatitis, and rash were also reported. The most common hematologic toxicity was grade 3/4 lymphopenia in 76% of patients. Leukopenia, granulocytopenia, and thrombocytopenia were also frequently reported. Conclusion. Single-agent pemetrexed has moderate activity in the treatment of metastatic RCC and should be investigated in combination with other potential active agents, as first-line treatment.

ne of the areas of nanotechnology that has captured great interest by scientific community worldwide is the development of nanoengineered multifunctional systems, which may be potentially used in a clinical strategy that simultaneously combine a (multi)diagnostic test and single or combined therapies based on the test results, the so-called nanotheranostic devices. 1À7 Nanoengineering of materials for this purpose involves the design, fabrication, and testing of nanosystems that must combine several features such as biocompatibility, stealthness, long-circulating blood times, drug transport and its triggerable release, imaging capabilities, and/or targetability, among others. 8À12 Improvement and suitable conjunction of all these characteristics would allow the early diagnosis of cancer and other diseases, the significant reduction of the therapeutic drug doses and subsequent reduction of adverse side effects, or the simultaneous combination of several therapeutic treatments with a real-time monitorization of their effectiveness. Among all the different diagnostic imaging techniques, fluorescence imaging offers

We undertook studies focused on folate acquisition by Chlamydia trachomatis L2, Chlamydia psittaci 6BC, and C. psit- taci francis. Results from in situ studies, using wild-type host cells, confirmed that C. trachomatis L2 and C. psittaci 6BC are sensitive to sulfonamides whereas C. psittaci francis is resis- tant. In addition C. trachomatis L2 and C. psittaci francis were inhibited by methotrexate in situ whereas C. psittaci 6BC was not. In contrast to C. trachomatis, neither C. psittaci strain was affected by trimethoprim. Surprisingly our results indicate that all three strains are capable of efficient growth in folate-depleted host cells. When growing in folate-depleted cells C. psit- taci francis becomes sensitive to sulfonamide. The ability of all three strains to carry out de novo folate synthesis was demonstrated by following the incorporation of exogenous 13HJpABA into intracellular folates and by detecting dihydropteroate syn- thase activity in reticulate body crude extract. Dihydrofolate reductase activity was also detected in reticulate body extract. In aggregate the results indicate that C. trachomatis L2, C. psittaci francis, and C. psittaci 6BC can all synthesize folates de novo, however, strains differ in their ability to transport preformed folates directly from the host cell. (

A novel program for the superposition of flexible molecules, SLATE, is presented. It uses simulated annealing to minimise the difference between the distance matrices calculated from the hydrogen-bonding and aromaticring properties of two ligands. A method for generating a molecular stack using multiple pairwise matches is illustrated. These stacks are used by the program DOH to predict the relative positions of receptor atoms that could form hydrogen bonds to two or more ligands in the dataset. The methodology has been applied to ligands binding to dihydrofolate reductase, thermolysin, H 3 histamine receptors, α 2 adrenoceptors and 5-HT 1D receptors. When there are sufficient numbers and diversity of molecules in the dataset, the prediction of receptor-atom positions is applicable to compound design.

Iron deficiency is widespread throughout the developing world. We provide new evidence on the effect of iron deficiency on economic and social prosperity of older adults drawing on data from a random assignment treatment-control design intervention. The Work and Iron Status Evaluation is an on-going study following over 17,000 individuals in Central Java, Indonesia. Half the respondents receive a treatment of 120 mg of iron every week for a year; the controls receive a placebo. Compliance is monitored carefully. Results from the first six months of the intervention are presented for adults age 30 through 70 years. Males who were iron deficient prior to the intervention and who are assigned to the treatment are better off in terms of physical health, psycho-social health and economic success. These men are more likely to be working, sleep less, lose less work time to illness, are more energetic, more able to conduct physically arduous activities and their psycho-social health is better. There is evidence that economic productivity of these males also increased. Among iron-deficient males assigned to the treatment who were also selfemployed prior to the baseline, hourly earnings rose substantially and so they earned more on a monthly basis. Benefits for women are in the same direction but the effects are more muted. The results provide unambiguous evidence in support of the hypothesis that health has a causal effect on economic prosperity of males during middle and older ages.

The etiology of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is only partially understood, but a metabolic component appears likely. We investigated biomarkers of one-carbon metabolism and RCC onset and survival. The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) recruited 385747 participants with blood samples between 1992 and 2000, and this analysis included 556 RCC case-control pairs. A subsequent replication study included 144 case-control pairs nested within the Melbourne Collaborative Cohort Study (MCCS). Plasma concentrations of vitamin B2, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, methionine and homocysteine were measured in prediagnostic samples and evaluated with respect to RCC risk using conditional and unconditional logistic regression models, and to all-cause mortality in RCC cases using Cox regression models. All statistical tests were two-sided. EPIC participants with higher plasma concentrations of vitamin B6 had lower risk of RCC, the odds ratio comparing the 4(th) and 1(...

Background: Iron folic acid supplementation is one of the most global public health interventions to alleviate iron de ciency anemia during pregnancy. Both folic acid and iron de ciencies constitute the major micronutrient de ciencies in Ethiopian women.Non-adherence, on the other hand, is a factor in these communities' failure to reduce the problem. Objective: To identify determinants of non-adherence to iron-folic acid intake among pregnant women who attended antenatal care in Bishoftu town public health facilities, Ethiopia 2022. Methods: Facility-based unmatched case-control study was conducted from April 1 to May 30, 2022. A total of 105 cases and 211 controls of pregnant women participated in the studyby structured questionnaire and using systematic random sampling methods for control and consecutive sampling was used for the case. Characteristics of the study participants were analyzed using descriptive Statistics. Variable with P-value < 0.25 at the bivariable analysis was entered into the nal multivariable logistic regressions to control potential confounders. Model tness was also checked by Hosmer Lemeshow. An adjusted odds ratio with a 95% con dence interval and a p-value of ≤0.05 was used to declare the statistical signi cance of variables. Results: The study response rate was 314 (99.4%). The identi ed determinants were women aged 15-24 years and 25-34 years [AOR=5, 95% CI (3.04, 12.8), AOR=11.8, 95% CI (18, 20.6)], women who started rst ANC >16 weeks (AOR=2.41, 95% CI:1.107, 5.252), women who receive ANC visit two and three were [AOR=5.17, 95% CI (2.5, 13), AOR=2.95 95% CI (1.26, 6.8)], women with inadequate knowledge (AOR=3.5,95% CI:1.7,7.2), women who received 30 and below tablets (AOR=7.8, 95% CI:4, 18) were determinants of non-adherence to iron-folic acid supplementation Conclusions: Women's age, pregnancy weeks during rst ANC, frequency of ANC follow-up, knowledge of women on iron-folic acid supplementation, women who received 30 and below tabletswere signi cant predictors for non-adherence to folic acid supplementation.Thus, the town health o ce should work on non-adherence to folic acid supplementation by improving knowledge of women for all age groups of women during ANC visits with concerned stakeholders.

Background/Aim: High serum levels of homocysteine and cortisol are independent risk factors for several pathologies and their levels can be regulated by some vitamins. Since the relationship between serum concentrations of homocysteine, cortisol and ascorbate has not been assessed in healthy individuals to date, it was the topic of the present work. Methods: The study group was composed of 20 men and 40 women aged &gt;50 years. Blood samples were collected and serum concentrations of the analytes were quantified. Results: Serum homocysteine levels correlate positively with cortisol (r = 0.36, p &lt;0.01) and age (r = 0.49, p &lt; 0.001), and negatively with ascorbate (r = –0.30, p &lt; 0.05) and folate (r = –0.31, p &lt; 0.05). A negative correlation between serum levels of cortisol and ascorbate (r = –0.30, p &lt; 0.05) was also observed. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the best independent predictors of serum homocysteine concentration were cortisol (β = 0.319, p &...

TIlls thesis would not have been possible without the indispensable contributions and participation of the following people and institutions to whom I want to express my sincere gratitude: My supervisor, Dr. G. Wayne Towers, for assisting with the troubleshooting of the laboratory analyses, for helping with the quality control of the analyses, for his acumen, valuable advice and guidance on preparation of this thesis. My co-supervisor, Dr. Tiny Hoekstra, for setting up the genetics laboratory of the Nutrition Department at the North-West University (NWU), her involvement with the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) extractions of the samples and her contributions to the proj ect. My assistant supervisor, Prof. Christine S. Venter, for her involvement in the interpretation of the results and for her willingness to share her expertise in scientific writing with me. Prof. Marlien Pieters for her advice regarding Chapter 2 Section 2.3.6 of this thesis. The skillful assistance of Dr. Karin Conradie with trouble shooting relating to the genetic analyses. Prof. Alida MeIse-Boonstra and Dr. HanEe Moss who were involved in the planning phase of the project, in securing funding and in preparing the samples for homocysteine analysis. statistical sleight of Dr. Suria M. Ellis of the Statistical Consultation Service of the NWU is acknowledged. I am indebted to Dr. Pedro T. Pisa for the analysis of the biological markers of alcohol consumption. Pieter Griffioen for help with the optimisation of the method used for the determination of specific polymorphisms within the cystathione-~-synthase gene. TIlls study would not have been possible without the willing participation of the subjects, the work of the entire South African Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology study (PURE) research team, field workers and office staff in the

When a widely used substance or procedure generally regarded as beneficial is reported to have some apparent toxic effect, great concern arises. One must be careful not to accept too quickly the report of what may well be a chance or artefactual finding at the risk of imperiling existing valuable measures. But one cannot dismiss out of hand the possibility that reported apparent toxicity is in fact real, merely because on balance, use of the substance retains strong medical and public health value.

In 1992, the U.S. Public Health Service recommended that all women capable of becoming pregnant consume 400 µg of folic acid daily to prevent neural tube defects (NTDs). NTDs are major birth defects of the brain and spine that occur early in pregnancy as a result of improper closure of the embryonic neural tube, which can lead to death or varying degrees of disability. The two most common NTDs are anencephaly and spina bifida. Beginning in 1998, the United States mandated fortification of enriched cereal grain products with 140 µg of folic acid per 100 g. Immediately after mandatory fortification, the birth prevalence of NTD cases declined. Fortification was estimated to avert approximately 1,000 NTD-affected pregnancies annually. To provide updated estimates of the birth prevalence of NTDs in the period after introduction of mandatory folic acid fortification (i.e., the post-fortification period), data from 19 population-based birth defects surveillance programs in the United State...

Elevated plasma total homocysteine is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease and a sensitive marker of the inadequate vitamin B12 and folate insufficiency. Folate and vitamin B12 have a protective effect on cardiovascular disease. This population based study was conducted to evaluate the plasma total homocysteine, folate, and vitamin B12 in healthy Iranian individuals. This study was a part of the Cardiovascular Risk Factors Survey in the Population Lab Region of Tehran University has been designed and conducted based on the methodology of MONICA/WHO Project. A total of 1214 people aged 25-64 years, were recruited and assessed regarding demographic characteristics, homocysteine, folate, and vitamin B12 levels with interview, questionnaires, examination and blood sampling. Blood samples were gathered and analyzed according to standard methods. The variables were assessed in 1214 participants including 428 men (35.3%) and 786 women (64.7%). Age-adjusted prevalence of hy...

Background. Pregnant and breastfeeding women are at risk for folate deficiency. Folate supplementation has been shown to be associated with enhanced markers of folate status. However, dose-response analyses for adult women are still lacking.Objective. To assess the dose-response relationship between total folate intake (folic acidplusdietary folate) and markers of folate status (plasma/serum folate, red blood cell folate, and plasma homocysteine); to evaluate potential differences between women in childbearing age, pregnant and lactating women.Methods. Electronic literature searches were carried out on three databases until February 2010. The overall pooled regression coefficient (β) and SE(β) were calculated using meta-analysis on a double-log scale.Results. The majority of data was based on nonpregnant, nonlactating women in childbearingage. The pooled estimate of the relationship between folate intake and serum/plasma folate was 0.56 (95% CI = 0.40–0.72,P&lt;0.00001); that is, th...

Background: The objective was to develop an index based on the Dutch Guidelines for a healthy Diet of 2006 that reflects dietary quality and to apply it to the Dutch National Food Consumption Survey (DNFCS) to examine the associations with micronutrient intakes. Methods: A total of 749 men and women, aged 19-30 years, contributed two 24-hour recalls and additional questionnaires in the DNFCS of 2003. The Dutch Healthy Diet index (DHD-index) includes ten components representing the ten Dutch Guidelines for a Healthy Diet. Per component the score ranges between zero and ten, resulting in a total score between zero (no adherence) and 100 (complete adherence). The mean ± SD of the DHD-index was 60.4 ± 11.5 for women and 57.8 ± 10.8 for men (P for difference = 0.002). Each component score increased across the sex-specific quintiles of the DHD-index. An inverse association was observed between the sex-specific quintiles of the DHD-index and total energy intake. Calcium, riboflavin, and vitamin E intake decreased with increasing DHD-index, an inverse association which disappeared after energy adjustment. Vitamin C showed a positive association across quintiles, also when adjusted for energy. For folate, iron, magnesium, potassium, thiamin, and vitamin B6 a positive association emerged after adjustment for energy. Conclusions: The DHD-index is capable of ranking participants according to their adherence to the Dutch Guidelines for a Healthy Diet by reflecting variation in nine out of ten components that constitute the index when based on two 24-hour recalls. Furthermore, the index showed to be a good measure of nutrient density of diets.

Introduction Anaemia is a major public health problem affecting women of reproductive age globally. This study was conducted to assess the prevalence and determinants of anaemia among postpartum women in Bolgatanga Municipality, Ghana. Methods The study employed an analytical cross-sectional study design to recruit 405 women who delivered in the last 6 weeks from 9 health facilities in the Municipality. Data were collected on socio-demographic characteristics, obstetric characteristics, dietary diversity, knowledge on iron-folic acid (IFA), iron and anaemia, and haemoglobin level of the women. Postpartum anaemia (PPA) was defined as hemoglobin &lt; 12 g/dl. Chi-square and logistic regression analysis were used to identify the determinants of PPA. Results The mean age of the participants was 27.4 ± 5.3 years and 46.70% of them had PPA. The risk factors of PPA were not meeting dietary diversity [Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) = 2.96; 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.67–5.25], low knowledge ...

Introduction and Objective: To prevent nutrient deficiencies and chronic diseases, women of reproductive age (WRA)(15–49 years), need to eat a diversified and adequate diet for the provision of micronutrients and phytochemicals. The purpose of the study was to conduct a seven-day assessment of the minimum dietary diversity (MDD) and anthropometric status of WRA in Ikwuano Local Government Area.

Methodology: A community-based cross-sectional study design was used among 208 consenting WRA from 8 communities in 2 clans of the LGA. A semi-structured 7-day recall questionnaire that measured MDD for women (MDD-W) was used. A score of 5 (out of 10) food groups was considered to be an adequate MDD. The WRA’s body mass index (BMI) and waist-hip ratio (WHR) were evaluated, and BMI was calculated and compared with standards. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequency and percentage), the paired sample t-test, and Spearman Correlation, while the level of significance was set at p< 0.05.

Result: About 51.0% of sample women achieved MDD, 29.8% were underweight, 14.4% were overweight and 7.2% were obese. There was a significant difference (p< 0.05) in the mean value between day 1 (4.45) and day 7 (4.75) in the MDD of these women. BMI was higher among those who were unemployed, and MDD scores were significantly higher when the WHR was higher.

Conclusions: Most of the respondents achieved MDD, which also contributed to higher WHR. Unemployment was strongly linked to higher BMI status among these respondents.

The idea that preconception environmental exposures may be involved in Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) etiology arose in the 1970s from a retrospective case-control study of ASD that found a statistically significant difference in parental occupational exposure to chemicals during the preconception period 1. ASD are neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by varying deficits in social interactions, communication, and learning, as well as stereotypic behaviors. Over the past years, research into environmental risk factors for autism has grown dramatically, bringing evidence that an array of non-genetic factors acting during the prenatal period may influence neurodevelopment 2. The present study was therefore undertaken to investigate the potential prenatal risk factors for ASD. A total number of 184 individuals were studied. In the present study, factors that have demonstrated significant increases in ASD risk, include advanced maternal age and stress during pregnancy while folic ...

Several metabolites in the folate and methionine cycles influence the activities of distant enzymes involved in one-carbon metabolism. Many hypotheses have been advanced about the functional impact of these long-range interactions. Using both steady-state and fluctuation analyses of a mathematical model of methionine metabolism, we investigate the biochemical basis for several of these hypotheses. We show that the long-range interactions provide remarkable stabilization of the DNA methylation rate in the face of large fluctuations in methionine input. In particular, they enable the system to maintain methylation in the face of low and extremely low protein input. These interactions may therefore have evolved primarily to stabilize DNA methylation under conditions of methionine starvation. In silico experimentation allows us to evaluate the independent effects of various combinations of the long-range interactions, and thereby propose a plausible evolutionary scenario.

Background: Arsenic in drinking water, a major health hazard to millions of people in South and East Asia and in other parts of the world, is ingested primarily as trivalent inorganic arsenic (iAs), which then undergoes hepatic methylation to methylarsonic acid (MMAs) and a second methylation to dimethylarsinic acid (DMAs). Although MMAs and DMAs are also known to be toxic, DMAs is more easily excreted in the urine and therefore methylation has generally been considered a detoxification pathway. A collaborative modeling project between epidemiologists, biologists, and mathematicians has the purpose of explaining existing data on methylation in human studies in Bangladesh and also testing, by mathematical modeling, effects of nutritional supplements that could increase As methylation. Methods: We develop a whole body mathematical model of arsenic metabolism including arsenic absorption, storage, methylation, and excretion. The parameters for arsenic methylation in the liver were taken from the biochemical literature. The transport parameters between compartments are largely unknown, so we adjust them so that the model accurately predicts the urine excretion rates of time for the iAs, MMAs, and DMAs in single dose experiments on human subjects.