Impact of olfactory and auditory priming on the attraction to foods with high energy density.

\]\Recent research suggests that non-attentively perceived stimuli may significantly influence consumers' food choices. The main objective of the present study was to determine whether an olfactory prime (a sweet-fatty odour) and a semantic auditory prime (a nutritional prevention message), both presented incidentally, either alone or in combination can influence subsequent food choices. The experiment included 147 participants who were assigned to four different conditions: a control condition, a scented condition, an auditory condition or an auditory-scented condition. All participants remained in the waiting room during15 min while they performed a 'lure' task. For the scented condition, the participants were unobtrusively exposed to a 'pain au chocolat' odour. Those in the auditory condition were exposed to an audiotape including radio podcasts and a nutritional message. A third group of participants was exposed to both olfactory and auditory stimuli simultaneously. In the control condition, no stimulation was given. Following this waiting period, all participants moved into a non-odorised test room where they were asked to choose, from dishes served buffet-style, the starter, main course and dessert that they would actually eat for lunch. The results showed that the participants primed with the odour of 'pain au chocolat' tended to choose more desserts with high energy density (i.e., a waffle) than the participants in the control condition (p = 0.06). Unexpectedly, the participants primed with the nutritional auditory message chose to consume more desserts with high energy density than the participants in the control condition (p = 0.03). In the last condition (odour and nutritional message), they chose to consume more desserts with high energy density than the participants in the control condition (p = 0.01), and the data reveal an additive effect of the two primes.

Impact of adiposity, age, sex and maternal feeding practices on eating in the absence of hunger and caloric compensation in preschool children.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Between the ages of 3 and 5 years, children may become less responsive to internal cues of satiation and more responsive to external cues, which may induce overeating and lead to weight gain. This study aimed to compare eating in the absence of hunger (EAH) and caloric compensation in 3- to 6-year-old children, and to relate the measurements with children's adiposity, age, sex and maternal feeding practices. METHODS: According to a within-subject three sequential condition design, food intake in children (n=236) was measured at lunch during three sessions, once a week. The same meal (565 kcal) was offered at each session. The first session (control) was only composed of the meal. Thirty minutes before the second meal, children were offered an energy preload (137 kcal; caloric compensation condition). Ten minutes after the third meal, children were exposed to a post-meal snack (430 kcal; EAH condition). Individual caloric compensation score (COMPX) and EAH score were calculated. Maternal characteristics were measured by questionnaire. Child anthropometrics were measured by a medical doctor. RESULTS: On average, children compensated 52±4% of the energy preload and ate 24±1% of the energy provided by their meal in the absence of hunger. COMPX and EAH score were not correlated and did not vary with children's adiposity or age. EAH score was higher in boys (P=0.006). Maternal use of food as reward was associated with higher EAH score (P=0.01) but greater COMPX (P=0.005). CONCLUSIONS: As early as the age of 3 years children did not fully compensate the energy brought by a snack and ate in the absence of hunger. Parents should be advised to avoid these situations where overeating may occur and to limit the use of food as reward.

Liking the odour, liking the food. Toddlers' liking of strongly flavoured foods correlates with liking of their odour.

Olfaction plays a significant role in the sensing of foods. However, little information is available at any age on the relationship between the hedonic responses to given food odours and the effective liking and disliking of foods bearing these same odours. The present study aimed to assess the relationships between food odour liking and liking of the corresponding foods. This study relied on a longitudinal design involving 235 toddlers who were assessed for both their observed liking of a set of food odours and their parent-reported liking of foods at 12 and 22 months. To assess odour liking, eight odorants representing pleasant and unpleasant foods were presented in bottles along with neutral stimuli. The participants' behaviour towards the odorized and control bottles was measured in terms of mouthing, a behaviour considered to reflect attraction. For each odorant, odour-liking scores were calculated relative to the control. The participants' food liking was rated by the parents at the periods 12-15 and 21-24 months. Positive correlations were found between the odour-liking scores for some of the odours and the liking of the associated foods. These correlations concerned foods with strong, unpleasant flavours at 12 months only, suggesting that the olfactory system acts as an 'alarm' system during this period of food transition. At 22 months, no significant correlations were found, except a marginal one for green vegetables. Whatever the age, no significant correlations were found for pleasant odours. Thus, some correlations were found between the observed odour liking for food-related odours and the liking for the corresponding foods. However, these relationships are subject to developmental fluctuations depending on the hedonic nature of the odorants and the age when infants are tested.

Impact of a non-attentively perceived odour on subsequent food choices.

Current research in psychology suggests that unconscious processes influence a significant proportion of choices and decisions. To study the impact of a non-attentively perceived odour on food choices, we used a priming paradigm. We had previously shown that non-attentively perceived fruity odours could impact food choice intentions (on a menu card), guiding participants toward items containing more fruit and/or vegetables. The present study was designed to extend these findings, in a real-life consumption setting. One hundred and fifteen participants took part in this study, and were assigned randomly to either a control or a scented condition. On arrival in the laboratory, they were seated in a waiting room. For the scented condition, they were unobtrusively exposed to a pear odour, while under the control condition the waiting room was non-odorised. Following this waiting period, all participants moved into a non-odorised test room where they were asked to choose, from dishes served buffet-style, the starter, main course and dessert that they would actually eat for lunch. The results showed that participants subjected to the scented condition chose to consume the 'fruity' dessert (compote) more frequently than those who had waited under the control condition, who chose more frequently the dessert without fruit (brownie). In line with the findings of our previous study, these results confirm the idea of priming effects 'specific to the food cue'. To conclude, a non-attentively perceived fruity odour was shown to influence actual food choices, guiding individuals towards more fruity desserts. The involvement of implicit processes in food choices should be taken into account in guidelines and strategies designed to promote healthy eating.

Salivary protein profiles are linked to bitter taste acceptance in infants.

UNLABELLED: Based on recent studies in adult subjects, saliva composition is increasingly considered as a physiological factor contributing to taste sensitivity or acceptance. In order to evaluate a possible link between salivary protein composition and taste acceptance in infants, 73 infants participated longitudinally in taste acceptance tests and donated saliva at the age at 3 and 6 months. Intake ratios, reflecting acceptance of a taste solution relative to water were calculated for the five basic tastes. Salivary proteins were separated by one-dimensional electrophoresis and bands were semi-quantified by image analysis. Partial least square (PLS) regression analyses were performed for each taste at both ages to explain intake ratios by band intensities. Bitterness acceptance in the younger infants was unique in the sense that salivary protein profiles could partly predict bitter taste acceptance. At that age, infants were on average indifferent to the 0.18-M urea solution, but great variability in acceptance was observed. The six bands considered as the best predictors for bitterness acceptance were identified by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. Higher abundance of bands containing secretory component, zinc-α-2-glycoprotein and carbonic anhydrase 6 was associated to a lower bitterness acceptance, while higher abundance of bands containing lactoperoxidase, prolactin-inducible protein and S-type cystatins was associated to a higher bitterness acceptance. In a second stage, S-type cystatin abundance was measured by Western blotting in order to tentatively confirm this particular finding in an independent group of 22 infants. Although not reaching statistical significance, probably due to a relatively small sample size, it was again observed that cystatin abundance was higher in infants accepting more readily the bitter solution over water. CONCLUSION: saliva protein composition may contribute to bitter taste acceptance in the younger infants.

Fat and salt contents affect the in-mouth temporal sodium release and saltiness perception of chicken sausages.

In cooked meats, sodium chloride is involved in taste, texture and flavour release. So a reduction in the salt content may have an impact on overall perception and acceptability. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of composition on sodium release and saltiness intensity in chicken sausages. The rheological properties of the sausages differed according to composition. Temporal sodium release and temporal saltiness intensity were evaluated by four selected subjects when eating sausages. At each time point, the effect of the salt level in sausages on sodium release was positive and highly significant. The effect of lipids on sodium release was negative. Concerning perception, the amount of salt used had a positive effect on saltiness intensity, and lipids seemed to exert a masking effect. Generally, clear relationships between salt levels, sodium release and saltiness intensity were found but the masking effect of lipids on saltiness intensity probably also involved texture or fat perception mechanisms.

Saliva electrophoretic protein profiles in infants: changes with age and impact of teeth eruption and diet transition.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to describe the changes in salivary protein profiles in infants between the ages of 3 and 6 months, and to evaluate the impact of teeth eruption and introduction of solid foods on such profiles. DESIGN: 73 infants were followed longitudinally at 3 and 6 months of age. Their whole saliva proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis and semi-quantified by image analysis. Amylase activity was also measured on a sub-sample of the population (n=42 infants). Bands which abundance was significantly different between the two ages according to paired comparisons were identified by mass spectrometry techniques. RESULTS: Out of 21 bands, 13 were significantly different between 3 and 6 months of age. Two short variants of amylase increased in abundance with age, as did amylase activity. Other changes possibly translated developmental physiological events, for example maturation of the adaptive immune system. The balance between S-type cystatins and cystatins A and B was modified, in favour of S-type cystatins at 6 months of age. Teeth eruption resulted in an increase in albumin abundance, whilst introduction of solid foods was associated with higher levels of ß-2 microglobulin and S-type cystatins. CONCLUSIONS: Salivary profiles were modified substantially between the ages of 3 and 6 months. Both teeth eruption and diet had an impact on abundance changes for some proteins, revealing dynamic interactions between saliva proteome, oral physiology and diet.

[To which tastes are infants exposed during the first year of life?]. / A quelles saveurs les nourrissons sont-ils exposés dans la première année de vie ?

Food consumption in young children is guided by their food preferences, which are partly determined by their attraction to the different tastes (sweet, salty, sour, bitter, and umami tastes). Early food experiences might modulate this attraction. Yet, no study has previously described the tastes of infant foods during the first year of life. This is the objective of the present study. The diet of 76 infants was recorded by their parents 1 week per month during the first year of life. This record provided an inventory of 2902 foods a priori different from a sensory point of view. The taste intensity of these foods was estimated. For each infant, each month, and each taste, a variable of exposure to the taste was calculated. Foods consumed by infants from 1 to 12 months of age generally had low or relatively moderate taste intensity. During the milk-feeding period, infants were mainly exposed to sweet taste; this exposure increased during the first year. Beginning with weaning, the exposure to sour taste rose sharply without becoming as high as the exposure to sweet taste, the exposures to salty and umami tastes rose modestly, and the exposure to bitter taste rose slightly, then stagnated. Consequently, the proportion of bitter taste was reduced to approximately half the other tastes between the age of 7 and 12 months. Taking these observations into account would be helpful in establishing feeding recommendations for the pediatric population.

Just noticeable differences in component concentrations modify the odor quality of a blending mixture.

The odors we perceive are mainly the result of mixtures of odorants that, however, are commonly perceived as single undivided entities; nevertheless, the processes involved remain poorly explored. It has been recently reported that perceptual blending based on configural olfactory processing can cause odorant mixtures to give rise to an emergent odor not present in the components. The present study examined whether specific component proportions are required to elicit an emergent odor. Starting from the composition of a ternary target mixture in which an emergent pineapple odor was perceived, 4 concentration levels of each component were chosen to elicit just noticeable differences (JNDs). Each combination of levels was used to design sample mixtures. Fifteen subjects evaluated the intensity, typicality, and pleasantness of each sample mixture against the target mixture in a paired-comparison protocol. Statistical modeling showed that a variation of less than 1 JND in one of the components was sufficient to induce a significant decrease in pineapple odor typicality in the ternary mixture. This finding confirms previous findings on perceptual blending in simple odorant mixtures and underscores the human ability to discriminate between odor percepts induced by mixtures including very similar odorant proportions.

Effect of bombesin at low doses on the secretion of the exocrine pancreas and on plasma gastrin concentration in the conscious pig.

We investigated the role of low-doses of bombesin in the regulation of exocrine secretion in the pancreas of the conscious pig. In ten growing castrated male Large White pigs, bombesin was infused intravenously for 1 h at doses of 0 to 500 pmol/kg/h under a stimulation of secretin (36 pmol/kg/h). In six pigs, bombesin (50 pmol/kg/h) was administered alone for 2 h and its effect on pancreatic secretion was compared to that of an infusion of secretin. The pancreatic juice and the blood were collected at 15-min intervals for use in assays of protein in the juice and gastrin in the plasma. When bombesin was infused alone or in combination with secretin, the volume secreted was not altered. The protein output was not altered by secretin, but was increased by the infusion of bombesin, in a dose-dependent manner, reaching a plateau at 250 pmol/kg/h. The plasma gastrin levels were increased by bombesin, starting with the 50 pmol/kg/h dose. This effect was maximal at a dose of 100 pmol/kg/h. The levels remained below those measured after a standard meal, demonstrating that the effect of bombesin on the studied parameters is of physiological significance.

Milk fermented with yogurt cultures and Lactobacillus casei compared with yogurt and gelled milk: influence on intestinal microflora in healthy infants.

Ingestion of fermented dairy products induces changes in the equilibrium and metabolism of the intestinal microflora and may thus exert a healthful influence on the host. We compared the effects of consumption of a traditional yogurt, a milk fermented with yogurt cultures and Lactobacillus casei (YC), and a nonfermented gelled milk on the fecal microflora of healthy infants. Thirty-nine infants aged 10-18 mo were randomly assigned to one of three groups in which they received 125 g/d of one of the three products for 1 mo. The following indexes were not modified during the supplementation period or for 1 wk after the end of supplementation: total number of anaerobes, bifidobacteria, bacteroides, and enterobacteria; pH; water content; concentrations of acetate, butyrate, propionate, and lactate; and bacterial enzyme activity of beta-galactosidase and alpha-glucosidase. In contrast, in the yogurt group the number of enterococci in fecal samples increased (P < 0.05), whereas the percentage of branched-chain and long-chain fatty acids, which are markers of proteolytic fermentation, decreased (P < 0.05). In the YC group, the percentage of children with > 6 log10 colony-forming units lactobacilli/g feces increased (P < 0.05), whereas the potentially harmful enzyme activity of beta-glucuronidase and beta-glucosidase decreased (P < 0.05). These decreases were particularly marked in those infants in the YC group in whom activity of the enzymes was initially unusually high.

Influence of bile salt molecular species on cholesterol crystallization from supersaturated model biles.

Time-sequential enzymatic determination of cholesterol (CH) crystals harvested by ultrafiltration, and concomitant polarizing light microscopy observations corroborated the striking importance of the bile salts (BS) species in determining CH crystals formation rate from supersaturated model biles incubated in vitro. The more hydrophilic tauroursodeoxycholate, taurohyocholate, glycohyocholate, taurohyodeoxycholate, glycohyodeoxycholate and glyco-3 alpha, hydroxy-6 oxo-5 beta-cholanate inhibited CH precipitation through the formation of a stabilized liquid-crystalline phase. In contrast, in all hydrophobic systems (taurine (T) and glycine (G) conjugates of cholate (C), deoxycholate (DC) and chenodeoxycholate (CDC)), CH crystals precipitated with time. When crystallized CH concentrations were plotted vs. time, the figures showed a sigmoidal pattern, consistent with the transition from metastable systems to stable equilibrium states. Over the equilibration period, the nucleation kinetics (as inferred from enzymatic measurements) and all crystallization events (as microscopically observed) were both shifted in time, depending on the BS species: they were earliest in CDC systems, then in DC systems, and finally in C systems. In the latter, the delay was clearly due to the formation of a transient labile liquid-crystalline phase. G-conjugation also induced a significant delay in CH precipitation, compared to T-conjugation. At last, maximum crystallized CH concentrations at equilibrium were in the decreasing order: C > CDC > DC and T-conjugates > G-homologues. All data are discussed in connection with BS hydrophobicities, with predictions from the phase equilibria of aqueous biliary lipid systems and with new insights into CH crystal habits.

Relationship between intestinal colonization of Bifidobacterium bifidum in infants and the presence of exogenous and endogenous growth-promoting factors in their stools.

The relationship between the intestinal colonization of a test strain of Bifidobacterium bifidum requiring human milk growth-promoting factors in vitro and the presence of growth-promoting factors either in the stools of human neonates or in their diet was investigated. Thirty-one infants were inoculated with a single dose of this strain within the first 8 d of life. Spores of a strictly thermophilic Bacillus admixed with the B. bifidum inoculum were used as transit marker, and the fecal population levels of both strain B. bifidum and the transit marker were recorded within 6 d after inoculation. Strain B. bifidum was found in the predominant flora of six neonates. It was eliminated more quickly than the transit marker from the stools of 17 neonates. Its population remained at a low level in the remaining eight neonates. Amounts of B. bifidum growth-promoting factor in the infant stools were not significantly different whether they harbored strain B. bifidum at a high population level or not. Although these amounts were significantly higher in infants fed human milk containing B. bifidum growth-promoting factor than in infants fed formula milk without B. bifidum growth-promoting factor, strain B. bifidum became established in one of the 18 infants fed human milk and in five of the 13 formula-fed infants. No relationship could be found between the population levels of strain B. bifidum and those of facultatively anaerobic streptococci and enterobacteria already present on d 0 and 1. These results clearly show that no relationship exists between the intestinal colonization of B. bifidum and the amounts of exogenous or endogenous growth-promoting factors found in stools.

Prediction of peptide retention time in reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography.

Peptide retention in reversed-phase chromatography depends mainly on the amino acid composition of peptides and can therefore be predicted by summing the relative hydrophobic contributions of each constitutive amino acid residue. The prediction is correct for small peptides but overestimates the retention times of peptides larger than 10-15 residues. A new prediction model is proposed in which the contribution to peptide retention of each amino acid residue is not a constant but a decreasing function of peptide length. From the retention times of 104 peptides, the parameters of decreasing functions were estimated by a non-linear multiple regression analysis. The contribution to peptide retention of charged, polar and non-polar residues appears to be differently affected by peptide length. The secondary structure of most peptides during reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography could be responsible for this. The high correlation between the predicted and observed retention times of peptides which were not used to establish the model indicates a good predictive accuracy of the new model.

The 24-h rhythm of metabolic activity of the cockroach circadian pacemaker.

In the cockroach, Leucophaea maderae, the optic lobes contain a circadian pacemaker. The metabolic activity of optic lobe neuropils was measured at 17 time points over a 24-h period in constant darkness, using cytochrome oxidase activity as functional marker. The results revealed a clear 24-h energy metabolism rhythm in neuropils and particularly in the lobula plate, a part of the region which is assumed to include a circadian pacemaker in this species.

Solubility of peptides in trichloroacetic acid (TCA) solutions. Hypothesis on the precipitation mechanism.

The assessment of proteolysis levels is often achieved by global quantification of the peptides soluble at different TCA concentrations, but little information is available on the features of this precipitation mechanism. Peptic, tryptic and chymotryptic digests of alpha s1, beta, and kappa caseins have been prepared and fractionated by RP-HPLC and each isolated peptide was identified. Each digest was precipitated by adding TCA to different final concentrations (2, 4, 8, and 12%). The soluble fraction was analysed by RP-HPLC. Relationships have been searched between the properties of 75 peptides obtained in this way, and their solubilities in TCA. The best correlation was found with the peptide retention time in RP-HPLC, which can be regarded as the experimental measure of peptide hydrophobicity. We concluded that TCA, by interacting with peptides, induces an increase of the hydrophobicity of peptides which can lead to aggregation through hydrophobic interactions.

Photoperiodic control of growth hormone secretion and body weight in rams.

This study was undertaken to assess the influence of photoperiod on growth hormone (GH) secretion in rams and its possible influence on body weight. Twenty young adult rams were divided into two groups. One was subjected to an annual (AR) and the other to a semestral (SR) light regime during the same 18-month period. In both groups, daylength (DL) varied gradually between 8 to 17 hr. Plasma prolactin (PRL) and GH profiles consisting of 6 hr samples were determined and animals were weighed throughout the course of the experiment. Maximal PRL secretion was observed with largest DL. In contrast, GH secretion increased during increasing DL but it began to decrease before maximal DL was reached in both light regimes. Mean GH secretion was maximal when the DL was about 11 hr in SR and between 8 to 12 hr in AR. Similarly, body weight increased when DL increased and plateaued during decreasing DL in both AR and SR animal groups. Significant (P less than 0.05) differences were observed throughout the course of the experiment according to the effects of decreasing or increasing DL in each group. Analysis of variance showed that the effect of DL on plasma PRL and GH levels and weight velocity (WV) was significant (P less than 0.05) in both light regimes. This suggests that in SR, plasma PRL and GH levels and WV vary according to a six month period.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Influence of photoperiod and protein diet on growth hormone secretion in rams.

Studies of sheep were undertaken to determine the effects of photoperiod and protein diet on growth hormone (GH) secretion. Rams were subjected to either a control (RI) or an inverted (R2) 6-month (semestral) light regime. In both light regimes day lengths varied gradually between 8 and 16 hr. Within each light regime group of animals, the rams received either a low (L) or a high (H) protein diet containing the same level of energy. Plasma GH profiles consisting of 13 hourly samples were determined at regular intervals corresponding to known day lengths. Analysis of variance indicated that there was a significant effect of day length (P less than 0.01) and protein diet (P less than 0.05) on GH secretion, the two light regimes R1 and R2 were equivalent with respect to GH secretion, and there were no interactions among the three experimental factors. Although mean GH secretion was consistently higher in L groups than in H groups, there was a similar trend in all the animals of increasing GH secretion as day length increased. GH secretion was maximum when the day length reached 13 hr 20 min in increasing photoperiods in L groups (15.6 +/- 1.6 ng X h X ml-1) and 16 hr in H groups (13.0 +/- 1.2 ng X h X ml-1). From these results we conclude that both an increasing day length and a deficiency in protein diet stimulate GH secretion in rams but the GH response to these two factors may involve different regulatory processes and may have different functions.

[Comparison between the number and nature of fecal clostridia and other risk factors implicated in the intestinal pathology of newborn infants]. / Comparaison entre le nombre et la nature des Clostridium fécaux et d'autres facteurs de risque impliqués dans la pathologie intestinale des nouveau-nés.

One-hundred and fifteen infants aged 1 to 31 days from two intensive-care units were grouped into 6 classes according to clinical criteria (enterocolitis with or without anatomopathological examination and pneumatosis intestinalis, "haemorrhagic colitis", acute diarrhoea or absence of intestinal disorders). The total number of viable bacteria, the number of Clostridium and, in some cases, the presence of rota- and/or coronavirus were determined in their stools. The incidence of Clostridium in the stools of infants with enterocolitis (with or without pneumatosis intestinalis) or haemorrhagic colitis was not significantly different from that of infants without intestinal disorders, whereas stools of infants with acute diarrhoea less often contained Clostridium than those of other infants. C. butyricum, C. difficile, C. perfringens, C. tertium, and C. sordellii were identified. Correspondence analysis comparing the variable, "clinical profile", with 23 other variables, suggested that the variables of gemellity, a birthweight below 1900 g, a gestational age of less than 35 weeks, respiratory distress, umbilical catheterization and a Clostridium count above 10(7)/g at the onset of clinical signs, i.e. between 8 to 12 days of age, were linked to the clinical profile of necrotizing enterocolitis with pneumatosis intestinalis. Conversely, the absence of gemellity, a high birthweight and gestational age, the absence of respiratory distress or umbilical catheterization, the onset of diarrhoea within 8 days, and the presence of rota- and/or coronavirus in the stools were linked with a clinical profile of acute diarrhoea.

Comparaison entre le nombre et la nature des clostridium fécaux et d'autres facteurs de risque impliqués dans la pathologie intestinale des nouveau-nés.

One-hundred and fifteen infants aged 1 to 31 days from two intensivecare units were grouped into 6 classes according to clinical criteria (enterocolitis with or without anatomopathological examination and pneumatosis intestinalis, ≪haemorrhagic colitis ≫, acute diarrhoea or absence of intestinal disorders). The total number of viable bacteria, the number of Clostridium and, in some cases, the presence of rota- and/or coronavirus were determined in their stools. The incidence of Clostridium in the stools of infants with enterocolitis (with or without pneumatosis intestinalis) or haemorrhagic colitis was not significantly different from that of infants without intestinal disorders, whereas stools of infants with acute diarrhoea less often contained Clostridium than those of other infants.C. butyricum, C. difficile, C. perfringens, C. tertium, and C. sordellii were identified. Correspondence analysis comparing the variable, ≪clinical profile≫, with 23 other variables, suggested that the variables of gemellity, a birth-weight below 1900 g, a gestational age of less than 35 weeks, respiratory distress, umbilical catheterization and a Clostridium count above 107/g at the onset of clinical signs, i.e. between 8 to 12 days of age, were linked to the clinical profile of necrotizing enterocolitis with pneumatosis intestinalis. Conversely, the absence of gemellity, a high birthweight and gestational age, the absence of respiratory distress or umbilical catheterization, the onset of diarrhoea within 8 days, and the presence of rota- and/or coronavirus in the stools were linked with a clinical profile of acute diarrhoea.