The association between health-related quality of life/dietary satisfaction and perceived food environment among Japanese individuals with spinal cord injury.

STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional. OBJECTIVES: To examine the association between health-related quality of life (HRQOL)/dietary satisfaction and perceived food environment in community-dwelling individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). SETTING: Members of the Spinal Injuries Japan organization. METHODS: Subjects were 2007 Japanese individuals with SCI. A questionnaire conducted in 2015 included items addressing sociodemographic characteristics, HRQOL, dietary satisfaction and eight perceived food environment items. Responses from 506 individuals were analyzed (valid response rate=25%). Dependent variables were the physical and mental summary scores of the HRQOL and dietary satisfaction. The independent variable was the perceived food environment. We used a univariate analysis (in Model 1) and a multivariate analysis (in Models 2 and 3) as part of a binominal logistic regression analysis. In Model 3, we divided and analyzed the perceived food environment variable into 'access to food' and 'access to information'. RESULTS: Both physical and mental summary scores were related to 'dietary information acquisition in the community'. Dietary satisfaction was related to 'balanced meals in the household', 'food and health information available from family' and 'right health and dietary information acquisition from the media'. CONCLUSION: HRQOL and dietary satisfaction were differentially associated with perceived food environment factors in community-dwelling individuals with SCI. HRQOL was positively related to dietary information of perceived food environment in the community. Dietary satisfaction was positively related to perceived food environment in the household.

The combined associations of social participation and support with self-rated health and dietary satisfaction in men with spinal cord injury.

STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. OBJECTIVES: (1) To examine the association between social participation (SP) and social support (SS) with self-rated health and dietary satisfaction and (2) to explore the joint association and interactions of SP and SS with self-rated health and dietary satisfaction in community-dwelling adult men with spinal cord injury. SETTING: Members of the Spinal Injuries Japan organization. METHODS: We sent questionnaires to 2731 registered members of Spinal Injuries Japan via mail. Responses from 625 men aged ⩾40 years were analyzed. Respondents were categorized into four groups: SP/sufficient SS, SP/insufficient SS, no SP/sufficient SS and no SP/insufficient SS. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the odds ratios for self-rated health and dietary satisfaction according to the SP/SS categories. RESULTS: Relative to participants in the no SP/insufficient SS category, those in the SP/sufficient SS group demonstrated significantly better self-rated health and dietary satisfaction after adjusting for sociodemographic variables. There was no interaction between SP and SS in self-rated health or dietary satisfaction. SP was associated with high self-rated health without SS, and sufficient SS was associated with high dietary satisfaction without SP. CONCLUSIONS: Relative to other groups, participants with SP/sufficient SS demonstrated higher self-rated health and dietary satisfaction. Sufficient SS was associated with high dietary satisfaction without SP. This study suggested the importance of addressing aspects of both SP and SS using self-rated health and dietary satisfaction as outcome measures in health promotion programs.

Vegetable dishes, dairy products and fruits are key items mediating adequate dietary intake for Japanese adults with spinal cord injury.

STUDY DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to ascertain the essential items mediating adequate dietary intake based on the Japanese Food Guide in common among the transtheoretical model (TTM), self-efficacy (SE) and outcome expectancy (OE). SETTING: Members of the organization Spinal Injuries Japan. METHODS: We posted a questionnaire survey to 2731 community-dwelling Japanese adults with spinal cord injury (SCI), and responses from 841 individuals were analyzed. Food intake was assessed as the frequency scores of 10 food items eaten in a daily diet in Japan. The correlations between the frequency scores of food intake and TTM, SE and OE were determined by binominal logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: The frequency scores of food intake were significantly associated with 'To eat vegetable dishes (dishes made mainly from vegetables or potatoes) not less than twice a day', 'To eat green/yellow vegetables not less than twice a day', 'To eat dairy products not less than once a day' and 'To eat fruits not less than once a day' in TTM. 'To eat vegetable dishes (dishes made mainly from vegetables or potatoes) not less than twice a day', 'To eat dairy products not less than once a day' and 'To eat fruits not less than once a day' were significantly associated with the frequency scores of food intake in SE. In OE, no differences were shown. CONCLUSION: This study finds that vegetable dishes, dairy products and fruits are the key items mediating adequate dietary intake. Dietary guidelines promoting the intake of these dishes for SCI individuals are needed.

Associations between abdominal visceral fat and surrogate measures of obesity in Japanese men with spinal cord injury.

STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. OBJECTIVES: There are ethnic differences in the distribution of abdominal obesity associated with metabolic disorders. In Japan, the appropriate reference values for abdominal obesity have not been established in individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI), although there are a number of studies in Western countries. This study evaluates the associations between visceral fat area (VFA), waist circumference (WC) and body mass index (BMI), to examine cutoffs and estimate the error for WC and BMI equivalent to 100 cm(2) VFA in Japanese men with SCI. SETTING: National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities, Japan. METHODS: Seventy-four men (aged 45.6 (s.d. 14.3) years) participated in the study. VFA was quantified using computed tomography at the level of the umbilicus, and associations were determined using nonlinear regression analysis. The error of the estimates from the regression equation was assessed using a Bland-Altman plot. RESULTS: The mean VFA was 101.2 (s.d. 53.0) cm(2) and 32 subjects had a VFA ⩾100 cm(2). The cutoffs for a VFA of 100 cm(2) were WC, 81.3 cm and BMI, 22.5 kg m(-2). The relationship between the estimated and actual values showed that the error increased as VFA increased, which resulted in a negative proportional bias. CONCLUSION: The suggested cutoff for Japanese men with SCI is a VFA of 100 cm(2), which is lower than that in the healthy able-bodied population for both WC and BMI. Further investigation is needed to determine the reference value for estimating SCI-specific VF accumulation.

Preliminary study for the assessment of physical activity using a triaxial accelerometer with a gyro sensor on the upper limbs of subjects with paraplegia driving a wheelchair on a treadmill.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine whether, on the basis of the relationship between sensors attached on the upper limbs and energy expenditure (EE) at the time of wheelchair propulsion, there are differences in the measurement of EE depending on the sensor attachment site and whether addition of the angular velocity information to the acceleration value is advantageous. We also aimed to clarify the variables used to estimate EE as well as the estimated error. SETTING: Laboratory of the National Hospital Organization Murayama Medical Center, Japan. METHODS: Six male subjects with spinal cord injuries participated in the study. Each wore sensors at the wrist and the middle upper arm on both sides while driving a wheelchair on a treadmill at three levels: very, very light; very light; and fairly light. Triaxial acceleration, triaxial angular velocity and EE were measured during driving. We analyzed the correlation between EE and acceleration, angular velocity and synthesized values of acceleration and angular velocity at each location using regression, multiple regression and Bland-Altman analyses. RESULTS: The determination coefficients between EE and the acceleration, angular velocity and synthesized values of acceleration and angular velocity varied from 0.68 to 0.87 at each location. The mean difference between the measured and estimated EE varied from 0.0028 (s.d., 0.0027) kcal min(-1) kg(-1) on the right upper arm. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that combining the synthesized values of angular velocity and acceleration of the motion sensors on the upper limbs might reflect EE during a wheelchair driving activity on a treadmill.

Impaired reductive regeneration of ascorbic acid in the Goto-Kakizaki diabetic rat.

Ascorbic acid (AA) is a naturally occurring major antioxidant that is essential for the scavenging of toxic free radicals in both plasma and tissues. AA levels in plasma and tissues have been reported to be significantly lower than normal in diabetic animals and humans, and might contribute to the complications found at the late stages of diabetes. In this study, plasma and hepatic AA levels and AA regeneration were studied in the Goto-Kakizaki diabetic rat (GK rat) to elucidate the mechanism of decreasing plasma and hepatic AA levels in diabetes. AA concentrations in the plasma and liver were significantly lower in GK than in control rats. AA levels in primary cultured hepatocytes derived from GK rats were lower than those derived from control Wistar rats with or without dehydroascorbic acid (DHA) in the medium. Among various enzyme activities that reduce DHA to AA, the NADPH-dependent regeneration of AA in the liver was significantly suppressed in GK rats. Northern blot analysis revealed that only the expression of 3-alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (AKR) was significantly suppressed in these rats. These results suggest that decreased AA-regenerating activity, probably through decreased expression of AKR, contributes to the decreased AA levels and increased oxidative stress in GK rats.

[Role of school lunch in primary school education: a trial analysis of school teachers' views using an open-ended questionnaire].

We tried to analyze synthetically teachers' view points associated with health education and roles of school lunch in primary education. For this purpose, a survey using an open-ended questionnaire consisting of eight items relating to health education in the school curriculum was carried out in 100 teachers of ten public primary schools. Subjects were asked to describe their view regarding the following eight items: 1) health and physical guidance education, 2) school lunch guidance education, 3) pupils' attitude toward their own health and nutrition, 4) health education, 5) role of school lunch in education, 6) future subjects of health education, 7) class room lesson related to school lunch, 8) guidance in case of pupil with unbalanced dieting and food avoidance. Subjects described their own opinions on an open-ended questionnaire response sheet. Keywords in individual descriptions were selected, rearranged and classified into categories according to their own meanings, and each of the selected keywords were used as the dummy variable. To assess individual opinions synthetically, a principal component analysis was then applied to the variables collected through the teachers' descriptions, and four factors were extracted. The results were as follows. 1) Four factors obtained from the repeated principal component analysis were summarized as; roles of health education and school lunch program (the first principal component), cooperation with nurse-teachers and those in charge of lunch service (the second principal component), time allocation for health education in home-room activity and lunch time (the third principal component) and contents of health education and school lunch guidance and their future plan (the fourth principal component). 2) Teachers regarded the role of school lunch in primary education as providing daily supply of nutrients, teaching of table manners and building up friendships with classmates, health education and food and nutrition education, and developing food preferences through eating lunch together with classmates. 3) Significant positive correlation was observed between "the teachers' opinion about the role of school lunch of providing opportunity to learn good behavior for food preferences through eating lunch together with classmates" and the first principal component "roles of health education and school lunch program" (r = 0.39, p < 0.01). The variable "the role of school lunch is health education and food and nutrition education" showed positive correlation with the principle component "cooperation with nurse-teachers and those in charge of lunch service" (r = 0.27, p < 0.01). Interesting relationships obtained were that teachers with longer educational experience tended to place importance in health education and food and nutrition education as the role of school lunch, and that male teachers regarded the roles of school lunch more importantly for future education in primary education than female teachers did.

Plasma protein-bound sulfhydryl group oxidation in humans following a full marathon race.

Physical exercise can induce oxidative stress in humans. We studied the influence of aerobic exercise on the status of plasma protein-bound sulfhydryl groups in seven moderately-trained male college students who participated in a full marathon race. The plasma protein-bound sulfhydryl group values were significantly declined immediately after the race (-22%, p < 0.01), and 24 h (-12%, p < 0.01) and 48 h (-13%, p < 0.01) after the race, as compared to the baseline value. The plasma concentrations of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances were unchanged following the race, while the activities of plasma creatine kinase were significantly increased, indicating skeletal muscle damage. These results suggested that prolonged exercise may cause the oxidation of plasma proteins.

[Non-neuroectodermal epithelial cyst in the middle cranial fossa associated with unilateral exophthalmos].

A rare case of unilateral exophthalmos caused by an epithelial cyst in the middle cranial fossa was reported. A 42-year-old man had a proptosis of sudden onset in the left eye. Ophthalmological examinations revealed a proptosis of 3mm, contraction of the lower visual field and a bow tie atrophy of the optic disc in the left. Plain skull X-P, CT scan and MRI disclosed a cystic lesion in the left middle fossa, resulting in the enlargement of the superior orbital fissure of the same side. Metrizamide CT cisternography showed the cyst had no communication with the subarachnoid spaces. The cyst, removed surgically, was located in the epidural region of the middle fossa and was about 4cm in diameter, containing yellowish turbid fluid and fat-like floating substance. Histologically, the cyst was composed of collagenous connective tissue, lined with pseudostratified columnar to cuboidal epithelia. Small cells with a high nuclear to cytoplasmic ratio, considered as basal cells or reserve cells, were often seen in the basal layer. Ciliated and secretory cells were rarely observed in the superficial layer. Neither stratified squamous epithelium nor adamantinomatous structure was seen. Immunohistochemical studies revealed that the lining epithelium was strongly positive for keratin (wide spectrum), but negative for vimentin, S-100, neuron specific enolase or glial fibrillary acidic protein. These staining characters were different from those of neuroectodermal cells including ependymal cells and choroidal cells which are usually vimentin- and S-100-positive. Morphologically, the lining epithelium resembled respiratory or alimentary tract epithelium, suggesting that the cyst might be derived from non-neuroectodermal ectoderm or endoderm.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Effects of Spirulina platensis on plasma lipoprotein lipase activity in fructose-induced hyperlipidemic rats.

The effects of Spirulina platensis on lipoprotein lipase activity and hepatic triglyceride lipase activity in post-heparin plasma were studied in fructose-induced hyperlipidemic rats. Male Wistar rats aged 3 weeks old (body weight, 54 g) were fed on the high-fructose diet (68%) or the high-fructose diets containing Spirulina at the level of 5, 10, and 15%, respectively, for 4 weeks. The dietary hyperlipidemia caused by the high-fructose diet was improved by Spirulina feeding, accompanied by a significant increase in the lipoprotein lipase activity in post-heparin plasma.

Utilization of soy protein isolate mixed with rice protein in Japanese women.

Utilization and requirement of soy protein isolate (SPI) and SPI-rice combination were examined in twenty-five female students. After 1 day on protein-free diet, each subject received a low-protein diet for 10 days. The protein sources were SPI for ten subjects and SPI-rice combination, in which the ratio of two proteins was 6:4, for fifteen subjects. The nitrogen intakes were about 45, 65 and 85 mg/kg in both the two series of experiments. Energy intake was at an approximate maintenance level of 36.1 +/- 3.0 kcal/kg. Apparent nitrogen balance improved with increase in nitrogen intake. The regression equations between nitrogen intake (X, mg/kg) and balance (Y, mg/kg) are shown in the following: SPI: Y = 0.411 X - 40.8 (n = 10, r = 0.812) SPI and rice protein: Y = 0.392 X -32.7 (n = 15, r = 0.739) From the above equations, the maintenance intakes of SPI and SPI-rice combination for an apparent nitrogen equilibrium were calculated to be 99 and 83 mg N/kg, respectively. Digestibilities were 98.2 +/- 5.0% for SPI and 93.1 +/- 6.1% for SPI-rice combination. The NPUs of SPI at intake levels of 40, 60 and 80 mg N/kg were 47 +/- 24 (n = 4), 49 (n = 2) and 44 +/- 3 (n = 4), respectively. The NPUs of SPI and rice mixed protein at intake levels of 45, 70 and 90 mg N/kg were 67 +/- 13 (n = 5), 51 +/- 7 (n = 5) and 54 +/- 12 (n = 5), respectively. It was concluded from the present study that both SPI and the SPI-rice combination had a high nutritive efficiency comparable with that of egg protein.