Evaluation of maternal performance about food security in dietary diversity for children aged 12-24 months and its relationship with anthropometric measurements.

BACKGROUND: Despite growing awareness of the problem of food security, some areas of Iran continue to experience food insecurity. The aim of the present study was to evaluate maternal performance about food security in dietary diversity for children aged between 12-24 months and its relationship with anthropometric measurements in Bushehr. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out using 400 mothers of children aged from 12 to 24 months in Bushehr selected via quota sampling. Data were collected using a reliable localized version of a 32-item food frequency questionnaire, consisting of six subscales, with a Cronbach's α: 0.81. The anthropometric measurements of height and weight were also calculated. Data analysis was performed using median, Mean±SD and multinomial logistic regression test, and odds ratio in SPSS, version 18. RESULTS: According to standard servings, only 24% of the mothers fed their infants cereals, whereas 54.8%, 36.3%, 39.8%, and 20.3% of the mothers used meat, fruits, vegetables, and dairy products, respectively. The strongest associations were between attendance at educational classes and vegetable consumption (OR=2.09, CI=1.03-4.21), age at the onset of complementary feeding and the consumption of meat (OR=1.30, CI=1.02-1.66) and fruits (OR=1.44, CI=1.03-2.03), and the mothers' level of education and use of dairy products (OR=0.29, CI=0.09-0.90). No evidence of a significant association was found between consumption of any food groups and the anthropometric measurements. CONCLUSIONS: Mothers in Bushehr performed poorly in providing their infants with the required nutrition with regard to dietary diversity and amount of food. However, their performance can be improved by enhancing their basic nutrition knowledge, holding practical classes on food preparation for them, and focusing on mothers with infants in high-risk groups, e.g. infants suffering from excessive weight gain, obesity, and malnutrition.

The effects of flaxseed or its oil supplementations on polycystic ovary syndrome: A systematic review of clinical trials.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is one of the most common endocrine disorders around the world that can endanger reproductive, metabolic, and psychological health in women. Flaxseed is considered as a functional food which provides remarkable amounts of α-linolenic acid (ALA), phytosterogenic lignans, and dietary fibers. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of flaxseed or its oil supplementation on PCOS patients. We systematically searched all published randomized clinical trials indexed in PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases from inception up to May 2022. Intended exposure and outcome were flaxseed or its oil and metabolic, anthropometric, and hormonal status of women with PCOS, respectively. Initial search via related keywords revealed 69 articles. After excluding duplicates, title and abstract of 55 remaining papers were screened. Fourteen papers were obtained for full text screening. Finally, nine clinical trials published between 2011 and 2021 were included in qualitative synthesis. Based on the results of the present systematic review, we suggest that flaxseed supplementation has the potential to improve metabolic, hormonal, and anthropometric parameters in women with PCOS. However, we also deduce that due to the scarcity of high-quality studies, additional studies need to be conducted in order to derive a solid conclusion.

The efficacy of sour tea (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) on selected cardiovascular disease risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.

This study sought to summarize clinical evidence of sour tea (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) administration on cardiovascular disease risk factors. PubMed, Scopus, Institute for Scientific Information Web of Science, and Google Scholar were systematically searched from inception to June 2019 to identify randomized clinical trials, which assessed the effect of sour tea consumption on lipid profiles, fasting plasma glucose, and blood pressure in adult populations. Mean and standard deviation for each parameter were extracted to calculate effect size. Cochrane Collaboration tools were used to evaluate risk of bias assessment. A total of seven randomized clinical trials consisting 362 participants were included in the meta-analysis. Pooled effect size demonstrated that sour tea consumption significantly reduces fasting plasma glucose (-3.67 mg/dl, 95% confidence interval, CI [-7.07, -0.27]; I2 = 37%), systolic blood pressure (-4.71 mmHg, 95% CI [-7.87, -1.55]; I2 = 53%), and diastolic blood pressure (-4.08 mmHg, 95% CI [-6.48, -1.67]; I2 = 14%). Although no significant effect was observed on triacylglycerol, total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol following sour tea consumption, a trend toward a significant reduction was found in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol serum concentrations (p = 0.08). This systematic review and meta-analysis suggests that sour tea consumption could have beneficial effect in controlling glycemic status and blood pressure among adult population.

Effect of vitamin supplementation on serum oxidized low-density lipoprotein levels in male subjects with cardiovascular disease risk factors.

OBJECTIVE(S): Oxidized low-density lipoproteins (ox-LDLs) appear to play a significant role in atherogenesis. In fact, circulating ox-LDL concentrations have been recognized as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). The main objectives of this study were to assess the effects of antioxidant vitamins on ox-LDL as a biomarker of CVD in male subjects with CVD risk factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The effect of antioxidant vitamins on ox-LDL as a biomarker of CVD in male subjects with CVD in male subjects with CVD risk factors at baseline and after 12 weeks of supplementation with vitamin E (400 IU), C (500 mg), ß-carotene (15 mg), and the combined supplements (E, C, and ß-carotene) respectively defined as group E, C, B and control group was considered as group P. RESULTS: The mean values for ox-LDL at the baseline were 86.93 ± 26.30 U/l in group C, 94.52 ± 38.40 U/l in group E, 79.73±2.07 U/l in group B, 85.97±23.07 U/l in combined group, and 84.90± 14.66 U/l in group P. After 12 weeks of intervention the percentage of changes for group C, group E, group B, COM group, and group P were (-18.32), (-2286), (-17.31), (-19.01) and (-2.0), respectively. Using Wilcoxon method, significant differences were detected in the mean ox-LDL concentrations of baseline and after intervention, values in the C, E, B and combined groups (P< 005). CONCLUSION: This study illustrated that diet supplemented with vitamin C (500 mg), vitamin E (400 IU), ß-carotene (15 mg), and the combination of these vitamins was associated with lower serum ox-LDL levels.