Zinc status or supplementation and its relation to soil-transmitted helminthiasis in children: A systematic review.

Soil-transmitted helminths (STHs) parasitic infection is known as one of the most common infections around the world affecting more than a quarter of the world's population. The relationship between STH infections and micronutrient deficiencies are closely related and often coexist among the affected population. The study, therefore, aimed to summarise the available literature focusing on the effect of zinc status/deficiency or supplementation on STH infection or reinfection in children. For this purpose, we adopted a systematic approach and searched the existing literature on PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane Library databases. A search term was entered to retrieve the available data. A total of 12 articles were included in this review after applying the inclusion/exclusion criteria. Most of the included studies reported a lower zinc status in children affected with any parasitic infection. Regarding the effect of zinc status and supplementation on parasitic infection in children, we found only a few studies (n = 4) with inconsistent result findings. This review reported that children infected with STH have lower zinc levels; however, a limited number of studies showed the effect of zinc supplements on the risk of STH warrants the need for further studies in this regard.

Spirulina, an FDA-Approved Functional Food: Worth the Hype?

Spirulina, a blue-green microalga is an eminent functional food due to its unique nutritional and disease-mitigating properties. The main objective of this article is to present an overview of the nutritional composition of Spirulina. Along with its therapeutic potential and applications in the food industry. Studies included in this review have suggested spirulina to be a rich source of complete proteins, essential fatty acids (EFAs), vitamins, minerals and various bioactive compounds like carotenoids, chlorophyll, and xanthophylls. This makes Spirulina a promising functional food for the treatment of ailments like diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disorders (CVDs), COVID-19, neuroinflammatory conditions and gut dysbiosis. Additionally, data from numerous studies suggest its use in food formulations, primarily in sports supplements, bakery products, beverages, dairy products, snack sources and confectionaries. It has also been used by the National Aeronautics and Space Association (NASA) for astronauts on space missions to the Moon and Mars. Furthermore, spirulina's use as a natural food additive possesses enormous potential for further research. Owing to its high nutritional profile and disease-fighting potential, it lends itself to numerous food formulations. Therefore, based on the findings of previous studies, further progress can be made considering spirulina's application in the food additive industry.

Effect of inulin, galacto oligosaccharides and iron fortification on iron deficiency anemia among women of reproductive age; a randomized controlled trial.

Iron supplementation and fortification are the well-known approaches to treat iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in women of reproductive age. The objective of the current randomized controlled trial (RCT) was to evaluate the cumulative effects of prebiotics and iron fortification among women of reproductive age. For this purpose, a total of 75 iron deficient women of childbearing age were recruited and randomly divided into 5 groups (4 treatment groups and 1 control group). Four different types of fortified wheat flour were prepared using two iron fortificants (NaFeEDTA and FeSO4) and two prebiotics [inulin and galacto oligosaccharides (GOS)], while control group was treated with iron fortified flour without any prebiotics. Blood samples were collected from overnight fasted women on monthly basis up to 90 days. Hematological indices such as Hemoglobin (Hb), Hematocrit, Red Blood Cell (RBC) Count and Mean Corpuscular Volume (MCV), as well as iron biomarkers including serum iron, ferritin, transferrin, and Total Iron Binding Capacity (TIBC) were evaluated for analyses. The results showed a considerable positive improvement in all iron biomarkers as well as hematological indices among the treatment groups (P-value < 0.05), as compared to the control group. A maximum Hb (11.86 ± 0.24 mg/dL) and hematocrit value (35.06 ± 1.32%), was reported in group G3 which was treated with fortified wheat flour at a dose of 963 mg/kg GOS + 15 ppm FeSO4. On the other hand, highest mean values for RBC Count (4.73 ± 0.41 mil/mm3), MCV (81.41 ± 3.21 fL), serum iron (75.62 ± 2.79 µg/dL), serum transferrin (16.82 ± 0.30 mg/dL), and TIBC (403.68 ± 7.27 µg/dL) were observed in G4 group receiving the fortified wheat flour at a dose of 963 mg/kg GOS + 30 ppm FeSO4 level. The study concluded that prebiotic fortification along with iron salts helps to enhance iron absorption among iron deficiency anemic women of reproductive age.

Nutrition competence of primary care physicians in Saudi Arabia: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: Primary care physicians have an opportunity to support healthy dietary behaviours of patients by providing nutrition care. However, it is unclear whether primary care physicians in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) are sufficiently competent in nutrition. This study aimed to assess the nutrition competence of primary care physicians in KSA and identify whether nutrition competence is associated with the provision of nutrition care to patients living with diet-related chronic disease. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SETTING: Chronic disease clinics across 48 primary care centres under the Ministry of Health in the city of Jeddah, KSA. PARTICIPANTS: 90 primary care physicians completed the survey (response rate: 98%). General practitioners and family medicine residents, specialists, and consultants actively working in chronic disease clinics between February and May 2019 were included. PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Primary outcome measure was nutrition competence of primary care physicians measured via the validated NUTCOMP (nutrition competence) questionnaire. RESULTS: Primary care physicians perceived themselves as competent in nutrition care but their reported provision of nutrition care was limited. Confidence in their nutrition knowledge and skills elicited the lowest mean scores of 25.8 (±5.4) out of 35 and 29 (±5.2) out of 40, respectively. The reported provision of nutrition care was closely correlated with physicians' confidence in their nutrition knowledge (r=0.57) and communication (r=0.52). Three factors were identified as predicting whether physicians provide nutrition care to patients: confidence in counselling about nutrition (p<0.001), having previous nutrition education (p=0.005) and a higher professional qualification (p=0.008). CONCLUSIONS: Primary care physicians felt confident in providing nutrition care to patients living with diet-related chronic disease. Primary care physicians would benefit from higher levels of nutrition knowledge and skills to effectively support patients to improve their dietary behaviours and health conditions, leading to a positive impact on public health.