Association of the Familial Coexistence of Child Stunting and Maternal Overweight with Indigenous Women in Guatemala.

Objectives This study investigated the association of the familial coexistence of child stunting and maternal overweight with indigenous women in Guatemala. Methods We selected 2388 child-mother pairs from the data set of the Living Standards Measurement Study conducted in Guatemala in 2000. This study examined the association between maternal and household characteristics and the nutritional status of children aged 6-60 months and mothers aged 18-49 years by using multivariable logistic regression models. Results Compared with non-indigenous households, a significantly higher percentage of indigenous households exhibited stunted child and overweight mother (SCOM) pairs (15.9 vs. 22.2%). Compared with normal-weight mothers, overweight mothers were less likely to have stunted children [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 0.66, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.50-0.88]. However, compared with mothers who were not short and overweight, short and overweight mothers were significantly more likely to have stunted children (AOR 1.80, 95% CI 1.19-2.73) and were more likely to be indigenous women living in urban areas (AOR 3.01, 95% CI 1.19-7.60) or rural areas (AOR 3.02, 95% CI 1.28-7.14). The order of observed prevalence of SCOM pairs in different types of households was as follows: urban indigenous (25.0%), rural indigenous (21.2%), rural non-indigenous (19.8%), and urban non-indigenous households (10.7%). Conclusions for Practice Urban indigenous households were more likely to have SCOM pairs. This study provided useful information for identifying the most vulnerable groups and areas with a high prevalence of the familial coexistence of child stunting and maternal overweight.

Qualitative exploration of cultural factors influencing diet among African-, Caribbean- and US-born Blacks living in the northeast USA.

Limited research considers the ethnic and cultural diversity among the US Black population, and how this diversity influences diet. The purpose of the present qualitative study is to (1) explore the influence of culture, nativity and ethnicity on the diet of US-born, African-born and Caribbean/Latin American-born Blacks and (2) explore a model of dietary acculturation among the African-born and Caribbean/Latin American-born Blacks. The purposive sample included twenty-two US-born, fifteen Caribbean/Latin American-born and ten African-born Blacks (n 47) living in Boston, who participated in either an in-depth interview (n 12) or a focus group (five groups, size 5-9). Satia-Abouta's model of dietary acculturation informed the interview and focus group questions, which explored the influence of psychosocial factors, taste preferences and environmental factors on dietary changes. NVivo 10 software was utilised for the coding and analysis. Topics based on a priori and posteriori analyses included differences in psychosocial factors and taste preferences and environmental factors by nativity. Caribbean/Latin American-born and African-born Blacks expressed the importance of cultural identity in their dietary preferences and found adaptive strategies to maintain cultural diet, while US-born Blacks demonstrated a variety of preferences for traditionally African American foods. Environmental factors varied by place of birth and residence, with US-born Blacks citing poorer quality and limited affordability of foods. These findings suggest the importance of psychosocial and environmental factors in shaping the diet of the ethnically diverse US Black population and underscore the dietary diversity within and across the different ethnic groups of Blacks.

Novel analgesic-antiinflammatory salicylates.

5-(2,4-Difluorophenyl)salicylic acid, diflunisal (25), is the best compound, in terms of both efficacy and safety, from over 500 salicylates investigated in our laboratories. It is a chemically distinct, nonacetylating salicylic acid, more active than aspirin as an analgesic and antiinflammatory agent and superior in duration of action and therapeutic index. Some recent clinical and biochemical observations are briefly discussed.

The nutritional impact of breakfast consumption on the diets of inner-city African-American elementary school children.

To determine the contribution of breakfast-eating behavior to dietary adequacy among low-income African-American children, 1151 children attending grades two through five at four elementary schools in East Orange, New Jersey were studied. Results of a 4-day eating behavior survey and a 24-hour dietary recall reveal that on any given day, 12% to 26% of children attend school without having eaten anything. Thirty-six percent of the children were obese, which did not vary with breakfast-eating behavior. A significantly greater proportion of the children who skipped breakfast compared to those who ate breakfast failed to achieve dietary adequacy for nearly every nutrient studied. More than one third of breakfast skippers consumed < 50% of the recommended dietary allowance for vitamins A, E, B6, and folacin, and nearly one fourth consumed < 50% of the recommended dietary allowance for calories, vitamin C, calcium, and iron. Not eating breakfast results in substantial deficits in dietary intake of a variety of essential nutrients among low-income African-American school children. Efforts to improve the nutritional status of children should include nutrition education to promote breakfast.

Perceptions of academic strategies and competence in students with learning disabilities.

Research findings regarding general self-concept, academic self-concept, and self-awareness in students with learning disabilities have varied, and results are still inconclusive regarding the consistency between students' and teachers' judgments of academic performance. The current study focuses on students' and teachers perceptions of the students' strategy use and performance in nine different academic and organizational domains. Six hundred sixty-three students and their 57 teachers were involved in the study. Findings indicated that the students with learning disabilities considered themselves appropriately strategic and competent in the five domains of reading, writing, spelling, math, and organization. These students also rated their academic performance and organization as average to above-average in seven of nine domains, with the exception of checking and planning their work. Nevertheless, the self-ratings of the students with learning disabilities were still significantly lower than the self-ratings of average achievers in virtually all domains. The second major set of findings revealed a sharp discrepancy between the self-assessments of the students with learning disabilities and their teachers' judgments. Teachers rated the students with learning disabilities as weak in their strategy use and below-average in their performance in all nine academic and organizational domains. Finally, gender differences were not evident in eight of the nine domains. These results have added to the increasing body of literature indicating that students with learning disabilities frequently perceive themselves as capable and effective and often rate themselves as academically stronger than their teachers judge them to be.

A comparison of stress and coping by fathers of adolescents with mental retardation and fathers of adolescents without mental retardation.

This investigation was an attempt to provide comparative information regarding stress and coping in fathers of adolescents with mental retardation and fathers of adolescents without mental retardation. Subjects for the study were 40 fathers of adolescents with mental retardation and 31 fathers of adolescents without mental retardation.

Acceptability of micronutrient fortified school meals by schoolchildren in rural Himalayan villages of India.

This cross-sectional randomized controlled study assessed the social acceptability of micronutrient fortified cooked lunch meals by schoolchildren in rural Himalayan villages of India, in a program where the cooking and the micronutrient fortification were done at school. Subjects were randomly assigned to treatment (91) and control (90) groups. The treatment group consumed a weighed amount of cooked lunch meals fortified with locally produced multi-micronutrient premix and the control group consumed a weighed amount of the same meals but without added micronutrient premix. After having eaten, subjects were asked to rate, on a 3-point Likert scale using "smiley" faces, the pleasantness of smell, taste, and overall satisfaction with the food. The mean age of study children was 7.96 +/- 1.64 y and 48.6% were males. The average amounts of food consumed by the treatment and control groups were 345 +/- 114 and 360 +/- 102.4 g, respectively. Addition of the multi-micronutrient premix to school meals did not significantly affect the mean amount of food consumed by the schoolchildren (P > 0.05; independent sample t-test). No significant differences were seen between treatment and control groups in terms of ratings for taste, smell, and the general acceptance of the micronutrient fortified or the unfortified school meals. In conclusion, the addition of a multiple micronutrient premix to school meals was well liked by schoolchildren and did not adversely affect their food consumption.

Coexistence of maternal central adiposity and child stunting in Mexico.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the coexistence of maternal adiposity and child stunting (CS) in Mexico, estimate its national prevalence and identify the associated socio-demographic factors. METHODS: A secondary analysis from the Mexican Nutrition Survey 1999, a nationally representative survey, was conducted. Mother and children subsamples were matched and a total of 6225 mother/child pairs were obtained. Stunting was defined as height-for-age z-scores <-2.0. Maternal body mass index (BMI) was classified according to World Health Organization recommended cutoff points. Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) was calculated by dividing waist by hip circumferences. Logistic regression models were fitted to explore the coexistence of CS and maternal central adiposity (MCA) (WHR> or =0.85) while controlling for biological and socio-demographic factors. RESULTS: A total of 5974 pairs had complete information. MCA coexisted with CS in 6.2% of the mother/child pairs. The phenomenon was more prevalent in rural locations, in the south region and among indigenous families (14.5, 12.5 and 23.9%). After controlling for child age and maternal BMI, a 78% increase in the likelihood of CS was related to maternal WHR > or =0.85 (odds ratio (OR)=1.78, 95% confidence interval (CI)=1.53, 2.10). After controlling for maternal height, the magnitude of the OR decreased (OR=1.33, 95%CI=1.13, 1.57), but remained significant. Therefore, it is suggested that women with a WHR approximately 1 have had twice the probability of having a stunted child as those with a WHR of 0.65. CONCLUSION: Although MCA and CS are two conditions frequently regarded as result of opposite determinants, our observation suggests that this is not necessarily the case, particularly in populations undergoing the nutrition transition. MCA was associated not only to chronic diseases, but also to child stunting.

Evidence of prior infection with influenza A/Texas/77 (H3N2( virus in dogs with clinical parainfluenza.

Eighty dogs exhibiting clinical signs of respiratory disease were sampled for influenza virus isolation and serologically tested for hemagglutination inhibiting antibody to influenza A/Hong Kong/68, A/Victoria/75, A/Texas/77 and A/USSR/77. Forty-one animals without clinical signs of respiratory disease were also examined serologically. Hemagglutinating agents were isolated from nasal and/or pharyngeal swabs taken from 21 of the 80 dogs with clinical respiratory disease. Twenty of these 21 isolates were canine parainfluenza virus. Twenty-one of 80 clinically ill animals (26.3%) and eight of 41 normal animals (19.5%) had low level hemagglutination inhibiting antibody to influenza A/Texas/77. There was no evidence that human influenza caused the respiratory disease in the dogs included in this study, since none had an increase in hemagglutination inhibiting antibody to influenza in convalescent sera. The presence of antibody to A/Texas/77, however, does suggest the possibility that these dogs had at some time been infected with this virus, and that dogs could play a role in the epidemiology of influenza in man.

5-demethylubiquinone-9-methyltransferase from rat liver mitochondria. Characterization, localization, and solubilization.

The methyltransferase responsible for the conversion of 5-demethylubiquinone-9 to ubiquinone-9 in rat liver mitochondria has been shown to be localized in the inner membrane of rat liver mitochondria. NADH was required to generate the hydroquinone, which was the immediate substrate for methylation. The Km for 5-demethylubiquinone-9 was estimated to be in the range of 60 to 80 nM and the Km for S-adenosylmethionine was found to be 22 micronM. The methyl-transferase was solubilized by Triton X-100, a procedure which inactivated the 5-demethylubiquinone-9 reductase. Dithionite was found to partially substitute for NADH in both membranous and soluble systems. Inhibitors of catechol-O-methyltransferase were not effective inhibitors of 5-demethylubiquinone-9-methyltransferase. In addition, catechol-O-methyltransferase and 5-demethylubiquinone-9-methyltransferase were found to have reciprocal subcellular localizations. It is likely that the hydrophobic side chain of ubiquinone, added to p-hydroxybenzoate in the first biosynthetic step, is required for attachment to the lipid bilayer. This permits subsequent metabolism of the ring system by membrane-bound enzymes, including the final methylation to form ubiquinone-9.

Minimally functional rat adrenal medullary pheochromocytomas.

In this study of 29-month-old male Fischer and Sprague-Dawley rats, the tumor pheochromocytoma occurred in seven of 20 Fischer rats (35%) and ten of 22 Sprague-Dawley rats (45%). Mean blood pressures and mean urinary vanillylmandelic acid levels of rats with pheochromocytomas did not vary significantly from rats with no tumors. Pheochromocytoma in our rats generally was non-functional or of minimal clinical significance. The content of chromaffin granules in tumor cells varied from abundant to not detectable, thus it was apparent that the absence of detectable chromaffin granules does not eliminate the diagnosis of pheochromocytoma.