A Combined Dietary and Cognitive Intervention in 3⁻5-Year-Old Children in Indonesia: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Early childhood nutritional interventions typically combine nutritional and psychosocial stimulation. Such combined interventions result in long-lasting improvements of cognitive abilities in children who are malnourished. Here, we investigated potential cognitive abilities in normally developing children in Indonesia who were, however, at risk for suboptimal cognitive development due to little psychosocial stimulation in their home environment. In a randomized controlled intervention, children of the experimental group received nutritional supplementation combined with cognitive stimulation. Pre- and post-intervention measurements included cognitive development and functioning, behavior, and mother⁻child interaction. The experimental and control group received nutritional supplementation in the form of a fortified or unfortified milk powder, respectively. Additionally, the children and parents of the experimental group jointly engaged in daily learning activities at home and performed iPad-based tasks designed to foster cognitive abilities. The experimental group compared to the control group displayed a significantly higher increase in intelligence quotient as well as a significantly larger reduction in attentional problems after the intervention. These results indicate that low-level cognitive stimulation in combination with nutritional supplementation during early childhood can be an effective intervention that improves global cognitive functioning in healthy developing children. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02359669.

Improvement of cardiometabolic markers after fish oil intervention in young Mexican adults and the role of PPARα L162V and PPARγ2 P12A.

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) contained in fish oil (FO) are ligands for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) that may induce changes in cardiometabolic markers. Variation in PPAR genes may influence the beneficial responses linked to FO supplementation in young adults. The study aimed to analyze the effect of FO supplementation on glucose metabolism, circulating lipids and inflammation according to PPARα L162V and PPARγ2 P12A genotypes in young Mexican adults. 191 young, non-smoking subjects between 18 and 40 years were included in a one-arm study. Participants were supplemented with 2.7 g/day of EPA+DHA, during six weeks. Dietary analysis, body composition measurements and indicators for glucose metabolism, circulating lipids, and markers for inflammation were analyzed before and after intervention. An overall decrease in triglycerides (TG) and an increase in HS-ω3 index were observed in all subjects [-4.1 mg/dL, (SD:±51.7), P=.02 and 2.6%, (SD:±1.2), P<.001 respectively]. Mean fasting insulin and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c%) were significantly decreased in all subjects [-0.547mlU/L, (SD:±10.29), P=.034 and-0.07%, (SD:±0.3), P<.001 respectively], whereas there was no change in body composition, fasting glucose, adiponectin and inflammatory markers. Subjects carrying the minor alleles of PPARα L162V and PPARγ2 P12A had higher responses in reduction of TG and fasting insulin respectively. Interestingly, doses below 2.7 g/day (1.8 g/day) were sufficient to induce a significant reduction in fasting insulin and HbA1c% from baseline (P=.019 and P<.001). The observed responses in triglycerides and fasting insulin in the Mexican population give further evidence of the importance of FO supplementation in young people as an early step towards the prevention of cardiometabolic disease.