Relationship of body mass index to percent body fat determined by deuterium isotopic dilution and impedancemetry among Tunisian schoolchildren.

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the relation of body mass index (BMI) to fat mass among children by two techniques impedancemetry and deuterium oxide dilution (D2O). Methods: This study was carried out in 156 schoolchildren aged between 8 and 11 years. The children received interrogation specifying lifestyle and food habits. Body composition was determined using the impedancemetry and D2O technique. Results: The results showed a difference between the percentage of obese and overweight children according to BMIZ classification (30.1%), bioelectrical impedance method (14.7%) and D2O technique (42.9%). Despite the difference between the last two classifications, we found a significant correlation between body fat percentages determined by impedancemetry and D2O technique (r = 0.695, p<0.01). Bioelectrical impedance analysis underestimated %BF by 78.02% in overall children, by 70.05% in boys and by 84.73% in girls compared to D2O technique. Conclusion: This study has demonstrated that the percentage of overweight and obesity varied according the methods used. Further development of body composition methods is needed in children for the real determination of the obesity prevalence and therefore a better monitoring of this public health problem.

Apple Cider Vinegar Attenuates Oxidative Stress and Reduces the Risk of Obesity in High-Fat-Fed Male Wistar Rats.

Metabolic syndrome is a serious consequence of obesity characterized by increased cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, and glucose intolerance. While diets enriched with natural antioxidants showed beneficial effects on oxidative stress, blood pressure, and serum lipid composition, diet supplementation with synthetic antioxidants showed contradictive results. Thus, we tested, in this study, whether a daily dosage of Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) would affect cardiovascular risk factor associated with obesity in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced hyperlipidemic Wistar rats. Obese rats showed increased serum total cholesterol, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C), very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) and atherogenic index after 6 and 9 weeks of being fed an HFD. Importantly, ACV ameliorated all of these parameters significantly. Oxidative stress already developed after 6 weeks of HFD and was significantly reduced by daily doses of ACV. Oral administration of ACV normalized various biochemical and metabolic changes since it exhibited a very significant (P < .001) reduction in malondialdehyde levels, whereas an increase in thiol group concentrations and antioxidant status (superoxide dismutase [SOD], glutathione peroxidase [GPx], and catalase [CAT] activities and vitamin E concentrations). In addition, a modulation in trace element levels was observed when compared with HFD groups. These findings suggested that HFD alters the oxidant-antioxidant balance, as evidenced by a reduction in the antioxidant enzyme activities and vitamin E level, and enhanced lipid peroxidation. ACV can be beneficial for the suppression of obesity-induced oxidative stress in HFD rats through the modulating antioxidant defense system and reduces the risk of obesity-associated diseases by preventing the atherogenic risk.

Antidiabetic and Antioxidant Effects of Apple Cider Vinegar on Normal and Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a globally growing health problem and one of the most prevalent endocrine disorders worldwide. Chronic hyperglycemia status favors the manifestation of oxidative stress by increasing the production of reactive oxygen species and/or by reducing the antioxidant defense system activity. In this study, the beneficial effects of apple cider vinegar (ACV) supplementation on blood glucose level, hepatic and renal toxicity and antioxidant enzyme activities in normal and diabetic rats were investigated. Four groups (8 animals/group) of male Wistar rats were used. The animals were fasted overnight and DM was induced by an intraperitoneal injection of freshly prepared streptozotocin (STZ). Control rats were injected with citrate buffer only. ACV was administrated orally for 4 weeks. Our findings indicated that ACV increased the activity of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase (p < 0.001), catalase and glutathione peroxidase) as well as thiol concentration (p < 0.05). It also reduced lipid peroxidation levels (TBARS) and the indices of toxicity in liver and kidneys, by significantly decreasing aspartate and lactate transaminase (AST & ALT) activity, total and direct bilirubin (p < 0.001), urea (p < 0.001) and creatinine (p < 0.001) levels. Moreover, the plasma concentration of magnesium, calcium (p < 0.001) and copper increased after ACV administration. Iron levels however decreased. The concentration of vitamin E, an important antioxidant in vivo, was raised. In conclusion, the findings show that ACV possesses significant antihyperglycemic and antioxidant effects in an experimental model of DM, by preventing diabetic complications in liver and kidneys.

Indicators of oxidative stress in weanling and pubertal rats following exposure to nicotine via milk.

Nicotine, a major toxic component of tobacco, has been identified as an important risk factor for infant and children diseases. It is concentrated in breast milk and is absorbed by the infant. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effects of maternal nicotine exposure during lactation on breast-fed rats and at the pubertal age by measuring biomarkers of oxidative stress. Particularly, a new parameter, the thiol concentration was evaluated. Two groups of lactating Wistar rats were used. For the first group, female rats were given an intraperitoenal injection of nicotine or saline (2 mg/kg per day) during lactation. For the second group, we reproduced the same process described above and then the female and male pups were separately kept after weaning without any treatment until the puberty (at 45 days of age). In the liver and lung of the offspring, we examined the malondialdehyde (MDA) level, the thiol concentration, and the activities of two antioxidant enzymes: superoxyde dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT). In the plasma, alanine amino transferase (ALT) and aspartate amino transferase (AST) activities were measured. For rats aged 21 days, the treatment significantly reduced the thiol concentration, SOD, and CAT activities but increased MDA level, AST, and ALT activities. For rats aged 45 days, the males and females did not react the same way. In fact, the males were more affected. These results indicate that maternal nicotine exposure during the lactation period induces oxidative stress in the liver and lung of lactating offspring, which is maintained until the puberty, especially for the male rats.