National nutrition surveillance programmes in 18 countries in South-East Asia and Western Pacific Regions: a systematic scoping review.

Objective: To identify and analyse ongoing nutrition-related surveillance programmes led and/or funded by national authorities in countries in South-East Asian and Western Pacific Regions. Methods: We systematically searched for publications in PubMed® and Scopus, manually searched the grey literature and consulted with national health and nutrition officials, with no restrictions on publication type or language. We included low- and middle-income countries in the World Health Organization South-East Asia Region, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China. We analysed the included programmes by adapting the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's public health surveillance evaluation framework. Findings: We identified 82 surveillance programmes in 18 countries that repeatedly collect, analyse and disseminate data on nutrition and/or related indicators. Seventeen countries implemented a national periodic survey that exclusively collects nutrition-outcome indicators, often alongside internationally linked survey programmes. Coverage of different subpopulations and monitoring frequency vary substantially across countries. We found limited integration of food environment and wider food system indicators in these programmes, and no programmes specifically monitor nutrition-sensitive data across the food system. There is also limited nutrition-related surveillance of people living in urban deprived areas. Most surveillance programmes are digitized, use measures to ensure high data quality and report evidence of flexibility; however, many are inconsistently implemented and rely on external agencies' financial support. Conclusion: Efforts to improve the time efficiency, scope and stability of national nutrition surveillance, and integration with other sectoral data, should be encouraged and supported to allow systemic monitoring and evaluation of malnutrition interventions in these countries.

Umami detection threshold among children of different ethnicities and its correlation with various indices of obesity and blood pressure.

Sensitivity to savory taste has been linked to high consumption of savory foods and increased risks of obesity and hypertension. However, there are limited studies that investigate whether obesity indices are correlated with the differences in umami taste perception, particularly in children. This study aimed to investigate the umami detection threshold among children of different ethnicities and the threshold's correlation with obesity indices and blood pressure. A total of 140 subjects were recruited and consisted of a nearly equal distribution of children from three main ethnicities (37.2% Malays, 31.4% Chinese, 31.4% Indians). Umami detection threshold was measured using the two-alternative, forced-choice staircase procedure. Body weight, height, waist circumference and blood pressure of children were measured. Body composition was assessed using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). Mean umami detection threshold was 1.22 ± 1.04 mM and there were no observable differences attributable to the subjects' ethnicities. Body fat percentage was negatively correlated (r = -0.171, p < 0.05), while lean body mass percentage was positively correlated (r = 0.171, p < 0.05) with umami detection threshold. These findings revealed that umami taste perception correlated with children's body composition, but not other anthropometric indicators and blood pressure. Future studies should explore the correlation between umami taste perception and children's total dietary intake.

No effect of monosodium glutamate on subjective appetite and subsequent energy intake in children of different ethnicities.

Studies have shown that monosodium glutamate (MSG) can enhance satiety and reduce appetite among infants and adults. In a multi-ethnic country such as Malaysia, it is also important to consider whether ethnic variations will influence the effects of MSG on appetite regulation. Thus, this crossover study aimed to investigate the effects of MSG on the subjective appetite and subsequent energy intake among Malaysian children from the three major ethnic groups, namely the Malays, Chinese and Indians. A total of 92 participants aged 9-11 years from the three ethnic groups were recruited for this study. A cup of low-energy vegetable preload soup (100g, with MSG or without MSG) was served to each of the participants on the day of the study, followed by an ad libitum meal 45 min later. Appetite ratings of hunger, fullness, desire to eat and desire to snack were recorded using visual analogue scale (VAS) before the preload, after the preload, before the ad libitum meal and after the ad libitum meal. Results showed that the subjective appetite of the children did not differ between preload conditions (MSG+ or MSG-) throughout the study. Malay, Chinese and Indian children had similar total energy intake during the subsequent meal after the consumption of preload soups. In conclusion, the addition of MSG to low energy preload neither influenced the perception of appetite nor total energy intake in a subsequent ad libitum meal among children. No difference attributable to the participants' ethnicity was observed. Future studies should be conducted to examine whether repeated ingestion of MSG-containing protein-rich preload has potential longer-term effects on appetite and subsequent meal intakes among children from different ethnicities.

Mucoadhesive thin films for the simultaneous delivery of microbicide and anti-inflammatory drugs in the treatment of periodontal diseases.

There is an unmet clinical need for new products to address the high percentage of the populous who present with periodontal diseases. Drug dose retention at the point of application would facilitate sustained release and more efficacious treatments. The aim of this study was to evaluate mucoadhesive polymeric thin films for simultaneous in situ delivery chlorhexidine and anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs. Mucoadhesive thin films were prepared using a polymer mixture containing chlorhexidine (25 mg) ± diclofenac sodium (10 and 50 mg), and lidocaine hydrochloride (10 mg) or betamethasone dipropionate (10 and 50 mg). The films were assessed for in vitro drug release and localised tissue delivery, followed by determination of modulated prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) levels in ex vivo tissue and cytotoxicity using a HaCaT keratinocyte cell line. Antibacterial activity of the chlorhexidine/diclofenac film was determined against planktonic and biofilm bacteria associated with periodontal disease and dental plaque. Chlorhexidine release was consistently low (up to 10% of initial loading) from all films, whereas the release of diclofenac, betamethasone and lidocaine exceeded 50% within 30 min. The 50 mg betamethasone film released up to 4-fold more than the 10 mg film. Statistically significant reduction of PGE2 was observed in ex vivo porcine gingival tissue for films containing chlorhexidine with or without diclofenac, and betamethasone. No cytotoxicity was observed for any film, apart from 50 mg betamethasone at 24 h. Films loaded with chlorhexidine and diclofenac were inhibitory against relevant test bacteria. Between 3 and 6 log10 reductions in bacterial cell recovery was observed after biofilm exposure to the chlorhexidine films irrespective of the presence of the anti-inflammatory or anaesthetic. This work demonstrated that thin film formulations have the potential to simultaneously counter key causative factors in periodontal diseases, namely associated bacteria biofilm and chronic local inflammation.