[The role of dietary factors and nutrients in rheumatoid arthritis]. / Étrendi tényezok és tápanyagok szerepe rheumatoid arthritisben.

Rheumatoid arthritis is the most common autoimmune inflammatory joint disease. Internal and external factors may play a role in its development. In recent years, an increasing number of studies highlighted that diet has a central role in the risk and progression of the disease. Several foods and nutrients present anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that have protective effects on the development and outcome of rheumatoid arthritis. The aim of this review is to summarize and describe the results of randomized clinical trials or cohorts that have investigated the effects of diet and nutrition in relation to rheumatoid arthritis and the potential role of dietary therapy in the management of rheumatoid arthritis. Certain dietary patterns and components can be used as adjunctive therapies in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and may contribute to the effective reduction of disease activity, the induction of remission and its long-term maintenance. At present, there is no nutrition guideline on the dietary management of rheumatoid arthritis and it is therefore important to objectively assess the potential effects and risks of dietary factors and dietary habits. Orv Hetil. 2023; 164(27): 1052-1061.

Possible Biochemical Processes Underlying the Positive Health Effects of Plant-Based Diets-A Narrative Review.

Plant-based diets are becoming more popular for many reasons, and epidemiological as well as clinical data also suggest that a well-balanced vegan diet can be adopted for the prevention, and in some cases, in the treatment of many diseases. In this narrative review, we provide an overview of the relationships between these diets and various conditions and their potential biochemical background. As whole plant foods are very rich in food-derived antioxidants and other phytochemicals, they have many positive physiological effects on different aspects of health. In the background of the beneficial health effects, several biochemical processes could stand, including the reduced formation of trimethylamine oxide (TMAO) or decreased serum insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) levels and altered signaling pathways such as mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR). In addition, the composition of plant-based diets may play a role in preventing lipotoxicity, avoiding N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc), and reducing foodborne endotoxin intake. In this article, we attempt to draw attention to the growing knowledge about these diets and provide starting points for further research.

Health behavior of Hungarian prostate cancer patients / Prosztatarákkal diagnosztizált betegek egészségmagatartásának vizsgálata.

Összefoglaló. Bevezetés: A férfiakat érinto egyik leggyakoribb malignus ráktípus a prosztatarák. A Nemzeti Rákregiszter adatai alapján hazánkban évente több mint 4600 új eset kerül diagnosztizálásra. Célkituzés: A rákbetegek pszichoszociális háttere napjainkig alulvizsgált terület Magyarországon. A szerzok célja a magyar prosztatarákos férfiak szociodemográfiai, egészségi, mentális állapotának vizsgálata volt. Módszer: A vizsgálatban 100 prosztatarákos férfi vett részt, akiknek más urológiai betegsége nem volt, továbbá más daganatos betegségbol kifolyó kezelésben nem részesültek a kérdoív kitöltésekor. A részvétel anonim és önkéntes volt. A standard validált tesztek mellett - mint a Beck Depresszió Kérdoív, Rosenberg Önértékelés Skála - szociodemográfiai, egészségmagatartás- és életmód-kérdéscsoportokat tartalmazott kérdoívünk. Statisztikai analízis: Leíró statisztikát, khi-négyzet-próbát, lineáris regresszió analízist, Fisher-egzakt tesztet, kétmintás t-próbát végeztünk 95%-os valószínuségi szinten az SPSS 20.0 és a Microsoft Excel 2016-os programban. Eredmények: Az egészségi állapotot a lakhely településcsoportja (p = 0,024), az anyagi helyzet (p = 0,001), a krónikus betegség (p = 0,000), a fizikai aktivitás (p = 0,000) és az alkoholfogyasztás (p = 0,001) befolyásolta. A társas támogatás (p = 0,726) ellenben nem bizonyult befolyásoló tényezonek. A megkérdezettek 66%-a volt elhízott a BMI alapján. Helyesen csupán a megkérdezettek egyharmada táplálkozott a ma érvényes MDOSZ-ajánlás alapján. 62%-uk enyhén depressziósnak volt mondható a Beck Depresszió Kérdoív alapján, 73%-uk önértékelése azonban a Rosenberg Önértékelés Skála alapján átlagosnak volt mondható. Az életkorral nem nott sem a Depresszió Kérdoív pontszáma, sem az Önértékelés Skála pontszáma. Következtetés: Eredményeink alátámasztják, amit a hazai és a külföldi szakirodalom is mutat: az egészséget befolyásoló tényezoknek meghatározó szerepük van a daganatos megbetegedéssel éloknél is. A depresszió és az önértékelés közti összefüggés nem igazolódott a mintánkban. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(10): 383-391. INTRODUCTION: Prostate cancer is one of the most common malignant cancers amongst men. More than 4600 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year in Hungary. OBJECTIVE: The psychosocial background of cancer patients is an underexamined area in Hungary. The aim of the authors was to obtain information on the sociodemographic status, health and mental status of Hungarian men with prostate cancer. METHOD: 100 prostate cancer patiens were included in the study who did not have any urologic diseases and did not go under any therapy due to any other type of cancer. The applied questionnaire was put together by the authors about sociodemographic and health status, lifestyle. The Beck's Depression Inventory and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale were also used. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: We used descriptive statistics, chi-square test, linear regression, Fisher's exact test, independent t-sample test on a 95% probability level in the SPSS 20.0 and Microsoft Excel 2016 softwers. RESULTS: The settlement classification (p = 0.024), financial status (p = 0.001), chronic illnesses (p = 0.000), physical activity (p = 0.000) and alcohol consumption (p = 0.001) affected the health status. Only one third of the respondents ate healthy according to the recommendations of the MDOSZ. 66% of the respondents were overweight. 62% of the respondents were depressed according to the Beck's Depression Inventory, however, 73% of them had average self-esteem measured by the Rosenberg Scale. We proved that with age either the depression score or the self-esteem score did not increase. CONCLUSION: Our results roughly mirror the national and international literature about health behavior. No connection was found between self-esteem and depression. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(10): 383-391.

[Plant-based diets: a review]. / A növényi alapú étrendrol.

Plant-based diet is an old-new trend in nutrition. In this review based on a historical context, we wish to introduce this popular nutritional trend. Our aim is to present plant-based diet as a primary measure for prevention. We intend to critically analyse some past stereotypes related to plant-based diet - whose main components include fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds - according to the literature (e.g. protein, vitamin B12, folic acid, and iron intake) by doing so we wish to create an adequate conceptual basis for its interpretation. We discuss positive physiological effects of plant-based diet and its possible role in diseases risk reduction. Cardiovascular and metabolic diseases developing due to obesity could be prevented by a properly compiled plant-based diet. For patients with cancer minimizing the intake of foods of animal origin - as opposed to plant-based ones - has proved to have positive effects. Our review suggests this diet can be used in a number of diseases and it also provides long-term sustainable solutions for the health care challenges of the newest era. Orv. Hetil., 2016, 157(47), 1859-1865.

Effects of artificial sweeteners on body weight, food and drink intake.

Artificial sweeteners are widely used all over the world. They may assist in weight management, prevention of dental caries, control of blood glucose of diabetics, and also can be used to replace sugar in foods. In the animal experimentation mice were given oral doses of water solutions of table top artificial sweeteners (saccharin, cyclamate based, acesulfame-K based, and aspartame) the amount of maximum Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) ad libitum. The controls received only tap water with the same drinking conditions as the treated groups. The mice were fed chow ad libitum.We measured food intake and body weight once a week, water and solutions of artificial sweeteners intake twice a week. The data were analysed by statistical methods (T-probe, regression analysis).Consumption of sweeteners resulted in significantly increased body weight; however, the food intake did not change.These results question the effect of non-caloric artificial sweeteners on weight-maintenance or body weight decrease.

The effect of aspartame administration on oncogene and suppressor gene expressions.

BACKGROUND: Aspartame (L-phenylalanine N-L-alpha-aspartyl-1-methyl ester) is an artificial sweetener with widespread applications. Previously published results have shown that among rats receiving aspartame a significant increase of lymphoreticular neoplasms, brain tumours and transitional cell tumours occurred. The aim of our short-term experiment was to investigate the biological effect of aspartame consumption by determining the expressions of key oncogenes and a tumour suppressor gene. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After one week per os administration of various doses of aspartame to CBA/CA female mice, p53, c-myc, Ha-ras gene expression alterations were determined in individual organs. RESULTS: The results showed an increase in gene expressions concerning all the investigated genes especially in organs with a high proliferation rate: lymphoreticular organs, bone-marrow and kidney. CONCLUSION: Aspartame has a biological effect even at the recommended daily maximum dose.