scholarly journals The Healthfulness of the US Packaged Food and Beverage Supply: A Cross-Sectional Study

Nutrients ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1704 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abigail S. Baldridge ◽  
Mark D. Huffman ◽  
Fraser Taylor ◽  
Dagan Xavier ◽  
Brooke Bright ◽  
...  

The US food supply is dominated by highly-processed packaged food and beverage products that are high in energy, saturated fat, sugar, and salt. We report results of a cross-sectional assessment of the 2018 US packaged food and beverage supply by nutritional composition and indicators of healthfulness and level of processing. Data were obtained through Label Insight’s Open Data database, which represents >80% of all food and beverage products sold in the US over the past three years. Healthfulness and the level of processing, measured by the Health Star Rating (HSR) system and the NOVA classification framework, respectively, were compared across product categories and leading manufacturers. Among 230,156 food and beverage products, the mean HSR was 2.7 (standard deviation (SD) 1.4) from a possible maximum rating of 5.0, and 71% of products were classified as ultra-processed. Healthfulness and level of processing varied substantially by category (range: HSR 1.1–3.9; 0–100% ultra-processed) and manufacturer (range: HSR 0.9–4.6; 26–100% ultra-processed). The US packaged food and beverage supply is large, heterogeneous, highly processed, and generally unhealthy. The wide variability in healthfulness and level of processing demonstrates that opportunities exist, through reformulation or replacement, for large-scale improvements to the healthfulness of the US packaged food and beverage supply.

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1508
Author(s):  
Mayra Meza-Hernández ◽  
David Villarreal-Zegarra ◽  
Lorena Saavedra-Garcia

The purpose of this paper was to determine the foods and beverages offered in the city of Lima, Peru, that would be subject to front-of-package warning labels (octagons) according to the thresholds for the two phases (6 and 39 months after the approval) for nutrients of concern (sugar, sodium, saturated fat, and trans-fat) included in the Peruvian Law of Healthy Eating. An observational, descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted that evaluated the nutritional composition of processed and ultra-processed foods that are sold in a supermarket chain in Lima. Of all the processed and ultra-processed foods captured, foods that report nutritional information and do not require reconstitution to be consumed were included. A descriptive analysis was carried out by food categories to report the nutrient content and the percentage of foods that would be subject to front-of-package warning labels. Results: A total of 1234 foods were evaluated, according to the initial thresholds that became effective 6 months after the law was implemented; 35.9% of foods had two octagons; 34.8% had one octagon; 15.8% had no octagons; 12% had three octagons; and no products had four octagons. At 39 months, when the final and more restrictive thresholds become effective, 4.8% did not have octagons. The majority of processed and ultra-processed foods that are sold in a Peruvian supermarket chain carry at least one octagon, and more than 10% of them carry octagons for three of the four nutrients of concern.


Author(s):  
Courtney E. Romolt ◽  
Kyle Melin ◽  
Kinaya Y. Hardie ◽  
Sarah M. Baker ◽  
Nicolette A. Louissaint

Abstract Objectives: This article aims to: (1) describe the ‘Return to Open Pharmacy Operations’ in Puerto Rico following the hurricanes Irma and Maria in the 2017 hurricane season, and (2) compare the recovery rate (Return to Open Pharmacy Operations) during the 2017 hurricane season between the US Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the state of Florida. Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study of pharmacy operations in Puerto Rico utilizing Rx Open data for pharmacies in Puerto Rico during the 2017 hurricane season. To compare open rates of pharmacy operations over time in different contexts, we also analyzed Rx Open data for the state of Florida for Hurricane Irma. Results: Only 11.1% of pharmacies remained open in Puerto Rico 3 days after Hurricane Maria made landfall, and Puerto Rico pharmacy operations recovered slowly, at an average daily rate of 3.9% before reaching pre-landfall baseline operations. Puerto Rico pharmacy operations after Hurricane Maria recovered 10 times slower on average, compared to pharmacy operations in Florida after Hurricane Irma which reached baseline operations less than 1 week following Hurricane Irma’s landfall. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate the unique severity of Hurricane Maria’s impacts on Puerto Rico’s health system.


Diabetes ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 2393-PUB
Author(s):  
KENICHIRO TAKAHASHI ◽  
MINORI SHINODA ◽  
RIKA SAKAMOTO ◽  
JUN SUZUKI ◽  
TADASHI YAMAKAWA ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Zendle

A variety of practices have recently emerged which are related to both video games and gambling. Most prominent of these are loot boxes. However, a broad range of other activities have recently emerged which are also related to both gambling and video games: esports betting, real-money video gaming, token wagering, social casino play, and watching videos of both loot box opening and gambling on game streaming services like Twitch.Whilst a nascent body of research has established the robust existence of a relationship between loot box spending and both problem gambling and disordered gaming, little research exists which examines whether similar links may exist for the diverse practices outlined above. Furthermore, no research has thus far attempted to estimate the prevalence of these activities.A large-scale survey of a representative sample of UK adults (n=1081) was therefore conducted in order to investigate these issues. Engagement in all measured forms of gambling-like video game practices were significantly associated with both problem gambling and disordered gaming. An aggregate measure of engagement was associated with both these outcomes to a clinically significant degree (r=0.23 and r=0.43). Engagement in gambling-like video game practices appeared widespread, with a 95% confidence interval estimating that 16.3% – 20.9% of the population engaged in these activities at least once in the last year. Engagement in these practices was highly inter-correlated: Individuals who engaged in one practice were likely to engage in several more.Overall, these results suggest that the potential effects of the blurring of lines between video games and gambling should not primarily be understood to be due to the presence of loot boxes in video games. They suggest the existence of a convergent ecosystem of gambling-like video game practices, whose causal relationships with problem gambling and disordered gaming are currently unclear but must urgently be investigated.


Author(s):  
Osama Abdelkarim ◽  
Julian Fritsch ◽  
Darko Jekauc ◽  
Klaus Bös

Physical fitness is an indicator for children’s public health status. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the construct validity and the criterion-related validity of the German motor test (GMT) in Egyptian schoolchildren. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a total of 931 children aged 6 to 11 years (age: 9.1 ± 1.7 years) with 484 (52%) males and 447 (48%) females in grades one to five in Assiut city. The children’s physical fitness data were collected using GMT. GMT is designed to measure five health-related physical fitness components including speed, strength, coordination, endurance, and flexibility of children aged 6 to 18 years. The anthropometric data were collected based on three indicators: body height, body weight, and BMI. A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted with IBM SPSS AMOS 26.0 using full-information maximum likelihood. The results indicated an adequate fit (χ2 = 112.3, df = 20; p < 0.01; CFI = 0.956; RMSEA = 0.07). The χ2-statistic showed significant results, and the values for CFI and RMSEA showed a good fit. All loadings of the manifest variables on the first-order latent factors as well as loadings of the first-order latent factors on the second-order superordinate factor were significant. The results also showed strong construct validity in the components of conditioning abilities and moderate construct validity in the components of coordinative abilities. GMT proved to be a valid method and could be widely used on large-scale studies for health-related fitness monitoring in the Egyptian population.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1211
Author(s):  
Li-Te Lin ◽  
Kuan-Hao Tsui

The relationship between serum dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate (DHEA-S) and anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) levels has not been fully established. Therefore, we performed a large-scale cross-sectional study to investigate the association between serum DHEA-S and AMH levels. The study included a total of 2155 infertile women aged 20 to 46 years who were divided into four quartile groups (Q1 to Q4) based on serum DHEA-S levels. We found that there was a weak positive association between serum DHEA-S and AMH levels in infertile women (r = 0.190, p < 0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, serum DHEA-S levels positively correlated with serum AMH levels in infertile women (β = 0.103, p < 0.001). Infertile women in the highest DHEA-S quartile category (Q4) showed significantly higher serum AMH levels (p < 0.001) compared with women in the lowest DHEA-S quartile category (Q1). The serum AMH levels significantly increased across increasing DHEA-S quartile categories in infertile women (p = 0.014) using generalized linear models after adjustment for potential confounders. Our data show that serum DHEA-S levels are positively associated with serum AMH levels.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 1587
Author(s):  
Yasmin Amaral ◽  
Leila Silva ◽  
Fernanda Soares ◽  
Daniele Marano ◽  
Sylvia Nehab ◽  
...  

Background: To evaluate the potential factors associated with the nutritional composition of human milk of puerperal women. Methods: cross-sectional study, conducted between March 2016 and August 2017, with 107 women, selected in a Tertiary Health Care Tertiary Health Facility of the Unified Health System (SUS) in the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro. Data were collected two months after delivery. The dependent variable of the study was the nutritional composition of human milk. We divided the independent variables into hierarchical levels: distal (age, schooling, parity and pregestational nutritional status), intermediate (number of prenatal visits and gestational weight gain) and proximal (alcohol consumption, smoking, diabetes mellitus and hypertension). For data analysis, we applied the multiple linear regression, centered on the hierarchical model. Only the variables associated with the nutritional composition of breast milk remained in the final model at a 5% level of significance. Results: The nutritional composition of human milk yielded by women with pregestational overweight, smokers and hypertensive had higher amounts of lipids and energy. Conversely, women with gestational weight gain below the recommended had lower amounts of these components. Conclusion: The evaluation of factors associated with the nutritional composition of human milk is extremely important to assist post-partum care practices. In this study, we observed that lipid and energy contents were associated to pregestational nutritional status, gestational weight gain, smoking and hypertension.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-136
Author(s):  
Rogomenoma Alice Ouedraogo ◽  
Théodora Mahoukèdè Zohoncon ◽  
Ina Marie Angèle Traore ◽  
Abdoul Karim Ouattara ◽  
Sindimalgdé Patricia Guigma ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectivethis study was conducted to determine the distribution of high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) genotypes in women in the general population of three regions of Burkina Faso.MethodThis multicenter, descriptive cross-sectional study involved 1321 sexually active women in five cities in three regions of Burkina Faso: Central, Central-Eastern and Hauts-Bassins regions. After collection of endocervical specimens, pre-cervical lesions were screened by visual inspection with acetic acid and lugol (VIA / VILI). HR-HPV genotypes were characterized by multiplex real-time PCR after extraction of viral DNA.ResultsThe mean age of women was 31.98 ± 10.09 years. The HR-HPV infection in the three regions ranged from 26.16% to 43.26% with 35.42% as overall prevalence in women. The most common HR-HPV genotypes in descending order were: HPV 56, 52, 66, 59, 39, 51, 18, 35. The prevalence of bivalent vaccine genotypes (HPV16 / 18) was 7.83% against 63.78% of genotypes not covered by HPV vaccine; 36.32% (170/468) of women had multiple concomitant HR-HPV infections.Conclusionthis study showed significant regional variation and high prevalence of HR-HPV infection in women. The predominant genotypes differ from those covered by available vaccines in Burkina Faso. These results will help guide our health policies towards better prevention of cervical cancer. The diversity of oncogenic genotypes is sparking a large-scale study in the West African sub-region, particularly in cases of cancer and the introduction of the nonavalent vaccine which includes HPV 52 found among the predominant genotypes in this study.


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