An Earlier First Meal Timing Associate with Weight Loss Effectiveness in A 12-Week Weight Loss Support Program

Recent studies have reported that meal timing may play an important role in weight regulation, however it is unknown whether the timing of meals is related to the amount of weight loss. This study aimed to examine the relationship between indices of meal timing and weight loss during weight loss intervention in adults. A 12-week weight loss support program was conducted for 97 adults (age: 47.6 ± 8.3 years, BMI: 25.4 ± 3.7 kg/m2). After the program, body weight decreased by −3.0 ± 2.7%. Only the start of the eating window was positively correlated with the weight change rate in both sexes (men: r = 0.321, p = 0.022; women: r = 0.360, p = 0.014). The participants were divided into two groups based on the start of the eating window as follows: the early group (6:48 ± 0:21 AM) and the late group (8:11 ± 1:05 AM). The weight loss rate in the early group was significantly higher (−3.8 ± 2.7%) than that in the late group (−2.2 ± 2.5%). The present results showed that the start of the early eating window was associated with weight loss and suggested paying attention to meal timing when doing weight loss.

The health risks of dysphagia for patients with head and neck cancer: a multicentre prospective observational study

It is well known that malnutrition is a frequent co-morbidity in cancer patients, especially in those with head and neck neoplasms. This may be due both to the presence of dysphagia symptoms and to the appearance of adverse effects on chemotherapy and / or radiotherapy. The aim of this retrospective observational multicentric study is to evaluate the nutritional status between dysphagia cancer patients and non-dysphagia cancer patients. Data from 60 patients were analysed, 31 of which without dysphagia and 29 with dysphagia. Results highlight that patients with dysphagia had higher involuntary body weight loss than non-dysphagia ones (p < 0.001). By analysing the entire population, it stands out a weight loss rate of 12 ± 9% compared to the usual weight was observed and a prevalence of moderate / severe malnutrition diagnosis of 53%. Furthermore, 76% of the population who manifested the symptom of dysphagia presented severe malnutrition already at the first visit, compared to 32% of non-dysphagia subjects.

Influence of MAP on the Postharvest Quality of Glehnia littoralis Fr. Schmidt ex Miq.

In Korea, to prevent the extinction of Glehnia littoralis, a cultivation method to improve productivity is being studied and quality maintenance technology is required after harvest. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of MAP on the postharvest quality of G. littoralis. The control showed a weight loss rate of more than 5% after 3 days of storage and lost its marketability, whereas MAP treatment (PE or MPE) showed a weight loss rate of about 2–3% during storage for more than 30 days. In the control, MDA and electrolyte leakage increased due to chilling injury. The total chlorophyll content was low and remained constant until about 23 days of storage in the PE treatment group and 15 days in the MPE treatment group. Among the phenolic compounds, chlorogenic acid, rutin, isoquercetin, and nicotiflorin were maintained at significantly higher levels in the PE than in the MPE. In addition, bergapten showed a highly significant upward trend in the MPE, especially after 25 days of storage when the yellowing progressed. In conclusion, MAP treatment effectively maintains quality while minimizing lipid peroxidation and maintaining phenolic compounds during low-temperature storage after harvest of G. littoralis.

Effect of pH on the Corrosion and Repassivation Behavior of TA2 in Simulated Seawater

The effect of pH on the corrosion and repassivation behavior of TA2 in simulated seawater was studied using electrochemical tests, immersion experiments, and surface morphology topology analysis. The results show that Ecorr and Rf increased while ipass and weight loss rate decreased as the pH of simulated seawater increased. The TA2 passive film was determined to be mainly composed of a large amount of TiO2 and a small amount of TiO. The repassivation function of TA2 can be expressed as E = −0.1375 + 0.0532ln(t − 1.241) for a simulated seawater pH of 8.2. The parameter b, which represents the slope of the potential–time curve during the friction electrode test, was used to evaluate the repassivation behavior of TA2. The increase in pH value was observed to promote the repassivation speed of the passive film, which is beneficial to the corrosion resistance of TA2.

Evaluation of the Storage Characteristics in Maintaining the Overall Quality of Whole and Fresh-Cut Romaine Lettuce during MA Storage

This study aimed to examine the effect of modified atmosphere (MA) storage on the quality and storability of romaine lettuce. Whole and fresh-cut romaine lettuce were packaged with 1300; 10,000; 50,000; 100,000 cc m−2·day−1·atm−1 O2 transmission rate (OTR) films and stored at 2 or 8 °C for 15 days. The respiration and ethylene production rates before pre-cooling were higher in fresh-cut lettuce than in whole romaine lettuce. The reduction in fresh weight for whole and fresh-cut romaine lettuce during storage was less than 0.5%. The CO2 concentration was less than 2%, except for the 1300 cc treatment (at 8 °C for whole and fresh-cut lettuce) and 10,000 cc (in fresh-cut lettuce). At the end date of storage, the overall quality of the whole lettuce was good, the off-odor was lower in the 10,000 cc treatment, and the 50,000 cc treatment at 8 °C led to good overall quality in the fresh-cut lettuce. The chlorophyll content of the whole lettuce was maintained at a higher level in the treatment of 10,000 cc at 8 °C, while it was higher in the 50,000 cc treatments at 2 and 8 °C in the fresh-cut lettuce. Correlation and PCA confirmed that the main factors affecting the storability and quality of romaine lettuce were fresh weight loss rate, off-odor, and the concentration of CO2. In addition, the storage characteristics of whole and fresh-cut lettuce were opposite to 0 in PC1 and PC2, indicating that the storage characteristics were different depending on the processing type.

Co-Combustion Characteristics of Typical Biomass and Coal Blends by Thermogravimetric Analysis

In this study, the co-combustion characteristics of coal and biomass blends (20, 40, 60, 80, and 100 wt%) were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis. All the samples were operated under an oxidative atmosphere, with a heating rate of 20 C/min. The reaction stages, ignition and burnout temperature, maximum weight loss rate, and different combustion indices were determined. When the percentage of biomass in the blends was increased, the maximum mass loss rate was enhanced in the second region, and the ignition and burnout temperature was lowered, indicating the higher reactivity and better combustion performance of the samples. The comprehensive performance index presented an N shape with the increasing biomass blending ratio. Based on various combustion indices, 20% was an optimum percentage for the co-utilization of coal-biomass blends. A significant promoting interaction was observed between corn straw and rice straw blends, while inhibiting effects occurred between rice husk and coal. The kinetic parameters of the blends were evaluated by the Coats and Redfern method using the nth-order reaction model. The value of activation energy and the pre-exponential factor increased with the decreasing biomass percentage in the blends.

Nondestructive Detection of Weight Loss Rate, Surface Color, Vitamin C Content, and Firmness in Mini-Chinese Cabbage with Nanopackaging by Fourier Transform-Near Infrared Spectroscopy

A nondestructive optical method is described for the quality assessment of mini-Chinese cabbage with nanopackaging during its storage, using Fourier transform-near infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopy. The sample quality attributes measured included weight loss rate, surface color index, vitamin C content, and firmness. The level of freshness of the mini-Chinese cabbage during storage was divided into three categories. Partial least squares regression (PLSR) and the least squares support vector machine were applied to spectral datasets in order to develop prediction models for each quality attribute. For a comparative analysis of performance, the five preprocessing methods applied were standard normal variable (SNV), first derivative (lst), second derivative (2nd), multiplicative scattering correction (MSC), and auto scale. The SNV-PLSR model exhibited the best prediction performance for weight loss rate (Rp2 = 0.96, RMSEP = 1.432%). The 1st-PLSR model showed the best prediction performance for L* value (Rp2 = 0.89, RMSEP = 3.25 mg/100 g), but also the lowest accuracy for firmness (Rp2 = 0.60, RMSEP = 2.453). The best classification model was able to predict freshness levels with 88.8% accuracy in mini-Chinese cabbage by supported vector classification (SVC). This study illustrates that the spectral profile obtained by FT-NIR spectroscopy could potentially be implemented for integral assessments of the internal and external quality attributes of mini-Chinese cabbage with nanopacking during storage.

An Investigation of Different Factors On Durability of Metakaolin Geopolymer Cement Mortar

In the preliminary part of this research, orthogonal experiments were conducted to identify metakaolin admixture and activator content as the two main influencing factors through four factors that mainly affected the basic properties of metakaolin geopolymer specimens. It is crucial to study the durability of construction materials under harsh environments. Therefore, this experiment mainly tested the anti-permeability, sulfate corrosion resistance, and freezing-thawing resistance of metakaolin geopolymer pastes with different ratio of metakaolin admixture and alkali activators content.The results indicated that with the changes of metakaolin and activator content,both of two anti-permeability curves increased firstly and then decreased.The sulfate corrosion resistance showed that both weight loss curves firstly decreased and then increased trend.Corrosion resistance curves increased first and then decreased in different curing time.Freezing-thawing resistance tests indicated that weight loss rate and strength loss rate declined and then ascended.Moreover,the microscopic SEM and FT-IR experiments were used to more directly reflect the patterns of durability changes.

Cornhusk retting by pectinase enzyme combined with NaOH and effects on fiber properties

Cornhusk fiber is a kind of biodegradable lignocellulosic fiber. The conditions of enzyme and NaOH retting were optimized on the basis of weight loss rate and the Fried test score to extract the cornhusks fiber. Taking raw cornhusk fiber as a contrast, physicochemical properties of the fiber extracted from cornhusk was researched in detail by chemical analysis (GB5889-86), X-ray diffraction and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The optimal retting condition of cornhusk fiber is the following: Pectinase 9032 0.5% concentration, at 40–55°C, pH 4.2–5.8, and then 5% NaOH treatment for 15 min. The crystallinity index of raw cornhusk fiber, enzyme-treated cornhusk fiber and enzyme-alkali-treated cornhusk fiber are 20.30%, 35.05% and 51.00%, respectively, and the structure of these fibres all correspond to cellulose I. The FTIR spectra showed that higher amounts of lignin and hemicellulose were removed by NaOH treatment compared with enzyme treatment.

The Health Risks Of Dysphagia For Patients With Head And Neck Cancer: A Multicentre Prospective Observational Study.

It is well known that malnutrition is a frequent co-morbidity in cancer patients, especially in those with head and neck neoplasms. This may be due both to the presence of dysphagia symptoms and to the appearance of adverse effects on Chemotherapy and / or Radiotherapy. The aim of this retrospective observational multicentric study is to evaluate the nutritional status between dysphagia cancer patients and non-dysphagia cancer patients. Data from 60 patients were analysed, 31 of which without dysphagia and 29 with dysphagia. Results highlight that patients with dysphagia had higher involuntary body weight loss than non-dysphagia ones (p < 0.001). By analysing the entire population, it stands out a weight loss rate of 12 ± 9% compared to the usual weight was observed and a prevalence of moderate / severe malnutrition diagnosis of 53%. Furthermore, 76% of the population who manifested the symptom of dysphagia presented severe malnutrition already at the first visit, compared to 32% of non-dysphagia subjects.