Squeezing Italian dictionaries in search of citrus juice and fruit

Southern Mediterranean regions significantly differ from the northern countries not only for their climate, but also and foremost for the influence that the latter has on the landscape and the products that are related to it. Dictionaries should relate the lexical variation used to describe the variety of landscapes and their characteristics, thus reflecting the peculiarities of a given territory. This paper deals with the variety of citrus fruits that can be found in the Italian landscapes, with particular attention to the lexicographic treatment that they receive in both monolingual and bilingual dictionaries, where a precise meaning is not always registered and the treatment of the superordinate agrume (pl. agrumi) is controversial: its taxonomic status seems not to be recognized and fully exploited in dictionary articles.

Citrus Consumption and the Risk of Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer in the Women’s Health Initiative

Evidence from animal studies suggests that furocoumarins, compounds present in citrus products, can increase the risk of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) when combined with ultraviolet radiation. The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between citrus intake and NMSC risk among postmenopausal women from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) Observational Study, who were aged 50–79 years at enrollment (1993–1998). The consumption of citrus fruit, citrus juice, and non-citrus fruit and juice were measured at the baseline of the study using a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). NMSC cases (basal or squamous cell carcinomas) were self-reported during annual follow-up surveys. The outcome data used for this analysis were collected through March 2020. The relative risk (RR) for incident NMSC by citrus consumption was calculated. Among 49,007 non-Hispanic white participants, there were 8642 cases of incident NMSC. Using less than one serving of citrus juice per week as reference, the RRs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for incident NMSC by citrus juice intake were 1.03 (0.95, 1.10) for one serving/week, 1.06 (1.00, 1.12) for two to four servings/week, 0.98 (0.90, 1.07) for five to six servings/week, and 1.08 (1.02, 1.13) for one or more serving/day (p-trend = 0.007). Subgroup analyses did not reveal meaningful associations by sun exposure variables. In conclusion, there were indications of a slightly higher risk of incident NMSC among citrus juice consumers; however, further longitudinal and mechanistic studies are needed to confirm the key risk factors.

Cost-effective options for increasing consumption of under-consumed food groups and nutrients in the USA

Objective: To identify the most cost-effective options/contributors of under-consumed food groups and nutrients in the USA. Design: Twenty-four-hour dietary recall data were used for the dietary sources of under-consumed food groups and nutrients. Costs were estimated using USDA National Food Price Database 2001–2004 after adjustments for inflation using Consumer Price Index. Setting: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2013–2016. Participants: A total of 10 112 adults aged 19+ years. Results: Top five cost-effective options for food groups were apple and citrus juice, bananas, apples, and melons for fruit; baked/boiled white potatoes, mixtures of mashed potatoes, lettuce, carrots and string beans for vegetables; oatmeal, popcorn, rice, yeast breads and pasta/noodles/cooked grains for whole grain; and reduced-fat, low-fat milk, flavoured milk and cheese for dairy. Top five cost-effective sources of under-consumed nutrients were rice, tortillas, pasta/noodles/cooked grains, rolls and buns, and peanut butter–jelly sandwiches for Mg; grits/cooked cereals, low- and high-sugar ready-to-eat (RTE) cereal, rolls and buns, and rice for Fe; low- and high-sugar RTE cereals, rice, protein and nutritional powders, and rolls and buns for Zn; carrots, margarine, other red and orange vegetables, liver and organ meats, butter and animal fats for vitamin A; and citrus juice, other fruit juice, vegetable juice, mustard and other condiments, and apple juice for vitamin C. Conclusions: Apple/citrus juice, white potatoes/carrots, oatmeal, RTE cereals and milk were the most cost-effective food sources of multiple under-consumed food groups and nutrients and can help promote healthy eating habits at minimal cost.

Eco-Friendly Approach for the Synthesis of Thiophene Linked Benzothiazepines as Biocompatible Free Radical Scavengers

A series of new thiophene tethered benzothiazepines (5a-h) were synthesized through citrus juice mediated (4+3) annulations of thienyl chalcones with 2-aminobenzenethiol in the presence of tetrabutylammonium bromide as phase transfer catalyst under reflux conditions. The synthesized compounds were characterized by spectroscopic and CHN analysis. To check the antioxidant potentials of the synthesized compounds, in vitro DPPH and hydroxyl radical scavenging assays were conducted. The results shows that amongst the series, compounds 5b with (21.44-49.72%) and (16.88-42.60%); 5c with (24.88-56.00%) and (22.33-53.12%); and 5h with (22.80-47.10%) and (15.33-44.12%) excellent DPPH and hydroxyl radical potencies comparable with the respective standards used in the experiments.