To assess the relationship between dietary intake of antioxidants (vitamin C, vitamin E, β-carotene, lutein, flavonoids and lignans) and cognitive decline at middle age, analyses were performed on data from the population based Doetinchem Cohort Study. Habitual diet and cognitive function were assessed twice with a 5-year interval in 2613 persons aged 43–70 year at baseline (1995–2002). Diet was assessed with a validated 178-item semi-quantitative FFQ. Cognitive function was assessed with a neuropsychological test battery, consisting of the 15 Words Learning Test, the Stroop Test, the Word Fluency test, and the Letter Digit Substitution Test. Scores on global cognitive function, memory, processing speed, and cognitive flexibility were calculated. In regression analyses, quintiles of antioxidant intake were associated with change in cognitive domain scores. Results showed that higher lignan intake was linearly associated with less decline in global cognitive function (P= 0·01), memory (P< 0·01) and processing speed (P= 0·04), with about two times less declines in the highest v. the lowest quintile. In the lowest quintile of vitamin E intake, decline in memory was twice as fast as in all higher quintiles (P< 0·01). Global cognitive decline in the highest lutein intake group was greater than in the lowest intake group (P< 0·05). Higher flavonoid intake was associated with greater decline in cognitive flexibility (P for trend = 0·04). Intakes of other antioxidants were not associated with cognitive decline. We conclude that within the range of a habitual dietary intake, higher intake of lignans is associated with less cognitive decline at middle age.

The role that BMI plays in the association between dietary quality and CVD risk is not known. We aimed to better understand this relationship using statistical methods which correct for sex-specific underreporting of dietary intake. Overall, dietary quality was assessed using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI) on data from 9797 non-pregnant adults (aged >20 years) who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2005 to 2010. CVD risk factors included blood pressure, fasting glucose and insulin, homeostatic models of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), HDL- and LDL-cholesterol (HDL-C and LDL-C), TAG and C-reactive protein (CRP). We controlled for demographic and lifestyle covariates, and we used the population ratio approach (which adjusts for the underreporting of intake) to compare mean HEI scores between the top and bottom quartiles of covariate-adjusted CVD risk factors. In women, the total HEI score was not associated with any CVD risk factors (all Q>0·11). In men, the total HEI score was associated with covariate-adjusted residuals for fasting insulin (Q< 0·001), HOMA-IR (Q< 0·001), HDL-C (Q= 0·01), TAG (Q= 0·03) and CRP (Q< 0·001). When we additionally adjusted for BMI, the association with total HEI score was not significant (all P>0·10). In the present analyses, dietary quality was associated with five CVD risk factors in a sex-specific manner. Moreover, the association of BMI with CVD risk attenuated the relationship between CVD risk and diet, which suggests that BMI is an important factor in heart disease prevention.

Adequate iodine is important during pregnancy to ensure optimal growth and development of the offspring. We validated an iodine-specific FFQ (I-FFQ) for use in Australian pregnant women. A forty-four-item I-FFQ was developed to assess iodine intake from food and was administered to 122 pregnant women at 28 weeks gestation. Iodine supplement use was captured separately at 28 weeks gestation. Correlation between iodine intake from food estimated using the I-FFQ and a 4 d weighed food record as well as correlation between total iodine intake and 24 h urinary iodine excretion (UIE), 24 h urinary iodine concentration (UIC), spot UIC and thyroid function were assessed at 28 weeks gestation. A moderate correlation between the two dietary methods was shown (r 0·349, P< 0·001), and it was strengthened with the addition of iodine supplements (r 0·876, P< 0·001). There was a fair agreement (k= 0·28, P< 0·001) between the two dietary measures in the classification of women as receiving adequate ( ≥ 160 μg/d) or inadequate ( < 160 μg/d) iodine intake from food, but the limits of agreement from the Bland–Altman plot were large. Total iodine intake was associated with 24 h UIE (β = 0·488, P< 0·001) but not with spot UIC. Iodine intake from food using the I-FFQ was assessed at study entry ( < 20 weeks gestation) in addition to 28 weeks gestation, and there was a strong correlation in iodine intake at the two time points (r 0·622, P< 0·001), which indicated good reproducibility. In conclusion, the I-FFQ provides a valid tool for estimating iodine intake in pregnant women and can be used to screen women who are at risk of inadequate intake.

Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in the US population and is associated with numerous diseases, including those characterised by inflammatory processes. We aimed to investigate the link between vitamin D status and anaemia, hypothesising that lower vitamin D status would be associated with increased odds of anaemia, particularly anaemia with inflammation. A secondary aim was to examine the effects of race in the association between vitamin D status and anaemia. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis in a cohort of generally healthy adults in Atlanta, GA (n 638). Logistic regression was used to evaluate the association between vitamin D status and anaemia. Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) < 50 nmol/l (compared to 25(OH)D ≥ 50 nmol/l) was associated with anaemia in bivariate analysis (OR 2·64, 95 % CI 1·43, 4·86). There was significant effect modification by race (P= 0·003), such that blacks with 25(OH)D < 50 nmol/l had increased odds of anaemia (OR 6·42, 95 % CI 1·88, 21·99), v. blacks with 25(OH)D ≥ 50 nmol/l, controlling for potential confounders; this association was not apparent in whites. When categorised by subtype of anaemia, blacks with 25(OH)D < 50 nmol/l had significantly increased odds of anaemia with inflammation than blacks with serum 25(OH)D ≥ 50 nmol/l (OR 8·42, 95 % CI 1·96, 36·23); there was no association with anaemia without inflammation. In conclusion, serum 25(OH)D < 50 nmol/l was significantly associated with anaemia, particularly anaemia with inflammation, among blacks in a generally healthy adult US cohort.

Fish is an important source of energy, high-quality proteins, fat, vitamins and minerals. Within lipids, n-3 long-chain PUFA (n-3 LC PUFA), mainly EPA and DHA, play an important role in health promotion and disease prevention. In contrast to the potential health benefits of dietary fish intake, certain chemical pollutants, namely heavy metals and some organic compounds, contained in seafood have emerged as an issue of concern, particularly for frequent fish consumers and sensitive groups of populations. The present review summarises the health benefits and risks of fish consumption. n-3 LC-PUFA are key compounds of cell membranes and play an important role in human health from conception through every stage of human development, maturation and ageing. DHA has a major role in the development of brain and retina during fetal development and the first 2 years of life and positively influences neurodevelopment, mainly visual acuity and cognitive functions. n-3 LC-PUFA are also effective in preventing cardiovascular events (mainly stroke and acute myocardial infarction) especially in persons with high cardiovascular risk. By contrast, there is convincing evidence of adverse neurological/neurodevelopmental outcomes in infants and young children associated with methylmercury exposure during fetal development due to maternal fish consumption during pregnancy. Dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls present in contaminated fish may also develop a risk for both infants and adults. However, for major health outcomes among adults, the vast majority of epidemiological studies have proven that the benefits of fish intake exceed the potential risks with the exception of a few selected species in sensitive populations.

Ca supplements, but not dietary Ca, have been associated with increased cardiovascular risk. This difference could be related to differences in their acute effects on serum Ca. We therefore examined the effects of Ca from different sources on serum Ca and phosphate in a randomised, cross-over trial of ten women (mean age of 69 years). Fasting participants received a single dose of 500 mg of Ca as citrate, citrate with a meal, fortified juice or a dairy product meal, with at least 6 d between each intervention. Blood was sampled before and 1, 2, 4 and 6 h after each intervention was ingested. Serum ionised and total Ca increased significantly from baseline over 6 h. Using calcium citrate fasting as a comparator, the elevations in ionised and total Ca were similar after fortified juice, delayed after calcium citrate with a meal and smaller after a dairy product meal. Serum phosphate and calcium–phosphate product increased from baseline after calcium citrate with a meal and after a dairy product meal, and they declined after calcium citrate fasting and after fortified juice. The elevations in serum Ca in the present study were only slightly different from those observed after the administration of 1000 mg of Ca in a previous study. These data indicate that different sources of Ca have different acute effects on serum Ca and support recommendations that dietary Ca might be safer than supplements. Whether these differences contribute to differences in cardiovascular risk requires further study.

Studies on the role of diet in the development of chronic diseases often rely on self-report surveys of dietary intake. Unfortunately, many validity studies have demonstrated that self-reported dietary intake is subject to systematic under-reporting, although the vast majority of such studies have been conducted in industrialised countries. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether or not systematic reporting error exists among the individuals of African ancestry (n 324) in five countries distributed across the Human Development Index (HDI) scale, a UN statistic devised to rank countries on non-income factors plus economic indicators. Using two 24 h dietary recalls to assess energy intake and the doubly labelled water method to assess total energy expenditure, we calculated the difference between these two values ((self-report − expenditure/expenditure) × 100) to identify under-reporting of habitual energy intake in selected communities in Ghana, South Africa, Seychelles, Jamaica and the USA. Under-reporting of habitual energy intake was observed in all the five countries. The South African cohort exhibited the highest mean under-reporting ( − 52·1 % of energy) compared with the cohorts of Ghana ( − 22·5 %), Jamaica ( − 17·9 %), Seychelles ( − 25·0 %) and the USA ( − 18·5 %). BMI was the most consistent predictor of under-reporting compared with other predictors. In conclusion, there is substantial under-reporting of dietary energy intake in populations across the whole range of the HDI, and this systematic reporting error increases according to the BMI of an individual.

Flavonoids are polyphenolic compounds that are widespread in nature, and consumed as part of the human diet in significant amounts. The aim of the present study was to test the intestinal anti-inflammatory activity of apigenin K, a soluble form of apigenin, in two models of rat colitis, namely the trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS) model and the dextran sulphate sodium (DSS) model. Apigenin K (1, 3 and 10 mg/kg; by the oral route; n 4–6 per group) was administered as a pre-treatment to rats with TNBS and DSS colitis, and colonic status was checked by macroscopic and biochemical examination. Apigenin K pre-treatment resulted in the amelioration of morphological signs and biochemical markers in the TNBS model. The results demonstrated a reduction in the inflamed area, as well as lower values of score and colonic weight:length ratio compared with the TNBS group. Myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity was reduced by 30 % (P< 0·05). Moreover, apigenin K pre-treatment ameliorated morphological signs and biochemical markers in the DSS model. Thus, macroscopic damage was significantly reduced and the colonic weight:length ratio was lowered by approximately 10 %, while colonic MPO and alkaline phosphatase activities were decreased by 35 and 21 %, respectively (P< 0·05). Apigenin K pre-treatment also tended to normalise the expression of a number of colonic inflammatory markers (e.g. TNF-α, transforming growth factor-β, IL-6, intercellular adhesion molecule 1 or chemokine (C–C motif) ligand 2). In conclusion, apigenin K is found to have anti-inflammatory effects in two preclinical models of inflammatory bowel disease.

Many African diets are low in fat but are currently changing because of nutrition transition. We studied fat and fatty acid (FA) intake and the essential fatty acid (EFA) status of adolescent girls (aged 14–19 years, n 262) in Zambezia Province, central Mozambique. A cross-sectional study was carried out in a city as well as in the towns and rural villages of a coastal and an inland district. Dietary intake and FA sources were studied in a 24 h dietary recall. FA compositions of cholesteryl esters and phospholipids of non-fasting serum samples were analysed by GLC. Fat intake was low (13–18 % of energy) in all areas. Coconut and palm oil were the main sources of fat, and soyabean oil and maize were the main sources of PUFA. Compared to Food and Agriculture Organization/WHO 2010 recommendations, intake of linoleic acid (LA, 18 : 2n-6) was inadequate in the coastal district, and intakes of n-3 PUFA were inadequate in all areas. FA compositions of serum lipids differed between areas. The proportions of LA tended to be highest in the city and lowest in the rural areas. The phospholipid mead (20 : 3n-9):arachidonic acid (20 : 4n-6) ratio did not indicate EFA insufficiency. LA proportions in phospholipids were low, but those of long-chain n-6 and n-3 PUFA were high in comparison with Western adolescents. To conclude, fat sources, FA intake and EFA status differed between adolescent girls living in different types of communities. Fat intake was low, but EFA insufficiency was not indicated.

Obesity is a major medical concern in human subjects, and most concerning is the rapid recent increase in childhood obesity. Children are more likely to be obese if their parents are obese, an effect that is mediated both by genetics and environment, most notably parental influence. Four major parenting styles have been recognised: authoritative; authoritarian; indulgent; uninvolved. Too much parental control, as with the authoritarian style, is associated with a higher weight status in children. Conversely, indulgent feeding styles can also have negative consequences and, where control is too lax, a poor relationship with food develops, which may also lead to weight gain. Obesity is also a growing concern in companion animals, and it has parallels with obesity in children. For instance, overweight people are more likely to own overweight dogs. Furthermore, the care that people provide for their pets mirrors that which parents provide for children, and pets are commonly viewed as child substitutes. These similarities raise obvious questions about whether different styles of pet ownership exist, and what part they may play in attitudes to feeding as well as predisposition to obesity in pets. Future work could focus on determining to what extent styles of pet ownership mirror parenting styles, whether there are links to obesity in dogs and cats. Knowledge regarding the owner-pet bond might provide comparative insights into the links between parenting styles and childhood obesity.

The consumption of ready-made meals, such as pre-packaged dishes, available at grocery stores and fast-food restaurants, is a habit related to our modern fast-paced lives. No study has examined the association of daily ready-made meal consumption with diet quality or health-related outcomes. The present study aimed to investigate the association between self-reported ready-made meal consumption and diet quality, as measured by compliance with dietary recommendations and with a set of adiposity measures, in a nationally representative sample of 1352 subjects, aged 18–69 years, participating in the nationwide population-based ORISCAV-LUX (Observation of Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Luxembourg) survey. The daily consumption of ready-made meals was calculated as follows: frequency of consumption × portion size × number of portions consumed. The sum of the daily consumption values of the eleven pre-packaged dishes included in the FFQ represented the total daily consumption of ready-made meals (g/d) for each participant. About 97 % of the participants reported daily consumption of ready-made meals. The intake was highly prevalent in men living alone and varied according to education level. Ready-made meal consumption provided >7 % of total daily energy. The fractions (%) of macro- and micronutrients derived from daily consumption of ready-made meals varied from 10 % for total cholesterol to 0·65 % for total fibre. Increased consumption of ready-made meals was found to be independently associated with abdominal obesity. On controlling for age, sex, socio-economic status and lifestyle factors, daily consumption of ready-made meals was found to be associated with higher energy intake and with poor compliance with national nutritional recommendations, and hence it could plausibly increase the risk of central obesity and fat deposition.

Increasing evidence supports the concept that early-life environmental influences, including nutrition and stress, have an impact on long-term health outcomes and disease susceptibility. The objective of the present study was to determine whether dietary spray-dried plasma (SDP), fed during the first 2 weeks post-weaning (PW), influences subsequent immunological and intestinal injury responses to Salmonellatyphimurium challenge. A total of thirty-two piglets (age 16–17 d) were weaned onto nursery diets containing 0, 2·5 % SDP (fed for 7 d PW) or 5 % SDP (fed for 14 d PW), and were then fed control diets (without SDP), for the remainder of the experiment. At 34 d PW (age 50 d), pigs were challenged with 3 × 109 colony-forming units of S. typhimurium. A control group (non-challenged) that was fed 0 % SDP in the nursery was included. At 2 d post-challenge, the distal ileum was harvested for the measurement of inflammatory, histological and intestinal physiological parameters. S. typhimurium challenge induced elevated ileal histological scores, myeloperoxidase (MPO), IL-8 and TNF, and increased intestinal permeability (indicated by reduced transepithelial voltage (potential difference) and elevated 4 kDa fluorescein isothiocyanate dextran (FD4) flux rates). Compared with S.typhimurium-challenged controls (0 % SDP), pigs fed the 5 % SDP-14 d diet exhibited reduced ileal histological scores, MPO levels, IL-8 levels and FD4 flux rates. Pigs fed the 5 % SDP-14 d nursery diet exhibited increased levels of plasma and ileal TNF-α in response to the challenge, compared with the other treatments. These results indicate that inclusion of SDP in PW diets can have an influence on subsequent immunological and intestinal injury responses induced by later-life S.typhimurium challenge.

Vitamin D has been suggested to protect against depression, but epidemiological evidence is scarce. The present study investigated the relationship of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) with the prevalence of depressive and anxiety disorders. The study population consisted of a representative sample of Finnish men and women aged 30–79 years from the Health 2000 Survey. The sample included 5371 individuals, of which 354 were diagnosed with depressive disorder and 222 with anxiety disorder. Serum 25(OH)D concentration was determined from frozen samples. In a cross-sectional study, a total of four indicators of depression and one indicator of anxiety were used as dependent variables. Serum 25(OH)D was the risk factor of interest, and logistic models used further included sociodemographic and lifestyle variables as well as indicators of metabolic health as confounding and/or effect-modifying factors. The population attributable fraction (PAF) was estimated. Individuals with higher serum 25(OH)D concentrations showed a reduced risk of depression. The relative odds between the highest and lowest quartiles was 0·65 (95 % CI 0·46, 0·93; P for trend = 0·006) after adjustment for sociodemographic, lifestyle and metabolic factors. Higher serum 25(OH)D concentrations were associated with a lower prevalence of depressive disorder especially among men, younger, divorced and those who had an unhealthy lifestyle or suffered from the metabolic syndrome. The PAF was estimated to be 19 % for depression when serum 25(OH)D concentration was at least 50 nmol/l. These results support the hypothesis that higher serum 25(OH)D concentrations protect against depression even after adjustment for a large number of sociodemographic, lifestyle and metabolic factors. Large-scale prospective studies are needed to confirm this finding.

A quality assessment of the primary studies reported in the literature carried out using select dietary ingredients (DI) purported to affect vascular endothelial function was conducted through a systematic PubMed search from January 2000 to August 2012. A total of seventy randomised controlled trials with defined DI (folic acid (fifteen), n-3 fatty acids (twenty), cocoa (fifteen) and isoflavones (twenty)) and standardised measures of vascular endothelial function were evaluated. Jadad scores, quality scoring parameters for DI and flow-mediated dilation (FMD) methodology used were ascertained. A total of 3959 randomised subjects, mean age 51 (se 0·21) years (range 9–79 years), were represented in the dataset. The mean Jadad scores did not differ statistically among the DI studies, with the majority of the studies being of good quality. Higher DI quality scores were achieved by studies using the botanical ingredients cocoa and isoflavones than by those using the nutrient ingredients folic acid and n-3 fatty acids. The mean DI quality scores were 4·13 (se 0·34), 5·20 (se 0·47), 6·13 (se 0·41) and 6·00 (se 0·59) for the folic acid, n-3 fatty acid, cocoa and isoflavone intervention studies, respectively (and significantly different). The mean Corretti FMD scores were 7·27 (se 0·56), 7·46 (se 0·79), 6·29 (se 0·61) and 7·11 (se 0·56) for the folic acid, n-3 fatty acid, cocoa and isoflavone intervention studies, respectively (NS). FMD studies failed to adequately describe the equipment used and more than half failed to provide an adequate description of the procedures used for vascular image acquisition and measurement. DI can be utilised for dietary intervention studies; however, the methodology should be clearly reported using the guidelines for assessment for both DI and FMD.

New technologies are promising for the use of short-term instruments for dietary data collection; however, innovative tools should be validated against objective biomarkers. The aim of the present study was to investigate the validity of a Web-based, self-administered dietary record (DR) tool using protein, K and Na intakes against 24 h urinary biomarkers (24 h U). Of the total participants, 199 adult volunteers (104 men and 95 women, mean age 50·5 (23–83 years)) of the NutriNet-Santé Study were included in the protocol. They completed three non-consecutive-day DR and two 24 h U on the first and third DR days. Relative differences between reported (DR) and measured (24 h U) intakes were calculated from the log ratio (DR/24 h U) for protein, K and Na intakes: − 14·4,+2·6 and − 2·1 % for men; and − 13·9, − 3·7 and − 8·3 % for women, respectively. The correlations between reported and true intakes were 0·61, 0·78 and 0·47 for men and 0·64, 0·42 and 0·37 for women for protein, K and Na, respectively. Attenuation factors, that represent attenuation of the true diet–disease relationship due to measurement error (a value closer to 1 indicating lower attenuation), ranged from 0·23 (Na, women) to 0·60 (K, men). We showed that the Web-based DR tool used in the NutriNet-Santé cohort study performs well in estimating protein and K intakes and fairly well in estimating Na intake. Furthermore, three non-consecutive-day DR appear to be valid for estimating usual intakes of protein and K, although caution is advised regarding the generalisability of these findings to other nutrients and general population.

Pancreatic insufficiency cystic fibrosis (CF) patients receive vitamin E supplementation according to CF-specific recommendations in order to prevent deficiencies. It has been suggested that higher serum α-tocopherol levels could have protective effects on pulmonary function (PF) in patients with CF. Whether current recommendations are indeed optimal for preventing deficiency and whether vitamin E has therapeutic benefits are subjects of debate. Therefore, we studied vitamin E intake as well as the long-term effects of vitamin E intake, the coefficient of fat absorption (CFA) and IgG on α-tocopherol levels. We also examined the long-term effects of serum α-tocopherol and serum IgG on forced expiratory volume in 1 s expressed as percentage of predicted (FEV1% pred.) in paediatric CF patients during a 7-year follow-up period. We found that CF patients failed to meet the CF-specific vitamin E recommendations, but serum α-tocopherol below the 2·5th percentile was found in only twenty-three of the 1022 measurements (2 %). Furthermore, no clear effect of vitamin E intake or the CFA on serum α-tocopherol was found (both P≥ 0·103). FEV1% pred. was longitudinally inversely associated with age (P< 0·001) and serum IgG (P= 0·003), but it was not related to serum α-tocopherol levels. We concluded that in the present large sample of children and adolescents with CF, vitamin E intake was lower than recommended, but serum α-tocopherol deficiency was rare. We found no evidence that higher serum α-tocopherol levels had protective effects on PF. Adjustment of the recommendations to the real-life intake of these patients may be considered.

The frequency of dining out has rapidly increased; however, the independent associations between dining out, metabolic syndrome risk factors and nutritional status have not been well characterised. The aim of the present study was to investigate the associations between dining out, nutritional intakes and metabolic syndrome risk factors among Korean adults, using data from the 2011 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Frequency of dining out was significantly associated with intake of nutrients such as energy, water, protein, fat, carbohydrate, Ca, Na, vitamin A and carotene. Especially, the result revealed that Korean adults had insufficient Ca intake compared with the Korean reference intake (700 mg). As the frequency of dining out increased, so did energy intake. In addition, individuals who dined out seven or more times per week experienced a 64 % higher likelihood of blood pressure abnormalities, an 88 % higher likelihood of waist circumference abnormalities, and a 32 % higher likelihood of low HDL-cholesterol levels than those who dined out less than once per week. BMI was not associated with the frequency of dining out. Our findings suggest that strategies to modify dining-out behaviour could reduce metabolic syndrome risk factors via improved nutrition.

The levels of phytochemicals (total phenols, proanthocyanidins, gallic acid+gallotannins, ellagic acid+ellagitannins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, stilbenes and phytates), fat-soluble bioactives (lipid, tocols, phytosterols, sphingolipids, carotenoids, chlorophylls and alkyl phenols) as well as natural antioxidants (nutrient and non-nutrient) present in commonly consumed twelve nuts (almond, Brazil nut, cashew, chestnut, hazelnut, heartnut, macadamia, peanut, pecan, pine nut, pistachio and walnut) are compared and reported. Recent studies adding new evidence for the health benefits of nuts are also discussed. Research findings from over 112 references, many of which have been published within last 10 years, have been compiled and reported.

The metabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with a pro-inflammatory milieu that may partially account for its association with an increased cardiovascular risk. We aimed to (1) evaluate the serum concentrations of twelve cytokines and growth factors (epidermal growth factor (EGF), interferon-γ (IFN-γ), IL-1α/-1β/-2/-4/-6/-8/-10, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), TNF-α and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)) in 303 individuals with or without the MetS; and (2) explore their relationship with the presence of the MetS. Patients with the MetS had significantly higher serum concentrations of IFN-γ, EGF, IL-1α/-1β/-2/-4/-6/-8/-10, MCP-1 and TNF-α, whilst serum VEGF concentrations were markedly lower compared with the control group (e.g. 38·55 v. 82·18 pg/ml; P< 0·05). Amongst these parameters, IFN-γ and IL-1α emerged as the most significant independent predictors of the MetS. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that patients with the MetS had an altered blood cytokine and growth factor profile that may partially account for its adverse clinical outcomes. Further prospective studies in larger multi-centre settings are required to unravel the role and association of the emerging biomarkers with the MetS and their implication in therapeutic intervention.

High-protein diets are an effective means for weight loss (WL), but the mechanisms are unclear. One hypothesis relates to the release of gut hormones by either protein or amino acids (AA). The present study involved overweight and obese male volunteers (n 18, mean BMI 36·8 kg/m2) who consumed a maintenance diet for 7 d followed by fully randomised 10 d treatments with three iso-energetic WL diets, i.e. with either normal protein (NP, 15 % of energy) or high protein (HP, 30 %) or with a combination of protein and free AA, each 15 % of energy (NPAA). Psychometric ratings of appetite were recorded hourly. On day 10, plasma samples were taken at 30 min intervals over two consecutive 5 h periods (covering post-breakfast and post-lunch) and analysed for AA, glucose and hormones (insulin, total glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide, active ghrelin and total peptide YY (PYY)) plus leucine kinetics (first 5 h only). Composite hunger was 16 % lower for the HP diet than for the NP diet (P< 0·01) in the 5 h period after both meals. Plasma essential AA concentrations were greatest within 60 min of each meal for the NPAA diet, but remained elevated for 3–5 h after the HP diet. The three WL diets showed no difference for either fasting concentrations or the postprandial net incremental AUC (net AUCi) for insulin, ghrelin or PYY. No strong correlations were observed between composite hunger scores and net AUCi for either AA or gut peptides. Regulation of hunger may involve subtle interactions, and a range of signals may need to be integrated to produce the overall response.