Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

C Agostoni

Publications and source records attributed to C Agostoni.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

PKU-related dysgammaglobulinaemia: the effect of diet therapy on IgE and allergic sensitization.

The effect of diet on the development of immunoallergic signs and symptoms in children with phenylketonuria (PKU) was evaluated. Immunological indices of 58 children with PKU treated with diets were compared to the immunological indices of 58 healthy (non-PKU) children. In the PKU group, 39 children had been placed on diet therapy within the first month of life; 19 children had been placed on diet therapy after 6 months of age. Total circulating lymphocytes; CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ circulating lymphocytes; and serum IgA, IgM, IgG and total IgE levels were measured for each child. Skin prick tests were performed for common inhalant and food allergens. Every 3 months over the 2-year period of this study, the signs and symptoms of eczema, allergic rhinitis and asthma were recorded. The PKU group had lower IgG levels (p = 0.004) and higher total IgE levels (p = 0.0001) than the control group. Significantly lower IgE levels were found in children started on diet therapy within the first month of life compared with those started on diet therapy after 6 months of age (p = 0.0001). Allergic sensitization was significantly more frequent in the PKU group (24/58 vs 13/58, z = 2.00, p < 0.05), but no significant difference in the incidence of eczema and allergic rhinitis was found. Asthma was less frequent in the PKU group than in the control group (5/58 vs 14/58, z = 2.09, p < 0.05). Thus, diet appeared to prevent the development of immunoallergic signs and symptoms.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Relationships between the fatty acid status and insulinemic indexes in obese children.

The relationship between the fatty acid (FA) status and indices of insulin secretion in young obese subjects at risk of developing insulin resistance and its complications was investigated. In 12 subjects (8-14 years) at first diagnosis of obesity the FA composition of total plasma and circulating and erythrocyte phospholipids was related to basal and peak insulinemia and the insulinemic area resulting from a standard oral glucose tolerance test. Negative correlations were shown between both delta-6-desaturation products and 20:5 n-3 levels and insulinemic values. On the contrary, circulating total saturated and monounsaturated FA and erythrocyte phospholipid products of delta-5- and delta-4-desaturation positively correlate with insulinemic indices. The observed relationships could be markers of developing insulin resistance and suggest the possibility of a dietary intervention.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Antigen-reduced infant formulas versus human milk: growth and metabolic parameters in the first 6 months of life.

OBJECTIVE: To compare growth and metabolic parameters of infants fed special formulas for atopy prevention to breast-fed infants. METHODS: Eighty-two infants with family history of IgE-mediated diseases completed a 6-month nutritional follow-up within a clinical trial to assess the effectiveness of the dietary intervention in preventing atopy. Infants were subdivided according to the type of milk feeding from the end of the first month of life up to sixth month: human milk (HM) group (29 infants); soy formula (SF) group (15 infants); whey-based low-degree hydrolysate (WHy) group (15 infants); casein-based high-degree hydrolysate (CHy) group (13 infants); soy plus collagen-based high-degree hydrolysate group (10 infants). Anthropometric indices were determined at 0, 3 and 6 months of life and a fasting blood sample for hematochemical parameters was obtained at 5 months of life before beginning the introduction of solid foods. RESULTS: Lower values of body mass index and higher blood urea nitrogen were displayed by the CHy group at 3 months. Plasma aminoacidograms showed higher essential amino acids (AA)/total AA in SF, WHy and CHy groups but lower branched chain AA/essential AA in all formula-fed infants in comparison with the HM group. CONCLUSIONS: Special formulas (in particular high-degree protein hydrolysates) should be carefully evaluated when used for prolonged periods of time in healthy infants at familial risk of atopy.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1994

Effects of diet on the lipid and fatty acid status of full-term infants at 4 months.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effects of the exogenous supply of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCP) and cholesterol on the lipid and fatty acid status in full-term, 4-month old infants. METHODS: Twenty-three infants received a standard infant formula while twenty-one were given a formula enriched with LCP and cholesterol in a prospective, randomized study. The composition of the two formulas differed only in fat quality. A group of fifteen breastfed infants fed was used as reference. No one was complemented with solid foods before blood sampling at 4 months of life. RESULTS: Differences in total-cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) levels between feeding groups were mainly gender-related. Dietary cholesterol tended to increase LDL-C plasma levels. The breastfed and the enriched formula-fed groups had higher levels of circulating LCP than the group that received the standard formula. In the erythrocytes of infants fed the standard formula, C22:6 n-3 levels were less than 50% those of the breastfed and the enriched formula-fed ones. Higher C20:4 n-6 levels were found in the erythrocytes of the enriched formula-fed group. CONCLUSIONS: Formula-fed, full-term infants maintain a lipid and fatty acid status close to that of breastfed infants when supplied with dietary LCP and cholesterol.

Cholesterol↗
PubMed1994

Fat needs of term infants and fat content of milk formulae.

Term infants have precise dietary fat requirements for their metabolic, energy and structural needs. The fat content of commercial milk formulae differs from maternal milk in that it contains no long-chain polyunsaturated derivatives or cholesterol. Artificially fed children thus have less of these molecules available for their biological needs, and hence lower levels of long-chain polyunsaturated derivatives in circulating and membrane lipids than breast-fed children. The functional effects of this difference have not been investigated thoroughly in term infants. Dietary lack of essential fatty acids and their derivatives is evident also in weaned children during the second half of their first year of life. Qualitative changes in the fat content of commercial milk formulae could help to correct some widely encountered dietary imbalances, using the pattern of fats provided in breast milk as the ideal.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Lipid and apoprotein A-I and B levels in obese school-age children: results of a study in the Milan area.

The association between lipids and apoproteins and indices of fat patterning was assessed in a sample of school-age children of both sexes. The study included 361 children between 6 and 15 years of age in two urban centers in the Milan area. Ages, weights, and skin folds were recorded, and percentages of overweight and body mass index were derived. Total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (C-HDL), triglycerides (TRIGL), apoprotein A-I (apoA-I), and apoprotein B (apoB) were assayed. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (C-LDL) was calculated. The obese boys had significantly higher levels of TRIGL and apoB than nonobese boys. The obese girls had significantly higher TC, TRIGL, C-LDL, and apoB levels than the nonobese girls, but lower C-HDL. The LDL/apoB ratio was lower in obese than normal-weight boys. The subscapular/tricipital fold ratio (S/T) was correlated positively with TRIGL and inversely with C-HDL in boys, while in girls it was correlated with TRIGL and apoB. The subscapular/iliac fold ratio (S/I) was correlated with the C-LDL/apoB ratio only in girls. These data underline the importance of anthropometric parameters and indices of fat patterning in determining early cardiovascular risk factors.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Familial history of cardiovascular disease and blood lipid pattern in newborn infants.

The levels of atherogenic lipid fractions are higher in children with a family history of ischemic cardiovascular disease (CD). This study was designed to examine this relationship in neonates. A total of 1276 newborns were investigated; 400 cord blood samples were collected for measurement of triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) and HDL cholesterol (HDL-C); on day 4, 1200 capillary samples were taken for TC and TG measurements. Male newborns with a positive history of CD had higher concentrations of cord blood TC (P less than 0.04) and LDL-C (P less than 0.02). On day 4 this difference in TC was no longer detectable (LDL-C not determined). A coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factor family history is sensitive (0.87) in predicting high cord blood concentrations of LDL-C, the specificity being 0.46 and the positive predicting value 0.08.

Cardiovascular Diseases↗
PubMed1992

Vegetable foods in weaning.

Vegetable foods (cereals, non-starchy vegetables, legumes) make a unique nutritional and metabolic contribution during weaning. They provide proteins that are of low biological value individually but whose value can be raised by consuming appropriate combinations: minimal amounts of lipids, mostly essential polyunsaturated fats; complex carbohydrates; and soluble fibre, which are fermented by colonic flora to short-chain fatty acids that have beneficial effects. Insoluble fibre, minerals, trace elements and vitamins are also nutritionally important components of vegetable foods. Vegetable foods lower the calorific density of meals, modulate nutrient and antigen absorption, and promote a physiological copropoiesis. Recent nutritional surveys have shown that 12-month old children eat an excessive amount of animal proteins. Whole cereals and non-starchy vegetables, including whole legumes, should be routinely eaten during weaning to improve nutritional balance and to make children accustom to eating fibre, which has prophylactic properties. The daily intake of fibre should be progressively increased to 5 g during the first year of life.

Humans↗
PubMed1992

Metabolic needs, utilization and dietary sources of fatty acids in childhood.

Fatty acids are molecules that differ in the length of their carbon chain and the number of double bonds within them. Each of the resulting "families" has its own peculiarities as regards energy, structure and metabolism. Passing from the short, saturated chains to the very long polyunsaturated ones produces an increasing degree of specialization in metabolic and structural functions important for the body's development and general homeostasis. The fetus and neonate (especially if preterm), the breast-fed and weaning baby all need fatty acids in the right amounts and ratios to achieve full expression of their genetic growth potential, especially of nerve tissues. Intake in these age groups depends on dietary factors such as the mother's diet during pregnancy, the type of milk (human or artificial), and the weaning schedule. Later in childhood and in adolescence not only must the body's somatic growth needs be covered, but intake must be adequate to lay the basis for prevention of chronic-degenerative pathologies. Dietary recommendations are therefore based on encouraging a normocaloric feeding pattern, with a controlled total and saturated lipid proportion and balanced intake of unsaturated fatty acids.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Reduced plasma C-20 and C-22 polyunsaturated fatty acids in children with phenylketonuria during dietary intervention.

The fatty acid composition of plasma and erythrocyte lipids was analyzed in 15 children with phenylketonuria (aged 3 to 12 years) during dietary treatment aimed to maintain plasma phenylalanine levels at less than 8 mg/dl (485 mumol/L), and compared with those of 12 matched control subjects. The diet of children with phenylketonuria provided less protein, with a very low proportion of animal proteins, less fat, but a higher proportion of linoleic acid as a percentage of calories, and a higher carbohydrate content versus that in the diet of control subjects. The children with phenylketonuria had higher plasma levels of oleic acid but lower levels of arachidonic (n-6) and n-3 fatty acids. Linoleic and eicosatrienoic (n-9) acid levels were the same in both groups. These changes in patients with phenylketonuria resemble those observed in vegetarians and may be due to the absence of preformed arachidonic acid and long-chain n-3 fatty acids in the phenylketonuric diet.

Child↗