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Biomedical subjects

R K Chandra

Publications and source records attributed to R K Chandra.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Five-year follow-up of high-risk infants with family history of allergy who were exclusively breast-fed or fed partial whey hydrolysate, soy, and conventional cow's milk formulas.

BACKGROUND: Allergy is a common cause of illness. The effect of feeding different infant formulas on the incidence of atopic disease and food allergy was assessed in a prospective randomized double-blind study of high-risk infants with a family history of atopy. METHODS: 216 high-risk infants whose mothers had elected not to breast-feed were randomized to receive exclusively a partial whey hydrolysate formula or a conventional cow's milk formula or a soy formula until 6 months of age. Seventy-two high risk infants breast-fed for > or = 4 months were also studied. RESULTS: Follow-up until 5 years of age showed a significant lowering in the cumulative incidence of atopic disease in the breast-fed (odds ratio 0.422 [0.200-0.891]) and the whey hydrolysate (odds ratio 0.322 [0.159-0.653) groups, compared with the conventional cow's milk group. Soy formula was not effective (odds ratio 0.759 [0.384-1.501]). The occurrence of both eczema and asthma was lowest in the breast-fed and whey hydrolysate groups and was comparable in the cow's milk and soy groups. Similar significant differences were noted in the 18-60 month period prevalence of eczema and asthma. Eczema was less severe in the whey hydrolysate group compared with the other groups. Double-blind placebo-controlled food challenges showed a lower prevalence of food allergy in the whey hydrolysate group compared with the other formula groups. CONCLUSIONS: Exclusive breast-feeding or feeding with a partial whey hydrolysate formula is associated with lower incidence of atopic disease and food allergy. This is a cost-effective approach to the prevention of allergic disease in children.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

The contribution of dietary iron to iron status in a group of elderly subjects.

Although it is widely accepted that body iron stores of elderly individuals are largely adequate, recent findings from our laboratory suggest that as many as 9% of a "healthy" sample showed signs of an inadequate body store of this nutrient. In an attempt to see if iron consumption may be a contributing factor, we compared dietary intakes of total iron, heme iron, nonheme iron, ascorbic acid, calcium, dietary fibre, tea and coffee between 19 healthy seniors with inadequate iron stores and 108 healthy seniors with good iron status. The daily consumption of total iron was significantly higher in those with good iron stores. Thus, dietary iron is an important contributor to iron status in old age.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

Effect of vitamin and trace element supplementation on immune indices in healthy elderly.

Aging is associated with a progressive decline in the immune system and a greater susceptibility to infection. This double-blind, placebo-controlled study, examined the effect of a vitamin and trace element supplement on immune responses of healthy, noninstitutionalized elderly subjects. Forty-seven subjects aged 61-79 years were randomly assigned to receive placebo or micronutrient supplementation for one year. Thirty-five individuals completed the one-year study. Immune function was assessed before and after the period of supplementation. Cell-mediated immune function assessed by the number of T cells and subsets remained constant in the supplemented group and there was a significant increase in CD57 natural killer cells. In contrast, a significant decrease in T cells, CD4 cells, and CD4: CD8 ratio was noted in the placebo group. Supplementation with micronutrients can play a crucial role in the maintenance of normal immune function in the elderly.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Relationship between nutritional status and immune function of elderly people.

Thirty-four malnourished subjects between the ages of 61 and 97 years were given appropriate food supplement(s) for a period of 6 consecutive months. They were followed for a subsequent 6 months during which time there was no nutritional intervention. Nutritional assessment and immunological evaluation were performed at 0, 6, and 12 months. Nutritional assessment included anthropometry, biochemistry, and clinical examination. Immunological evaluation included serum complement C3 concentration, delayed cutaneous hypersensitivity skin test, and the enumeration of total lymphocytes, rosetting T-cells, CD4+ cells, and CD8+ cells. Immune function improved by the end of the supplementation period. Six months of nutritional supplementation significantly increased the percentage of lymphocytes represented by mature T-cells.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Nutrition and immunity: an overview.

Historical accounts and recent epidemiologic studies have suggested a mutually aggravating relationship between malnutrition and infection. In protein-energy malnutrition, there is a significant impairment of several aspects of immunity, including cell-mediated immune responses, secretory immunoglobulin A antibody production, phagocyte function, complement system, antibody affinity and cytokine production. Several micronutrients play a crucial role in maintenance of optimum immune responses. On the other hand, excessive intake of nutrients also impairs immunity. Animals fed diets lacking in nucleotides have lower immune responses than controls but there is no enhancement of immunity when the diet contains large amounts of nucleotides. These observations have considerable practical importance in terms of designing feeding formulas.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Nutritional status and immune responses.

The immune system is dependent on good nutritional status for its optimal functioning. Immune function itself can provide a broad measure of nutritional deficiency. For example, lymphocyte count and skin reactivity most often are used for this purpose. Of course, such tests are of little value in monitoring nutritional therapy. Several nutrients that are likely to be deficient in hospitalized patients and are especially important in the maintenance of immune function include protein, ascorbic acid, and zinc.

Humans↗
PubMed1992

Effect of vitamin and trace-element supplementation on immune responses and infection in elderly subjects.

Ageing is associated with impaired immune responses and increased infection-related morbidity. This study assessed the effect of physiological amounts of vitamins and trace elements on immunocompetence and occurrence of infection-related illness. 96 independently living, healthy elderly individuals were randomly assigned to receive nutrient supplementation or placebo. Nutrient status and immunological variables were assessed at baseline and at 12 months, and the frequency of illness due to infection was ascertained. Subjects in the supplement group had higher numbers of certain T-cell subsets and natural killer cells, enhanced proliferation response to mitogen, increased interleukin-2 production, and higher antibody response and natural killer cell activity. These subjects were less likely than those in the placebo group to have illness due to infections (mean [SD] 23 [5] vs 48 [7] days per year, p = 0.002). Supplementation with a modest physiological amount of micronutrients improves immunity and decreases the risk of infection in old age.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Food allergy.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Child↗
PubMed1992

Primary prevention of cardiovascular disease in childhood: recent knowledge and unanswered questions.

Efforts at prevention of chronic disease in adult life must include investigation of causal pathogenetic clues in early life. There is adequate rationale for identification of children who are at risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) in later years. At the present time, practical considerations would favor a selective rather than universal screening of children. If the latter is instituted, then it is ideal to test children 4-7 years of age. In either case, total cholesterol greater than 200 mg/dl warrants a complete lipid-lipoprotein profile. Those with confirmed abnormal values of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and apolipoproteins A1 and B should be offered dietary advice and encouraged to participate in regular exercise. In a few cases, drug therapy would be required. Limited data suggest that an integrated approach will result in a reduction of cardiovascular risk factors. Perinatal nutrition also may influence the risk of CVD among adults; a reduction in the prevalence of low birth weight and prevention of failure to thrive in early infancy may be additional useful strategies for prevention of CVD.

Arteriosclerosis↗
PubMed1992

Protein-energy malnutrition and immunological responses.

Historical accounts have suggested a temporal relationship between famines and epidemics. More recently, careful epidemiologic studies have shown a relationship between nutritional deficiencies and heightened risk of morbidity and mortality due to infectious disease. These observations led to studies that examined the effect of protein-energy malnutrition on immunocompetence. The lymphoid tissues, particularly the thymus, were found to be atrophied. There was a reduction in delayed cutaneous hypersensitivity, fewer T cells, especially T helper cells, decreased thymulin activity, impaired secretory immunoglobulin A antibody response, decreased antibody affinity, reduced concentration and activity of complement components and phagocyte dysfunction. These observations were then applied to the study of individual nutrient deficiencies. The interactions of protein-energy malnutrition and the immune system have generated many practical and clinical applications.

History, 20th Century↗
PubMed1992

Nutrition and immunoregulation. Significance for host resistance to tumors and infectious diseases in humans and rodents.

Nutrition is a critical determinant of immunocompetence and risk of illness and death largely due to infectious disease. It is now established that undernourished individuals have impaired immune responses. The most consistent abnormalities are seen in cell-mediated immunity, complement system, phagocytes, mucosal secretory antibody response and antibody affinity. These changes, together with other handicapping factors observed in underprivileged societies, lead to more infections. It is now recognized that deficiencies of single nutrients also impair immune responses. The best studied are zinc, iron, vitamin B-6, vitamin A, copper and selenium. If malnutrition occurs during fetal life, as epitomized by small-for-gestational age infants, the effects on cell-mediated immunity are very significant and long lasting. There is much recent evidence to suggest that at the other end of the age spectrum, namely old age, nutrition plays an important role in maintenance of optimum immunity. Based on these data, several studies have documented the critical importance of nutrition in resistance to a variety of infectious challenges, including Salmonella, Listeria and coxsackie B. Similarly, in vitro and in vivo responses to tumor cells are modulated by nutrition. These interactions of nutrition and immunity have several practical applications, including resistance to infections and tumors and the development of designer formulas that might help reduce the occurrence of opportunistic infections in immunocompromised hosts.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Nutrition of the elderly.

The progressively increasing number of elderly people in the Canadian population and the disproportionate expenditure on their health care has stimulated interest in prevention of common illnesses observed in this age group. It is now recognized that nutrition plays an important role in health status, and both undernutrition and overnutrition are associated with greater risk of morbidity and mortality. Nutritional problems in the elderly can be suspected if there are several high-risk factors present--for example, living alone, physical or mental disability, recent loss of spouse or friend, weight loss, use of multiple medications, poverty, and high consumption of alcohol. Physical examination, anthropometry, and measurements of serum albumin levels and hemoglobin and lymphocyte counts are simple but helpful tools in confirming the presence of nutritional disorders. The prevention and correction of nutritional problems is likely to prove beneficial in the management of common geriatric illnesses. In these efforts, it is desirable to have a team approach in which the physician, the dietitian and the nurse each have a defined interactive role. Home care support services are important adjuncts in continuing care. Nutrition should receive a greater emphasis in the training of physicians and other health professionals.

Aged↗