Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “FOOD”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 325 records · Page 18Linked to original sources

Food store access and household fruit and vegetable use among participants in the US Food Stamp Program.

OBJECTIVE: Recent research on access to food among low-income populations in industrialised countries has begun to focus on neighbourhood food availability as a key determinant of dietary behaviour. This study examined the relationship between various measures of food store access and household fruit and vegetable use among participants in the Food Stamp Program, America's largest domestic food assistance programme. DESIGN: A secondary data analysis was conducted using the 1996-97 National Food Stamp Program Survey. The survey employed a 1-week food inventory method, including two at-home interviews, to determine household food use. Separate linear regression models were developed to analyse fruit and vegetable use. Independent variables included distance to store, travel time to store, ownership of a car and difficulty of supermarket access. All models controlled for a full set of socio-economic variables. SUBJECTS: A nationally representative sample of participants (n=963) in the Food Stamp Program. RESULTS: After controlling for confounding variables, easy access to supermarket shopping was associated with increased household use of fruits (84 grams per adult equivalent per day; 95% confidence interval 5, 162). Distance from home to food store was inversely associated with fruit use by households. Similar patterns were seen with vegetable use, though associations were not significant. CONCLUSIONS: Environmental factors are importantly related to dietary choice in a nationally representative sample of low-income households, reinforcing the importance of including such factors in interventions that seek to effect dietary improvements.

Adult↗

Effect of food processing on iron availability of African pearl millet weaning foods.

The effects of different cereal precooking process (roasting and extrusion cooking) on iron availability and protein digestibility of four African weaning foods were investigated using in vitro methods. In two weaning foods based on pearl millet, cowpea and peanut, the cereal was extruded (A) or roasted (B). In two other weaning foods having a similar composition, a low proportion of milk powder was added and the cereal extruded (C) or roasted (D). The mean +/- SD iron values (mg/100 g) were: A, 5.56 +/- 0.18; B, 9.12 +/- 0.93; C, 5.89 +/- 0.23; D, 9.04 +/- 0.85. When the pearl millet was roasted, the iron content was higher than in the extruded weaning foods (P < 0.01). However, the percent of available iron of the roasted weaning foods was very low (B, 1.64 +/- 0.01; D, 0.91 +/- 0.02). The iron availability of the extruded weaning foods, A and C, was 3.5 times and 6.5 times higher than the corresponding roasted weaning foods, B and D, respectively. This represented 332.4 +/- 4.4 and 375.1 +/- 5.8 micrograms of available iron/100 g for A and C, respectively versus 149.5 +/- 0.9 and 82.2 +/- 1.8 micrograms of available iron/100 g for B and D, respectively. No significant differences in polyphenol contents were found according to the precooking process of the cereal. The extruded weaning foods showed a higher protein digestibility of approximately 10% than the roasted ones (P < 0.05). A positive correlation was found between in vitro iron availability and protein digestibility (r = 0.976, P < 0.02). Despite a high content of iron, the iron availability of roasted pearl millet weaning foods was quite low. Extrusion cooking of the cereal improved the protein digestibility and iron availability of pearl millet weaning foods; however, the amount of available iron remained insufficient to meet the iron requirements of infants whatever the cereal processing.

Cooking↗

Household food insecurity and hunger among families using food banks.

Over the past two decades, the demand for charitable food assistance has steadily grown, and a massive ad hoc system of food banks has become established in Canada. To assess the food insecurity and nutritional vulnerability of one subgroup of food bank users, interviews were conducted with a sample of 153 women in families using emergency food relief programs in Metropolitan Toronto. Ninety percent reported household incomes which were less than two thirds of the 'poverty line', and 94% reported some degree of food insecurity over the previous 12 months. Seventy percent reported some level of absolute food deprivation, despite using food banks. The findings highlight the limited capacity of ad hoc, charitable food assistance programs to respond to problems of household food insecurity which arise in the context of severe and chronic poverty.

Adult↗

A decision support system for the prediction of microbial food safety and food quality.

The development of a method to predict microbial food safety and quality is described. The manufacture of a food from its ingredients is simulated, using a recipe. Food engineering heuristics are combined with models developed in predictive microbiology. Parameter values of ingredients of foods, such as water activity and pH, and models for microbial growth and decay are used for the prediction of the kinetics of microorganisms generally found in ingredients. The values of these parameters are collected in databases. If required information is lacking, methods are described for making reliable guesses of the parameters. Food quality can be calculated as a function of fluctuating temperature in time. Several food distribution chains can be simulated in order to assess the influence of distribution chains on food quality. The described methods were implemented into a computerised decision support system that can be used in food production, product development and training. In the future it may be possible to apply specific expert knowledge in production and development of foods to improve the quality of prediction.

Animals↗

Recalls of foods containing undeclared allergens reported to the US Food and Drug Administration, fiscal year 1999.

BACKGROUND: Food recalls can play a role in preventing or reducing the number of allergic reactions that may occur after a product containing an undeclared allergen has been introduced into commerce. OBJECTIVE: We sought to summarize the US Food and Drug Administration's records of recalls classified for fiscal year 1999 involving foods containing undeclared allergens. METHODS: Food and Drug Administration food recall records were reviewed for fiscal year 1999 to identify recalls that occurred because of the undeclared presence of one or more of the following allergens: milk, eggs, fish, wheat, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, and soy. Each record was reviewed to determine the recalled product, the undeclared allergen present, the reason for recall, and reported adverse events. RESULTS: Of 659 total food products classified for recall during fiscal year 1999, 236 (36%) products were recalled because they contained one or more undeclared allergens. Consumers were the party most often responsible for identifying that an undeclared allergen was present in a product (56% of recalled products). A total of 34 consumers reported allergic reactions after consumption of the recalled products. Three principal factors contributed to the presence of undeclared allergens in the recalled products: ingredient-statement omissions and errors (51% of all recalled products); manufacturing equipment cross-contact (40%); and errors by ingredient suppliers or manufacturing firm employees (5%). CONCLUSION: The presence of undeclared allergens in food products represents one of the more common reasons for food-product recall in the United States. A number of well-recognized allergens may be introduced into foods as a result of several different factors.

Allergens↗

Food environment in secondary schools: a la carte, vending machines, and food policies and practices.

OBJECTIVES: This study described the food environment in 20 Minnesota secondary schools. METHODS: Data were collected on school food policies and the availability and nutritional content of foods in school à la carte (ALC) areas and vending machines (VMs). RESULTS: Approximately 36% and 35% of foods in ALC areas and in VMs, respectively, met the lower-fat criterion (< or = 5.5 fat grams/serving). The chips/crackers category constituted the largest share of ALC foods (11.5%). The median number of VMs per school was 12 (4 soft drink, 2 snack, 5 other). Few school food policies were reported. CONCLUSIONS: The availability of healthful foods and beverages in schools as well as school food policies that foster healthful food choices among students needs greater attention.

Adolescent↗

Multicenter study of street foods in 13 towns on four continents by the food and environmental hygiene study group of the international network of pasteur and associated institutes.

An international multicenter study of ready-to-eat foods, sandwiches, and ice creams or sorbets sold in the streets and their vendors was carried out to assess the microbiological quality of these foods and to identify characteristics of the vendors possibly associated with pathogens. Thirteen towns in Africa, America, Asia, and Oceania were involved in the study. A single protocol was used in all 13 centers: representative sampling was by random selection of vendors and a sample of foods bought from each of these vendors at a time and date selected at random. Microbiological analyses were carried out using standardized Association Française de Normalisation methods, and the use of a standardized questionnaire to collect data concerning the characteristics of the vendors. Fifteen surveys were carried out, with 3,003 food samples from 1,268 vendors. The proportion of unsatisfactory food samples was between 12.7 and 82.9% for ice creams and sorbets and between 11.3 and 92% for sandwiches. For ice creams and sorbets, the sale of a large number of units (>80 per day) increased the risk of unsatisfactory food by a factor of 2.8 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.5 to 5.1), lack of training in food hygiene by 6.6 (95% CI: 1.1 to 50). and by a factor of 2.8 (95% CI: 1.4 to 5.4) for mobile vendors. These risk factors were not identified for sandwiches, this difference may be due to the presence of a cooking step in their preparation. These results show that the poor microbiological quality of these street foods constitutes a potential hazard to public health, that the extent of this hazard varies between the cities studied, and that vendors' health education in food safety is a crucial factor in the prevention of foodborne infections.

Colony Count, Microbial↗

Adolescents' reported usage of selected foods in relation to their perceptions and social norms for those foods.

This paper reports a study of factors associated with the consumption of 22 diverse foods among 2082 students aged 12-15 years in Tasmania, Australia. Students provided data by completing a printed questionnaire. Multiple linear regression was used to assess how well self-reported usual (past) frequency of consumption of a food could be estimated from their perceptions of the qualities of the food (their liking for it, its healthfulness) and their descriptive social norms for the food (its usage by parents and its usage by friends). For all foods, multiple R was significant (p < 0.0001), with values ranging from 0.28-0.64 (median for the 22 foods being 0.49). Standardized regression coefficients for liking and parental usage were highly significant (p < 0.0001) for all foods. However, consistently lower coefficients were found for friends' usage (11 with p < 0.01, but only three with p < 0.0001) and healthfulness (five with p < 0.01, but only one with p < 0.0001). The absolute and relative magnitudes of the regression coefficients varied substantially between the foods. Liking was a stronger predictor than parental usage for 11 of the foods, and parental usage out-ranked liking for the remaining 11. Regression coefficients for friends' usage and healthfulness were smaller than those for liking and parental usage for all foods studied.

Adolescent↗

Attitudes to food and the role of food in life in the U.S.A., Japan, Flemish Belgium and France: possible implications for the diet-health debate.

For human beings, food is a critical contributor to physical well being, a major source of pleasure, worry and stress, a major occupant of waking time and, across the world, the single greatest category of expenditures. This is a first study of the way food functions in the minds and lives of people from four cultures. Adults and college students from Flemish Belgium, France, U.S.A. and Japan were surveyed with questions dealing with beliefs about the diet-health link, worry about food, the degree of consumption of foods modified to be "healthier" (e.g. reduced in salt or fat), the importance of food as a positive force in life, the tendency to associate foods with nutritional vs. culinary contexts, and satisfaction with the healthiness of one's own diet. In all domains except beliefs about the importance of diet for health, there are substantial country (and usually gender) differences. Generally, the group associating food most with health and least with pleasure is the Americans, and the group most food-pleasure-oriented and least food-health-oriented is the French. In all four countries, females, as opposed to males, show a pattern of attitudes that is more like the American pattern, and less like the French pattern. In either gender, French and Belgians tend to occupy the pleasure extreme, Americans the health extreme, with the Japanese in between. Ironically, the Americans, who do the most to alter their diet in the service of health, are the least likely to classify themselves as healthy eaters. We conclude that there are substantial cross-cultural differences in the extent to which food functions as a stressor vs. a pleasure. These differences may influence health and may partially account for national differences in rates of cardiovascular diseases (the "French paradox").

Adult↗

Food preferences and food habits of patients with chronic renal failure undergoing dialysis.

OBJECTIVE: To examine and compare the food preferences of patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis (HD) and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) with those of age- and sex-matched controls. DESIGN: We administered two questionnaires, one assessing preferences for 88 food items (according to a nine-point hedonic scale) and the other assessing factors influencing dietary habits. SUBJECTS: Thirty-three patients on HD, 17 patients on CAPD, and 30 control subjects with normal renal function. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The 88 foods were grouped into 14 classes to compare preferences. Taste aversions, food preparation details, and psychological and social determinants of food intake were also compared. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: The preference ratings of the HD, CAPD, and control groups were compared using analysis of variance. The dietary habits results were examined using a chi 2 analysis. RESULTS: Sweet foods (P = .002), vegetables (P = .003), red meats (P = .010), and fish and poultry (P = .015) were less pleasant for patients on HD than for control subjects. Red meats (P = .019), fish and poultry (P = .032), and eggs (P = .005) were less pleasant for patients on HD than for patients on CAPD. Red meat was the most unpopular food group for all dialysis patients. The most common factor affecting dietary intake was a loss of interest in food and/or cooking. CONCLUSION: We conclude that chronic renal failure influences patients' food preferences and food habits. Knowledge of these preferences will help dietitians plan more adequate and enjoyable diets for such patients.

Adult↗

Effects of food deprivation and metabolic fuel utilization on the photoperiodic control of food intake in Siberian hamsters.

Unlike rats, Siberian hamsters exhibit seasonal changes in energy balance that are controlled by the photoperiod (daylength). In Siberian hamsters, body weight and fat, and food intake peak in long, summer-like days and reach nadirs in short, winter-like days. The purpose of the present experiments was to test whether metabolic challenges that increase food intake in laboratory rats also increase feeding in Siberian hamsters. Specifically, we asked the questions: (a) Is food intake increased following a fast?; (b) Is food intake increased following treatments that block metabolic fuel utilization, such as the glucose utilization blocker 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2 DG), or that enhance storage of metabolic fuels, such as short acting insulin (regular insulin)?; (c) Does the combination of food deprivation and decreased metabolic fuel utilization increase food intake?; and (c) Does the photoperiod affect the feeding and physiological responses to metabolic challenges? Food intake was measured in response to fasting, insulin or 2 DG treatment in adult female Siberian hamsters housed in long photoperiods. Following exposure to a short photoperiod, these hamsters were tested for their response to insulin and 2 DG, but not to fasting. Food intake did not increase following fasts of 12, 24, or 48 h. Food intake was increased in long day-housed hamsters given the lowest dose of 2 DG tested (125 mg/kg) 2, 4, and 6 h after treatment, but not in short days nor in long days with larger doses of the 2 DG. Similarly, food intake was increased by treatment with regular insulin in long days, but not short days.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

Effects of kappa-opioid receptor agonists and morphine on food intake and urinary output in food-deprived and nondeprived rats.

The effects of kappa-opioid receptor agonists, bremazocine, U-50, 488H and tifluadom and of a mu-opioid receptor agonist, morphine, on food intake and urinary output in food-deprived and nondeprived Sprague-Dawley rats was determined. In food-deprived animals, intraperitoneal administration of bremazocine at 0.1 mg/kg increased food intake but at 1.0 and 10.0 mg/kg doses decreased it. Tifluadom (0.1-10.0 mg/kg) had no effect on food intake. U-50,488H at 1.0 mg/kg increased food intake, whereas 10.0 mg/kg dose decreased the food consumption. In nondeprived rats, the kappa-opioid receptor agonists failed to produce any effect on food consumption. In food-deprived rats, all the three kappa-opioid receptor agonists increased the urinary output at the highest dose (10 mg/kg). In nondeprived rats similar effects as in food-deprived rats were observed except bremazocine increased urinary output at all the doses used. These results with kappa-opioid agonists may be related to either the existence of more than one population of kappa-opioid receptors or their differential actions at the opioid receptor types.

3,4-Dichloro-N-methyl-N-(2-(1-pyrrolidinyl)-cycloh↗

Patterns of food hypersensitivity during sixteen years of double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenges.

For 16 years the double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) has been used at the National Jewish Center for Immunology and Respiratory Medicine to determine whether adverse reactions to foods do occur in children. The objective of these studies was to explore these reproducible adverse reactions and to characterize them. Although skin testing was performed on all subjects, a history of an adverse reaction to food and to subsequent DBPCFC were the only criteria for entry into this study. Of 480 children studied, 185 (39%) have had positive DBPCFC results. In these 480 children, 245 (24%) of 1014 DBPCFCs showed positive results. Egg, peanut, and cow milk accounted for 73% of the positive DBPCFC reactions, but many foods produced reactions. Skin test results were positive in most children with a positive DBPCFC reaction, but the large number of patients with asymptomatic hypersensitivity limited the accuracy of a positive skin test result alone as a predictor of clinical symptoms during food ingestion. Evaluation of results in this large number of children for a prolonged period revealed reproducible patterns of symptoms, timing, and incriminated foods. Placebo reactions were rare. The procedure was safe. Twelve youngsters with a negative DBPCFC result subsequently had positive reactions to open challenges when large amounts of the challenge food were used. In each of these cases the reactions were limited to areas of direct contact with the food or could be explained by the larger amount of food ingested during the open challenge. Multiple food hypersensitivity has been a rare finding. The DBPCFC should be the "gold standard" for both research and clinical diagnostic evaluations until it is superseded by methods that have yet to be developed.

Adolescent↗

Food retailing and food service.

The food retailing and food service sector is not only an important component of the food marketing channel but is also vital to the United States economy, accounting for more than 7% of the United States gross domestic product in 2001. The business of food retailing and food service is undergoing salient change. The authors argue that the singular force driving this change is the consumer. To understand the linkages in the food marketing channel, this article provides information on the farm-to-retail price spread and the economic forces that influence their magnitude. Examples are given of farm-to-retail price spreads for red meat and dairy industries. In addition, the economics behind the provision of retail services and the growth of the food service industry are discussed. Further, the authors demonstrate that the structure of the food market channel is consumer driven, and present three characteristics of convenience (preparation, delivery, and service) and identify four food distribution channels in terms of convenience (complete convenience, traditional food service, consumer direct, and traditional retail).

Animals↗

Relation between food preference and food-elicited vocalizations in golden lion tamarins (Leontopithecus rosalia).

We report the results of 2 studies on food-elicited vocalizations in golden lion tamarins (Leontopithecus rosalia). First, we investigated the preferences of 10 golden lion tamarins for 6 foods. Tamarins prefer mealworms and raisins significantly more than apple, egg, carrot, or marmoset diet. Food preference rank was significantly and positively correlated with the rank of latency to choose a particular food. Second, we investigated the relation between food preference and 15 vocal parameters measured from the calls emitted by 5 tamarins to a subset of the foods. Only 1 parameter was significantly correlated with food preference across animals. Within-subjects multivariate analysis of variance showed that the vocalizations to foods are significantly different. Our results support an hypothesis that food-elicited vocalizations vary in ways that correspond to the caller's preference but not in a manner that labels food type.

Affect↗

Energy density of foods and beverages in the Australian food supply: influence of macronutrients and comparison to dietary intake.

OBJECTIVES: The energy density (ED) of the diet is considered an important determinant of total energy intake and thus energy balance and weight change. We aimed to compare relationships between ED and macronutrient content in individual food and beverage items as well as population diet in a typical Western country. DESIGN: Nutrient data for 3673 food items and 247 beverage items came from the Australian Food and Nutrient database (AusNut). Food and beverage intake data came from the 1995 Australian National Nutrition Survey (a 24-h dietary recall survey in 13 858 people over the age of 2). Relationships between ED and macronutrient and water content were analysed by linear regression with 95% prediction bands. RESULTS: For both individual food items and population food intake, there was a positive relationship between ED and percent energy as fat and negative relationships between ED and percent energy as carbohydrate and percent water by weight. In all cases, there was close agreement between the slopes of the regression lines between food items and dietary intake. There were no clear relationships between ED and macronutrient content for beverage items. Carbohydrate (mostly sucrose) contributed 91, 47, and 25% of total energy for sugar-based, fat-based, and alcohol-based beverages respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The relationship between ED and fat content of foods holds true across both population diets and individual food items available in the food supply in a typical Western country such as Australia. As high-fat diets are associated with a high BMI, population measures with an overall aim of reducing the ED of diets may be effective in mediating the growing problem of overweight and obesity.

Adolescent↗

Does energy intake underreporting involve all kinds of food or only specific food items? Results from the Fleurbaix Laventie Ville Santé (FLVS) study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine if energy intake underreporting concerns all major food groups or if it occurs for specific food groups only. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study on dietary habits and food consumption. SUBJECTS: Five-hundred and four women and 529 men, aged between 25 and 55y participating in the Fleurbaix Laventie Ville Sante study. MEASUREMENTS: A nutritional survey was conducted between March and June 1993 using a 3-day food record. Reported weight and height were used to estimate body mass index and basal metabolic rate. Underreporters were defined as subjects whose ratio of mean energy intake to basal metabolic rate was lower than 1.05. Food consumption was compared between underreporters and non-underreporters. RESULTS: Energy percentage of fat and carbohydrate were lower in underreporters than in non-underreporters in contrast to the energy percentage of protein. This was due to the fact that food items rich in fat and/or carbohydrates (such as butter, French fries, sugars and confectionery, cakes and pastries) were reported to be less frequently eaten and/or in smaller quantities in underreporters compared to non-underreporters. CONCLUSION: Although this study presents some limitations, like the use of reported weight and a standard value for physical activity, it shows that reported foods differed, quantitatively and qualitatively, between severe underreporters and non-underreporters. Underreporting of food intake does not result from a systematical underestimation of portion sizes for all food items, but seems to concern specific food items which are generally considered 'bad for health'.

Adult↗

Food intake and diet selection in sheep: the effect of manipulating the rates of digestion of carbohydrates and protein of the foods offered as a choice.

An experiment was designed to investigate whether the degree of synchrony between the rates of digestion of carbohydrates and N of foods offered as a choice would have an effect, through their consequences, on the short- and long-term diet selection of sheep. Four foods (RL, RH, SL and SH) with the same high metabolizable energy, and similar high metabolizable protein contents were made into pellets. Foods RL and RH were based on a rapidly fermentable carbohydrate source and foods SL and SH on a slowly fermentable carbohydrate source; within each source one food (RL or SL) had a low, and the other (RH or SH) a high, rumen-degradable protein (RDP) content. The foods within a carbohydrate source were offered either singly or as a choice (RL/RH or SL/SH) to eleven rumen-fistulated mature sheep. The design was two 3 x 3 Latin squares (replicated once) with 5-week periods; squares consisted of two single foods and their respective choice. Weeks 1, 3 and 5 were considered to be controls, and weeks 2 and 4 used for rumen infusions of either urea or fructose infused over 4 h (10.00-14.00 hours). Food intake (FI) and diet selections (DS) were recorded daily and every 2 h (08.00-16.00 hours) on days 2-5 of each week; rumen pH and NH3 concentrations were also measured during these time intervals of day 5. As expected, feeding treatment affected significantly the rumen measurements: rumen NH3 concentrations were higher on foods RH and SH, and rumen pH lowest on RL. Daily FI was lowest on treatments SL, and choice SL/SH. The mean daily proportion of the low-RDP food in the selected diet was lower when the carbohydrate source was rapidly (choice RL/RH) rather than slowly fermentable (choice SL/SH); this was consistent with the experimental hypothesis. Short-term infusions affected further rumen variables (in the expected directions), irrespective of feeding treatment. However, DS over the 4h infusion period were unaffected; these short-term DS were consistent with the ones selected over the longer term (daily). The results suggest that the long-term (daily) diet selection of sheep may be affected by the degree of synchrony of energy and protein to the rumen. The fact that diet selections were not altered further by short-term manipulations of these supplies might reflect inadequacies of the methodology (infusions) adopted here.

Ammonia↗