The American journal of clinical nutrition
-
Although increased consumption of dietary fiber and grain products is widely recommended to maintain healthy body weight, little is known about the relation of whole grains to body weight and long-term weight changes. ⋯ Weight gain was inversely associated with the intake of high-fiber, whole-grain foods but positively related to the intake of refined-grain foods, which indicated the importance of distinguishing whole-grain products from refined-grain products to aid in weight control.
-
Obesity represents a major threat to health and quality of life. Although obesity has strong genetic determinants, it is generally accepted that it results from an imbalance between food intake and daily physical activity. Health guidelines have been focused on 3 particular lifestyle factors: increased levels of physical activity and reductions in the intakes of fat and sugars. ⋯ Data on sucrose intake in relation to metabolism and weight gain do not associate high consumption of sucrose with the prevalence of obesity. The evidence supports the current dietary guidelines for reducing fat intake. However, the effect of the carbohydrate source and class and of the form in which carbohydrate is consumed (solid or liquid) on body weight control requires further consideration.
-
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Randomized controlled crossover study of the effect of a highly beta-glucan-enriched barley on cardiovascular disease risk factors in mildly hypercholesterolemic men.
Soluble-fiber beta-glucan derived from oats can reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk through reductions in total and LDL cholesterol. Barley-derived beta-glucan may also improve serum cholesterol, but large quantities are required for clinical significance. ⋯ The effect of beta-glucan-enriched barley on lipid profile was highly variable between subjects, and there was no evidence of a clinically significant improvement in CVD risk across this group of mildly hyperlipidemic men.
-
Frequent nut consumption is associated with lower rates of coronary artery disease (CAD). Also, nut-rich diets improve the serum lipid profile of participants in dietary intervention trials. However, nuts are fatty foods, and in theory their regular consumption may lead to body weight gain. ⋯ In another line of evidence, preliminary data indicate that subjects on nut-rich diets excrete more fat in stools. Further research is needed to study the effects of nut consumption on energy balance and body weight. In the meantime, the available cumulative data do not indicate that free-living people on self-selected diets including nuts frequently have a higher body mass index or a tendency to gain weight.
-
Advances in nutrition research during the past few decades have changed scientists' understanding of the contribution of vegetarian diets to human health and disease. Diets largely based on plant foods, such as well-balanced vegetarian diets, could best prevent nutrient deficiencies as well as diet-related chronic diseases. However, restrictive or unbalanced vegetarian diets may lead to nutritional deficiencies, particularly in situations of high metabolic demand. ⋯ Based on different paradigms, 3 models are presented depicting the population health risks and benefits of vegetarian and meat-based diets. This series of models encapsulates the evolution of scientific understanding on the overall effects of these dietary patterns on human health. Recent scientific advances seem to have resulted in a paradigm shift: diets largely based on plant foods, such as well-balanced vegetarian diets, are viewed more as improving health than as causing disease, in contrast with meat-based diets.