No abstract

No abstract

Humans derive most vitamin D from the action of sunlight in their skin. However, in view of the current Western lifestyle with most daily activities taking place indoors, sun exposure is often not sufficient for adequate vitamin D production. For this reason, dietary intake is also of great importance. Animal foodstuffs (e.g., fish, meat, offal, egg, dairy) are the main sources for naturally occurring cholecalciferol (vitamin D-3). This paper therefore aims to provide an up-to-date overview of vitamin D-3 content in various animal foods. The focus lies on the natural vitamin D-3 content because there are many countries in which foods are not regularly fortified with vitamin D. The published data show that the highest values of vitamin D are found in fish and especially in fish liver, but offal also provides considerable amounts of vitamin D. The content in muscle meat is generally much lower. Vitamin D concentrations in egg yolks range between the values for meat and offal. If milk and dairy products are not fortified, they are normally low in vitamin D, with the exception of butter because of its high fat content. However, as recommendations for vitamin D intake have recently been increased considerably, it is difficult to cover the requirements solely by foodstuffs.

Introduction Intensive care unit (ICU) costs account for up to 20% of a hospital's costs. We aimed to analyse the individual patient-related cost of intensive care at various hospital levels and for different groups of disease.

Recent evidence from large prospective US and European cohort studies and from metaanalyses of epidemiological studies indicates that the long-term consumption of increasing amounts of red meat and particularly of processed meat is associated with an increased risk of total mortality, cardiovascular disease, colorectal cancer and type 2 diabetes, in both men and women. The association persists after inclusion of known confounding factors, such as age, race, BMI, history, smoking, blood pressure, lipids, physical activity and multiple nutritional parameters in multivariate analysis. The association has not always been noted with red meat, and it has been absent with white meat. There is evidence of several mechanisms for the observed adverse effects that might be involved, however, their individual role is not defi ned at present. It is concluded that recommendations for the consumption of unprocessed red meat and particularly of processed red meat should be more restrictive than existing recommendations. Restrictive recommendations should not be applied to subjects above about 70 years of age, as the studies quoted herein did not examine this age group, and the inclusion of suffi cient protein supply (e. g. in the form of meat) is particularly important in the elderly.

Vitamin B12 is synthesized exclusively by microorganisms; therefore, humans must absorb it from food. Excellent sources of B12 are foods of ruminant origin, so dairy and meat products play an important role in efforts to meet the official daily B12 intake recommendation of 3.0 μg. Concentrations of the vitamin vary within foods of ruminant origin, with the highest concentrations found in offal such as liver and kidney. In comparison, dairy products have much lower quantities of the vitamin. In bovine milk, the B12 concentration is stable with regard to breed, feed, season, and stage of lactation, but in ruminant meat, the amount of B12 can vary based on the feeding and husbandry of the animal as well as the cut of meat chosen and its preparation. Processing of ruminant food, including thermal treatment, usually diminishes the vitamin B12 concentration. This review summarizes the vitamin B12 content of foods and discusses the impact of food processing on vitamin content. The contribution of ruminant food sources to B12 intake is specifically evaluated, with its bioavailability taken into account.

-Cheese has a long history in the human diet. In ancient times, cheese was primarily a concentrated form of milk with the benefit of a prolonged shelf life. The high content of fat and protein in cheese made it an energy-rich and nutritious food that was suitable for our hardworking ancestors. Recent advances in nutrition science have highlighted the contribution of cheese to nutrition and health. Cheese is a rich source of essential nutrients; in particular, proteins, bioactive peptides, amino acids, fat, fatty acids, vitamins and minerals. Ripened cheese is free of lactose and therefore suitable for the nutrition of lactose-intolerant individuals. There is evidence to suggest that two bioactive tripeptides, VPP and IPP, found in sour milk fermented with Lactobacillus helveticus, lower blood pressure. These peptides were also detected in specific cheese varieties in significant quantities. The high concentration of essential amino acids in cheese contributes to growth and development of the human body. Despite the presence of a notable amount of saturated and trans fatty acids, there is no clear evidence relating the consumption of cheese to any disease. Conjugated linoleic acid and sphingolipids present in cheese may have anti-carcinogenic properties. The high concentration of calcium in cheese is well known to contribute to the formation and maintenance of strong bones and teeth, but also shows a positive effect on blood pressure and helps in losing weight in combination with low-energy diets. Cheese is an important dairy product and an integral part of a healthful diet due to its substantial contribution to human health. In recent times, diet has been linked to various diseases such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and cancer, and the focus of nutrition research has shifted towards specific food ingredients contributing to nutrition and health. Résumé -Fromage en nutrition et santé.Le fromage a une longue tradition dans l'alimentation humaine. Autrefois, il s'agissait principalement d'une forme concentrée de lait qui avait l'avantage d'avoir une durée de conservation prolongée. Le taux élevé de lipides et de protéines dans le fromage en fait un aliment nutritif, riche en énergie, qui convenait bien à nos ancêtres travaillant durement. Des recherches récentes en nutrition ont mis en évidence la contribution du fromage dans l'alimentation et la santé. Le fromage est une source riche en nutriments essentiels, en particulier en protéines, en peptides bioactifs, en acides aminés, en lipides, en acides gras, en vitamines et en minéraux. Le fromage affiné ne contient plus de lactose et convient donc aux personnes intolérantes à ce composant. Par ailleurs, il y a tout lieu de penser que deux tripeptides bioactifs, les VPP et IPP, détectés dans le lait fermenté par Lactobacillus helveticus, abaissent la pression sanguine. Ces peptides ont aussi été détectés en quantités significatives dans divers types de fromage. La concentration élevée d'acides aminés essentiels dans le fromage c...

Fermented foods represent a significant fraction of human diets. Although their impact on health is positively perceived, an objective evaluation is still missing. We have, therefore, reviewed meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials (RCT) investigating the relationship between fermented foods and non-transmissible chronic diseases. Overall, after summarizing 25 prospective studies on dairy products, the association of fermented dairy with cancer was found to be neutral, whereas it was weakly beneficial, though inconsistent, for specific aspects of cardio-metabolic health, in particular stroke and cheese intake. The strongest evidence for a beneficial effect was for yoghurt on risk factors of type 2 diabetes. Although mechanisms explaining this association have not been validated, an increased bioavailability of insulinotropic amino acids and peptides as well as the bacterial biosynthesis of vitamins, in particular vitamin K2, might contribute to this beneficial effect. However, the heterogeneity in the design of the studies and the investigated foods impedes a definitive assessment of these associations. The literature on fermented plants is characterized by a wealth of in vitro data, whose positive results are not corroborated in humans due to the absence of RCTs. Finally, none of the RCTs were specifically designed to address the impact of food fermentation on health. This question should be addressed in future human studies.