BackgroundDietary total antioxidant capacity (TAC) has been assumed as a useful tool to assess the relationship between the cumulative antioxidant food capacity and several chronic disorders. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the potential relationships of dietary TAC with adiposity, metabolic and oxidative stress markers in healthy young adults.MethodsThis study enrolled 266 healthy subjects (105 men/ 161 women; 22 ± 3 years-old; 22.0 ± 2.7 kg/m2). Dietary intake, anthropometry, blood pressure, lifestyle features, and biochemical data were assessed with validated procedures.ResultsIn linear regression analyses, dietary TAC values were inversely associated with glycemia, total cholesterol:HDL-c ratio, triglycerides and oxidized-LDL concentrations, and positively associated with HDL-c concentrations, independently of gender, age, smoking status, physical activity, vitamin use supplement, waist circumference, energy intake, fatty acid intake. In addition, plasma TAC was negatively correlated with ox-LDL concentrations (r= -0.20, P = 0.003), independently of the assessed confounding variables. Finally, dietary TAC values were inversely related to waist circumference values (r= -0.17, P = 0.005) as well as to lower mild central obesity occurrence (waist circumference ≥ 80/ 94 cm for women/ men, respectively).ConclusionDietary TAC values are inversely associated with glucose and lipid biomarkers as well as with central adiposity measurements in healthy young adults, indicating dietary TAC as a useful tool to assess the health benefits of cumulative antioxidant capacity from food intake. In addition, the independent and inverse relationships of ox-LDL concentrations with dietary and plasma TAC respectively suggest a putative role of antioxidant rich-diet in the link between redox state and atherogenesis at early stage.

a b s t r a c tAntimicrobial packaging, besides protecting the product from external environment, inhibits or retards microorganism growth in foods, minimizing direct addition of preservatives and satisfying the actual demand of consumers for healthier foods, containing less additives. Pediocins are antimicrobial peptides produced by Pediococcus sp. and researches have revealed their ability to inhibit the growth of some pathogenic bacteria. The objective of this work was to develop and evaluate the antimicrobial efficiency of films incorporated with pediocin on sliced ham conservation. The antimicrobial films were incorporated with pediocin (25% and 50%) in a cellulose base emulsion. The antimicrobial efficiency of the films against Listeria innocua e Salmonella sp. on sliced ham was tested by means of a challenge test, in which the slices were immersed in 0.1% peptone solution containing about 10 6 CFU/mL of L. innocua or Salmonella sp. The experiment was set up overlapping the slices of ham with the films (control, 25% and 50% of pediocin). These systems were packaged under vacuum and stored at 12°C. The slices of ham were analyzed for L. innocua and Salmonella sp. counts at 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 and 15 storage days. The antimicrobial films were more effective inhibiting growth of L. innocua. The 50% pediocin-film presented a reduction of 2 log cycles in relation to control treatment after 15 days of storage. The 25% and 50% pediocin-films had similar performance on Salmonella sp. inhibition, both presenting 0.5 log cycle reduction in relation to control, after 12 days of storage. Hence, the films incorporated with pediocin showed potential use as one hurdle technology added in the storage period among others good manufacturing practices for preservation of sliced ham.

The aim of the present cross-sectional study was to assess the potential relationships between fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption and some oxidative stress markers in young adults, with particular emphasis on fibre and vitamin C intake. The study enrolled 246 healthy subjects (eighty-eight men and 158 women), with a mean age of 22 (SD 3) years and a mean BMI of 21·9 (SD 2·8) kg/m 2 . Dietary intake, anthropometry, blood pressure, lifestyle features and blood biochemical data were assessed with validated procedures. Those subjects in the highest tertile (T) of FV consumption ($705 g/d) had statistically lower oxidised LDL (ox-LDL) concentrations as well as higher plasma total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity (P for trend ,0·05), after adjusting for sex, age, energy intake, physical activity, smoking, BMI, vitamin supplement use and other confounding factors. Moreover, plasma ox-LDL concentrations showed a decreasing trend and TAC an increasing trend across tertiles of fibre (T3: $14 g/d) and vitamin C (T3: $ 150 mg/d) from FV intake, while GPx activity was positively associated with vitamin C intake (P for trend , 0·05). In conclusion, greater FV consumption was independently associated with reduced ox-LDL as well as increased TAC and GPx activity in healthy young adults, with dietary fibre and vitamin C from FV clearly being implicated in this beneficial relationship.

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Inflammation Biomarkers Capacity in predicting the Metabolic Syndrome. The inflammatory process is the link between metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular diseases. To measure the degree of subclinical inflammation some inflammatory biomarkers have been considered. This work reviews the recent researches of the associations between inflammatory biomarkers and metabolic syndrome, as well as the capacity in predicting the metabolic syndrome. These biomarkers include pro-inflammatory cytokines, anti-inflammatory cytokines, adipokines, chemokines, inflammation markers derived from hepatocites, the consequence markers of inflammation and enzymes. This review integrates the new knowledge of inflammatory mediators interactions with metabolic syndrome, since these biomarkers play different roles and follow diverse metabolic ways. (Arq Bras Endocrinol Metab 2008; 52/3:537-549)

These results show the antioxidant benefit of dietary açai for the healthy women included in the present study, and may increase understanding of the beneficial health properties of this fruit.

A relação entre dieta e saúde pode ser avaliada pelo nível de alguns componentes do alimento (nutrientes), tipos de alimento, grupo ou grupos de alimentos e padrões alimentares. A associação entre estes parâmetros e várias doenças crônicas pode ser analisada por meio da adoção de instrumentos dietéticos de avaliação global de dietas e, para tanto, vários índices têm sido propostos. Este trabalho tem como objetivo descrever os diferentes índices para avaliação da qualidade de dietas, incluindo o Índice de Nutrientes, Escore da Variedade da Dieta, Escore da Diversidade da Dieta, Índice de Qualidade da Dieta, Índice de Alimentação Saudável, Índice de Qualidade da Dieta Revisado, Índice de Alimentação Saudável Alternativo, Contagem de Alimentos Recomendados e Escore da Dieta Mediterrânea Alternativo, bem como suas derivações. Esses índices apresentam uma evolução do conceito de qualidade,.enfatizando as propriedades funcionais dos fatores dietéticos relacionados à redução do risco das doenças mais prevalentes na atualidade. Termos de indexação:Avaliação nutricional. Consumo alimentar. Dieta. Nutrição em saúde pública. Qualidade da dieta. A B S T R A C TThe relation between diet and health can be evaluated by the level of some food components (nutrients), kinds of food, group or food groups and eating patterns. The association between these parameters and some chronic diseases can be examined by dietary instruments of global diet assessments and some indices have been considered for this end. The aim of this work was to describe the different indices for assessing diet

BackgroundDespite oxidized low density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) plays important roles in the pro-inflammatory and atherosclerotic processes, the relationships with metabolic and oxidative stress biomarkers have been only scarcely investigated in young adult people. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess plasma ox-LDL concentrations and the potential association with oxidative stress markers as well as with anthropometric and metabolic features in healthy young adults.MethodsThis study enrolled 160 healthy subjects (92 women/68 men; 23 ± 4 y; 22.0 ± 2.9 kg/m2). Anthropometry, body composition, blood pressure, lifestyle features, biochemical data, and oxidative stress markers were assessed with validated tools. Selenium, copper, and zinc nail concentrations were measured by atomic absorption spectrophotometry.ResultsTotal cholesterol (TC), LDL-c and uric acid concentrations, TC-to-HDL-c ratio, and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity were positive predictors of ox-LDL concentrations, while nail selenium level (NSL) was a negative predictor, independently of gender, age, smoking status, physical activity. Those individuals included in the highest tertile of GPx activity (≥611 nmol/[mL/min]) and of NSL (≥430 ng/g of nail) had higher and lower ox-LDL concentrations, respectively, independently of the same covariates plus truncal fat or body mass index, and total cholesterol or LDL-c concentrations.ConclusionsOx-LDL concentrations were significantly associated with lipid biomarkers, GPx activity, uric acid concentration, and NSL, independently of different assayed covariates, in young healthy adults. These findings jointly suggest the early and complex relationship between lipid profile and redox status balance.