Offering weight loss classes was a successful method of enticing low-income women to participate in an educational intervention that benefited their children. Overweight and obese mothers who modified their food choices and fat habits made comparable changes for their child.

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Background-A work force based casecontrol study of lung cancer was performed in non-silicotic subjects exposed to crystalline silica to investigate the association between silica dust and lung cancer excluding the influence of silicosis. Methods-Two hundred and forty seven patients with lung cancer and 795 control subjects were enrolled, all of whom had been employed in the German stone, quarrying, or ceramics industries. Smoking was used as a matching criterion. Exposure to silica was quantified by measurements, if available, or otherwise by industrial hygienists. Several indices (peak, average and cumulative exposure) were used to analyse the relationship between the level of exposure and risk of lung cancer as odds ratios (OR). Results-The risk of lung cancer is associated with the year of and age at first exposure to silica, duration of exposure, and latency. All odds ratios were adjusted for these factors. Considering the peak exposure, the OR for workers exposed to high levels (>0.15 mg/m 3 respirable silica dust which is the current occupational threshold value for Germany) compared with those exposed to low levels (<0.15 mg/m 3 ) was 0.85 (95% CI 0.58 to 1.25). For the time weighted average exposure the OR was 0.91 (95% CI 0.57 to 1.46). The OR for the cumulative exposure was 1.02 (95% CI 0.67 to 1.55). No increase in risk was evident with increasing exposure. Conclusions-This study shows no association between exposure to crystalline silica and lung cancer. The exclusion of subjects with silicosis may have led to dilution with respect to the level of exposure and therefore reduced the power to detect a small risk. Alternatively, the risk of getting lung cancer may be restricted to subjects with silicosis and is not directly linked to silica dust.

Personal and public health information are often obtained from studies of large population groups. Risk factors for nutrients, toxins, genetic variation, and more recently, nutrient-gene interactions are statistical estimates of the percentage reduction in disease in the population if the risk were to be avoided or the gene variant were not present. Because individuals differ in genetic makeup, lifestyle, and dietary patterns than those individuals in the study population, these risk factors are valuable guidelines, but may not apply to individuals. Intervention studies are likewise limited by small sample sizes, short time frames to assess physiological changes, and variable experimental designs that often preclude comparative or consensus analyses. A fundamental challenge for nutrigenomics will be to develop a means to sort individuals into metabolic groups, and eventually, develop risk factors for individuals. To reach the goal of personalizing medicine and nutrition, new experimental strategies are needed for human study designs. A promising approach for more complete analyses of the interaction of genetic makeups and environment relies on community-based participatory research (CBPR) methodologies. CBPR's central focus is developing a partnership among researchers and individuals in a community that allows for more in depth lifestyle analyses but also translational research that simultaneously helps improve the health of individuals and communities. The USDA-ARS Delta Nutrition Intervention Research program exemplifies CBPR providing a foundation for expanded personalized nutrition and medicine research for communities and individuals.

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Background Human breastmilk contains pro- and anti-inflammatory compounds and hormones that can influence infant growth. However, little is known about the specific interrelationships between these compounds and whether their effects on infant growth may be influenced by pre-pregnancy weight status. Objective The purpose of this novel, prospective cohort study was to assess the interrelationships between pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-6), hormones (insulin, leptin) and PUFAs (n-6, n-3) in blood and breastmilk in early postpartum between women with normal BMI (G roup 1 , n = 18; 18.5