We investigated the effects of a high walnut diet and a high unsalted cashew nut diet on selected markers of the metabolic syndrome. In a randomized, parallel, controlled study design, sixty-four subjects having the metabolic syndrome (twenty-nine men, thirty-five women) with a mean age of 45 (SD 10) years and who met the selection criteria were all fed a 3-week run-in control diet. Hereafter, participants were grouped according to gender and age and then randomized into three groups receiving a controlled feeding diet including walnuts, or unsalted cashew nuts or no nuts for 8 weeks. Subjects were required to have lunch at the metabolic ward of the Nutrition Department of the North-West University (Potchefstroom Campus). Both the walnut and the unsalted cashew nut intervention diets had no significant effect on the HDL-cholesterol, TAG, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, serum fructosamine, serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, blood pressure and serum uric acid concentrations when compared to the control diet. Low baseline LDL-cholesterol concentrations in the cashew nut group may have masked a possible nut-related benefit. Plasma glucose concentrations increased significantly (P¼ 0·04) in the cashew nut group compared to the control group. By contrast, serum fructosamine was unchanged in the cashew nut group while the control group had significantly increased (P¼ 0·04) concentrations of this short-term marker of glycaemic control. Subjects displayed no improvement in the markers of the metabolic syndrome after following a walnut diet or a cashew nut diet compared to a control diet while maintaining body weight.

The inverse association of nut consumption and risk markers of coronary heart disease (lipids) has sparked the interest of the scientific and lay community. The objective of this study was to conduct a systematic review to investigate the effects of nuts on the lipid profile. Medline and Web of Science databases were searched from the start of the database to August 2004 and supplemented by cross-checking reference lists of relevant publications. Human intervention trials with the objective of investigating independent effects of nuts on lipid concentrations were included. From the literature search, 415 publications were screened and 23 studies were included. These papers received a rating based upon the methodology as it appeared in the publication. No formal statistical analysis was performed due to the large differences in study designs of the dietary intervention trials. The results of 3 almond (50-100 g/d), 2 peanut (35-68 g/d), 1 pecan nut (72 g/d), and 4 walnut (40-84 g/d) studies showed decreases in total cholesterol between 2 and 16% and LDL cholesterol between 2 and 19% compared with subjects consuming control diets. Consumption of macadamia nuts (50-100 g/d) produced less convincing results. In conclusion, consumption of approximately 50-100 g (approximately 1.5-3.5 servings) of nuts > or = 5 times/wk as part of a heart-healthy diet with total fat content (high in mono- and/or polyunsaturated fatty acids) of approximately 35% of energy may significantly decrease total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol in normo- and hyperlipidemic individuals.

Although the inclusion of walnuts and cashew nuts into a prudent diet resulted in an increased antioxidant capacity (ORAC) of the nut diets, compared to the control diet, it did not improve the serum antioxidant profiles of subjects with metabolic syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between stunting and overweight among 10-15-y-old children of the North West Province in South Africa. DESIGN: A single cross-sectional study design was used. The study formed part of the THUSA BANA project. SUBJECTS:The total study population of the THUSA BANA project comprised of 1257 randomly selected subjects, aged 10-15 y. MEASUREMENTS: Stunting was described as the height below the 5th percentile for age using the CDC standard percentiles. Furthermore, the definitions of overweight and obesity according to the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) were used, where the cutoff points for body mass index (BMI) corresponds with the adult BMI of 25 and 30, respectively. Anthropometrical variables namely triceps (TSF) and subscapular skinfolds (SSF), waist circumference, weight, height and BMI of the 10-15-y-old subjects were analysed. RESULTS: Stunting was most prevalent in the rural areas (girls 23.7% and boys 26.7%) compared with urban areas (girls 11.6%, boys 17.1%). The odds ratio and the 95% CI for the association between stunting and overweight in boys and girls were 0.45 (CI 0.16, 1.30) and 0.50 (CI 0.21, 1.19) respectively. Stunted children, 10-14-y-old and living in rural areas and informal settlements, had significantly lower mean BMI and skinfold thicknesses than nonstunted children. The mean BMI and sum of TSF and SSF (TSF þ SSF) were similar in stunted and nonstunted children living in urban areas. CONCLUSION: There is no significant association between stunting and overweight in 10-15-y-old children in the North West Province. However, there is a tendency for girls older than 14 y to start to gain subcutaneous fat, even though at these ages they were still stunted and underweight. Stunted girls in established urban areas had a higher mean TSF þ SSF than stunted girls in informal townships. This tendency in urban stunted girls is evident at the onset of menarche and could predict possible problems of overweight as they get older.

Background:The sagittal abdominal diameter has been proposed as a useful measure by which to estimate abdominal obesity and as being more strongly related to components of the metabolic syndrome than are other anthropometric measures. Objective: The objective was to study which anthropometric measure (ie, sagittal abdominal diameter, waist circumference, waist-tohip ratio, waist-to-height ratio, or body mass index) is the strongest correlate of components of the metabolic syndrome (ie, glucose and lipid concentrations and blood pressure) in the elderly. Design: The Hoorn Study is a population-based cohort study in older Dutch men and women. Cross-sectional data were analyzed. Ageadjusted Pearson correlations of anthropometric measures with components of the metabolic syndrome were calculated in 826 subjects (389 men, 437 women) aged 56 -83 y. Analyses were performed with adjustment for age and stratification for sex and age (65 or ͧ65 y). Results: No single anthropometric measure was consistently correlated more strongly with components of the metabolic syndrome than were the other measures in either men or women. The associations were generally stronger in younger subjects than in older subjects and in women than in men. For example, the correlation between sagittal abdominal diameter and postload glucose was 0.35 (P 0.001) in younger and 0.14 (P ҃ 0.051) in older men, and the correlation between waist circumference and postload glucose was 0.33 (P 0.001) in older women and 0.14 (P ҃ 0.062) in older men. Conclusion: The use of sagittal abdominal diameter has no advantages over simpler and more commonly used anthropometric measures such as the waist circumference in older men and women.Am J Clin Nutr 2006;84:995-1002.