No abstract

BackgroundThere has been an ongoing discussion about the relationship between time spent watching television and childhood obesity. This debate has special relevance in the Latin American region were the globalization process has increased the availability of screen-based entertainment at home. The aim of this study is to examine the association between television viewing and weight status in Colombian children.MethodsThis cross sectional investigation included children aged 5 to12 yrs from the National Nutrition Survey in Colombia (ENSIN 2005). Weight and height were measured in 11,137 children in order to calculate body mass index. Overweight was defined by international standards. Time spent viewing television was determined for these children through parental reports. Multiple logistic regression analyses were conducted for different subgroups and adjusted for potential confounders in order to study the association between television viewing and weight status in this population.ResultsAmong the surveyed children, 41.5% viewed television less than two hours/day; 36.8% between two and 3.9 hours/day and 21.7% four or more hours/day. The prevalence of overweight (obesity inclusive) in this population was 11.1%. Children who were classified as excessive television viewers (between two and 3.9 hours/day or 4 or more hours/day) were more likely to be overweight (OR: 1.44 95% CI: 1.41–1.47 and OR: 1.32 95% CI: 1.30–1.34, respectively) than children who reported to watch television less than 2 hours/day. Stratified analyses by age, gender and urbanization levels showed similar results.ConclusionTelevision viewing was positively associated with the presence of overweight in Colombian children. A positive association between urbanization level and television viewing was detected. Considering that the majority of Colombian children lives in densely populated cities and appear to engage in excessive television viewing these findings are of public health relevance for the prevention of childhood obesity.

The interest in a healthy diet and lifestyle during the early stages of life increased, pointing out its role in the development of noncommunicable chronic diseases throughout adult life. Dietary habits and dietary patterns begin to be established in early childhood and persist during adulthood. Therefore, the EsNuPI (“Nutritional Study in Spanish Pediatric Population”) study aims to depict the dietary patterns, physical activity, and sedentary behaviors in Spanish children aged from one to <10 years old. This prospective, cross-sectional, observational study recruited a total of 1514 children from Spanish cities with >50,000 inhabitants, stratified by Nielsen areas. Participants were involved in one face-to-face survey, followed by a telephone survey after at least one week. Information about dietary intake and habits was obtained using a quantitative food frequency questionnaire and two 24-h dietary recalls. Physical activity and sedentary behaviors were registered using a specific questionnaire based on a seven-day record. Data were processed and stratified by categorical variables to be statistically analyzed in order to meet the study objectives. This study is the first of its kind in a Spanish reference population of this age range and the first to evaluate whether the consumption of adapted milk formulas and dairy products is associated with healthier dietary patterns and better diet quality and lifestyles in this group.

In this real-life study, 32% of patients received an inappropriate dose of DOAC. Several clinical factors can identify patients at risk of this situation.

The Ciclovia program (CP) has emerged as an effective initiative to promote active living in urban spaces in Latin America. This study assessed the association between social conditions, the urban environment and participation in the CP among adults living in the city of Cali, Colombia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2011 and 2012 among 719 adults aged 18 to 44. Urban environment measures were obtained using Geographic Information Systems. A multilevel logistic regression was used for the analysis. Slightly more than 7% of participants had participated in the CP in the previous four weekends. Being male and having a high school degree were positively associated with participation in the CP. Participation in the CP was positively associated with living in neighborhoods with Ciclovia lanes. In contrast, a negative association was found among those living in neighborhoods with a presence of traffic fatalities. This study provides new insights about a recreational program that has potential health benefits in a region marked by urban inequalities in terms of opportunities for physical activity.

The present study aimed to assess energy intake, nutrient profile and food sources in Spanish children participating in the EsNuPI (“Estudio Nutricional en Población Infantil Española”) study. Plausibility of energy intake and adequacy of nutrient intakes to international recommendations were analyzed in a final sample of 1448 subjects (728 boys and 720 girls) and one group representative of the 1 to <10 years old urban Spanish children (reference sample (n = 707)) who consumed milk and one of the same age who consumed adapted milk over the last year (adapted milk consumers sample (n = 741)) were compared. Both groups completed data of a face-to-face and a telephone 24-h dietary recalls. Both the reference and the adapted milk consumers samples reported an adequate daily energy intake (1503 kcal/day and 1404 kcal/day); and a high contribution to total energy from protein (16.5% and 15.6%) and fat (36.5% and 35.9%). Also, a high percentage of children from both samples were below the lower limit of the recommendations for carbohydrates (47.8% and 39.3%). As the percentage of plausible energy reporters was high for both groups (84.7% and 83.5%, respectively), data for the whole sample were analyzed. Milk and dairy, cereals, meat and derived products, fats and oils, bakery and pastry, fruits and vegetables contributed to about 80% of the total energy intake in both groups. However, the reference sample reported significantly more contribution to energy from cereals, meat and meat products, bakery and pastry and ready to cook/eat foods; meanwhile, the adapted milk consumers sample reported significantly more energy from milk and dairy products, fruits and eggs. Those results suggest that adapted milk consumers have better adherence to the food-based dietary guidelines. Further analyses are warranted to characterize food patterns and the quality of the diet in the EsNuPI study population.

This study found that WT and LTPA were associated with HR-QOL both in the physical and mental dimensions; however, the direction and magnitude of the association varied by domain. These results highlight the need to better understand the links between PA and HR-QOL in urban contexts from Latin America.

Bone problems in the population begin to be establish in childhood. The present study aims to assess the usual calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and vitamin D intakes, along with the food sources of these nutrients, in Spanish children participating in the EsNuPI (Estudio Nutricional en Población Infantil Española) study. Two 24 h dietary recalls were applied to 1448 children (1 to <10 years) divided into two sub-samples: one reference sample (RS) of the general population [n = 707] and another sample which exclusively included children consuming enriched or fortified milks, here called “adapted milks” (AMS) [n = 741]. Estimation of the usual intake shows that nutrient intake increased with age for all nutrients except vitamin D. Using as reference the Dietary Reference Values from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), calcium and magnesium intakes were found to be below the average requirement (AR) and adequate intake (AI), respectively, in a considerable percentage of children. Furthermore, phosphorus exceeded the AI in 100% of individuals and vitamin D was lower than the AI in almost all children studied. The results were very similar when considering only plausible reporters. When analyzing the food sources of the nutrients studied, milk and dairy products contributed the most to calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and vitamin D. Other sources of calcium were cereals and vegetables; for phosphorus: meat, meat products, and cereals; for magnesium: cereals and fruits; and, for vitamin D: fish and eggs. These results highlight the desirability of improving the intake concerning these nutrients, which are involved in bone and metabolic health in children. The AMS group appeared to contribute better to the adequacy of those nutrients than the RS group, but both still need further improvement. Of special interest are the results of vitamin D intakes, which were significantly higher in the AMS group (although still below the AI), independent of age.