Consuming a diet high in fruit, vegetables, reduced-fat dairy, and whole grains and low in red and processed meat, fast food, and soda was associated with smaller gains in BMI and waist circumference. Because foods are not consumed in isolation, dietary pattern research based on natural eating behavior may be useful in understanding dietary causes of obesity and in helping individuals trying to control their weight.

Our results suggest that a pattern rich in reduced-fat dairy products and high-fiber foods may lead to smaller gains in BMI in women and smaller gains in waist circumference in both women and men.

Fructose, a naturally occurring hexose, is a component of many fruits, vegetables, and sweeteners. Because of the introduction of high fructose corn sweeteners in 1967, the amount of free fructose in the diet of Americans has increased substantially in the last 20 years. Fructose is sweeter, more soluble, and less glucogenic than glucose or sucrose, so it has been recommended as a replacement for these sugars in the diets of diabetic and obese people. Although an acute dose of fructose causes smaller increases in glucose and insulin than a comparable dose of glucose, there are a number of changes after dietary adaptation that may reduce its desirability as a sugar replacement in certain segments of the population. Fructose is absorbed primarily in the jejunum and metabolized in the liver. When consumed in excess of dietary glucose, it may be malabsorbed. Fructose is more lipogenic than glucose or starches, and usually causes greater elevations in triglycerides and sometimes in cholesterol than other carbohydrates. Dietary fructose has resulted in increases in blood pressure, uric acid, and lactic acid. People who are hypertensive, hyperinsulinemic, hypertriglyceridemic, non-insulin-dependent diabetic, or postmenopausal are more susceptible to these adverse effects of dietary fructose than healthy young subjects. Although consumption of fructose as a component of fruits and vegetables is an unavoidable consequence of eating a healthy diet, added fructose seems to provide little advantage over other caloric sweetners and compares unfavorably to complex carbohydrates in susceptible segments of the population.

The addition of barley to a healthy diet may be effective in lowering total and LDL cholesterol in both men and women.

No abstract

Two hundred sixty-six free-living human volunteers, 21-64 y old, were trained by dietitians to record daily their food intake for at least 7 d. Subsequently, they were fed diets of conventional foods adjusted in amounts to maintain their body weight for greater than or equal to 45 d. Comparing their estimated energy intake with the intake determined to maintain weight yielded mean differences of 2365 and 1792 kJ (565 and 428 kcal) in men and women, respectively, representing an underreporting of 18%. Twenty-two individuals (8%) overestimated and 29 (11%) were accurate to within 419 kJ (100 kcal) of their maintenance requirement. The remaining 215 individuals (81%) reported their habitual intake at 2930 +/- 1586 kJ (700 +/- 379 kcal) below that subsequently determined as their maintenance requirement. These findings suggest caution in the interpretation of food-consumption data.

Objective: Consumption of a meal high in amylose starch (70%) decreases peak insulin and glucose levels and area under the curve (AUC). The objective was to determine the amount of amylose necessary in a meal for the beneficial decrease in glucose or insulin to occur. Design: Twenty-five subjects, 13 men (averaging 88.1 kg, 41 y, and 27.9 body mass index) and 12 women (averaging 72.4 kg, 41 y and 27.1 body mass index) were given six tolerance tests in a Latin Square design: glucose alone (1 g glucose=kg body weight) and five breads (1 g carbohydrate=kg body weight) made with 70% amylose cornstarch, standard cornstarch (30% amylose), and blends of the two starches (40, 50 and 60% amylose starch). A standard menu was fed for 3 days. One subject withdrew from the study. Results: Glucose, insulin and glucagon response to the carbohydrate loads was similar in men and women. Peak glucose response was lowest after the breads containing 50 -70% amylose starch. AUC was significantly higher after the glucose load than after all bread loads. The lowest AUCs occurred after the 60 and 70% amylose starch breads. Insulin response and AUC were significantly lower after the 60 and 70% amylose starch breads than after the glucose or the other breads. Conclusion: Results indicate that the amylose content of the starch used in the acute meal needs to be greater than 50% to significantly reduce plasma glucose and insulin in men and women.

scrofa) as well as weanling rats (Rattus spp.) as human surrogates, have shown that the mineral form of Pb, fedThe potential for biosolids products to reduce Pb availability in both in a soil matrix and as pure minerals, can alter soil was tested on a high Pb urban soil with biosolids from a treatment plant that used different processing technologies. High Fe biosolids the rate of Pb adsorption (Baltrop and Meek, 1975; compost and high Fe ϩ lime biosolids compost from other treatment Freeman et al., 1996; Ruby et al., 1999). Lead bioavailplants were also tested. Amendments were added to a Pb-contamiability to immature swine from 19 untreated substrates nated soil (2000 mg kg Ϫ1 Pb) at 100 g kg Ϫ1 soil and incubated for 30 collected from 8 sites ranged from 0.01 to 90% (Casteel d. Reductions in Pb bioavailability were evaluated with both in vivo et al., 1996a-d, 1997, 1998a-c). Differences in Pb bioand in vitro procedures. The in vivo study entailed feeding a mixture availability were attributed to the presence of different of the Pb-contaminated soil and AIN93G Basal Mix to weanling rats. mineral species using an in vitro procedure (Medlin, Three variations of an in vitro procedure were performed as well as 1995). These results suggest that lead bioavailability in conventional soil extracts [diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) soils can be manipulated by changing its mineralogy. and Ca(NO 3 ) 2 ] and sequential extraction. Addition of the high Fe Currently, removal and replacement of contaminated compost reduced the bioavailability of soil Pb (in both in vivo and in vitro studies) by 37 and 43%, respectively. Three of the four compost soils is the most commonly used remedial option for materials tested reduced Pb bioavailability more than 20%. The rapid high Pb soils (Berti and Cunningham, 1997). Removal in vitro (pH 2.3) data had the best correlation with the in vivo bone and replacement is not economically or environmentally results (R ϭ 0.9). In the sequential extract, changes in partitioning feasible to carry out in high density urban areas. Reof Pb to Fe and Mn oxide fractions appeared to reflect the changes search to limit the bioavailibility of Pb in situ has focused in in vivo Pb bioavailability. Conventional extracts showed no changes on the addition of soil amendments to alter the Pb in metal availability. These results indicate that addition of 100 g chemistry in place. Much of this work has focused on kg Ϫ1 of high Fe and Mn biosolids composts effectively reduced Pb the formation of pyromorphite through the addition of availability in a high Pb urban soil.