Objective: To gain an insight into parental perceptions of infant feeding practices in five European countries. Design: An exploratory investigation using focus group discussions. Various aspects addressed included social and cultural setting for the consumption of food, infant feeding practice and behaviour, consumer health awareness and sources of information, and attitudes towards a healthy infant diet. Setting: Focus group participants were recruited from centres in five countries, Germany, Italy, Scotland, Spain and Sweden, with three focus groups being conducted in each centre. Subjects: A total of 108 parents with infants up to the age of 12 months participated in focus group discussions across these centres. Methods: Focus groups were conducted with participants from centres in five countries. Results: The majority of parents in this study chose to initiate breastfeeding and prepare infant food at home. Parents did not strictly adhere to infant feeding guidelines when introducing complementary foods into their infant's diets. There were crosscultural differences in sources of information on infant feeding practice with the paediatrician in Germany, Italy and Spain. The health visitor in Scotland and the child welfare clinics in Sweden were the most popular sources. Conclusions: A number of cultural differences and similarities in attitudes towards infant feeding practice were revealed. This makes European wide approaches to promoting healthy infant feeding difficult as different infant feeding practices are influenced not only by parental perceptions but also by advice from health professionals and feeding guidelines. Further data need to be available on parents' attitudes and beliefs towards infant feeding practice to investigate further the rationale for differing beliefs and attitudes towards infant feeding practice.

No abstract

The effects of moderate red wine consumption on the antioxidant status and indices of lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress associated with CHD were investigated. A randomised, controlled study was performed with twenty free-living healthy volunteers. Subjects in the red wine group consumed 375 ml red wine daily for 2 weeks. We measured the total concentration of phenolics and analysed the individual phenolics in the wine and plasma by HPLC with tandem MS. The antioxidant capacity of plasma was measured with electron spin resonance spectroscopy while homocysteine and fasting plasma lipids were also determined. The production of conjugated dienes and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) were measured in Cu-oxidised LDL. Plasma total phenolic concentrations increased significantly after 2 weeks of daily red wine consumption (P#0·001) and trace levels of metabolites, mainly glucuronides and methyl glucuronides of (þ )-catechin and (2 )-epicatechin, were detected in the plasma of the red wine group. These flavan-3-ol metabolites were not detected in plasma from the control group. The maximum concentrations of conjugated dienes and TBARS in Cu-oxidised LDL were reduced (P#0·05) and HDL cholesterol concentrations increased (P#0·05) following red wine consumption. The findings from the present study provide some evidence for potential protective effects of moderate consumption of red wine in healthy volunteers.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Despite maternal and child health benefits, breastfeeding rates are relatively low among low-income Puerto Rican mothers. This study examined the hypothesis that monthly financial incentives would significantly increase the proportion of breastfeeding mothers at 6 months postpartum compared with Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) services only among Puerto Rican mothers.

Weekly consumption of 7 vitamin D-enhanced eggs has an important impact on winter vitamin D status in adults. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02678364.

The Orthodox Christian diet is unique in regularly interchanging from an omnivore to a vegetarian-type diet, and no study to date has focused on the impact of this on Fe status. Thirty-five Greek Orthodox Christian strict fasters (n 17 male, n 18 female; mean age 43·6^13·2 years) and twenty-four controls (n 11 male, n 13 female; mean age 39·8^7·6 years) were studied before (pre) and near completion (end) of the Christmas fasting (CF) period (40 d), during which meat and dairy products are prohibited. Fe status was assessed using standard haematological parameters, and Fe deficiency was determined via serum ferritin levels (,12 ng/ml) and the tri-index model. While fasters had marginally poorer pre haematological indicators, values were well above the cut-off levels, suggesting that intermittent fasting for a mean of 22·5^15·5 years did not have any substantial adverse effects on Fe status. During the CF period the changes in Fe status indices were more beneficial for fasters than for control subjects. In particular, fasters increased their ferritin levels (P¼ 0·02) and decreased their total Fe-binding capacity (P,0·001). Compared with males, the effect of CF was more pronounced in female fasters. No subjects were detected with Fe deficiency at the end of the CF period. End dietary Fe and fibre intake were significantly higher in the fasters as compared with the control group (P¼ 0·038 and P¼ 0·001, respectively). Adherence to the Orthodox Christian dietary guidelines does not have a major impact on Fe status and is not associated with a significantly greater degree of Fe deficiency.

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the oxidative susceptibility of LDL in human volunteers following supplementation with various low doses (<1 g/d) ofn–3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Sixty-two healthy volunteers (thirty-seven males and twenty-five females, aged 19–63 years) were recruited to take part in a randomised placebo-controlled trial. Volunteers were required to take 0.9, 0.6 or 0.3 gn–3 PUFA as fish oil or placebo capsules daily for 16 weeks. Susceptibility of LDL to oxidative modification was assessed by measuring the production of conjugated dienes and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances in LDL oxidised by Cu2+(15 μM) OR 2,2″-AZOBIS(2-AMIDINOPROPANE) DIHYDROCHLORIDE (1 Mm) for 5 h. Plasma fatty acid and LDL-fatty acid composition, cholesterol levels and antioxidant concentrations were also measured. While post-treatmentn–3 PUFA compositions of plasma and LDL reflected the capsule contents, no meaningful differences in antioxidant concentrations or cholesterol levels were observed between the groups. Supplementation with low doses ofn–3 PUFA as fish oil did not influence the oxidative susceptibility of LDL. The results of the present study suggest that moderate dietary intakes ofn–3 PUFA do not significantly influence the susceptibility of LDL to oxidative modificationin vitro.

Summary Background: The successful incorporation of fish oil into foods may provide a means of increasing intakes of n‐3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n‐3 PUFA). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the bioavailability of n‐3 PUFA in microencapsulatd fish oil compared with a fish oil capsule. Methods: Twenty‐eight healthy volunteers were recruited to take part in this randomized controlled trial. Volunteers were supplemented with 0.9 g n‐3 PUFA daily for 4 weeks, delivered either as microencapsulated fish oil in a milkshake or as a fish oil capsule. Plasma fatty acid composition and plasma total cholesterol levels were measured at baseline and after supplementation. In addition, volunteers completed a questionnaire on fish consumption, use of supplements and exercise. Results: Responses to the questionnaire indicated that the males who took part in this study took more physical exercise, consumed less fish and were less likely than the females to take supplements. Plasma n‐3 PUFA concentrations were raised significantly and by a similar level by both fish oil supplements. Furthermore, no significant difference was observed in plasma n‐3 PUFA concentrations following supplementation with either form of fish oil. Plasma total cholesterol levels were not significantly altered by n‐3 PUFA supplementation in either group. The results of this study indicated that there was no difference in the bioavailability of n‐3 PUFA given as microencapsulated fish oil compared with n‐3 PUFA delivered as a fish oil capsule. Fortification of foodstuffs with microencapsulated fish oil therefore offers the potential to increase intakes of n‐3 PUFA in line with current recommendations.