Undeclared allergens in chocolate products have been responsible for numerous allergen-related recalls in the United States. A survey was conducted to determine the prevalence of undeclared milk and peanut in 88 and 78 dark chocolate bars, respectively. Concentrations of milk (as nonfat dry milk) or peanut in three samples of each chocolate product were determined with two milk- or peanut-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. In 75% of the chocolate bar products with a milk advisory statement, milk concentrations were above the limit of quantitation (2.5 μg/g [ppm]), with the majority having concentrations >1,000 ppm. An additional 67% of chocolate bars with a "traces of milk" statement contained 3 to 6,700 ppm of milk. Fifteen percent of chocolates labeled dairy free or lactose free and 25% labeled vegan were positive for milk, all with concentrations >1,000 ppm. Even for chocolates with no reference to milk on the label, 33% of these products contained 60 to 3,400 ppm of milk. The survey of chocolate products for peanuts revealed that 8% of products with an advisory statement contained peanut, with the highest concentration of 550 ppm. All nine chocolates bearing the peanut-free or allergen-free statement were negative for peanut, but 17% of chocolates with no label statement for peanut were positive for peanut at concentrations of 9 to 170 ppm. Evaluation of multiple lots of four chocolate products revealed that milk was consistently present or absent for the products investigated, but mixed results were obtained when multiple lots were tested for peanut. This study indicates that a large proportion of dark chocolate bars contain undeclared milk. The type of advisory statement or the absence of a milk advisory statement on products did not predict the amount or absence of milk protein. In contrast, a lower proportion of chocolates containing undeclared peanut was found. Consumers with food allergies should be cautious when purchasing dark chocolate products, particularly those that have an advisory label statement.
ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to assess the incidence rate of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical cancer, and their costs according to age.MethodsWe collected data on annual incidence and medical costs of CIN and cervical cancer from 2010 until the end of 2014 from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment (HIRA) service. The CIN was classified into CIN3 (high-grade) requiring conization and CIN1/2 (low-grade) requiring observation.ResultsIncidence rates of CIN3 and cervical cancer are reducing over time, whereas CIN1/2 is increasing significantly (p for trend: <0.001). The peak ages of incidence were 25–29, 30–34, and 70–74 years old for CIN1/2, CIN3, and cervical cancer, respectively. The crude incidence of CIN1/2 increased by approximately 30% in 2014 compared to 5 years ago and demonstrated an increasing trend in all age groups. The CIN3 showed a significantly increasing trend in the age group of 30–39 years old, the cervical cancer was significantly reduced in all ages, except the 35–39 years old. The treatment for cervical cancer costs $3,342 per year, whereas the treatment for CIN3 and CIN1/2 cost $467 and $83, respectively.ConclusionThe crude incidence rate of cervical cancer is currently decreasing among Korean women, but the incidence rates and medical costs of CIN and cervical cancer are increasing in women in their 30s in Korea. These findings suggest that different strategies by age will be required for prevention of cervical cancer in Korea.
Objective. The purpose of this study was to (i) determine the cervical microbial composition in different abortion samples and to (ii) investigate the correlation between spontaneous abortion and cervical microbes in Korean women. Methods. We collected cervical swabs from women who had never undergone abortion (N = 36), had spontaneous abortion (N = 23), and had undergone induced abortion (N = 88) and subjected those samples to 16S rRNA pyrosequencing. Further, factor analysis and correlation between cervical microbiota and spontaneous abortion were evaluated by logistic regression analysis. Results. In spontaneous abortion women, 16 S rRNA gene sequences showed significant increases in Atopobium vaginae, Megasphaera spp., Gardnerella vaginalis, Leptotrichia amnionii, and Sneathia sanguinegens compared to women in nonabortion group. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, A. vaginae (OD = 11.27; 95% = 1.57–81), L. amnionii (OD = 11.47; 95% = 1.22–107.94), S. sanguinegens (OD = 6.89; 95% = 1.07–44.33), and factor 1 microbes (OD = 16.4; 95% = 1.88–42.5) were strongly associated with spontaneous abortion. Conclusions. This study showed a high prevalence of L. amnionii, A. vaginae, S. sanguinegens, and factor 1 microbes in spontaneous abortion and association with spontaneous abortion in Korean women.
Mercury is a cumulative neurotoxic agent, exposure to high levels of which may increase the risk of psychiatric symptoms. The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between blood mercury and depression risk in Korean adults. We analyzed the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) with 11,754 participants (male: 5834 female: 5920) aged ≥19 years from 2008 to 2013. The associations of blood mercury with risk of depression were estimated using multivariate logistic regression after adjustment for potential confounders. We found a significantly increased risk of depression in the highest quintile for blood mercury (multivariate OR = 2.05; 95% CI = 1.20–3.48; p trend = 0.03) among female, but not male. A stratification analysis by fish intake showed that the association between depression and blood mercury was strengthened (OR = 4.00; 95% CI = 1.51–10.6; p trend = 0.015) among females with the lowest tertile of fish intake. The results of this study suggest that higher levels of blood mercury, especially in cases of lower fish intake, are positively associated with the risk of depression in Korean women.
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