Betaine is distributed widely in animals, plants, and microorganisms, and rich dietary sources include seafood, especially marine invertebrates ( approximately 1%); wheat germ or bran ( approximately 1%); and spinach ( approximately 0.7%). The principal physiologic role of betaine is as an osmolyte and methyl donor (transmethylation). As an osmolyte, betaine protects cells, proteins, and enzyme...

The present report summarises a workshop convened by the UK Food Standards Agency (Agency) on 25 March 2010 to discuss the current Agency's funded research on the use of metabolomics technologies in human nutrition research. The objectives of this workshop were to review progress to date, to identify technical challenges and ways of overcoming them, and to discuss future research priorities and...

Conclusions The results of gross malnutrition and deprivation of foodstuffs can therefore be due to some of these individual nutrient deficiencies, in so far as animal results apply to man. They can be due to other individual dietary deficiencies, they can be due to the algebraic effect of several deficiencies. Still more, of course, gross deprivation of protein and fats can be expected to caus...

The gastrointestinal tracts of breast-fed infants are colonized more easily with bifidobacteria than are those of formula-fed infants. Colonization is thought to reduce infant diarrhea. Amendments to formulas that improve colonization by bifidobacteria are being actively investigated. Colonization studies almost invariably require measurements of the concentration of the bifidobacteria in feces...

“The world is failing children by not ensuring they have enough to eat, says the UN Children's Fund (Unicef), May 02 , 2006. It says the number of children under five who are underweight has remained virtually unchanged since 1990, despite a target to reduce the number affected” BBC May 02, 2006. Half of all the under-nourished children in the world live in South Asia (India, Bangladesh, and Pa...

Food has been one of the basis of existence of Homo sapiens from the moment our species appeared on the face of the earth. Primitive man gathered leaves, roots, grubs, eggs of birds as well as pieces of raw meat left behind by bigger and stronger animals. The discovery of fire proved to be a major step in the way people lived and ate. The necessity of having the diet of meat and vegetables was ...

BACKGROUND The paradigm of human risk assessment includes many variables that must be viewed collectively in order to improve human health and prevent chronic disease. The pathology of chronic diseases is complex, however, and may be influenced by exposure to environmental pollutants, a sedentary lifestyle, and poor dietary habits. Much of the emerging evidence suggests that nutrition can modul...

INHIBITION OF ALANINE AMINOTRANSFERASE (ALAT) IN SILICO AND IN VIVO PROMOTES MITOCHONDRIAL METABOLISM TO IMPAIR MALIGNANT GROWTH* Gregor Beuster*, Kim Zarse*, Christoph Kaleta†, René Thierbach‡, Michael Kiehntopf§, Pablo Steinberg‡, Stefan Schuster†, Michael Ristow* װ 2 * Dept. of Human Nutrition, Inst. of Nutrition, University of Jena, Jena, D-07743, Germany, † Dept. of Bioinformatics, School ...

2012;25(2) S Afr J Clin Nutr Cheserek MJ, MSc, Lecturer, Human Nutrition Department, Egerton University, Kenya Tuitoek PJ, PhD, Professor, Human Nutrition Department, Egerton University, Kenya Waudo JN, PhD, Professor, Department of Food Nutrition and Dietetics, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya Msuya JM, PhD, Professor, Department of Food Science and Technology, Home Economics and Human Nutr...