Issue: Vol. 33

Efficacy and safety of a new food supplement in the treatment of functional dyspepsia: an open study

10 November 2022 No Comments

Current treatments for functional dyspepsia (FD) are based on neutralizing gastric acidity, which favors food digestion and sterilization. Hence, the risk of negative consequences. This study was aimed at assessing the ability of a food supplement, based on hydrolyzed collagen and tricalcium phosphate, to ameliorate FD symptoms.
Methods: 22 patients were recruited according to the Rome IV criteria. Subjects were neither pregnant nor breastfeeding. They had a normal upper endoscopy prior to enrolment, with no current of antacid, antisecretory, prokinetic, antidepressant and anxiolytic use. Individuals with kidney, biliary and pancreatic diseases were excluded.
Gastrointestinal symptoms were measured by the Gastrointestinal Rating Scale (GSRS) questionnaire before and after 28-days of therapy. Adverse effects were monitored during and after the treatment.
Results: Compared to baseline, a significant total score reduction (p = 0.0062) was recorded. The main symptoms that decreased were abdominal pain and eructation (-0.9 ± 1.6 p-value 0.0161). The nutritional supplement was found to be safe and well tolerated.
Conclusion: Dyspeptic symptoms were reduced in all patients, representing the effectiveness and safety of the nutritional supplement.

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PROTEINS INSIGHTS

10 November 2022 No Comments

Proteins are one of the essential macronutrients that humans need to consume through dietary sources to support optimal health. Proteins in fact serve a great variety of functions at the cellular level: they are involved, for instance, in the catalysis of metabolic reactions, response to stimuli, transport of molecules, etc.

As we are all very aware now, we need to be mindful of the source from which we get our protein: although meats and fish tend to have the highest level of proteins, plant-based proteins appear to be a win both for the human and the planet health. Cultivated (or cultured) meat is recently growing interest as it eliminates the need to raise and farm animals for food while still producing animal-based proteins. This literature review is therefore organised into two macro-areas:

  1. a focus on plant proteins and the methodologies exploited to improve their quality (and therefore consumption). The first review provides an overview of plant-based proteins that should help sustain a better life for humans and the environment, with a focus on the emerging technologies for improving plant proteins’ bioavailability, digestibility, and organoleptic properties. The second study covers recent advances in plant-derived protein modifications using Maillard conjugation to improve, for example, plant proteins’ stability and pH sensitivity. The second abstract discusses current limitations and future directions for improving plant proteins’ flavor profiles, which currently limit their use.
    2) a focus on cultivated meat. The first review tackles the challenges associated with meat cultivated production workflow and the exploited cell sources. The second paper focuses on the scaffolding technologies that need to be used to fully mimic conventional meat’s organoleptic and nutritional properties, while the last study proposes 3D-printable plant protein-enriched scaffolds cultivated meat development.
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Covid-related alteration in the balance between pro-and anti/inflammatory bioactive lipids and cytokines

10 November 2022 No Comments

COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 is an inflammatory condition involving mainly lungs, vascular endothelium, liver, heart, and brain with significant disturbances in the innate and adaptive immune responses. SARS-CoV-2 virus enters the cells by binding to ACE2 receptor that is present in many tissues. Despite the availability of effective vaccine(s) against SARS-CoV-2 and its variants current pandemic continues to cause significant morbidity and mortality The emergence of several mutant variants of SARS-CoV-2 is a major concern especially about the efficacy of current vaccines against these variants and other variants that are likely to emerge in the future. In this context, the observation that essential fatty acids (EFAs) such as linoleic acid (LA) and their metabolites can inactivate SARS-CoV-2, regulate inflammatory events and immune responses, and suppress inappropriate excess production of pro-inflammatory interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and bradykinin and thus, restore homeostasis is noteworthy. Of all the EFAs, LA and arachidonic acid (AA) are the most effective to inactivate SARS-CoV-2 and other similar viruses and prevent unwarranted inflammation, enhance wound healing by augmenting the production of anti-inflammatory bioactive lipids and cytokines. Since an imbalance between pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine(s) and other molecules involved in inflammation and wound healing have a significant role in other serious diseases such as sepsis, ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome), ischemia-reperfusion injury and severe pneumonia(s), it remains to be seen whether administration of LA and AA and other fatty acids can prevent and suppress these life-threatening diseases in addition to COVID-19.

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Nutrition and immunomodulation – focus on the dietary fiber RG-I – Rhamnogalacturonan-I trains the immune system and accelerates immune responses

9 November 2022 No Comments

Good nutrition is vital for maintaining health and supporting optimal immune function. Several essential micronutrients are known to contribute to normal functioning of the immune system and may carry health claims on products when they contain meaningful amounts. Certain dietary fibers, for example pectic polysaccharides from carrot that are rich in rhamnogalacturonan-I (cRG-I), have also been shown to play an important role as they can educate, regulate, and modulate immune cell responsiveness. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the scientific evidence supporting the immunomodulatory role of RG-I via nutrition.

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Antioxidants, prooxidants & metabolism: Is everything that is sold safe? if our cells could talk!

1 September 2022 No Comments

If an unbalanced oxidative stress is detrimental to health, using an antioxidant that has not demonstrated its pro-oxidant capacity can be even worse for health.
How many antioxidants exist? How many have shown that they are in fact not pro-oxidants at the usual dose? And how do these antioxidants influence the metabolism of an individual? In the Stance4Health project, funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, these situations have been evaluated in vitro and by applying an innovative metabolomics test to urine samples collected on filter paper in humans. Stance4Health, is innovatively applying these research findings to achieve an intelligent personalized nutrition service.

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Innovative on-site mild processing of fruit and vegetables for increasing local production of foods with high nutritional quality

1 September 2022 No Comments

Food processing in a box (FOX) is a research project, funded by the European Commission as part of the Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme. FOX is focused into mildly processed fruits and vegetables through innovative, small-scale technologies in flexible processing units, which can be moved between production regions. This innovative approach simultaneously meets consumers’ expectations for a wider range of regionally produced foods, supports sustainable and healthier diets and provide business opportunities for food supply actors. Part of the project is focused into evaluation of nutritional quality of the newly produced foods, enabling health-impact assessment.

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BONE AND JOINT HEALTH – INSIGHTS

1 September 2022 No Comments

Bone and joint health contribute to preserving self-sufficiency and preventing chronic degenerative bone diseases, such as osteoarthritis and osteoporosis. The latter is in fact the most common bone disease affecting elder people, and it is estimated that approximately 1 in 4 people, over the age of 50, will experience osteoporosis fractures (www.osteoporosis.foundation).

It has recently been suggested that the gut microbiota may play a fundamental role in bone metabolism, which is influenced by several factors, including inflammation and dietary supplements intake (such as biotics and vitamin D). This literature review will therefore provide insights on the correlation between bone health and:

1) Biotics. The first study describes a clinical trial in which prebiotics (substrate for microorganism) are exploited to improve knee function and physical performance in adults with obesity and knee osteoarthritis. In the second article, a systematic review and meta-analysis on probiotics (live microorganism) is proposed and suggests that the supplementation of some Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus strains might improve bone health. Finally, the third recent study is based on the supplementation of postbiotics (inanimate microorganism and/or their components) in a post-menopausal rat model and shows that they could ameliorate bone loss resulting from estrogen deficiency.

2) Vitamin D and Calcium. The first review summarizes the key elements between vitamin D supplementation and rheumatic diseases. The second article provides an update on the efficacy of vitamin D/calcium for the treatment of osteosarcopenia, a disease where osteoporosis co-exists with sarcopenia (a disease characterised by loss of muscle mass, strength, and function).

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