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Aim: To establish the prevalence of nutrition risk and associated risk factors among adults of advanced age newly admitted to hospital. Methods: A cross‐sectional study was undertaken in adults aged over 85 years admitted to one of two hospital wards in Auckland within the previous 5 days. An interviewer‐administered questionnaire was used to establish participant's socio‐demographic and health characteristics. Markers of body composition and muscle strength were collected. Nutrition risk was assessed using the Mini Nutritional Assessment‐Short Form (MNA‐SF), dysphagia risk using the 10‐Item Eating Assessment Tool (EAT‐10) and level of cognition using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Results: A total of 88 participants with a mean age of 90.0 ± 3.7 years completed the assessments. A third (28.4%) of the participants were categorised by the MNA‐SF as malnourished and 43.2% were classified at risk of malnutrition. A third (29.5%) were at risk of dysphagia as assessed by EAT‐10. Malnourished participants were more likely to be at risk of dysphagia (P = 0.015). The MNA‐SF score was positively correlated with body mass index (r = 0.484, P < 0.001) and grip strength (r = 0.250, P = 0.026) and negatively correlated with risk of dysphagia (r = −0.383, P < 0.001). Conclusions: Among newly hospitalised adults of advanced age, over two thirds were malnourished or at risk of malnutrition, and a third were at risk of dysphagia. Nutrition risk was positively correlated with low BMI and grip strength and negatively correlated with dysphagia risk. Findings highlight the importance of screening for dysphagia risk, especially in those identified to be malnourished or at nutrition risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To measure the iodine status and iodine intake of New Zealand adults 18-64 years of age following mandatory fortification of bread with iodine. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of NZ adults living in Dunedin and Wellington during February-November 2012. Three hundred and one men and women aged 18-64 years randomly selected from the New Zealand Electoral Roll completed a 24-h urine collection, a demographic and iodine-specific food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), and had height and weight measured. Urine collections were analysed for iodine and reported as median urinary iodine concentration (UIC) µg/L and median urinary iodine excretion (UIE) µg/day. The FFQ was used to estimate iodine intake with and without discretionary iodised salt use. Results: The median UIC for all adults was 73 µg/L, indicative of mild iodine deficiency. The mean urinary volume was 2.0 L. As an estimate of iodine intake, the median UIE was 127 µg/day. Estimated iodine intake, using the FFQ which included discretionary iodised salt use, was 132 µg/day. Iodine intakes were associated with UIC ( P = 0.040) and UIE ( P = 0.003), but not with bread iodine intake and iodised salt use. Conclusion: Using the WHO/UNICEF/ICCIDD target for iodine sufficiency (a UIC of >100 µg/L) based on school-aged children with a mean urinary volume of 1.0 L, the iodine status of NZ adults does not reach adequate levels (73 µg/L). A more realistic parameter in a population with a higher urinary volume excretion (2.0 L) is the UIE. A median UIE of 127 µg/day suggests that the iodine status of NZ adults is now likely to be adequate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Human milk is typically low in vitamin D activity (VDA). Whether the vitamin D content of breast milk at birth can be increased by supplementing the mother during pregnancy has not been reported to the best of our knowledge. Objective: We examined the effect of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy on breast-milk VDA in the first 2 mo of lactation. Design: Breast-milk samples were obtained from women who were enrolled in a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial of vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy. Pregnant women were enrolled at 27 wk of gestation and randomly assigned to the following 3 groups: a placebo group, a group who received one dosage of daily oral vitamin D3 (1000 IU), or a group who received 2 dosages of daily oral vitamin D3 (2000 IU). Serum 25-hydroxy-vitamin D [25(OH)D] was measured at enrollment, at 36 wk of gestation, and in cord blood at birth. Study participants who were breastfeeding were invited to provide breast-milk samples for VDA measurement [concentration of vitamin D2, vitamin D3, 25(OH)D2, and 25(OH)D3] at 2 wk and 2 mo postpartum. A linear mixed model was used to compare breast-milk VDA between the 3 study groups. Results: A total of 75 women provided breast-milk samples (44 women provided breast-milk samples at both 2 wk and 2 mo postpartum). The mean (95% CI) VDA at age 2 wk was 52 IU/L (12, 217 IU/L) in the placebo group, 51 IU/L (17, 151 IU/L) in the 1000-IU group, and 74 IU/L (25, 221 IU/L) in the 2000-IU group; and at age 2 mo, the mean (95% CI) VDA was 45 IU/L (16, 124 IU/L), 43 IU/L (18, 103 IU/L), and 58 IU/L (15, 224 IU/L), respectively. There was no significant interaction in VDA between the sample-collection time and treatment (P = 0.61), but there was a difference between lower- and higher-dosage treatment groups (P = 0.04). Conclusion: Maternal vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy of 2000 IU/d (compared with 1000 IU/d and with a placebo) results in a higher VDA of breast milk ≥2 mo postpartum. This trial was registered at the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry as ACTRN12610000483055. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to validate the self-report Multimedia Activity Recall for Children and Adolescents (MARCA) against accelerometry for the assessment of physical activity in New Zealand children. Participants (n = 716, 10–18 years) recalled 3–4 days of activity using the MARCA and underwent a partially overlapping 7-day accelerometry protocol during a national survey. Spearman correlation coefficients (ρ) assessed the association between accelerometer-derived counts per minute and MARCA-derived physical activity level and time in locomotion. Both data sources estimated time spent in light and moderate–vigorous physical activity. Association and agreement between methods for light physical activity and moderate–vigorous physical activity was assessed using correlations and Bland–Altman plots respectively, and pairedt-tests conducted. Accelerometer-derived activity counts were moderately correlated with both MARCA-derived physical activity level and locomotion (ρ = 0.38,P < 0.0001). The correlation between methods was –0.14 for light physical activity and 0.28 for moderate–vigorous physical activity (P < 0.0001). The MARCA overestimated moderate–vigorous physical activity compared with accelerometry (120 min,P < 0.0001), which increased as moderate–vigorous physical activity time increased. Some sex and ethnicity (Māori [indigenous] versus non-Māori) differences were observed. Overall, the MARCA indicated moderate validity for assessment of physical activity level, locomotion and moderate–vigorous physical activity and poor validity for assessment of light physical activity. This was comparable to other self-report tools. The MARCA has utility for future large-scale research. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]