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People who are overweight/obese commonly experience poorer antioxidant protection. The aim of the present study was to determine whether overweight/obesity is associated with children's selenium status. The study subjects were 573 Madrid schoolchildren aged 8 - 13 years. Their selenium intake was monitored via a three-day food record. Serum selenium concentration and blood glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity of each subject was also determined, as was body mass index (BMI). Children with excess of weight (BMI>P85) had lower serum selenium concentrations than those of normal weight (64.6 ± 16.8 µg/L compared to 75.3 ± 12.2 µg/L; p < 0.001). Their selenium intake was also lower (1.99 ± 0.62 µg/kg compared to 2.73 ± 0.88 µg/kg; p < 0.001). A positive correlation was found between serum selenium and selenium intake (the best being obtained when intake was measured in µg/kg/day, r = 0.338, p < 0.05), while a negative relationship was seen between serum selenium and all the anthropometric variables recorded (the strongest correlation was seen between serum selenium and BMI, r = -0.390, p < 0.05). Logistic regression showed the risk of selenium deficiency (<70 µg/L) to increase with BMI [OR = 1.5031 (1.3828 - 1.6338)] and to decrease with selenium intake [OR = 0.9862 (0.9775 - 0.9949)] and age [OR = 0.6813 (0.5434 - 0.8542)] (p < 0.001). A correlation was also detected between serum selenium and GPx activity (r = 0.177; p < 0.05) but there were no significant relationships between GPx activity and any anthropometric variables, excluding the correlation with waist/hip ratio (r = -0.298; p < 0.01). Children with excess of weight have a poorer selenium status than children of normal weight, which can contribute to poor antioxidant protection. This situation could be more evident in children with central adiposity.

Aim: To investigate the effect of calcium (Ca) intake and dairy product consumption modification on body composition in overweight/obese women following two types of hypocaloric diet., Methods: Study subjects were 57 women who were randomly assigned to follow one of two hypocaloric diets: diet V, in which the relative consumption of vegetables was increased, and diet C, which involved increasing the relative consumption of cereals (especially breakfast cereals). Dietetic and anthropometric data were collected at the start and at the end of the 6-week intervention period., Results: Ca density, Ca index of nutritional quality and Ca/protein improved with both diets. Dairy products, Ca intake, dairy Ca intake and Ca/protein were inversely correlated with body mass index at the end of the study. Among the women with an initial calcium intake below the 50th percentile, those who achieved a reduction in body mass index above the 50th percentile were those who most increased their total calcium intake, calcium intake from dairy sources, calcium density, calcium/protein ratio and the intake of total and skimmed dairy product consumption., Conclusion: Correcting an inadequate calcium intake could help improve weight loss in women following hypocaloric diets., (Copyright © 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

With obesity the amount of pro- and anti-inflammatory adipokines released is increased within the fat tissue. These molecules are implicated in many clinical manifestations of this pathology such as diabetes, arterial hypertension, or cardiovascular disease. At the first stage, the fat tissue of the obese patient becomes resistant to the action of insulin due to the effect of some of these adipokines such as tumour necrosis alpha (TNF-alpha) or interleukine-6 (IL-6). At a second stage, this resistance occurs at other tissues and glucose and insulin levels are increased. This increase, together with high adipokines levels that occur in diabetes, lead to the occurrence of different adverse events, such as the following: increase in oxidative stress, endothelial dysfunction, increase in blood pressure, and impairments in lipoprotein metabolism, all of which are harmful for health. Practising physical activity and following a balanced diet, similar to the Mediterranean pattern with low fat and salt consumption, would be helpful for improving insulin resistance and adipokines levels in obese people, thus helping improving their health status in the long run.

Objective: To analyze folate status changes in a group of overweight/obese young women following two different weight control programs., Methods: Fifty-seven women (BMI=24-35 kg/m(2)) were randomly assigned to one of two slightly hypocaloric diets: diet V, in which the consumption of vegetables was increased, or diet C, in which the consumption of cereals (especially breakfast cereals) was increased. Dietetic, anthropometric and biochemical data were collected at the start of the study and again at 6 wk., Results: At the beginning of the study, the obese women (BMI>or=30 kg/m(2)) were at greater risk of showing serum folic acid concentrations of <14.9 nmol/L, even though there were no differences in folate intake between them and the women with a lower BMI. Energy intake was reduced and folate intake increased with both the V and C diets. Weight was lost as a consequence of this lower energy intake. Serum folic acid concentration increased and the plasma homocysteine concentration diminished only in those who lost >2.5 kg; this was the case of the subjects as a whole and of those who followed the C diet. Among those who lost the most weight (>2.5 kg), the chances of having an increased serum folate concentration were higher, although no significant differences were seen in folate intake with respect to women who lost less weight., Conclusions: Following a hypocaloric diet could lead to a better folate status through increased intake, but especially among those who lose the most body weight.

Obesity has been linked with poorer vitamin D status. The aim of this work was to analyze the changes in vitamin D status and body weight of 61 young, overweight/obese women following two different weight control programs. The study subjects were randomly assigned to one of two slightly hypocaloric diets: diet V, in which the consumption of greens and vegetables was increased, or diet C, in which the consumption of cereals (some of which were enriched with vitamin D) was increased. Dietary, anthropometric, and biochemical data were collected at the start of the study and at 2 weeks. At the beginning of the study, when taking into account only those women with a vitamin D intake below that recommended, obese women had a significantly lower mean serum 25(OH)D concentration than those who were lighter. Dietary intervention led to a greater reduction in energy intake among group C subjects; their weight was also that which was most reduced. In addition, the vitamin D intake and serum 25(OH)D values were increased only in group C women. Excess body weight was associated with deterioration in vitamin D status, especially when the intake of this vitamin was lower than that recommended. Subjects with higher serum vitamin D at the beginning of the study lost more weight than those subjects with lower initial values. Diet C was associated with a greater weight loss than diet V, and led to a greater increase in vitamin D intake and serum 25(OH)D levels. This might be of interest in the improvement of health in people trying to lose weight.

The loss of weight was analysed in a group of sixty overweight/obese women of childbearing age (20-35 years) according to their initial vitamin D status. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of two slightly hypocaloric diets: Diet V, in which the consumption of vegetables was increased, or Diet C, in which the relative consumption of cereals (especially breakfast cereals) was increased. Dietetic, anthropometric and biochemical data were collected at the start of the study and again at 2 weeks after dividing the women into groups depending on their having an initial serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) concentration of < 50 nmol/l (LD) or>or=50 nmol/l (HD). Dietary intervention led to a reduction in energy intake, body weight and BMI in all groups. The HD women showed greater body fat losses during the study than the LD women (1.7 (SD 1.8) kg compared to 0.5 (SD 0.8) kg). A better vitamin D status therefore aided the loss of body fat over the experimental period (OR 0.462; CI 0.271, 0.785; P < 0.001). However, when the dietary groups were analysed separately, this effect was only seen in the C subjects (OR 0.300; CI 0.121, 0.748; P < 0.001). The present results suggest that women with a better vitamin D status respond more positively to hypocaloric diets and lose more body fat; this was especially clear among the C subjects who had a greater vitamin D supply during the experimental period.

Objective: To know the dietary habits of a population of women with overweight/obesity and their knowledge on the concept of proper feeding in order to design nutrition educational campaigns focused on this population., Materials and Methods: A group of 67 women, aged 20 to 35 years with body mass index 24-35 kg/m2 were asked about their frequency of food intake and what they thought to be correct to achieve a balanced diet., Results: Studied women more frequently consumed oils (4.3 +/- 4.5 times/week) and sweets (2.5 +/- 3.6 times/week) and less frequently water (-19.1 +/- 22.7 times/week), vegetables (-4.3 +/- 5.7 times/week), fruits (-3.7 +/- 6.2 times/week), legumes (-1.3 +/- 2.0 times/week) and fish (-2.2 +/- 3.7 times/week) than what they thought they should consume. When comparing what they declare to consume to what has been established as minimal recommended intake for the different groups of foods it is observed that the intake of grains and legumes, fruits and vegetables, and slightly less that of fish and eggs, should de increased., Conclusions: given the incorrect dietary habits observed in a population of women with overweight/obesity, it should be convenient to carry out nutrition educational campaigns. This education could help improve the diet of all the population and the occurrence of overweight and obesity could be prevented in many cases. Besides, in those cases in which the pathology is already present, this could prevent following regimens that are harmful for the health and for weight management.