[Comparison of the effects of narrative therapy and diet therapy on the body mass index in overweight and obese women]

This study was carried out with the aim of comparing the effect of diet therapy and narrative intervention on the extent of body mass index [BMI] reduction in overweight and obese women. This was a quasi experimental-interventional study, in which 30 overweight women were selected by random sampling from among those consulting the Diet Clinic and randomly assigned to one of 2 intervention [group 1, diet therapy alone; group 2, diet therapy plus narrative therapy] and a control group [receiving no intervention]. The period of intervention was 5 weeks. Weight of all the subjects with light clothing was measured by a Seca scale to the nearest 0.5 kg and their height by a stadio-meter to the nearest 0.5 cm. The BMI was calculated by dividing weight [in kg] by squared height [m2]. The data were analyzed using the SPSS 16 software, the statistical test being covariance analysis and paired t- test. Data analysis showed that diet therapy alone [group 1] had no significant effect on the BMI [P>0.05], while in group 2 [diet therapy plus narrative therapy] BMI decreased significantly [P<0.001]. Inter-group comparison [among the 3 groups] showed that there were no significant difference between diet therapy and narrative therapy with regard to BMI. The findings show that in the first phase of intervention life narratives about overweight help obese women correct their nutritional habits. This is followed by BMI reduction in the second phase. Since diet therapy is not consistent with the women's life narratives, it plays no role in correcting life narratives for more successful dieting. Considering the efficacy of narrative therapy in body mass index reduction and no effect by diet therapy alone, further studies on the life narratives of overweight women and their correction are recommended

[A] comparison of the effects of reboxetine and placebo on reaction time in adults with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder [ADHD]

Some studies have demonstrated that Reaction Time [RT] is longer in patients with ADHD which in turn may be associated with educational and occupational impairment and increased driving risks. Any alteration on RT which is induced by the treatment in this population may have great consequences positively or negatively. This study was designed to examine the effects of reboxetine on RT in adults with Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder [ADHD]. A total of 30 adult patients with ADHD who did not suffer from any other major psychiatric disorder were eligible to participate in this double blind, placebo controlled study. Patients were randomly assigned to receive either reboxetine [4 mg/day for one week, then 8 mg/day] or placebo for 4 weeks. RT was assessed at baseline and after 4 weeks by validated software which collects and analyses the data for auditory and visual stimulants. Numbers of correct responses, omission and substitution errors for each stimulus were calculated. Regarding visual tasks and in comparison with baseline scores, the number of correct responses increased significantly and the number of omission errors decreased significantly after 4 weeks of treatment [P<0.05] in both groups. However, with regard to auditory tasks scores, no significant differences were found at the end of the study compared to the baseline in each of the two groups. Additionally, no significant differences were noted between the two groups when both visual and auditory tasks were considered. Results of this study showed that reboxetine did not affect the RT of the patients when both visual and auditory tasks were assessed. Further studies with larger number of patients and for a longer period of time are required to confirm the result of this study

effectiveness of medical nutrition therapy for the control of weight and fasting blood sugar in the type 2 diabetic patients

Although the short-term benefit of medical nutrition therapy [MNT] on the management of diabetes has been shown by previous studies, long-term efficiency of MNT has not been adequately investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficiency of MNT during a 1-year follow-up period in the type II diabetic patients. In a follow-up study, 163 newly-diagnosed type II diabetic patients received MNT, including the educational materials on calorie, quantity and frequency of food intake, as well as the snacks. Patients were asked to have a second nutritional consulting after 1 month. Body weight, FBS and HbA1c were measured at 3, 6 and 12-month intervals and the results were compared using repeated-measures ANOVA. The mean of patients' age was 51.2 +/- 9.3 years. HbA1c, weight and BMI decreased significantly after 3 months of MNT [p<0.001, p<0.001, p<0.01, respectively], followed by continuous but non-significant decrease in the mentioned variables during the next 9 months. Though the weight, BMI, FBS and HbA1c did not decrease significantly beyond 3 months of MNT, but the changes were significant as compared to the beginning of the study. It is probable to enhance the long-term effect of MNT on weight and glycemic control by increasing the number of sessions of nutritional consulting