One Menu Please: Parents Want Affordable, Right-sized Portions for Their Children in Restaurants

One contributing factor to the obesity epidemic is the large portion sizes served in restaurants. However, no study has looked at the parents' desire for smaller-portioned meals for their children at restaurants in the U.S. This study examined parents' preference for restaurants to offer smaller, lower-priced child portions for their children and reasons for the preference. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate adjusted odds ratios (ORs) for the association between preference for child portions and variables on parental sociodemographic characteristics and weight status. About 70% of parents said they would prefer that restaurants offer smaller, lower-priced child portions of all menu offerings. The adjusted odds of preferring child portions were significantly higher among Hispanic parents (OR, 1.95 vs. non-Hispanic whites) but significantly lower among parents with lower education (≤ high school, OR, 0.64; some college, OR, 0.69 vs. college graduate) and parents residing in the Midwest or West (Midwest, OR, 0.61; West, OR, 0.58 vs. South). The most common reason for preferring child portions of all meals was “wanting my child to eat healthier foods that are not offered on the children's menu” (72%). These findings can be used to encourage restaurants and other venues to consider offering child portions of healthier menu items.

What Does Depression Mean for Korean American Elderly?: A Qualitative Follow-Up Study

OBJECTIVE: Korean American Elderly (KAE) have high rates of depression but underuse mental health services. The purpose of this study was to assess the meaning of depression and help seeking among KAE residing in the United States who have clinically significant depressive symptoms. METHODS: As a follow up to the Memory and Aging Study of Koreans (MASK; n=1,118), a descriptive epidemiological study which showed that only one in four of KAE with clinically significant depressive symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire-9≥10) used mental health services, we conducted a qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with participants with clinically significant depressive symptoms regarding the meaning of depression and beliefs about help seeking. Ten participants with clinically significant depressive symptoms were approached and 8 were recruited for semi-structured interviews. RESULTS: KAE did not identify themselves as depressed though experiencing clinically significant depressive symptoms. They associated depression with social discrimination, social isolation, and suicide in the extreme circumstance. They attributed depression to not achieving social and material success in America and strained relationships with their children. Participants attempted to self-manage distress without telling others in their social network. However, KAE were willing to consult with mental health professionals if the services were bilingual, affordable, and confidential. CONCLUSION: KAE with clinically significant depressive symptoms are a vulnerable group with need and desire for linguistically and culturally relevant mental health services who are isolated due to a complex array of psychological and social factors.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms and genotype combinations in calpain-10 gene of Korean population / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>This is an investigation made in Korean population with regard to the distribution of the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in calpain-10 gene that was discovered in Mexican American.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>By utilizing the techniques of polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), the authors analyzed the polymorphisms for calpain-10 SNP-43, -19 and -63 genotype, evaluated the gene types, and calculated their frequencies and combined genotypes in 312 healthy Korean.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The calpain-10 UCSNP-43 genotype frequencies for types 1/1, 1/2, and 2/2 were found to be 86.2%, 13.5%, and 0.3% respectively, with the allele frequencies 0.930 for G and 0.070 for A. The UCSNP-19 genotype frequencies were 9.9% for type 1/1, 44.6% for type 1/2, 45.5% for type 2/2, with the allele frequencies 0.322 for D and 0.678 for I. The UCSNP-63 genotype frequencies were 57.4% for type of 1/1, 35.9% for type of 1/2, 6.7% for type of 2/2, with the allele frequencies 0.754 for C and 0.246 for T. All of the gene distributions matched the equilibrium law of Hardy-Weinberg. A total of 12 genotype combinations of three SNPs were observed in Korean. Seventy-five point six per cent of the Korean was composed of three genotype combinations in the order of UCSNP-43,-19 and -63, i.e., GG-DI-CC(haplotype combination 111/121, frequency=10.6%, GG-DI-CT(haplotype combination 112/121, frequency=28.8%), and GG-II-CC(haplotype combination 121/121, frequency=36.2%).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The distribution of SNPs in calpain-10 gene in Korean is similar to that in Chinese and Japanese, but different from that reported in Caucasian, American Mexicans and American Pima Indians.</p>

Production of TGF-beta Transfected Fibroblast and Myoblast Stable Cell Lines and their Viability in Rabbit Achilles Tendon / 대한정형외과학회잡지

Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) has been suspected as a possible gene therapy candidate for orthopedic diseases. We demonstrated that the TGF-beta gene therapy can be applicable to orthopedic patients. After transfection of TGF-beta cDNA sequence to myoblasts [C2 (280)] and fibroblasts (NIH 3T3), stable cell lines with TGF-beta mRNA expression were selected by Northern analysis. To evaluate the possibility of clinical application of these cells to orthopedic diseases, the cells were injected into rabbit achilles tendon. Intratendinous injection was done to evaluate the viability of the cells and to determine the optimal concentration for in vivo expression. At 6 weeks after injection, the injected tendon was thickened with newly formed collagen. The results from this experiment indicates that these cells survived and stimulated matrix formation in rabbit achilles tendon. We concluded that TGF-beta cDNA transfected cells can be useful in the evaluation of TGF-beta biology in vivo.