Adherence to a Dietary Approach to Stop Hypertension (DASH)-Style in Relation to Daytime Sleepiness.

BACKGROUND: The beneficial impact of adherence to a DASH diet on several metabolic conditions and psychological well-being has been shown previously. Dietary modification can affect sleep quality. Thus, the aim of this present study was to investigate the correlation between adherence to the DASH diet and daytime sleepiness score in adolescent girls. METHODS: A total of 535 adolescent girls aged between 12 and 18 years old were recruited from different regions of Khorasan Razavi in northeastern of Iran, using a random cluster sampling method. DASH scores were determined according to the method of Fung et al. A Persian translation of the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS-IR) was used to assess of daytime sleepiness. To investigate the correlation between DASH-style diet and daytime sleepiness score, we applied logistic regression analysis in crude and adjusted models. RESULTS: As may be expected, participants with the greatest adherence to the DASH diet had significantly higher intakes of fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy products, fish and nuts, and lower consumption of refined grains, red and processed meat, sugar-sweetened beverages and sweets. There was an inverse correlation between adherence to the DASH-style diet and scores for daytime sleepiness in crude model (ß= -0.12; P=0.005). These findings were remained significant after adjustment for confounding variables (ß= -0.08 P=0.04). CONCLUSION: There is an inverse correlation between adherence to DASH diet and daytime sleepiness score. Further studies, particularly longitudinal studies, are required to determine whether dietary intervention may improve daytime sleepiness.

A Mobile Application for Managing Diabetic Patients' Nutrition: A Food Recommender System.

BACKGROUND: As a prevalent metabolic disease, diabetes has different side effects and causes a wide range of co morbidity with a high rate of mortality. There is a need for certain interventions to manage this disease. Iranians usually have three main meals a day. Considering the special needs of diabetic patients and the possibility of hypoglycemia between the main meals, it is essential for these patients to eat something as a snack. Considering these conditions and the society's orientation towards modern technologies such as smart phones, designing mobile-based nutrition recommender systems can be helpful. METHODS: The snack recommender system is a knowledge-based smart phone application. This study has focused on the development of a recommender system that combines artificial intelligence techniques and makes up a knowledge base according to the guidelines posed by the American Diabetes Association (ADA). The snack menu was recommended in accordance with the patient's favorites and conditions. The accuracy of the recommended menu was assessed in 2 steps. First, it was compared with the diet prescribed by three nutrition specialists. In the second step, system's suggested menu was evaluated by the data from 30 diabetic patients using a valid questionnaire. RESULTS: The results of evaluating the snack recommender system by nutritionists showed that this system is capable of recommending various snacks according to the season (accuracy of 100%) and personal interests (accuracy of 90%) to diabetic patients. According to health nutritionists, the snacks suggested by this system are matched with Iranian culture. Moreover, the results revealed that a higher body mass index (BMI) makes the recommender system less sensitive to personal interests to suggest what is basically beneficial for one's health. CONCLUSION: This study was a pioneering research to develop a more comprehensive dietary recommender system for diabetic patients which includes main meals as well. Patients found the system useful and were satisfied with the application. This system is believed to be able to help diabetic patients to take more healthy diet which leads to a better lifestyle.

The relation between pro-oxidant antioxidant balance and glycolipid profile, 6 months after gastric bypass surgery.

BACKGROUND: Morbid obesity is a chronic disease that contributes to increased oxidative stress. Gastric bypass surgery is the gold standard method in treating co-morbidities. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to evaluate the relation between pro-oxidant antioxidant balance (PAB) as one measure of oxidative stress and glycolipid profile 6 months after gastric bypass surgery. SETTING: Imam Reza Hospital, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran. METHODS: Thirty-five morbidly obese patients with body mass index ≥35 kg/m2 with co-morbidities or ≤40 kg/m2 were randomly recruited. The PAB assay was used to estimate oxidative stress. Anthropometrics and glycolipid profile were collected at recruitment and 6 months after surgery. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 16 software. RESULTS: The study showed a significant postoperative reduction in serum PAB values compared with the baseline (P<.001). All anthropometric and several glycolipid parameters significantly reduced after surgery (P<.001), while serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was unaffected. Repeated measures analysis of variance showed that postoperative PAB values were affected by gastric bypass surgery (F = 12.51, P = .001). Regression analysis demonstrated medication usage controlling co-morbidities (ß^ = -.6, P = .002) and fasting blood glucose (ß^ = .41, P = .04) as independent factors in predicting PAB values 6 months after surgery. CONCLUSIONS: Gastric bypass surgery can reduce PAB values in favor of antioxidants 6 months after the operation. Accordingly, fasting blood glucose after gastric bypass surgery can be an independent factor in predicting PAB values.