Krill Oil Supplementation Does Not Change Waist Circumference and Sagittal Abdominal Diameter in Overweight Women: A Pilot Balanced, Double-Blind, and Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial.

An excess of body fat is one of the biggest public health concerns in the world, due to its relationship with the emergence of other health problems. Evidence suggests that supplementation with long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3) promotes increased lipolysis and the reduction of body mass. Likewise, this clinical trial aimed to evaluate the effects of supplementation with krill oil on waist circumference and sagittal abdominal diameter in overweight women. This pilot, balanced, double-blind, and placebo-controlled study was carried out with 26 women between 20 and 59 years old, with a body mass index >25 kg/m2. The participants were divided into the control (CG) (n = 15, 3 g/daily of mineral oil) and krill oil (GK) (n = 16, 3 g/daily of krill oil) groups, and received the supplementation for eight weeks. Food intake variables were obtained using a 24 h food recall. Anthropometric measurements (body mass, body mass index, waist circumference, and sagittal abdominal diameter) and handgrip strength were obtained. After the intervention, no changes were found for the anthropometric and handgrip strength variables (p > 0.05). Regarding food intake, differences were found for carbohydrate (p = 0.040) and polyunsaturated (p = 0.006) fatty acids, with a reduction in the control group and an increase in krill oil. In conclusion, supplementation with krill oil did not reduce the waist circumference and sagittal abdominal diameter. Therefore, more long-term studies with a larger sample size are necessary to evaluate the possible benefits of krill oil supplementation in overweight women.

Acute supplementation with whey protein or collagen does not alter appetite in healthy women: a randomised double-blind and crossover pilot study.

Protein quality has an important role in increasing satiety. Evidence suggests that whey protein (WP) provides satiety via gastrointestinal hormone secretion. Hydrolysed collagen supplementation can also stimulate the production of incretins and influence satiety and food intake. Thus, we sought to compare the effect of acute supplementation of WP or hydrolysed collagen on post-intervention appetite and energy consumption. This was a randomised, double-blind, crossover pilot study with ten healthy adult women (22·4 years/old) who were submitted to acute intake (single dose) of a beverage containing WP (40 g of concentrated WP) or hydrolysed collagen (40 g). Subjective appetite ratings (feelings of hunger, desire to eat and full stomach) were measured using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), energy intake was quantified by ad libitum cheese bread consumption 2 hours after supplementation and blood was collected for leptin and glucose determination. There was no difference between treatment groups in the perception of hunger (P = 0·983), desire to eat (P = 0·326), full stomach feeling (P = 0·567) or food consumption (P = 0·168). Leptin concentrations at 60 min post supplementation were higher when subjects received hydrolysed collagen (P = 0·006). Acute supplementation with hydrolysed collagen increased leptin levels in comparison with WP, but had no effect on appetite measured by feelings of hunger, desire to eat, full stomach feeling (VAS) or energy consumption.

No effect of intradialytic neuromuscular electrical stimulation on inflammation and quality of life: a randomized and parallel design clinical trial.

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) elicits muscle contraction and has been shown to improvement of quality of life. However, if NMES improvement the quality of life and attenuate the inflammation is not fully understood. Therefore, our aim sought to assess the effects of short-term of intradialytic NMES on inflammation and quality of life in patients with chronic kidney disease patients undergoing hemodialysis. A randomized clinical trial conducted with parallel design enrolled adult hemodialysis patients three times a week during 1 month. Patients were randomly assigned to two groups (control group, n = 11; 4F/7 M) or (NMES group, n = 10; 4F/6 M). Pre-and post-intervention, was measured the high-sensitivity C reactive protein, interleukin-6, interleukin-10, and TNFα by the ELISA, and quality of life was applied using the SF-36. During each hemodialysis session, NMES was applied bilaterally at thigh and calves for 40 min. There was not change in cytokines (hs-CRP, IL-6, IL-10, and TNFα) concentrations time × group interaction. In addition, no difference was found in eight domains of quality of life. In addition, the groups did not differ for muscle strength and muscle mass. In conclusion, we found that intradialytic NMES did not change inflammation neither quality of life.

Is body weight or muscle strength correlated with the Malnutrition Inflammation Score (MIS)? A cross-sectional study in hemodialysis patients.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: In hemodialysis (HD) patients, malnutrition and sedentary habits increase physical disability that contributes the loss of skeletal muscle mass. This vicious cycle contributes to poor quality of life and premature death. Therefore, considering that body weight is an item from the Malnutrition Inflammation Score (MIS) questionnaire, we hypothesize that body weight is an anthropometric marker that is just as important as muscle strength measurements in predicting changes in MIS. Thus, our study aimed to evaluate if there is a correlation between body weight and muscle strength measurements with the MIS in HD patients. METHODS: A cross-sectional design study was conducted with patients who were enrolled at two HD clinics. Body weight (kg), height (m), body mass index (BMI-kg/m2); handgrip strength (HGS-kg) using a dynamometer, 1 repetition maximum (1RM) leg extension and MIS were used to present clinical history and physical examinations of the patient. RESULTS: From 60 patients, 12.6% (n = 21) had MIS≥6, classified as malnutrition. The patients studied had a median age of 39 (19-59) years and were mostly men (n = 41), who had, on average, the nutritional status for the eutrophic BMI (23.76 ± 5.31 kg/m2) and muscle strength of HGS 33.10 ± 10.17 kg on average, as well as1 RM leg extension 73.03 ± 27.34 kg. In addition, MIS was similarly correlated with body weight (r = -0.46; p = 0.0002), HGS (r = -0.44; p = 0.0004) and 1 RM leg extension (r = -0.49; p < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Although, HGS and 1 RM leg extension were correlated with MIS, we found that body weight also was associated with MIS. Therefore, in clinical practice with the lack of equipment to measure muscle strength and inflammatory cytokines, a simple evaluation of body weight may be sufficient to predict malnutrition and MIS in HD patients.

Total protein or leucine intakes are not associated with handgrip strength in hemodialysis patients: A pilot study.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Inadequate protein intake is associated with lean body mass (LBM) loss. However, it is unclear whether high protein diet and leucine intake are associated with handgrip strength (HGS), a validated marker of muscle function. This study aims to: i) assess the prevalence of patients with low HGS; and ii) verify if HGS is correlated with high protein diet and leucine consumption in hemodialysis patients. METHODS: This cross-sectional study analysed patients at two center hemodialysis (HD) clinic and sixty-two patients aged ∼39 years with length of time on HD ∼60 months undergoing HD was carried out. Body weight (kg), LBM (kg) and body fat mass (%) assessments were performed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and height (m) through portable stadiometer. Body mass index (BMI) (kg/m2) was calculated using the body weight and height. HGS (kg) was measured using a hydraulic dynamometer. Fisher's exact test, Chi-square, Pearson's correlation, and logistic regression were done to test the hypothesis. RESULTS: Out of 62 patients, 47 (75.8%) presented low HGS. In addition, no correlation was found between protein intake (if in percentage or g/kg/d) and HGS (r = 0.07, p = 0.58; r = -0.04, p = 0.70, respectively). Although there is a low correlation among leucine intake (g/d) and HGS (r = 0.39, p = 0.01), low HGS was not associated with leucine intake in the crude model (OR: 0.86 95%CI(0.60-1.24) p = 0.441), nor after adjustment for age, sex and BMI (OR: 0.84 95%CI(0.56-1.26), p = 0.422). CONCLUSIONS: Approximately 75% of patients undergoing hemodialysis presented low HGS. Additionally, neither a high protein diet nor leucine intake was associated with the HGS values.

Acute Caffeine Supplementation Does Not Change Sweat Rate and Blood Pressure in Ballet Dancers: A Double-Blind and Placebo-Controlled Study.

This study sought to investigate the effect of oral caffeine supplementation on sweat rate and blood pressure in ballet dancers. A double-blind study with placebo control was conducted with nine professional ballet dancers (average age: 28.5 ± 8.8 years). Oral caffeine supplementation (400 mg per dancer, 6.3 mg/kg, range: 4.9 to 8.6 mg/kg) was ingested one hour before a ballet session that was 5 hours in length. After 3 days a second 5-hour session was performed prior to which a placebo was given to the participants. Body weight, sweat rate, and blood pressure were measured before and after each session. Student's t-tests and ANOVAs were used to assess statistical differences. Results were considered significant at p < 0.05. It was found that acute caffeine supplementation did not change any of the variables when compared to placebo.