Effects of Galohgor Nutraceutical Lactation Cookies on Breast Milk Volume and Lactose Concentration.

BACKGROUND: Galohgor nutraceutical lactation cookies (NLC) contain polyherbal which is believed and consumed by postpartum mothers of Sundanese Ethnic in Indonesia to increase breast milk production. This study was aimed to analyze the effects of NLC cookies on breast milk volume and lactose concentrations of postpartum mothers. METHODS: The experimental study with post-controlled design was conducted. Twenty eligible mother-infant pairs were enrolled and divided into two groups. They were randomly assigned to receive NLC (n=9) or original cookies (ORC, n=11). Each subjects consumed 4 pieces/d of NLC which containing 1 g galohgor nutraceutical powder/ pieces or ORC (without galohgor nutraceutical powder), for 14 days intervention period since the first day of giving birth. The measurement of breast milk production was carried out by baby weighing method using SECA 334 digital baby scale (SECA, Hamburg, Germany). A high-performance liquid chromatography method was used to determine lactose concentrations in breast milk. Data were analyzed by parametric Independent T-test or the nonparametric Mann-Whitney U-test and adjusted analysis of covariance. RESULTS: NLC significantly increased (P<0.05) breast milk production, as shown by average breast milk volume of NLC compared to ORC, i.e., 557.0 (95% confidence interval [CI], 497.3-616.6) mL/d vs. 435.9 (95% CI, 382.3-489.6) mL/d. This result was supported by lactose concentration in breast milk of mothers who consumed NLC significantly higher (P<0.05), compared to ORC, i.e., 6.03% (95% CI, 5.66%-6.40%) vs. 5.18% (95% CI, 4.85%-5.51%). CONCLUSION: NLC which containing galohgor nutraceutical can be recommended to increase breast milk volume and lactose concentration in the early postpartum period.

Hepatic transcriptome analysis identifies genes, polymorphisms and pathways involved in the fatty acids metabolism in sheep.

Fatty acids (FA) in ruminants, especially unsaturated FA (USFA) have important impact in meat quality, nutritional value, and flavour quality of meat, and on consumer's health. Identification of the genetic factors controlling the FA composition and metabolism is pivotal to select sheep that produce higher USFA and lower saturated (SFA) for the benefit of sheep industry and consumers. Therefore, this study was aimed to investigate the transcriptome profiling in the liver tissues collected from sheep with divergent USFA content in longissimus muscle using RNA deep-sequencing. From sheep (n = 100) population, liver tissues with higher (n = 3) and lower (n = 3) USFA content were analysed using Illumina HiSeq 2500. The total number of reads produced for each liver sample were ranged from 21.28 to 28.51 million with a median of 23.90 million. Approximately, 198 genes were differentially regulated with significance level of p-adjusted value <0.05. Among them, 100 genes were up-regulated, and 98 were down-regulated (p<0.01, FC>1.5) in the higher USFA group. A large proportion of key genes involved in FA biosynthesis, adipogenesis, fat deposition, and lipid metabolism were identified, such as APOA5, SLC25A30, GFPT1, LEPR, TGFBR2, FABP7, GSTCD, and CYP17A. Pathway analysis revealed that glycosaminoglycan biosynthesis- keratan sulfate, adipokine signaling, galactose metabolism, endocrine and other factors-regulating calcium metabolism, mineral metabolism, and PPAR signaling pathway were playing important regulatory roles in FA metabolism. Importantly, polymorphism and association analyses showed that mutation in APOA5, CFHR5, TGFBR2 and LEPR genes could be potential markers for the FA composition in sheep. These polymorphisms and transcriptome networks controlling the FA variation could be used as genetic markers for FA composition-related traits improvement. However, functional validation is required to confirm the effect of these SNPs in other sheep population in order to incorporate them in the sheep breeding program.

The Galohgor Nutraceutical Cookies Effects on ß-Carotene Serum and Oxidative Stress of Postpartum Mothers.

The aim of the present study was to analyze the galohgor nutraceutical cookies effects on ß-carotene serum levels and oxidative stress of postpartum mothers. To this end, a post-controlled experiment was carried out. Nineteen subjects were recruited to receive 40 g of galohgor cookies (GC) or control cookies (CC) daily for 14 days. Analysis of covariance was applied to assess the effect of the intervention. The results showed that ß-carotene serum concentrations were significantly higher in the GC group compared with the CC group (0.141±0.094 µmol/L vs. 0.106±0.051 µmol/L, P<0.05). Meanwhile, malondialdehyde levels of GC group was significantly lower than that of the CC group (0.82±0.25 nmol/L vs. 0.93±0.27 nmol/L, P<0.05). These results suggest that galohgor nutraceutical may have beneficial effects on improving ß-carotene serum levels and oxidative stress of postpartum mothers.

Physical growth and diets of school children: Trends from 2001 to 2015 in rural West Java, Indonesia.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to assess changes in physical growth and diets of school children in rural West Java, Indonesia, between 2001 and 2015, a period of rapid socioeconomic change. METHODS: In 2001 and 2015, anthropometric measurements (height, weight, mid-upper arm circumference, skin-fold thickness), food consumption surveys, and questionnaires on socioeconomic status were completed by fourth-grade school children in a rural village in West Java. RESULTS: Height increments of 5.9 cm for boys and 4.7 cm for girls during this 14-year period were calculated as 4.21 cm per decade for boys and 3.36 cm per decade for girls, which is equivalent to height increments observed during rapid economic development periods in other countries. Weights also increased by 3.8 kg for boys and 2.0 kg for girls during this period. Variations in weight status significantly increased in 2015; while 98% of the children were within the 'normal' range in 2001, the prevalence of overweight increased from 2.4% in 2001 to 13.7% in 2015 and that of thinness was 4.3% in 2015. Energy, protein, and fat intakes significantly increased in 2015. In 2015, a significant correlation between nutritional intake and weight status was observed, especially among boys. CONCLUSIONS: Socioeconomic changes between 2001 and 2015 caused increased heights and weights and greater variation in weight status, especially among boys.

Locally Sustainable School Lunch Intervention Improves Hemoglobin and Hematocrit Levels and Body Mass Index among Elementary Schoolchildren in Rural West Java, Indonesia.

School lunch is not provided in public elementary schools in Indonesia, and students frequently buy and eat snacks at school. We hypothesized that providing a traditional Sundanese meal as school lunch would be beneficial for children in rural West Java. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated the effect of a 1-month school lunch intervention aiming at sustainability and based on children's nutritional intake, hemoglobin and hematocrit levels, and body mass index (BMI). A lunch (including rice, vegetable dish, animal protein dish, plant protein dish, and fruit) containing one-third of the recommended daily allowance of energy was offered every school day for 1 month, targeting 68 fourth-grade elementary schoolchildren. At baseline, the prevalence of anemia was 33.3%. The prevalence of stunting and underweight were 32.4% and 2.9%, respectively, whereas that of overweight and obesity combined was 17.6%, indicating a double burden of malnutrition among the subjects. During the intervention, intakes of protein (p < 0.05), calcium (p < 0.05), and vitamin C (p < 0.001) significantly increased, while that of fat significantly decreased (p < 0.001). After the intervention, hemoglobin (p < 0.05) and hematocrit (p < 0.05) levels were significantly improved, thereby almost halving the rate of anemia. These changes were significantly larger in the baseline anemic group than the non-anemic group (p < 0.01). BMI significantly increased in the baseline underweight/normal group (p < 0.001) but not in the overweight/obese group. The school lunch intervention significantly improved nutritional intakes and health statuses, implying its potential for reducing anemia and resolving the double burden of malnutrition among rural Indonesian schoolchildren.

Developmental stage-dependent influence of environmental factors on growth of rural Sundanese children in West Java, Indonesia.

This study investigated the growth trajectories and the relative relevance levels of nutrition, disease, and hormonal status at various developmental stages among children in adverse environments to provide population-based empirical evidence for the life history theory. Three years of longitudinal anthropometric data in 1-year intervals were obtained from 418 boys and girls aged 0 to 12 years at recruitment. Following the final measurement, the main survey, which included blood and feces sampling, 3-h interval food consumption recall surveys for energy and nutrient intakes and anthropometry, was performed. Blood and feces were used for detecting, respectively, anemia and hormonal (IGF-I and IGFBP-3) levels as well as intestinal helminthiasis (Ascaris, Trichuris, and hookworm). The major findings of this study are summarized as follows: 1) the growth velocity of the subject children lagged behind international standards during childhood and juvenility but caught up during early adolescence; 2) diseases, both intestinal helminths and anemia, had significant effects on growth in childhood but not at older ages; and 3) hormonal status significantly affected growth in the children, with its highest significance in early adolescence. A larger growth than international standards in early adolescence likely follows programmed hormonal mechanisms after the onset of puberty. The onset of puberty might be associated with adequate amounts of nutrient intake and be mediated by hormonal function, because the IGF-IZ score was significantly correlated with energy and protein intakes at the transitional period from juvenility to adolescence, when puberty occurs.

Snack foods consumption contributes to poor nutrition of rural children in West Java, Indonesia.

Dietary habits of children, including snack foods consumption, in developing countries have seldom been investigated in relation to their nutrition and health. To assess the effects of snack foods consumption of 154 children aged 1-12 years in a rural village of West Java, Indonesia, a 3-hour-interval food recall survey for all meals and snack foods consumed in seven consecutive days for each subject, anthropometry, and interviews for sociodemographic indicators were conducted. Their overall prevalence of stunting and underweight was 69.5% and 35.7%. There were 221 foods consumed by the subjects, among which 68 foods were categorized as snack foods. Though the children of both <7 year and ≥7 year age groups consumed snack foods similarly throughout the day, the latter group only consumed larger amounts of energy from snack foods at school recess-times. The mean percent contribution of snack foods was 59.6% for fat, 40.0% for energy, 20.6% for calcium, and <10% for vitamins A and C. Half number of the subjects who snacked more than the median amount consumed less carbohydrate and vitamin C than the remaining half. Furthermore, the more snack-consuming group the lower z score for height-for-age (HAZ) among schoolchildren. To improve this nutritionally vulnerable situation, consumption of snack foods should be replaced by the non-snack foods which contain much higher nutrient density; i.e. 15 times for calcium and 32 times for vitamin A. Moreover, considering high snack foods consumption of ≥7 y age group at school, appropriate school nutrition programs should be promoted.

Medicinal plants used by the villagers of a Sundanese community in West Java, Indonesia.

AIM OF THE STUDY: Based on the authors' fieldwork in a Sundanese village, Indonesia, this paper aimed to elucidate the roles of herbal medicine in treatment of illnesses and to report medicinal plants and their uses, comparing with those mentioned in the encyclopedic book series of Plant Resources of South-East Asia (PROSEA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Interview survey was conducted for all of the 19 herbalist healers about their therapies for the past 1-month period, and the medicinal plants used were botanically identified. For 70 non-healer households, treatments for all members' illness episodes in the past 1-month period were asked. RESULTS: Medicinal plants were used in two-thirds of illness cases, either through the villagers' self-treatment (60.9%) or by the healers (6.5%). The healers made 96 therapies for illnesses (classified into 23 categories), using 117 plant species. There were 257 types of illness-plant pairs, and only 114 of them (44.4%) were judged conformed to those mentioned in the PROSEA. CONCLUSION: Sundanese villagers have depended heavily on herbal medicine, and high proportion of non-conformed illness-plant pairs suggests necessity of further studies about Sundanese medicinal plants, particularly their pharmacological effects.