Bowel habits, faecal microbiota and faecal bile acid composition of healthy adults consuming fruit pomace fibres: two-arm, randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trials.

Dietary fibre modulates gastrointestinal (GI) health and function, providing laxation, shifting microbiota, and altering bile acid (BA) metabolism. Fruit juice production removes the polyphenol- and fibre-rich pomace fraction. The effects of orange and apple pomaces on GI outcomes were investigated in healthy, free-living adults. Healthy adults were enrolled in two double-blinded, crossover trials, being randomised by baseline bowel movement (BM) frequency. In the first trial, subjects (n 91) received orange juice (OJ, 0 g fibre/d) or OJ + orange pomace (OJ + P, 10 g fibre/d) for 4 weeks, separated by a 3-week washout. Similarly, in the second trial, subjects (n 90) received apple juice (AJ, 0 g fibre/d) or AJ + apple pomace (AJ + P, 10 g fibre/d). Bowel habit diaries, GI tolerance surveys and 3-d diet records were collected throughout. Fresh faecal samples were collected from a participant subset for microbiota and BA analyses in each study. Neither pomace interventions influenced BM frequency. At Week 4, OJ + P tended to increase (P = 0·066) GI symptom occurrence compared with OJ, while AJ + P tended (P = 0·089) to increase flatulence compared with AJ. Faecalibacterium (P = 0·038) and Negativibacillus (P = 0·043) were differentially abundant between pre- and post-interventions in the apple trial but were no longer significant after false discovery rate (FDR) correction. Baseline fibre intake was independently associated with several microbial genera in both trials. Orange or apple pomace supplementation was insufficient to elicit changes in bowel habits, microbiota diversity or BA of free-living adults with healthy baseline BM. Future studies should consider baseline BM frequency and habitual fibre intake.

Spearmint Extract Improves Working Memory in Men and Women with Age-Associated Memory Impairment.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of supplementation with a spearmint (Mentha spicata L.) extract, high in polyphenols including rosmarinic acid, on cognitive performance, sleep, and mood in individuals with age-associated memory impairment (AAMI). DESIGN: Subjects with AAMI (N = 90; 67% female; age = 59.4 ± 0.6 years) were randomly assigned (n = 30/group) to consume 900, 600, or 0 mg/day (two capsules, once daily) spearmint extract for 90 days, in this double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Assessments were completed for cognition (days 0, 45, and 90), sleep (days 0 and 90), and mood (days 0 and 90) by using the Cognitive Drug Research (CDR) System™, Leeds Sleep Evaluation Questionnaire (LSEQ), and Profile of Mood States (POMS™), respectively. RESULTS: Quality of working memory and spatial working memory accuracy improved after supplementation with 900 mg/day spearmint extract by 15% (p = 0.0469) and 9% (p = 0.0456), respectively, versus placebo. Subjects consuming 900 mg/day spearmint extract reported improvement in their ability to fall asleep, relative to subjects consuming placebo (p = 0.0046). Overall treatment effects were evident for vigor-activity (p = 0.0399), total mood disturbance (p = 0.0374), and alertness and behavior following wakefulness (p = 0.0415), with trends observed for improvements after spearmint supplementation relative to placebo. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the distinct spearmint extract may be a beneficial nutritional intervention for cognitive health in older subjects with AAMI.

Safety and tolerability of a dried aqueous spearmint extract.

Spearmint (Mentha spicata L.) and spearmint extracts are Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) for use as flavoring in beverages, pharmaceuticals, and confectionaries. Studies of spearmint extracts in humans and animals have reported conflicting results with respect to toxicity. Since the chemical composition of these extracts was not reported and the spearmint source material was different, the relevance of these existing data to evaluating the risks associated with ingestion of a dried aqueous spearmint extract standardized to rosmarinic acid is not clear. Hence, the safety and tolerability of the dried aqueous spearmint extract was evaluated as part of a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial in healthy adults with age-associated memory impairment. Ingestion of both 600 and 900 mg/day for 90 days had no effect on plasma levels of follicular stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, or thyroid stimulating hormone, or other safety parameters including vital signs, plasma chemistry or whole blood hematology values. Additionally, there were no reported severe adverse events, no significant between-group differences in the number of subjects reporting adverse effects and the adverse events reported could not be attributed to ingestion of the extract. These results therefore show that ingestion of the aqueous dried spearmint extract is safe and well-tolerated.

Bioavailability of long chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids from phospholipid-rich herring roe oil in men and women with mildly elevated triacylglycerols.

This randomized, single-blind, crossover trial assessed the bioavailability of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) from two different sources, each examined over a 12h period following consumption of a single serving and after 2-weeks of daily supplementation. Thirty-two adults with fasting triacylglycerol (TAG) concentrations between 100 and 399mg/dL were randomly assigned, with stratification by sex and age, to receive 12 capsules/day containing either phospholipid (PL)-rich herring roe oil (Romega® 30, 628mg/day EPA; 1810mg/day DHA; 137mg/day DPA) or TAG-rich fish oil (575mg/day EPA; 1843mg/day DHA; 259mg/day DPA) each for a 2-week period separated by a 4 week washout. The net incremental area under the curve from 0 to 12h for EPA, DHA, and EPA+DHA in plasma phosphatidylcholine (PC) were significantly higher (p<0.01 for all) after Romega 30 supplementation compared to fish oil. Similar results were observed when the data for the Romega 30 condition were normalized to fish oil EPA and DHA intakes (p<0.001 for all). After the 2-week supplementation period, fasting plasma PC EPA+ DHA was elevated by ~2.8 to 3.0-fold relative to baseline in both conditions (p<0.0001 for each), but there was no significant difference in the change from baseline (p=0.422) between Romega 30 (baseline=62.2±3.8µg/mL vs. end of study=172.9±11.7µg/mL) and fish oil (baseline=62.0±3.4µg/mL vs. end of study=185.4±11.2µg/mL) conditions. Similar results were observed for each individual LC n-3 PUFA in plasma PC after 2 weeks of supplementation. These data demonstrate that PL-rich herring roe is a well-tolerated and bioavailable source of LC n-3 PUFA.

A randomized, controlled, crossover trial to assess the acute appetitive and metabolic effects of sausage and egg-based convenience breakfast meals in overweight premenopausal women.

BACKGROUND: Dietary protein at breakfast has been shown to enhance satiety and reduce subsequent energy intake more so than carbohydrate or fat. However, relatively few studies have assessed substitution of protein for carbohydrate on indicators of appetite and glucose homeostasis simultaneously. METHODS: The acute appetitive and metabolic effects of commercially-prepared sausage and egg-based breakfast meals at two different protein levels (30 g and 39 g/serving), vs. a low-protein pancake breakfast (3 g protein) and no breakfast (water), were examined in premenopausal women (N = 35; age 32.5 ± 1.6 yr; BMI 24.8 ± 0.5 kg/m(2)). Test products provided ~280 kcal/serving and similar fat (12-14 g) and fiber contents (0-1 g). Visual Analog Scale ratings for appetite (hunger, fullness, prospective consumption, desire to eat) and repeated blood sampling for plasma glucose and insulin concentrations were assessed throughout each test day. Energy intake was recorded at an ad libitum lunch meal at 240 min. RESULTS: Results showed increased satiety ratings for both the 30 and 39 g protein meals vs. the low-protein and no breakfast conditions (p < 0.001 for all). Postprandial glucose and insulin excursions were lower following the 30 g and 39 g protein conditions vs. the low-protein condition, with smaller responses following the 39 g vs. 30 g protein condition (p < 0.05 for all). Energy intake at lunch was significantly less (p < 0.001) following the 39 g protein meal (692 kcal) vs. the low-protein and no breakfast conditions (789 and 810 kcal, respectively). Total energy intake from the test condition + lunch was higher (p < 0.01) for the 30 and 39 g meals (982 and 983 kcal, respectively) vs. no breakfast (810 kcal), and less than the low protein breakfast (1064 kcal; p < 0.01 vs. 39 g condition only). CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that convenience meals providing 30 or 39 g protein/serving produce greater appetite control, lower postprandial glycemia and insulinemia, and reduced subsequent intake at lunch relative to a low-protein control, or no breakfast. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT01713114.