Is binge eating associated with poor weight loss outcomes in people with a high body weight? A systematic review with meta-analyses

OBJECTIVES

This systematic review aimed to compare the weight change in people with or without binge eating who underwent various weight loss treatments.

METHODS

We searched for studies in PubMed, American Psychological Association, and Embase from inception to January 2022. The studies selected included assessment of binge eating and body weight before and after weight loss treatment in people of any age. The meta-analyses were conducted using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis (CMA). We used Egger's regression test, the funnel plot, and the Trim and Fill test to assess the risk of publication bias.

RESULTS

Thirty-four studies were included in the systematic review, with a total of 10.184 participants. The included studies were divided into three categories according to types of weight loss treatments, namely, (1) bariatric surgery; (2) pharmacotherapy isolated or combined with behavioral interventions; and (3) behavioral and/or nutritional interventions. The meta-analyses showed no significant difference in weight loss between people with or without binge eating engaged in weight loss treatments, with an overall effect size of - 0.117 (95% CI - 0.405 to 0.171; P = 0.426).

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings showed no difference in weight loss in people with or without pre-treatment binge eating who received various weight loss treatments. Weight loss treatments should not be withheld on the basis that they will not be effective in people with pre-treatment binge eating, albeit their safety and longer term impacts are unclear.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level I, at least one properly designed randomized controlled trials; systematic reviews and meta-analyses; experimental studies.

Effect of a Nutritional Behavioral Intervention on Intuitive Eating in Overweight Women With Chronic Kidney Disease

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of a nutritional behavioral intervention on intuitive eating (IE) scores of overweight non-dialysis-dependent women with chronic kidney disease and to investigate the relationship of IE scores with demographic, nutritional, and quality of life parameters in this group.

DESIGN AND METHODS

This is a prospective noncontrolled clinical trial of a behavioral multisession group intervention for dietary management. Each group comprised five to eight participants in 14 weekly or biweekly sessions lasting about 90 minutes each. The IE principles were discussed during the meetings. The IE scale 2, translated and adapted to the study population, with a four-factor model was applied to assess IE attitudes. The 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey questionnaire was applied to assess health-related quality of life.

RESULTS

Of the 33 patients who began participation in the study, 23 patients (median [interquartile range]: age = 62.0 years [58.0-68.0]; 52.2% with diabetes; body mass index = 32.6 kg/m² [30.2-39.3]; estimated glomerular filtration rate = 28.0 mL/min/1.73 m² [22.0-31.0]) completed the intervention. Except for the IE subscale Body-Food Choice Congruence, the IE total score and all its subscales (Unconditional Permission to Eat, Eating for Physical Rather than Emotional Reasons, Reliance on Hunger and Satiety Cues, and Body-Food Choice Congruence) improved after the intervention. In a cross-sectional analysis, more intuitive eaters were older and had better scores for health-related quality of life.

CONCLUSIONS

The nutritional behavioral intervention embracing IE principles was effective to improve IE attitudes for this group of chronic kidney disease patients. These results are promising and may contribute to a paradigm change in the strategies to enhance motivation and adherence to dietary recommendations in this population.

Effects of participation level and physical activity on eating behavior and disordered eating symptoms in the Brazilian version of the New Moves intervention: data from a cluster randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

Childhood and adolescent obesity is a worldwide public health concern. The New Moves program aims to change eating behavior (EB) and physical activity (PA).

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention and predictors of better outcomes relating to EB and PA levels.

DESIGN AND SETTING

Secondary data from a cluster randomized controlled trial in 10 public schools in São Paulo, Brazil.

METHODS

270 female adolescents, aged 12 to 14 years, were analyzed. Participation levels were categorized as presence in 1 to 9 sessions or 10 to 17 sessions, or control. Effectiveness was evaluated through improvement in disordered EB (DEB) and EB. Predictors of better outcomes relating to PA levels were evaluated through clustering of individual characteristics that affected changes in PA scores.

RESULTS

Participation level was not significantly associated with changes in DEB or EB. Girls with higher body mass index percentile (BMI-P) percentile tended to have increases in sedentary lifestyles through the program. Girls with less body image dissatisfaction presented higher increases in daily PA. Girls with higher BMI-P percentile and higher self-esteem showed reductions in sedentary lifestyles. The program seemed to have more effect on daily PA among older girls than among younger girls.

CONCLUSIONS

This program could be used as a structured action plan in schools, with the aims of improving eating behaviors and physical activity, in addition to promoting self-acceptance. The results indicate the importance of evaluating determinants of adherence, as these metrics might influence the effectiveness and future design of lifestyle programs.

BODY DISSATISFACTION, PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, AND SEDENTARY BEHAVIOR IN FEMALE ADOLESCENTS

Objective:

To evaluate the association of body image with physical activity level, body composition, and sedentary behavior (SB) of female adolescents.

Methods:

Exploratory cross-sectional study conducted with 120 female adolescents aged between 14-19 years, from the city of Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Southeast Brazil. Body image was evaluated with a Body Silhouette Scale (BSS) and a Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ). Weight, height, and waist circumference values were analyzed, as well as the waist-to-height ratio and body fat percentage. The physical activity level (PAL) was assessed by 24-hour Physical Activity Recall and SB by screen time, that is, time spent in front of a TV, playing video game, on the computer and using tablets, and, separately, the cell phone time.

Results:

Mean age was 16.5±1.5 years, and most adolescents were eutrophic (77.6%), sedentary/low PAL (84.2%), with high screen time (85.2%) and cell phone time (58.7%). Body dissatisfaction was stated in 40.6% of BSQ and 45.8% of BSS evaluations. Body distortion was identified in 52.9% of participants. All body composition measures, along with cell phone time and PAL, were associated with body dissatisfaction, the more active adolescents presenting higher levels of dissatisfaction.

Conclusions:

This study concluded that female adolescents with higher cell phone time also present higher body dissatisfaction, as well as the most physically active ones. All body composition measurements were associated with body dissatisfaction, mainly body mass index, waist circumference, and waist-to-height ratio.

Vitamin C supplementation has no effect on American bullfrog's immune response

American bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus) is the only species raised in Brazilian commercial frog farms, and the intensive culture of these animals has gained great popularity in Brazil over the past several years. Stress is one of the major obstacles in frog culture. To minimise this problem, the aim of the present study was to investigate the role of added vitamin C in the diet of American bullfrogs as an antistress factor through the assessment of plasma corticosterone, leucocyte levels and macrophage activation in animals raised in confinement. The experimental design was entirely randomised, with six treatments (supplementation of 0, 250, 500, 750, 1000 and 2000 mg of vitamin C/kg of feed) and four replications. The plasma corticosterone level, leucocyte level and macrophage activation were evaluated. It was concluded that vitamin C had no influence on the evaluated parameters due to the possible adaptation of the animals to life in captivity (domestication). The results of this research indicate that farmers should not increase the levels of vitamin C in commercial feeds because this would only enhance production costs.

Stunkard Figure Rating Scale for Brazilian men

PURPOSE

To evaluate psychometric assessment of Stunkard Figure Rating Scale (FRS) for Brazilian male population.

METHODS

The sample was composed of a control group (94 students) and a clinical group (20 eating disordered patients). Two questionnaires were applied: the FRS and the Eating Attitudes Questionnaire-26. Weight, height, and body mass index (BMI) were collected in the control group (self-reported) and clinical group (measured). Body dissatisfaction (BD) was calculated by subtraction of ideal body (IB) from the current body (CB) score. The concurrent validity was assessed through the analysis of the correlation between the CB and BD scores and the BMI and the body weight. The discriminant validity was achieved by measurements of association between the groups studied and the scales CB, IB and BD. Reliability was assessed by the comparison of the score averages at two moments and by the intraclass coefficient correlation.

RESULTS

The questionnaire had a correlation higher than 0.67 for the measures of weight and BMI. Regarding the CB, IB and BD scores, a significant difference was not observed between the clinical and the control group. There was no difference between the scores for BD at the two moments analyzed.

CONCLUSIONS

The FRS is stable and capable of correlating with anthropometric measures. Nevertheless, for this population the questionnaire was unable to distinguish between the two groups analyzed.

Insatisfação corporal em universitários de diferentes áreas de conhecimento

OBJETIVOS: Verificar a prevalência de insatisfação corporal em universitários de diferentes áreas de conhecimento, bem como a relação com sexo e com estado nutricional. MÉTODOS: A amostra foi composta por universitários da Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora (UFJF) de diferentes áreas de conhecimento. O Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ) e a Escala de Silhuetas para adultos avaliaram a insatisfação corporal. Massa corporal e estatura autorreferidas foram utilizadas para o cálculo do índice de massa corporal (IMC). Para as análises estatísticas, foram realizados testes de associação, comparação e regressão logística. RESULTADOS: Dos 535 estudantes, com média de idade de 20,82 ± 3,03 anos, 245 eram do sexo masculino. A média do BSQ foi de 68,00 ± 28,74, sendo 88,9% livres de insatisfação. Porém, pela escala de silhuetas, 76,6% foram considerados insatisfeitos. Os estudantes da área de saúde e humanas foram, sem significância, mais insatisfeitos que alunos de exatas. As mulheres em relação aos homens (p < 0,05) e aqueles com sobrepeso/obesidade (OR: 3,174; p = 0,000) tiveram a maior frequência na classificação de insatisfação corporal. CONCLUSÃO: A maioria dos jovens mostrou-se livre de insatisfação corporal, não havendo relação com a área de estudo, porém as universitárias com IMC mais elevado apresentaram-se mais insatisfeitas com sua imagem corporal.

Adaptação transcultural preliminar do Children's Eating Attitude Test (Cheat) para o idioma português

OBJETIVOS: traduzir e adaptar o instrumento "Children's Eating Attitude Test" (Cheat) para o idioma português, avaliar a equivalência semântica e a compreensão verbal. MÉTODOS: envolveu quatro etapas: (1) tradução, (2) retradução, (3) revisão técnica e avaliação semântica, (4) pré-teste - avaliação da compreensão verbal por especialistas em transtorno alimentar. RESULTADOS: as 26 questões foram traduzidas e adaptadas para o idioma português. A versão final constou dos mesmos 26 itens apresentando-se de forma clara e de fácil compreensão (valores médios superior a 4,5 - máximo 5,0). CONCLUSÕES: o instrumento encontra-se traduzido e adaptado para o idioma português demonstrando bons resultados no processo de adaptação transcultural. São necessárias análises de validade externa, equivalência de mensuração e reprodutibilidade.

Proteomic inventory of myocardial proteins from patients with chronic Chagas' cardiomyopathy

Chronic Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy (CCC) is an often fatal outcome of Trypanosoma cruzi infection, with a poorer prognosis than other cardiomyopathies. CCC is refractory to heart failure treatments, and is the major indication of heart transplantation in Latin America. A diffuse myocarditis, plus intense myocardial hypertrophy, damage and fibrosis, in the presence of very few T. cruzi forms, are the histopathological hallmarks of CCC. To gain a better understanding of the pathophysiology of CCC, we analyzed the protein profile in the affected CCC myocardium. Homogenates from left ventricular myocardial samples of end-stage CCC hearts explanted during heart transplantation were subjected to two-dimensional electrophoresis with Coomassie blue staining; protein identification was performed by MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry and peptide mass fingerprinting. The identification of selected proteins was confirmed by immunoblotting. We demonstrated that 246 proteins matched in gels from two CCC patients. They corresponded to 112 distinct proteins. Along with structural/contractile and metabolism proteins, we also identified proteins involved in apoptosis (caspase 8, caspase 2), immune system (T cell receptor ss chain, granzyme A, HLA class I) and stress processes (heat shock proteins, superoxide dismutases, and other oxidative stress proteins). Proteins involved in cell signaling and transcriptional factors were also identified. The identification of caspases and oxidative stress proteins suggests the occurrence of active apoptosis and significant oxidative stress in CCC myocardium. These results generated an inventory of myocardial proteins in CCC that should contribute to the generation of hypothesis-driven experiments designed on the basis of the classes of proteins identified here.

Proteomic inventory of myocardial proteins from patients with chronic Chagas' cardiomyopathy

Chronic Chagas' disease cardiomyopathy (CCC) is an often fatal outcome of Trypanosoma cruzi infection, with a poorer prognosis than other cardiomyopathies. CCC is refractory to heart failure treatments, and is the major indication of heart transplantation in Latin America. A diffuse myocarditis, plus intense myocardial hypertrophy, damage and fibrosis, in the presence of very few T. cruzi forms, are the histopathological hallmarks of CCC. To gain a better understanding of the pathophysiology of CCC, we analyzed the protein profile in the affected CCC myocardium. Homogenates from left ventricular myocardial samples of end-stage CCC hearts explanted during heart transplantation were subjected to two-dimensional electrophoresis with Coomassie blue staining; protein identification was performed by MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry and peptide mass fingerprinting. The identification of selected proteins was confirmed by immunoblotting. We demonstrated that 246 proteins matched in gels from two CCC patients. They corresponded to 112 distinct proteins. Along with structural/contractile and metabolism proteins, we also identified proteins involved in apoptosis (caspase 8, caspase 2), immune system (T cell receptor ss chain, granzyme A, HLA class I) and stress processes (heat shock proteins, superoxide dismutases, and other oxidative stress proteins). Proteins involved in cell signaling and transcriptional factors were also identified. The identification of caspases and oxidative stress proteins suggests the occurrence of active apoptosis and significant oxidative stress in CCC myocardium. These results generated an inventory of myocardial proteins in CCC that should contribute to the generation of hypothesis-driven experiments designed on the basis of the classes of proteins identified here.

DNA damage by 3,6-dihydropyrazine-2,5-dipropanoic acid, the cyclic dimerization product of 5-aminolevulinic acid

5-Aminolevulinic acid (ALA) is a heme precursor that accumulates in lead poisoning and inborn porphyrias. It has been shown to produce reactive oxygen species upon metal-catalyzed aerobic oxidation and to cause oxidative damage to proteins, liposomes, DNA, and subcellular structures. Studies have also shown that ALA may condense to yield the cyclic product 3,6-dihydropyrazine-2,5-dipropanoic acid (DHPY). Here we propose that DHPY could be involved in DNA damage in the presence of high concentrations of ALA. Exposure of plasmid pUC19 DNA to low concentrations of DHPY (2-10 microM) in the presence of 0.1 mM Cu2+ ions causes DNA strand breaks, as demonstrated by agarose gel electrophoresis. It was also shown that in the presence of Cu2+ ions DHPY is able to increase the oxidation of monomeric 2'-deoxyguanosine to form 8-oxo-7,8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine as inferred from high performance liquid chromatography measurements using electrochemical detection. Addition of a metal chelator (bathocuproine, 0.5 mM), the DNA compacting polyamines spermidine (1 mM) and spermine (1 mM) or antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (10 microg/ml) and catalase (20 pg/ml) protect the DNA against these damages. The data presented here are discussed with respect to the increased frequency of liver cancer in patients with acute intermittent porphyria.

Non-coherent visible and infrared radiation increase survival to UV (254 nm) in Escherichia coli K12

Interactions between visible or infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV, 254 nm) radiation have been studied in E. coli. Pre-illumination with non-coherent monochromatic 446, 466, 570 and 685 nm radiation, as well as with polychromatic red and IR radiation at room temperature, leads to increased cell survival after a subsequent irradiation with UV light. In the thermic range of the spectrum (red and IR), IR but not red light pre-treatment is able to increase cell survival to a subsequent lethal heat (51 degrees C) challenge, suggesting that increased UV survival may be due to IR-induced heat-shock response. On the other hand, visible-light-induced resistance may be due to a different mechanism, possibly involved with unknown bacterial light receptors.

DNA damage by 5-aminolevulinic and 4,5-dioxovaleric acids in the presence of ferritin

Cellular accumulation of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), the first specific intermediate of heme biosynthesis, is correlated in liver biopsy samples of acute intermittent porphyria affected patients with an increase in the occurrence of hepatic cancers and the formation of ferritin deposits in hepatocytes. 5-Aminolevulinic acid is able to undergo enolization and to be subsequently oxidized in a reaction catalyzed by iron complexes yielding 4,5-dioxovaleric acid (DOVA). The released superoxide radical (O(*-)(2)) is involved in the formation of reactive hydroxyl radical ((*)OH) or related species arising from a Fenton-type reaction mediated by Fe(II) and Cu(I). This leads to DNA oxidation. The metal catalyzed oxidation of ALA may be exalted by the O(*-)(2) and enoyl radical-mediated release of Fe(II) ions from ferritin. We report here the potentiating effect of ferritin on the ALA-mediated cleavage of plasmid DNA and the enhancement of the formation of 8-oxo-7, 8-dihydro-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-oxodGuo). Plasmid pBR322 was incubated with ALA and varying amounts of purified ferritin. DNA damage was assessed by gel electrophoresis analysis of the open and the linear forms of the plasmid from the native supercoiled structure. Addition of either the DNA compacting polyamine spermidine or the metal chelator ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) inhibited the damage. It was also shown that ALA in the presence of ferritin is able to increase the oxidation of the guanine moiety of monomeric 2'-deoxyguanosine (dGuo) and calf thymus DNA (CTDNA) to form 8-oxodGuo as inferred from high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) measurements using electrochemical detection. The formation of the adduct dGuo-DOVA was detected in CTDNA upon incubation with ALA and ferritin. In a subsequent investigation, the aldehyde DOVA was also able to induces strand breaks in pBR322 DNA.

Death Kinetics of Lactobacillus bulgaricus in a Spray Drying Process

Survival of Lactobacillus bulgaricus during spray drying was studied at various outlet air temperatures. During spray drying the logarithmic survival ratio decreased with increased outlet air temperature with first-order kinetics; the pseudo-z value for Lactobacillus bulgaricus was 17.3°C. Plots of the death-rate constant for Lactobacillus bulgaricus versus reciprocal outlet temperature during spray drying in skim milk show a curve with two different activation energies (E_a). The calculated E_a values were 33.47 kJ/mol above 70°C and 85.77 kJ/mol below 70°C. Thermodynamic quantities for spray drying of Lactobacillus bulgaricus are also presented. Results show that the relationship between the entropy of activation and the enthalpy of activation for both spray drying and heating in liquid medium is linear, with all the data for drying falling in the range of a negative entropy.