There is a growing body of evidence to suggest that the dietary intakes of vitamin E are insufficient to protect against the long‐term health risks associated with oxidative stress. Traditional plant breeding and food processing technologies have not concerned themselves with maximising the levels of the tocopherols in the diet, and supplementation is necessary both for nutritive reasons and for the protection of fat‐rich foods against oxidative rancidity. The paper reviews the potential for improving the tocopherol levels in the diet, particularly α‐tocopherol. Genetic technologies have already demonstrated the potential to enhance tocopherol levels by up‐regulation of the final steps in the biosynthetic pathway. Other strategies for the enhancement of the vitamin E content of plant foods are considered both from the perspective of improved bioavailability and the levels in processed foods. Finally some priorities for future research in the field are described. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry

Findings from this large-scale prospective study in a well-defined infant population with adequate healthcare standards suggest that exclusive breastfeeding contributes to protection against common infections during infancy regarding and lessens the frequency and severity of infectious episodes. Partial breastfeeding did not seem to provide this protective effect.

WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT:The potential of HP and LGI diets to promote weight loss in adults has resulted in research to investigate the effect of these diets on weight control in children; results have been promising but still conflicting. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:In the DiOGenes study, a European family-based, randomized, controlled, multicenter, 6-month energy ad libitum dietary intervention study, the LP/HGI diet increased body fat, whereas overweight/obesity decreased in those on the HP/LGI diet. abstract OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of protein and glycemic index (GI) on body composition among European children in the randomized, 6-month dietary intervention DiOGenes (diet, obesity, and genes) family-based study. PATIENTS AND METHODS:In the study, 827 children (381 boys and 446 girls), aged 5 to 18 years, completed baseline examinations. Families with parents who lost Ն8% of their weight during an 8-week run-in low-calorie diet period were randomly assigned to 1 of 5 ad libitum diets: low protein (LP)/low glycemic index (LGI); LP/high GI (HGI); high protein (HP)/LGI; HP/HGI; and control diet. The target difference was 15 GI U between the LGI/HGI groups and 13 protein percentage points between the LP/HP groups. There were 658 children examined after 4 weeks. Advice on food-choice modification was provided at 6 visits during this period. No advice on weight loss was provided because the focus of the study was the ability of the diets to affect outcomes through appetite regulation. Anthropometric measurements and body composition were assessed at baseline, week 4, and week 26. RESULTS:In the study, 465 children (58.1%) completed all assessments. The achieved differences between the GI and protein groups were 2.3 GI U and 4.9 protein percentage points, respectively. The LP/ HGI group increased body fat percentage significantly more than the other groups (P ϭ .040; partial 2 ϭ 0.039), and the percentage of overweight/obese children in the HP/LGI group decreased significantly during the intervention (P ϭ .031). CONCLUSIONS:Neither GI nor protein had an isolated effect on body composition. However, the LP/HGI combination increased body fat, whereas the HP/LGI combination was protective against obesity in this sample of children.

Maternal negative attitude, tobacco use and early re-employment are factors negatively affecting breastfeeding that can be liable to intervention. All health professionals involved in perinatal medicine share a part of responsibility in sustaining breastfeeding, particularly in high-risk groups of mothers.

Heart rate monitoring was used to evaluate the validity and reliability of 2 proxy report measures in assessing moderate to vigorous physical activity (MYPA) in 39 six-year-old children. Significant positive correlations were found between the proxy measures and corresponding heart rate data for school hours and leisure time, respectively (teacher reports, r = .58, p < .001; parent reports, r = .71 to .81, p < .001), but these decreased when each proxy measure was compared with heart rate data collated over a 3-day period (teacher reports, r = .40, p = .01; parent reports, r = .68, p < .001). Repeating the measurements gave a positive test-retest reliability coefficient of r = .84 (p < .001) and r = .64 (p < .001) for teacher and parent reports, respectively. The results indicate that both proxy reports can be useful tools in assessing MVPA in young children but that leisure-time activity reports provide a better basis for extrapolation in assessing weekly MVPA.