Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality around the world. Lifestyle is recognized as a key factor in the development of metabolic disorders and CVD. Recently, eating speed has been of particular interest since some studies have associated it with the development of obesity and other cardiometabolic disorders. We aimed to assess the association between eating speed and various cardiovascular risk factors. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis within the framework of the PREDIMED (Prevención con Dieta Mediterránea) study with 792 participants from the Reus-Tarragona center. Eating speed was self-reported according to participant perception and categorized as slow, medium, or fast. The association between eating speed and cardiovascular risk factors was assessed using Cox regression models with constant time of follow-up for all individuals. Compared to participants in the slow eating speed category, those in the faster eating speed category were 59% more likely to have the hypertriglyceridemia component of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) (Hazard Ratio, (HR) 1.59; 95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.16–2.17), even after adjustment for potential confounders (HR 1.47; 95% CI 1.08–2.02). No other significant differences were observed. Eating speed was positively associated with the prevalence of the hypertriglyceridemia component of the MetS in a senior population at high cardiovascular risk.

Women with a family history of breast cancer (FHBC) are at increased risk for developing this disease. In this study, we have investigated the differences between two groups of women; those with family history of breast cancer (N=42) and women at population risk (N=42) in a Spanish cohort. Questionnaires assessed distress, perception of breast cancer risk, screening behaviours, coping skills, personality and quality of life. Neither group received genetic counselling before or after this study. Women with FHBC overestimated their risk of developing breast cancer. They report a subjective risk of developing breast cancer of 50%, with their actual risk, using the risk tables elaborated by Claus et al., being only 15% (p<0.05). Discriminant function analysis revealed the patients' information about breast cancer, worries about breast cancer, perception of risk based on family history, perception of lifetime risk of breast cancer and quality of life were the five variables that distinguished between both groups. Only 34% of women in the FHBC group performed monthly breast self-examination, 24% (10 subjects) had never attended previously for clinical breast examination and 45% (19 subjects) had never undergone a mammogram. This group of women had a significantly lower level of general satisfaction (p<0.05), an indicator of Quality of Life. The results support the need for developing psychological intervention for women with family history of breast cancer in order to increase adherence to surveillance behaviours, reduce distress, improve quality of life, and assure the earliest detection of breast cancer.

AimTo describe dietary patterns in the Argentinian population and their association with sociodemographic characteristics.MethodsCross-sectional analysis of Argentina's food consumption and sociodemographic data of 1,266 men and women between 15 and 65 years from the Latin American Study of Nutrition and Health carried out between March 2014 and December 2015. Dietary patterns were identified by using factor analysis and median factor scores were calculated for gender, age, region, body mass index (BMI), socioeconomic, education, and physical activity categories.ResultsFive dietary patterns were identified. Western, Local Western, and Rural were generally characterized by high consumptions of animal fats, sugar-sweetened beverages, meats or processed meats, pizza and empanadas, sweets, pastries, and low consumption of fruits and vegetables. Traditional pattern was mainly characterized by consumption of oils, starchy vegetables, and red meat and Sweet Prudent by milk and yogurt, vegetables, fruit, artificially sweetened beverages, sweets, and cookies. Higher adherence to the Sweet Prudent pattern was observed in women, in people who meet physical activity guidelines and higher socioeconomic and educational levels. Higher adherence to traditional pattern was only observed for men. Higher adherence to the rest of the patterns was observed mostly by men, young, leaner, lower socioeconomic, and educational levels, not meeting physical activity guidelines, from the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires or northern regions.ConclusionFood consumption in Argentina is expressed in a diversity of dietary patterns. Men, younger, and sedentary individuals, with lower socioeconomic and educational level, from the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires and northern regions, seem to have higher adherence to least healthy dietary patterns.

Introducción: El estudio de patrones alimentarios propone analizar la dieta desde una perspectiva general. Para tal fin se han diseñado múltiples índices para evaluar la calidad total de la dieta utilizando como criterio las recomendaciones de las guías alimentarias locales. El objetivo de este trabajo fue desarrollar y validar un Índice de Calidad de Dieta basado en las recomendaciones de las Guías Alimentarias para la Población Argentina. Material y métodos: Se desarrolló el índice a partir de las principales recomendaciones de las guías alimentarias locales. Se analizó la validez de contenido mediante una consulta a expertos y la comparación del índice con las principales recomendaciones. Se analizó la validez de constructo y confiabilidad mediante un estudio observacional, analítico de corte transversal en adultos que utilizan el sistema público y privado de salud. Se relevaron datos generales, consumo de tabaco y datos alimentarios a través de un cuestionario de frecuencia de consumo. Se analizó la capacidad del índice de otorgar puntajes variados y de hallar diferencias entre grupos mediante el test Mann Whitney. Se evaluó la correlación de Spearman entre el puntaje total y la energía total consumida; el puntaje total y cada componente, así como la correlación de los componentes entre sí. Se exploraron las dimensiones subyacentes a través del análisis de componentes principales. Se analizó la confianza interna mediante el alfa de Cronbach. El análisis se realizó mediante software R versión 3.6.0. Resultados: Se desarrolló un índice de calidad de dieta argentino, compuesto por6 componentes que valoran la adecuación al consumo de “feculentos cocidos”, “vegetales”, “frutas”, “leche, yogur y quesos”, “aceites frutos secos y semillas” y “carnes y huevo”; 4 componentes que valoran la moderación del consumo de “alimentos de consumo opcional”, “sodio”, “alcohol”, “grasas saturadas”, y un componente que valora la razón entre el consumo de carnes blancas y rojas. Se utilizó un sistema de puntaje de 0 a 100 puntos. Los puntos de corte para valorar cada componente se establecieron de acuerdo a las recomendaciones de las guías. Se creó un sistema de equivalencia de porciones para estandarizar la 4 evaluación de los componentes que miden adecuación y se incorporó el ajuste por energía para su cálculo. El índice refleja 8 de los 10 mensajes principales de las guías. Catorce profesionales participaron en la validación por expertos y se halló un índice V de Aiken ≥0,8 (p<0,05) para todos los componentes. Para la validación de constructo se encuestaron 141 sujetos, 30 (26; 39) años, 60,2% femenino, 56% asiste al sistema público de salud y el 35% era fumador. La mediana de puntaje del índice fue 63,35 (56,55; 72,54). El rango de puntajes varió entre 37,36 a 86,39.Los puntajes para el percentil 1 fueron bajos para todos los componentes yen el percentil 99 todos los componentes alcanzaron una puntuación máxima. Se halló una diferencia significativa entre fumadores [65,61 (58,49;73,90)] y no fumadores [60,49 (53,86;67,90)] (p=0,002). La correlación entre el puntaje total y la energía fue débil (r= -0,17) (p=0,045). Se extrajeron 5 componentes a partir del análisis de componentes principales de los componentes del índice. El puntaje total del índice y los componentes mostró una correlación positiva con “alimentos de consumo opcional” (r=0,65), “frutas” (r=0,65) y “vegetales” (r=0,5), “razón carnes blancas/rojas” (r=0,37), “grasas saturadas” (r=0,31), “feculentos cocidos” (r=0,29), “sodio” (r=0,26) y “alcohol” (r=0,25) .La correlación más fuerte entre los componentes se halló entre “grasas saturadas” y “leche, yogur y quesos” (r=-0,51). El coeficiente alfa de Cronbach fue 0,49. El puntaje total del índice se correlacionó positivamente con la ingesta de vitamina C (r=0,63), fibra (r=0,55), zinc (r=0,39), potasio (r=0,36), vitamina A (r=0,26) y calcio (r=20); y negativamente con ácidos grasos saturados (r=-0,31), sodio (r=-0,29), lípidos totales (r=-0,26), ácidos grasos poliinsaturados (r=-0,23), ácidos grasos monoinsaturados (r=-0,21) y colesterol (r=-0,18). Conclusión: El Índice de Calidad de Dieta Argentino es una herramienta válida para evaluar la calidad de la dieta, de acuerdo a la adherencia a las recomendaciones de las Guías Alimentarias para la Población Argentina.