BackgroundGestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) increases risks for type 2 diabetes and weight management is recommended to reduce the risk. Conventional dietary recommendations (energy-restricted, low fat) have limited success in women with previous GDM. The effect of lowering Glycaemic Index (GI) in managing glycaemic variables and body weight in women post-GDM is unknown.ObjectiveTo evaluate the effects of conventional dietary recommendations administered with and without additional low-GI education, in the management of glucose tolerance and body weight in Asian women with previous GDM.MethodSeventy seven Asian, non-diabetic women with previous GDM, between 20- 40y were randomised into Conventional healthy dietary recommendation (CHDR) and low GI (LGI) groups. CHDR received conventional dietary recommendations only (energy restricted, low in fat and refined sugars, high-fibre). LGI group received advice on lowering GI in addition. Fasting and 2-h post-load blood glucose after 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (2HPP) were measured at baseline and 6 months after intervention. Anthropometry and dietary intake were assessed at baseline, three and six months after intervention. The study is registered at the Malaysian National Medical Research Register (NMRR) with Research ID: 5183.ResultsAfter 6 months, significant reductions in body weight, BMI and waist-to-hip ratio were observed only in LGI group (P<0.05). Mean BMI changes were significantly different between groups (LGI vs. CHDR: -0.6 vs. 0 kg/m2, P= 0.03). More subjects achieved weight loss ≥5% in LGI compared to CHDR group (33% vs. 8%, P=0.01). Changes in 2HPP were significantly different between groups (LGI vs. CHDR: median (IQR): -0.2(2.8) vs. +0.8 (2.0) mmol/L, P=0.025). Subjects with baseline fasting insulin≥2 μIU/ml had greater 2HPP reductions in LGI group compared to those in the CHDR group (−1.9±0.42 vs. +1.31±1.4 mmol/L, P<0.001). After 6 months, LGI group diets showed significantly lower GI (57±5 vs. 64±6, P<0.001), GL (122±33 vs. 142±35, P=0.04) and higher fibre content (17±4 vs.13±4 g, P<0.001). Caloric intakes were comparable between groups.ConclusionIn women post-GDM, lowering GI of healthy diets resulted in significant improvements in glucose tolerance and body weight reduction as compared to conventional low-fat diets with similar energy prescription.

Background Mobile health (mHealth) apps play an important role in delivering education, providing advice on treatment, and monitoring patients’ health. Good usability of mHealth apps is essential to achieve the objectives of mHealth apps efficiently. To date, there are questionnaires available to assess the general system usability but not explicitly tailored to precisely assess the usability of mHealth apps. Hence, the mHealth App Usability Questionnaire (MAUQ) was developed with 4 versions according to the type of app (interactive or standalone) and according to the target user (patient or provider). Standalone MAUQ for patients comprises 3 subscales, which are ease of use, interface and satisfaction, and usefulness. Objective This study aimed to translate and validate the English version of MAUQ (standalone for patients) into a Malay version of MAUQ (M-MAUQ) for mHealth app research and usage in future in Malaysia. Methods Forward and backward translation and harmonization of M-MAUQ were conducted by Malay native speakers who also spoke English as their second language. The process began with a forward translation by 2 independent translators followed by harmonization to produce an initial translated version of M-MAUQ. Next, the forward translation was continued by another 2 translators who had never seen the original MAUQ. Lastly, harmonization was conducted among the committee members to resolve any ambiguity and inconsistency in the words and sentences of the items derived with the prefinal adapted questionnaire. Subsequently, content and face validations were performed with 10 experts and 10 target users, respectively. Modified kappa statistic was used to determine the interrater agreement among the raters. The reliability of the M-MAUQ was assessed by 51 healthy young adult mobile phone users. Participants needed to install the MyFitnessPal app and use it for 2 days for familiarization before completing the designated task and answer the M-MAUQ. The MyFitnessPal app was selected because it is one among the most popular installed mHealth apps globally available for iPhone and Android users and represents a standalone mHealth app. Results The content validity index for the relevancy and clarity of M-MAUQ were determined to be 0.983 and 0.944, respectively, which indicated good relevancy and clarity. The face validity index for understandability was 0.961, which indicated that users understood the M-MAUQ. The kappa statistic for every item in M-MAUQ indicated excellent agreement between the raters (κ ranging from 0.76 to 1.09). The Cronbach α for 18 items was .946, which also indicated good reliability in assessing the usability of the mHealth app. Conclusions The M-MAUQ fulfilled the validation criteria as it revealed good reliability and validity similar to the original version. M-MAUQ can be used to assess the usability of mHealth apps in Malay in the future.

Post-gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) women are recommended weight loss to manage increased cardio-metabolic risks. We investigated the effects of lowering diet glycaemic index (GI) on fasting blood glucose (FBG), serum lipids, body weight and composition of post-GDM women with varying fasting insulin levels (INS). Seventy-seven Asian, non-diabetic women with previous GDM (aged 20–40 years, mean BMI: 26.4±4.6 kg m−2) were recruited. At baseline, 20 subjects with INS <2 μIU ml−1 and 18 with INS ⩾2 μIU ml−1 received conventional dietary recommendations (CHDR) only. CHDR emphasised energy and fat intake restriction and encouraged increase in dietary fibre intakes. Twenty-four subjects with INS <2 μIU ml−1 and 15 with INS ⩾2 μIU ml−1, in addition to CHDR, received low-GI education (LGI). Changes in FBG, serum lipids, body weight and body composition were evaluated. Subjects with INS <2 μIU ml−1 had similar outcomes with both diets. After 1 year, subjects with INS ⩾2 μIU ml−1 who received LGI education had reductions in FBG and triglycerides. Subjects who received CHDR observed increase in both FBG and triglycerides (P<0.05). Among all subjects, diet GI was lower and dietary fibre intakes were higher in LGI compared with CHDR subjects (all P<0.05). Thus, in Asian post-GDM women with normal/higher INS, adding low-GI education to CHDR improved management of FBG and triglycerides.

BackgroundThis study examined the effects of bovine colostrum on exercise –induced modulation of antioxidant parameters in skeletal muscle in mice. Adult male BALB/c mice were randomly divided into four groups (control, colostrum alone, exercise and exercise with colostrum) and each group had three subgroups (day 0, 21 and 42). Colostrum groups of mice were given a daily oral supplement of 50 mg/kg body weight of bovine colostrum and the exercise group of mice were made to exercise on the treadmill for 30 minutes per day. Total antioxidants, lipid hydroperoxides, xanthine oxidase and super oxide dismutase level was assayed from the homogenate of hind limb skeletal muscle.ResultsExercise—induced a significant oxidative stress in skeletal muscles as evidenced by the elevated lipid hydroperoxides and xanthine oxidase levels. There was a significant decrease in skeletal muscle total antioxidants and superoxide dismutase levels. Daily colostrum supplement significantly reduced the lipid hydroperoxides and xanthine oxidase enzyme level and increased the total antioxidant levels in the leg muscle.ConclusionThus, the findings of this study showed that daily bovine colostrum supplementation was beneficial to skeletal muscle to reduce the oxidant-induced damage during muscular exercise.

High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) is an inflammatory marker recommended for risk stratification for individuals with high cardiovascular risk [8,9]. MetS is associated with high levels of hsCRP and linked to increased risk for CVD and diabetes [10,11].This study evaluated the associations between MetS, abnormal glucose tolerance and cardiovascular risk factors in Malaysian women with prior GDM. Currently, there is a paucity of similar data for the Malaysian population. Materials and Methods This project was approved by the Ethics and Research Review Committees of the institutions involved consistent with the national regulations. Subjects who were diagnosed to have had GDM (WHO criteria [12]) were identified 2-6 months after delivery. The inclusion criteria were women between the ages of 20-40 years with the presence of at-least one of the following three risk factors: 1.central obesity [described as a body mass index (BMI)>23 kg/m 2 , or waist circumference (WC)> 80 cm], 2. Dysglycaemia (Impaired glucose tolerance (IGT: 2-h plasma glucose ≥ 7.8 and <11.1 mmol/L [13]) and/