A combination of green tea extract and l-theanine (LGNC-07) has been reported to have beneficial effects on cognition in animal studies. In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, the effect of LGNC-07 on memory and attention in subjects with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) was investigated. Ninety-one MCI subjects whose Mini Mental State Examination-K (MMSE-K) scores were between 21 and 26 and who were in either stage 2 or 3 on the Global Deterioration Scale were enrolled in this study. The treatment group (13 men, 32 women; 57.58 ± 9.45 years) took 1,680 mg of LGNC-07, and the placebo group (12 men, 34 women; 56.28 ± 9.92 years) received an equivalent amount of maltodextrin and lactose for 16 weeks. Neuropsychological tests (Rey-Kim memory test and Stroop color-word test) and electroencephalography were conducted to evaluate the effect of LGNC-07 on memory and attention. Further analyses were stratified by baseline severity to evaluate treatment response on the degree of impairment (MMSE-K 21-23 and 24-26). LGNC-07 led to improvements in memory by marginally increasing delayed recognition in the Rey-Kim memory test (P = .0572). Stratified analyses showed that LGNC-07 improved memory and selective attention by significantly increasing the Rey-Kim memory quotient and word reading in the subjects with MMSE-K scores of 21-23 (LGNC-07, n = 11; placebo, n = 9). Electroencephalograms were recorded in 24 randomly selected subjects hourly for 3 hours in eye-open, eye-closed, and reading states after a single dose of LGNC-07 (LGNC-07, n = 12; placebo, n = 12). Brain theta waves, an indicator of cognitive alertness, were increased significantly in the temporal, frontal, parietal, and occipital areas after 3 hours in the eye-open and reading states. Therefore, this study suggests that LGNC-07 has potential as an intervention for cognitive improvement.

No abstract

Vitamin D is important for maintaining bone health and may prevent various diseases (i.e., cardiovascular disease and cancer). The aim of this study was to estimate vitamin D intakes of Korean adults using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES, 2009) data and a newly established vitamin D database. KNHANES (2009) participants (n = 4541; 2021 men; 2520 women) aged ≥20 years were included. Dietary vitamin D intake, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D), and the relationship between vitamin D intake and serum 25(OH)D were evaluated. In men and women, vitamin D intakes were 4.00 ± 0.17 µg/day and 2.6 ± 0.1 µg/day respectively, and serum 25(OH)D concentrations were 19.78 ± 0.33 ng/mL and 17.10 ± 0.26 ng/mL respectively. Serum 25(OH)D concentrations of men aged <50 years and women aged >20 years were under 20 ng/mL. After adjusting for confounding factors, the positive relationship between vitamin D intake and serum 25(OH)D was observed in total subjects (p < 0.05), excluding participants ≥50 years old. The main food sources for vitamin D among Korean adults were fish/shellfish (71.34%) and egg (14.89%). Korean adults should increase their serum 25(OH)D concentrations by increasing vitamin D intake.

No abstract

To develop a therapeutic agent for obesity-related metabolic disorders, a mixture of dietary components was prepared, including grape extract, green tea extract and l-carnitine (RGTC), and its effects on obesity, hyperlipidemia and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease examined. The RGTC dramatically inhibited the high-fat diet (HFD)-induced increase in body weight and fat in C57BL/6 mice, whereas food consumption was not affected by RGTC treatment. The RGTC also concentration-dependently suppressed the HFD-induced increase in plasma lipids, such as low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides. In addition, increases in liver weight and liver steatosis were returned to normal by RGTC treatment in HFD-fed C57BL/6 mice. The plasma levels of glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase and glutamic-pyruvic transaminase were also significantly down-regulated by RGTC treatment. These results suggest that RGTC suppressed HFD-induced obesity, hyperlipidemia and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, suggesting that RGTC supplementation might be a promising adjuvant therapy for the treatment of these metabolic disorders.