Pickle is consumed in high amount among Iranians. Pickle consumption may be related to body mass index (BMI) and blood pressure (BP) but limited evidence exist in this regard. The aim of current study was to determine the association between pickle consumption and risk of overweight, central obesity and BP among Isfahanian female youths. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 289 female students aged 18–27 years randomly selected from students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran. Diet was assessed by a validated and reliable food-frequency questionnaire. Mean pickle consumption was 15.1 ± 2.2 g/day. Individuals in the highest tertile of pickle consumption had a significantly higher BMI, systolic and diastolic BP (p = 0.001, 0.03, and 0.03, respectively), whereas we did not observe significant association for waist circumference (p = 0.21). Total energy intake (p = 0.02) and consumption of carbohydrate (p = 0.01), protein (p = 0.03), and fat (p = 0.05) in the upper tertile was higher than lower tertiles. There was a significant association between pickle consumption and obesity and BP among Iranian female youths. Further prospective studies are needed to confirm this association.
Adolescent ; Blood Pressure* ; Body Mass Index* ; Cross-Sectional Studies* ; Diet ; Energy Intake ; Female* ; Humans ; Iran ; Obesity ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Overweight ; Prospective Studies ; Waist Circumference

Although several studies have assessed the influence of the glycemic index on body weight and blood pressure among adults, limited evidence exists for the pediatric age population. In the current study, we compared the effects of low glycemic index (LGI) diet to the healthy nutritional recommendation (HNR)-based diet on obesity and blood pressure among adolescent girls in pubertal ages. This 10-week parallel randomized clinical trial comprised of 50 overweight or obese and sexually mature girls less than 18 years of age years, who were randomly assigned to LGI or HNR-based diet. Macronutrient distribution was equivalently prescribed in both groups. Blood pressure, weight and waist circumference were measured at baseline and after intervention. Of the 50 participants, 41 subjects (include 82%) completed the study. The GI of the diet in the LGI group was 42.67 +/- 0.067. A within-group analysis illustrated that in comparison to the baseline values, the body weight and body mass index (not waist circumference and blood pressure) decreased significantly after the intervention in both groups (P = 0.0001). The percent changes of the body weight status, waist circumference and blood pressure were compared between the two groups and the findings did not show any difference between the LGI diet consumers and those in the HNR group. In comparison to the HNR, LGI diet could not change the weight and blood pressure following a 10-week intervention. Further longitudinal studies with a long-term follow up should be conducted in this regard.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight ; Diet ; Follow-Up Studies ; Glycemic Index ; Humans ; Longitudinal Studies ; Obesity ; Overweight ; Waist Circumference

Birth Weight ; Blood Glucose ; Diabetes, Gestational ; Fasting ; Female ; Fetal Growth Retardation ; Head ; Heme ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced ; Infant ; Iran ; Iron ; Iron, Dietary ; Nausea ; Parturition ; Pre-Eclampsia ; Pregnancy ; Pregnancy Outcome ; Pregnancy Trimester, First ; Pregnancy ; Pregnant Women ; Prospective Studies ; Vomiting

Nigella sativa (N.sativa) has been used in traditional medicine and many studies have been performed in different communities in order to reveal the effects of it on medical disorders and chronic diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of bread with N. Sativa on lipid profiles, apolipoproteins, and inflammatory factors in metabolic syndrome (MetS) patients. A randomized, double-blind, cross-over and clinical trial was conducted in 51 MetS patients of both sexes with age group of 20-65 years old in Chaloos, north of Iran. Patients were randomly divided in two groups. In phase 1, intervention group (A, n = 27) received daily a bread with N. sativa and wheat bran and control group (B, n = 24) received the same bread without N. sativa for 2 months. After 2 weeks of wash out period, phase 2 was started with switch the intervention between two groups. Measuring of lipid profiles, apolipoproteins and inflammatory factor was performed for all patients before and after two phases. In this study, treatment, sequence and time effects of intervention were evaluated and revealed that consumption of bread with N. sativa has no significant treatment and time effects on triglyceride (TG), cholesterol (CHOL), low density lipoprotein (LDL), high density lipoprotein (HDL), apolipoprotein (APO)-A, APO-B and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (p > 0.05). Sequence effect was significant on CHOL, LDL, APO-A, and APO-B (p < 0.05) but was not significant on other parameters (p > 0.05). Consumption of bread with N. sativa has no a significant effect on lipid profiles, apolipoproteins and inflammatory factor in MetS patients.
Apolipoproteins A ; Apolipoproteins B ; Apolipoproteins* ; Bread* ; C-Reactive Protein ; Cholesterol ; Chronic Disease ; Dietary Fiber ; Humans ; Iran ; Lipoproteins ; Medicine, Traditional ; Nigella sativa* ; Nigella* ; Triglycerides