Anemia ; Blood Platelets ; Erythrocyte Indices ; Erythrocytes ; Ferritins ; Hematology ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Liver Diseases ; Mean Platelet Volume ; Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease ; Oxidative Stress ; Pilot Projects ; Public Health ; Quercetin

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a serious public health problem accompanies with several complications. This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of chromium picolinate (CrPic) supplementation on the glycemic status and lipid profile in patients with T2DM. The patients with T2DM (n = 52) were randomly allocated into 2 groups. One group received 400 μg CrPic per day and the other group took placebo; the intervention duration was 8 weeks. Anthropometric indices and metabolic factors were measured at the beginning, and at end of the study. The patients were recommended not to change their normal diet, life style and medication. No significant changes were observed for weight, body mass index, and fasting blood glucose (FBG) in both groups; while intra-groups changes in homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) value was significant (p < 0.05). Results of analysis of covariance showed that there were significance differences between groups in total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol and HOMA-IR at the end of the intervention adjusting for baseline levels (p = 0.035, 0.030 and < 0.001, respectively). In this study, oral supplementation with 400 μg CrPic for eight weeks did not alter FBG concentration as well as anthropometric parameters in individuals with T2DM. However, the modest beneficial effects of chromium supplementation on insulin resistance as indicated by HOMA-IR and lipid profile were found.

We aimed to examine associations between muscle strength and obesity and serum lipid profile in Ravansar Non-Communicable Disease (RaNCD) cohort study. This study was conducted on 6,455 subjects aged 35–65 years old from baseline data of RaNCD in Iran. The associations between grip strength and adiposity measurements were explored using linear regression with adjustment for age, height, smoking status, alcohol intake, social class, and prevalent disease. The mean of body mass index (BMI) and muscle strength was 27.2 ± 4.6 kg/m² and 33.3 ± 11.5, respectively. Muscular strength increased with increasing BMI and waist circumference (WC) in both sexes. Multivariate regression analysis revealed a 3.24 (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.29, 4.19) kg difference between BMI in top and bottom in men, and 1.71 (95% CI, 0.98, 2.34) kg/m² in women. After multivariable adjustment, a difference of 2.04 (95% CI, 1.12, 2.97) kg was observed between the top and bottom WC quartiles in men and 1.25 (95% CI, 0.51, 1.98) kg in women. In men, with increase of low-density lipoprotein and cholesterol, the mean muscle strength was significantly increased. Muscle strength may be associated with body composition and lipid profiles. Muscle strength can be an appropriate indicator for predicting some of the problems caused by body composition disorders, which requires further longitudinal studies.
Adiposity ; Body Composition ; Body Mass Index ; Cholesterol ; Cohort Studies ; Female ; Hand Strength ; Humans ; Intra-Abdominal Fat ; Iran ; Linear Models ; Lipoproteins ; Longitudinal Studies ; Male ; Muscle Strength ; Obesity ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Social Class ; Waist Circumference

OBJECTIVES: Unhealthy dietary patterns are the most important changeable risk factors for breast cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between dietary patterns and the risk of breast cancer among under-50 year women in the west of Iran. METHODS: All women under 50 years old with pathologically confirmed breast cancer between 2013 and 2015 who were referred to oncology clinics in the west of Iran, and 408 under-50 women referred to other outpatient clinics who were without breast or other cancers at the time of the study and 2 years later were selected as the control group. The data were collected using the middle-aged periodical care form of the Iranian Ministry of Health and analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression in Stata. RESULTS: The most powerful risk factor for breast cancer was fried foods; the odds ratio of consuming fried foods more than once a month for breast cancer was 4.5 (95% confidence interval, 2.1 to 9.4). A dose-response model indicated that increasing vegetable and fruit consumption up to 90 servings per month decreased the odds of breast cancer, but consuming more than 90 servings per month increased the risk. CONCLUSIONS: Inadequate consumption of vegetables and consumption of soft drinks, industrially produced juices, fried foods, and sweets were identified as risk factors for breast cancer. In response to these findings, it is necessary to raise awareness and to provide education about healthy diets and the need to change unhealthy dietary patterns.
Ambulatory Care Facilities ; Breast Neoplasms ; Breast ; Carbonated Beverages ; Case-Control Studies ; Diet ; Education ; Female ; Fruit ; Humans ; Iran ; Logistic Models ; Odds Ratio ; Risk Factors ; Vegetables

OBJECTIVES: Self-reporting can be used to determine the incidence and prevalence of hypertension (HTN). The present study was conducted to determine the validity of self-reported HTN and to identify factors affecting discordance between self-reported and objectively measured HTN in participants in the Ravansar Non-Communicable Diseases (RaNCD) cohort. METHODS: The RaNCD cohort included permanent residents of Ravansar, Iran aged 35-65 years. Self-reported data were collected before clinical examinations were conducted by well-trained staff members. The gold standard for HTN was anti-hypertensive medication use and blood pressure measurements. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and overall accuracy of self-reporting were calculated. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression were used to examine the discordance between self-reported HTN and the gold standard. RESULTS: Of the 10 065 participants in the RaNCD, 4755 (47.4%) were male. The prevalence of HTN was 16.8% based on self-reporting and 15.7% based on medical history and HTN measurements. Of the participants with HTN, 297 (18.8%) had no knowledge of their disease, and 313 (19.9%) had not properly controlled their HTN despite receiving treatment. The sensitivity, specificity, and kappa for self-reported HTN were 75.5%, 96.4%, and 73.4%, respectively. False positives became more likely with age, body mass index (BMI), low socioeconomic status, and female sex, whereas false negatives became more likely with age, BMI, high socioeconomic status, smoking, and urban residency. CONCLUSIONS: The sensitivity and specificity of self-reported HTN were acceptable, suggesting that this method can be used for public health initiatives in the absence of countrywide HTN control and detection programs.
Blood Pressure ; Body Mass Index ; Cohort Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Incidence ; Internship and Residency ; Iran ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Methods ; Prevalence ; Public Health ; Self Report ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Social Class

OBJECTIVES: Unhealthy dietary patterns are the most important changeable risk factors for breast cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between dietary patterns and the risk of breast cancer among under-50 year women in the west of Iran.METHODS: All women under 50 years old with pathologically confirmed breast cancer between 2013 and 2015 who were referred to oncology clinics in the west of Iran, and 408 under-50 women referred to other outpatient clinics who were without breast or other cancers at the time of the study and 2 years later were selected as the control group. The data were collected using the middle-aged periodical care form of the Iranian Ministry of Health and analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression in Stata.RESULTS: The most powerful risk factor for breast cancer was fried foods; the odds ratio of consuming fried foods more than once a month for breast cancer was 4.5 (95% confidence interval, 2.1 to 9.4). A dose-response model indicated that increasing vegetable and fruit consumption up to 90 servings per month decreased the odds of breast cancer, but consuming more than 90 servings per month increased the risk.CONCLUSIONS: Inadequate consumption of vegetables and consumption of soft drinks, industrially produced juices, fried foods, and sweets were identified as risk factors for breast cancer. In response to these findings, it is necessary to raise awareness and to provide education about healthy diets and the need to change unhealthy dietary patterns.
Ambulatory Care Facilities ; Breast Neoplasms ; Breast ; Carbonated Beverages ; Case-Control Studies ; Diet ; Education ; Female ; Fruit ; Humans ; Iran ; Logistic Models ; Odds Ratio ; Risk Factors ; Vegetables

OBJECTIVES: Unhealthy dietary patterns are the most important changeable risk factors for breast cancer. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between dietary patterns and the risk of breast cancer among under-50 year women in the west of Iran. METHODS: All women under 50 years old with pathologically confirmed breast cancer between 2013 and 2015 who were referred to oncology clinics in the west of Iran, and 408 under-50 women referred to other outpatient clinics who were without breast or other cancers at the time of the study and 2 years later were selected as the control group. The data were collected using the middle-aged periodical care form of the Iranian Ministry of Health and analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression in Stata. RESULTS: The most powerful risk factor for breast cancer was fried foods; the odds ratio of consuming fried foods more than once a month for breast cancer was 4.5 (95% confidence interval, 2.1 to 9.4). A dose-response model indicated that increasing vegetable and fruit consumption up to 90 servings per month decreased the odds of breast cancer, but consuming more than 90 servings per month increased the risk. CONCLUSIONS Inadequate consumption of vegetables and consumption of soft drinks, industrially produced juices, fried foods, and sweets were identified as risk factors for breast cancer. In response to these findings, it is necessary to raise awareness and to provide education about healthy diets and the need to change unhealthy dietary patterns.

OBJECTIVES: Self-reporting can be used to determine the incidence and prevalence of hypertension (HTN). The present study was conducted to determine the validity of self-reported HTN and to identify factors affecting discordance between self-reported and objectively measured HTN in participants in the Ravansar Non-Communicable Diseases (RaNCD) cohort. METHODS: The RaNCD cohort included permanent residents of Ravansar, Iran aged 35-65 years. Self-reported data were collected before clinical examinations were conducted by well-trained staff members. The gold standard for HTN was anti-hypertensive medication use and blood pressure measurements. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and overall accuracy of self-reporting were calculated. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression were used to examine the discordance between self-reported HTN and the gold standard. RESULTS: Of the 10 065 participants in the RaNCD, 4755 (47.4%) were male. The prevalence of HTN was 16.8% based on self-reporting and 15.7% based on medical history and HTN measurements. Of the participants with HTN, 297 (18.8%) had no knowledge of their disease, and 313 (19.9%) had not properly controlled their HTN despite receiving treatment. The sensitivity, specificity, and kappa for self-reported HTN were 75.5%, 96.4%, and 73.4%, respectively. False positives became more likely with age, body mass index (BMI), low socioeconomic status, and female sex, whereas false negatives became more likely with age, BMI, high socioeconomic status, smoking, and urban residency. CONCLUSIONS The sensitivity and specificity of self-reported HTN were acceptable, suggesting that this method can be used for public health initiatives in the absence of countrywide HTN control and detection programs.

OBJECTIVES: Obesity is a considerable and growing public health concern worldwide. The present study aimed to quantify socioeconomic inequalities in adult obesity in western Iran. METHODS: A total of 10 086 participants, aged 35-65 years, from the Ravansar Non-communicable Disease Cohort Study (2014-2016) were included in the study to examine socioeconomic inequalities in obesity. We defined obesity as a body mass index ≥30 kg/m2. The concentration index and concentration curve were used to illustrate and measure wealth-related inequality in obesity. Additionally, we decomposed the concentration index to identify factors that explained wealth-related inequality in obesity. RESULTS: Overall, the prevalence of obesity in the total sample was 26.7%. The concentration index of obesity was 0.04; indicating that obesity was more concentrated among the rich (p < 0.001). Decomposition analysis indicated that wealth, place of residence, and marital status were the main contributors to the observed inequality in obesity. CONCLUSIONS: Socioeconomic-related inequalities in obesity among adults warrant more attention. Policies should be designed to reduce both the prevalence of obesity and inequalities in obesity by focusing on those with higher socioeconomic status, urban residents, and married individuals.
Adult* ; Body Mass Index ; Cohort Studies ; Health Equity ; Humans ; Iran* ; Marital Status ; Obesity* ; Prevalence ; Public Health ; Social Class ; Socioeconomic Factors*

Intensive care units (ICUs) provides intensive treatment medicine to avoid complications such as malnutrition, infection and even death. As very little is currently known about the nutritional practices in Iranian ICUs, this study attempted to assess the various aspects of current nutrition support practices in Iranian ICUs. We conducted a cross-sectional study on 150 critically ill patients at 18 ICUs in 12 hospitals located in 2 provinces of Iran from February 2015 to March 2016. Data were collected through interview with supervisors of ICUs, medical record reviews and direct observation of patients during feeding. Our study showed that hospital-prepared enteral tube feeding formulas are the main formulas used in Iranian hospitals. None of the dietitians worked exclusively an ICU and only 30% of patients received diet counselling. Regular monitoring of nutritional status, daily energy and protein intake were not recorded in any of the participating ICUs. Patients were not monitored for anthropometric measurements such as mid-arm circumference (MAC) and electrolyte status. The nasogastric tube was not switched to percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy or jejunostomy (PEG/PEGJ) in approximately 85% of patients receiving long-term enteral nutrition (EN) support. Our findings demonstrated that the quality of nutritional care was inappropriate in Iranian ICUs and improvement of nutritional care services within Iranian ICUs is necessary.
Critical Care* ; Critical Illness ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Diet ; Enteral Nutrition ; Gastrostomy ; Humans ; Intensive Care Units* ; Iran ; Jejunostomy ; Malnutrition ; Medical Records ; Nutritional Status ; Nutritionists