Routine Diet Research Articles

Intermittent Fasting on the Ekadashi Day and the Role of Spiritual Nutrition

Intermittent Fasting (IF) has been practiced for centuries with the belief of wellbeing getting restored. The so-called restoration of internal milieu by calorie free periods is believed in many religions. The Muslims practise the night-only-feeds of Ramzan, the Christians in a few selected days of a week and the Hindus fasting every fifteen days on the day of Ekadashi1. Ekadashi is a Sanskrit word, which literally means 'the eleventh'. It actually refers to the eleventh day of a fortnight and hence there are two such days in a lunar month. After the full calorie free day, there are certain prescribed foods and nutrients to be taken the next day of Dwadashi among which amla fruit and agathi keerai leaves are necessarily taken as a starter before actual full-fledged refeeding. There are a few specific ingredients in these foods which make them ideal to break a fasting session2. As these days are associated with the Hindu deities such nutrition can be designed as spiritual nutrition. Such additives to routine diet may help overcome the problems of refeeding. In this review we have attempted to define the scientific basis of fasting during Ekadashi and the reasoning behind the initial administration of agathi keerai leaves and amla fruits before the intake of routine diet on the following day.i.e. Dwadashi. We tried to look for scientific evidences behind such fortnightly fasting and the specialized feeds on the next day and kept them as objectives of this special review

Iron deficiency and risk of oral squamous cell carcinoma

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a subset of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma caused by excessive substance abuse like alcohol, tobacco etc. Objectives: Aim of the present study was to evaluate the iron expression in different grades of OSCC and potential of iron staining as a prognostic marker and its importance as an essential nutrient in diet. Methods and Patients: It was a cross sectional study. A total of 40 oral biopsies were evaluated and the mean age of patients was 53.5 years with age range 23-80 years. 14 cases were well differentiated, 14 moderately differentiated and there were 12 poorly differentiated case. Iron staining was performed for all these cases. Results: Iron positivity was observed in 11 (27.5%) of OSCC patients with maximum iron positivity in well differentiated group (64.28%) of age range 20-40 years (70%). More patients had tongue as site of cancer. There was no genderwise difference in iron expression. Iron deficiency was associated with poor prognosis indicating iron as an important nutrient which can prevent OSCC if adequately present in our routine diet. Conclusions: Prevalence of iron positivity in young patients and initial stage of OSCC, indicates the protective effect of iron against oral squamous cell carcinoma

A nutritional intervention against COVID-19: Possibilities on the use of an alkaline diet to boost physiological resistance and immunity.

Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is a causative agent of COVID-19. The perilous pandemic caused by 2019-nCoV erupted in late 2019 in China has blanketed the whole world and continues to do so. The incidence of the disease, its morbidity, and mortality is high. Strategic planning to contain a virus, fast track research for prophylactics and therapeutics are underway. Food is one of the components of complementary and alternative medicine of the cultures all over the world. Routine diet and its management which is an easily manageable affair will also play crucial to improve an individual’s resistance to infection. In recent years alkaline diet has secured a large number of proponents and gained popularity among the scientific community as well. Its significance for the treatment of many non-communicable diseases has been recognized. The diet or food component whose net potential renal acid load (PRAL) is low is defined as an alkaline diet. We hypothesize that the alkaline diet could significantly boost an individual’s physiological resistance and immunity against 2019-nCoV by targeting endosomal pH which plays an important role in viral pathogenesis. Hydroxychloroquine, a therapeutic drug that is being used at present for COVID-19 treatment also targets endosomal pH to viral prevent infection. In the present article, we have discussed the significance of diet in traditional medicine, pH homeostasis, the role of pH in 2019-nCoV pathogenesis and the possibilities of how the alkaline diet could interfere with the initial stages of infection. Clinical evidences of the use of the alkaline diet for the treatment of infectious and non-infectious diseases have been reviewed. Further, technical details of the alkaline diet, its correlation to Ayurvedic dietetics have been discussed. Though the current article emphasizes the management of the COVID-19 in the light of pandemic, the approach holds grounds for the other respiratory tract viral pathogens too whose pathogenesis is similar to 2019-nCoV. Future experimental studies to establish such correlation are warranted. Adopting the food which has low dietary acid load (alkaline diet) will aid in boosting the physiological resistance resulting in improved health conditions to fight against 2019-nCoV.

Oral nutritional supplements (ONSs) for cirrhotic patients undergoing liver resection assessed by ultrasound measurement of rectus femoris and anterior tibialis muscles thickness. Randomized clinical trial.

Purpose:We evaluated the effects of postoperative administration of (ONSs) on the liver function and the outcome of cirrhotic patients using ultrasound (US) assessment of rectus femoris (RF) and anterior tibialis (AT) muscles.Patients and Methods:Forty-three malnourished adult hepatic patients who underwent major liver resections were recruited in this study. In the conventional diet (CD) group, the patients took water at postoperative day (POD) 0 and routine soft diet starting from POD1. In the ONS group, a commercially elemental diet was started from POD1 for 7 days postoperatively, with a target endpoint of 35-40 kcal/kg and 1.2-1.5 g/kg of protein per day. US assessment of the RF and AT muscles was done preoperatively and at POD3 and 7, including anterior-posterior (AP) diameter, lateral–lateral (LL) diameter, and cross-sectional area (CSA). Muscles' echogenicity was defined by the Heckmatt scale. The outcome of the patients was also recorded.Results:Consumption of ONS preserved the measured RF and AT characteristics (AP and LL diameters and CSA) in the ONS group at POD3 and 7 compared to the CD group. Heckmatt scale was significantly increased at POD3 and 7 in the CD group compared to the ONS group. Both total protein and albumin levels at POD3 and 7 were significantly lower in the CD group compared to the ONS group [P = (0.02, 0.03) and (0.05, 0.04), respectively]. Serum phosphate was significantly lower at POD7 in the ONS group than the CD group (p = 0.04). There were significant decreases in the ICU stay and time of passing flatus (h) in the ONS group comparing with the CD group (P = 0.045 and P = 0.00, respectively).Conclusions:ONS maintains muscle mass and echogenicity of RF and AT along with better liver function and intestinal function recovery.

Influence of a Low-Carbohydrate and Rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Ascorbic Acid, Antioxidants, and Fiber Diet on Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Chronic Gingivitis

ABSTRACTBackground:Nutrition has a significant impact on the pathophysiology of periodontal disease. Both micro- and macronutrients have an impact on periodontal health. This study aimed at the evaluation of the effects of a diet low in carbohydrate and rich in omega-3 fatty acids, ascorbic acid, antioxidants, and fiber on clinical outcomes in patients with gingival inflammation for four weeks.Materials and Methods:Overall, 54 systemically healthy subjects were enrolled in this study. The clinical trial consisted of two groups: Group A (test group) (n = 27) was instructed to consume a diet comprising low carbohydrates, rich in omega-3 fatty acids, ascorbic acid, antioxidants, and fibers for the next four weeks; in Group B (control group) (n = 27), no alteration in dietary behavior was done, and these subjects were instructed to have their daily routine diet. Clinical parameters measured were plaque index (PI), gingival bleeding index (GI), probing depths (PD), clinical attachment level (CAL), and bleeding on probing (BOP) at one week without any dietary changes (baseline) for both the groups, followed by a one-week adaptation period; then, the parameters were checked on a weekly basis for the next four weeks.Results:Primary clinical outcome BOP and secondary outcome GI showed significant changes in the test group compared with the control group (P < 0.05). However, no significant changes were seen in the plaque scores in the test group (P > 0.05). The degree of diet compliance on the clinical parameters (PI, GI, and BOP) was assessed by using regression analysis.Conclusion:Dietary recommendations can be beneficial in managing gingival and periodontal inflammation. Nutritional interventional studies as monotherapy are required to evaluate the clinical significance of diet in periodontal therapy.

Implications of Dietary Vegetables on Glycemic Control- A Mechanistic Review

The global prevalence of diabetes mellitus is increasing day by day. Despite using synthetic anti-diabetic agents, diabetic patients must modify their lifestyle, including routine diet. Vegetables are the adequate source of vitamins, dietary fibres, minerals and Phytoconstituents. Use of vegetables is growing among the people as a part of the diet. They, with their antioxidant properties, can maintain good health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases. Besides, they contain many dietary fibres that are anti-diabetic. The constituents present in these vegetables help to reduce blood glucose level through several mechanisms such as alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase enzyme inhibition, Dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP IV) inhibition, enhancing the expression of peroxisome proliferator activator receptor gamma (PPAR) γ and glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4). Therefore the people must consume such vegetables with the proper knowledge to control diabetes mellitus and its complications. Hence the present review focuses on summarizing in vitro and in vivo anti-diabetic activity of most common dietary vegetables.

Conventional Ginger Candy on Premenstural Syndrome among Adolescent Girls

Background: Premenstrual condition is one of the most well-known issues in ladies at their regenerative age. Premenstrual disorder is a condition that influences the feelings, wellbeing, and conduct during specific days of the feminine cycle before her menses. Almost 80% of ladies report at least one manifestation that doesn't generously influence every day functioning, as per the American Family Doctor. In this aspect the current examination was led with the expection to decide the impact of regular ginger candy on premenstrual disorder among young ladies.&#x0D; Methods: Quasi experimental research design was adopted with 60 samples who met the inclusion criteria. Samples were selected by e purposive sampling technique. Pre-test was conducted by using Numerical pain rating scale and HRQoL scale Questionnaire data was collected. Conventional ginger candy was administered to adolescent girls with routine daily diet. Posttest was conducted after 8 weeks with the same tool. Data were analyzed using SPSS. The Results: The study findings revealed that the severity of Premenstrual pain was reduced compared to before the intervention. HRQoL also improve routine Conventional ginger candy supplementation was effective in reducing the Premenstrual syndrome at the level of p&gt;0.001 in the after the post test.&#x0D; Conclusion: Conventional ginger candy supplementation is cost effective and easily available, thereby finding can relieve premenstrual pain and associated symptoms, and improve the quality of life among adolescent girls.

Effect of oral administration of a mixture of pyrethroids at doses relevant to human exposure on the general and male reproductive physiology in the rat

Studies on the effects of unintentional intake of pyrethroid pesticides that are akin to actual human exposure settings are very rare. Such an exposure is primarily by consuming the food products as routine diet that contain residual levels of pyrethroids. In this study, rats were orally administered for 15 months with a mixture of pyrethroids at a dose that is one-fifth (high dose; HD) or one-twenty fifth (low dose; LD) of the residual levels commonly present in the average amount of rice and vegetables consumed by Indian population. Lipid profile, kidney and liver function were assessed. Lipid peroxidation, nitric oxide, antioxidant enzyme activities and histopathological changes were analyzed in the liver, lung, kidney, pancreas, testes, caput, cauda and prostate. The effect on the male reproductive system as a function of sperm count, enzyme activity of 3β-HSD and 17β-HSD and the expression profile of genes involved in spermatogenesis, steroidogenesis, genetic reprogramming and apoptosis of male gametes were evaluated. Significant increase in the relative organ weight, perturbations in the activities of antioxidant enzymes, lipid profile and liver function were observed in both LD and HD groups. Damage to the anatomical architecture was evident in all the tissues due to pyrethroid toxicity. Exposure to LD and HD of pyrethroid mixture resulted in decreased sperm count, activities of 3β-HSD and 17β-HSD, impaired capacitation and acrosome reaction and perturbations in the expression of genes that govern male gamete production. Results of our study indicate that exposure to pyrethroids for longer durations even at doses that are far below the residual levels present in the food consumed will result in severe damage to general physiological processes as well as reproductive function.

Changes in dietary patterns among youths in China during COVID-19 epidemic: The COVID-19 impact on lifestyle change survey (COINLICS)

Limited studies have focused on how COVID-19 outbreak and thereby lockdown have affected the youth's diet patterns. This study aimed to assess changes in diet patterns among youths in China under the COVID-19 lockdown, based on the COVID-19 Impact on Lifestyle Change Survey (COINLICS), a nationwide retrospective survey distributed via social media platforms during 9–12 May 2020 where 10,082 youth participants in China have voluntarily reported their basic sociodemographic information and routine diet patterns in the months before and after COVID-19 lockdown. We used paired t-tests or χ2 tests to evaluate the significance of differences in consumption patterns of 12 major food groups and beverages across educational levels, between sexes, and before and after COVID-19 lockdown. During the COVID-19 lockdown, significant decreases were observed in the frequency of intake of rice, meat, poultry, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, soybean products, and dairy products, with significant sex differences (females consuming more rice, fresh vegetables and fruit and less meat, poultry, soybean and dairy products than males). Significant increases were observed in the frequency of consumption of wheat products, other staple foods, and preserved vegetables, with males consuming these foods more frequently than females. Graduate students consumed most foods more frequently except rice and other staple foods and preserved vegetables. The frequency of sugar-sweetened beverage consumption had decreased while frequency of tea drinking had increased. The participating youths' diet patterns had significantly changed during the COVID-19 lockdown, with heterogeneities observed to different extents between sexes and across educational levels. Our findings would inform policy-makers and health professionals of these changes in time for better policy making and public health practice.

THE CHARACTERISTIC DESCRIPTION OF COMPLIANCE WITH FLUID LIMITATION, INTERDYALITIC WEIGHT GAIN (IDWG), AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN HEMODIALYSIS PATIENTS IN PALEMBANG CITY

Patients with hemodialysis are required to carry out routine care, diet arrangements, and fluid restrictions. The highest non-compliance in patients is fluid restriction. Excessive fluid intake can be seen from weight gain between dialysis time (IDWG). IDWG in hemodialysis patients should not be more than 3.5%, where an increase in IDWG can cause the risk of death and decreased quality of life. However, at the hospital itself, routine identification of fluid restriction non-compliance activities was not carried out, so that there were still many patients with hemodialysis who experienced an increase in IDWG in the moderate and severe categories. The purpose of this study is to explore the characteristics, fluid restriction compliance, IDWG, and quality of life in hemodialysis patients. This is done to plan the provision of further intervention in patients. The design in this study was cross-sectional with sampling techniques with simple random sampling. The results of the study characteristics of respondents at the age of 46-55 years (64.7%) more male sex (55.9%), and high school education (47.1%), all respondents were married (100%), most not working (58.8%), the average length of hemodialysis is 18 months. The mean mean liquid restriction compliance was 27.35, the mean value of IDWG was 4.97 and the mean value of quality of life was 51.72.&#x0D;

Whole Milk and Full-Fat Dairy Products and Hypertensive Risks

Lifestyle modifications in the form of diet and exercise are generally the first-line approach to reduce hypertensive risk and overall cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Accumulating research evidence has revealed that consumption of non- and low-fat dairy products incorporated into the routine diet is an effective means to reduce elevated blood pressure and improve vascular functions. However, the idea of incorporating whole-fat or full-fat dairy products in the normal routine diet as a strategy to reduce CVD risk has been met with controversy. The aim of this review was to evaluate both sides of the argument surrounding saturated fat intake and CVD risk from the standpoint of dairy intake. Throughout the review, we examined observational studies on relationships between CVD risk and dairy consumption, dietary intervention studies using non-fat and whole-fat dairy, and mechanistic studies investigating physiological mechanisms of saturated fat intake that may help to explain increases in cardiovascular disease risk. Currently available data have demonstrated that whole-fat dairy is unlikely to augment hypertensive risk when added to the normal routine diet but may negatively impact CVD risk. In conclusion, whole-fat dairy may not be a recommended alternative to non- or low-fat dairy products as a mean to reduce hypertensive or overall CVD risk.

Preventing chylous ascites after right hemicolectomy with D3 extended mesenterectomy

BackgroundWe aim to find the incidence of chylous ascites in patients undergoing D3 extended mesenterectomy and evaluate if a routine fat-reduced diet (FRD) has a prophylactic effect.MethodsData from 138 patients included in a D3 extended mesenterectomy trial were collected prospectively. Surgical drains and biochemical testing of drain fluid were used to find the incidence of chylous ascites among the first 39 patients, and a prophylactic fat-reduced diet was then implemented in the next 99 patients as a prophylactic measure.ResultsIn the first 39 patients, we found that 16 (41.0%) developed chylous ascites. After the fat-reduced diet was implemented, 1 (1.0%) of 99 patients developed chylous ascites. Drain discharge was 150 vs. 80 mL daily, respectively, and a regression analysis shows the average leakage in the group with fat-reduced diet was 105 mL/day less than in the patients with no dietary restrictions (p < 0.001). There were no significant differences in the rate of other complications (Fisher exact test, one-tailed p = 0.8845), and although there was a tendency to a shorter hospital stay when given a fat-reduced diet (7.3 ± 5.4 vs. 8.9 ± 4.9 days), the difference was not significant (p = 0.19).ConclusionsChylous ascites is a very common postoperative occurrence after right colectomy with extended D3 mesenterectomy and may be prevented using a routine fat-reduced diet.

Awareness regarding COVID-19 and problems being faced by young adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus amid nationwide lockdown in India: A qualitative interview study

AimsTo assess the awareness about COVID-19 and the problems being faced by young adults with T1DM amid nationwide lockdown in India. MethodsA cross-sectional telephone-based qualitative interview study was conducted in young adults (aged 18–30 years) with T1DM amid lockdown. Following verbal consent, participants were asked 8 open-ended questions, 5 on awareness about COVID-19 and 3 catering to problems being faced concerning diet, physical activity and treatment amid lockdown. On average, 3 interviews were conducted per day with each lasting for 15−20 min. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed by qualitative content analysis. ResultsThirty-two participants were interviewed; after exclusion of two poorly recorded interviews, 30 were finally analyzed. Mean age of participants was 22.4 ± 4.0 years (M:F = 8:7). Only 30%, 40% and 53% of participants were aware of modes of transmission (respiratory droplets and fomites), cardinal symptoms (fever, cough and breathing difficulty) and means of prevention (staying indoors, social distancing and regular hand washing), respectively. Majority of participants were unaware of additional risks associated with COVID-19 in diabetes mellitus. Most participants could continue with their routine diet and prescribed treatment regime, however, 90% reported a reduction in physical activity and 72% experienced worsening of glycemic control amid lockdown. ConclusionsYoung adults with T1DM lack adequate awareness about COVID-19. Increasing awareness and imparting diabetes self-management education via digital/print media is needed.

Diabetes and COVID-19: Risks, Management, and Learnings From Other National Disasters.

Evidence relating to the impact of COVID-19 in people with diabetes (PWD) is limited but continuing to emerge. PWD appear to be at increased risk of more severe COVID-19 infection, though evidence quantifying the risk is highly uncertain. The extent to which clinical and demographic factors moderate this relationship is unclear, though signals are emerging that link higher BMI and higher HbA1c to worse outcomes in PWD with COVID-19. As well as posing direct immediate risks to PWD, COVID-19 also risks contributing to worse diabetes outcomes due to disruptions caused by the pandemic, including stress and changes to routine care, diet, and physical activity. Countries have used various strategies to support PWD during this pandemic. There is a high potential for COVID-19 to exacerbate existing health disparities, and research and practice guidelines need to take this into account. Evidence on the management of long-term conditions during national emergencies suggests various ways to mitigate the risks presented by these events.

Effect of Different Pre-Treatments on Antinutrients and Antioxidants of Rice Bean (Vigna umbellata)

Abstract Rice bean (Vigna umbellata) is a legume that belongs to Vigna genus. Native to Indo-Chinese region, it is considered to be an ‘under-utilized’ or ‘orphan’ crop. Rice bean is known to possess high nutritional potential and antioxidant activity. But the use of rice bean supplementation in routine diet is limited despite its high nutritional profile due to the presence of non-nutritional factors. Thus, various pre-treatments like soaking, germination, oven roasting, sand roasting, boiling and pressure cooking at different time and temperature were carried out to reduce the anti-nutritional content of rice bean and to study its effect on antioxidant activity and phytochemical content. All the pre-treatments were able to significantly reduce the anti-nutrient content in rice bean, but germination showed the maximum reduction. Also germinated rice bean showed the maximum antioxidant potential and maximum content of total phenols, total flavonoids, vitamin C and carotenoids. Rice bean has been underutilized so far, owing to its antinutrient content and low popularity. This experiment attempted to use low cost processing to reduce the content of antinutrients and track the antioxidant content in rice bean. The concluded processing could be adopted for commercial applications for dietary supplementation.

Assessment of routine diet (garlic consumption) as a pre- and postoperative protocol in oral and maxillofacial surgical interventions: An evidence-based literature review.

It was hypothesized that pathological bleeding (PB) during and/or after oral surgical procedures is higher in systemically healthy patients who have a history of garlic intake compared to controls (patients without a history of garlic consumption). The aim of the present review article was to identify studies in which garlic consumption was included as a patient management protocol before and after oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS). A review of pertinent indexed literature was performed. The focused question that was addressed was "Has diet (garlic consumption) been considered as a patient management protocol before and after OMFS?" The inclusion criteria were: (a) studies published in indexed databases, (b) original studies, (c) studies on OMFS, and (d) studies that considered diet (garlic consumption) as a patient management protocol before and after OMFS. Literature review, commentaries, letters to the editor, and studies published in non-indexed resources were excluded. The pattern of the present review was customized to summarize the pertinent information. The initial search using the terms "oral," maxillofacial," "protocol," and "surgery" yielded 1478 studies. The addition of the term "diet" to this search strategy reduced the number of studies to five. Further filtration of these studies using the terms "garlic" and/or "Allium sativum" showed no studies. Garlic intake predisposes patients to PB. However, there are no studies in the indexed literature that have considered the inclusion of garlic consumption in patient management protocols before and after OMFS.

Impact of weight loss predictors in severe-morbid obesity patients in the Saudi population.

Universally, obesity has been affected more than 650 million and converts as global health problem. Obesity is equally affecting starting from children to elder population. Obese subjects are converting into severe obese and then into morbid obesity. Body mass index is proning from 30 to 50 kg/m2 in the adult population. Obesity is connected with the future complications of hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular, stroke, osteoarthritis, obstructive sleep apnea and liver diseases. Loosing of body fat is the only option to avoid obesity and this could be achieved with routine physical activity and diet modifications. Obesity subjects may fail to achieve the daily routine activities or insufficient activity may be involved and finally fail to lose the body fat after the medical course. Then these severe or morbidity obese can be lose with the existing surgery. Currently, Bariatric Surgery (BS) has become the active treatment for long-term weight loss. Various types (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass, sleeve gastrectomy and duodenal switch and the jejunoileal bypass) of BS are performed on the gastrointestinal tract. Throughout the world population, BS has found to be safe in losing the weight and avoiding the future and long-term complications. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in Saudi Arabia is an issue in terms of incidence and health consequences. Maximum obesity studies involved in Saudi Arabia has proven to be develop the long-term complications in the future involving from child to morbid obesity. Limited bariatric studies carried out in the Saudi subjects confirmed as effective tool in lowering the body fat and avoiding the life-threatened complications of human diseases. So, this review recommends BS as effective and safe surgical treatment to lose body fat in the Saudi population. However, post-operative monitoring is mandatory to follow-up.

Survey Research on Status of Pulses Buffer Stock in India

Pulses are the chief source of protein in routine diet of Indian vegetarian population. During 2016-17 an unprecedented production of 22.95mt and import of 3.11mt had created a surplus buffer stock of pulses. Government of India had decided to liquidate the pulses buffer stock after examining the quality of stocks to accommodate the fresh arrival. The Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA), has identified ICAR-IIPR to conduct survey research at 10 locations across the country on existing pulses buffer stock. A team of three members from ICAR-IIPR surveyed, observed and collected 47 samples of pulses (pigeonpea, chickpea, green gram, black gram and lentil) from 26 warehouses. The collected samples were analyzed for grain refractions and milling recovery. The physical observations on ventilation at godowns, bags, dunnage, stack size, sampling and maintenance of stocks were discussed in this article.

Nutritional and Anti Oxidant Potential of Commonly Growing Plant Foods from Southern India

Certain varieties of plants are abundantly available with rich in nutrients, but the complete sets of nutritional composition studies have not been carried out. Among them, the matured leaves of Murrya keonigii; seeds and leaves of Moringa oleifera, and fruit pulp of Aegle marmelos were chosen. The proximate analysed for above samples showed that the moisture varies from 2.4% -8.2%, crude proteins from 18.75%- 34.57 %, fat content from 5.6% -19.6%, ash content from 3.87%-15.6% and carbohydrate from 28.65% - 41.23%, respectively. Estimation of mineral contents revealed that the leaves and seeds of moringa had higher concentrations than others. Determination of total antioxidant (total flavonoid) was higher (63.550 μg (RU)/ml of samples) in matured curry leaves than others. Determination of in vitro antioxidant activity with FRAP revealed highest activity in curry leaves (174.5μg) to a least activity with seeds of moringa (45.725 μg), whereas the DPPH revealed highest activity for fruit pulp of bael (1680.6μg ascorbic acid) to the least in leaves of moringa (263.15 μg ascorbic acid equivalent/mg). The ABTS showed IC50 value of 210.52 ±0.5774 for curry leaf, 487.8 ±0.3347 and 205.36 moringa seeds and leaves and 513.24 IC50 μg for pulp of bael fruit. Quantitative analysis of water soluble vitamins such as thiamine (B1) varied from 2.172 -5.558 mg; riboflavin (B2) from 2.201 -11.354 mg; pyridoxine (B6) from 4.608 -194.001 mg; biotin (B7) from 36.864 -153.027 mg, respectively. Further, the vitamin C (ascorbic acid) varied from 6.733 -23.142 mg /100g of oven dried samples, respectively. Therefore, the above foods are well intended to be included in routine diet regime and may also be willing to utilise for food supplementation with other suitable diets to manage the conditions such as malnutrition and nutrient deficiencies.

Effects of Alpha Lipoic Acid Supplementation on Serum Levels of Oxidative Stress, Inflammatory Markers and Clinical Prognosis among Acute Ischemic Stroke Patients: A Randomized, Double Blind, TNS Trial.

Purpose: Stroke is one of the most common conditions causing death. There have been few studies examining the effects of alpha lipoic acid (ALA) on stroke patients. In this regard, the present randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted to examine the effects of ALA supplementation on serum albumin, and inflammatory and oxidative stress markers in stroke patients. Methods: The present paralleled randomized controlled clinical trial involved 42 stroke patients who were over 40 years and under enteral feeding. The participants were randomly assigned into two groups and finally 40 patients completed the study. Patients in alpha lipoic acid group (n=19) took 1200 mg ALA supplement daily along with their meal, and participants in control group (n=21) underwent the routine hospital diet for 3 weeks. Fasting blood samples were obtained and albumin, oxidative stress, and inflammatory indices were assessed at baseline, as well as at the end of the trial. Results: After 3 weeks, treatment of patients with ALA led to a significant decrease in tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) levels (P=0.01) compared to baseline. But serum levels of albumin, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), malondialdehyde (MDA), highsensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), IL-6 and TNF-α did not change significantly vs. control group (P>0.05). Conclusion: ALA did not significantly change the serum levels of albumin and inflammatory as well as antioxidant capacity indices in stroke patients compared with the control group. More clinical trials with large sample sizes and long duration are needed to clarify the effects of ALA on these patients.