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Stable isotope analyses, particularly of carbon ( δ 13 C) and nitrogen ( δ 15 N), are used to investigate ecological relationships among species. For marine predators, research has shown the main factors influencing their intra-specific and intra-individual isotopic variation are geographical movements and changes in the composition of diet over time. However, as the differences seen may be the result of changes in the prey items consumed, a change in feeding location or the combination of both, knowledge of the temporal and spatial consistency in the isotopic values of prey becomes crucial for making accurate inferences about predator diets. This study used an abundant marine predator, the Australasian gannet ( Morus serrator ), as prey sampler to investigate the annual variation in fish and squid prey isotope values over a four-year period (2012–2015) and the geographic variation between two sites with contrasting oceanographic conditions. Significant inter-annual variation was observed in δ 13 C and/or δ 15 N values of five of the eight prey species analysed. The strongest inter-annual variation in both δ 13 C and δ 15 N values occurred in 2015, which coincided with a strong El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). This may suggest a temporal fluctuation in the geographic source of prey or the origin of their nutrients. These results suggest that it is important to consider the potential significant differences in isotopic values within the prey assemblages that predators consume. This is important to improve the interpretation of marine predator isotope results when determining the influence of environmental variability on their diets.

Estimates of diagnosable eating disorders and DEB in adolescent and young adult females with type 1 diabetes range from 3.8% (12)-27.5% for patients classified as bulimic or having binge eating disorder (BED), based upon evaluation with the Eating Disorders Examination (EDE), (28) and 38-40% when insulin omission is considered purging (21,29). Physiological mechanisms such as an insulin dose in excess of physiological requirement, hypoglycemia, and a hormonally driven imbalance in hunger, food intake, and experience of satiety appear to be critical factors in establishing diabetes-specific criteria that discriminate between maladaptive manipulations of the diabetes care regimen to control weight and potentially adaptive regimen modifications.

Pattern classification of ingestive behavior in grazing animals has extreme importance in studies related to animal nutrition, growth and health. In this paper, a system to classify chewing patterns of ruminants in in vivo experiments is developed. The proposal is based on data collected by optical fiber Bragg grating sensors (FBG) that are processed by machine learning techniques. The FBG sensors measure the biomechanical strain during jaw movements, and a decision tree is responsible for the classification of the associated chewing pattern. In this study, patterns associated with food intake of dietary supplement, hay and ryegrass were considered. Additionally, two other important events for ingestive behavior were monitored: rumination and idleness. Experimental results show that the proposed approach for pattern classification is capable of differentiating the five patterns involved in the chewing process with an overall accuracy of 94%.

Eating behavior can have an important effect on, and be correlated with, obesity and eating disorders. Eating behavior is usually estimated through self-reporting measures, despite their limitations in reliability, based on ease of collection and analysis. A better and widely used alternative is the objective analysis of eating during meals based on human annotations of in-meal behavioral events (e.g., bites). However, this methodology is time-consuming and often affected by human error, limiting its scalability and cost-effectiveness for large-scale research. To remedy the latter, a novel “Rapid Automatic Bite Detection” (RABiD) algorithm that extracts and processes skeletal features from videos was trained in a video meal dataset (59 individuals; 85 meals; three different foods) to automatically measure meal duration and bites. In these settings, RABiD achieved near perfect agreement between algorithmic and human annotations (Cohen’s kappa κ = 0.894; F1-score: 0.948). Moreover, RABiD was used to analyze an independent eating behavior experiment (18 female participants; 45 meals; three different foods) and results showed excellent correlation between algorithmic and human annotations. The analyses revealed that, despite the changes in food (hash vs. meatballs), the total meal duration remained the same, while the number of bites were significantly reduced. Finally, a descriptive meal-progress analysis revealed that different types of food affect bite frequency, although overall bite patterns remain similar (the outcomes were the same for RABiD and manual). Subjects took bites more frequently at the beginning and the end of meals but were slower in-between. On a methodological level, RABiD offers a valid, fully automatic alternative to human meal-video annotations for the experimental analysis of human eating behavior, at a fraction of the cost and the required time, without any loss of information and data fidelity.

ABSTRACT Objective: to profile and analyze sleep quality, quality of life and eating habits of nursing students. Methods: a cross-sectional, comparative and correlational study with the following variables: sociodemographic characteristics, Pittsburgh sleep quality index, quality of life and eating habits. One hundred ninety-five students participated in the study. Results: participants were on average 24 years old. Results showed that females were prevalent (87.1%); 71.0% of the students had poor sleep quality; 98.9% used electronic devices before bedtime. Self-perception of quality of life was indifferent (38.3%), and self-perception of general health, 36.9% expressed satisfaction. Among the participants, 45.13% consumed one portion of fruit and 40.66% two to three portions of vegetables daily. Conclusion: the study allowed the profile of these students, sedentary, overweight and poor sleep quality young students who studied and worked. RESUMEN Objetivo: identificar lo perfil y analizar la calidad del sueño, la calidad de vida y los hábitos alimenticios de los estudiantes de enfermería. Métodos: estudio transversal, comparativo y correlacional con las siguientes variables: características sociodemográficas, índice de calidad del sueño de Pittsburgh, calidad de vida y hábitos alimenticios. 195 estudiantes participaron en el estudio. Resultados: los participantes tenían en promedio 24 años de edad. Los resultados mostraron que las mujeres eran prevalentes (87.1%); El 71.0% de los estudiantes tenían mala calidad del sueño; El 98.9% usó dispositivos electrónicos antes de acostarse. La autopercepción de la calidad de vida fue indiferente (38.3%), y la autopercepción de la salud general, 36.9% expresó satisfacción. Entre los participantes, el 45.13% consumió una porción de fruta y el 40.66% dos o tres porciones de vegetales diariamente. Conclusión: el estudio permitió el perfil de estos estudiantes, estudiantes sedentarios, con sobrepeso y con poca calidad del sueño que estudiaron y trabajaron. RESUMO Objetivo: traçar o perfil e analisar a qualidade do sono, qualidade de vida e hábitos alimentares dos estudantes de enfermagem. Métodos: estudo transversal, comparativo e correlacional com as seguintes variáveis: características sociodemográficas, índice de qualidade de sono de Pittsburgh, qualidade de vida e hábitos alimentar. 195 estudantes participaram do estudo. Resultados: os participantes tinham em média 24 anos. Os resultados demonstraram que o sexo feminino foi prevalente (87,1%); 71,0% dos estudantes apresentaram qualidade de sono ruim; 98,9% faziam uso de aparelhos eletrônicos antes de dormir. A autopercepção da qualidade de vida foi indiferente (38,3%) e quanto à autopercepção de saúde geral, 36,9% expressaram-se satisfeitos. Dentre os participantes, 45,13% consumiam uma porção de fruta e 40,66% duas a três porções de verduras e legumes, diariamente. Conclusão: o estudo permitiu traçar o perfil desses estudantes, jovens que estudavam e trabalhavam, sedentários, acima do peso e com qualidade de sono ruim.

OBJECTIVE:--We characterized dietary patterns and their relation to incident type 2 diabetes in 5,011 participants from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS--White, black, Hispanic, and Chinese adults, aged 45-84 years and free of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, completed food frequency questionnaires at baseline (2000-2002). Incident type 2 diabetes was defined at three follow-up exams (2002-2003, 2004-2005, and 2005-2007) as fasting glucose >126 mg/dl, self-reported type 2 diabetes, or use of diabetes medication. Two types of dietary patterns were studied: four empirically derived (principal components analysis) and one author-defined (low-risk food pattern) as the weighted sum of whole grains, vegetables, nuts/seeds, low-fat dairy, coffee (positively weighted), red meat, processed meat, high-fat dairy, and soda (negatively weighted). RESULTS:--The empirically derived dietary pattern characterized by high intake of tomatoes, beans, refined grains, high-fat dairy, and red meat was associated with an 18% greater risk (hazard ratio per 1-score SD 1.18 [95% CI 1.06-1.32]; Ptrend = 0.004), whereas the empirically derived dietary pattern characterized by high intake of whole grains, fruit, nuts/seeds, green leafy vegetables, and low-fat dairy was associated with a 15% lower diabetes risk (0.85 [0.76-0.95]; Ptrend = 0.005). The low-risk food pattern was also inversely associated with diabetes risk (0.87 [0.81-0.99]; Ptrend = 0.04). Individual component food groups were not independently associated with diabetes risk. Associations were not modified by sex or race/ethnicity. CONCLUSIONS:--Multiple food groups collectively influence type 2 diabetes risk beyond that of the individual food groups themselves.

Soil food webs are driven by plant-derived carbon (C) entering the soil belowground as rhizodeposits or aboveground via leaf litter, with recent research pointing to a higher importance of the former for driving forest soil food webs. Using natural abundance stable isotopes of wheat (C3 plant) and maize (C4 plant), we followed and quantified the incorporation of shoot residue- and root-derived maize C into the soil animal food web of an arable field for 1 year, thereby disentangling the importance of shoot residue- versus root-derived resources for arable soil food webs. On average, shoot residue-derived resources only contributed less than 12 % to soil arthropod body C, while incorporation of root-derived resources averaged 26 % after 2 months of maize crop and increased to 32 % after 1 year. However, incorporation of root-derived maize C did not consistently increase with time: rather, it increased, decreased or remained constant depending on species. Further, preference of shoot residue- or root-derived resources was also species-specific with about half the species incorporating mainly root-derived C, while only a few species preferentially incorporated shoot residue-derived C, and about 40 % incorporated both shoot residue- as well as root-derived C. The results highlight the predominant importance of root-derived resources for arable soil food webs and suggest that shoot residues only form an additional resource of minor importance. Variation in the use of plant-derived C between soil arthropod species suggests that the flux of C through soil food webs of arable systems can only be disentangled by adopting a species-specific approach.

To validate a questionnaire for the diagnosis of orhorexia oervosa, an eating disorder defined as \"maniacal obsession for healthy food\". 525 subjects were enrolled. Then they were randomized into two samples (sample of 404 subjects for the construction of the test for the diagnosis of orthorexia ORTO-15; sample of 121 subjects for the validation of the test). The ORTO-15 questionnaire, validated for the diagnosis of orthorexia, is made-up of 15 multiple-choice items. The test we proposed for the diagnosis of orthorexia (ORTO 15) showed a good predictive capability at a threshold value of 40 (efficacy 73.8%, sensitivity 55.6% and specificity 75.8%) also on verification with a control sample. However, it has a limit in identifying the obsessive disorder. For this reason we maintain that further investigation is necessary and that new questions useful for the evaluation of the obsessive-compulsive behavior should be added to the ORTO-15 questionnaire.

Little is known about actual dietary patterns and their associations with clinical outcomes in hemodialysis patients. We identified dietary patterns in hemodialysis patients in Japan and examined associations between dietary patterns and clinical outcomes. We used data from 3,080 general-population participants in the Hisayama study (year 2007), and data from 1,355 hemodialysis patients in the Japan Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (JDOPPS: years 2005-2007). Food intake was measured using a brief self-administered diet-history questionnaire (BDHQ). To identify food groups with the Hisayama population data, we used principal components analysis with Promax rotation. We adjusted the resulting food groups for total daily energy intake, and then we used those adjusted food-group scores to identify dietary patterns in the JDOPPS patients by cluster analysis (Ward's method). We then used Cox regression to examine the association between dietary patterns and a composite of adverse clinical outcomes: hospitalization due to cardiovascular disease or death due to any cause. We identified three food groups: meat, fish, and vegetables. Using those groups we then identified three dietary patterns: well-balanced, unbalanced, and other. After adjusting for potential confounders, we found an association between an unbalanced diet and important clinical events (hazard ratio 1.90, 95% C.I. 1.19-3.04). Hemodialysis patients whose diet was unbalanced were more likely to have adverse clinical outcomes. Thus hemodialysis patients might benefit not only from portion control, but also from a diet that is well-balanced diet with regard to the food groups identified here as meat, fish, and vegetables.

The process of seed dispersal has a profound effect on vegetation structure and diversity in tropical forests. However, our understanding of the process and our ability to predict its outcomes at a community scale are limited by the frequently large number of interactions associated with it. Here, we outline an approach to dealing with this complexity that reduces the number of unique interactions considered by classifying the participants according to their functional similarity. We derived a classification of dispersers based on the nature of the dispersal service they provide to plants. We described the quantities of fruit handled, the quality of handling and the diversity of plants to which the service is provided. We used ten broad disperser traits to group 26 detailed measures for each disperser. We then applied this approach to vertebrate dispersers in Australia's tropical forests. Using this we also develop a classification that may be more generally applicable. For each disperser, data relating to each trait was obtained either from the field or published literature. First, we identified dispersers whose service outcomes were so distinct that statistical analysis was not required and assigned them to functional groups. The remaining dispersers were assigned to functional groups using cluster analysis. The combined processes created 15 functional groups from 65 vertebrate dispersers in Australian tropical forests. Our approach--grouping dispersers on the basis of the type of dispersal service provided and the fruit types it is provided to--represents a means of reducing the complexity encountered in tropical seed dispersal systems and could be effectively applied in community level studies. It also represents a useful tool for exploring changes in dispersal services when the distribution and abundance of animal populations change due to human impacts.