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Food Types (food + type)
Selected AbstractsMealtime energy intake and feeding behaviour in children who fail to thrive: a population-based case-control studyTHE JOURNAL OF CHILD PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHIATRY AND ALLIED DISCIPLINES, Issue 5 2004Kathryn N. Parkinson Background:, The essential link between energy needs and energy intake is feeding behaviour, yet few studies have directly observed feeding behaviour in children who have failed to thrive. A cohort of 961 term infants was screened to identify children with first year weight gain below the 5th centile in order to examine their feeding behaviour and food intake. Methods:, A nested case-control study was used with direct observation at 13,21 months over two lunchtime meals, one consisting of finger foods and the other of ,spoon foods'. Thirty children who failed to thrive and 57 controls were studied. The video-tapes were coded for feeding behaviour using a behavioural coding inventory which distinguishes between children feeding themselves and responding to being fed by their mother. The main outcome measures were counts of five feeding actions (give, accept, feedself, refuse, reject) and measures of energy intake, the weight of food eaten and meal duration. Results:, There were systematic differences in feeding behaviour between meal types, with mothers feeding their child more often at meals comprising spoon foods and children feeding themselves more often at meals comprising finger foods. By weight, more food was consumed at the spoon food meals, but energy intake was no higher, showing that the children compensated for the differing energy yields of the foods. Children who failed to thrive took in less energy than controls, and were less likely to sit in a highchair throughout the meal, but there were no clear differences in other aspects of feeding behaviour. Conclusions:, Food type is an important variable when studying childhood feeding behaviour. Children who fail to thrive take in less energy than controls of the same age, despite there being no major differences in mealtime feeding behaviour. [source] Resource discovery in ant communities: do food type and quantity matter?ECOLOGICAL ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 5 2010JESSICA M. C. PEARCE-DUVET 1. Omnivorous woodland ant species trade off between the ability to find and behaviourally control food resources. Dominant species can limit the ability of subordinates to harvest certain food items. However, subordinate species, by being faster discoverers, could gain access to such food items by arriving at them first. 2. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that resource-directed discovery occurs in ant communities and that good discoverers preferentially discover high value resources. We did this by measuring time to discovery and the number of discoveries of high and low levels of two resource types, crickets and honey, for species occurring in Texas and Arizona woodland ant communities. 3. Ants discovered resources roughly 10 times faster in Texas than in Arizona. They discovered crickets more rapidly than honey in both communities, but there was no difference in the discovery of different resource levels. We also found that species were not biased in their discovery of different resource types or levels. 4. These results provide indirect evidence that discovery is directed by resource stimuli but that such directedness does not impact interspecific exploitative competition. [source] Nutritional ecology and diachronic trends in Paleolithic diet and healthEVOLUTIONARY ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 5 2003Bryan Hockett Modern nutritional studies have found that diverse diets are linked to lower infant mortality rates and longer life expectancies in humans. This is primarily because humans require more than fifty essential nutrients for growth and cell maintenance and repair; most of these essential nutrients must come from outside food sources rather than being manufactured by the body itself; and a diversity of food types is required to consume the full suite of essential nutrients necessary for optimal human health. These principles and their related affects on human adaptations and demography are the hallmarks of a theoretical paradigm defined as nutritional ecology. This essay applies concepts derived from nutritional ecology to the study of human evolution. Principles of nutritional ecology are applied to the study of the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition in order to broadly illustrate the interpretive ramifications of this approach. At any stage in human evolution, those hominid populations that chose to diversify their subsistence base may have had a selective advantage over competitors who restricted their diet principally to one food type, such as terrestrial mammals. [source] Food quality influences habitat selection in DaphniaFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2008ELKE S. REICHWALDT Summary 1. The vertical distribution of Daphnia in stratified lakes strongly depends on the depth profiles of temperature and food resources. However, ecological requirements for these factors are slightly different for juvenile and adult Daphnia. 2. Here, I investigated whether food quality influences the habitat selection of Daphnia pulicaria at night and whether the habitat selection of juvenile and adult D. pulicaria is different. Daphnia were allowed to choose their optimal habitat in large, stratified water columns (plankton towers, Plön) that held either the green alga Scenedesmus obliquus (high quality) in the cold hypolimnion (Hypo-treatment) or S. obliquus in the warm epi- and cold hypolimnion (SCEN-treatment) or the non-toxic cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus (low quality) in the warm epilimnion and S. obliquus in the cold hypolimnion (SYN treatment). 3. When food (S. obliquus) was present only in the hypolimnion (Hypo-treatment), juveniles and adults distributed similarly in the water column and spent most of their time in the interface between the warm and the food rich layer. 4. When food was present in the epilimnion and hypolimnion (SCEN- and SYN-treatments), juvenile and adult D. pulicaria moved into the warm and now also food-rich epilimnion, however, the magnitude of this shift depended on the food type and age class of Daphnia. Adult and juvenile D. pulicaria spent most of their time in the epilimnion when food there was of a high quality (S. obliquus; SCEN-treatment). However, compared to the juveniles, adult Daphnia spent significantly more time in the colder hypolimnion when epilimnetic food was of a low quality (S. elongatus; SYN-treament). 5. Therefore, habitat selection of adult D. pulicaria was affected by food quality whereas the habitat selection of juveniles was not. 6. Additional growth and reproduction experiments show that the food quality is likely to be responsible for the different habitat selection of juveniles and adults in the SYN-treatment. 7. In conclusion, my experiments show that D. pulicaria behaviourally reacts to the quality of its food source. [source] Poor host plant quality causes omnivore to consume predator eggsJOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY, Issue 3 2003Arne Janssen Summary 1Omnivorous arthropods are known to change their diet when host plant quality is low. Consequently, it has been suggested that decreased plant quality has a twofold negative effect on herbivore populations: (1) a decrease in growth rate of herbivores; (2) omnivores include more herbivores in their diet. We hypothesized that decreased host plant quality may also cause omnivores to feed on predators, including their own enemies. 2We tested this hypothesis, using the omnivorous western flower thrips. This species is known to feed on many plant species, but also on the eggs of another herbivore, the two-spotted spider mite. Previous research has shown that a decrease in plant quality leads to increased feeding on spider mite eggs by western flower thrips. Western flower thrips also kill the eggs of various predatory mites, including those of the specialist predator of spider mites and those of a predatory mite that attacks western flower thrips itself. 3In this paper we investigate whether thrips larvae kill predator eggs to feed on them and whether this predation depends on host plant quality. 4Larval survival as well as developmental rate increased when plant tissue of low quality (sweet pepper) was supplemented with eggs of two predatory mite species or when it was supplemented with pollen, a high-quality food type. 5Supplementing high quality leaf tissue (cucumber) with predator eggs did not lead to increased survival and developmental rate. Thrips larvae fed significantly less on predatory mite eggs when pollen was available. 6Thus, thrips larvae indeed feed on predator eggs, including those of their predator, and they feed more on predator eggs when host plants are of low quality. [source] Tufted ducks Aythya fuligula do not control buoyancy during divingJOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2005Lewis G. Halsey Work against buoyancy during submergence is a large component of the energy costs for shallow diving ducks. For penguins, buoyancy is less of a problem, however they still seem to trade-off levels of oxygen stores against the costs and benefits of buoyant force during descent and ascent. This trade-off is presumably achieved by increasing air sac volume and hence pre-dive buoyancy (Bpre) when diving deeper. Tufted ducks, Aythya fuligula, almost always dive with nearly full oxygen stores so these cannot be increased. However, the high natural buoyancy of tufted ducks guarantees a passive ascent, so they might be expected to decrease Bpre before particularly deep, long dives to reduce the energy costs of diving. Body heat lost to the water can also be a cause of substantial energy expenditure during a dive, both through dissipation to the ambient environment and through the heating of ingested food and water. Thus dive depth (dd), duration and food type can influence how much heat energy is lost during a dive. The present study investigated the relationship between certain physiological and behavioural adjustments by tufted ducks to dd and food type. Changes in Bpre, deep body temperature (Tb) and dive time budgeting of four ducks were measured when diving to two different depths (1.5 and 5.7 m), and for two types of food (mussels and mealworms). The hypothesis was that in tufted ducks, Bpre decreases as dd increases. The ducks did not change Bpre in response to different diving depths, and thus the hypothesis was rejected. Tb was largely unaffected by dives to either depth. However, diving behaviour changed at the greater dd, including an increase in dive duration and vertical descent speed. Behaviour also changed depending on the food type, including an increase in foraging duration and vertical descent speed when mussels were present. Behavioural changes seem to represent the major adjustment made by tufted ducks in response to changes in their diving environment. [source] Differential correlates of diet and phylogeny on the shape of the premaxilla and anterior tooth in sparid fishes (Perciformes: Sparidae)JOURNAL OF EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2004M. Linde Abstract We explore the correlational patterns of diet and phylogeny on the shape of the premaxilla and anterior tooth in sparid fishes (Perciformes: Sparidae) from the western Mediterranean Sea. The premaxilla is less variable, and in spite of the presence of species-specific features, a common structural pattern is easily recognizable in all species (i.e. the ascending and the articular processes are fused in a single branch, as in many percoid fishes). In contrast, tooth shape is more variable, and different structural types can be recognized (e.g. canine-like or incisive). Coupling geometric morphometric and comparative methods we found that the relationship between shape, diet and phylogeny also differs between premaxilla and tooth. Thus, the shape of the premaxilla is significantly correlated with food type, whereas the shape of the teeth is not correlated with diet, and probably reflects the species phylogenetic relationships. Two biological roles, resistance against compressive forces generated in the buccal cavity and the size of the oral gape, would explain the ecomorphological patterns of the premaxilla. The premaxilla and anterior tooth appear to evolve at different rates (mosaic evolution) and represent an example of morphological traits belonging to the same functional unit but following uncoupled evolutionary pathways. [source] AEROBIC PLATE COUNTS OF PHILIPPINE READY-TO-EAT FOODS FROM TAKE-AWAY PREMISESJOURNAL OF FOOD SAFETY, Issue 2 2005MA. PATRICIA V. AZANZA ABSTRACT The Aerobic Plate Counts (APCs) of some Philippine ready-to-eat (RTE) foods from take-away premises were established for the first time within the context of using the information for the development of Philippine microbial guidelines for RTE foods. The calculated APCs for most of the RTE foods analyzed in the study were ,,10,5 cfu/unit of food sample. Among the reasons cited to explain higher APC values were: use of raw ingredients for the final product, temperature abuse during vending, inadequate cooking and use of leftovers. It was recommended that the generally acceptable microbial guideline value for APC of RTE foods set at <,105 cfu/unit be adapted locally until more precise microbial criteria for this food type could be developed through an appropriate scientific process. [source] Objective and subjective hardness of a test item used for evaluating food mixing abilityJOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 3 2007N. M. SALLEH Summary, The aim of this study was to compare objective and subjective hardness of selected common foods with a wax cube used as a test item in a mixing ability test. Objective hardness was determined for 11 foods (cream cheese, boiled fish paste, boiled beef, apple, raw carrot, peanut, soft/hard rice cracker, jelly, plain chocolate and chewing gum) and the wax cube. Peak force (N) to compress each item was obtained from force,time curves generated with the Tensipresser. Perceived hardness ratings of each item were made by 30 dentate subjects (mean age 26·9 years) using a visual analogue scale (100 mm). These subjective assessments were given twice with a 1 week interval. High intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for test,retest reliability were seen for all foods (ICC > 0·68; P < 0·001). One-way anova found a significant effect of food type on both the objective hardness score and the subjective hardness rating (P < 0·001). The wax cube showed significant lower objective hardness score (32·6 N) and subjective hardness rating (47·7) than peanut (45·3 N, 63·5) and raw carrot (82·5 N, 78·4) [P < 0·05; Ryan,Einot,Gabriel,Welsch (REGW)-F]. A significant semilogarithmic relationship was found between the logarithm of objective hardness scores and subjective hardness ratings across twelve test items (r = 0·90; P < 0·001). These results suggest the wax cube has a softer texture compared with test foods traditionally used for masticatory performance test, such as peanut and raw carrot. The hardness of the wax cube could be modified to simulate a range of test foods by changing mixture ratio of soft and hard paraffin wax. [source] Chewing-side determination of three food texturesJOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 1 2006J. PAPHANGKORAKIT summary, Food texture affects chewing movement but it is not known if it also affects the chewing-side pattern. This study determined the chewing sides of three test foods with different textures during habitual chewing. Twenty healthy dental students (aged 20,24 years) chewed pieces of pork jerky, fresh asparagus and almonds on two separate sessions (1 week apart). In each session, each subject chewed 30 food specimens, 10 of the same food type, until swallowing while a video camera recorded the displacement of the chin with respect to the other two reference points vertically marked along the facial midline. A slow-speed video playback was used to identify the chewing side of each cycle. The chewing-side pattern (right preference, left preference, no preference) in each individual was determined statistically. The results showed that overall, 11 subjects did not have any side preference whereas six and three subjects preferred to chew on right or left sides respectively. The chewing-side pattern remained unchanged between three food types in about half of the subjects. When the same food was compared between 2 days, the chewing-side pattern of almonds was shown to be most reproducible (18 subjects). Unidentified cycles with little or no lateral displacement, labelled as bilateral, were observed more frequently near the end of the chewing sequence with more occurrences in almonds and jerky than asparagus (P < 0·01). It was suggested that chewing-side preference is not a fixed characteristic. Food texture seemed to influence the side preference and also the occurrence of bilateral cycles. [source] CHEWING PATTERNS OF VARIOUS TEXTURE FOODS STUDIED BY ELECTROMYOGRAPHY IN YOUNG AND ELDERLY POPULATIONSJOURNAL OF TEXTURE STUDIES, Issue 4 2002KAORU KOHYAMA ABSTRACT The effects of food texture on the chewing patterns of elderly and young people, masticatory recordings using electromyography (EMG) were carried out. Fourteen French adults (mean 29.4 years) and 23 elderly (mean 67.7 years) participated. Six food products (rice, beef, cheese, crispy bread, apple and peanuts) were tested. The chewing pattern of elderly subjects was characterized by a significant increase of number of chews and chewing duration for all foods except rice. Whatever the food type, muscle activity per chew (mean amplitude × burst duration) was lower for elderly than for young subjects. Single chews appeared less effective for food reduction in elderly than in young subjects. This can be partly compensated for by increasing the chewing duration and number of chews. No significant difference was found between both groups of subject for the total amount of EMG activity required prior to swallow whatever the food chewed. [source] Are howler monkey species ecologically equivalent?AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 2 2010Alouatta caraya, Trophic niche overlap in syntopic Alouatta guariba clamitans Abstract According to the principle of competitive exclusion, niche differentiation allows the stable coexistence of closely related species. We analyzed dietary profile and diversity, and dietary overlap between syntopic brown howlers (BR; Alouatta guariba clamitans) and black and gold howlers (BLG; A. caraya) in the Atlantic Forest of NE Argentina, with the objective of evaluating the degree of trophic niche overlap and potential interspecific competition for food. During 12 months, we collected data on feeding behavior of two groups of each howler species using the scan sampling method, together with data on food availability. Both at the group- and species-level, we analyzed feeding behavior in terms of monthly percentages of time spent feeding on each food type and specific food item, dietary diversity (Shannon index H,), and we estimated dietary overlap using the percentage index and the Morisita,Horn index (CH). Across months, both howlers showed species-specific preferences for certain food items, and BLG had a more diverse diet (mean±SE, H,=2.77±0.08) than BR (H,=2.39±0.09). However, diets of both species overlapped extensively (percentage index=45.64±2.97%; CH=0.6±0.05) and diets of conspecific groups did not overlap more than diets of groups of different species. Given their high degree of trophic overlap, syntopic BR and BLG meet one of the conditions necessary for interspecific food competition to occur. Although at present we lack direct evidence for interspecific competition in these howler species, we conclude that high levels of niche overlap may have an important role in maintaining the essentially parapatric distribution of howler species throughout the Neotropics. Am. J. Primatol. 72:173,186, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] An experimental analysis of ingestion rates in an omnivorous speciesAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2008M. Stammati Abstract Food intake is difficult to estimate under natural conditions. We investigated ingestion rates of 14 different food types in 26 captive capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella). The procedure consisted in weighing a piece of food and using a two alternative choice tests to present food to the subject, alone in its cage. We recorded the food chosen and the time it took the subject to consume the food entirely. Consumption time was converted into ingestion rates (g/s) for each food type. Ingestion rates of food types significantly differed, and the difference was significantly higher among foods than among subjects. In particular, ingestion rates of the fruits were higher than those of human-processed food. Interestingly, food preferences were significantly related to energy intake rate, i.e., to the amount of energy ingested per unit of time, but not with ingestion rates or energy content alone. The energy acquired by eating different types of food cannot be calculated on the basis of the time spent eating unless a correction factor for each given food (or similar ones) is applied. Future controlled studies should provide field researchers with such corrections factors, possibly using foods collected in the wild. Am. J. Primatol. 70:510,513, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Light and electron microscopic study of the anterior oesophagus of Bulla striata (Mollusca, Opisthobranchia)ACTA ZOOLOGICA, Issue 2 2010Alexandre Lobo-da-Cunha Abstract Lobo-da-Cunha, A., Oliveira, E., Alves, Â., Coelho, R. and Calado, G. 2010. Light and electron microscopic study of the anterior oesophagus of Bulla striata (Mollusca, Opisthobranchia). ,Acta Zoologica (Stockholm) 91: 125,138. The anterior oesophagus of Bulla striata was investigated with light and electron microscopy. In the most anterior region, the ridges of the oesophageal wall are covered by a ciliated columnar epithelium forming large apical blebs which are released into the lumen, an activity that is particularly intense in the oesophageal pouch. In the last two-thirds of the anterior oesophagus, the epithelium is covered with microvilli embedded in a cuticle, but apocrine secretion and cilia are absent. Subepithelial secretory cells are very abundant in the oesophageal wall, except in the roof of the pouch. They have a long neck that crosses the epithelium, whereas the cell body containing the nucleus is embedded in the connective tissue. Large electron-lucent secretory vesicles and many Golgi stacks fill most of their cytoplasm. The histochemical and cytochemical assays show that these cells secrete acid mucopolysaccharides. With the current and future studies we aim to obtain data for the establishment of relationships between morphofunctional features of the digestive system and food types in cephalaspideans. Additionally, the new data about the oesophageal pouch of B. striata may be useful for the establishment of eventual homologies with the oesophageal diverticula of other opisthobranchs. [source] Nutritional ecology and diachronic trends in Paleolithic diet and healthEVOLUTIONARY ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 5 2003Bryan Hockett Modern nutritional studies have found that diverse diets are linked to lower infant mortality rates and longer life expectancies in humans. This is primarily because humans require more than fifty essential nutrients for growth and cell maintenance and repair; most of these essential nutrients must come from outside food sources rather than being manufactured by the body itself; and a diversity of food types is required to consume the full suite of essential nutrients necessary for optimal human health. These principles and their related affects on human adaptations and demography are the hallmarks of a theoretical paradigm defined as nutritional ecology. This essay applies concepts derived from nutritional ecology to the study of human evolution. Principles of nutritional ecology are applied to the study of the Middle-to-Upper Paleolithic transition in order to broadly illustrate the interpretive ramifications of this approach. At any stage in human evolution, those hominid populations that chose to diversify their subsistence base may have had a selective advantage over competitors who restricted their diet principally to one food type, such as terrestrial mammals. [source] Pond canopy cover: a resource gradient for anuran larvaeFRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2006LUIS SCHIESARI Summary 1.,The gradient in pond canopy cover strongly influences freshwater species distributions. This study tested the effects of canopy cover on the performance of two species of larval anurans, a canopy cover generalist (Rana sylvatica, the wood frog) and an open-canopy specialist (R. pipiens, the leopard frog), and tested which factors co-varying with canopy cover mediate these effects. 2.,A field transplant experiment demonstrated that canopy cover had negative performance effects on both species. However, leopard frogs, which grow faster than wood frogs in open-canopy ponds, were more strongly affected by closed-canopy pond conditions. 3.,Closed-canopy ponds had lower temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), and food nutritional quality as indicated by carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C : N) analysis of field-sampled food types, and of gut contents of transplanted larvae. 4.,Laboratory experiments demonstrated that higher temperature and food quality but not DO substantially increased larval growth. However, only food quality increased growth rates of leopard frogs more than wood frogs. 5.,The strong correlation of growth rates to gut content C : N in the field, and the similarity of growth curves as a function of resource quality in the field and laboratory, strongly suggest that resources are of primary importance in mediating intraspecific, and especially interspecific differences in performance across the canopy cover gradient. [source] Measuring natural abundance of 13C in respired CO2: variability and implications for non-invasive dietary analysisFUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY, Issue 6 2001S. E. PERKINS Summary 1,Three experiments were performed, using laboratory mice (Mus musculus) as a model species, to evaluate the potential of using measurements of carbon isotope ratios in expired CO2 for tracing diets. 2,Breath 13C signatures of mice fed a constant diet (,21·4, ± 0·35) reflected their diet, but were depleted by on average ,5·7,. Body mass, sex and age were independent and significant factors correlated with the variability of 13C enrichment in respired CO2. 3,Breath 13C signatures from starved mice (7 h) were lower than unstarved mice by 2·0,. Subsequently when starved mice were fed a small meal of a new diet, breath 13C signatures approached those of the new diets within 15 min, returning to preingestion levels after 105 min. 4,After a permanent diet switch 13C values of breath were not asymptotic within 6 days, possibly because of use of fat reserves during the daytime carrying an isotopic memory of the previous diet. Hence, individual breath 13C signatures may vary according to nutritive state and previous dietary history. 5,Interindividual variability was measured at 3·3,. The implications are that large samples of individuals will be required to distinguish between diets of different populations where the isotopic difference between their diets was small , for example, that expected between herbivorous and carnivorous diets. However, breath would be suitable for distinguishing between dietary intakes of individuals for food types that are isotopically more distinct , such as between C3 and C4 plants. [source] Secondary Production and Its Trophic Basis of Two Mayfly Species in a Subtropical Stream of ChinaINTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF HYDROBIOLOGY, Issue 2 2006Yunjun Yan Abstract During June 2003 to June 2004, an investigation on life cycle, production and trophic basis of two species of mayfly in a second-order river of Hanjiang River Basin, Hubei, China was conducted. The results showed Epeorus sinensisUmler and Caenis nigropunctataWu both developed two generations a year. The mean annual production and P/B ratio of E. sinensis were 9.154 g m,2 a,1 dry weight and 16.0, and those of C. nigropunctata were 1.554 g m,2 a,1 and 9.6, respectively. For E. sinensis , the proportions contributing to secondary production of the main food types were: amorphous detritus 33.46%, fungi 10.8%, vascular plant detritus 1.8%, diatoms 53.9%; for C.nigropunctata , the proportions were 70.8%, 6.90%, 3.5% and 18.8%, respectively. Compared with those species reported in North America and Europe, although land use mode and local climate were greatly different in China, life history and trophic basis of the mayflies seemed roughly similar, yet secondary production appeared to be much higher. (© 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] The food and feeding habits of the silver pomfret, Pampus argenteus (Euphrasen), in Kuwait watersJOURNAL OF APPLIED ICHTHYOLOGY, Issue 2 2000By S. Dadzie The food habits of the silver pomfret, Pampus argenteus (Euphrasen 1788), in Kuwait waters were investigated by examining the stomach contents of 738 specimens collected from May 1996 to April 1997. Their diet consisted of a broad spectrum of food types, but Crustacea were dominant, with copepods and their eggs constituting 39 % other non-copepod Crustacea constituted 16 %. The next major food group was Bacillariophyta (21 %), followed by Mollusca (11 %), fish scales (10 %) and, finally, fish eggs and larvae (3 %). In summer the species fed on a wider variety of food items than in winter. Copepods, other non-copepod crustaceans, and molluscs tended to occur in the stomachs in higher frequencies with an increase in P. argenteus size (up to 18.5,20.4 cm), while the bacillariophytes tended to increase in stomachs at fish sizes between 22.5,24.5 cm. Analysis of monthly variations in stomach fullness indicated that feeding intensity fluctuated throughout the year, with a low during August and September, corresponding to the spawning period. [source] Subjective food intake ability in relation to the Mixing Ability Index in Korean adultsJOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 4 2010S.H. JEONG Summary, This study examined the association between the subjective food intake ability (FIA) using a questionnaire with 30 types of foods and the objective Mixing Ability Index (MAI) using a two-coloured wax cube. A total of 147 subjects (32 males, 115 females, mean age: 54·9 ± 20·7) were enrolled in this study. The FIA for 30 food types and the key food intake ability (KFIA) for five key food types were obtained using a self-assessed questionnaire to evaluate the subjective chewing ability. The objective chewing ability was evaluated by asking the subjects to chew a wax cube for 10 strokes. The MAI was calculated by image analysis of the chewed wax cube. The Pearson's correlation between the subjective FIA and objective MAI was analysed according to age and number of post-canine teeth lost. The FIA for the 30 foods and five key food types showed a moderate correlation with the MAI (r = 0·51, 0·55, respectively, P < 0·01). The KFIA of the denture wearing group (r = 0·44, P < 0·01) and over 60-year-old group (r = 0·49, P < 0·01) showed a significantly higher correlation with the MAI than the other groups. In conclusion, there was a moderate correlation between the subjective FIA and objective MAI in Korean adults. [source] Distance of the contact glide in the closing masticatory stroke during mastication of three types of foodJOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 8 2009B. RILO Summary, This study was designed to characterize the distance of the contact glide in the closing masticatory stroke in healthy adult subjects, during chewing of three types of food (crustless bread, chewing gum and peanuts). Mandibular movements (masticatory movements and laterality movements with dental contact) were registered using a gnathograph (MK-6I Diagnostic System) on the right and left side during unilateral chewing of the three food types. Length of dental contact was measured in masticatory cycle, which is defined as where the terminal part of the chewing cycles could be superimposed on the pathways taken by the mandible during lateral excursions with occlusal contacts. The length of dental contact during mastication of chewing gum is 1·46 ± 1 mm, during chewing of soft bread is 1·38 ± 0·7 mm and during chewing of peanuts is 1·45 ± 0·9 mm. There is no significant difference in the lengths of dental contact during mastication of three types of foods that enable direct tooth gliding. [source] Subjective food intake ability in relation to maximal bite force among Korean adultsJOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 3 2009B. I. KIM Summary, This study examined the relationship between the subjective food intake of 30 food types and their objective bite force to identify the key food items within the 30 food types to achieve a greater depth of masticatory function in Korean adults. A sample of 308 (112 males and 196 females) adults over the age of 20 (average age, 48·6) was selected among patients who visited four dental hospitals in Seoul, Korea. The subjective masticatory ability was evaluated through an interview with food intake ability questionnaires consisting of 30 food types ranging from hard to soft using a five-step Likert scale. The objective maximal bite force was measured using pressure-sensitive films. The relationship between the food intake ability and bite force was analysed and stratified according to age, gender, number of post-canine teeth lost and several clinical oral health indicators. The key foods were selected using correlation and factor analysis. The subjective food intake ability between the 30 foods and key foods were tested by cluster and one-way anova analysis. The Pearson's correlation coefficient between food intake ability and bite force was 0·45 (P < 0·01). The five key food items selected were dried cuttlefish, raw carrot, dried peanut, cubed white radish kimchi and caramel. The correlation coefficient between the food intake ability and bite force of these items was 0·51 (P < 0·01). These results suggest that the subjective food intake ability using the 30 and five key foods can be used to evaluate the masticatory function in Korean adults. [source] Chewing-side determination of three food texturesJOURNAL OF ORAL REHABILITATION, Issue 1 2006J. PAPHANGKORAKIT summary, Food texture affects chewing movement but it is not known if it also affects the chewing-side pattern. This study determined the chewing sides of three test foods with different textures during habitual chewing. Twenty healthy dental students (aged 20,24 years) chewed pieces of pork jerky, fresh asparagus and almonds on two separate sessions (1 week apart). In each session, each subject chewed 30 food specimens, 10 of the same food type, until swallowing while a video camera recorded the displacement of the chin with respect to the other two reference points vertically marked along the facial midline. A slow-speed video playback was used to identify the chewing side of each cycle. The chewing-side pattern (right preference, left preference, no preference) in each individual was determined statistically. The results showed that overall, 11 subjects did not have any side preference whereas six and three subjects preferred to chew on right or left sides respectively. The chewing-side pattern remained unchanged between three food types in about half of the subjects. When the same food was compared between 2 days, the chewing-side pattern of almonds was shown to be most reproducible (18 subjects). Unidentified cycles with little or no lateral displacement, labelled as bilateral, were observed more frequently near the end of the chewing sequence with more occurrences in almonds and jerky than asparagus (P < 0·01). It was suggested that chewing-side preference is not a fixed characteristic. Food texture seemed to influence the side preference and also the occurrence of bilateral cycles. [source] Birds select conventional over organic wheat when given free choiceJOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 11 2010Ailsa J McKenzie Abstract BACKGROUND: Global demand for organic produce is increasing by ,4 billion annually. One key reason why consumers buy organic food is because they consider it to be better for human and animal health. Reviews comparing organic and conventional food have stated that organic food is preferred by birds and mammals in choice tests. RESULTS: This study shows the opposite result,that captive birds in the laboratory and wild garden birds both consumed more conventional than organic wheat when given free choice. There was a lag in preference formation during which time birds learnt to distinguish between the two food types, which is likely to explain why the present results differ from those of previous studies. A further experiment confirmed that, of 16 potential causal factors, detection by birds of consistently higher levels of protein in conventional seeds (a common difference between many organic and conventional foodstuffs) is the likely mechanism behind this pattern. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that the current dogma that organic food is preferred to conventional food may not always be true, which is of considerable importance for consumer perceptions of organically grown food. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Multi-laboratory validation of a standard method for quantifying proanthocyanidins in cranberry powdersJOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 9 2010Ronald L Prior Abstract BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to validate an improved 4-dimethylaminocinnamaldehyde (DMAC) colorimetric method using a commercially available standard (procyanidin A2), for the standard method for quantification of proanthocyanidins (PACs) in cranberry powders, in order to establish dosage guidelines for the uropathogenic bacterial anti-adhesion effect of cranberry. RESULTS: Commercially available cranberry samples were obtained (five from U.S. sources and six from European sources) for PAC quantification in five different analytical laboratories. Each laboratory extracted and analyzed the samples using the improved DMAC method. Within-laboratory variation (mean ± SD) was 4.1 ± 1.7% RSD (range, 2.3,6.1% RSD) and the between laboratory variability was 16.9 ± 8.5% RSD (range, 8,32% RSD). For comparative purposes, the cranberry samples were alternatively quantified using weights of extracted PACs (gravimetric). The correlation coefficient between the two methods was 0.989. CONCLUSION: This improved DMAC method provides a simple, robust and relatively specific spectrophotometric assay for total PACs in cranberry samples using commercially available procyanidin A2 dimer as a standard. DMAC is most useful within a given type of food such as cranberries, but may not be appropriate for comparing concentrations across different food types, particularly in those cases where large differences exist among the relative amounts of each oligomer and polymer. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Comparison of in vitro starch digestibility methods for predicting the glycaemic index of grain foodsJOURNAL OF THE SCIENCE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, Issue 4 2008Kirsty A Germaine Abstract BACKGROUND:In vitro starch digestibility tests are useful for the prediction of glycaemic index (GI). However, there are no internationally recognised methods and no one method has been found to be suitable for all food types. This study compared six in vitro methods, using four grain foods, including those with a varied particle size and soluble fibre content. Method variations included using chewing or mincing, mincing with or without amylase and incubation in a restricted versus non-restricted system. Hydrolysis index (HI) values, calculated from the starch digestibility curves and GI prediction equations were used to compare the in vitro results to GI. RESULTS: HI values for five of the six methods ranked all foods in the same order as the GI values. Using a GI prediction equation (predicted GIHI) the mincing (without amylase) non-restricted method had the smallest standard error of prediction between the predicted GIHI and GI values. This method was then validated using 14 grain foods and demonstrated a significant correlation (r = 0.93, P < 0.01) between the in vitro starch digestibility and reported GI responses. CONCLUSIONS: The non-restricted mincing method showed good potential as a new in vitro starch digestibility method for predicting GI in grain foods. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Optimal foraging on the roof of the world: Himalayan langurs and the classical prey modelAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY, Issue 3 2010Ken Sayers Abstract Optimal foraging theory has only been sporadically applied to nonhuman primates. The classical prey model, modified for patch choice, predicts a sliding "profitability threshold" for dropping patch types from the diet, preference for profitable foods, dietary niche breadth reduction as encounter rates increase, and that exploitation of a patch type is unrelated to its own abundance. We present results from a 1-year study testing these predictions with Himalayan langurs (Semnopithecus entellus) at Langtang National Park, Nepal. Behavioral data included continuous recording of feeding bouts and between-patch travel times. Encounter rates were estimated for 55 food types, which were analyzed for crude protein, lipid, free simple sugar, and fibers. Patch types were entered into the prey model algorithm for eight seasonal time periods and differing age-sex classes and nutritional currencies. Although the model consistently underestimated diet breadth, the majority of nonpredicted patch types represented rare foods. Profitability was positively related to annual/seasonal dietary contribution by organic matter estimates, whereas time estimates provided weaker relationships. Patch types utilized did not decrease with increasing encounter rates involving profitable foods, although low-ranking foods available year-round were taken predominantly when high-ranking foods were scarce. High-ranking foods were taken in close relation to encounter rates, while low-ranking foods were not. The utilization of an energetic currency generally resulted in closest conformation to model predictions, and it performed best when assumptions were most closely approximated. These results suggest that even simple models from foraging theory can provide a useful framework for the study of primate feeding behavior. Am J Phys Anthropol, 2010. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Methods for calculating activity budgets compared: a case study using orangutansAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 4 2009Mark E. Harrison Abstract The results of comparisons of behavioral data between individuals, age,sex classes, seasons, sites and possibly even species may depend on sample size and the computational method used. To establish whether these are valid concerns, we compared results for percentage time spent feeding on major food types (fruit, leaves, flowers, invertebrates, bark, pith and other) for two orangutan populations in Sabangau (24 months) and Tuanan (29 months), Indonesian Borneo. Both the minimum follow limit included in analyses and the computational method used produced small, but statistically significant, differences in the results obtained, and the differences were more common for food types eaten less frequently. In addition, using different computational methods produced more significant differences than did including different minimum follow lengths in analyses. The computational method used also influenced the results of tests for differences in diet composition between age,sex classes. Thus, the method used can influence the results obtained and, hence, it is important to state explicitly the minimum follow limit included and computational method used to compile averages, and to ensure standardization in methods when comparing data between age,sex classes, time periods, field sites or species. Am. J. Primatol. 71:353,358, 2009. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] An experimental analysis of ingestion rates in an omnivorous speciesAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 5 2008M. Stammati Abstract Food intake is difficult to estimate under natural conditions. We investigated ingestion rates of 14 different food types in 26 captive capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella). The procedure consisted in weighing a piece of food and using a two alternative choice tests to present food to the subject, alone in its cage. We recorded the food chosen and the time it took the subject to consume the food entirely. Consumption time was converted into ingestion rates (g/s) for each food type. Ingestion rates of food types significantly differed, and the difference was significantly higher among foods than among subjects. In particular, ingestion rates of the fruits were higher than those of human-processed food. Interestingly, food preferences were significantly related to energy intake rate, i.e., to the amount of energy ingested per unit of time, but not with ingestion rates or energy content alone. The energy acquired by eating different types of food cannot be calculated on the basis of the time spent eating unless a correction factor for each given food (or similar ones) is applied. Future controlled studies should provide field researchers with such corrections factors, possibly using foods collected in the wild. Am. J. Primatol. 70:510,513, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Oral health of Adelaide nursing home residents: longitudinal studyAUSTRALASIAN JOURNAL ON AGEING, Issue 2 2004JM Chalmers Objective: The Adelaide Dental Study of Nursing Homes aimed to quantify oral disease experience, incidence and increments in Adelaide nursing home residents. Methods: Questionnaires and dental inspections were completed at baseline and at 1-year for residents from randomly selected Adelaide nursing homes. Results: The residents were very functionally dependent, cognitively impaired and behaviourally difficult older adults with complex oral problems and dental treatment needs. The prevalence of edentulism (total tooth loss) (63%) decreased and more residents were retaining natural teeth. Existing residents had a mean of 10.8 teeth present and new residents had a mean of 12.7 teeth present. Residents' previous experiences of caries (decay) were high , existing residents had a mean of 1.2 decayed teeth and new residents had a mean of 0.8 decayed teeth. Residents' caries increments (new decay) over the 1-year period were high (coronal = 2.5 surfaces; root = 1.0 surfaces), especially in those who had lost weight and who could eat fewer food types. These levels of caries were many times greater than had been reported for community-dwelling older adults. Large accumulations of plaque, calculus and debris (food) were evident on residents' natural teeth and dentures, especially those with dementia. Up to 25% of residents owned dentures that were not worn. Residents with dementia gave their carers complex and challenging oral hygiene care problems. Existing and new residents had similar general health and oral health characteristics, with the exceptions that new residents had significantly more filled tooth surfaces, and fewer decayed retained roots. Conclusion: New residents were being admitted to the nursing homes with a compromised oral health status or developed severe oral diseases and conditions within several months of their admittance. Residents' oral diseases, especially coronal and root caries, rapidly progressed during their stay in residential care. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||