Miho Kogirima

Ratio of low serum zinc levels in elderly Japanese people living in the central part of Japan

Objective:Elderly patients often have impaired taste, nausea, anorexia and delayed healing of decubitus. In many of these patients, serum zinc levels are low and they respond to zinc supplementation. To date, no epidemics of zinc deficiency have been reported in Japan. We studied the prevalence of zinc deficiency and its causative factors in a typical local town in Japan.Design:Cross-sectional study.Setting:Nagano Prefecture (central Japan).Subjects and methods:Serum zinc levels were measured in 1009 habitants (18–96 years old) who participated in an annual mass health examination program of the City in 2003. Of all subjects, 86 with low serum zinc (<65 μg/dl) or high zinc (⩾90 μg/dl) levels were randomly selected, and a dietary survey using 24-h recalling methods for 2 consecutive days was performed in 2004. Among them, blood was collected in the morning from 50 subjects (26–94 years old).Results:The percentage of those with low serum zinc levels (2.5th percentile of Americans) was 37.9% in the elderly (⩾60 years old). The age-adjusted prevalence of low serum zinc was 21.1% in the aged population. A positive correlation was detected between zinc intake and serum zinc levels in elderly subjects (⩾60 years old).Conclusions:The possibility of zinc deficiency in adult inhabitants in central Japan rises with age. The deficiency correlates with dietary zinc intake.Sponsorship:This research was supported by a grant from local government officials in Tomi City (2004) and the funding of Fancl Corporation.

ADSORPTION REMOVAL OF PARAQUAT AND DIQUAT ONTO ACTIVATED CARBON AT DIFFERENT ADSORPTION TEMPERATURE

The efficacy of activated carbon as an oral adsorbent in removing paraquat and diquat from purified water and physiological saline solution at different temperatures was investigated for the primary treatment of acute poisoning. The amounts of paraquat and diquat adsorbed onto activated carbon were large in low temperature condition. The adsorption mode of paraquat and diquat onto activated carbon was mainly physical adsorption. It was recognized that the high adsorption ratio of paraquat and diquat onto activated carbon was obtained by the administration of low temperature suspended solution which was a mixture of activated carbon and gastrointestinal lavage detergent.

Development of a simple and objective evaluation method for thickened liquids using funnels

Some patients with dysphagia are prone to aspiration of low-viscosity liquids. Thickened liquids are often used in attempts to prevent aspiration. The patients should be given thickened liquids with suitable thickness, and the thickness should be constant at all time. While rotational and cone-and-plate viscometers are used for the evaluation of thickened liquids, they are high-precision and expensive equipment. To control the thickness of liquids, a simple and objective evaluation method is thus necessary. We developed a method to evaluate thickened liquids using funnels, and verified the appropriateness of this method. We measured the outflow times of five thickened liquids through funnels. One of the thickened liquids was a commercially available nutritional supplement, another was made with a thickening agent that contained guar gum, and all others were made with a thickening agent that contained xanthan gum. Four funnels with different stem sizes were tested. We found that the outflow time of thickened liquids through a funnel depended on their viscosities at a shear rate between 10 and 50 s-1 , when the average inner diameter of the stem was in the range of 5.3-9.0 mm, and the volume of the liquid poured into the funnel was 30 mL. The correlation coefficient between the value of the sensory evaluation and the outflow time of the funnel with an average stem ID of 5.3 mm was 0.946. Therefore, this method may be useful in hospital and nursing home kitchens for evaluating thickened liquids. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS The findings of this study will help develop a new method for the evaluation of thickened liquids. Funnels made from polypropylene, which are inexpensive and light, were used in this method. The process for measuring the outflow time of thickened liquids through a funnel is simple, and we can obtain quantitative data that are objective. Even though line spread test (LST) is well known as a simple measurement method, nutritional supplements and liquids thickened using a thickening agent containing guar gum have not been evaluated accurately. The funnel method was found to have a stronger correlation with sensory evaluation compared to LST. This method is useful in hospital and nursing home kitchens for evaluating thickened liquids.

In vitro adsorption characteristics of acetaminophen with activated carbon varying in particle size

Adsorption characteristics of acetaminophen onto activated carbon of varying particle sizes was investigated for emerging treatment of acute poisoning in vitro. No difference in the equilibrium amount of acetaminophen adsorbed among activated carbon of varying particle size was observed. This result could be explained by the properties of activated carbon. The smaller the particle size of activated carbon, the faster the acetaminophen was removed. It was assumed that the increase of contact surface area (external surface area) due to smaller particle size accelerated the adsorption of acetaminophen onto activated carbon.

Cooking Methods for a Soft Diet Using Chicken Based on Food Texture Analysis

Undernutrition caused by difficulties in masticating is of growing concern among the elderly. Soft diets are often served at nursing homes; however, the styles differ with nursing homes. Improperly modified food texture and consistency may lead to further loss of nutritive value. Therefore, we developed a method to produce a soft diet using chicken. The texture-modified chicken was prepared by boiling a mixture of minced chicken and additive foodstuff that softened the meat. The best food additive was determined through testing cooking process, size after modification and texture. The optimum proportions of each component in the mixture were determined measuring food texture using a creep meter. Teriyaki chicken was cooked using the texture-modified chicken, and provided to a nursing home. The amount of food intake by elderly residents was subsequently surveyed. This study involved 22 residents (1 man and 21 women; mean age 91.4±5.3 y). Consequently, yakifu, which was made from wheat gluten, was the most suitable additive foodstuff. The hardness of the texture-modified chicken, with proportions of minced chicken, yakifu, and water being 50%, 10%, and 40% respectively, was under 40,000 N/m2. The intake amount of the texture-modified chicken of subjects whose intake amount of conventional chicken using chicken thigh was not 100% was significantly higher. These findings suggest that properly modified food textures could contribute to improve the quality of meals by preventing undernutrition among the elderly with mastication difficulties.