Montserrat Rivero

Assessment of the intake of tryptophan-enriched cereals in the elderly and its influence on the sleep-wake circadian rhythm

Sleep-wake circadian rhythm disturbances are a common problem associated to aging. Although this problem can be caused by several factors, low levels of the indol melatonin are related with these alterations. Our aim was to evaluate if the consumption of cereals enriched with tryptophan, the precursor of both serotonin and melatonin, can enhance sleep problems in elderly people. Participants (n=12; aged 55-67 yr) were selected from Elderly people University of The University of Extremadura. During all the assay participants wore a wrist actimeter and they filled every week an STAI anxiety test. Data were collected following this schedule: Control week: participants ingested a control cereal both at breakfast anddinner (22.5 mg tryptophan/ 30g product per dose); Treatment Week: volunteers consumed a tryptophan enriched cereal both at breakfast and dinner (60mg tryptophan/30g product per dose); Post-treatment week: participants ingested their habitual diet. We observed a decrease in sleep latency (p 0.05) and sleep fragmentation (p<0.001); on the other hand, an increase in actual sleep time (p<0.01), sleep efficiency (p<0.01) and immobile time (p<0.01) were detected. With respect to the anxiety test, there was an improvement in the state of anxiety. In conclusion, through a tryptophanenriched diet age related sleep problems can be improved.

Valoración nutricional en lactantes de entre 8 a 12 meses de vida

Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the diet of infants that receive supplemental breast milk, by way of a two-week survey on nutrition consumption, completed by the parents of infants between 8 and 12 months of age from the province of Badajoz, Spain. Dial ® software was used for the nutritional analysis and quantification. Results: The analysis of the daily diet shows in this study that it is repetitive and equivalent in all infants during this age interval, which is made: at the beginning of the day for follow-on milk and infantile cereals, followed by vegetable baby food with meat, fruit baby food, and finally at the end of