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Healthy And Unhealthy Diet Intake And Carotid Intima Media Thickness In Older Adults, Kelsey Joelle Da Silva

Theses and Dissertations

Background -- Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a primary premature killer of adults and risk of CVD has been linked to modifiable risk factors including dietary intake. Many diet assessment tools are costly, time consuming, and complicated. This study investigated the relationship between diet quality and cardiovascular disease risk as indicated by carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) using a validated, simple, self-administered rapid food screener. Methods -- Participants were 51 male and 33 female older adults with an average age of 67 years. Carotid intima-media thickness was assessed using B-mode high resolution diagnostic ultrasound. Unhealthy and healthy diet intake was assessed using …

Translocation Mortality And Local, Regional, And Continental Diet Of The Northern River Otter (Lontra Canadensis), Casey Craig Day

Theses and Dissertations

The northern river otter (Lontra canadensis) is a semi-aquatic carnivore whose range extends throughout most of the United States and Canada. The northern river otter experienced a severe range contraction post-European settlement, but due to widespread management has in recent decades begun to recover much of its former range and habitat. We translocated 27 river otters from Utah and Idaho to the Provo River, Utah from November 2009 through January 2012 in a reintroduction effort to restore the northern river otter to its native range. Of these 27 otters, 6 died as a result of effects related to the translocation. …

Association Between Nutrition And Cognitive Function In Costa Rican Older Adults, Maria Aragon

All Theses

Older adults are among the fastest-growing segment of the world's population. In Costa Rica, life expectancy is comparable to developed countries, such as the United States and Western European countries. The loss of cognitive capacity is one of the most significant issues affecting the quality of life of older adults and their families. Although the causes of cognitive decline remain uncertain, it has been linked to cardiovascular risk factors such as diabetes mellitus and high blood pressure. Dietary fatty acids have an important role in these conditions, making it is plausible that they could play a role in cognitive deterioration …

Does A Group Lifestyle Behaviour Change Program (Prepare) Have An Impact On The Nutritional And Health Characteristics In Adults With Prediabetes?, Jennifer Broxterman

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Objective: Lifestyle interventions that target diet and physical activity have been shown to reduce the development of Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in individuals at risk; however, accessible and effective community-based prevention programs remain lacking. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of PREPARE, a group lifestyle behaviour change program in adults with prediabetes.

Methods: Adults diagnosed with prediabetes could self-select PREPARE (n=48, intervention arm), consisting of six monthly group nutrition and physical activity education sessions, or, a one-time group education session (n=15, controls), both aimed to prevent Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). Primary outcome measures included dietary, …

Seasonal Food Habits Of Burrowing Owls (Athene Cunicularia) In Human-Altered Landscapes, Carie Marie Wingert

Master's Theses

In 2004, I initiated a year-long study to investigate the food habits of burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia). Burrowing owls have been found in a variety of human-altered landscapes; however, little is known about burrowing owl food habits in urban landscapes. Burrowing owl food habits during the non-breeding season are also largely undocumented, despite increasing concern over the survival of overwintering burrowing owls. Differences in prey consumption between reproductive and non-reproductive owls during the breeding season have not yet been examined. I collected pellets over a 12 month period at four study sites affected by different levels of human …

The Relationship Between Self-Efficacy And Fluid,And Dietary Compliance In Hemodialysis Patients, Ansy Paul John

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) who receive hemodialysis often fail to follow a prescribed diet and fluid regimen, which undermines the effectiveness of care and leads to unpredictable disease progression and greater likelihood of complications. Non-adherence to dietary and fluid limitations compromises the outcomes of patients receiving hemodialysis. Noncompliance can lead to detrimental long-term outcomes including deterioration of the cardiovascular system, heart failure, hypertension, and pulmonary edema as well as short-term problems such as edema, itching, bone pain, and breathlessness.

Many studies have demonstrated that self-efficacy strategies are associated with improved dietary and fluid compliance among individuals receiving hemodialysis. …

Influence Of The Home Environment On Preschoolers’ Dietary Intake In Middle Class Families Enrolled In A Preschool Program In Metropolitan Seattle, Jessica M. Macintyre

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

Background: Obesity in the United States has become a major health issue, affecting not only adults, but children as well. The increase among preschool children is of major concern, with 2 out of 10 children in 2008 being overweight or obese. It is important to start obesity prevention at a young age in order to avoid the development of obesity and its detrimental health conditions. Children begin to develop eating habits at a young age, and the home eating environment may have an influence on the development of eating habits.
Purpose: To assess the influence of both a positive and …

Activity And Diet Of Bats In Apple Orchards Of Southern Michigan, Brenna Lynn Smith

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

I studied activity and diet of bats in apple orchards in southern Michigan. There was no difference between organic and conventional orchards in number and composition of insects captured with light traps, number of bats captured with mist nets, or number of acoustic files of bat activity that were recorded. The majority of insects captured were Coleptera, Diptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, and Trichoptera. Only two species of bats were caught: big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) and eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis). Most calls were produced by big brown bats, followed by hoary bats (L. cinereus), red …

A Dietary Study Of Big Brown (Eptesicus Fuscus) And Northern Bats (Myotis Septentrionalis) In Western Kentucky, Sarah Elizabeth Asher

Online Theses and Dissertations

Knowledge is lacking regarding the dietary habits of northern (Myotis septentrionalis) and big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus) in Kentucky. The objective of this study was to determine the prey items consumed by both species at three sites in western Kentucky. Totals of 103 fecal pellet samples from northern bats and 36 fecal pellet samples from big brown bats were collected in 2003 and 2004. Overall prey items found within the samples collected for both species indicated their diets were similar (Sorensen's coefficient; S_S= 0.72); with the most common insect orders being Coleoptera, Lepidoptera, and …

Diet, Bacteria And Inflammation: The Intestinal Mucosa And Metabolic Syndrome, Nadeem K. Mohammed

Theses and Dissertations--Nutritional Sciences

Long term consumption of a high fat diet (HFD) increases the risk of developing Metabolic Syndrome and type 2 diabetes. This led us to hypothesize that long term HFD consumption impairs immune tolerance to the intestinal bacteria. Our studies had two goals. First, we characterized the effect of long term HFD consumption on the systemic immune response by comparing C57BL6 mice fed a HFD and low fat diet (LFD). Plasma immunoglobulin G (IgG) against Escherichia coli (LF-82), E. coli (Nissle 1917), Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron and Lactobacillus acidophilus were measured by a lab-developed ELISA. Fasting blood glucose and inflammation were measured in …