The emphasis of the study was to determine the degree of correlation between the Conicity Index and known risk factors for heart disease. Conicity Index was shown in one study to be a useful screening tool in assessing the relationship between body composition and risk for heart disease. This study was designed to provide nutrition education and teach lifestyle modification to fourteen Veteran's Affairs patients. Change in specific risk factors including Waist-to-Hip Ratio, Body Mass Index, serum lipid levels and dietary intakes were correlated with change in Conicity Index over the six month study. Results from the present study did not suggest that the Conicity Index would serve as an effective screening tool for the present population. Mean body weight, body mass index, hip circumference, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, total caloric and fat intake all decreased significantly as a result of the program. Through nutrition education, behavior modification and group support, the risk for heart disease was successfully modified in this population. / Department of Family and Consumer Sciences

Selected anthropometric (body weight and BMI), dietary (kilocalories, carbohydrate, protein, total fat, saturated fat, linoleic acid, oleic acid, dietary cholesterol, and P/S ratio), blood pressure, and blood lipid parameters (total cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglyceride (TG), and TC/HDL-C and LDL-C/HDL-C ratios) were assessed in 67 males from the Cardiac Therapy and Intervention Program at Virginia Tech. Several studies have found strong correlations between these variables and the incidence of coronary heart disease. The group (cardiac or intervention), status (active or inactive), time (1982-83 baseline period, 1983-84 short-term follow-up period, and 1986 long-term follow-up period), and the group and status combination (cardiac active (CA), cardiac inactive (CI), intervention active (IA), and intervention inactive (II)) were chosen for statistical analysis to determine if there were significant differences due to these effects. The P/S ratio ( < 1.0), the dietary cholesterol intake ( > 250 mg), the level of blood cholesterol ( > 200 mg/dl), and the TC/HDL-C and the LDL-C/HDL-C ratios ( > average risk) were identified as areas which needed improvement in all groups. Compared to the dietary guidelines proposed by American Heart Association (AHA), all combinations of comparisons across three time periods exhibited higher percentages of kilocalories provided by total fat, saturated fat, and protein, and lower percentages of kilocalories provided by linoleic acid and carbohydrate. The HDL-C levels were below the fiftieth percentiles relative to, the Lipid Research Clinics Population Study data. Blood pressures were under good control. The four subgroups exhibited significantly different mean body weights and TC/HDL-C and LDL-C/HDL-C ratios. The II group had the highest values for all these variables, the lowest mean body weight was seen in the CI group, and the IA group had the lowest mean values for the latter two ratios. There was a trend toward the lowest mean dietary intake and blood lipid levels occurring at the short-term follow-up period; however, only the mean intakes of total calories and carbohydrate and the blood LDL-C levels were significantly different among the three time periods. The lowest mean values for these three variables occurred at the short-term follow-up period while the highest mean values occurred at the long-term follow-up period. The group effect was seen in the mean intakes of total fat, saturated fat, linoleic acid, oleic acid, and the percentage of kilocalories as fat and the mean levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressures. The intervention group exhibited the higher mean values for these variables. The major difference relative to status was in the mean values of the TC/HDL-C ratio. The inactive participants had the higher mean value. The results of a discriminant analysis procedure which was used to determine which combination of risk factors was most influential in distinguishing the cardiac group from the intervention group indicated that abnormal electrocardiogram test res~lts and age were the most influential factors of those studied. / M.S.

Thesis (MNutr (Interdisciplinary Health Sciences. Human Nutrition))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / OBJECTIVE: The primary aim of the study was to determine the nutritional status of vegetarian and non-vegetarian students in relation to their dietary preferences and risk factors (dietary, physical inactivity and obesity) for CHD. DESIGN: Cross-sectional analytical study. Setting: The Adventist International Institute of Advanced Studies (AIIAS) situated in the province of Cavite, Philippines. METHODS: The sampling frame was all graduate students at AIIAS (n=203). Of these students 153 returned the distributed dietary questionnaires which determined dietary practices, thus yielding a stratified random sample of 70 registered students (≥20y and ≤50y) who met the inclusion criteria of the study. Three 24-hour recalls and a self-administered food frequency questionnaire assessed dietary practices. Lifestyle was assessed by means of questionnaires, which also included the socio-demographic characteristics of the subjects. Anthropometric measurements included height, weight and waist circumferences. RESULTS: Seventy subjects participated in the study [non-vegetarian (n=38) and vegetarian (n=32)]. The mean age of subjects was 33.3 [(SD) 1.6] and 38.4 (1.9) years for non-vegetarian and vegetarian males respectively, with the respective means for females being 35.7 (2.0) and 33.2 (2.1) years. The majority of the vegetarians’ income was insignificantly below $10.000 as compared with that of non-vegetarians’, in whom annual income earned was within the $10.000- $50.000 range per year. Variations in level of education between the dietary groups were small and inconsistent, most of whom were characterized by a high education level. Within this cohort, mean BMI and WC were insignificantly lower in the vegetarians when compared with the non-vegetarians. For males, the prevalence of overweight, pre-obese and obese (p>0.05) for non-vegetarians was insignificantly higher than vegetarians. Insignificantly, female vegetarians were more pre-obese than non-vegetarians. As far as waist circumference was concerned, the prevalence of subjects observed in the alerting (≥94cm) and action zone (≥102cm) (p≤0.05) was 21% and 4% for non-vegetarian males, while 0% and 6% for vegetarian males. For females, more vegetarians were insignificantly prevalent in the alerting zone (≥80cm) as compared to the nonvegetarians. Both dietary cohorts illustrated no considerable differences that exemplified moderate to a high level of physical activity. All subjects, regardless of dietary preference, were non-smokers and consumed no alcohol (p>0.05). Overall, mean daily nutrient intake met current recommendations and there was no statistically significant difference between the two cohorts, except for fat and saturated fatty acids (SFA), which was higher among the non-vegetarians. Carbohydrate and fiber consumption was greater in the vegetarians. According to the DRIs, there were no intakes above the UL, however inadequate intakes of calcium and zinc posed possible risk of deficiency for both dietary groups. CONCLUSIONS: A small percentage of subjects in both cohorts were at risk of CHD morbidity. Both groups followed good lifestyle habits with dietary choices being of greater concern among non-vegetarians.