Findings

Click here for our past findings.

     Nutrition is one of today's most talked about topics. People who care about how they look and feel know that "eating right" is vital to their good health. Nutrition researchers are being challenged with many questions about food -- how the body uses it, and what the body requires.

     At the Western Human Nutrition Research Center (WHNRC), scientists who specialize in nutrition, exercise physiology, biochemistry and related sciences conduct experiments to answer two crucial questions: 

   How can we determine -- quickly and accurately -- whether an individual is getting the correct amount of a particular nutrient? 

   What amounts and what combination of nutrients do we need for good health?

     In addition to health-conscious consumers, other users of our research findings include physicians, nutritionists, other healthcare professionals and members of national committees responsible for setting the nation's nutrition guidelines. Results of some of our studies are highlighted below:

Weight Loss, Nutrition, and Health

  • Women who restrained their food intake had lower amounts of minerals in their bones, suggesting that chronic dieting may increase the risk of osteoporosis.
  • Feelings of hunger in dieting women were stronger in those with the greatest fall in serum leptin, a hormone produced by fat cells.
  • Dieting for 3 days or less caused volunteers to burn fewer calories following typical physical activities.

Minerals:  Critical for Health

  • Consumption of a diet low in zinc and iron for less than 3 months reduced short-term memory in healthy men.
  • The molecular message for a zinc- containing protein dropped quickly when zinc intake was low, suggesting the message may be a useful indicator of zinc status.

Antioxidants and Human Health

  • The need for choline, a neurotransmitter found in meat, dairy and soybean products, increases when intake of folate is low.
  • Giving vitamin A and beta-carotene supplements improved the immune systems of HIV+ men in Africa.

Nutrition and Immune Function

  • Diets high in docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid, depressed the inflammatory response (i.e., the release of eicosanoids and cytokines) suggesting that DHA may help ameloriate inflammatory conditions such as arthritis.  High intakes of DHA also lowered serum triglyercide concentrations in healthy men showing that DHA may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
  • Vitamin A is required for the body's infection- fighting T-lymphocytes to develop normally, and to produce cytokines when stimulated by pathogens.

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This site last updated: 9/28/04