RECENT RESEARCH
Design : This is a 1-month pre – post study design including three points of contact : baseline , in-person class , and 1-month follow-up .
Subjects : Participants ( n = 15 ) were Cantonese-speaking / reading Chinese Americans diagnosed with type 2 diabetes who had used some form of CM / medicinal foods in the last 12 months .
Interventions and Outcome Measures : The INC program included baseline surveys and a CM intake interview conducted by a licensed acupuncturist . The acupuncturist generated a CM diagnosis , which was shared with the participant , and used this diagnosis to tailor brief nutrition education . To bolster this brief education , a bilingual registered dietitian provided a 2-h group education class in Cantonese to all participants , during which time participants also received a Chinese / English INC booklet . Participants completed surveys immediately after the class and at 1-month follow-up , with qualitative exit interviews .
Results : Participants reported improved attitudes and dietary habits aligning directly with INC , and improvement in biomedically valued measures of type 2 diabetes , such as weight loss , and CMvalued measures of digestion / elimination and hot / cold feeling . Satisfaction with INC was high , but challenges included confusion with some INC information , structural barriers , and comorbidities .
Conclusions : Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes and interventionists found integrative nutrition approaches acceptable and feasible . Future research should examine INC with a larger population and explore optimal delivery of INC given reported challenges .
Hackler J , Heller RA , Sun Q , Schwarzer M , Diegmann J . Bachmann M , Moghaddam A , Schomburg L .
Relation of Serum Copper Status to Survival in COVID-19 . Nutrients . 2021 ; 13 , 1898 . https :// doi . org / 10.3390 / nu13061898
The trace element copper ( Cu ) is part of our nutrition and essentially needed for several cuproenzymes that control redox status and support the immune system . In blood , the ferroxidase ceruloplasmin ( CP ) accounts for the majority of circulating Cu and serves as transport protein . Both Cu and CP behave as positive , whereas serum selenium ( Se ) and its transporter selenoprotein P ( SELENOP ) behave as negative acute phase reactants . In view that coronavirus disease ( COVID-19 ) causes systemic inflammation , we hypothesized that biomarkers of Cu and Se status are regulated inversely , in relation to disease severity and mortality risk . Serum samples from COVJD-19 patients were analysed for Cu by total reflection X-ray fluorescence and CP was quantified by a validated sandwich ELISA . 111e two Cu biomarkers correlated positively in serum from patients with COVID- 19 ( R = 0.42 , p < 0.001 ). Surviving patients showed higher mean scrum Cu and CP concentrations in comparison to nonsurvivors ([ mean +/ -SEM ], Cu ; 1475.9 +/ - 22.7 vs . 1317.9 +/ -43.9 ftg / L ; p < 0.001 , CP ; 547.2.5 + / -19.5 vs . 438.8 + / -32.9 mg / L , p = 0.086 ). In contrast to expectations , total serum Cu and Se concentrations displayed a positive linear correlation in the patient samples analysed ( R = 0.23 , p = 0.003 ). Serum CP and SELENOP levels were not interrelated . Applying receiver operating characteristics ( ROC ) curve analysis , the combination of Cu and SELENOP with age outperformed other combinations of parameters for predicting risk of death , yielding an AUC of 95.0 %. We conclude that the alterations in serum biomarkers of Cu and Se status in COVID-19 are not compatible with a simple acute phase response , and that serum Cu and SELENOP levels contribute to a good prediction of survival . Adjuvant supplementation in patients with diagnostically proven deficits in Cu or Se may positively influence disease course , as both increase in survivors and are of crucial importance for the immune response and antioxidative defence systems .
Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Veziari Y , Kumar S & Leach M .
Addressing barriers to the conduct and application of research in complementary and alternative medicine : a scoping review . BMC Complement Med Ther . 2021 ; 21 ( 201 ). https :// doi . org / 10.1186 / s12906-021-03371-6
Background : Over the past few decades , the popularity of complementary and alternative medicine ( CAM ) has grown considerably and along with it , scrutiny regarding its evidence base . While this is to be expected , and is in line with other health disciplines , research in CAM is confronted by numerous obstacles . This scoping review aims to identify and report the strategies implemented to address barriers to the conduct and application of research in CAM .
Methods : The scoping review was undertaken using the Arksey and O ’ Malley framework . The search was conducted using MEDLINE , EMBASE , EMCARE , ERIC , Scopus , Web of Science , The Cochrane Library , JBI and the grey literature . Two reviewers independently screened the records , following which data extraction was completed for the included studies . Descriptive synthesis was used to summarise the data .
Results : Of the 7945 records identified , 15 studies met the inclusion criteria . Using the oBSTACLES instrument as a framework , the included studies reported diverse strategies to address barriers to the conduct and application of research in CAM . All included studies reported the use of educational strategies and collaborative initiatives with CAM stakeholders , including targeted funding , to address a range of barriers .
Conclusions : While the importance of addressing barriers to the conduct and application of research in CAM has been recognised , to date , much of the focus has been limited to initiatives originating from a handful of jurisdictions , for a small group of CAM disciplines , and addressing few barriers . Myriad barriers continue to persist , which will require concerted
JATMS | Spring 2021 | 163