Distance professional qualification to promote adequate and healthy eating: factors associated with dropout.

Objective: To analyze factors associated with dropout from a distance professional qualification course on promoting adequate and healthy eating in Brazil.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with professionals from the Brazilian National Health System (Sistema Único de Saúde - SUS) enrolled in a distance learning course, provided between 2019 and 2020, based on Ministry of Health educational materials. Sociodemographic and professional data associated with dropout from the course were assessed, using multiple logistic regression (p-value<0.

Guidelines and Preliminary Results of Group-Based Nutrition Interventions for Obesity Management Among Adults in Brazilian Primary Health Care.

This study presents the guideline and preliminary results of a randomized controlled community trial of group-based nutrition interventions for obesity management in Brazilian Primary Health Care (PHC), occurring between 2022 and 2023. Belo Horizonte PHC units were randomly sampled and allocated to the control (CG) or intervention group (IG). Participants were those in preparation with high self-efficacy, action, or maintenance stages of change for weight reduction who were willing to participate in groups.

Perceptions of health professionals about the implementation of the Adequate and Healthy Eating Promotion Program in a municipality of the Minas Gerais: a qualitative study.

Objective: To analyze the implementation of the Adequate and Healthy Eating Promotion Program in a small municipality in Minas Gerais, from the perspective of health professionals.

Methods: This research used a qualitative approach, with content analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with professionals from the Family Health Strategy and the multidisciplinary team involved in the implementation of the Adequate and Healthy Eating Promotion Program in Carmo do Cajuru, Minas Gerais. The Program was developed based on the Instructive Manual: group work methodology for food and nutrition actions in primary health care, derived from the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population, and lasted approximately five months, with 11 biweekly meetings.

Early-life mortality rates in Brazil and progress toward meeting related sustainable development goals: a nationwide population study.

Background: Early-life mortality rates have significantly declined since 2000, and sustaining this progress could save over 11 million children's lives worldwide. Achieving uniform reductions in early-life mortality remains a critical public health challenge in Brazil. This study analyzed disaggregated trends in early-life mortality across Brazilian regions and assessed each region's progress toward meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and national targets for Brazil.

Sarcopenic obesity and physical function in acromegaly: impact of disease control and evaluation using dual X-ray absorptiometry and multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis.

Purpose: To assess sarcopenia, sarcopenic obesity, physical performance in patients with acromegaly and compare the diagnostic performance of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and multifrequency bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA).

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 27 patients with acromegaly and 27 age-, sex-, and BMI-matched patients without acromegaly. Body composition was assessed using BIA and DXA.

Predicting climate change impacts on vereda wetland plant species distribution in the Brazilian Cerrado.

Background And Aims: The climate crisis is reshaping ecosystems globally, with wetlands, including veredas in the Brazilian Cerrado, among the most vulnerable. Despite their ecological importance, the response of vereda species to climate change remains unclear. This study assessed potential shifts in the distribution of 24 key species under two climate scenarios (SSP2-4.

Qualitative methodological pathway for developing the Instructive for the Obesity Management in the SUS, 2018-2020.

Objective: To assess the methodological pathway for developing and validating Instructive for the Obesity Management in the Unified Health System (Sistema Único de Saúde - SUS), focusing on food and nutrition actions, based on the adaptation of the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population.

Methods: The development of the Instructive of Collective Approach for the Obesity Management in the SUS included an evaluation of the proposal summary during an in-person expert workshop, and the analysis of the first draft in an in-person validation workshop. In 2018 and 2019, a dynamic carousel was employed during the workshops to record the perceptions of experts from management, academy, and SUS health services.

Adherence to dietary practices recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population among people with obesity: baseline of a community trial carried out at the Health Fitness Program in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, 2022-2023.

Objective: To analyze sociodemographic and health factors associated with high levels of adherence to dietary practices recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population among people with obesity taking part in the Health Fitness Program in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with a representative sample of Health Fitness Program participants with obesity who were ≥20 years old. Sociodemographic and health data were collected, and the adherence to the Dietary Guidelines scale was assessed, classified as: low (<32 points), medium (32-41 points) and high (>41 points).

Production and Characterization of Biodegradable Wound Dressings Containing Silver-Loaded Zeolite Complexes.

Silver-loaded zeolite complexes (ZeAg) were incorporated into biodegradable wound dressings based on starch and brewers' spent grain. Four formulations (0, 0.5, 1, and 2% (w/v) of ZeAg) of wound dressings containing ZeAg were produced by thermopressing, and their morphology and structural and mechanical properties were evaluated.

Functional composition of the Amazonian tree flora and forests.

Plants cope with the environment by displaying large phenotypic variation. Two spectra of global plant form and function have been identified: a size spectrum from small to tall species with increasing stem tissue density, leaf size, and seed mass; a leaf economics spectrum reflecting slow to fast returns on investments in leaf nutrients and carbon. When species assemble to communities it is assumed that these spectra are filtered by the environment to produce community level functional composition.

The Results of Ultra-Processed Food Consumption on Weight Change: A Randomized Controlled Community Trial in a Health Promotion Program.

Objective: Our objective was to evaluate the association between ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption and body weight change after participating in nutritional intervention.

Design: Our study was a 12-month follow-up of participants in a randomized controlled community trial.

Setting: Brazilian Primary Health Care.

Neighborhood Vulnerability and the Consumer Food Environment in an Urban Area.

The consumer food environment is an important medium for understanding complex interactions regarding food consumption, health outcomes and social vulnerability. We aimed to analyze the diversity, variety and quality of natural and ultra-processed foods in a Brazilian metropolis. We performed a cross-sectional study, analyzing food stores within a buffer (1600 m) area around 18 randomly selected Health Promotion Program units.

Floodplain forests drive fruit-eating fish diversity at the Amazon Basin-scale.

Unlike most rivers globally, nearly all lowland Amazonian rivers have unregulated flow, supporting seasonally flooded floodplain forests. Floodplain forests harbor a unique tree species assemblage adapted to flooding and specialized fauna, including fruit-eating fish that migrate seasonally into floodplains, favoring expansive floodplain areas. Frugivorous fish are forest-dependent fauna critical to forest regeneration via seed dispersal and support commercial and artisanal fisheries.

Weight loss maintenance in primary health care: a randomised controlled trial.

This study evaluates the maintenance of a clinically meaningful weight loss (≥ 5 %) after 12 and 36 months of participation in an intervention to promote fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption. A randomised controlled trial was conducted in a primary health care service. For 7 months, participants in the control group (CG) and in the intervention group (IG) performed guided physical exercise three times/week; the IG also participated in collective activities to promote FV consumption.

Protocol of Randomized Controlled Community Trial (RCCT) for obesity management in Brazilian primary health care.

Background: Obesity is a chronic disease characterized by excess body fat and is a risk factor for other chronic non-communicable diseases. Its multifactorial and complex nature makes its management a challenge for health services. This manuscript presents an investigation protocol that aims to analyze the effectiveness of collective nutritional interventions for obesity management applicable to primary health care.

Consumer food environments change over a 5-year period.

Objective: Evaluate the 5-year changes in the consumers' food environment in the area of a health promotion service in Brazilian primary health care. Our hypothesis is that the consumers' food environment in the areas with primary healthcare services has changes that may favour healthy eating habits over time.

Design: Longitudinal study.

The biogeography of the Amazonian tree flora.

We describe the geographical variation in tree species composition across Amazonian forests and show how environmental conditions are associated with species turnover. Our analyses are based on 2023 forest inventory plots (1 ha) that provide abundance data for a total of 5188 tree species. Within-plot species composition reflected both local environmental conditions (especially soil nutrients and hydrology) and geographical regions.

Effect of nitrogen fertilization and shading on morphogenesis, structure and leaf anatomy of genotypes.

The use of exotic grasses of African origin for pastures in Brazil has been a major advancement in livestock production, but little is known about the responses of these grasses to nitrogen fertilizers associated with shading. In this study, the morphogenetic, structural, and leaf anatomical characteristics of Megathyrsus maximus cultivars' Tamani and Quênia were investigated as a function of N dose and shade. Morphogenetic and structural characteristics and leaf anatomy were studied under three shading levels (0, 30, and 50 %) and four N doses (0, 100, 200, and 300 kg N ha) to simulate growth in a silvopastoral system.

Food Consumption Inequalities in Primary Care in a Large Metropolis.

The aim of this study was to examine the association between health vulnerability and food consumption according to the NOVA classification within primary care in a major Brazilian city. A cross-sectional study was conducted among adults over 20 years old. These participants were part of a representative sample from the Health Academy Program (PAS) in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

Consistent patterns of common species across tropical tree communities.

Trees structure the Earth's most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response to environmental change, as very little is known about most tropical tree species. A focus on the common species may circumvent this challenge.

A longitudinal analysis of the fluctuation of food stores in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Background: Changes in food environments have the potential to affect consumption, nutritional status, and health, and understanding these changes is of utmost importance. This study, therefore, aimed to examine the fluctuation of food stores that sell fruits and vegetables over five years in the health promotion service area of Primary Health Care (PHC) in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Methods: This was an ecological study that used data from a food environment audit conducted in the realm of Brazilian PHC.

Prevalence of hearing loss and health vulnerability in children aged 25 to 36 months: an analysis of spatial distribution.

Purpose: To analyze the association between hearing loss and health vulnerability in children aged 25 to 36 months.

Methods: Analytical observational cross-sectional study conducted through child hearing screening in nine day-care centers. The screening consisted of anamnesis, otoscopy, tympanometry, transient otoacoustic emissions, and pure tone audiometry.