Applied Human Nutrition -- Graduate Theses
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Completed Graduate theses from the Master of Science in Applied Human Nutrition program.
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- ItemThe Acute Effect of a Pizza Meal with Partial or Complete Replacement of All-Purpose Wheat Flour with Lentil Flour of Similar Particle Size on Postprandial Blood Glucose, Subjective Appetite, and Food Intake in Healthy Young Adults(Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022-12) Thamotharampillai, GowshiggaLentil consumption has been associated with a lower glycemic response. Previous in vitro study has shown that the larger the particle size of lentil flour, the less glucose is produced in the process mimicking the digestion in the gastrointestinal tract (Kathirvel et al., 2019). With the limited information reported on particle size in studies comparing various food flours and powders, it was unknown whether the differences detected in metabolic responses were determined by a difference in particle size, or composition, or both. The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of a pizza meal formulated with either lentil flour or wheat flour of similar particle size or their combination on postprandial blood glucose, subjective appetite, physical comfort and food intake. We hypothesized that the partial or complete replacement of wheat flour with processed lentil flour of similar particle size in a formulated pizza would result in lower blood glucose and subjective appetite due to a higher content of resistant carbohydrates and protein in lentil flour compared to wheat flour.
- ItemExploring Food Insecurity, Gender, and Familial Foodways of Female Spouses of Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) Personnel(Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022) Littler, CatherineCAF families are composed of ~68,000 regular members and 27,000 reservist members (Department of National Defence, 2021). Military life can be particularly difficult for military spouses who adapt routines, living situations, employment, and parental responsibilities, while managing deployment stress of their military-member spouse (Norris & Smith-Evans, 2018; Norris et al., 2018). Military family research has focused on family members’ physical and mental health in relation to operational and/or post-traumatic stress (Cramm et al., 2019; Norris et al., 2018; Ostler, 2018; Skomorovsky et al., 2019). Little is known about how military life impacts family foodways.
- ItemNutritional Status Among Critically Ill Patients in Rwanda(Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022-09-08) Bianco, JoleneRwandan hospitals do not currently provide food services to patients, as is seen in most high-income countries, and instead the responsibility lies on the patient’s caretaker to provide food for the patient. There may also not be adequate medical nutrition therapy for intensive care unit (ICU) patients at Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Kigali (CHUK). This is potentially risky given the multitude of factors involved in feeding a critically ill patient in the hospital, including concerns of nutritional adequacy, food safety, and patient-specific nutrient requirements. This is of particular concern given that two recent studies conducted at the CHUK revealed sub-optimal enteral nutrition (EN) feeding practices in the ICU and emergency.
- ItemExploration of infant and young child feeding knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs held by young, non-parent men in Nova Scotia(Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022-08) Levin, OlgaAdherence to infant and young child feeding (IYCF) recommendations is critical for optimal child growth and development and is often influenced by sociocultural factors. Most research to date has focussed on breastfeeding alone, and usually only among future/current parents and healthcare providers. As members of the public and potential future fathers, young, non-parent men may play a role in IYCF decisions or setting social norms; however, in-depth qualitative work on this topic is limited.
- ItemDoes partial reduction of added sugar in chocolate milk and yogurt benefit glycaemic response?(Mount Saint Vincent University, 2022-08) Gunaydin, DuyguCommercially available dairy products such as chocolate milk, or yogurt have added sugar (5.5% or higher of total calories) that contributes to a higher energy density of these products. The objective of this study was to investigate whether chocolate milk and yogurt with reduced sugar content have any benefits on blood glucose (BG) control in humans. We hypothesized that chocolate milk and yogurt formulated with the reduced level of added sugar will benefit mean glycaemic response of these products. Methods: Ten male and ten female aged 19-35 completed a cross-over, single-blinded, randomized study attending five sessions with one week washout between the sessions. The treatments were randomly assigned and included a serving of chocolate milk (250ml) with 3.3% (C3.3%) and 5.5% added sugar (C5.5%), a serving of yogurt (175g) with 3.3% (Y3.3%) and 5.5% added sugar (Y5.5%), and water control (250ml). Blood samples were collected and the subjective appetite rating and feeling of physical comfort were recorded at 0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 90, and 120 min. Ad libitum food intake (FI) was measured with a pizza meal at 120 minutes. The changes in blood glucose, appetite and physical comfort parameters over time were analyzed with two-way ANOVA, and food intake, blood glucose and appetite AUCs, and the palatability of the treatments and pizza meal were analyzed with one-way ANOVA. The TukeyKramer post-hoc test was used for pairwise comparisons. Results: There was an effect of a treatment on blood glucose iAUC0-120min (P=0.0025). The treatments with C3.3%, C5.5% and Y5.5% resulted in a higher BG iAUC0-120min compared to water control (P<0.05), while the treatment with Y3.3% led to a similar BG iAUC0-120min as the water control (P>0.05). Additionally, all the dairy treatments resulted in a similar BG iAUC0-120min (P>0.05). All caloric treatments resulted in reduced subjective appetite compared to water control over two hours (P<0.05). There was no effect of a treatment on cumulative FI over two hours; however, there was an effect of a treatment (P=0.02) on ad libitum FI with pizza meal at 120 min. The treatments with C3.3% led to reduced FI compared to water control (P=0.02) and a similar trend was observed for the treatment with Y3.3% (P=0.05). All treatments resulted in a similar subjective rating of energy, fatigue, thirst physical and comfort parameters (P>0.05). Conclusion: The treatments with chocolate milk and yogurts with full and reduced added sugar content result in a similar glycaemic response over two hours. However, the reduction of added sugar in yogurt results in BG response similar to water control and tended to lower ad libitum FI compared to water control, while chocolate milk with reduced added sugar content results in a lower ad libitum FI compared to water control. Both chocolate milk and yogurt with reduced sugar content similarly suppress subjective appetite over two hours as their full sugar counterparts, and do not cause any physical discomfort. The reduction of added sugar does not negatively impact the sensory properties of chocolate milk and yogurt. Although the reduction of added sugar in chocolate milk and yogurt does not cardinally impact postprandial glycaemic response, both chocolate milk and yogurt with reduced added sugar content possess with unique metabolism that may position them as potential functional products for metabolic control.