Background: It has been suggested that vitamin D status or supplementation is important for maintaining or improving muscle strength and mobility in older adults. The study results, however, do not provide consistent results. We therefore aimed to summarise the available evidence systematically, including only studies conducted in community‐dwelling older persons.Methods: A systematic search of the literature was performed in April of 2016. The systematic review includes studies that used vitamin D with or without calcium supplementation as the exposure variable and various measurements of muscle strength and mobility. The meta‐analysis was limited to studies using hand grip strength (HGS) and timed‐up‐and‐go test as the outcome variables.Results: A total of 15 studies out of 2408 articles from the literature search were included in the systematic review, providing 2866 participants above the age of 65 years. In the majority of studies, no improvement in muscle strength and mobility was observed after administration of vitamin D with or without calcium supplements. In the meta‐analysis, we observed a nonsignificant change in HGS [+0.2 kg (95% confidence interval = −0.25 to 0.7 kg; seven studies)] and a small, significant increase in the timed‐up‐and‐go test [0.3 s (95% confidence interval = 0.1 to 0.5 s; five studies)] after vitamin D supplementation. The meta‐analyses showed a high degree of heterogeneity between the studies.Conclusions: In conclusion, we observed no improvement in muscle strength after the administration of vitamin D with or without calcium supplements. We did find a small but significant improvement of mobility. However, this is based on a limited number of studies and participants.

Background: It is well known that fish is the major natural source of vitamin D in the diet; therefore, this meta-analysis investigated the influence

The popularity of high-protein diets for weight reduction is immense. However, the potential benefits from altering the source of dietary protein rather than the amount is scarcely investigated. In the present study, we examined the effects of fish protein supplement on glucose and lipid metabolism in overweight adults. A total of thirty-four overweight adults were randomised to 8 weeks' supplementation with fish protein or placebo tablets (controls). The intake of fish protein supplement was 3 g/d for the first 4 weeks and 6 g/d for the last 4 weeks. In this study, 8 weeks of fish protein supplementation resulted in lower values of fasting glucose (P< 0·05), 2 h postprandial glucose (P< 0·05) and glucose-area under the curve (AUC) (five measurements over 2 h, P< 0·05) after fish protein supplementation compared to controls. Glucose-AUC was decreased after 8 weeks with fish protein supplement compared to baseline (P< 0·05), concomitant with increased 30 min and decreased 90 min and 2 h insulin C-peptide level (P< 0·05), and reduced LDL-cholesterol (P< 0·05). Body muscle % was increased (P< 0·05) and body fat % was reduced (P< 0·05) after 4 weeks' supplementation. Physical activity and energy and macronutrients intake did not change during the course of the study. In conclusion, short-term daily supplementation with a low dose of fish protein may have beneficial effects on blood levels of glucose and LDL-cholesterol as well as glucose tolerance and body composition in overweight adults. The long-term effects of fish protein supplementation is of interest in the context of using more fish as a protein source in the diet, and the effects of inclusion of fish in the diet of individuals with low glucose tolerance should be evaluated.

Background: Different aspects of dietary pattern, including macronutrient and food profiles, may affect visceral fat mass and metabolic syndrome.Obje

It has previously been demonstrated that soya protein, which contains isoflavones and low methionine–glycine and lysine–arginine ratios, has a hypocholesterolaemic effect. In the present study, the hypocholesterolaemic effects of an isoflavone-enriched casein diet (HDI) and a single-cell protein-based diet (SCP) devoid of isoflavones but with low methionine–glycine and lysine–arginine ratios were investigated in obese Zucker rats after 6 weeks of feeding. The control diet contained casein, which has high ratios of methionine–glycine and lysine–arginine. HDI and SCP feeding reduced the concentrations of total cholesterol and cholesteryl esters in plasma and liver, and changed the fatty acid composition of the hepatic cholesteryl esters. Faecal cholesterol and bile acid levels were markedly higher in SCP-fed rats than in controls, whereas HDI feeding had only minor effects. However, both HDI and SCP feeding increased the hepatic gene expression of cholesterol 7α hydroxylase. In contrast, the hepatic acyl-CoA synthetase and acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase activities and the gene expression of the LDL receptor were increased by HDI, but not by SCP feeding. The present results suggested that the cholesterol-lowering effect of SCP was related to the enterohepatic circulation, whereas HDI seemed to lower the plasma cholesterol via the circulation. Plasma homocysteine level was reduced in rats fed HDI and SCP compared to rats fed casein. In summary, diets enriched in isoflavones or containing proteins with low methionine–glycine and lysine–arginine ratios lowered the plasma cholesterol and homocysteine levels, changing the plasma profile from atherogenic to cardioprotective.