Niigata University of Health and Welfare

About: Niigata University of Health and Welfare is a education organization based out in Niigata, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Medicine & Isometric exercise. The organization has 523 authors who have published 996 publications receiving 10316 citations.

Intakes of calcium and other nutrients related to bone health in Japanese female college students: a study using the duplicate portion sampling method.

Abstract: The purposes of this study were to determine intakes of nutrients related to bone health, such as calcium (Ca), phosphorus (P), sodium (Na), potassium (K), and protein, in Japanese female college students, using the duplicate portion sampling method, and to identify possible lifestyle factors explaining their calcium intakes. Subjects were 106 Japanese female college students aged 19-23 years. All foods in the duplicate portions, as eaten by the subjects during a three-weekday period, were collected. The minerals and protein in the food samples were analyzed. Life-style information was obtained by interview. Levels of cognitive eating restraint (CER) were assessed by the Three-Factor Eating Inventory. Average intakes of dietary Ca, P, Na, K, and protein were 380 (SD 209) mg/day, 649 (SD 212) mg/day, 2,535 (SD 847) mg/day, 1,108 (SD 429) mg/day, and 41.7 (SD 12.6) g/day, respectively. Ca intake was significantly associated with the frequency of milk intake (R2 = 0.278, p < 0.001), intake of other dairy products (R2 = 0.338, p < 0.001), and meal skipping (R2 = 0.161, p < 0.001), but not with CER score (p = 0.378). Female college students are at high risk for poor Ca nutrition. Low intake of nutrients relevant to bone health is considered to adversely affect bone metabolism in young women.

Skill-specific changes in somatosensory-evoked potentials and reaction times in baseball players

Abstract: Athletic training is known to induce neuroplastic alterations in specific somatosensory circuits, which are reflected by changes in short-latency somatosensory-evoked potentials (SEPs). The aim of this study is to clarify whether specific training in athletes affects the long-latency SEPs related to information processing of stimulation. The long-latency SEPs P100 and N140 were recorded at midline cortical electrode positions (Fz, Cz, and Pz) in response to stimulation of the index finger of the dominant hand in fifteen baseball players (baseball group) and in fifteen athletes in sports such as swimming, track and field events, and soccer (sports group) that do not require fine somatosensory discrimination or motor control of the hand. The long-latency SEPs were measured under a passive condition (no response required) and a reaction time (RT) condition in which subjects were instructed to rapidly push a button in response to stimulus presentation. The peak P100 and peak N140 latencies and RT were significantly shorter in the baseball group than the sports group. Moreover, there were significant positive correlations between RT and both the peak P100 and the peak N140 latencies. Specific athletic training regimens that involve the hand may induce neuroplastic alterations in the cortical hand representation areas playing a vital role in rapid sensory processing and initiation of motor responses.

Impaired skeletal muscle oxygenation following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is associated with exercise capacity.

Abstract: Impaired skeletal muscle oxygenation potentially contributes to reduced exercise capacity in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) patients during early recovery and may explain altered hemoglobin responses to exercise following allo-HSCT. We investigated whether skeletal muscle oxygenation parameters and hemoglobin parameters in the tibialis anterior decreased following allo-HSCT, and whether these results were associated with declines in exercise capacity. We used near-infrared spectroscopy during and following a repeated isometric contraction task at 50% of maximal voluntary contraction in 18 patients before and after allo-HSCT. The rate of decrease in the muscle oxy-hemoglobin saturation (SmO2; an index of skeletal muscle oxygenation) was significantly lower after allo-HSCT (P < 0.01). In contrast, total hemoglobin (an index of hemoglobin) was not different after allo-HSCT. Furthermore, SmO2 during and following exercise was associated with exercise capacity (r = 0.648; P = 0.004 vs. r = 0.632; P = 0.005). The results of this study reveal that although the peripheral hemoglobin response was not altered by allo-HSCT, skeletal muscle oxygenation was decreased following allo-HSCT. Furthermore, the decrease in skeletal muscle oxygenation was associated with a reduction in exercise capacity.