Year 2000 NIH Workshop Information Videocasts
A
workshop, ESSENTIAL FATS IN FOODS, was held at NIH on March 20, 2000
to discuss essential fatty acids and eicosanoids in human health and the impact
of voluntary food choices. The six lectures of the workshop can be viewed
through the NIH Videocasting URL: http://videocast.nih.gov/PastEvents.asp?
A free version
of RealPlayer 7 Basic can be downloaded to your computer from the following
URL: http://proforma.real.com/real/player/player.html
Overview of essential fatty acids in health
and disease
This talk notes how populations around the world have maintained certain food
supplies in their surrounding ecosystem and neglected others without considering
the resulting impact on eicosanoid functions in their body. Informed food choices
can supply the essential fatty acids that keep a balanced supply of eicosanoid
precursors within the body to maintain balanced omega-6 and omega-3 eicosanoid
responses of the body's inner ecosystem.
Bill Lands,
Ph.D., Senior Advisor, NIAAA, NIH http://videocast.nih.gov/ram/crii01c103202000.ram
Essential fatty acids- different chain lengths and
metabolism
This is a primer
on the structure and nomenclature for fatty acids for the non-specialist. It
describes the chemistry and metabolism of omega-6 and omega-3 essential fatty
acids to help people understand their nature in the context of more widely discussed
saturated and unsaturated fats. The 18-carbon essential fatty acids can be metabolized
to 20-carbon and 22-carbon forms that have different distributions in tissue
membranes and have very different impacts on eicosanoid formation. Norman
Salem, Ph.D., Chief, Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry and Biophysics, NIAAA,
NIH http://videocast.nih.gov/ram/crii01c203202000.ram
Eicosanoid formation, receptor functions, and clinical
relevance
The talk describes the diversity of different eicosanoids that the body forms
from the 20-carbon omega-6 and omega-3 essential fatty acids. This diverse set
of hormone-like agents acts through different receptors on tissues to regulate
many different body responses in health and disease. William
L. Smith, Ph.D., Professor and Chairman of Biochemistry, Michigan State Universityhttp://videocast.nih.gov/ram/crii01c303202000.ram
Essential fats in foods
This describes the amounts
of omega-6 and omega-3 essential fatty acids present in many different foods
currently consumed during typical food choices by the USA population. The talk
presents food sources to help plan diets
that meet target levels of omega-3 fatty acid intakes.
Penny Kris-Etherton,
Ph.D., R.D., Professor of Nutrition, Pennsylvania State University http://videocast.nih.gov/ram/crii02c103202000.ram
An overview of functional foods
The talk addresses
what people mean by the terms functional foods, designer foods, nutraceuticals,
and medicinal foods. Surveys different functional foods from the viewpoint of
their presumed bioactive, functional components and alternatively lists those
foods that have the most abundant supply of some desired functional components.
Jean
Pennington, Ph.D., R.D., Research Nutritionist, DNRC, NIH
http://videocast.nih.gov/ram/crii02c203202000.ram
Differences between preventive nutrition and therapeutic
intervention
This talk describes principles involved in prevention and treatment interventions
and notes the limitations in the types of evidence provided for forming personal
decisions. Results from several large diet therapy trials are reviewed to show
benefits from selected diet interventions. There is definitive evidence that
eating omega-3 fats decrease cardiovascular deaths. Frank
M. Sacks, M.D., Professor, School of Public Health, Harvard University
http://videocast.nih.gov/ram/crii02c303202000.ram