Objectives: The aims of this study were to determine vitamin D status (serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D-3 [s-25(OH)D-3]) and examine possible associations between vitamin D status and vitamin D-rich dietary sources, sun exposure, and body mass index in preschool children ages 4 to 6 y. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study based on baseline data (collected in January-February 2015) from the two-armed randomized controlled trial Fish Intervention Studies-KIDS (FINS-KIDS) conducted in Bergen, Norway. S-25(OH)D-3 concentration was determined by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Information regarding habitual dietary intake, recent sun vacations, and body mass index were assessed with questionnaires answered by the children's caregivers. Results: The children (n = 212) had a mean (standard deviation) s-25(OH)D-3 of 60.7 (13.8) nmol/L; 18.9% had s-25(OH)D-3 <= 50 nmol/L. In logistic regression models, non-overweight versus overweight status was inversely associated with s-25(OH)D-3 <= 50 nmol/L (odds ratio: 0.41; 95% confidence interval, 0.18-0.95; P = 0.037). Non-sun versus sun vacations were associated with s-25(OH)D-3 <= 75 nmol/L (odds ratio: 5.33; 95% confidence interval, 1.93-14.77; P = 0.001). Conclusions: The majority of the preschool children (81%) had s-25(OH)D-3 >50 nmol/L. Children with overweight status had an increased risk of s-25(OH)D-3 <= 50 nmol/L, and children who had not been on sun vacations were at a greater risk of s-25(OH)D-3 <= 75 nmol/L. (C) 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Background and aims: Long chain polyunsaturated n-3 fatty acids (LC-PUFA) are of functional and structural importance for brain development. Observational studies have shown positive relations between fatty fish consumption and cognitive performance in children, but Results from intervention studies using supplementary n-3 LC-PUFA are conflicting. Salmon is a good source of n-3 LC-PUFA, including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). We tested the hypothesis that an increased dietary salmon intake results in better cognitive outcomes than a meat based diet. Methods: Children (n = 205, age 4-6 years) in this trial were individually randomized to eating meals containing farmed Atlantic salmon or meat three times weekly for 16 weeks. Pre- and post-intervention a cognitive test (Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence, 3rd edition, WPPSI-III) and a fine-motor coordination test (Nine Hole Peg Test, 9-HPT) were performed. Biochemical analyses included glycerophospholipid fatty acid profiles in plasma and cheek cells, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D, and urinary iodine concentration. Dietary intake before and during the study were determined using food frequency questionnaires. Results: Intakes of EPA, DHA, vitamin D and iodine were higher in the salmon than the meat group, but on biomarker level only EPA and DHA increased significantly in the salmon group compared to the meat group (p < 0.001). In general linear models no significant differences between the intervention groups were found in the scale scores of the WPPSI-III tests and the 9-HPT. In analyses of the raw scores, the salmon group showed significantly better improvement in two of the eight raw scores compared to the meat group (symbol search p = 0.038, picture concepts p = 0.047). Conclusions: Intake of farmed Atlantic salmon led to a greater increase of the raw scores of the picture concept and symbol search subtests, while in the six other subtests raw scores were not different between the groups. This might indicate a modest positive association of salmon intake with the performance of preschool children in some subtests evaluating fluid intelligence but does not suggest an influence on global IQ development. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd and European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism. All rights reserved.

Marine resources including fatty fish are important sources of n-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFAs), which are important for brain development. To our knowledge, this is the first randomized controlled trial (RCT) investigating the impact of fatty fish on cognition in preschool children. The purpose of the trial was to investigate whether an increased intake of fatty fish compared to meat improves cognitive function in children 4–6 years old.

Mental health and sleep problems are prevalent in children during preschool years. The aim of the current study was to investigate if increased intake of fatty fish compared with meat improves mental health and sleep in four- to six-year-old children. The children (n = 232) in the two-armed randomized controlled trial, Fish Intervention Studies-KIDS (FINS-KIDS), were randomly assigned to lunch meals with fatty fish (herring/mackerel) or meat (chicken/lamb/beef) three times a week for 16 weeks. The fish and meat were weighed before and after the meals to record the exact consumption in grams (dietary compliance). Mental health problems were assessed by the strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ) and sleep by parent report pre- and post-intervention. There was no significant statistical difference between changes in mental health and sleep for the fish eating group compared with the meat eating group, neither in the crude analysis nor after adjusting for intake of fish or meat (dietary compliance).

Adolescence involves changes in dietary habits that may induce imbalances in the intake of different nutrients. Fish is an important dietary source of omega-3 (n-3) long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs), vitamin D, several minerals and high-quality protein. By using secondary outcomes and exploratory analyses, the aims of this paper were to evaluate if nutritional biomarkers (red blood cell fatty acids, serum (s)-25(OH)D, s-ferritin and urinary iodine concentration (UIC)) were altered during a dietary intervention, and if they mediated previously reported changes in attention performance. In addition, to examine the status of the biomarkers and explore associations between dietary pattern, biomarkers and attention performance cross-sectionally at baseline.

Iodine is a trace element required for the production of thyroid hormones, essential for metabolism, growth and brain development, particularly in the first trimester of pregnancy. Milk and lean fish are the main dietary sources of iodine in the Norwegian diet. Thus, the aim of the present study was to provide updated analysed values of iodine concentration in six fish species, 27 selected Norwegian iodine-rich dairy foods and Norwegian hen's eggs. The iodine concentrations in the wild fish species varied between 18 μg/100 g (Atlantic halibut) and 1,210 μg/100 g (pollack). The iodine concentration of cow milk varied between 12 and 19 μg/100 g and the iodine concentration of the eggs varied between 23 and 43 μg/100 g. The results in this study deviate somewhat from the current iodine concentrations in the Norwegian Food Composition Table. This deviation may have a large impact on the assessment of the iodine intake. Hence, updated knowledge about the variation in iodine level of fish, milk, dairy products and hen's egg are of great importance when estimating the iodine intake in the population. These data will contribute substantially to future estimations of dietary iodine intake and will be made available for the public Norwegian Food Composition Table.

Iodine is an essential trace element necessary for thyroid hormone synthesis. Iodine deficiency is a continuing public health problem despite international efforts to eliminate it. Studies on iodine status in preschoolers are scarce. Thus, the aims of the current study were to determine the iodine status and to investigate possible associations between urinary iodine concentration (UIC) and estimated 24 h iodine extraction (UIE) and iodine-rich foods.

Iodine is a key component of thyroid hormones that are critical for normal development of the brain and nervous system in utero. Recent results indicate that two thirds of pregnant women in Europe have sub-optimal iodine nutrition. In Norway, milk and seafood are the most important dietary iodine sources and contributes to about 80% of the intake.

Purpose Essential fatty acids play a critical role in the growth and development of infants, but little is known about the fatty acid status of populations in low-income countries. The objective was to describe the fatty acid composition of red blood cells (RBC) in breastfeed Nepali infants and a subsample of their mothers and to identify the main sources of fatty acids in the mother’s diet, as well as the fatty acid composition of breast milk. Methods RBC fatty acid composition was analyzed in a random sample of 303 infants and 72 mother, along with 68 breastmilk samples. Fatty acid profiles of the most important dietary fat sources were analyzed. Information on mother’s diet and intake of fat was collected by three 24-h dietary recalls. Results In infant RBC’s, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) was the main n-3 fatty acid, and arachidonic acid (AA) was the major n-6 fatty acid. Total n-6 PUFA was three times higher than total n-3 PUFA. Height-for-age (HAZ) was positively associated with DHA status and AA status in multivariable models. The concentration of all fatty acids was higher in children, compared to mothers, except Total n-6 PUFA and Linoleic acid (LA) where no differences were found. The mother’s energy intake from fat was 13% and cooking oil (sesame, mustard, soybean or sunflower oil) contributed 52% of the fat intake. Conclusions RBC-DHA levels in both infants and mother was unexpected high taking into account few dietary DHA sources and the low DHA concentrations in breastmilk.

Fatty fish is the dominant dietary source of n-3 LCPUFAs but it also contains other micronutrients considered important for brain development and function. To our knowledge, the effect of fatty fish intake on cognitive function in adolescents has not been investigated in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) previously. The aim of the present trial was to investigate whether consumption of fatty fish meals three times per week for 12 weeks could alter attention performance in adolescents compared to similar meals with meat or n-3 LCPUFA supplements.

Aims: To describe the rationale, study design, population and dietary compliance in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) investigating the effect of fatty fish on cognitive performance and mental health in adolescents. Method: In the Fish Intervention Studies-TEENS (FINS-TEENS) study we individually randomized 478 adolescents (14-15-year-olds) from eight secondary schools in Norway to receive school meal lunches with fatty fish or meat or n-3 supplements three times a week for 12 weeks. Demographic factors, psychological tests and biological measures were collected pre-and post-intervention. Duplicate portions of lunch meals were collected and individual intake recorded throughout the study. Results: In total, 481 out of 785 adolescents (61%) agreed to participate and 34 (7%) dropped out. Breakfast consumption was the only group difference in background characteristics. Analyses of selected nutrients in the lunch meals showed higher levels of n-3 fatty acids, vitamin D and n-6 fatty acids in the fish compared to the meat meals. Dietary compliance (score 0-144) revealed that the intake in the Fish group (mean = 59, standard deviation (SD) = 35) were lower than in the Meat group (mean = 83, SD = 31, p < 0.01) and Supplement group (mean = 105, SD = 25, p < 0.01). Conclusions: The results show that it is possible to conduct a RCT with fatty fish in a school-based setting. The results also emphasize the importance of collecting detailed records of dietary compliance, as this information is important when interpreting and analysing the outcome of dietary interventions.

There is a growing body of evidence linking fish consumption and n-3 LCPUFAs to mental health. Still, the results from randomized trials with n-3 LCPUFAs show conflicting results, and it is possible that the combined effect of several nutrients in fish may explain the observed associations. To aim of the present study was to investigate if school meals with fatty fish three times per week for 12 weeks could alter mental health in a sample of typically developing adolescents. In the Fish Intervention Studies-TEENS (FINS-TEENS), adolescents from eight secondary schools (n=425) in Norway, were randomized to receive school meals with fatty fish, meat or n-3 LCPUFA supplements. Mental health was assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and the differences between the groups were assessed with linear mixed effect models, unadjusted and adjusted for baseline and dietary compliance. The results showed no effects of school meals with fatty fish compared to similar meals with meat or n-3 LCPUFAs on the adolescents' self-reported symptom scores for mental health. Among adolescents scoring above the SDQ cut-offs (high-scorers), the fish- improved less than the meat group in the self-reported symptom scores for total difficulties- and emotional problems. However, the findings should be regarded as preliminary, as the analyses for the high-scorer group were underpowered. In conclusion, serving school meals with fatty fish did not alter mental health in a typically developing sample of adolescents. It is possible that serving healthy school meals with meat is more beneficial than similar meals with fatty fish in adolescents scoring high on mental health problems. However, the results should be seen as preliminary, as the dietary compliance in the fish group was low and the analyses in the high score group underpowered. Thus, further studies should investigate the associations between fish consumption and adolescents' mental health.

The salmon feed composition has changed the last decade with a replacement of traditionally use of fish oil and fishmeal diets with vegetable ingredients and the use decontaminated fish oils, causing reduced concentrations of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs in farmed Norwegian Atlantic salmon. The development of novel salmon feeds has prompted the need for prediction on dioxins and dl-PCB concentrations in future farmed salmon. Prediction on fillet dioxins and dl-PCB concentrations from different feed composition scenarios are made using a simple one-compartmental transfer model based on earlier established dioxin and dl-PCB congener specific uptake and elimination kinetics rates. The model is validated with two independent feeding trials, with a significant linear correlation (r(2) = 0.96, y = 1.0x, p < 0.0001, n = 116) between observed and predicted values. Model fillet predictions are made for the following four scenarios; (1) general feed composition of 1999, (2) feed composition of 2013, (3) future feed composition with high fish oil and meal replacement, (4) future feed composition with high fish oil and meal replacement and decontaminated fish oil. Model predictions of fillet dioxin and dl-PCB concentrations from 1999 (1.05 ng WHO2005-TEQs kg(-1)ww) and 2013 (0.57 ng WHO2005-TEQs kg(-1)ww) are in line with the data observed in national surveillance programs of those years (1.1 and 0.52 ng WHO2005-TEQs kg(-1)ww, respectively). Future use of high replacement and decontaminated oils feeds gave predicted fillet concentrations of 0.27 ng WHO2005-TEQs kg(-1)ww, which is near the limit of quantification. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Suboptimal vitamin D status is common among humans, and might increase bone resorption with subsequent negative effects on bone health. Fatty fish, including Atlantic salmon, is an important dietary vitamin D source. However, due to a considerable change in fish feed composition, the contribution of vitamin D from salmon fillet has been reduced. The main objective was to investigate if intake of vitamin D3 enriched salmon or vitamin D3 tablets decreased bone biomarkers (urinary N-telopeptides, deoxypyridinoline, serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase, and osteocalcin) compared to a low vitamin D3 intake. The 122 healthy postmenopausal women included in this 12 weeks intervention trial were randomized into four groups: three salmon groups (150 grams/two times/week) and one tablet group (800 IU vitamin D and 1000 mg calcium/day). The salmon groups also received calcium supplements. The salmon had three different vitamin D3/vitamin K1 combinations: high D3+high K1, low D3+high K1, or high D3+low K1. Increased intake of salmon containing high levels of vitamin D3 (0.35-0.38 mg/kg/fillet) and supplements with the same weekly contribution had a positive influence on bone health as measured by bone biomarkers in postmenopausal women. Consequently, an increased level of vitamin D3 at least to original level in feed for salmonids will contribute to an improved vitamin D3 status and may improve human bone health.

Assessment of adolescents’ dietary habits is challenging. Reliable instruments to monitor dietary trends are required to promote healthier behaviours in this group. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to assess adolescents’ adherence to Norwegian dietary recommendations with a diet score and to report results from, and test-retest reliability of, the score. The diet score involved seven food groups and one physical activity indicator, and was applied to answers from a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) administered twice. Reproducibility of the score was assessed with Cohen’s Kappa (κ statistics) at an interval of three months. The setting was eight lower-secondary schools in Hordaland County, Norway, and subjects were adolescents (n = 472) aged 14–15 years and their caregivers. Results showed that the proportion of adolescents consistently classified by the diet score was 87.6% (κ = 0.465). For food groups, proportions ranged from 74.0% to 91.6% (κ = 0.249 to κ = 0.573). Less than 40% of the participants were found to adhere to recommendations for frequencies of eating fruits, vegetables, added sugar, and fish. Highest compliance to recommendations was seen for choosing water as beverage and limit the intake of red meat. The score was associated with parental socioeconomic status. The diet score was found to be reproducible at an acceptable level. Health promoting work targeting adolescents should emphasize to increase the intake of recommended foods to approach nutritional guidelines.

Replacing dietary fishmeal (FM) and fish oil (FO) with plant ingredients in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) diets decreases dietary cholesterol and introduces phytosterols. The aim of the present study was to assess the effect of dietary sterol composition on cholesterol metabolism in Atlantic salmon. For this purpose, two dietary trials were performed, in which Atlantic salmon were fed either 100 % FM and FO (FM-FO) diet or one of the three diets with either high (80 %) or medium (40 %) plant protein (PP) and a high (70 %) or medium (35 %) vegetable oil (VO) blend (trial 1); or 70 % PP with either 100 % FO or 80 % of the FO replaced with olive, rapeseed or soyabean oil (trial 2). Replacing ≥ 70 % of FM with PP and ≥ 70 % of FO with either a VO blend or rapeseed oil increased plasma and liver TAG concentrations. These diets contained high levels of phytosterols and low levels of cholesterol. Fish fed low-cholesterol diets, but with less phytosterols, exhibited an increased expression of genes encoding proteins involved in cholesterol uptake and synthesis. The expression of these genes was, however, partially inhibited in rapeseed oil-fed fish possibly due to the high dietary and tissue phytosterol:cholesterol ratio. Atlantic salmon tissue and plasma cholesterol concentrations were maintained stable independent of the dietary sterol content.

In order to study whether lipid metabolism may be affected by maximum replacement of dietary fish oil and fish meal with vegetable oils (VO) and plant proteins (PP), Atlantic salmon (Salmo salarL.) smolts were fed a control diet containing fish oil and fish meal or one of three plant-based diets through the seawater production phase for 12 months. Diets were formulated to meet all known nutrient requirements. The whole-body lipid storage pattern was measured after 12 months, as well as post-absorptive plasma, VLDL and liver TAG. To further understand the effects on lipid metabolism, expression of genes encoding for proteins involved in VLDL assembly (apoB100), fatty acid uptake (FATP1, cd36, LPL and FABP3, FABP10 and FABP11) were measured in liver and visceral adipose tissue. Maximum dietary VO and PP increased visceral lipid stores, liver TAG, and plasma VLDL and TAG concentrations. Increased plasma TAG correlated with an increased expression of apoB100, indicating increased VLDL assembly in the liver of fish fed the high-plant protein- and VO-based diet. Atlantic salmon fed intermediate replacement levels of VO or PP did not have increased body fat or visceral mass. Overall, the present results demonstrate an interaction between dietary lipids and protein on lipid metabolism, increasing overall adiposity and TAG in the body when fish meal and fish oil are replaced concomitantly at maximised levels of VO and PP.

The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of replacing high levels of marine ingredients with vegetable raw materials and with emphasis on lipid metabolism and net production of long-chain polyunsaturated ω-3 fatty acids (EPA + DHA). Atlantic salmon were fed three different replacement vegetable diets and one control marine diet before sensory attributes, β-oxidation capacity, and fatty acid productive value (FAPV) of ingested fatty acids (FAs) were evaluated. Fish fed the high replacement diet had a net production of 0.8 g of DHA and a FAPV of 142%. Fish fed the marine diet had a net loss of DHA. The present work shows that Atlantic salmon can be a net producer of marine DHA when dietary fish oil is replaced by vegetable oil with minor effects on sensory attributes and lipid metabolism.