Browsing by Author "Herselman, M. G."

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    An assessment of the implementation of the National Therapeutic Programme for pregnant women within the City of Cape Town district
    (2013) Grundlingh, H.; Herselman, M. G.; Iversen, P. O.
    BACKGROUND: An integrated Nutritional Supplementation Programme (NSP), now termed the National Therapeutic Programme (NTP), was initiated in 1995 to address South Africa's pressing nutritional problems. It specifically focuses on maternal health, including iron deficiency anaemia and underweight among pregnant women, but its implementation and efficacy for pregnant women has not been evaluated. OBJECTIVES: To determine (i) whether pregnant women qualified for both the food and micronutrient (folate and iron) supplementation offered by the programme; (ii) whether those who qualified received such supplementation; and (iii) whether those who qualified were aware of the rationale for the supplementations. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in all primary healthcare antenatal clinics in the City of Cape Town district, involving 114 women. All were interviewed using a questionnaire, their mid-upper arm circumference was measured, and their symphysis-fundus measurements (where documented) were obtained from their medical files. RESULTS: Only 5% of the women qualified for the food supplementation, while all qualified for the micronutrient supplementation. Only 1 of the 6 participants who qualified for food supplementation was registered and received it. Seventy (61%) of the participants received the micronutrient supplementation and used it correctly. Twenty-nine (25%) participants had heard about the food supplementations for pregnant women and 54 (47%) had heard about the micronutrient supplementations. CONCLUSION: The food supplementation was not successfully implemented among pregnant women. The strategy requires further attention within the antenatal clinics.
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    Nutritional composition of South African eggs
    (Health & Medical Publishing Group, 1994) Herselman, M. G.; Blaauw, Renee; Labadarios, D.; Langenhoven, M. L.; Kruger, M.
    We congratulate Van Niekerk and Van Heerden on their excellent study on the nutritional composition of South African eggs,' in which they show that the cholesterol content of South African eggs is 23,5% lower than the values listed in the NRlND Food Composition Tables. The anicle raises a number of imponant issues that should be addressed.
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    Nutritional status of renal transplant patients
    (Health & Medical Publishing Group, 2002) Du Plessis, A. S.; Randall, H.; Escreet, E.; Holl, M.; Conradie, M.; Moosa, M. R.; Labadarios, D.; Herselman, M. G.
    Objective. To assess the effect of renal transplantation on the nutritional status of patients. Design. Prospective descriptive study. Setting. Renal Transplant Clinic at Tygerberg Hospital, Western Cape. Subjects. Fifty-eight renal transplant patients from Tygerberg Hospital were enrolled in the study. The sample was divided into two groups of 29 patients each: group 1, less than 28 months post-transplant; and group 2, more than 28 months post-transplant. Outcome measures. Nutritional status assessment comprised biochemical evaluation, a dietary history, anthropometric measurements and a clinical examination. Results. Serum vitamin B6 levels were below normal in 56% of patients from group 1 and 59% from group 2. Vitamin B6 intake, however, was insufficient in only 14% of patients from group 1 and 10% from group 2. Serum vitamin C levels were below normal in 7% of patients from group 1 and 24% from group 2, while vitamin C intake was insufficient in 21% and 14% of patients from groups 1 and 2 respectively. Serum magnesium levels were below normal in 55% of patients from group 1, and in 28% from group 2. Serum albumin and cholesterol levels increased significantly during the post-transplant period in the total sample (P = 0.0001). There was also a significant increase in body mass index (P = 0.0001) during the post-transplant period. Conclusions. Several nutritional abnormalities were observed, which primarily reflect the side-effects of immunosuppressive therapy. The causes, consequences and treatment of the vitamin B6 and vitamin C deficiencies in renal transplant recipients need further investigation.
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    Supplemented low-protein diets : are they superior in chronic renal failure?
    (Health & Medical Publishing Group, 1995) Herselman, M. G.; Albertse, E. C.; Lombard, C. J.; Swanepoel, C. R.; Hough, F. S.
    Twenty-two patients with chronic renal failure were randomly assigned to a conventional low-protein diet containing 0,6g protein/kg/day or a very-low-protein diet containing 0,6g protein/kg/day supplemented with essential amino acids; they were followed up for 9 months. There were no significant changes in body mass index, arm muscle area, percentage body fat, serum albumin and transferrin levels in any of the groups; neither was there any difference between the groups in respect of these parameters. Renal function, as measured by the reciprocal of serum creatinine over time, stabilised in both groups during intervention, with no significant difference between the groups. There was however no correlation between changes in renal function and changes in blood pressure, or dietary intake of protein, phosphorus, cholesterol, polyunsaturated and saturated fatty acids. There were also no significant changes and no significant differences between the groups in serum levels of parathyroid hormone and alkaline phosphatase, urine cyclic adenosine monophosphate, tubular reabsorption of phosphate, and the theoretical renal threshold for phosphate. The results of this study suggest that the supplemented very-low-protein diet was not superior to the conventional low-protein diet in terms of its effect on protein-energy status, renal function and biochemical parameters of renal osteodystrophy.