A person's food preferences clearly reflect their personality and status.

　Lively green wasabi, firmly formed white sesame tofu, translucent dashi with caramel color, served on elegant tableware, such as a cold plate named "kenzan-utsushi-tatsutagawa-mukozuke" (*1). A lacquered meal tray, as well as rikyubashi chopsticks (*2) with cedar scent from Yoshino district of Nara and a chopstick restraint with an autumn grass pattern.

　The guest room of a Sukiya style structure (*3) is filled with a fresh scent of tatami mats and equipped with a moss garden. The ink painting depicting the landscape by Tessai (*4) is being hung in the alcove of the room. The scent of incense wafts through the air.

　The entrance with an elegant shop curtain is faintly bright and roji the entrance way (*5) is moderately moist. They remind the guests of the way they've been walking here, which includes Eikando Temple covered by red maple leaves which they visited during the day.

　It is crucial to bring out the delicious flavors of ingredients, completing the dishes to their highest standard. At the same time, chefs of Japanese cuisine establishes the best harmony between the dishes and a variety of elements as mentioned above. The aesthetic consciousness that exists in Japanese cuisine creates a harmonious beauty, bringing together flavors and aesthetic elegance. This beauty is what chefs want to portray to their guests above all else; and when this resonates it creates emotion and pleasure.

(*1) kenzan-utsushi-tatsutagawa-mukozuke: A series of small plates, created by Ogata Kenzan, Kyoto-born potter in the 17^th century, featuring the pattern of the flow of a river and a unique plate shape formed by their patterns.

(*2) rikyubashi chopsticks: Devised by Sen no Rikyu, a great master of Way of Tea in the Momoyama era (16^th century), particularly for kaiseki dishes developed based upon the tea ceremony.

(*3) Sukiya style structure: An architectural style of ceremonial tea house.

(*4) Tessai: Kyoto-born literati painter, Tomioka Tessai (1836-1924), well-known for works of magnificent scale, painted with unrestrained brush strokes.

(*5) roji the entrance way: A type of a Japanese garden usually attached to a tea ceremony room.

　The postprandial increase in blood triglyceride levels is an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease and a large number of studies has shown that a diet rich in vegetables may provide protection against many chronic diseases. Leaf vegetables generally contain β-carotene, zeaxanthin and chlorophyll including thylakoids. In this study, we investigated the bile acid-binding capacities of thylakoids in vitro and the suppressive effects of it before the administration of a lipid meal on postprandial hypertriglyceridemia in rats using oral fat tolerance/loading tests (OFTT). Consequently, thylakoids bound bile acids in a dose-dependent manner. Following the administration of the lipid meals, increases in the serum triglycerides levels were significantly reduced in rats fed 300 mg/kg bw of thylakoids just before lipid meals. Additionally, the area under the curve showed that a high-dose thylakoids significantly inhibited the absorption of dietary fat. Moreover, the level of fecal bile acid was significantly increased although there were no significant differences in the fecal volume and fecal total lipid levels.

　These results suggest that thylakoid intake before eating a lipid diet induces a suppressive effect of postprandial hypertriglyceridemia to defecate bile acid and confirmed the results of the health-promoting potential dietary thylakoids. This health benefit of thylakoids could be achieved by substantially increasing the consumption of vegetables.

[Background]　Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) concentration was high (≥ 5.6％) in 34％ of women aged 20-39 years in Choshi City, Chiba prefecture who underwent medical checks during June and July 2014. The ratio was higher than that of women aged 40-44 years in all of Chiba prefecture (19％). Among the women with high HbA1c concentrations in Choshi City, 64％ had a normal body mass index (BMI) of 18.5-25.0.

[Objective]　To determine the risk of lifestyle-related diseases among young women with high HbA1c levels and a normal BMI in Choshi City.

[Methods]　Women with a BMI within the normal range who underwent medical checks during 2014 were assigned to groups with high (≥ 5.6％; n ＝ 89) and normal (＜ 5.6％; n ＝ 188) HbA1c concentrations. The outcomes of their medical checks were compared. We also assessed eating habits of women with high HbA1c using a brief-type self-administered diet history questionnaire (BDHQ; n ＝ 24), along with body composition and quantitative calcaneal ultrasound sonometry (n ＝ 14).

[Results]　The mean serum LDL-cholesterol concentration was higher (p ＝ 0.034), whereas hemoglobin concentration and diastolic blood pressure were lower (p ＜ 0.001 and p ＝ 0.007, respectively) in the group with high, compared with normal HbA1c. More items were outside normal ranges in the group with high HbA1c (p ＜ 0.001). The body fat percentage was ≥ 30％ in 46％ of the participants, which was classified as normal-weight obesity or hidden obesity.

[Conclusions]　In this study, the young women with a normal range and high HbA1c were suggested to have higher risk of lifestyle-related diseases. Almost half of them were classified as having hidden obesity.

　This study aimed to clarify the influence of dietary habits and the daily intake of fermented milk product containing Bifidobacterium breve strain Yakult, 1．0 × 1010 cfu/100 mL/day on bowel habits in healthy young Japanese women. To clarify the interaction of a fermented milk product containing Bifidobacterium breve strain Yakult, 1．0 × 1010 cfu/100 mL/day, and food intake on bowel habits in healthy young Japanese women. A total of 150 female university students participated in this study. They recorded the amount of food intake using a food-frequency questionnaire （FFQ） during the pre-experiment period and bowel habits in a diary during the study. After the exclusion of 30 subjects who defecated every day, 120 subjects were randomly divided two groups.Pre experiment they recorded the amount of food intake using food-frequency questionnaire （FFQ） and bowel habits. After excluded 30 subjects who defecated every day, we divided two groups. We conducted an open cross-over ,study, which was composed of a non-intake period （4 weeks）, a washout period （2 weeks）, and an intake period （4 weeks）. Sixty-two subjects, who completed the study and fully recorded in a diary, were included in the analysis. We conducted an open cross-over study. The study period was 10 weeks including a non-intake period, washout period, and an intake period. During the intake period the defecation frequency was increased from 72．2 ± 18．6 to 77．7 ± 18．8％ （p ＜ 0．01）. The Bristol Stool Scale was increased from 3．2 ± 0．8 to 3．4 ± 0．9（p ＜ 0．01）. As assessed by a 5-point Likert scale, the average scores of straining and feeling of incomplete evacuation was decreased from 2．0 ± 0．8 to 1．7 ± 0．7 （p ＜ 0．01）. As assessed by a visual analog 10-point scale, the average scores of constipation awareness was decreased from 4．1 ± 2．0 to 3．3 ± 1．9 （p ＜ 0．01）. In contrast, tThe amount of calorie intake was remarkably smaller than that in recommended value （1532 ± 314 v.s.1950 kcal）. Especially the consumption of potato, beans, vegetable, and fruits were smaller than recommended value. The defecation frequency during the intake period was positively correlated with each amount of calorie intake and carbohydrate intake（each p ＜ 0．05）but not with the amount of dietary fiber intake. These findings suggest that a daily intake of fermented milk containing Bifidobacterium and an adequate food intake might provide benefits improving the bowel habit in healthy young Japanese women.

　We performed an educational evaluation of dietician course students. To do this, we conducted a dietary survey using food models with integrated circuit tags to examine whether the students could learn to select a balanced meal.

　The subjects were 65 women at a junior college who were studying to be dieticians （study group） and 65 female students who were not studying the dietician course （non-study group）. Subjects participated in a dietary survey in May-June 2013 and again in September-October 2014. The 2013 and 2014 dietary surveys each had two steps. In the first trial, we assessed the subjects' ability to select a meal. In the second trial, we assessed the subjects' ability to modify their meal selection to make it more balanced. The balance of the meal in each dietary survey was rated from 1 to 5. Scores obtained in the dietary surveys in each period in each group were analyzed by using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test or Mann-Whitney test.

　Comparison of scores between the 2013 and 2104 surveys revealed that, in the study group, the first trial score in the 2014 survey was significantly higher than the first trial score in the 2013 survey （p ＜ 0.05）. However, in the study group there were no significant differences between the second trial score in 2013 and that in 2014. Comparison of the scores in the study and non-study groups revealed that, in 2014, the first trial score of the study group was significantly higher than that of the non-study group （p ＜ 0.01）. There were no significant differences in the second trial scores in 2014 between the study and non-study groups.

　These results suggested that, after dietitian education, students learned to select a balanced meal. However, their ability to see meals comprehensively and modify them appeared insufficient. The students were unable to understand that a food or dish used to modify a nutrient excess or deficiency could cause an excess or deficiency of other nutrients.

　Using the electron spin resonance spin trap method, we evaluated the ability of carotenoids (lycopene, β-carotene) in tomato juice to scavenge hydroxyl radicals, alkoxy radicals, superoxide radicals, and singlet oxygen. The lycopene content in tomato juice highly contributed to its hydroxyl radical- and singlet oxygen-scavenging ability. This tendency was found to be particularly notable in dark-red tomato juice with high lycopene content. The contribution of β-carotene, whose content is high in yellow tomato juice, to the radical-scavenging ability was higher than that found in juice from tomatoes of other colors. The reactive oxygen species-scavenging ability of tomato juice was variable, suggesting that the scavenging ability depended on the types of carotenoids contained in the tomato.