Dietary Fiber in Health and Disease

This volume carries the proceedings of the Vahouny Fiber Symposium, which took place in Washington DC, in March of 1996. George V. Vahouny pioneered this conference, which was conceived as a means of exchanging information on the latest advances in fiber research. The conference was renamed in George Vahouny's honor after his untimely death. In this volume we have included the reminiscences of Prof. A.R.P. Walker, one of the pioneers in the field, and discussion of the epidemiological findings relating dietary fiber to heart disease, cancer, and gastrointestinal disease. As the overall definition of fiber has broadened we have included for discussion other aspects of carbohydrate chem­ istry and metabolism. Complex carbohydrates were the subject of a full session and resis­ tant starch and the role(s) of oligosaccharides were discussed later in the meeting. Another area of fiber metabolism that is beginning to burgeon is that of the short chain fatty acids, and this too was the subject of presentations and discussion. In addition, the more familiar topics in dietary fiber were updated. Workshops devoted to specific areas of fiber research have now become a mainstay of these meetings, and they were repeated successfully. Due to restraints on spending, the attendance at this meeting was somewhat smaller than usual but the discussion was lively and pertinent. We are deeply grateful to our sponsors and contributors for their continuing interest in dietary fiber research, and for their generous support of this symposium.

1. Nutritionally Related Disorders/Diseases in Africans: Highlights of Half a Century of Research with Special Reference to Unexpected Phenomena.- 2. The Evolving Epidemiology of Fiber and Heart Disease.- 3. Dietary Fibre and Human Cancer: Epidemiological Data.- 4. What Is a High Fiber Diet?.- 5. Overview on Complex Carbohydrates.- 6. Dietary Guidelines and Complex Carbohydrates.- 7. Classification of Complex Carbohydrates.- 8. Determination of Complex Carbohydrates in Foods as the Sum of Available Starch and Dietary Fiber.- 9. Application of Complex Carbohydrates in the Food Industry: The Consumer Perspective.- 10. Soluble Fiber and Hypertension.- 11. Soluble Fiber and Energy Regulation: Current Knowledge and Future Directions.- 12. Soluble Fibers and Dietary Lipids.- 13. Sites and Mechanisms for the Hypocholesterolemic Actions of Soluble Dietary Fiber Sources.- 14. Butyrate and the Colonocyte: Production, Absorption, Metabolism, and Therapeutic Implications.- 15. Short Chain Fatty Acids, Intestinal Adaptation and Nutrient Utilization.- 16. Short Chain Fatty Acids Inhibit the Expression of the Neutrophil Chemoattractant, Interleukin 8, in the Caco-2 Intestinal Cell Line.- 17. Short Chain Fatty Acids: Production and Effects on Gut Motility.- 18. Butyrate: Potential Role in Colon Cancer Prevention and Treatment.- 19. Effect of Short Chain Fatty Acids on Calcium Absorption in Humans.- 20. Influence of Short Chain Fatty Acids on Intestinal Growth and Functions.- 21. Resistant Starch - an Update on Its Physiological Effects.- 22. Health Benefits of Non-Digestible Oligosaccharides.- 23. Gastrointestinal Effects of Fructooligosaccharides.- 24. Phytosterols.- 25. Adding Certain Fiber-Related Nutrients to Food Products.- 26. Fiber and Cancer Protection - Mechanisms.- 27.Dietary Fiber and Bile Acid Metabolism - an Update.- 28. Hard Wheat Bran and Hard Wheat Bran Fiber Energy Values Measured in Rats after 6 and 16 Weeks.- 29. The Protective Role of Dietary Fiber in Diverticular Disease.- 30. Dietary Guidelines/RDA/Daily Value Workshop.- 31. Soluble Dietary Fiber Workshop.- 32. Workshop Report: Fiber and CHD Management.- 33. Workshop on Animal Models Used in Fiber Research.