Eating out intensity, ultra-processed foods and body mass index among Albanian youth.

OBJECTIVE Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and eating out of home (OH) are changing nutrition, particularly among youth in constrained settings. We aimed to assess the role of eating OH intensity on the associations of UPFs and unprocessed/minimally processed foods (UMPFs) with body mass index (BMI) among Albanian youth. DESIGN Cross-sectional. SETTING Albania, a south-eastern European country. PARTICIPANTS 281 youth, predominantly females. METHODS UPFs and UMPFs were defined based on NOVA, while eating OH intensity based on energy percentage from OH foods. Multivariable models tested associations of UPFs and UMPFs with BMI stratified by eating OH intensity, controlled for relevant covariates including diet quality, portion size and costs. RESULTS The respondents age ranged between 18-23 years with a female predominance(87.5%). Mean energy from UPFs and UMPFs was 846(SD:573.0) and 802.9(422.5)kcals, respectively. Among substantial at home eaters UPF intake was not associated (β=-0.07,95%CI:-0.13;0.267) with BMI, however UMPFs negatively associated with BMI (β=-0.24,95%CI:-0.43;-0.06). Among those defined as substantial out of home eaters, UPFs (β=0.24, 95%CI:0.08;0.40) and UMPFs (β=0.18,95%CI:0.04;0.33) were positively associated with BMI. CONCLUSIONS Our findings provide evidence for the hypothesis that eating OH plays an important role in the association of UPFs and UMPFs with BMI in youth. While causality cannot be established due to cross-sectional design, to the best of our knowledge, we provide the first assessment of UPFs and UMPFs intake in a south-eastern European setting, while highlighting the need for establishing and integrating youth nutrition into national nutritional surveillance systems for key dietary risk factors in Albania

How the EAT-Lancet commission report 'Food in the Anthropocene' influenced discourse and research on food systems: a systematic review covering the first two years post-publication

In 2019, the EAT–Lancet Commission's report on food in the Anthropocene presented a planetary heath diet to improve health while reducing the environmental effect of food systems globally. We assessed EAT–Lancet's immediate influence on academic research and debate by conducting a systematic review of articles citing the Commission and others published from January, 2019, to April, 2021. The Commission influenced methods, results, or discourse for 192 (7·5%) of 2560 citing articles, stimulating cross-disciplinary research and debate across life sciences (47%), health and medical sciences (42%), and social sciences (11%). Sentiment analysis of 76 critiquing articles indicated that opinions were, on average, more positive than negative. Positive sentiments centred on benefits for informing policy, public health, and raising public awareness. Negative sentiments included insufficient attention to socioeconomic dimensions, feasibility, and environmental effects other than emissions. Empirical articles predominantly evaluated the effects of changed diets or food production on the environment and wellbeing (29%), compared current diets with EAT–Lancet recommendations (12%), or informed future policy and research agendas (20%). Despite limitations in EAT–Lancet's method, scope, and implementation feasibility, the academic community supported these recommendations. A broad suite of research needs was identified focusing on the effects of food processing, socioeconomic and political drivers of diet and health, and optimising consumption or production for environment and health

A Mediterranean Dietary Pattern Is Associated with Greater Participation in Physical Activity and Better Health-Related Quality of Life among Students and Professors at the Melilla Campus (University of Granada)

The objective of this study was to assess Mediterranean diet (MD) scores (i.e., alignment with a MD pattern) among students and professors, in addition to assessing how adherence to the MD was associated with other lifestyle behaviors. A cross-sectional observational study was conducted with a sample of 127 university professors and 272 students of the Melilla Campus at the University of Granada (Spain). Students were more physically active than professors (mean difference = 1058 METs, p < 0.001) and reported lower negative affect (NA; mean difference = −1.70, p < 0.001) whereas professors reported nominally better perceived mental health. For the total sample, the physical health component (β = 0.03, p = 0.03) and physical activity (β = 0.0001, p = 0.01) were significantly associated with higher MD scores. Health behaviors, including MD scores and physical activity, were suboptimal among both students and professors. The results suggest that a dietary pattern reflective of the MD is positively associated with both physical and mental health outcomes among students and professors, though the direction of the associations remains to be clarified

Select dietary changes towards sustainability: Impacts on dietary profiles, environmental footprint, and cost.

Healthy sustainable diets have the power to improve dietary intakes and environmental resource use. However, recommendations for improving food choices need to consider the effects of any changes across multiple dimensions of health, environmental sustainability, and dietary cost to promote long-lasting behaviour change. The aim of this study was to identify differences between original diets, and the diets that can be achieved through the implementation of select small dietary changes towards sustainability. Twelve hypothetical sustainable actions were investigated for the potential effects of these actions on dietary markers (protein, saturated fat, sugars, salt, iron, and calcium), environmental footprints (greenhouse gas emissions, freshwater withdrawals, and land use), and dietary cost. Dietary data from 1235 individuals, aged 19-94 years, participating in the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey (2017/19) provided the original diet. Dietary changes were implemented as required by each sustainable action, and differences between the original diet and each new diet were investigated. Results revealed benefits to dietary markers and environmental characteristics from eleven sustainable actions (range: F(1,728) = 5.80, p < .001 to F(1,506) = 435.04,p < .001), but effects were stronger for some actions than for others. Greatest benefits for all three outcomes were found for actions which reduced meat consumption and/or replaced meat with pulses or eggs. The remaining sustainable actions tended to be beneficial for improving outcomes individually or to some degree. Our results demonstrate the possible impacts of a number of small sustainable dietary actions for dietary, environmental, and cost outcomes, and provide a hierarchy of actions based on benefit. Findings may facilitate dietary behaviours towards improved health, whilst also offering fruitful contributions towards environmental footprint targets in the UK