Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and Environmental Impact of the Diet on Primary School Children Living in Parma (Italy)

The key role of diet in both human health and environmental sustainability is well known. However, there is a lack of studies investigating the environmental impact of children’s dietary behavior. The aim of this observational study was to investigate the dietary environmental impact in a sample of primary school children living in Parma (Italy, n = 172, 8–10 years), in relation to their adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD). Children completed a 3-day food record in both winter and spring. Dietary records were processed to obtain: (i) adherence to the MD and (ii) mean daily carbon and ecological footprints. Adherence to the MD was similar in winter and spring, with almost half of the participants showing a medium MD score. Carbon and ecological footprints were higher during winter, and the main dietary contributors were red and processed meat for both indexes. A small positive correlation was observed between adherence to the MD and total carbon and ecological footprints. This study provided the first analysis of the relationship between adherence to the MD and environmental impact of primary school children. Further research is needed to better investigate the environmental impact of primary school children’s diet and the possible relationship between the MD and environmental sustainability

Claimed Effects, Outcome Variables and Methods of Measurement for Health Claims on Foods Related to Vision Proposed Under Regulation (EC) 1924/2006

Adequate visual function has a strong impact on the quality of life of people. Several foods and food components have been hypothesized to play a role in the maintenance of normal visual function and in the prevention of eye diseases. Some of these foods/food components have been the object of a request of authorization for use of health claims under Articles 13(5) or 14 of the Regulation (EC) 1924/2006. Most of these requests have received a negative opinion from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) due to the choice of inappropriate outcome variables (OVs) and/or methods of measurement (MMs) applied in the studies used to substantiate the claims. This manuscript refers to the collection, collation and critical analysis of OVs and MMs related to vision. Guidance document and requests for authorization of health claims were used to collect OVs and MMs related to vision. A literature review was performed to critically analyse OVs and MMs, with the aim of defining their appropriateness in the context of a specific claimed effect related to vision. The results highlight the importance of adequate choices of OVs and MMs for an effective substantiation of claims related to visual function

Claimed Effects, Outcome Variables and Methods of Measurement for Health Claims on Foods Related to Vision Proposed Under Regulation (EC) 1924/2006

Adequate visual function has a strong impact on the quality of life of people. Several foods and food components have been hypothesized to play a role in the maintenance of normal visual function and in the prevention of eye diseases. Some of these foods/food components have been the object of a request of authorization for use of health claims under Articles 13(5) or 14 of the Regulation (EC) 1924/2006. Most of these requests have received a negative opinion from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) due to the choice of inappropriate outcome variables (OVs) and/or methods of measurement (MMs) applied in the studies used to substantiate the claims. This manuscript refers to the collection, collation and critical analysis of OVs and MMs related to vision. Guidance document and requests for authorization of health claims were used to collect OVs and MMs related to vision. A literature review was performed to critically analyse OVs and MMs, with the aim of defining their appropriateness in the context of a specific claimed effect related to vision. The results highlight the importance of adequate choices of OVs and MMs for an effective substantiation of claims related to visual function

Measuring and comparing the carbon footprints of different procurement models for primary school meals:Analysis of cases across five European countries

Sustainable Public Food Procurement (PFP) represents a key game changer for food systems transformation. It can influence both food consumption and food production patterns. It can deliver multiple social, economic and environmental benefits towards sustainable food systems for healthy diets. This publication aims to contribute to the improved understanding, dissemination and use of PFP as a development tool in particular in the case of school meals programmes. In Volume 1, researchers, policymakers and development partners can find evidence on how PFP can be used as a development tool and deliver multiple benefits for multiple beneficiaries. It argues that PFP can provide a market for local and smallholder farmers, promote the conservation and sustainable use of agrobiodiversity, and improve the nutrition and health of children and communities. Volume 2 of this publication, available at https://doi.org/10.4060/cb7969en, presents further analysis of the instruments, enablers and barriers for PFP implementation. It also provides case studies with local, regional and national experiences from Africa, Asia, Europe and North and South America

Alternative protein sources in the European diets: the contribution of ALTERNATIVA project to One Health perspective

A abordagem como a One Health, baseada em princípios que promovem a coexistência saudável, bem-estar e sustentabilidade entre humanos, animais e ambiente, tem surgido como indispensável para fazer face aos diversos problemas globais associados às alterações climáticas e sus- tentabilidade. A mesma multidisciplinaridade do conceito One Health é, também, uma característica do conceito e aplicação da Avaliação de Risco-Benefício (ARB). Este estudo tem como objetivo demonstrar de que forma é que o projeto ALTERNATIVA – Alternative protein sources in the European diets integrating health risk-benefit and sustainability (Fontes alternativas de proteínas nas dietas europeias – integrando risco-benefício para a saúde e sustentabilidade) contribui para o desenvolvimento e aplicação do conceito One Health, tendo por base a ARB de diferentes dietas alimentares. Realizou-se uma pesquisa bibliográfica sobre o conceito “One Health” através da base de dados Pubmed/U.S. National Library of Medicine e no Google Scholar, nos quais foram efetuadas pesquisas avançadas, que in- cluíram os termos: “One health approach”, “Risk benefit food one health”, “Alternative protein”, “One health food” e “One health food assessment”. Os resultados deste estudo demonstram de que forma é que o projeto ALTERNATIVA, através das suas diferentes atividades desenvolvidas, integra os principais pilares do conceito One Health (Humano, Animal e Ambiental) em todas as suas dimensões. Conclui-se que o projeto ALTERNATIVA aliado ao conceito One Health, constitui uma ferramenta inovadora para apoiar as melhores decisões sobre as dietas do futuro, garantindo a nutrição humana e a saúde planetária, ao contribuir para a mitigação das tendências adversas que estão diretamente associadas às nossas escolhas alimentares.One Health approach, based on principles that promote healthy coexis- tence, well-being and sustainability between humans, animals and the environment, has emerged as crucial to tackle the various global problems associated with climate change and sustainability. The same multidisciplinary of the One Health concept is also a characteristic of the concept and application of the Risk-Benefit Assessment (RBA).This study aims to demonstrate how the ALTERNATIVA Project Alternative protein sources in the European diets – integrating health risk-benefit and sustainability contributes to developing and applying the One Health concept based on the RBA of different diets. Bibliographical research was carried out on the concept One Health through the Pubmed/U.S. National Library of Medicine and Google Scholar, which included advanced searches with the terms: “One health approach”, “Risk-Benefit food one health”, “Alternative protein”, “One health food” and “One health food assessment”. The results of this study demonstrate how the ALTERNATIVA Project, through its different activities, integrates the main pillars of the One Health concept (Human, Animal and Environmental) in all its dimensions. It is concluded that the ALTERNATIVA Project combined with the One Health concept constitutes an innovative tool to support the best decisions about the diets of the future, guaranteeing human nutrition and planetary health, by contributing to the mitigation of the adverse trends directly associated with our food choices.Trabalho desenvolvido no âmbito do projeto projeto ALTERNATIVA − Alternative sources of protein in European diets - integrating risk-benefit for health and sustainability financiado pelas EFSA Partnering Grants (Grant Agreement Number – GP/EFSA/ENCO/2020/03 - GA 2).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Sustainable dietary choices: the contribution of the ALTERNATIVA project as a tool for selecting alternative protein sources

O aumento da população humana e a consequente pressão exercida pelos sistemas alimentares desafiam a saúde e o meio ambiente, cujo impacto se reflete, entre outros, ao nível das alterações climáticas associadas ao aquecimento global, exploração de recursos naturais e da perda de biodiversidade. Entre os fatores que mais contribuem para esse impacto está a produção de proteínas de origem animal, como a carne vermelha e os lacticínios. Neste sentido, urge uma transformação dos sistemas alimentares, sendo que esta transformação deverá ser sustentada numa avaliação dos impactos de fontes alternativas de proteínas, quer na saúde quer na sustentabilidade. Este artigo tem como principal objetivo discutir os desafios colocados aos sistemas alimentares e a necessidade de avaliar o impacto destes, à luz do projeto ALTERNATIVA (Alternative sources of protein in European diets – integrating risk-benefit for health and sustainability) como uma ferra menta para o desenvolvimento sustentável nas diferentes vertentes – ambiental, social e económica, através de uma metodologia que reúne e combina conhecimentos em avaliação do risco-benefício (ARB) de alimentos e a avaliação da sustentabilidade. A utilização de abordagens holísticas, como a que está a ser aplicada no projeto ALTERNATIVA com o objetivo de fornecer ferramentas inovadoras para apoiar decisões sobre as futuras dietas, é fundamental para minimizar os efeitos dos desafios atuais tentando garantir alimentos seguros, economicamente justos, acessíveis, dietas nutricionalmente adequadas e saudáveis com menores impactos ambientais.The growth of human population and the consequent pressure exerted by food systems challenge health and the natural environment, whose impact is reflected, among others, in terms of contribu tion to climate change associated with global warming, exploitation of natural resources and loss of biodiversity. Among the major contributors to this impact is the production of proteins of animal origin, such as red meat and dairy. Therefore, the need of transforming food systems is urgent and should be supported by assessing the overall health impact of alternative protein sources considering also sus tainability aspects. Our main objective is to discuss the challenges posed to food systems and the need to assess their impact under the umbrella of the ALTERNATIVA (Alternative sources of protein in Euro pean diets – integrating risk-benefit for health and sustainability) as a tool for sustainable development in different aspects – health, environmental, social and economic, through a methodology that brings together and combines knowledge in risk-benefit assessment (RBA) and sustainability assessment. The use of holistic approaches, such as the one being applied in the ALTERNATIVA project aiming to provide innovative tools to support decisions about the future diets, is fundamental to minimize the effects of the current challenges trying to guarantee secure, economically fair, affordable, nutritionally adequate and healthy diets having lower environmental impacts.Trabalho desenvolvido no âmbito do projeto ALTERNATIVA (Alternative sources of protein in European diets – integra ting risk-benefit for health and sustainability) financiado pelas EFSA Partnering Grants (Grant Agreement Number – GP/EFSA/ENCO/2020/03 – GA 2.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Predicting the Adoption of a Sustainable Diet in Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study in Italy

Shifting food choices towards sustainability entails the analysis of dietary behavior determinants. This study aimed to explain and predict the intention to follow a sustainable diet and its adoption in a representative sample of adults (n = 838) in Italy. An online survey based on the theory of planned behavior (TPB) was developed. The adoption of a sustainable diet was measured as self-perceived behavior, adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD), and food consumption frequencies. Psychometric analysis and correlations between attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control (PBC) with both intention and behavior assessments were evaluated. Structural equation models were used to test whether and to what extent attitude, subjective norms, and PBC explained intention and behavior. Significant associations were found between TPB constructs and the behavior measures underlining the main role of intention and PBC in affecting behavior. The applied TPB models explained behavioral intention at most (78%). The results suggested promising interventions in narrowing the attitude–behavior gap to encourage specific adult population groups in Italy to adopt virtuous food consumption habits. Beside the implementation of price mechanism strategies, educational initiatives to increase awareness about food and diet sustainability issues and the reinforcement of the perceived control on food consumption at the individual level are recommended

Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet in Association with Self-Perception of Diet Sustainability, Anthropometric and Sociodemographic Factors: A Cross-Sectional Study in Italian Adults

The adoption of sustainable dietary models, such as the Mediterranean Diet (MD), can be a valuable strategy to preserve ecosystems and human health. This study aims to investigate in an Italian adult representative sample the adherence to the MD and to what extent it is associated with the self-perceived adoption of a sustainable diet, the consideration of the MD as a sustainable dietary model, and anthropometric and sociodemographic factors. By applying an online survey (n = 838, 18–65 years, 52% female), an intermediate level of MD adherence (median: 4.0, IR: 3.0–4.0) in a 0–9 range was observed. Only 50% of the total sample confirmed the MD as a sustainable dietary model, and 84% declared no or low perception of adopting a sustainable diet. Being female, having a higher income and education level, considering the MD as a sustainable dietary model, as well as the perception of having a sustainable diet were the most relevant factors influencing the probability of having a high score (≥6) of adherence to the MD. This study suggests a gradual shift away from the MD in Italy and supports the need to address efforts for developing intervention strategies tailored to adults for improving diet quality. Furthermore, a public campaign should stress the link between a diet and its environmental impact to foster nutritionally adequate and eco-friendly dietary behaviors

Changes in terms of risks/benefits of shifting diets towards healthier and more sustainable dietary models

Abstract Food production and therefore human diet are identified as important sources of environmental impact. Unhealthy and unsustainable diets with high intake of meat and low intake of plant‐based products are predominant worldwide. On the other hand, a balance between health and sustainability is necessary, since diets that are environmentally sustainable could lack essential macro‐ and micronutrients and result in nutrient deficiencies, non‐communicable diseases and malnutrition. The aim of this project was to investigate the nutritional adequacy and environmental impact of adults' diet by comparing current dietary habits and new alternative dietary scenarios. First, a systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines to assess the environmental impact of current diets and sustainable dietary scenarios such as vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, omnivorous and optimised dietary patterns worldwide. In the second part of the project, an optimisation study was conducted, based on a multi‐objective optimisation approach, with the purpose of creating the optimal diet based on nutritional and environmental constraints for the adult Italian population. The dietary scenarios of the optimised models were developed in accordance with the Italian food‐based dietary guidelines. Food consumption data was extracted from the INHES study and used as baseline diet. A clear evaluation of the current environmental impact because of diet and potential sustainable dietary scenarios globally is challenging. Finally, national food‐based guidelines should be adjusted by suggesting healthy and sustainable dietary recommendations in line with traditional eating habits and local food availability in order the desirable dietary shifts towards sustainability to be feasible