The nutrient quality and labelling of ready-to-eat snack foods with health and or nutritional claims.

Master of Science in Dietetics and Human Nutrition. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2018.Aim: The incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and obesity in South Africa is increasing at an alarming rate. The nutrition transition and urbanisation has contributed to the adoption of a diet of highly processed, convenience foods. The development of nutrient marketing has the potential to influence purchasing and consumption behaviour. Nutrient content and health claims are prevalent across convenience foods, it is important to determine whether these claims are accurate and whether these foods possess superior qualities to other similar products to prevent the misleading of consumers. This study was conducted to determine the nutrient quality and labelling of South African-produced ready-to-eat (RTE) snack foods displaying health and or nutrition claims. Objectives: To determine: the types of claims displayed on RTE snack foods and the accuracy of these claims; the average nutrient content per category of snack food items; the accuracy of reported total energy content compared to the energy content calculated using the conversion factors in the R146 labelling legislation; and the eligibility of current claims once the R429 legislation is implemented. Method: A descriptive analysis method was used in this study. The study sample consisted of 93 South African-produced RTE snack food products displaying health and or nutrition claims on the label. The following product categories were included in the study: oat, corn or rice cakes; crisps or chips; pretzels and crackers; protein snack bars; fruit bars or snacks; energy or high-performance bars; trail mix; chocolates; biscuits and popcorn. The compliancy of each type of claim, according to the R146 labelling legislation, was investigated. The mean nutrient content per product category was calculated and compared to the mean across the sample. The reported total energy content was compared to the calculated total energy content, as specified in the R146 legislation. The nutrient profile score of products in the sample was analysed using the proposed R429 nutrient profiling model (NPM) to determine whether current health and nutrition claims will be valid once the new legislation is implemented. Results: Nutrient content claims were the most commonly displayed health and or nutrition claim amongst products, twenty three out of 91 (25.3%) nutrient content claims displayed were non-compliant according to the R146 labelling legislation. Items with comparison claims were compliant according to the legislation, however the overall nutrient profile of two of the items with claims were desirable. In terms of the calculated versus reported total energy content, 64 products (68.8%) had a higher reported total energy content than calculated using conversion factors. The R429 NPM deemed that only 22 (23.7%) of the products would be eligible to make health and or nutrition claims once the R429 legislation is implemented. Conclusion: The results found in this study highlight the need for more stringent regulation of nutrition labelling in South Africa. The proposed R429 labelling legislation may have a drastic effect on current nutrition labelling amongst food manufacturers. It can be concluded that the claims displayed on RTE snack food products are not always accurate and regulatory compliance is therefore important to stipulate amongst food manufacturers. A multi-pronged approach including the strengthening of public nutrition education may be needed to improve food choices which may reduce the incidence of NCDs and obesity in South Africa. The standardisation of front-of-package (FOP) labelling with the proposed legislation may improve the current labelling practices in South Africa. This study has highlighted areas where work can be done to improve public health in South Africa

Can Workshops Provide a Way to Enhance Patient/Client Centered Collaborative Teams?: Evidence of Outcomes from TEAMc Online Facilitator Training and Team Workshops

The movement towards collaborative interprofessional teamwork for improving patient care has sometimes been impeded by health providers who have a desire to work together, but are unsure how to move towards such models of care delivery. The situation can be complicated by some reluctance on the part of health care institutions to release staff from normal duties to participate in team building training. The purpose of this study was to report on a collaborative team building process supported by the hospital administration in northern Ontario, Canada, and to provide evaluation results for the Toolkit for Enhancing and Maintaining Team Collaboration (TEAMc) using measurements before the start, at the end of the workshop series and at eight months post-series. Participants were from two teams (Acute Care and Rehabilitation) in a northern Ontario, Canada, hospital. TEAMc was comprised of six, 3-hour workshops offered over six months in 2014/15. A total of 77 health providers completed the pre-intervention Interprofessional Socialization & Valuing Scale (ISVS) and the Assessment of Interprofessional Team Collaboration Scale (AITCS), 50 health providers completed the post-intervention instruments and 32 and at the eight month follow-up. The study found that TEAMc can result in changes in team members’ socialization towards wanting to participate in interprofessional teams and in the team’s ability to emulate interprofessional client-centered collaborative practice. The greatest learning gained by participants was around their role clarification and understanding of each other’s roles and expertise, as well as developing their capacity to use a process to resolve interprofessional conflicts

The nutrient quality and labelling of ready-to-eat snack foods with health and/or nutrition claims

Background: Nutrition claims on food labels are used to attract attention to products. Inaccurate claims on ready-to-eat (RTE) snack food products may mislead consumers into consuming a higher volume of a seemingly ‘healthy’ product.Objectives: A study was undertaken to determine the following surrounding the packaging of RTE snack food products: (i) compliance of health and or nutrient claims; (ii) average nutrient content per snack category; (iii) accuracy of the total energy content; (iv) eligibility to make claims once the R429 legislation is implemented.Outcome measures: Nutrient content per 100 g and serving size was analysed. Claims related to nutrient content were audited.Design: An analysis was undertaken of the labels of 93 South African-produced RTE snack food products from 10 categories, displaying health and or nutrition claims.Results: Ninety-one products displayed nutrient content claims. Twenty-three (25.3%) nutrient content claims were noncompliant with the R146 legislation. Twenty-one (22.6%) displayed negative claims, three (14.3%) were ineligible. Eighteen products (19.4%) displayed endorsement claims, four (4.4%) were eligible. Sixty-four products (68.8%) displayed a higher total energy content when applying the conversion factors to the displayed macronutrient values. Only 22 (23.7%) products would be eligible to make health and/or nutrition claims once the R429 legislation is promulgated.Conclusion: A higher proportion of eligible claims were found. More than 70% of food manufacturers will need to make changes to the nutrient content or labels once the R429 legislation is implemented. A two-pronged approach of manufacturer compliance and consumer education may improve food choices and reduce the incidence of obesity and NCDs

The nutrient quality and labelling of ready-to-eat snack foods with health and/or nutrition claims

Background: Nutrition claims on food labels are used to attract attention to products. Inaccurate claims on ready-to-eat (RTE) snack food products may mislead consumers into consuming a higher volume of a seemingly ‘healthy’ product. Objectives: A study was undertaken to determine the following surrounding the packaging of RTE snack food products: (i) compliance of health and or nutrient claims; (ii) average nutrient content per snack category; (iii) accuracy of the total energy content; (iv) eligibility to make claims once the R429 legislation is implemented. Outcome measures: Nutrient content per 100 g and serving size was analysed. Claims related to nutrient content were audited. Design: An analysis was undertaken of the labels of 93 South African-produced RTE snack food products from 10 categories, displaying health and or nutrition claims. Results: Ninety-one products displayed nutrient content claims. Twenty-three (25.3%) nutrient content claims were non-compliant with the R146 legislation. Twenty-one (22.6%) displayed negative claims, three (14.3%) were ineligible. Eighteen products (19.4%) displayed endorsement claims, four (4.4%) were eligible. Sixty-four products (68.8%) displayed a higher total energy content when applying the conversion factors to the displayed macronutrient values. Only 22 (23.7%) products would be eligible to make health and/or nutrition claims once the R429 legislation is promulgated. Conclusion: A higher proportion of eligible claims were found. More than 70% of food manufacturers will need to make changes to the nutrient content or labels once the R429 legislation is implemented. A two-pronged approach of manufacturer compliance and consumer education may improve food choices and reduce the incidence of obesity and NCDs

Micrococcin cysteine-to-thiazole conversion through transient interactions between the scaffolding protein TclI and the modification enzymes TclJ and TclN.

Ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs) are a broad group of compounds mediating microbial competition in nature. Azole/azoline heterocycle formation in the peptide backbone is a key step in the biosynthesis of many RiPPs. Heterocycle formation in RiPP precursors is often carried out by a scaffold protein, an ATP-dependent cyclodehydratase, and an FMN-dependent dehydrogenase. It has generally been assumed that the orchestration of these modifications is carried out by a stable complex including the scaffold, cyclodehydratase, and dehydrogenase. The antimicrobial RiPP micrococcin begins as a precursor peptide (TclE) with a 35-amino acid N-terminal leader and a 14-amino acid C-terminal core containing six Cys residues that are converted to thiazoles. The putative scaffold protein (TclI) presumably presents the TclE substrate to a cyclodehydratase (TclJ) and a dehydrogenase (TclN) to accomplish the two-step installation of the six thiazoles. In this study, we identify a minimal TclE leader region required for thiazole formation, demonstrate complex formation between TclI, TclJ, and TclN, and further define regions of these proteins required for complex formation. Our results point to a mechanism of thiazole installation in which TclI associates with the two enzymes in a mutually exclusive fashion, such that each enzyme competes for access to the peptide substrate in a dynamic equilibrium, thus ensuring complete modification of each Cys residue in the TclE core.ImportanceThiopeptides are a family of antimicrobial peptides characterized for having sulfur-containing heterocycles and for being highly post-translationally modified. Numerous thiopeptides have been identified; almost all of which inhibit protein synthesis in gram-positive bacteria. These intrinsic antimicrobial properties make thiopeptides promising candidates for the development of new antibiotics. The thiopeptide micrococcin is synthesized by the ribosome and undergoes several post-translational modifications to acquire its bioactivity. In this study, we identify key interactions within the enzymatic complex that carries out cysteine to thiazole conversion in the biosynthesis of micrococcin