90 research outputs found
The elephant in the room is really a cow:using consumption corridors to define sustainable meat consumption in the European Union
Implementing the European Green Deal requires a consistent food systemsâ policy that involves not only targeting the supply side but also conducting extensive changes in diets at the consumer level. Reducing meat consumption is an obvious strategy to put the European food system on track to meet the Green Dealâs goals. This cannot be achieved by focusing solely on consumer choice and individual responsibility. Stronger governance is required to reduce the scale of meat consumption to sustainable levels. Such governance needs to be informed by a holistic definition of âsustainable meat consumptionâ, designed to ensure that important sustainability priorities are not neglected, and to account for all emissions associated with EU consumption, regardless of where production takes place. This article presents a conceptual framework to define âsustainable meat consumptionâ based on the concept of consumption corridors (CCs). A CC is the space between a minimum (the floor) and maximum (the ceiling) consumption level, which allows everybody to satisfy their needs without compromising othersâ ability to meet their own. Embedded in a powerful set of principles (recognizing universal needs; tackling both over and under-consumption; framing food as a common good; promoting public participation; and addressing environmental justice and planetary sustainability), CCs are attuned to the Green Dealâs ambition to âleave no one behindâ, in the EU and beyond. CCs provide a demand-side solution encompassing a more equitable alternative to discuss what is actually a âfair shareâ of the worldâs limited resources when it comes to meat consumption.</p
The elephant in the room is really a cow: using consumption corridors to define sustainable meat consumption in the European Union
Consumption of food away from home in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic scoping review
Consumption of food away from home represents an increasing share of peopleâs food consumption worldwide, although the percentage of food intake that is consumed away from home varies among countries and among individuals. Previous systematic reviews have reported that, overall, consumption away from home negatively affects an individualâs diet and nutritional status. However, these reviews have mainly focused on high-income countries, leaving a gap in knowledge and data for people in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
The present review aimed to describe trends in the consumption of food away from home in an apparently healthy population in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and to investigate any associations between this behavior and diet quality, nutritional status, and health outcomes
Study protocol for a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial to improve dietary diversity and physical fitness among older people who live at home (the âALAPAGE studyâ)
Background : Diet and physical activity are key components of healthy aging. Current interventions that promote healthy eating and physical activity among the elderly have limitations and evidence of French interventionsâ effectiveness is lacking. We aim to assess (i) the effectiveness of a combined diet/physical activity intervention (the âALAPAGEâ program) on older peoplesâ eating behaviors, physical activity and fitness levels, quality of life, and feelings of loneliness; (ii) the interventionâs process and (iii) its cost effectiveness. Methods : We performed a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial with two parallel arms (2:1 ratio) among people â„60âyears old who live at home in southeastern France. A cluster consists of 10 people participating in a âworkshopâ (i.e., a collective intervention conducted at a local organization). We aim to include 45 workshops randomized into two groups: the intervention group (including 30 workshops) in the ALAPAGE program; and the waiting-list control group (including 15 workshops). Participants (expected total sample size: 450) will be recruited through both local organizationsâ usual practices and an innovative active recruitment strategy that targets hard-to-reach people. We developed the ALAPAGE program based on existing workshops, combining a participatory and a theory-based approach. It includes a 7-week period with weekly collective sessions supported by a dietician and/or an adapted physical activity professional, followed by a 12-week period of post-session activities without professional supervision. Primary outcomes are dietary diversity (calculated using two 24-hour diet recalls and one Food Frequency Questionnaire) and lower-limb muscle strength (assessed by the 30-second chair stand test from the Senior Fitness Test battery). Secondary outcomes include consumption frequencies of main food groups and water/hot drinks, other physical fitness measures, overall level of physical activity, quality of life, and feelings of loneliness. Outcomes are assessed before the intervention, at 6âweeks and 3âmonths later. The process evaluation assesses the fidelity, dose, and reach of the intervention as its causal mechanisms (quantitative and qualitative data). Discussion : This study aims to improve healthy aging while limiting social inequalities. We developed and evaluated the ALAPAGE program in partnership with major healthy aging organizations, providing a unique opportunity to expand its reach
Akkermansia muciniphila and improved metabolic health during a dietary intervention in obesity: relationship with gut microbiome richness and ecology
Objective: Individuals with obesity and type 2 diabetes differ from lean and healthy individuals in their abundance of certain gut microbial species and microbial gene richness. Abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila, a mucin-degrading bacterium, has been inversely associated with bodyfat mass and glucose intolerance in mice, but more evidence is needed in humans. The impact of diet and weight loss on this bacterial species is unknown. Our objective was to evaluate the association between fecal A. muciniphila abundance, fecal microbiome gene richness, diet, host characteristics, and their changes after calorie restriction (CR).
Design: The intervention consisted of a 6-week CR period followed by a 6-week weight stabilization (WS) diet in overweight and obese adults (N=49, including 41 women). Fecal A. muciniphila abundance, fecal microbial gene richness, diet and bioclinical parameters were measured at baseline and after CR and WS.
Results: At baseline A. muciniphila was inversely related to fasting glucose, waist-to-hip ratio, and subcutaneous adipocyte diameter. Subjects with higher gene richness and A. muciniphila abundance exhibited the healthiest metabolic status, particularly in fasting plasma glucose, plasma triglycerides and body fat distribution. Individuals with higher baseline A. muciniphila displayed greater improvement in insulin sensitivity markers and other clinical parameters after CR. A. muciniphila was associated with microbial species known to be related to health.
Conclusion: A. muciniphila is associated with a healthier metabolic status and better clinicaloutcomes after CR in overweight/obese adults, however the interaction between gut microbiota ecology and A. muciniphila has to be taken into account
World Health Organization Global Estimates and Regional Comparisons of the Burden of Foodborne Disease in 2010
Evidence of a causal and modifiable relationship between kidney function and circulating trimethylamine N-oxide
The host-microbiota co-metabolite trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) is linked to increased cardiovascular risk but how its circulating levels are regulated remains unclear. We applied "explainable" machine learning, univariate, multivariate and mediation analyses of fasting plasma TMAO concentration and a multitude of phenotypes in 1,741 adult Europeans of the MetaCardis study. Here we show that next to age, kidney function is the primary variable predicting circulating TMAO, with microbiota composition and diet playing minor, albeit significant, roles. Mediation analysis suggests a causal relationship between TMAO and kidney function that we corroborate in preclinical models where TMAO exposure increases kidney scarring. Consistent with our findings, patients receiving glucose-lowering drugs with reno-protective properties have significantly lower circulating TMAO when compared to propensity-score matched control individuals. Our analyses uncover a bidirectional relationship between kidney function and TMAO that can potentially be modified by reno-protective anti-diabetic drugs and suggest a clinically actionable intervention for decreasing TMAO-associated excess cardiovascular risk
Defining a dichotomous indicator for population-level assessment of dietary diversity among pregnant adolescent girls and women: A secondary analysis of quantitative 24-h recalls from rural settings in Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, India, and Nepal
Background The Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women of Reproductive Age (MDD-W) indicator was validated as a proxy of micronutrient adequacy among nonpregnant women in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). At that time, indeed, there was insufficient data to validate the indicator among pregnant women, who face higher micronutrient requirements. Objective This study aimed to validate a minimum food group consumption threshold, out of the 10 food groups used to construct MDD-W, to be used as a population-level indicator of higher micronutrient adequacy among pregnant women aged 15â49 y in LMICs. Methods We used secondary quantitative 24-h recall data from 6 surveys in 4 LMICs (Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, India, and Nepal, total n = 4909). We computed the 10-food group Women's Dietary Diversity Score (WDDS-10) and calculated the mean probability of adequacy (MPA) of 11 micronutrients. Linear regression models were fitted to assess the associations between WDDS-10 and MPA. Sensitivity, specificity, and proportion of individuals correctly classified were used to assess the performance of MDD-W in predicting an MPA of >0.60. Results In the pooled sample, median values (interquartile range) of WDDS-10 and MPA were 3 (1) and 0.20 (0.34), respectively, whereas the proportion of pregnant women with an MPA of >0.60 was 9.6%. The WDDS-10 was significantly positively associated with MPA in each survey. Although the acceptable food group consumption threshold varied between 4 and 6 food groups across surveys, the threshold of 5 showed the highest performance in the pooled sample with good sensitivity (62%), very good specificity (81%), and percentage of correctly classified individuals (79%). Conclusions The WDDS-10 is a good predictor of dietary micronutrient adequacy among pregnant women aged 15â49 y in LMICs. Moreover, the threshold of 5 or more food groups for the MDD-W indicator may be extended to all women of reproductive age, regardless of their physiologic status.Alive and ThriveNutrition, Diets, and Health (NDH); Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion (PGI
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