Understanding the role of carbohydrates in optimal nutrition

In recent years, the regulation of carbohydrate intake has become regarded as essential to achieve a balanced diet, with a range of health benefits attributed to low-carbohydrate diets. However, much of the advice on reduced carbohydrate intake does not reflect government-led dietary guidelines. As a result of this conflicting information, patients requiring assistance with weight management or glycaemic control may become confused about the appropriate carbohydrate intake, or be encouraged to experiment with ‘fad’ diets. As front-line healthcare professionals, nurses are in a prime position to advise patients on carbohydrate intake, as well as signposting them to evidence-based dietary resources. This article outlines the constituents of dietary carbohydrate, considers the health benefits of carbohydrates, and explains their importance as part of a healthy and balanced diet

The chimera of choice in UK food policy 1976-2018

Purpose This paper presents a critical discourse analysis of “choice” as it appears in UK policy documents relating to food and public health. A dominant policy approach to improving public health has been health promotion and health education with the intention to change behaviour and encourage healthier eating. Given the emphasis on evidence-based policy making within the UK, the continued abstraction of choice without definition or explanation provoked us to conduct this analysis, which focuses on 1976 to the present. Design/methodology/approach The technique of discourse analysis was used to analyse selected food policy documents and to trace any shifts in the discourses of choice across policy periods and their implications in terms of governance and the individualisation of responsibility. Findings We identified five dominant repertoires of choice in UK food policy over this period: as personal responsibility, as an instrument of change, as an editing tool, as a problem and freedom of choice. Underpinning these is a continued reliance on the rational actor model, which is consonant with neoliberal governance and its constructions of populations as body of self-governing individuals. The self-regulating, self-governing individual is obliged to choose as a condition of citizenship. Research limitations/implications This analysis highlights the need for a more sophisticated approach to understanding “choice” in the context of public health and food policy in order to improve diet outcomes in the UK and perhaps elsewhere

NDNS results from years 5 and 6 combined of the rolling programme for 2012 and 2013 to 2013 and 2014: report

Results of the National Diet and Nutrition Survey (NDNS) rolling programme for 2012 to 2013 and 2013 to 2014

How successful will the sugar levy be in improving diet and reducing inequalities in health?

The UK is a high consumer of soft drinks, but this article discusses how the sugar levy introduced in March 2016 may be enough to change behaviour and health by reducing people’s consumption of free sugars

Contribution of reformulation, product renewal, and changes in consumer behavior to the reduction of salt intakes in the UK population between 2008/2009 and 2016/2017

Background The UK salt reduction program started in 2003, consisting of education campaigns to raise awareness about the risks associated with a high-salt diet and of a reformulation strategy for food manufacturers. This program is often cited as an example of a successful public health program. Objectives This study aimed to assess: 1) the impacts of changes in food composition and changes in consumer behavior on sodium intakes; and 2) whether changes were similar across socioeconomic groups. Methods Food intakes for the UK population were derived from food diaries in the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey for 2008/09 (year 1; n = 1334) and 2016/17 (year 9; n = 995). Year-specific sodium densities of foods were used to calculate the average sodium density of all food and beverage consumed. Changes in sodium density between the 2 years were explained by changes in food composition (change in sodium density of products) and/or changes in behavior (type and quantity of food consumed) using a decomposition approach. Results The program was linked to a 16% (95% CI: −21% to −12%) decrease in sodium intake between years 1 and 9, while the sodium density of foods consumed decreased by 17% (95% CI: −21% to −12%). This decrease was largely driven by reformulation (−12.0 mg/100 g). Changes in food choices reinforced the effects of the program, but had a smaller impact (−1.6 mg/100 g). These effects were similar across socioeconomic groups, whether stratified by education or income, with a consistent effect of reformulation across groups and no differences between groups in behavioral responses to the program. Conclusions A multi-component sodium reduction strategy deployed in the United Kingdom starting in 2003 corresponded to an important reduction in sodium intakes for the population. This reduction was mostly driven by changes in the food environment (reformulated food products to reduce the sodium density of foods) and, to a smaller extent, by changes in food choices. Impacts were consistent across socioeconomic groups