Individual choices? Bioscience, culture and society as approaches to genes, eating and health

This paper presents the background and a plan for an interdisciplinary study that aims at examining the practices of eating as an entanglement of biology, culture and society all together. Our interest is on genes not only as a biological fact but also as a scientific discovery that increasingly shapes our understanding of the interconnections between genotype, eating patterns and health. Genetics is assumed to bear a growing role in the self-understanding and eating practices of future consumers. In this paper, we first highlight the basic assumptions on the role of the social and the individual in theory of practices, food-relating taste psychogenomics, and cultural studies

"Vi förstår, du behöver inte översätta"

The overall aim of this article is to contribute with a pupils’ perspective on bilingual education, as well as their views on the mother tongue teachers who taught them. Swedish schools are exploring bilingual education because pupils with migration background do not perform as well as pupils with non-migration background. Beside the reason of employing mother tongue teachers for language support, earlier research suggests three dominating motives for employing teachers with migration backgrounds: supporting school success, creating role models, and bridging the gap between families and school. The empirical study consists of interviews with nine pupils in a class of 19, contextualized by a few weeks spent in their class. Results suggest that from the pupils’ perspective the mother tongue teacher does not add anything besides the language support. However, pupils are clear about these teachers’ importance for language development, and thereby their own school development. Furthermore they feel that knowledge development only takes place when classes are held in Swedish. It thus appears that schools have failed to convey that the mother tongue is just as important for the pupils as Swedish. A key conclusion is that schools need to enhance the status of different languages within the school context

Change or paradigm shift in the swedish preschool?

The article discusses recent reforms in the Swedish preschool. Is educare, the hallmark of the Swedish preschool, challenged by ideas about school preparation and future employability? Changes of goals, policy instruments and settings are analyzed from a historical perspective. The conclusion is that the reform work needs to be understood in relation to national ideas as well as in relation to ideas advocated by international organizations. The application of Hall’s (1993) requirements for paradigm shift points to changes of first and second order rather than to a simultaneous change of goals, policy instruments and settings. Additional research on what actually happens in the local context is recommended as policy and practices seldom totally overlap.O artigo analisa as reformas recentes na educação pré-escolar da Suécia. Será o educare, marca da pré-escola sueca, desafiado por ideias focadas sobretudo na preparação escolar e na empregabilidade futura? Este artigo analisa as mudanças de objetivos, de instrumentos de política e de contexto, a partir de uma perspetiva histórica. A conclusão é a de que a reforma efetuada tem de ser interpretada tanto em relação às ideais nacionais como em relação às ideias defendidas por organizações internacionais. A aplicação dos requisitos de Hall (1993) para a mudança de paradigma indicia mudanças de primeira e de segunda ordem, mais do que uma alteração simultânea de objetivos, instrumentos de política e de contexto. Será necessária pesquisa adicional para melhor compreender o que realmente está a acontecer em contexto local, uma vez que políticas e práticas raramente se sobrepõem na totalidade.Cet article analyse les réformes récentes engagées dans l’éducation préscolaire suédoise. L’educare suédois serait-il tenté par des idées centrées surtout sur la préparation scolaire et l’employabilité future? Cet article analyse les changements d’objectifs, d’instruments politiques et de contexte, à partir d’une perspective historique. La conclusion est que la réforme engagée doit être interprétée tant au regard des idéaux nationaux que des idées défendues par les organisations internationales. L’application des critères de Hall (1993) pour le changement de paradigme révèle des changements de premier et de second ordre, plutôt qu’une modification simultanée des objectifs, des instruments politiques et du contexte. Il faudra une nouvelle recherche pour mieux comprendre ce qui est réellement en train de se passer dans le contexte local, car il est rare que les politiques et les pratiques se superposent totalement.El artículo analiza las reformas recientes en la educación preescolar de Suecia. ¿Será el educare, marca de la enseñanza preescolar sueca, desafiado por ideas enfocadas sobretodo en la preparación escolar y en la posibilidad de obtener empleo futuro? Este artículo analiza los cambios de objetivos, de instrumentos de política y de contexto, a partir de una perspectiva histórica. La conclusión es de que la reforma efectuada tiene que ser interpretada tanto en relación a las ideas nacionales como en relación a las ideas defendidas por organizaciones internacionales. La aplicación de los requisitos de Hall (1993) para el cambio de paradigma indicia cambios de primer y segundo orden, más que de una alteración simultánea de objetivos, instrumentos de política y de contexto. Será necesaria una búsqueda adicional para comprender mejor lo que realmente está aconteciendo en contexto local, una vez que políticas y prácticas raramente se sobreponen en su totalidad

Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Preferences Are Associated with Their Mothers’ and Fathers’ Preferences

Children’s preference for fruit and vegetables must emerge during childhood. At children’s homes, mothers and fathers influence children’s developing food preferences with their own preferences and actions. The purpose of the study was to reveal the association parents have with their children’s fruit and vegetable preferences. The study was conducted in a sample of Finnish mothers and fathers of 3–5-year-old children. The participants were recruited, and questionnaires distributed through early childhood education and care centers in 2014 and 2015. The results showed considerable variance in the children’s preferences, and were more similar with their father’s, than their mother’s preference. There was an association between mother’s and children’s preference for “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p = 0.005), “sweet-tasting fruit“ (p < 0.001) and “common vegetables“ (p = 0.037). Fathers preferences associated with children’s preferences for “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p = 0.003). Food neophobia decreased children’s “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p < 0.001) and “sweet-tasting fruit“ (p < 0.001) preferences. The father’s more relaxed attitude towards eating decreased children’s preferences for “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p = 0.031) and “sweet-tasting fruit“ (p = 0.003). These findings indicate a need for more targeted strategies for increasing children’s preferences for fruit and vegetables and highlight the importance of taking both parents equally into account.Peer reviewe

Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Preferences Are Associated with Their Mothers’ and Fathers’ Preferences

Children’s preference for fruit and vegetables must emerge during childhood. At children’s homes, mothers and fathers influence children’s developing food preferences with their own preferences and actions. The purpose of the study was to reveal the association parents have with their children’s fruit and vegetable preferences. The study was conducted in a sample of Finnish mothers and fathers of 3–5-year-old children. The participants were recruited, and questionnaires distributed through early childhood education and care centers in 2014 and 2015. The results showed considerable variance in the children’s preferences, and were more similar with their father’s, than their mother’s preference. There was an association between mother’s and children’s preference for “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p = 0.005), “sweet-tasting fruit“ (p < 0.001) and “common vegetables“ (p = 0.037). Fathers preferences associated with children’s preferences for “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p = 0.003). Food neophobia decreased children’s “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p < 0.001) and “sweet-tasting fruit“ (p < 0.001) preferences. The father’s more relaxed attitude towards eating decreased children’s preferences for “strong-tasting vegetables and berries“ (p = 0.031) and “sweet-tasting fruit“ (p = 0.003). These findings indicate a need for more targeted strategies for increasing children’s preferences for fruit and vegetables and highlight the importance of taking both parents equally into account

The Impact of Vanilla and Lemon Aromas on Sensory Perception in Plant-Based Yogurts Measured with Static and Dynamic Methods

The application of cross-modal interaction is a potential strategy to tackle the challenges related to poor sensory properties, such as thin mouthfeel, in plant-based yogurts. Thus, we aim to study the influence of aroma compounds possibly congruent with sweetness on the perceived sensory profile. Descriptive analysis and temporal dominance of sensations (n = 10 × 4) with a trained panel were conducted with and without a nose clip. One unflavored sample and samples flavored with either lemon or vanilla aromas were included (vanilla; 0.05%; 0.1%; lemon: 0.025%; 0.05%). Odor intensity, thick, sticky, and melting sensation, sweetness, and grain-like flavor were evaluated on an unstructured 10-cm line scale with anchors and reference samples. The results demonstrate how vanilla and lemon aromas suppressed grain-like flavor and enhanced odor intensity and sweetness. The following order was detected among samples in perceived sweetness intensity: unflavored < lemon < vanilla. The two sessions with and without nose clip differed statistically in sweetness, highlighting that the aromas impacted the perceived sweetness but not the mouthfeel in vanilla samples. The study suggests that congruent aromas could modify the perceived sweetness in plant-based yogurts; however, aroma or perceived sweetness does not impact the mouthfeel in plant-based yogurts. While the odor–taste interaction in such products is evident, the study highlights that aroma compounds alone do not modify mouthfeel

The Impact of Vanilla and Lemon Aromas on Sensory Perception in Plant-Based Yogurts Measured with Static and Dynamic Methods

The application of cross-modal interaction is a potential strategy to tackle the challenges related to poor sensory properties, such as thin mouthfeel, in plant-based yogurts. Thus, we aim to study the influence of aroma compounds possibly congruent with sweetness on the perceived sensory profile. Descriptive analysis and temporal dominance of sensations (n = 10 × 4) with a trained panel were conducted with and without a nose clip. One unflavored sample and samples flavored with either lemon or vanilla aromas were included (vanilla; 0.05%; 0.1%; lemon: 0.025%; 0.05%). Odor intensity, thick, sticky, and melting sensation, sweetness, and grain-like flavor were evaluated on an unstructured 10-cm line scale with anchors and reference samples. The results demonstrate how vanilla and lemon aromas suppressed grain-like flavor and enhanced odor intensity and sweetness. The following order was detected among samples in perceived sweetness intensity: unflavored < lemon < vanilla. The two sessions with and without nose clip differed statistically in sweetness, highlighting that the aromas impacted the perceived sweetness but not the mouthfeel in vanilla samples. The study suggests that congruent aromas could modify the perceived sweetness in plant-based yogurts; however, aroma or perceived sweetness does not impact the mouthfeel in plant-based yogurts. While the odor–taste interaction in such products is evident, the study highlights that aroma compounds alone do not modify mouthfeel

Children's Fruit and Vegetable Preferences Are Associated with Their Mothers' and Fathers' Preferences

Children's preference for fruit and vegetables must emerge during childhood. At children's homes, mothers and fathers influence children's developing food preferences with their own preferences and actions. The purpose of the study was to reveal the association parents have with their children's fruit and vegetable preferences. The study was conducted in a sample of Finnish mothers and fathers of 3-5-year-old children. The participants were recruited, and questionnaires distributed through early childhood education and care centers in 2014 and 2015. The results showed considerable variance in the children's preferences, and were more similar with their father's, than their mother's preference. There was an association between mother's and children's preference for "strong-tasting vegetables and berries" (p = 0.005), "sweet-tasting fruit" (p < 0.001) and "common vegetables" (p = 0.037). Fathers preferences associated with children's preferences for "strong-tasting vegetables and berries" (p = 0.003). Food neophobia decreased children's "strong-tasting vegetables and berries" (p < 0.001) and "sweet-tasting fruit" (p < 0.001) preferences. The father's more relaxed attitude towards eating decreased children's preferences for "strong-tasting vegetables and berries" (p = 0.031) and "sweet-tasting fruit" (p = 0.003). These findings indicate a need for more targeted strategies for increasing children's preferences for fruit and vegetables and highlight the importance of taking both parents equally into account

CHCHD10 mutations and motor neuron disease: the distribution in Finnish patients.

Peer reviewe