UN Launches “Decade of Action on Nutrition” Resolution

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Every country in the world faces problems with poor nutrition. Researchers noted that the lack of proper nutrition in the first 1,000 days of a child could lead to irreversible developmental gaps. The problems of poor nutrition are often linked to the lack of food security. Food insecurity is a leading cause of the high rates of early death as well as disability among children, pregnant mothers, and older people. Ultimately, problems with inadequate nutrition are leading governments to spend more money on health care costs in the long run.

 

The UN Resolution

The United Nations General Assembly placed nutrition at the core of its sustainable development agenda by launching the “Decade of Action on Nutrition” resolution. The resolution recognizes the importance of improving nutrition and food security to achieve the 2030 Agenda alongside eliminating extreme poverty and climate change.

According to Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) director general Jose Graziano da Silva, “Children cannot focus on their education if they lack the nutrients that they need.  Sadly, the problem with malnutrition and food insecurity affects children and is a rampant problem in many emerging countries around the world. As a result, economies are affected as malnourished children grow up to be chronically tired workers.”

This resolution aims to provide a platform for change and action for the many stakeholders around the world. Signatories of the resolution–mostly world leaders and other organizations–call for the support of international organizations, governments, private sectors, academia, and civil societies to work together to end world hunger by improving the food security and nutrition of young people. The United Nations encourage all agencies and member states to encourages collective effort by sharing information and technology to improve food security. The resolution also proposes creating policies that can be implemented at the regional levels of countries around the world.

Non-government organizations such as Action Against Hunger was impressed that many advocates have agreed to support and commit to eliminating malnutrition by 2030. However, international advocacy director Glen Tarman noted that the resolution would require an enormous amount of both financial and political commitment from all countries involved and the United Nations only has a decade to make sure everything is aligned.

 

Obesity as Another Rising Problem

The resolution documents the UN’s concern that more than 800 million people are chronically undernourished all over the world. The resolution also expresses concern about the rising number of individuals who are overweight. About 1.9 billion adults are overweight in the world which also showed signs of micronutrient deficiency. Just because people are obese does not mean that they get enough nutrients from food.

Director of Nutrition of the UN Food and Agricultural Organization Anna Lartey noted that the rising numbers of obese people in poor regions particularly in Africa made the UN include obesity in the 2030 resolution.

Both obesity and malnourishment are significant problems in developing countries, and the United Nations has been working hard to address the problem. The decision may pave a way to finally finding a solution to this long-standing issue.

Inspired by fao.org

Consumers are Replacing Traditional Breakfast with Nutritional Drinks

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The adage “breakfast is the most important meal of the day” is no longer valid today, thanks to the rise in the popularity of performance and nutritional drinks. With the dietary habits of people evolving, many people opt for nutritional beverages as a favorite breakfast item these days.  About 35% of Americans agree that they do not adequately take care of themselves because they live very busy lifestyles and drinking performance drinks has become the norm for breakfast. Research conducted by Mintel indicated that 39% of people consume nutritional drinks every morning as a meal replacement while 48% consume them as part of their daily meals.

 

What Consumers Think About Nutritional Drinks

About 80% of consumers view nutritional drinks as a guilt-free beverage. Moreover, 69% believe that they are excellent sources of nutrients compared to tablets and pills. Many consumers drink nutritional drinks because they provide a more convenient method for eating whole foods.

Nutritional beverages are marketed very effectively by convincing consumers that they can maintain healthy lifestyles just by drinking them. The functional characteristic of nutritional drinks sets them apart from the rest of the beverages sold in the market.

Senior Food and Drink Analyst at Mintel, Beth Bloom, noted that performance drinks are the epitome of modern drinks as they provide the convenience that can fit the lifestyle and diet choices of the average American. Moreover, as many consumers move away from eating the traditional three meals a day, such beverages, fit in perfectly with their current lifestyle as they are affordable and accessible to many people who live very busy lives.

The Large Market Share of Nutritional Drinks

The favorable attributes of nutritional drinks are the reason why they are gaining a significant market share in the beverage category. Currently, there are now a lot of types of drinks under this category which includes weight loss formulas and sports drinks. Many consumers look for three basic characteristics when buying nutritional drinks including flavor, amount of protein, high fiber content, essential vitamins, and minerals.

Between 2010 and 2015, there was a surge in the sales growth of nutritional drinks of around 67% which is equivalent to $31 billion. Most of the sales come from sports drinks, which the industry growth is pegged at 22% during the same period. Weight loss drinks only have a 5% growth.

According to the Mintel’s Global New Products Database, manufacturers of products such as fruit juices, water, coffee, and tea have used the functional positioning as a platform to sell their goods to the market. Currently, many products have used the value of having functional attributes which are challenging the nutritional drinks in their strategy. Since the competition is very tough, the market has diversified the choices to their consumers. Nutritional beverage manufacturers should focus on promoting and substantiating their products’ efficacy by going for more natural products.

Inspired by mintel.com

Millennial Dads Spend Most Time Shopping for Groceries

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Fifty years ago, women did the shopping while men worked or relaxed at home. However, the trend of consumer shopping has considerably changed over the years, thanks to technology and the shift in society. In the study conducted by Ibotta, a top mobile shopping app, it indicated that there is a significant increase in the number of fathers doing grocery shopping. Since 2013, the buying behavior of 90,000 parents was analyzed in a study. It revealed that there is a 62% increase in grocery purchases made by millennial dads.  This means that fathers between the age of 18 and 24 tend to shop for groceries 25% more than baby boomer parents.

 

Purchase Trends

While alcohol is still on top of the shopping list of many dads, the study found that purchase of alcoholic beverages is indirectly proportional to the number of kids they have. This means that the purchase of alcohol decreases as the family has more children. The study also indicated that dads buy more alcohol if they have two children (at least one and a half times more) compared to men who are not yet fathers. The data is a little confusing, but it shows us that purchasing behavior is not one size fits all.

Dads are also 2.5x more likely to purchase cereals, soda, and snacks than men without children. They also tend to buy more cameras than non-dads for the purpose of documenting their children and growing family. They are also highly likely to buy things that can increase their family’s well-being. For instance, they are 4x more prone to buying supplements for improving their health. They are also keen on purchasing products that enhance their appearance such as hair regrowth products and anti-aging creams.

The study also noted the differences in shopping behaviors between dads and moms. Compared to mothers, fathers are 11x more likely to buy beer for themselves (Who would have known?). They also tend to buy more protein products and nutrition bars for themselves.

 

Millennial Dads Leading Shopping…What Does it Mean?

The shopping trips among moms slightly increased, but grocery purchases are down to 2.4% for three years. Surprisingly, more fathers make more trips to the grocery stores every month, and their general shopping trip was more than 10% compared to the previous years.  So what does this indicate? It means that many millennial dads play bigger and more proactive roles at home by shouldering more of the domestic responsibilities such as grocery shopping for the entire household. Gone are the days when dads leave the shopping to women.

Bijal Shah, VP of Analytics and Data Products for Ibotta, noted that there is a generational shift from old fathers who embraced traditional roles against younger dads who are savvy with technology, use e-commerce, and who are now becoming more active within the family life. The use of e-commerce can prove to be very beneficial for millennial dads as well as dads from the older generation as it provides them more opportunities to shop even within the comforts of their home.

Inspired by prnewswire.com/ibotta-study

USDA Says Obese People Can Lower Infection Risk With Grapes

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More than one-third of adults in the U.S. are obese. This translates to 78.6 million people suffering from obesity in the country alone. Obesity has become an epidemic in the U.S. and even in developing countries. Obesity is associated with different kinds of diseases like Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension to name a few. Moreover, obese individuals also have a higher risk of developing different types of infection that can further lower their immunity.

 

The Benefits of Grapes for Obese People

Obesity robs people from living quality lives. But with simple lifestyle changes, overweight people may be able to improve their conditions. A study conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) revealed that eating grapes can help people with obesity problems by decreasing harmful fats in their bloodstream that are associated with heart disease. The regular consumption of grapes can help lower the risk of infection for their overall health improvement.

But what makes grapes beneficial to the body? According to a molecular biologist, Susan Zunino from the Agricultural Research Service, grapes contains high amounts of phytochemicals. These are compounds naturally found in fruits like strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries.  These phytochemicals have positive effects on the body such as improving the condition of the immune system in people who suffer from obesity.

Grapes are one of the fruits with the highest levels of antioxidants like vitamin C, manganese, carotenoids, resveratrol, and stilbenes. Both the seeds and skins of grapes have a high concentration of antioxidants, so eating the whole fruit is necessary for capturing all of the antioxidants.

There are a lot of pro-inflammatory molecules also known as free radicals in our bodies and eating phytochemical-rich fruits can help lower the production of such particles. These include the interleukins and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha). The ability of grapes to reduce inflammatory allows the body to heal itself naturally.

 

Study Shows the Power of Antioxidant-Rich Foods

Hospital documentation suggests that obese people have higher chances of developing viral or bacterial infection after surgery. In fact, 35% of Americans who sought hospitalization developed some infection after their hospital stay.

The study proved that the power of grapes in treating obese patients is simply remarkable. Researchers divided the participants into two groups and gave the participants a mixture of grape powder and water while the other group received nothing but a placebo for three weeks.

Based on the blood samples obtained from the participants, those who drank the grape mixture have better blood lipid profile, inflammation markers, and immune system compared to those who have taken the placebo mixture. Consumption of grapes lowers the concentration of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) which is also dubbed as the bad cholesterol and is associated with heart disease. Another remarkable thing about eating grapes is that it can stimulate the production of cytokines which are proteins that help fight off the infection in the body.

While consuming fruits like grapes can lower inflammation in the body, further studies need to be conducted to understand the mechanisms behind why the consumption of grapes can have beneficial effects on patients suffering from obesity.

Inspired by ars.usda.gov

NPR Report: Dairy Fat Linked to Lower Diabetes Risk

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If you love to eat cheese, yogurt, and other dairy products, then this article is for you.  A new study revealed that the consumption of dairy fats that are found in cheese, yogurt, and milk have protective effects against Type 2 diabetes.

Published in the journal Circulation and cited in the website NPR, the study reviewed the blood samples of adult participants to measure the biomarkers for dairy fat. The study started during the late 1980s and over the next twenty years, researchers tracked down the same people and determined who developed diabetes.

Interestingly, the study showed that individuals who consume most dairy fat in their diet have a 50% lower risk of developing diabetes compared to those who consumed less to no dairy fat at all. The lead author, Dariush Mozaffarian from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, noted that this study debunks the idea that eating saturated fat–those found in dairy products–is harmful to the body.

 

Health Benefits of Dairy Fat

Research published in the European Journal of Nutrition indicates that the consumption of full dairy fat is good for controlling weight gain than the consumption of low-fat dairy. Low obesity risk also means a lowered risk for type 2 diabetes. But how can a high-calorie food be useful in controlling weight? Experts noted that not all calories are equal and drinking full fat milk can make people feel satiated sooner and for a longer time thus making an individual eat less with a longer time duration in between meals.

Another important characteristic of full-fat dairy milk is that the fatty acids found in milk play a paramount role in gene expression as well as hormone regulation. This means that the acids can crank up how much energy the body burns. The fats found in dairy foods also contain a lot of complex micro and macro nutrients.  Full-fat milk contains 62% saturated fat, 30% monosaturated fat, 4% polyunsaturated fat and 4% naturally occurring trans fatty acids. It also contains linoleic acid.

The study noted that drinking full fat milk is not only effective in controlling weight among adults but also children. In fact, children who have a higher intake of whole milk do not gain much weight over time compared to those who consume skim or non-fat dairy products.

 

Moderation is Still the Key to Good Health

While the consumption of dairy fat, according to the NPR article, can reduce the risk of developing diabetes, heart diseases, and obesity, this does not mean that you should gorge on milk or put butter on everything that you eat. Remember that too much of a good thing is also bad.  It is important that you also consume foods that are high in fiber such as fruits and vegetables as they are critical for digestion and further helps manage the blood sugar levels in the body. Combining milk, fruits, and vegetables increases your chances of having better health.

So the next time you want to drink milk or eat cheese, ditch the low-fat ones so that you can get the full benefits of dairy fat.

Inspired by npr.org/thesalt

Highly Processed Carbs Impact Cancer Risk

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Highly processed carbs are seen as the leading cause of weight gain as well as many other health problems.  A recent study shows that cutting out processed carbohydrates can decrease the risk of cancer. With several researchers led by Ph.D. student and author, Nour Makarem, from New York University suggested that the consumption of sugary drinks as well as eating highly processed foods can increase the chances of developing prostate cancer. The researchers also noted that eating healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, and legumes can also reduce the risk of developing breast cancer by at least two-thirds. The findings of the study were presented at the American Society for Nutrition Scientific Session and Annual Meeting in 2016 in San Diego, California.

 

Why Are Highly Processed Carbs Linked to Cancer?

The research involved collection of data from 1970 and participants provided detailed information about the food that they eat. The researchers categorized the food sources of the participants according to their glycemic load (GL) and glycemic index (GI). The GI is used to measure the rise of blood sugar levels after eating a particular type of food while the GL measures the amount and quality of carbohydrates present in a given food item. But how does carbohydrate link to cancer?

Results show that there is a strong link between cancer and the consumption of highly processed carbohydrates. Consumption of food high in GL has 88% more risk of developing prostate cancer. This is a stark contrast to the consumption of low GI foods that have 67% lower risk of developing breast cancer.

People are at a higher danger of developing cancer when they consume highly processed foods like burgers, pizza, deli-meat sandwiches, sugary drinks and so on. In fact, an average American consumes a lot of sugar from the beverages that they drink. Thus, they are at risk of developing diabetes, obesity, and other inflammatory diseases. Since cancer is a type of inflammatory disease, there is also a higher chance for people to get cancer if they continue to eat unhealthy carbs. Moreover, new evidence suggests that cancer cells feed on sugar and what do you think highly processed carbs have in them? You got it! It’s sugar.

 

Healthy Carbohydrates

fruits and vegetables healthy carbsThe researchers have noticed that people, particularly women, whose total calorie intake is made up of high amounts of healthy carbohydrates have a lowered risk for breast cancer. This is the reason why a lot of medical health experts promote the consumption of fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains.

What matters is for people to consume the right type of carbohydrate-rich foods. Moreover, it is also important to avoid consuming added sugars in beverages. The thing is you need to learn how to feed your body with the right foods to prevent many health problems.

Let food be your solution to fixing your health. Instead of eating a lot of highly processed carbs, it is crucial that you choose your food wisely so that you can avoid health problems and live an overall healthy life. So the next time you are tempted to drink soda, remember you are increasing your chances for cancer.

Inspired by medicalnewstoday.com

Focus on Healthy Foods for Heart Health

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Do you know that your eating habits affect your heart health? Studies suggest that the diet of older adults can influence the development of heart attacks, strokes, and many other diseases. Lead researcher from the Auckland City Hospital in New Zealand, Dr. Ralph Stewart, noted that eating healthy foods can provide protective benefits to the body. But this does not mean avoiding unhealthy foods altogether. The study suggests that while eating healthy foods can give more health benefits, consumption of unhealthy foods in moderation do not seem to cause any harm to the body.

 

Balance Healthy and Unhealthy Foods

heart health eating healthy foodsMost people grew up hearing the traditional dietary advice of avoiding unhealthy foods altogether. Recently, researchers have found out that what is more important to the human body is eating healthier foods more, than avoiding unhealthy food. In fact, with our current lifestyles, most of us do not eat a lot of healthy foods. Eating too much unhealthy as compared to healthy foods can tip off the balance in our diet, resulting in negative health repercussions.

To conduct the study, the researchers asked more than 15,000 participants from 39 countries to complete a questionnaire. All participants had symptoms of heart diseases and had the average age of 67-years-old. Participants were asked the kinds of foods that they ate and how many times they have consumed the food items within a week.

In this regard, those who followed the Mediterranean diet (those who consume the most amounts of healthy foods) should have shown better health. Unfortunately, 7%  more of those who adhered to this diet suffered a stroke or heart attack compared to those who did not strictly follow the Mediterranean diet.

This does not mean, however, that people should just eat unhealthy food without restriction. Eating a balanced amount of healthy and unhealthy food is important. Researchers also suggest that eating unhealthy foods on some occasions, as a treat, is appropriate to retain good health.

 

Divided Consensus Amongst Experts

heart health healthy foods research studyWhile the researchers from the Auckland City Hospital believe that the body can still be healthy by eating both healthy and unhealthy foods, many nutritionists disagree. Many experts believe that eating healthy foods is the only link to better health.

For example, the Mediterranean diet is all about eating yogurt, hummus, olive oil, garlic, fish, nuts, fruits, salads and other natural foods. In contrast with a Western diet that is characterized by eating big portions of food and a high intake of red meat, processed carbohydrates, and deep fried foods, people who follow the Mediterranean diet, have a lower risk of getting an autoimmune disease, heart disease, obesity, cancer, mental disorder, and diabetes.

Eating unhealthy and healthy foods together will discredit the positive effects of the latter. Many researchers noted that to get the full health benefits, eating a healthy diet is the only way to go. Unhealthy foods may be eaten but only on rare occasions. Unfortunately, nothing in any research shows the serving sizes of unhealthy and healthy foods that should be consumed by an average individual. The findings are still skewed with the lack of diet data.

Inspired by consumer.healthday.com

Fast Food Eaters Are Consuming Industrial Chemicals

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Do you like eating fast food? If yes, then you might reconsider your habit after reading this article. Several research studies have found out that people who consume fast food all the time have high levels of industrial chemicals in their bodies.

 

What’s Inside Your Favorite Fast Food?

Research indicates that most fast food items contain the chemical substance called phthalates which are used to make plastic materials durable and flexible. This type of molecule is also found in soap, food packaging, cosmetics, and other consumer items.  The Center for Disease Control noted that exposure to this kind of compound is highly rampant in the United States.

While the effects of the exposure to these industrial chemicals are not yet fully known, scientists suspect that it might have effects on cell development, especially among pregnant women and children. In fact, laboratory research conducted on laboratory rats noted that exposure to such industrial chemicals can disrupt the male reproductive system. To date, the regulation of phthalates and other industrial chemicals is not very strong.

In a study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, a team of researchers studied 9,000 people between 2003 and 2010. The urine samples of the participants were tested for the presence of industrial chemicals. The study indicated that phthalate and another chemical compound called DiNP showed a positive relationship between high fast-food intake as well as exposure.  This means that people who tend to eat more fast-food have more phthalates in their urine.

 

What’s the Solution to our Fast Food Problem?

Although it is still difficult to determine the exact health risk that phthalate exposure provides, it is still important to take extra precautionary measures. For instance, in Japan food handlers are no longer allowed to wear any vinyl gloves during food preparation over concerns of the phthalate exposure. On the other hand, the United States government has also decided to restrict the sale of toys made with industrial chemicals.

Aside from being found in fast food items, they are also found in fruits and vegetables via the plastic wraps that they are sold in. That’s one of the reasons it is always important to wash your fruits and vegetables before you eat them. Industrial chemicals have deleterious effects on the body. Since it is suspected to have adverse effects on the body, some concerned groups are lobbying for the ban of industrial chemicals used on food—particularly fast food.

Moreover, they also encourage people to eat more healthy whole foods like organic fruits and vegetables to avoid exposure to these industrial chemicals. While we don’t have any laws to ban chemicals in our food, we can avoid these chemicals by avoiding fast food altogether. So instead of eating fast foods that are laden with industrial chemicals, eat clean, and enjoy whole foods like fruits and vegetables.

Inspired by fortune.com