Nutrition Foundation's Task Force Research Articles

What do we know about the nutritional status of the very old? Insights from three cohorts of advanced age from the UK and New Zealand.

Very old people (referred to as those aged 85 years and over) are the fastest growing age segment of many Western societies owing to the steady rise of life expectancy and decrease in later life mortality. In the UK, there are now more than 1·5 million very old people (2·5 % of total population) and the number is projected to rise to 3·3 million or 5 % over the next 20 years. Reduced mobility and independence, financial constraints, higher rates of hospitalisation, chronic diseases and disabilities, changes in body composition, taste perception, digestion and absorption of food all potentially influence either nutrient intake or needs at this stage of life. The nutritional needs of the very old have been identified as a research priority by the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force report, Healthy Ageing: The Role of Nutrition and Lifestyle. However, very little is known about the dietary habits and nutritional status of the very old. The Newcastle 85+ study, a cohort of more than 1000 85-year olds from the North East of England and the Life and Living in Advanced Age study (New Zealand), a bicultural cohort study of advanced ageing of more than 900 participants from the Bay of Plenty and Rotorua regions of New Zealand are two unique cohort studies of ageing, which aim to assess the spectrum of health in the very old as well as examine the associations of health trajectories and outcomes with biological, clinical and social factors as each cohort ages. The nutrition domain included in both studies will help to fill the evidence gap by identifying eating patterns, and measures of nutritional status associated with better, or worse, health and wellbeing. This review will explore some of this ongoing work.

Editorial introductions

Editorial introductions

Editorial introductions

Editorial introductions

Editorial introductions

Editorial introductions

Understanding red meat intake in the diet

Practice NursingVol. 22, No. 4 Clinical nutritionUnderstanding red meat intake in the dietLaura WynessLaura WynessSearch for more papers by this authorLaura WynessPublished Online:29 Sep 2013https://doi.org/10.12968/pnur.2011.22.4.202AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail View articleReferencesAggett PJ, Agostoni C, Axelsson Iet al. (2002) Iron metabolism and requirements in early childhood: Do we know enough? A commentary by the ESPGHAN Committee on Nutrition. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr 34(4): 337–45 Crossref, Google ScholarBates B, Lennox A, Swan Get al., eds (2010) National Diet and Nutrition Survey. Headline results from Year 1 of the Rolling Programme (2008/2009). http://tiny.cc/gj7en (accessed 15 March 2011) Google ScholarCancer Research UK (2011) Bowel cancer statisics. Key facts. http://tiny.cc/19u3r (accessed 15 March 2011). Google ScholarDepartment of Health (2009) Birth to five. http://tiny.cc/liccg (accessed 15 March 2011) Google ScholarDepartment of Health (2011) Red meat link to bowel cancer http://tiny.cc/8mln1 (accessed 15 March 2011) Google ScholarFood Standards Agency (2002) McCance and Widdowson's the Composition of Foods. 6th edn. Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge Google ScholarFood Standards Agency (2011) The eatwell plate. http://tinyurl.com/6bwjbcy (accessed 23 March 2011) Google ScholarGerber N, Scheeder MRL, Wenk C (2009) The influence of cooking and fat trimming on the actual nutrient intake from meat. Meat Science 81(1): 148–54 Crossref, Google ScholarHoare J, Henderson L, Bates CJet al. (2004) The National Diet and Nutrition Survey: adults aged 19 to 64 years. Summary Report. http://tiny.cc/ejpb8 (accessed 15 March 2011) Google ScholarLi D, Siriamornpun S, Wahlqvist MLet al. (2005) Lean meat and heart health Asia Pac J Clin Nutr 14(2): 113–9 Google ScholarLucca U, Tettamanti M, Mosconi Pet al. (2008) Association of mild anaemia cognitive, functional, mood and quality of life outcomes in the elderly: the ‘health and anaemia’ study. PLoS ONE 3(4): e1920 Crossref, Google ScholarNHS Choices (2011) Red meat and bowel cancer risk. http://tiny.cc/dofca (accessed 15 March 2011) Google ScholarScientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (2010) Iron and Health. http://tiny.cc/qflef (accessed 15 March 2011) Google ScholarStanner S, ed (2005) Cardiovascular Disease: Diet, Nutrition and Emerging Risk Factors. The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation Task Force. Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford Google ScholarSungthong R, Mo-suwan L, Chongsuvivatwong V (2002) Effects of haemoglobin and serum ferritin on cognitive function in school children. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr 11(2): 177–22 Crossref, Google ScholarWeaver LT, More JA, Harris G (2008) What foods for toddlers? Nutrition Bulletin 33: 40–6 Crossref, Google ScholarWilliamson CS, Foster RK, Stanner Set al. (2005) Red meat in the diet. Nutrition Bulletin 30: 323–55 Crossref, Google ScholarWyness L, Weichselbaum E, O'Connor Aet al. (2011) Red meat in the diet: an update. Nutrition Bulletin 36: 34-77 Crossref, Google Scholar FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails 1 April 2011Volume 22Issue 4ISSN (print): 0964-9271ISSN (online): 2052-2940 Metrics History Received 16 March 2011 Accepted 16 March 2011 Published online 29 September 2013 Published in print 1 April 2011 Information© MA Healthcare LimitedKeywordsnutritiondietnutrientsbowel cancercardiovascular diseasePDF download

Whole-body synthesis-secretion rates of long-chain n-3 PUFAs from circulating unesterified α-linolenic acid in unanesthetized rats

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), long-chain n-3 PUFAs important for brain and heart function, can be obtained from dietary fish products or by liver synthesis from alpha-linolenic acid (alpha-LNA). Their daily human dietary requirements are not clear, and their liver synthesis rates in humans and nonhumans are unknown. We estimated whole-body (presumably liver) synthesis rates in unanesthetized rats by infusing [U-(13)C]alpha-LNA intravenously for 2 h and measuring labeled and unlabeled n-3 PUFA in arterial plasma using negative chemical ionization GC-MS. Newly synthesized esterified [(13)C]DHA, [(13)C]EPA, and [(13)C]docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) appeared in arterial plasma after 60 min of infusion, then their concentrations rose in an S-shaped manner. Esterified concentration x plasma volume data were fit with a sigmoidal equation, whose peak first derivatives provided synthesis rates of unlabeled EPA, DPA, and DHA equal to 8.40, 6.27, and 9.84 mumol/day, respectively. The DHA synthesis rate exceeded the published daily rat brain DHA consumption rate by 30-fold, suggesting that liver synthesis from alpha-LNA could maintain brain DHA homeostasis were DHA absent from the diet. This stable isotope infusion method could be used to quantify whole-body DHA synthesis rates in human subjects.

Healthy ageing: the role of nutrition and lifestyle – a new British Nutrition Foundation Task Force Report

SummaryLife expectancy is increasing around the world, and this is likely to have profound effects on many aspects of society, particularly if these extra years are to be associated with ill health. In the UK, for example, lifespan is increasing at the rate of 2 years for each decade, and over 16% of the population are now aged 65 years or over. Ageing is an integral, natural part of life but the way in which we grow old, our health and functional ability all depend not only on our genetic make‐up, but also on the lifestyle choices we have made over our lifetime. Evidence linking dietary and lifestyle factors throughout the life course with healthy ageing is emerging and has been reviewed in‐depth by a British Nutrition Foundation Task Force comprising of experts in the field and chaired by Professor John Mathers. This article summarises some of the findings of Task Force's Report by discussing the effect of diet and lifestyle on common chronic diseases in later life, namely cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis and arthritis, and on promoting healthy mental ageing and good oral health.

Cardiovascular Disease: Diet, Nutrition, and Emerging Risk Factors: The Report of a British Nutrition Foundation Task Force

Cardiovascular Disease: Diet, Nutrition, and Emerging Risk Factors: The Report of a British Nutrition Foundation Task Force

Cardiovascular disease: diet, nutrition and emerging risk factors. The report of a British Nutrition Foundation task force

Cardiovascular disease: diet, nutrition and emerging risk factors. The report of a British Nutrition Foundation task force

Adverse reactions to food: a new British Nutrition Foundation Task Force

Summarises the findings of the British Nutrition Foundation Task Force report Adverse Reactions to Food.

Dietary effects on dental diseases.

Dental caries is a highly prevalent chronic disease and its consequences cause a lot of pain and suffering. Sugars, particularly sucrose, are the most important dietary aetiological cause of caries. Both the frequency of consumption and total amount of sugars is important in the aetiology of caries. The evidence establishing sugars as an aetiological factor in dental caries is overwhelming. The foundation of this lies in the multiplicity of studies rather than the power of any one. That statement by the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force on Oral Health, Diet and Other Factors, sums up the relationship between sugars and caries in Europe. There is no evidence that sugars naturally incorporated in the cellular structure of foods (intrinsic sugars) or lactose in milk or milk products (milk sugars) have adverse effects on health. Foods rich in starch, without the addition of sugars, play a small role in coronal dental caries. The intake of extrinsic sugars beyond four times a day leads to an increase risk of dental caries. The current dose-response relationship between caries and extrinsic sugars suggests that the sugars levels above 60 g/person/day for teenagers and adults increases the rate of caries. For pre-school and young children the intakes should be proportional to those for teenagers; about 30 g/person/day for pre-school children. Fluoride, particularly in toothpastes, is a very important preventive agent against dental caries. Toothbrushing without fluorides has little effect on caries. As additional fluoride to that currently available in toothpaste does not appear to be benefiting the teeth of the majority of people, the main strategy to further reduce the levels of caries, is reducing the frequency of sugars intakes in the diet. Dental erosion rates are considered to be increasing. The aetiology is acids in foods and drinks and to a much lesser extent from regurgitation.

Book Review: Diet and Other Factors The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force

Book Review: Diet and Other Factors The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force

Health and the food industry: What lies ahead — ‘nutriceuticals’?

This Viewpoint reviews two recent publications dealing with aspects of the relationship between diet and health: the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force report, Unsaturated Fatty Acids, and the UK Government's White Paper, The Health of the Nation. The author offers the prospect that the pharmaceutical giants will become ever more heavily involved in producing foods — ‘nutriceuticals’ — intended not only to avoid causing chronic diseases but to treat them.

Book Reviews : Unsaturated Fatty Acids - Nutritional and physiological significance The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force Published by Chapman and Hall, 1992. 211pp, £60.00, hardback. ISBN: 0-412- 45750-4

Book Reviews : Unsaturated Fatty Acids - Nutritional and physiological significance The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force Published by Chapman and Hall, 1992. 211pp, £60.00, hardback. ISBN: 0-412- 45750-4

Calcium. The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force. 121 Seiten, zahlr. Tab. The British Nutrition Foundation, London 1989.

Food / NahrungVolume 35, Issue 1 p. 60-60 Rezension Calcium. The Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force. 121 Seiten, zahlr. Tab. The British Nutrition Foundation, London 1989. H. Haenel, H. HaenelSearch for more papers by this author H. Haenel, H. HaenelSearch for more papers by this author First published: 1991 https://doi.org/10.1002/food.19910350116AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume35, Issue11991Pages 60-60 RelatedInformation

Nutrition in Medical Education. Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force on Clinical Nutrition. Herausgegeben von J. Gray. 35 Seiten, 3 Anlagen. The British Nutrition Foundation, London 1983. Preis:1,95 £

Food / NahrungVolume 29, Issue 5 p. 458-458 Rezensionen Nutrition in Medical Education. Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force on Clinical Nutrition. Herausgegeben von J. Gray. 35 Seiten, 3 Anlagen. The British Nutrition Foundation, London 1983. Preis:1,95 £ H. Haenel, H. HaenelSearch for more papers by this author H. Haenel, H. HaenelSearch for more papers by this author First published: 1985 https://doi.org/10.1002/food.19850290513AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume29, Issue51985Pages 458-458 RelatedInformation

Book Review: Nutrition in Medical Education: Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force on Clinical Nutrition

Book Review: Nutrition in Medical Education: Report of the British Nutrition Foundation's Task Force on Clinical Nutrition