Volume Of Food Research Articles

Evidence of anthropogenic subsidisation of red foxes in a national park important for breeding wading birds

AbstractThe red fox (Vulpes vulpes) is a generalist mesopredator found throughout the UK. It has been linked to national declines in native wildlife, especially ground-nesting birds such as waders. In the New Forest National Park, nest predation and poor chick survival is primarily responsible for low breeding success of Eurasian curlew (Numenius arguata), a species of high conservation concern. To reduce predation losses, foxes are lethally controlled by wildlife managers. Here, we identified the major food resources that are being exploited by foxes in the New Forest area and examined temporal and spatial patterns in the presence of specific food categories, with special reference to anthropogenic food. Stomachs from foxes culled in curlew breeding areas were collected from April 2021 - July 2022 and the contents of these stomachs were quantified. Foxes exhibited a highly varied diet with no single food category predominating. Anthropogenic food comprised 14% of the overall diet, with its presence predicted by proximity to human settlements and other infrastructure. We also estimated the total annual volume of anthropogenic food consumed by the fox population and by extension how many individual foxes this volume of food could support in isolation. According to these calculations, at present the number of foxes subsidised by anthropogenic food is approximately 64.8% (50.2–79.7%) of those removed by culling per year. Our findings highlight that better local food sanitation and education should become important parts of a more holistic management approach to reduce the burden of fox predation experienced by breeding waders.

Expression of concern: "Producing and analyzing gamma-aminobutyric acid containing probiotic black grape juice using Lactobacillus plantarum plantarum IBRC (10817) and Lactobacillus brevis IBRC (10818)" [Measurement: Food Volume 8, November 2022, 100056

Expression of concern: "Producing and analyzing gamma-aminobutyric acid containing probiotic black grape juice using Lactobacillus plantarum plantarum IBRC (10817) and Lactobacillus brevis IBRC (10818)" [Measurement: Food Volume 8, November 2022, 100056

A vision-based dietary survey and assessment system for college students in China

Understanding the current dietary habits of college students is essential due to the pressing issues of unbalanced diets and insufficient nutrition. However, traditional approaches frequently depend on recollection, which can introduce unconscious bias and make them difficult to implement. Herein, we introduce a new computer vision system to evaluate the dietary habits of college students in China. A specialized food dataset comprising RGB-D images, recipes with ingredient masses, and nutrient composition was created using data collected from college canteens. First, object detection models were utilized to identify food categories and locations. Subsequently, we introduced a method for automatically estimating the food volume of nonstandard portions using position and depth information. The final nutrients were derived directly or indirectly through the database. Experimental results demonstrate the applicability of the YOLOv8 object detection model and volume estimation method to our tasks. To support the development of devices for detecting food intake and diet management, we have made our dataset publicly available. The College Canteen Food-100 dataset is publicly available at https://github.com/zichengzichengzi/CC-FOOD-100.

Dining Bowl Modeling and Optimization for Single-Image-Based Dietary Assessment.

In dietary assessment using a single-view food image, an object of known size, such as a checkerboard, is often placed manually in the camera's view as a scale reference to estimate food volume. This traditional scale reference is inconvenient to use because of the manual placement requirement. Consequently, utensils, such as plates and bowls, have been suggested as alternative references. Although these references do not need a manual placement procedure, there is a unique challenge when a dining bowl is used as a reference. Unlike a dining plate, whose shallow shape does not usually block the view of the food, a dining bowl does obscure the food view, and its shape may not be fully observable from the single-view food image. As a result, significant errors may occur in food volume estimation due to the unknown shape of the bowl. To address this challenge, we present a novel method to premeasure both the size and shape of the empty bowl before it is used in a dietary assessment study. In our method, an image is taken with a labeled paper ruler adhered to the interior surface of the bowl, a mathematical model is developed to describe its shape and size, and then an optimization method is used to determine the bowl parameters based on the locations of observed ruler makers from the bowl image. Experimental studies were performed using both simulated and actual bowls to assess the reliability and accuracy of our bowl measurement method.

Plastics in human diets: development and evaluation of the 24-h Dietary Recall - Plastic Exposure and the Dietary Plastics Score.

Humans are commonly exposed to plastic through their dietary intake and food consumption patterns. Plastic-associated chemicals (PAC), such as bisphenols and phthalates, are recognized as endocrine-disrupting and are associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. However, accurate methods to assess dietary exposure to plastic products and PAC are inadequate, limiting interrogation of health impacts. To develop a tool that captures complete dietary exposure to plastics and establish a diet quality score to measure adherence to a low plastic dietary pattern. We developed the 24-h Dietary Recall - Plastic Exposure (24DR-PE) and administered it to healthy adults (n = 422). This computer-assisted, interviewer-administered tool systematically collects data on food volumes and types, packaging materials, storage, processing, cooking, and consumption methods to assess a food's exposure to plastic. Specifically, the 24DR-PE incorporates predefined criteria for identifying high-risk practices and food characteristics, such as individually packaged items or those microwaved in plastic, enabling the assignment of scores based on a theoretically derived Dietary Plastics Scoring Matrix. The 24DR-PE is the first tool specifically designed to capture detailed data on dietary exposures to plastic products. The next step is to validate the score using laboratory results of urine samples we collected contemporaneous to the dietary information. Once validated, the tool has potential for widespread distribution making it valuable for population monitoring, intervention guidance, and future research investigating the interplay between plastics, diet, and human health.

Quantitative risk assessment of radiocesium associated with Japanese foods imported into the United Kingdom.

Damage to a nuclear power station resulted in radioactive contamination of certain areas of Japan in 2011. Legislation was put in place in Europe to establish controls on the import of certain types of food and feed, including a limit of 100 radioactive decays (becquerel, Bq) per second of radiocesium per kg. This legislation was retained in the United Kingdom after leaving the EU and then reviewed in 2021. A quantitative risk assessment was developed to estimate the radiological risk to public health from consuming Japanese food imported into the United Kingdom should the maximum level on radiocesium be removed. Although Japanese monitoring data indicated occurrences when products exceeded the 100Bq per kg limit, these were found to be rare; a total of 1485 occurrences (0.0013%) of all measured foodstuff samples (>1 million) within the scope of this assessment had radiocesium activity concentrations that exceeded 100Bq per kg. Using the recorded occurrence and level of radiocesium measured, and the current pattern and volume of food imported from Japan, there was an estimated excess risk of fatal cancer of around one in a million per year, categorized as negligible compared to the baseline 2018-2020 UK cancer fatality rate of around 1 in 4. On the basis of the described assessment and the estimated small additional risk, Great Britain lifted import controls related to radioactivity present in food from Japan. A number of recommendations to address data gaps and approaches in this assessment are made, particularly how we can improve modeling UK dietary habits for specialist foods.

Fish diversity in the Nong Leng Sai Wetland, Phayao Province, Northern Thailand, after deep-water dredging

Abstract. Tuncharoen S, Manetam K, Pornpuang S, Chaisan W, Panprommin D, Soonthornprasit K, Pitakpol S. 2024. Fish diversity in the Nong Leng Sai Wetland, Phayao Province, Northern Thailand, after deep-water dredging. Biodiversitas 25: 2738-2746. This study aimed to explore changes in the diversity of fish species in the Nong Leng Sai Wetland, Mae Chai District, Phayao Province, Northern Thailand, after just completed deep-water dredging while shallow-water dredging is in progress. Therefore, three different gill net mesh sizes collected fish specimens from January to July 2022. The results showed that 25 species belong to 23 genera, 13 families from 7 orders, and 21 native and 4 introduced fish species. The fish comprised of the miscellaneous group was the most composed by weight and number, accounting for 45.5% and 52%, respectively, followed by the carp, 38.6% by weight and 45.6% by number. The fish diversity after dredging has decreased, including species and quantity, compared to the diversity reported before. Physical changes in the Nong Leng Sai Wetland resulted from deep water dredging, including increasing water depth, more water storage volume, increased turbidity, and lack of fish shelter and natural food, affecting the diversity of fish species. Furthermore, dredging has stimulated the recovery of aquatic ecosystems regarding water quality, habitat of aquatic animals, and appropriate natural food, which is important for increasing the diversity of fish species and quantities.

RAPID METHODS FOR DETECTION OF FOODBORNE PATHOGENS AND THEIR TOXINS - A REVIEW OF CURRENT TRENDS AND FUTURE PERSPECTIVES

Background: Food safety is of utmost importance to sustaining life and promoting good health and is a main problem in any country, regardless of economic and social development. Unsafe food containing harmful pathogens and their toxins cause hundreds of diseases, particularly affecting infants, young children, the elderly and sick people. Therefore, the rapid detection of foodborne pathogens is of great significance for public health. The aim of this review was to provide comprehensive information regarding methods for the detection of foodborne pathogens as well as genus Fusarium and their toxins, from fundamental to state-of-the-art, presenting their advantages and limitations in order to update current knowledge. Review Results: The traditional culture-based methods for the detection of pathogens in food are usually laborious, limited by complex sample preparation procedures, time-consuming, slow to provide results, and require well-trained professional staff. However, compared to these methods, the new ones - immunological methods, nucleic acid-based assays and biosensor-based methods are rapid, accurate, highly sensitive and specific, and easy to use. Precisely providing accurate real-time results would help limit foodborne disease outbreaks, ensure compliance with legislation setting maximum levels of pathogens in certain food categories, detect and improve the import of food contaminated with dangerous levels of pathogenic microorganisms, and ensure public health safety. Conclusion: The development of rapid and automated methods that detect real-time, small numbers of viable microbial cells within a given volume of food is vital in the prevention, transmission and treatment of foodborne diseases. Such methods would also offer a great commercial advantage in the food industry and related fields.

The Agricultural Sector and its Impact on Economic Growth in Algeria

This study came to shed light on the agricultural sector and how it can contribute, as a basic sector, to achieving economic growth rates and the extent of its response to the most important reforms and various forms of support provided to it, this study relied on a methodology based on combining quantitative and qualitative analysis in dealing with relevant data and statistics. In the agricultural sector, Algeria to achieve this methodology, the descriptive approach was adopted in this study, which concerned itself with describing the importance of the agricultural sector and its role in achieving economic growth, in addition to the most important measures taken towards it, while presenting a set of statistics, analyzing and interpreting them statistically, and searching for ways to develop this sector, and then carrying out With a standard study, it dealt with the search for the most important variables affecting agricultural production on the one hand and the impact of the elements of agricultural production on the elements of economic growth on the other hand. The study showed that the sector is still subject to climate change and the labor force’s aversion to it, In addition, there is a lack of a clear administrative system in this sector, we recorded the large difference in the volume of food and agricultural imports and food and agricultural exports, For example, the coverage rate of food exports for food imports did not exceed 6.2% during the study period.

Independent effects of volume and energy density manipulation on energy intake and appetite in healthy adults: A randomized, controlled, crossover study

Consuming enough energy to meet high energy demands can be challenging for military personnel wherein logistical constraints limit food availability. Increasing dietary energy density (ED) and/or volume density (VD) of rations may be countermeasures, but whether positive linear associations between ED and energy intake (EI) hold at moderate-to-high ED and VD is unclear. This study examined the effects of covertly increasing the ED and VD of moderate ED (≥1.6 kcal/g) foods on appetite and energy intake. Twenty healthy men completed four 2-day treatments in random order by consuming a standardized diet containing three experimental food items (EXP) engineered using leavening, physical compression and fat manipulation to be isovolumetric but lower (L) or higher (H) in ED and VD creating four treatments: LED/LVD, LED/HVD, HED/LVD, HED/HVD. Consumption of EXP was compulsory during two meals and a snack, but remaining intake was self-selected (SSF). Results failed to show any ED-by-VD interactions. During LVD, EI was lower for EXP (−417 kcal [95%CI: 432, −402], p < 0.01) and TOTAL (SSF + EXP) (−276 kcal [95%CI: 470, −83], p = 0.01) compared to HVD, while SSF EI did not differ (140 kcal [-51, 332], p = 0.15). During LED, EI for EXP (−291 kcal [95%CI: 306, −276], p < 0.01) was lower than HED, while SSF EI was higher than HED (203 kcal 95%CI: [12, 394], p = 0.04) and TOTAL EI did not differ (−88 kcal [-282, 105], p = 0.36). Thus, when a small isovolumetric portion of the diet was manipulated, increasing the VD of moderate ED foods failed to elicit compensatory reductions in ad libitum EI while increasing the ED of moderate ED foods did. Findings may support VD manipulation of moderate ED foods as a strategy to promote increased short-term EI in environments wherein logistical burden may limit food volume.

Methodological Procedures to Acquire and Analyze Ultrasound Images of Swallowing: A Scoping Review.

This scoping review aimed to identify methodological procedures for acquiring and analyzing ultrasound images related to swallowing in adults and older adults. The inclusion criteria were based on the PCC strategy (participants, concept, and context), as follows: population (adults and older adults), concept (ultrasound assessment), and context (swallowing assessment). The review included observational, experimental, descriptive, and analytical studies and excluded those that were not available in full, animal studies, in vitro studies, letters to the editor, errata, study protocols, and those that used ultrasound for purposes other than swallowing. There were no language and time restrictions. Two independent blinded professionals selected 81 articles that met the inclusion criteria from different databases. The most evaluated parameters included tongue morphology and movements, hyoid bone displacement, swallowing muscle area, and pharyngeal residue detection, such as pharyngeal wall mobility. They used convex and linear transducers (3MHz to 8MHz) positioned in the submental, laryngeal, and lateral regions of the neck. The subjects were seated and instructed to eat different food volumes and consistencies. The literature mapping showed that ultrasound is a promising diagnostic tool, helping clinicians understand swallowing disorders, as it provides static and dynamic images in different modes and positions. Also, patients receive real-time biofeedback of changes related to dysphagia.

Feasibility and Acceptability of Standardizing Portions in Restaurants.

Most restaurants serve customers excess calories which significantly contributes to the obesity epidemic. This pilot study tested the feasibility and acceptability of offering customers standardized portions to reduce caloric consumption when dining out in three restaurants. Portions were developed to limit quantity of food served, with lunches and dinners ≤ 700cal and breakfast ≤ 500cal. Participating restaurants developed an alternative "Balanced Portions Menu." Training and instructions were provided with respect to the volume and weight of food to be plated following the standardized guidelines and providing at least one cup of vegetables per lunch/dinner. We invited local residents to help us evaluate the new menu. We monitored restaurant adherence to guidelines, obtained feedback from customers, and incentivized customers to complete dietary recalls to determine how the new menus might have impacted their daily caloric consumption. Of the three participating restaurants, all had a positive experience after creating the new menus and received more foot traffic. One restaurant that did not want to change portion sizes simply plated the appropriate amount and packed up the rest to-go, marketing the meals as "Dinner today, lunch tomorrow." Two of the restaurants followed the guidelines precisely, while one sometimes plated more rice than the three-fourths cup that was recommended. A significant number of customers ordered from the Balanced Portions menus. Two of the three restaurants have decided to keep offering the Balanced Portions menus indefinitely. Following standardized portions guidelines is both feasible for restaurants and acceptable to customers.

El sistema agroalimentario de la ciudad de Puebla después de la pandemia de COVID-19

This research analyzes the effects of COVID-19 pandemic in the agriculture-food system of Puebla, Mexico; considering production, supply-distribution and consumption of food subsystems. To study the contingency consequences, the case of “Central de Abastos de la Ciudad de Puebla” was selected as a wholesale market where the main players (producers, wholesalers and consumers) coexist. Qualitative method was applied representing the results of two surveys in this market, one of them in 2018, before pandemic, and the other in 2022, after health crisis. For the survey information and available statistics about food production, trade and food prices, some aspects were discovered: the negative effects of pandemic were produced by structural points of food system in neoliberal period and the resilience of agriculture system supported by rural producers city of Puebla suburbs who produced enough volume of food to supply the wholesale. This is a research focus to create a food public policy to attend the structural problems and also to mitigate the contingency effects like pandemic occurred between 2019 and 2022.

Estimation accuracy of bean bags as portion size estimation aids for amorphous foods

Objective: A study was undertaken to explore the portion size estimation accuracy of bean bags as low-cost volumetric portion size estimation aids for amorphous foods. Designs: Three observational, cross-sectional and three experimental/quasi-experimental developmental evaluation sub-studies were carried out. Settings: Observational, cross-sectional: one retirement village and four schools. Experimental/quasi-experimental: one South African university. Participants: Observational, cross-sectional: elderly persons, adult women (school educators), schoolchildren. Experimental/quasi-experimental: university students. In total N = 541; > 3 800 observations. Variables measured: Using a standardised set of bean bags (test object; volume range: 60–625 ml), volumes of different amorphous foods (reference objects: actual foods or representations) in varying portion sizes had to be estimated. Accuracy (outcome measure) was perfect if volumes of test and reference object were identical. Acceptable estimation accuracy allowed for misestimation by one bean bag size. Test–retest reproducibility was also assessed. Analysis: Descriptive statistics (proportions perfect and acceptable accuracy). Results: Across the sub-studies, perfect accuracy ranged from 22–65% depending on participants, reference food and portion size. Irrespective thereof, acceptable accuracy was noted in > 70% of observations. Reproducibility varied (range: 28–67% agreement). Conclusions and implications: Perfect portion size estimation of amorphous foods remains challenging. When misestimation by 60–125 ml still serves the purpose of a dietary assessment, bean bags show promise for cost-effective food volume quantification, especially on group level in resource-limited settings.

Exploring the influence of user-friendly cutlery on the food consumption levels

Thirty-five participants completed the study. Two ad libitum food intake sessions were conducted, one using conventional chopsticks (Normal) and the other with user-friendly chopsticks supported by an adapter (Supported). All participants reported that Supported chopsticks were easier to use compared to the Normal ones. The results revealed a statistically significant 22.5% reduction in the volume of food consumed in a single bite with Supported chopsticks compared to Normal chopsticks (p < 0.05). Furthermore, a significant 12.0% decrease in the overall volume of food intake was observed when using Supported chopsticks compared to the Normal chopsticks (p < 0.05). These findings suggest that the easy of using cutlery can induce influence both bite size and overall food intake.

Unlocking the potential of surplus food: A blockchain approach to enhance equitable distribution and address food insecurity in Italy

Food insecurity and food surplus are two pressing issues that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper presents a novel approach to addressing these problems using blockchain technology. More specifically, data from the Italian Regusto platform are analysed to identify factors that determine the volume and economic value of surplus food redistribution.From a methodological statistical perspective, the performance of Stepwise Multiple Linear Regression and Random Forest are compared in a blockchain data analysis. The effective machine-learning-based analysis reveals that the Regusto platform gives people greater access to the surplus food redistributed by non-profit organizations and suppliers through both donations and sales. The study also highlights the potential effects of redistributing surplus food on the beneficiaries' diets and health and we find that redistributing surplus food can reduce household food insecurity among low-income families and communities measured by food poverty and COVID-19 indexes at different spatial locations.Overall, by offering a unique perspective on these issues through the lens of blockchain technology, our study can inspire further research on how this technology can ensure everyone has enough affordable, nutritious food to lead healthy lives.

An Optimized Recurrent Neural Network for re-modernize food dining bowls and estimating food capacity from images

Maintaining health and preventing chronic diseases requires awareness of the energy and nutrient content of one's diet. Due to the rapid development of computing and Artificial intelligence (AI) technology, nutritional evaluation can be performed using smartphones or wearable food images.Thechallenges of this technology include estimating the visual estimation of the amount of food in a bowl. We describe an innovative approach for determining a bowl's dimensions by sticking a paper ruler throughout the bottom and edges yet photographing the outcome. We used a variety of colored liquids, bowlsand crystallized foods to evaluate the precision of our technique for measuring food volume employing spherical bowls as boxes. Different food-related datasets can have other numbers of images, types of food dining bowls and estimated food capacity from the images represented. Image preprocessing using a wiener filter enhances the estimating of food dining bowl capacity from images. Following preprocessing, a threshold-based approach to image segmentation is used for the resulting data; finally, we used the Gradient Lion Swarm Optimized Discrete Recurrent Neural Network (GLSO-DRNN) model to present an AI-based multi-dish food identification approach. An excellent mAP = 0.96 was found between the results. The suggested model shows great promise as a means of improving dish reporting because of its high classification performance.The GLSO-DRNN performed better toproving its flexibility and efficient discrete parameter optimization. In addition to offering accurate food quantity estimates, it demonstrated significant potential for other uses in the field of smart dining technology. The results highlight aneffective ofthis advanced computational method that is improving food dining bowlsand interactions with components associated with food. In the future, we plan to improve the techniques' performance and incorporate our technology into a working Smartphone based on the cloud environment.

An Affordable and Sustainable Thrifty-Like Meal Plan, FoodRx, That Meets the Recommended Dietary Allowances.

There is considerable controversy as to whether a healthy diet is affordable given recent inflation. In order to determine whether a healthy, climate-friendly sustainable diet can be obtained within the allotments of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), we created and purchased 26weeks of meal plans designed to meet the EAT-Lancet sustainability guidelines and > 90% of the RDAs for 23 macro/micronutrients for households with at least 2 adults and 1-3 children. We compared the food quantities and cost of a healthy sustainable diet purchased in Los Angeles, 2023, to the Thrifty Food Plan, 2021. We compared the volume of food and cost of basic groceries to those recommended in the Thrifty Food Plan, 2021. The costs of the sustainable diet fell within the 2023 SNAP allotments as long as the average calories required per person did not exceed 2000. The volume of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and seeds were considerably higher for the sustainable diet compared to the Thrifty Food Plan. Given that calorie needs are the determinants of food quantity and costs, the USDA may consider offering supplemental coverage for individuals with higher calorie needs to make healthy eating affordable.

Life-History Trade-Offs in Drosophila: Flies Select a Diet to Maximize Reproduction at the Expense of Lifespan.

Macronutrient intake impacts physiology, behavior, and gene expression in a wide range of organisms. We used the response surface methodology to compare how life history traits, lifespan, and reproduction differ as a function of protein and carbohydrate intakes under choice and no-choice feeding regimens in the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. We found that when offered a choice of nutritionally complementary foods mated female flies regulated toward a protein to carbohydrate ratio (P:C) that was associated with shortened lifespan and maximal egg production when compared to response surfaces derived from flies fed 1 of a range of fixed diets differing in P:C (no-choice regimen). This difference in lifespan between choice and no-choice feeding was not seen in males or virgin flies, reflecting the fact that increased protein intake is triggered by mating to support egg production. However, whereas in mated females a higher P:C intake was associated with greater egg production under both choice and no-choice feeding, contrary to expectations, choice-fed mated flies laid fewer eggs than no-choice flies on equivalent macronutrient intakes, perhaps reflecting that they had to ingest twice the volume of food to attain an equivalent intake of nutrients than no-choice flies on a diet of equivalent P:C ratio.

Evaluation of two physical guidance procedures in the treatment of pediatric feeding disorder.

Children with pediatric feeding disorder may refuse to consume an adequate variety and/or volume of food to maintain expected growth. They can consume food but may actively or passively refuse, resulting in escape or avoidance of eating. Behavioral interventions like positive reinforcement with escape extinction can increase consumption. However, sometimes these interventions are insufficient, especially in treating passive refusal. In these cases, physical guidance may be used to prompt an open mouth to deposit food. Research indicates open-mouth prompts are effective and rated as acceptable. This study replicated an existing physical guidance procedure, the finger prompt, and compared its efficacy and acceptability with that of a spoon prompt. This study extended research by defining and measuring passive refusal as a dependent variable and assessing social validity among different stakeholders and times. Both prompts were effective in treating food refusal, and caregivers rated the finger prompt as more preferred.