Protein is one of the most important, foremost, and versatile nutrients in food. The quantity and quality of protein are determinants of its nutritional values. Therefore, adequate consumption of ...high-quality protein is essential for optimal growth, development, and health of humans. Based on short-term nitrogen balance studies, the Recommended Dietary Allowance of protein for the healthy adult with minimal physical activity is 0.8 g protein/kg body weight (BW) per day. Proteins are present in good quantities in not only animals but also in plants, especially in legumes. With the growing demand for protein, interest in plant proteins is also rising due to their comparative low cost as well as the increase in consumers’ demand originating from health and environmental concerns. Legumes are nutrient-dense foods, comprising components identified as “antinutritional factors” that can reduce the bioavailability of macro and micronutrients. Other than nutritive value, the physiochemical and behavioral properties of proteins during processing plays a significant role in determining the end quality of food. The term “complete protein” refers to when all nine essential amino acids are present in the correct proportion in our bodies. To have a balanced diet, the right percentage of protein is required for our body. The consumption of these high protein-containing foods will lead to protein sustainability and eradicate malnutrition. Here, we shed light on major opportunities to strengthen the contribution of diversity in legume crops products to sustainable diets. This review will boost awareness and knowledge on underutilized proteinous foods into national nutritional security programs.
With the growing interest in healthy and sustainable diets, studying diets with high nutritional quality and low environmental impact is needed. We focused on the nitrogen footprint (NFP)—an ...indicator of reactive nitrogen loss that causes various environmental impacts—of Japanese diets using individual dietary records and identified the characteristics of lower NFP diets. This cross-sectional study was a secondary data analysis from the 2017 Saitama Prefecture Nutrition Survey. We analyzed the data obtained from a questionnaire and two-day dietary records of 479 men and women aged 30–65 y who had no misreported or missing data. The NFP was calculated using the virtual nitrogen factors of each food group reported in a previous study. After assessing NFP and its contributions, we conducted sub-group analysis for participants with appropriate weight status and adequate protein intake, classifying them into three groups according to tertiles of NFP to protein ratio. We compared NFP, its contributions, and nutrient intake between the groups. The total NFP (kg N/y) was 18.2±5.0 in men and 16.1±4.4 in women. In the sub-group analysis, total NFPs of the lower NFP group were 16.5±3.1 in men and 13.6±2.8 in women. Cereals, pulses, and fish and seafood contributed more significantly to the total NFP in the lower NFP group than in the higher NFP group. These results suggest that adequate protein intake from a variety of food sources is required to lower the environmental impact of adequate diets.
This study was designed to examine the difference between healthy lifestyle in terms of balanced diet, physical exercises, emotional and self management among special need students in rural and urban ...areas. This study is conducted quantitatively by using the questionnaires that are valid and reliable. These questionnaires were adapted from the Healthy Lifestyle Instrument. The sample size of 40 parents from Cheras, Kuala Lumpur were participated for the urban area, while another size of 40 parents from Sabak Bernam, Selangor were participated on behalf of the rural area. Google form was used as the platform of the questionnaires and were distributed accordingly online. Inference analysis was used to study the research questions by using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPPS) version 23.0. The analysis showed there was no significance in the difference between special need students in urban area and rural area towards their healthy lifestyle based from the three aspects. As a result, the main party should be obligated in adding healthy lifestyle practices among special need students in both urban and rural areas.
This paper investigates how a diet associated with the lowest possible environmental impacts might look and which effects on dietary balance and food self-sufficiency such a diet would have. For this ...purpose, an optimization model of the Swiss agricultural and food sector including imports was extended by life cycle assessment data for each product and process, by the Swiss dietary recommendations and by an energetic balancing of the domestic food production and consumption. The environmental impacts were quantified by the ReCiPe impact assessment method. Optimizing environmental impacts whilst fulfilling dietary recommendations and still using the whole Swiss agricultural area would almost halve the environmental impacts of food consumption. In order to achieve this, the average diet would need to change substantially, involving on the one hand a significant increase in the consumption of plant-based products such as grains or potatoes, nuts, and fruit and vegetables, and on the other hand, a sharp reduction in meat and alcohol consumption. These changes are associated with improvements in production processes ranging from reducing soybean meal in feedstuffs to giving preference to little-processed foods such as liquid rather than dried or processed milk. The results not only prove the synergistic effects between an environmentally friendly and a balanced diet, but also the simultaneously attainable increase of food self-sufficiency due to lower import levels, enhancing food security. With regard to the use of the large domestic areas of permanent grassland, the outcome is contradictory: The abandonment of these areas reduces—due to lower animal husbandry—the environmental effects but increases dependence on imports and makes it more difficult to ensure the supply of nutrients originating mainly from animal products. A favorable option for improving both environmental impacts and food self-sufficiency is finally the avoidance of food waste. This would increase the potential to reduce the environmental impacts of food consumption to up to 75%.
The objective of this research was to estimate the production of ruminal methane in different prandial periods in fistulated Holstein adult cows and to evaluate the effect on methane production due ...to different diets commonly used in dairy cattle in an east region of Antioquia (Colombia). For this porpoise two different diets were evaluated on each cow; one of them was fed with forage Cenchrus clandestinus, the second one was fed with the same diet with an addition of 4 kg of commercial balanced feed/day. During seven days in periods of six hours, pH and temperature were measured in samples of ruminal fluid as well as methane emissions using a MQ4 gas sensor. As results must be said that forage based diet resulted in a major methane production, presenting the maximum concentration two hours after feeding and the minimum at six hours. Ruminal pH was directly affected by the diet; the lower value was found in the mixed based diet. There was no evidence of any effect of the diet on the ruminal mean temperature. Can be concluded that forage based diet resulted on a major production of methane compared to the mixed diet, this was also associated to pH changes but not to ruminal temperature. Although it is not possible to associate the production of methane to specific diet components. The food or supplements associated to changing pH values during the day may play a key role in the reduction of methane emissions and bovine energetic efficiency.
Healthy eating behavior is one of the leading lifestyle factors that influence people’s health status. Increasing incidents of noncommunicable diseases such as obesity， hypertension， cardiovascular ...diseases， and diabetes caused by unhealthy eating habits are among the major public health challenges in China. To deal with this challenge， the Healthy China 2030 committee proposed the “Promoting a balanced diet” action as one of the 15 specialized strategies for achieving this goal. However， how to put this initiative into practices reamins a big public health challenge in China. Recent research in behavioral sciences provides valuable insights for dealing with this challenge. Behavioral science-based nudge strategies can promote healthy eating by making healthy eating more convenient and preferrable， promoting healthy eating through social influences， and enhancing healthy eating at the right moment without constraining people's freedom of choosing what to eat. These strategies could inspire the development of
Gluten-free diet (GFD) is the cornerstone treatment for celiac disease (CD). GFD implies a strict and lifelong elimination from the diet of gluten, the storage protein found in wheat, barley, rye and ...hybrids of these grains, such as kamut and triticale. The absence of gluten in natural and processed foods, despite being the key aspect of GFD, may lead to nutritional consequences, such as deficits and imbalances. The nutritional adequacy of GFD is particularly important in children, this the age being of maximal energy and nutrient requirements for growth, development and activity. In recent years, attention has focused on the nutritional quality of gluten-free products (GFPs) available in the market. It is well recognized that GFPs are considered of lower quality and poorer nutritional value compared to the gluten-containing counterparts. The present review focuses on the nutritional adequacy of GFD at the pediatric age, with the aim being to increase awareness of the potential complications associated with this diet, to identify strategies in order to avoid them and to promote a healthier diet and lifestyle in children with CD.
1. Many animals can actively redress nutrient imbalances in their diet to maximise performance. However, food items are commonly patchily distributed in nature, thus, animals often need to commute ...between prey patches to mix their diet.
2. We previously found that females of two species of predatory mites showed a higher oviposition rate when feeding on a mixture of eggs of co‐occurring phytophagous mites than on each prey separately. Besides, they searched for such a prey mixture on artificial arenas.
3. In nature, however, the two prey species are found on different parts of their host plant; hence, the predators need to commute between plant parts to obtain a mixed diet.
4. Here, we show that the reproduction of one of these predators was highest on mixtures consisting of various proportions of these prey, and was lower on single diets and on a mixture with a high proportion of one of the two prey. The predators consumed prey eggs in proportions differing from those offered, suggesting that they actively selected prey to obtain a mixed diet.
5. We found that the oviposition of the predator was lower on plants inoculated with either of the two prey species alone than on plants on which the eggs of the two prey species occurred on separate leaves of the same plant, forcing the predators to commute between the two prey.
6. We conclude that the predators actively searched for a mixed diet consisting of prey that were spatially separated on a plant.
Predators consumed two prey species in proportions differing from those offered.
Predators actively selected a mixed diet, also on intact plants.
This resulted in increased predator reproduction.
Several studies have reported some efficacy of diets low in fermentable carbohydrates (Fermentable Oligo-, Di-, Monosaccharides and Polyols (FODMAPs)) in Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). There is no ...evidence of its superiority compared to gluten-free and balanced diets in improving IBS patients' quality of life (QoL). The aim of this study is to assess whether different diets can improve QoL in IBS. Forty-two patients with IBS, according to Rome IV criteria, were enrolled. Low-FODMAP, gluten-free and balanced diets were proposed to each patient in the same succession. Each diet was followed for 4 weeks. The Bristol Stool Scale, the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for bloating and abdominal pain, and the SF12 questionnaire for health-related quality of life were applied at the beginning and at the end of each diet. Twenty-eight of the forty-two patients completed all the three diets. All the three diets reduced symptom severity (
< 0.01), bloating (
< 0.01) and abdominal pain (
< 0.01), and improved quality of life (
0.05); 3% of patients expressed a preference for the low-FODMAP diet, 11% for the gluten-free and 86% for the balanced diet (
0.01). The balanced diet improves QoL and VAS pain, provides an adequate quantity of FODMAPs and is more appreciated by patients. For these reasons, the balanced diet could be recommended to patients with irritable bowel syndrome.
Abstract
Objectives
Adolescence, a crucial period for growth velocity including sexual maturation, is an important period of life and young adolescent girls need to have proper knowledge, positive ...attitudes and practice of balanced diet to achieve optimum growth and development. Considering its importance this study attempts to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of balanced diets among adolescent schoolgirls in Noakhali district, Bangladesh.
Methods
A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in three secondary schools in Noakhali district, Bangladesh. A multistage sampling techniques was used to select schools and study participants. A total of 485 adolescent school girls participated and a pre-designed, validated and structured questionnaire was used for data collection. In addition to descriptive statistics, chi-square test and logistic regression were employed for analysis.
Results
The results from the study revealed that more than half of the students did not have good knowledge about a balanced diet, 42.8% had a positive attitude, whereas the practice of consuming a balanced diet was rather low (only 4.5%). Students studying in government schools had better knowledge and attitudes than non-government school students. Moreover, 41.1% of students were underweight; more than 60% of respondent’s mothers did not have an education higher than secondary school and were mostly unemployed housewives. Parent’s education, mother’s occupation, and types of school have a strong association with KAP; however, father’s education and occupation showed an association of varying degrees. Being knowledgeable was related to positive attitudes, and students with good knowledge had (OR: 1.828; 95% CI: 1.270–2.631) more likely to have positive attitudes towards a balanced diet.
Conclusions
Thus, proper knowledge about a balanced diet should be introduced with basic nutritional knowledge to all levels of public education. Interventions and programs can be designed to improve knowledge, attitude, and more specifically the practice at the household level so that adolescent girls can have a proper diet during their sexual maturation phase.
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