Assessing Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviours toward Salt and Sugar Consumption in the Central Division of Fiji.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess salt and sugar-related knowledge, attitudes and behaviours (KAB) of adults in the Central Division of Fiji.

Methods: A randomised stratified sample of 700 adults were selected. Questions on salt and sugar-related KABs were developed.

Policies on the collection, analysis, and reporting of sex and gender in Australian health and medical research: a mixed methods study.

Objective: To explore the policies of key organisations in Australian health and medical research on defining, collecting, analysing, and reporting data on sex and gender, and to identify barriers to and facilitators of developing and implementing such policies.

Study Design: Mixed methods study: online planning forum; survey of organisations in Australian health and medical research, and internet search for policies defining, collecting, analysing, and reporting data by sex and gender in health and medical research.

Setting, Participants: Australia, 19 May 2021 (planning forum) to 12 December 2022 (final internet search).

Energy, nutrient and overall healthiness of processed packaged foods in Fiji, a comparison between 2018 and 2020.

In Fiji, packaged foods are becoming increasingly available. However, it is unknown if nutrition composition of these foods has changed. This study aims to assess changes in energy, nutrient content and healthiness of packaged foods by comparing data from five major supermarkets in Fiji in 2018 and 2020.

Salt and sugar intakes of adults in the central division of Fiji: findings from a nutrition survey in 2022.

Background: Excess salt and sugar consumption contribute to diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension. This study aimed to estimate salt and sugar intakes and main sources, in a population of adults in the Central Division of Fiji.

Methods: One adult per household was randomly selected to participate (n = 700).

Addressing the global obesity burden: a gender-responsive approach to changing food environments is needed.

Obesity is a leading cause of death and disability globally. There is a higher proportion of women living with obesity than men, with differences in prevalence rates between women and men particularly staggering in low- and middle-income countries. The food environments that most people live in have been defined as 'obesogenic', characterised by easy access to energy dense, highly palatable foods with poor nutritional value.

Strengthening national salt reduction strategies using multiple methods process evaluations: case studies from Malaysia and Mongolia.

Objective: To understand the extent to which national salt reduction strategies in Malaysia and Mongolia were implemented and achieving their intended outcomes.

Design: Multiple methods process evaluations conducted at the mid-point of strategy implementation, guided by theoretical frameworks.

Setting: Malaysia (2018-2019) and Mongolia (2020-2021).

Food insecurity, COVID-19 and diets in Fiji - a cross-sectional survey of over 500 adults.

Introduction: Food insecurity is associated with inadequate nutrition and increased rates of chronic disease. The primary aim of this study was to assess self-reported food insecurity and the perceived impact of COVID-19 on food security, in two regional districts of Central Fiji, as part of a broader program of work on strengthening and monitoring food policy interventions. The secondary aim was to explore the relationship between food insecurity and salt, sugar and fruit and vegetable intake.

A review of front-of-pack nutrition labelling in Southeast Asia: Industry interference, lessons learned, and future directions.

Unlabelled: Front-of-pack nutrition labelling is an evidence-based nutrition intervention that is recommended by the World Health Organization and other health agencies as an effective non-communicable disease prevention strategy. To date, the types of front-of-pack labels that have been identified as being most effective have yet to be implemented in Southeast Asia. This has been partly attributed to extensive industry interference in nutrition policy development and implementation.

The nutritional profile of plant-based meat analogues available for sale in Australia.

Aim: To assess the nutritional quality of plant-based meat analogues in Australia, compared to equivalent meat products, and to assess levels of micronutrient fortification in meat analogues.

Methods: This cross-sectional study used nutrition composition data for products collected in 2021 from major supermarkets in Australia. Nutritional quality was assessed using the Health Star Rating, energy (kJ), protein (g), saturated fat (g), sodium (mg), total sugars (g), and fibre content (g) per 100 g, and level of food processing using the NOVA classification.

Research protocol for impact assessment of a project to scale up food policies in the Pacific.

Background: One of the challenges for countries implementing food policy measures has been the difficulty in demonstrating impact and retaining stakeholder support. Consequently, research funded to help countries overcome these challenges should assess impact and translation into practice, particularly in low-resource settings. However, there are still few attempts to prospectively, and comprehensively, assess research impact.

Incorporating a gender lens into nutrition and health-related policies in Fiji: analysis of policies and stakeholder perspectives.

Background: Gender equality, zero hunger and healthy lives and well-being for all, are three of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that underpin Fiji's National Development Plan. Work towards each of these goals contributes to the reduction of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). There are gender differences in NCD burden in Fiji.

Strengthening implementation of diet-related non-communicable disease prevention strategies in Fiji: a qualitative policy landscape analysis.

Background: Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading cause of death globally, and the World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended a comprehensive policy package for their prevention and control. However, implementing robust, best-practice policies remains a global challenge. In Fiji, despite political commitment to reducing the health and economic costs of NCDs, prevalence of diabetes and cardiovascular disease remain the highest in the region.

The tide of dietary risks for noncommunicable diseases in Pacific Islands: an analysis of population NCD surveys.

Objective: To describe changes over time in dietary risk factor prevalence and non-communicable disease in Pacific Island Countries (PICTs).

Methods: Secondary analysis of data from 21,433 adults aged 25-69, who participated in nationally representative World Health Organization STEPs surveys in 8 Pacific Island Countries and Territories between 2002 and 2019. Outcomes of interest were changes in consumption of fruit and vegetables, hypertension, overweight and obesity, and hypercholesterolaemia over time.

Gender roles, generational changes and environmental challenges: an intersectional interpretation of perceptions on healthy diets among iTaukei women and men in Fiji.

Objective: To investigate perceptions of iTaukei Fijian women and men around diet and the ability to consume a healthy diet.

Design: Six focus groups were conducted with women and men separately. Six to ten women and men participated in each group.

Contextualising sex and gender research to improve women's health: An early- and mid-career researcher perspective.

The field of sex and gender research in health and medicine is growing, and many early- and mid-career researchers (EMCRs) are developing skills in this area. As EMCRs specialising in sex and gender research, we aim to better understand sex- and gender-based determinants of human health, challenge long-standing and pervasive gender biases, and contribute to improving the evidence base upon which clinical guidelines and policy interventions are developed. To effectively achieve these goals, we believe that EMCRs would benefit from understanding the challenges of working in this space and participate in driving change in three key areas.

Understanding Enablers and Barriers to the Implementation of Nutrition Standards in Publicly Funded Institutions in Victoria.

Effective implementation of nutrition standards in publicly funded institutions can facilitate healthy food and beverage consumption by communities and populations, which can enable improvements in dietary intake and reduce disease burden. This study aimed to understand stakeholder perspectives on the implementation of government nutrition standards in publicly funded institutions in the Australian state of Victoria, as well as to determine enablers and barriers to successful implementation. Pre-interview questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were administered to stakeholders involved in the implementation of nutrition standards in publicly funded institutions in Victoria.

Strengthening Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Taxation for Non-Communicable Disease Prevention: A Comparative Political Economy Analysis Case Study of Fiji and Tonga.

Diet-related fiscal policy is an effective NCD prevention strategy. However, current sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) taxes in Fiji and Tonga have not had the desired effect; SSB consumption in Fiji, for example, contributes to mortality more than double the global rates and is highest in the WHO Western Pacific Region. We therefore aimed to better understand the perceived underlying political economy drivers that have and continue to affect change in each country.

Scaling-up food policies in the Pacific Islands: protocol for policy engagement and mixed methods evaluation of intervention implementation.

Background: There is a crisis of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the Pacific Islands, and poor diets are a major contributor. The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic crisis will likely further exacerbate the burden on food systems. Pacific Island leaders have adopted a range of food policies and regulations to improve diets.

Implementing effective salt reduction programs and policies in low- and middle-income countries: learning from retrospective policy analysis in Argentina, Mongolia, South Africa and Vietnam.

Objective: To understand the factors influencing the implementation of salt reduction interventions in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC).

Design: Retrospective policy analysis based on desk reviews of existing reports and semi-structured stakeholder interviews in four countries, using Walt and Gilson's 'Health Policy Triangle' to assess the role of context, content, process and actors on the implementation of salt policy.

Setting: Argentina, Mongolia, South Africa and Vietnam.

The association of energy and macronutrient intake with all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease and dementia: findings from 120 963 women and men in the UK Biobank.

This study aimed to investigate the association between individual and combinations of macronutrients with premature death, CVD and dementia. Sex differences were investigated. Data were utilised from a prospective cohort of 120 963 individuals (57 % women) within the UK Biobank, who completed ≥ two 24-h diet recalls.

Strengthening Knowledge to Practice on Effective Salt Reduction Interventions in Low- and Middle-Income Countries.

Purpose Of Review: The objective of this review was to consolidate available published information on the implementation and evaluation of salt reduction interventions in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Recent Findings: The Science of Salt database (made up of studies identified in a weekly Medline search) was used to retrieve articles related to the implementation of salt reduction interventions from June 2013 to February 2020. Studies that measured the effects of the interventions in LMICs, based on four outcome measures-salt intake; sodium levels in foods; knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours (KABs) towards salt; and blood pressure-were included.

Packaged food supply in Fiji: nutrient levels, compliance with sodium targets and adherence to labelling regulations.

Objective: To estimate the proportion of products meeting Fiji government labelling regulations, assess compliance with national Na reformulation targets and examine the Na and total sugar levels in packaged foods sold in selected major supermarkets.

Design: We selected five major supermarkets in 2018 and collected the product information and nutritional content from the labels of all packaged foods sold. We organised 4278 foods into fourteen major food categories and thirty-six sub-categories and recorded the proportion of products labelled in accordance with the Fiji labelling regulations.

Stakeholder perspectives on the effectiveness of the Victorian Salt Reduction Partnership: a qualitative study.

Background: Interventions to reduce population salt intake are feasible and cost-effective. The Victorian Salt Reduction Partnership implemented a complex, multi-faceted salt reduction intervention between 2014 and 2020 in the Australian state of Victoria. This study aimed to understand stakeholder perspectives on the effectiveness of the Victorian Salt Reduction Partnership.

Cardiovascular disease risk profile and management practices in 45 low-income and middle-income countries: A cross-sectional study of nationally representative individual-level survey data.

Background: Global cardiovascular disease (CVD) burden is high and rising, especially in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). Focussing on 45 LMICs, we aimed to determine (1) the adult population's median 10-year predicted CVD risk, including its variation within countries by socio-demographic characteristics, and (2) the prevalence of self-reported blood pressure (BP) medication use among those with and without an indication for such medication as per World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.

Methods And Findings: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative household surveys from 45 LMICs carried out between 2005 and 2017, with 32 surveys being WHO Stepwise Approach to Surveillance (STEPS) surveys.