The Development of a Food Frequency Questionnaire for the Assessment of Ultra-Processed Food Consumption in the Italian Adult Population: Protocol for a Validity and Reproducibility Study.

Background: Over the last decade, while studies on the detrimental effects of ultra-processed food (UPF) consumption have increased, methodological limitations on the quality of available evidence have emerged. Starting from a critical reassessment of the NOVA classification, this project will aim to develop and validate a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), which is based on the processing of consumed foods and specifically designed to estimate the UPF consumption and total dietary intake of macro- and micronutrients in the Italian adult population.

Methods: This study will take place in selected workplaces and include healthy males and females aged ≥18 years, residing in Italy and with Italian citizenship.

Sustainability and nutritional composition of food offer and choices in three hospital canteens in Italy.

Diet is considered one of the most important determinants of health and at the same time a cause of climate change. We conducted a cross-sectional study in three Italian hospital canteens on five consecutive working days to investigate food offer availability and user choices in terms of nutritional intake and environmental impact. Photos of lunch trays were collected by the researchers and food offer and choices were analysed using the Italian Food Composition Database for Epidemiological Studies and the SU-EATABLE LIFE dataset.

Tailoring the Nutritional Composition of Italian Foods to the US Nutrition5k Dataset for Food Image Recognition: Challenges and a Comparative Analysis.

Background: Training of machine learning algorithms on dish images collected in other countries requires possible sources of systematic discrepancies, including country-specific food composition databases (FCDBs), to be tackled. The US Nutrition5k project provides for ~5000 dish images and related dish- and ingredient-level information on mass, energy, and macronutrients from the US FCDB. The aim of this study is to (1) identify challenges/solutions in linking the nutritional composition of Italian foods with food images from Nutrition5k and (2) assess potential differences in nutrient content estimated across the Italian and US FCDBs and their determinants.

Dietary Isoflavones Intake and Gastric Cancer.

Dietary isoflavones have been associated with a lower risk of gastric cancer (GC), but the evidence for this association is still limited. We investigated the association between isoflavone intake and GC risk using data from a case-control study including 230 incident, histologically confirmed GC cases and 547 controls with acute, non-neoplastic conditions. Dietary information was collected through a validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and isoflavone intake was estimated using ad hoc databases.

Compliance and Attitudes towards the Gluten-Free Diet in Celiac Patients in Italy: What Has Changed after a Decade?

This study aims were (i) to describe Italian celiac patients who agreed to participate in the latest web survey and their attitudes toward the GF diet (compliance, perceived limitations, and worries) and (ii) to compare the answers given by the 2011 and 2022 responders. The self-administered questionnaire was distributed through the Italian Coeliac Association channels (link on social media, websites, and newsletters) to all of the celiac patients willing to participate in 2011 and 2022 (2427 and 3529 responders who answered the same questions, respectively). Descriptive analyses and the Pearson's chi-squared test were performed.

Fiber-type prebiotics and gynecological and breast cancers risk: the PrebiotiCa study.

Prebiotics may influence the risk of hormone-related female cancers by modulating the gut microbiota involved in estrogen metabolism. We evaluated the association of fiber-type prebiotic intake with breast, endometrial, and ovarian cancers. Data derived from a network of Italian hospital-based case-control studies (1991-2006), including 2560 cases of cancer of the breast (n = 2588 control participants), 454 of the endometrium (n = 908 control participants), and 1031 of the ovary (n = 2411 control participants).

Does Pizza Consumption Favor an Improved Disease Activity in Rheumatoid Arthritis?

To our knowledge, no studies so far have investigated the role of pizza and its ingredients in modulating disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). We assessed this question via a recent cross-sectional study including 365 participants from Italy, the birthplace of pizza. Multiple robust linear and logistic regression models were fitted with the tertile consumption categories of each available pizza-related food item/group (i.

Dietary choline and sphingomyelin choline moiety intake and risk of colorectal cancer: a case-control study.

Introduction: Phospholipids are possible favorable agents for colorectal cancer (CRC). Choline has been inversely related to CRC risk but findings are inconsistent. We assessed the effect of dietary sphingomyelin (SM) choline moiety and total choline intake on risk of CRC.

Prebiotics and the Risk of Upper Digestive Tract and Stomach Cancers: The PrebiotiCa Study.

Background: Fiber intake may lower digestive tract cancer risk, possibly by modulating the composition of gut microbiota. However, no data are available about the role of specific fiber fractions with prebiotic activity (e.g.

Effects of 24-week Polarized Training vs. Threshold Training in Obese Male Adults.

The combination of high volume of moderate-intensity continuous training with a low volume of high-intensity interval training improved body composition and physical capacities in individuals with obesity. However, polarized training (POL) has never been used in adult men with obesity. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate changes in body composition and physical capacities induced by a 24-week POL or threshold (THR) program in obese male adults.

Improvement of adiponectin in relation to physical performance and body composition in young obese males subjected to twenty-four weeks of training programs.

Obesity and related metabolic diseases represent a worldwide health problem. The main factor predisposing to obesity is an unhealthy lifestyle including the lack of physical activity. A pivotal role in the etio-pathogenesis of obesity is carried out by adipose tissue, an endocrine organ secreting several adipokines involved in numerous metabolic and inflammatory processes.

Dietary Choline and Betaine Intake and Risk of Colorectal Cancer in an Iranian Population.

Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is increasing in low- and middle-income countries, likely due to changing lifestyle habits, including diet. We aimed to investigate the relationship between dietary betaine, choline, and choline-containing compounds and CRC risk.

Methods: We analyzed data from a case-control study, including 865 CRC cases and 3206 controls from Iran.

Olive Oil and Nuts in Rheumatoid Arthritis Disease Activity.

Few observational studies investigated the relationship between single food groups and disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Within a recent Italian cross-sectional study (365 patients, median age: 58.46 years, 78.

Flavonoid Intake in Relation to Colorectal Cancer Risk and Blood Bacterial DNA.

Flavonoids have been inversely associated to colorectal cancer (CRC) and are plausible intermediaries for the relation among gut microbiome, intestinal permeability and CRC. We analyzed the relation of flavonoid intake with CRC and blood bacterial DNA. We conducted a case-control study in Italy involving 100 incident CRC cases and 200 controls.

Intake of prebiotic fibers and the risk of laryngeal cancer: the PrebiotiCa study.

Purpose: To evaluate whether the intake of specific fibers with prebiotic activity, e.g., inulin-type fructans (ITFs), fructo-oligosaccharides (FOSs), and galacto-oligosaccharides (GOSs), is associated with laryngeal cancer risk.

The Update of the Italian Food Composition Database of Gluten-Free Products and Its Application in Food-Based Dietary Guidelines Menus.

Complete food composition databases (FCDBs) on gluten-free (GF) foods are needed to assess the nutrient intakes of celiac disease patients. The aim of the present work was to update the previously developed version of the Italian GF-FCDB and to apply it to a theoretical GF diet. The updated GF-FCDB includes the composition of 108 GF cereal-based foods, as sold, in terms of energy and macro- and micro-nutrients, imputed using food label information combined with the standard recipe approach.

Are Dietary Patterns Related to Cognitive Performance in 7-Year-Old Children? Evidence from a Birth Cohort in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy.

Research from different sources supports a link between nutrition and neurodevelopment, but evidence is still sparse regarding the relationship between dietary patterns (DPs) and cognitive performance in school-aged children. Within the Northern Adriatic Cohort II, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy, 379 7-year-old children were cross-sectionally evaluated. Dietary patterns were identified through a principal component factor analysis based on 37 nutrients from children's 3-day dietary records.

Association of prebiotic fiber intake with colorectal cancer risk: the PrebiotiCa study.

Purpose: To evaluate the association between the intake of specific fibers with prebiotic activity, namely inulin-type fructans (ITFs), fructooligosaccharides (FOSs) and galactooligosaccharides (GOSs), and colorectal cancer risk.

Methods: Within the PrebiotiCa study, we used data from a multicentric case-control study conducted in Italy and including 1953 incident, histologically confirmed, colorectal cancer patients and 4154 hospital controls. The amount of six prebiotic molecules [ITFs, nystose (FOS), kestose (FOS), 1F-β-fructofuranosylnystose (FOS), raffinose (GOS) and stachyose (GOS)] in a variety of foods was quantified via laboratory analyses.

Adherence to Dietary Recommendations of 7-Year-Old Children from a Birth Cohort in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy.

Few Italian and European studies have assessed adherence to dietary recommendations in primary school children using dietary records. No Italian studies have provided an index-based nutritional adequacy assessment. We provided a comprehensive overview of dietary intake in 381 7-year-old children from NAC-II cohort study, Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy).

An Integrated Model to Improve Medication Reconciliation in Oncology: Prospective Interventional Study.

Background: Accurate medication reconciliation reduces the risk of drug incompatibilities and adverse events that can occur during transitions in care. Community pharmacies (CPs) are a crucial part of the health care system and could be involved in collecting essential information on conventional and supplementary drugs used at home.

Objective: The aim of this paper was to establish an alliance between our cancer institute, Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori (IRST), and CPs, the latter entrusted with the completion of a pharmacological recognition survey.

A 3-year school-based intervention improved physical fitness and reduced the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Italian prepubertal children.

Background: Schools constitute the ideal setting in which children's physical activity, physical fitness, and health status can improve. However, intervention protocols and their effectiveness vary considerably. The purpose of the study was to investigate the differences in physical fitness and overweight and obesity prevalence between children attending structured physical education classes held by a specialized teacher (EXP) or traditional classes of equal duration held by an ordinary teacher (TRAD).

Physical fitness reference standards in Italian children.

Physical fitness in childhood is considered a marker of current and future health. For this reason, there is a need for a simple but reliable test to assess the different components of physical fitness even at school during physical education lessons. However, standard values are required to correctly interpret the results of such tests.

Accuracy of applications to monitor food intake: Evaluation by comparison with 3-d food diary.

Objective: The availability of nutrition applications (apps) has increased in recent years. The aim of this study was to assess the accuracy of nutrient intake calculations from some of the leading apps.

Methods: We identified five apps according to some selection criteria: >4-star ratings, >1 million downloads, including a food composition database, and in Italian language.