Effectiveness of an online food shopping intervention to reduce salt purchases among individuals with hypertension - findings of the SaltSwitch Online Grocery Shopping (OGS) randomised trial.

Background: Online grocery shopping is a growing source of food purchases in many countries. We investigated the effect of nudging consumers towards purchases of lower sodium products using a web browser extension.

Methods: This trial was conducted among individuals with hypertension who shopped for their groceries online in Australia.

Blood biomarkers of trans-fatty acid intake among Nigerian adults in the Federal Capital Territory: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Intake of trans-fatty acids (TFAs) is an established risk factor for cardiovascular disease. In April 2023, Nigeria passed regulations limiting TFA content in foods, fats, and oils, but the current level of TFA exposure in the Nigerian population is unknown.

Objectives: To quantify trans-fatty acid (TFA) biomarkers in dried blood spots from Nigerian adults in the Federal Capital Territory before policy enforcement, establish baseline levels for future evaluations, assess subgroup variations by demographic and socioeconomic factors, and compare TFA levels with data from 30 countries worldwide.

Association of cardiovascular health metrics with all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality in chronic kidney disease: A cohort study.

Background And Aims: Since the global burden of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is rising rapidly, the study aimed to assess the association of cardiovascular health (CVH) metrics with all-cause and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality among individuals with CKD.

Methods And Results: The cohort study included 5834 participants with CKD from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2018. A composite CVH score was calculated based on smoking status, physical activity, body mass index, blood pressure, total cholesterol, diet quality, and glucose control.

The contribution of sodium reduction and potassium increase to the blood pressure lowering observed in the Salt Substitute and Stroke Study.

The Salt Substitute and Stroke Study (SSaSS) demonstrated significant reductions in systolic blood pressure (SBP), and the risk of stroke, major cardiovascular events and total mortality with the use of potassium-enriched salt. The contribution of sodium reduction versus potassium increase to these effects is unknown. We identified four different data sources describing the association between sodium reduction, potassium supplementation and change in SBP.

Criterion validation of nutrient profiling systems: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Nutrient profiling systems (NPSs) use algorithms to evaluate the nutritional quality of foods and beverages. Criterion validation, which assesses the relationship between consuming foods rated as healthier by the NPS and objective measures of health, is essential to ensure the accuracy of NPSs.

Objective: We examined and compared NPSs that have undergone criterion validity testing in relation to diet-related disease risk and risk markers.

Estimated health benefits, costs and cost-effectiveness of eliminating dietary industrial trans fatty acids in Kenya: cost-effectiveness analysis.

Objectives: To model the potential health gains and cost-effectiveness of a mandatory limit of industrial trans fatty acids (iTFA) in Kenyan foods.

Design: Multiple cohort proportional multistate life table model, incorporating existing data from the Global Burden of Disease study, pooled analyses of observational studies and peer-reviewed evidence of healthcare and policy implementation costs.

Setting: Kenya.

The Effect of Retail Food Environment Interventions on Dietary Behavior in Postsecondary Education Settings: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background: Postsecondary education institutions, where hundreds of millions of people work and study globally, are a key setting for retail food environment interventions.

Objective: We aimed to synthesize the evidence for the effectiveness of retail food environment interventions in improving the healthiness of dietary behavior of students and staff in postsecondary education settings.

Methods: Academic databases were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-experimental studies published until August 2023.

Testing the Feasibility and Dietary Impact of a "Produce Prescription" Program for Adults with Undermanaged Type 2 Diabetes and Food Insecurity in Australia.

Background: There is growing interest in Food is Medicine programs that incorporate food-based interventions into health care for patients with diet-related conditions.

Objectives: We aimed to test the feasibility of a "produce prescription" program and its impact on diet quality for people with type 2 diabetes (T2D) experiencing food insecurity in Australia.

Methods: We conducted a pre-post intervention study in n = 50 adults experiencing food insecurity with T2D and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) ≥8%.

-fat labelling information on prepackaged foods and beverages sold in Hong Kong in 2019.

Objective: To examine the labelling status of -fat of pre-packaged foods sold in Hong Kong.

Design: Data from 19 027 items in the 2019 FoodSwitch Hong Kong database were used. Ingredient lists were screened to identify specific (e.

Packaged foods purchased on price promotion in Australia.

We examined the prevalence and magnitude of price promotions among purchases of packaged foods and beverages in Australia, as well as the contribution of price-promoted foods and beverages to apparent energy intake. We utilized grocery purchase data from a nationally representative panel of 10 000 households in 2019 (NielsenIQ Homescan panel), combined with a food nutrition dataset (FoodSwitch). Nutritional quality was defined using the Australian and New Zealand Health Star Rating (HSR), where products with an HSR <3.

Protocol for a novel sodium and blood pressure reduction intervention targeting online grocery shoppers with hypertension - the SaltSwitch Online Grocery Shopping randomized trial.

Background: High dietary sodium intake is a leading cause of hypertension. A major source of dietary sodium is salt added to processed food products available in retail food environments. The fast-growing online grocery shopping setting provides new opportunities for salt reduction interventions that support consumers in choosing healthier options.

An Innovative Machine Learning Approach to Predict the Dietary Fiber Content of Packaged Foods.

Underconsumption of dietary fiber is prevalent worldwide and is associated with multiple adverse health conditions. Despite the importance of fiber, the labeling of fiber content on packaged foods and beverages is voluntary in most countries, making it challenging for consumers and policy makers to monitor fiber consumption. Here, we developed a machine learning approach for automated and systematic prediction of fiber content using nutrient information commonly available on packaged products.

Deconstructing the Supermarket: Systematic Ingredient Disaggregation and the Association between Ingredient Usage and Product Health Indicators for 24,229 Australian Foods and Beverages.

Unhealthy diets are underpinned by the over-consumption of packaged products. Data describing the ingredient composition of these products is limited. We sought to define the ingredients used in Australian packaged foods and beverages and assess associations between the number of ingredients and existing health indicators.

Projected effects on salt purchases following implementation of a national salt reduction policy in South Africa.

Objective: To assess the contribution of different food groups to total salt purchases and to evaluate the estimated reduction in salt purchases if mandatory maximum salt limits in South African legislation were being complied with.

Design: This study conducted a cross-sectional analysis of purchasing data from Discovery Vitality members. Data were linked to the South African FoodSwitch database to determine the salt content of each food product purchased.

Feasibility and validity of using death surveillance data and SmartVA for fact and cause of death in clinical trials in rural China: a substudy of the China salt substitute and stroke study (SSaSS).

Background: In rural China, mortality surveillance data may be an alternative to primary data collection in clinical trials; SmartVA (verbal autopsy) is also a potential alternative for endpoint adjudication. The feasibility and validity of both need to be assessed.

Methods: We used mortality data from the first 24 months of the China Salt Substitute and Stroke Study (SSaSS) trial and assessed the agreement between (1) mortality surveillance data and face-to-face visits for fact of death; (2) mortality surveillance data and SSaSS adjudication for causes of death; (3) SmartVA and SSaSS adjudication for causes of death; (4) cause-specific mortality fraction of different methods.

Sodium concentration of pre-packaged foods sold in Hong Kong.

Objective: To describe the Na concentration of pre-packaged foods available in Hong Kong.

Design: The Na concentrations (mg/100 g or mg/100 ml or per serving) of all pre-packaged foods available for sale in major supermarket chains in Hong Kong were obtained from the 2017 Hong Kong FoodSwitch database. Median and interquartile range (IQR) of Na concentration for different food groups and the proportion of foods and beverages considered low and high Na (<120 mg/100 g or mg/100 ml and >600 mg/100 g or mg/100 ml, respectively) were determined.

Association between prediabetes and risk of all cause mortality and cardiovascular disease: updated meta-analysis.

Objective: To evaluate the associations between prediabetes and the risk of all cause mortality and incident cardiovascular disease in the general population and in patients with a history of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

Design: Updated meta-analysis.

Data Sources: Electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, and Google Scholar) up to 25 April 2020.

The Effects of a Supermarket-Based Intervention on the Nutritional Quality of Private-Label Foods: A Prospective Study.

Private-label products, products owned by supermarkets, are a growing area of the food supply. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of an intervention that provided an Australian supermarket ('intervention supermarket') with comparative nutrition data to improve the healthiness of their private-label range. Between 2015 and 2016, the intervention supermarket received reports that ranked the nutritional quality of their products against competitors.

Interim effects of salt substitution on urinary electrolytes and blood pressure in the China Salt Substitute and Stroke Study (SSaSS).

The Salt Substitute and Stroke Study is an ongoing 5-year large-scale cluster randomized trial investigating the effects of potassium-enriched salt substitute compared to usual salt on the risk of stroke. The study involves 600 villages and 20,996 individuals in rural China. Intermediate risk markers were measured in a random subsample of villages every 12 months over 3 years to track progress against key assumptions underlying study design.

Prospective associations between depressive symptoms and cognitive functions in middle-aged and elderly Chinese adults.

Objective: To examine prospective associations of clinically relevant depressive symptoms with cognitive functions and rates of cognitive decline among Chinese adults aged 45 years and older.

Methods: Data was from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS) with a follow-up of 4 years. Based on the Chinese version of 10-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD-10), clinically relevant depressive symptoms were defined with a CESD-10 score≥10 points.