Nordic nutrition recommendations 2023 (NNR2023) advised for the first time certain amounts of foods from food-groups based on scientific data on healthy and environment-friendly diet. The food-based-dietary-guidelines are intended for adults and children above age two, but children's energy requirement and intake are lower than those of adults. In this review, reference amounts of food from different food-groups are calculated for children to align with the combination recommended for adults in NNR2023.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe overall aim of this paper was to provide background knowledge to the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations 2023 Committee for integrating environmental sustainability in a framework for national Food-Based Dietary Guidelines (FBDG) within the Nordics and Baltics. Additionally, this paper aims to give an overview of recent Nordic scientific literature on environmental impact of foods and dietary patterns and of the FBDG of the Nordics. Finally, we suggest methods for developing national sustainable FBDG.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEvaluation of research as basis for recommendations about lifestyle is discussed and especially recommendations about nutrition. Nordic recommendations on nutrients and diet with emphasis on sustainability are published 2023. Randomized trials, the strongest background for evidence based knowledge, are sometimes not possible to use when studying the influence of lifestyle on health.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Neither the global population nor individual countries have reached the World Health Organization (WHO) target of ≥50% of infants exclusively breastfed (EBF) until 6 mo. This may partly be because of the perceptions of insufficient milk and energy supply to meet rapid growth and development needs.
Objectives: In a longitudinal observational study, we aimed to determine whether breastmilk energy content is sufficient to support growth during EBF until 6 mo.
World Health Organisation (WHO) has stated that countries need to know their local commercial baby food (CBF) market. Data from other countries suggest rapid changes in CBF options, highlighting the need for repeated analysis. In that context, this repeated cross-sectional study analysed the options and nutrient quality of different CBF types available in Iceland in years 2016, 2019 and 2021.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWomen who are obese before pregnancy have a higher risk of caesarean section than normal weight women. We investigated the combined effect of pre-pregnancy weight and gestational weight gain on pre-labour and intrapartum caesarean section risk. We collected data on 22,763 singleton, term, live deliveries in 2003-2014 from the Icelandic Maternal and Child Health Study (ICE-MCH), based on Icelandic registries.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRecent studies indicate that the interplay between diet, intestinal microbiota composition, and intestinal permeability can impact mental health. More than 10% of children and adolescents in Iceland suffer from mental disorders, and rates of psychotropics use are very high. The aim of this novel observational longitudinal case-control study, "Meals, Microbiota and Mental Health in Children and Adolescents (MMM-Study)" is to contribute to the promotion of treatment options for children and adolescents diagnosed with mental disorders through identification of patterns that may affect the symptoms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims/hypothesis: Nordic dietary patterns that are high in healthy traditional Nordic foods may have a role in the prevention and management of diabetes. To inform the update of the EASD clinical practice guidelines for nutrition therapy, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of Nordic dietary patterns and cardiometabolic outcomes.
Methods: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE and The Cochrane Library from inception to 9 March 2021.
Background: As part of the process of updating national dietary reference values (DRVs) and food-based dietary guidelines (FBDGs), the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations 2022 project (NNR2022) will select a limited number of topics for systematic reviews (SRs).
Objective: To develop and transparently describe the results of a procedure for prioritisation of topics that may be submitted for SRs in the NNR2022 project.
Design: In an open call, scientists, health professionals, national food and health authorities, food manufacturers, other stakeholders and the general population in the Nordic and Baltic countries were invited to suggest SR topics.
To strengthen the organization of new national dietary surveys and interventions in childhood, our aim was to study macronutrient intake and blood lipid profile at 6 years of age by comparing results from two earlier population-based cohorts. Subjects were n = 131 and n = 162 in the years 2001−2002 and 2011−2012, respectively. Three-day weighed food records were used to estimate diet and calculate nutrient intake.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground & Aims: Intake assessment in multicenter trials is challenging, yet important for accurate outcome evaluation. The present study aimed to characterize a multicenter randomized controlled trial with a healthy Nordic diet (HND) compared to a Control diet (CD) by plasma and urine metabolic profiles and to associate them with cardiometabolic markers.
Methods: During 18-24 weeks of intervention, 200 participants with metabolic syndrome were advised at six centres to eat either HND (e.
Growth rate is regulated by hormonal pathways that might affect early cancer development. We explored the association between rate of growth in height from ages 8 to 13 years (childhood) and from age 13 to attainment of adult height (adolescence), as measured at study entry, and the risk of breast or prostate cancer. Participants were 2,037 Icelanders born during 1915-1935, who took part in the Reykjavik Study, established in 1967.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: A previous randomized dietary intervention in pregnant women from the 1970s, the Harlem Trial, reported retarded fetal growth and excesses of very early preterm births and neonatal deaths among those receiving high-protein supplementation. Due to ethical challenges, these findings have not been addressed in intervention settings. Exploring these findings in an observational setting requires large statistical power due to the low prevalence of these outcomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: Obesity has been associated with low 25-hydroxy-vitamin D (25OHD). The causes of hypovitaminosis D in obese individuals are not known. The present work aimed to investigate 25OHD in obese and normal-/overweight subjects with consideration of leisure-time physical activity (LTPA).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Systematic reviews (SRs) constitute a major part of the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNRs). The step-by-step procedure used to develop SRs has evolved considerably over time and is often tailored to fit the exposure and outcomes in focus.
Objective: To describe a detailed procedure for developing qualified SRs commissioned by the NNR2022 project.
Background: The Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNRs) constitute the scientific basis for national dietary reference values (DRVs) and food-based dietary guidelines (FBDGs) in the Nordic and Baltic countries.
Objective: To define principles and methodologies for the sixth edition of NNR to be published in 2022 (NNR2022).
Design: The principles and methodologies of the previous edition of NNR were used as a starting point.
Background: Qualified systematic reviews (SRs) will form the main basis for evaluating causal effects of nutrients or food groups on health outcomes in the sixth edition of Nordic Nutrition Recommendations to be published in 2022 (NNR2022).
Objective: To describe rationale and structure of SRs used in NNR2022.
Design: The SR methodologies of the previous edition of NNR were used as a starting point.
Iodine is an essential nutrient for growth and development during infancy. Data on iodine status of exclusively (EBF) and partially breastfed (PBF) infants as well as breast milk iodine concentration (BMIC) are scarce. We aimed to assess (a) infant iodine nutrition at the age of 5.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Obesity has been longitudinally associated with depression but only few studies take a life course approach. This longitudinal study investigates whether being overweight or obese at age 8 and 13 years is associated with depressive symptoms more than 60 years later and whether this association is independent of late-life body mass index (BMI). We also investigated the association of being overweight/obese at age 8 or 13 years with ever having major depressive disorder (lifetime MDD).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA healthy dietary pattern is associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and reduced inflammation. To explore this at the molecular level, we investigated the effect of a Nordic diet (ND) on changes in the gene expression profiles of inflammatory and lipid-related genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of individuals with MetS. We hypothesized that the intake of an ND compared to a control diet (CD) would alter the expression of inflammatory genes and genes involved in lipid metabolism.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Recently, a group of betainized compounds have been suggested to play a role in health effects in relation to a whole-grain-rich diet.
Objectives: The aims of this study were to develop a quantitative mass spectrometric method for selected betainized compounds in human plasma, and to investigate their association with nutrient intake and measures of metabolic health in participants of the SYSDIET study.
Methods: The SYSDIET study was a controlled randomized intervention including individuals with metabolic syndrome, where the healthy Nordic diet (HND) group increased intakes of whole grains, canola oil, berries, and fish, whereas the control diet (CD) group consumed low-fiber cereal products, milk fat, and restricted amounts of fish and berries.
Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNR) recommend exclusive breastfeeding until 6 months, partial breastfeeding until 1 year or longer and irrespective of breastfeeding, avoiding solid foods before 4 months. Strong evidence was found for benefits of breastfeeding regarding growth and infections but limited/inconclusive evidence regarding atopic disease and asthma. Vitamin D is of special interest in the Nordic diet.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeuropsychol Dev Cogn B Aging Neuropsychol Cogn
May 2020
The purpose of the study was to investigate the association between baseline cognitive function and improvement in mobility after 12 weeks of resistance training (3 times/week; 3 sets, 6-8 repetitions at 75-80% of the 1-repetition maximum) among community-dwelling older adults in Iceland (N=205, 73.5±5.7 years, 57.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFScope: To explore the effect of a healthy Nordic diet on the global transcriptome profile in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of subjects with metabolic syndrome.
Methods And Results: Subjects with metabolic syndrome undergo a 18/24 week randomized intervention study comparing an isocaloric healthy Nordic diet with an average habitual Nordic diet served as control (SYSDIET study). Altogether, 68 participants are included.
Objectives: Obesity-related physiological changes can limit improvements of obese subjects after training. The aim was to investigate obesity, muscular strength, and physical function in community-dwelling nonsarcopenic old adults.
Methods: Nonsarcopenic subjects (=229, 73.