Canada-wide survey of school food programs.

Canada remains one of few Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries without a well-established nationally harmonized and funded school food program (SFP); however, the Canadian federal government recently announced the development and implementation of a national SFP that might supersede the uncoordinated patchwork of SFPs currently delivered across Canada. We designed and conducted novel survey research to systematically identify the characteristics of organization-led SFPs, building on previous research that focused on the characteristics of provincial and territorial government involvement in school food programming. An electronic survey was developed to include items deemed most relevant based on applicable literature and expert content validation, and distributed to organizations involved in the purchasing, planning, and/or preparation of school foods.

Simulation model to assess the validity of the clinical portfolio diet score used in the PortfolioDiet.app for dietary self-tracking: a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial in hyperlipidemic adults.

Introduction: The Portfolio Diet combines cholesterol-lowering plant foods for the management of cardiovascular disease risk. However, the translation of this dietary approach into clinical practice necessitates a user-friendly method for patients to autonomously monitor their adherence.

Objective: This study aimed to develop and validate the clinical-Portfolio Diet Score (c-PDS) as a food-based metric to facilitate self-tracking of the Portfolio Diet.

Dynamics of combatting market-driven epidemics: Insights from U.S. reduction of cigarette, sugar, and prescription opioid consumption.

Misuse and overconsumption of certain consumer products have become major global risk factors for premature deaths, with their total costs in trillions of dollars. Progress in reducing such deaths has been slow and difficult. To address this challenge, this review introduces the definition of market-driven epidemics (MDEs), which arise when companies aggressively market products with proven harms, deny these harms, and resist mitigation efforts.

Effects of a dietary intervention on cardiometabolic risk and food consumption in a workplace.

Background: Worksite-based health programs have shown positive impacts on employee health and have led to significant improvements in cardiovascular risk factor profiles. We aimed to determine the effect of cafeteria intervention on cardio-metabolic risk factors diet in a worksite setting (Dhulikhel Hospital) in Nepal.

Methods: In this one-arm pre-post intervention study, we recruited 277 non-pregnant hospital employees aged 18-60 with prediabetes or pre-hypertension.

Integrating health, nutrition, and environmental impacts of foods: a life cycle impact assessment and modelling analysis of foods in Canada.

Background: Given the urgency of transitioning towards sustainable nutrition, dietary shifts that provide co-benefits to human health and the environment are imperative. There is currently no database of the environmental impacts of foods that reflects Canada's unique geographical and agri-climatic context and regional inputs and emissions. To determine sustainable diets, harmonising nutritional considerations with environmental impacts is also essential for an equitable comparison of foods.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the adaptability and resiliency of school food programs across Canada.

Introduction: Following the sudden closure of schools due to the pandemic in 2020, many school food program (SFP) operators lost their operating venues and had to innovate to continue distributing meals to children. Our objective was to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the delivery, adaptability, and resiliency of school food programs across Canada by conducting a systematic rapid review.

Materials And Methods: Systematic literature searches identified newspaper articles and social media sources related to the adaptations and challenges faced by school food programs across Canada in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Consumption of 100% Fruit Juice and Body Weight in Children and Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Importance: Concerns have been raised that frequent consumption of 100% fruit juice may promote weight gain. Current evidence on fruit juice and weight gain has yielded mixed findings from both observational studies and clinical trials.

Objective: To synthesize the available evidence on 100% fruit juice consumption and body weight in children and adults.

Underweight in the first 2 years of life and nutrition risk in later childhood: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Children with underweight in the first 2 years have lower body mass index z-score (zBMI) and height-for-age z-score (HAZ) in later childhood. It is not known if underweight in the first 2 years is associated with nutrition risk in later childhood.

Objective: (1) Determine the relationship between underweight (zBMI < -2) in the first 2 years and nutrition risk measured by the Nutrition Screening for Toddlers and Preschoolers (NutriSTEP) score from 18 months to 5 years.

Portfolio Diet Score and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease: Findings From 3 Prospective Cohort Studies.

Background: The plant-based Portfolio dietary pattern includes recognized cholesterol-lowering foods (ie, plant protein, nuts, viscous fiber, phytosterols, and plant monounsaturated fats) shown to improve several cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in randomized controlled trials. However, there is limited evidence on the role of long-term adherence to the diet and CVD risk. The primary objective was to examine the relationship between the Portfolio Diet Score (PDS) and the risk of total CVD, coronary heart disease (CHD), and stroke.

Dairy intake and risk of hip fracture in prospective cohort studies: non-linear algorithmic dose-response analysis in 486 950 adults.

Previous studies on the relationship between dairy consumption and hip fracture risk have reported inconsistent findings. Therefore, we aimed to conduct an algorithmically driven non-linear dose-response meta-analysis of studies assessing dairy intake and risk of developing incident hip fracture. Meta-analysis from PubMed and Google Scholar searches for articles of prospective studies of dairy intake and risk of hip fracture, supplemented by additional detailed data provided by authors.

Association of Serum Very-Long-Chain Saturated Fatty Acids With Changes in Insulin Sensitivity and β-Cell Function: The Prospective Metabolism and Islet Cell Evaluation (PROMISE) Cohort.

A unique group of circulating very-long-chain saturated fatty acids (VLCSFAs), including arachidic acid (20:0), behenic acid (22:0), and lignoceric acid (24:0), have been associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, although associations with early metabolic risk phenotypes preceding type 2 diabetes have received limited study. We aimed to examine the associations of VLCSFAs with longitudinal changes in insulin sensitivity and β-cell function in a cohort at risk for type 2 diabetes. VLCSFAs in the four main serum pools (phospholipid, triacylglycerol, cholesteryl ester, and nonesterified fatty acid) were extracted from fasting baseline samples (n = 467).

Evaluation of ethnic differences in cardiometabolic risk in children.

Purpose: In adults, cardiometabolic conditions manifest differently by ethnicity with South Asians particularly predisposed. Whether these differences arise in childhood remains narrowly explored. To address this evidence gap, we examined whether children of different ethnicities display differences in cardiometabolic risk (CMR).

Design and Implementation of a Culturally-Tailored Randomized Pilot Trial: Puerto Rican Optimized Mediterranean-Like Diet.

Background: Adhering to a Mediterranean Diet (MedDiet) is associated with a healthier cardiometabolic profile. However, there are limited studies on the MedDiet benefits for non-Mediterranean racial/ethnic minorities, for whom this diet may be unfamiliar and inaccessible and who have a high risk of chronic diseases.

Objectives: To describe the study design of a pilot trial testing the efficacy of a MedDiet-like tailored to adults in Puerto Rico (PR).

Beverage consumption and mortality among adults with type 2 diabetes: prospective cohort study.

Objective: To investigate the intake of specific types of beverages in relation to mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes among adults with type 2 diabetes.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Health professionals in the United States.

Rationale, Design and Participants Baseline Characteristics of a Crossover Randomized Controlled Trial of the Effect of Replacing SSBs with NSBs versus Water on Glucose Tolerance, Gut Microbiome and Cardiometabolic Risk in Overweight or Obese Adult SSB Consumer: Strategies to Oppose SUGARS with Non-Nutritive Sweeteners or Water (STOP Sugars NOW) Trial and Ectopic Fat Sub-Study.

Background: Health authorities are near universal in their recommendation to replace sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) with water. Non-nutritive sweetened beverages (NSBs) are not as widely recommended as a replacement strategy due to a lack of established benefits and concerns they may induce glucose intolerance through changes in the gut microbiome. The STOP Sugars NOW trial aims to assess the effect of the substitution of NSBs (the "intended substitution") versus water (the "standard of care substitution") for SSBs on glucose tolerance and microbiota diversity.

Lifestyle Factors Associated with Circulating Very Long-Chain Saturated Fatty Acids in Humans: A Systematic Review of Observational Studies.

Recent observational studies have documented inverse associations of circulating very long-chain saturated fatty acids (VLCSFAs), namely arachidic acid (20:0), behenic acid (22:0), and lignoceric acid (24:0), with cardiometabolic outcomes. In addition to their endogenous production, it has been suggested that dietary intake or an overall healthier lifestyle may influence VLCSFA concentrations; however, a systematic review of the modifiable lifestyle contributors to circulating VLCSFAs is lacking. Therefore, this review aimed to systematically assess the effects of diet, physical activity, and smoking on circulating VLCSFAs.

The Environmental Sustainability of Plant-Based Dietary Patterns: A Scoping Review.

Background: A large part of the existential threat associated with climate change is the result of current human feeding patterns. Over the last decade, research evaluating the diet-related environmental impacts of plant-based diets has emerged, and a synthesis of the available data is now due.

Objectives: The objectives of the study were as follows: 1) to compile and summarize the literature on diet-related environmental impacts of plant-based dietary patterns; 2) to assess the nature of the data on impacts of plant-based dietary patterns on both environmental parameters and health (e.

Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and weight gain in children and adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies and randomized controlled trials.

Background: Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) have been implicated in fueling the obesity epidemic.

Objectives: This study aimed to update a synthesis of the evidence on SSBs and weight gain in children and adults.

Methods: MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane databases were searched through September 8, 2022, for prospective cohort studies and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that evaluated intake of SSBs in relation to BMI and body weight in children and adults, respectively.

Prevalence and risk factors of MRI-defined brain infarcts among Chinese adults.

Background: Few studies have explored the prevalence and risk factors of brain infarcts (BI) detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in China. The purpose was to evaluate the prevalence and risk factors of brain infarcts (BI) detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in 1.4 million Chinese adults.

White rice, brown rice and the risk of type 2 diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: Intake of white rice has been associated with elevated risk for type 2 diabetes (T2D), while studies on brown rice are conflicting. To inform dietary guidance, we synthesised the evidence on white rice and brown rice with T2D risk.

Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Association between adherence to plant-based dietary patterns and obesity risk: a systematic review of prospective cohort studies.

The worldwide prevalence of obesity and its comorbidities is staggering, and elevated body mass index represents a leading risk factor of death globally. Consistent evidence demonstrates a high-quality plant-based diet as an effective intervention for weight management, although it may be particularly challenging to adopt in its entirety for habitual meat consumers or individuals with especially poor-quality diets. Plant-based diets are increasingly studied using indices such as the overall plant-based diet index (PDI), healthful PDI, and unhealthful PDI, which offer more flexibility than a binary classification of vegetarianism and better facilitate translation into dietary recommendations.

Underweight in the First 2 Years of Life and Growth in Later Childhood.

Importance: Few studies have examined the association between underweight in the first 2 years and growth in later childhood in high-income countries.

Objective: To evaluate the associations of underweight in the first 2 years of life with body mass index (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) z score (zBMI), weight-for-age z score (WAZ), and height-for-age z score (HAZ) from ages 2 to 10 years.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This prospective cohort study was conducted between February 2008 to September 2020 in The Applied Research Group for Kids! practice-based research network in Toronto, Canada.

Relation of Change or Substitution of Low- and No-Calorie Sweetened Beverages With Cardiometabolic Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies.

Background: Adverse associations of low- and no-calorie sweetened beverages (LNCSB) with cardiometabolic outcomes in observational studies may be explained by reverse causality and residual confounding.

Purpose: To address these limitations we used change analyses of repeated measures of intake and substitution analyses to synthesize the association of LNCSB with cardiometabolic outcomes.

Data Sources: MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Library were searched up to 10 June 2021 for prospective cohort studies with ≥1 year of follow-up duration in adults.