News
Eating slowly may cut meal size
People may consume fewer calories over the course of a meal when they eat slowly, a new study suggests. But it's not clear if that strategy works as well for people who are overweight or obese as it does for their slimmer peers.
Past studies have come to mixed conclusions on whether how fast people eat affects how much they end up eating, Meena Shah said. She led the new research at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth.
"In addition most of the previous studies have not compared the effect of eating speed on energy intake in normal weight or overweight and obese subjects," Shah told Reuters Health in an email.
Her team's study included 35 normal weight people and 35 who were overweight or obese.
All of the participants were asked to eat the same vegetarian pasta meal on two different occasions. The first time around, people were asked to eat either quickly or slowly, based on a random assignment. A few days later, they were given the opposite instructions.
On fast eating days, the researchers asked participants to eat as quickly as possible without feeling uncomfortable - as though they had time constraints. They told them to take large bites, chew quickly, not put utensils down and not pause between bites.
On the slow eating days, they told people to eat as if they had no time constraints. They instructed them to take small bites, chew thoroughly and put their fork or spoon down and pause between bites.
The researchers secretly measured how much food participants ate by weighing their plates after meals.
Normal weight participants consumed 88 fewer calories during the meal when they ate slowly, on average - 805 calories compared to 893 calories during the faster meal. That was a clear change.
Overweight and obese people consumed 58 fewer calories during the slow meal - 667 calories versus 725 calories. But that difference could have been due to chance, according to findings published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Shah believes the overweight and obese participants may have eaten less because they felt self-conscious during the study.
Participants in both groups drank more water when they ate slowly and felt less hungry at the end of the meal.
"This study provides new data that supports the hypothesis that how you eat may have an effect on appetite and influence body weight", James Hollis told Reuters Health in an email.
Hollis, from Iowa State University in Ames, was not part of the new research.
"This is an interesting study and any method that reduces food intake by 8-10 percent at a single meal would be useful," he said. But more studies are needed to show whether eating slowly could help people manage their weight, Hollis said. His own recent report published in the same journal found people tended to eat less when they were instructed to chew more before swallowing.
"It has not been adequately determined how slow is slow enough or what is the minimum reduction in eating speed required to have an effect on food intake," Hollis said.
He said it's also not clear if all of the techniques - chewing slowly and more times and taking more pauses during meals - have the same effect on how much people eat.
"I would recommend slowing the speed of eating because it may reduce the amount of food consumed as well as lead to a greater degree of fullness or less hunger later on. It is not necessary to time the meal, though," Shah said.
"Eating in my opinion should be an enjoyable experience without having to check the time," she said.
SOURCE: bit.ly/19X8gqo Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, online January 2, 2014
Reuters
Both genetics and environment may influence children’s food preferences
Researchers from University College London, UK, performed a large-scale twin study to investigate the relative contribution of genetic and shared environment factors to children’s preferences for certain food groups. The study revealed a substantial genetic influence on preferences for fruits, vegetables and proteins. Further analyses showed that a shared environment has more impact on preferences for dairy, starch and snacks. Based on these findings, the researchers concluded that both genetics and environment may influence children’s food preferences. The importance of providing children with a healthy diet is beyond any doubt, but, according to the researchers, there are different views between parents and health professionals on what influences children’s food preferences. On the one hand, health professionals claim that dietary habits are mainly derived from the ‘home food environment’ and are learned (nurture). Being offered more nutritious and less energy-dense foods would, therefore, guide children’s dietary choices. But parents believe that despite their efforts to provide a healthy diet, some children simply dislike certain sorts of foods, indicating genetic influences on taste (nature).
In order to assess the impact of genetics, twin studies are usually performed. They are a good model to distinguish the contribution of genetic and environment factors. Twins can be monozygotic or dizygotic. Monozygotic or ‘identical’ twins developed from one fertilised egg cell (zygote) that splits and forms two embryos. They share 100% of their genes. Dizygotic or ‘fraternal’ twins develop from two eggs, each fertilised by a separate sperm cell, and share 50% of their genes. In order to achieve the best results on the effect of genetic and environmental factors on - in this case - food preferences, twin studies should have large sample sizes and test a wide variety of foods.
The participants in this study came from families that took part in a population-based observational study (cohort) of twins born in the United Kingdom in 2007. For a total of 2,686 twins, both identical and fraternal (34% and 65% respectively, with about 1% of which this was unknown), with an average age of 3.5 years, food preferences of the children were recorded by their parents.
Given the age of the children and the sample size of the study, neither self-reporting by the children nor observation by a professional were possible, the researchers relied on the parents for the data collection. The preferences were analysed for 84 foods, divided-up by the researchers into six categories: vegetables, fruits, proteins, dairy, starches, and snacks.
Firstly, children’s ‘liking’ towards the foods was assessed. The results showed that the least liked group was vegetables, where only four (sweetcorn, peas, tinned tomatoes and cooked carrots) out of 19 types were liked by children. The most liked group was the one defined as snacks and all foods in this group (including sweets, chips, cakes and ice cream) were liked. Correlations between preferences for the food groups were then calculated. The strongest correlation (or relation) was seen between fruits and vegetables, meaning that children who liked fruits also liked vegetables. The weakest correlation was observed between vegetables and snacks. The researchers also measured whether there was an effect if the child was either an identical or fraternal twin, but they did not find any effect on the above mentioned correlations.
The researchers finally assessed the extent to which genetics and the environment play a role in the preference for certain food groups. This calculation is based on a comparison of correlations between monozygotic and dizygotic groups. It was shown that genetics have a stronger influence on preference for fruits, vegetables and proteins, and a lower influence on preference for snacks, starches and dairy. The shared environment, when children live with their parents in a family, had a strong effect on the preferences for snacks, starches and dairy, and was moderate for fruit, vegetables and proteins. The effect of the non-shared environment, experienced outside of the family, was small for all food groups. This can be explained by the fact that the children were still young, brought up in the same home, and not exposed much to different environments (schools, playgrounds, etc).
This large-scale study demonstrates that both genes and the environment are important determinants of food preferences in children, and that their relative importance depends on the type of food. The fact that liking of fruits, vegetables and proteins is more strongly determined by genetics does not mean that our genes are the sole influencer, and that the innate preference cannot be changed. The family environment also has a strong role to play. Therefore, parents and care-givers should keep encouraging children to taste new foods, and persistently offer a variety of flavours and textures – also those that are initially disliked. This could prevent a too restricted food choice later in life.
For further information
Published ahead of print: Fildes A, van Jaarsveld CHM, Llewellyn CH, Fisher A, Cooke L, Wardle J. (2014). Nature and nurture in children's food preferences. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Published online ahead of print 29 Jan 2014. Doi: 10.3945/ajcn.113.077867.
Several forms of vitamin E protect against memory disorders
Elderly people with high serum vitamin E levels are less likely to suffer from memory disorders than their peers with lower levels, according to a study published recently in Experimental Gerontology. According to the researchers, various forms of vitamin E seem to play a role in memory processes. The study was carried out in cooperation between the University of Eastern Finland, the Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare, Karolinska Institutet, and the University of Perugia.
Studies investigating the link between vitamin E and memory disorders have usually focused on a single form of vitamin E, namely α-tocopherol, which is also used in vitamin E supplements. However, vitamin E exists in eight different natural forms, tocopherols and tocotrienols, all of which have antioxidant properties.
This recently published study comprises a sample of 140 over 65-year-old Finnish persons with no memory impairment at the onset of the study. During the eight-year follow-up, it was discovered that higher total serum levels of vitamin E, and higher levels of γ-tocopherol, β-tocotrienol and total tocotrienols in particular, seemed to protect against memory disorders. According to the researchers, the results show that the entire vitamin E family plays a role in memory processes. Accordingly, measuring the levels of vitamin E from serum is the most reliable way to determine whether they are sufficiently high.
The study comprised part of the more extensive Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Aging, and Dementia (CAIDE) study, which focuses on the association between the risk factors of cardiovascular diseases and memory disorders.
University of Eastern Finland
Dietary fibre protects against asthma
The Western diet probably has more to do with the asthma epidemic than has been assumed so far because developing asthma is related to the amount of fruit and vegetables consumed. Gut bacteria ferment the dietary fibres contained in them and fatty acids enter the blood as a result, influencing the immune response in the lungs. This has been shown by a research project funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).
In the West, an increasing number of people have developed allergic asthma in the past fifty years. But dietary habits have also changed during the same period: fruit and vegetables are playing an ever smaller role in people's diets. Now new results suggest that these two developments are not merely simultaneous, they are also causally linked. A team of researchers led by Benjamin Marsland from Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) has shown in experiments with mice (1) that the lack of fermentable fibres in people's diet paves the way for allergic inflammatory reactions in the lungs.
Influence extends to the lungs
Researchers have already known for some time that the microbial diversity in the gut when digesting and fermenting fibres plays a significant role in preventing intestinal cancer. "We are now showing for the first time that the influence of gut bacteria extends much further, namely up to the lungs," says Marsland. His team either put mice on a standard diet with four percent fermentable fibres or gave them low-fibre food with merely 0.3 percent fermentable fibres. This low-fibre food is largely comparable to the Western diet, which contains no more than 0.6 percent fibres on average.
When the researchers exposed the mice to an extract of house dust mites, the mice with the low-fibre food developed a stronger allergic reaction with much more mucus in the lungs than the mice with the standard diet. Conversely, a comparison between mice on a standard diet and mice who received food enriched with fermentable fibres likewise showed that these dietary fibres have a protective influence.
This protection is the result of a multi-level reaction chain, as Marsland's team has now shown. First the fibres reach the intestine, where they are fermented by bacteria and transformed into short-chain fatty acids. These acids then enter the bloodstream and influence the development of immune cells in the bone marrow. Attracted by the extract of house dust mites, these immune cells wander into the lungs, where they eventually trigger a weaker allergic response.
Another reason why fruit and vegetables are good for you
Marsland thinks that the results obtained by his group are clinically relevant not only because the share of plant fibres in Western diets is comparable to the low-fibre food of the mice, but also because the examined aspects of the immune system are virtually indistinguishable in mice and humans. Many questions still remain unanswered. "We plan to conduct clinical studies to find out how a diet enriched with fermentable fibres affects allergies and inflammations." It is already sufficiently clear, however, that here is another reason why one should eat more fruit and vegetables.
References
1. Aurélien Trompette, Eva Gollwitzer, Koshika Yadava, Anke K. Sichelstiel, Norbert Sprenger, Catherine Ngom-Bru, Carine G. Blanchard, Tobias M. Junt, Laurent P. Nicod, Nicola L. Harris, Benjamin J. Marsland (2014). Gut microbiota metabolism of dietary fiber influences allergic airway disease and hematopoiesis through GPR41. Nature Medicine. doi: 10.1038/nm.3444
Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF)
BARRY CALLEBAUT’S ACQUIRATION
Barry Callebaut has acquired the remaining 51 percent of Biolands Group, its long-time supplier of certified cocoa beans from East and West Africa. Barry Callebaut has been purchasing 100 percent of Biolands' top-grade cocoa since 2000 and acquired a 49 percent stake in Tanzanian-based Biolands International in 2008. Since then, the model has been replicated in Sierra Leone and Côte d'Ivoire through the establishment of Bio-United and Biopartenaire. With the complete takeover of the Biolands Group, 143 full-time employees have joined the Barry Callebaut Group.
www.barry-callebaut.com
XILOGEL® AND MILLET HAVE BEEN RECENTLY ECOCERT VALIDATED
ECOCERT is an internationally recognized certification for use in natural and organic cosmetics. Indena customers can now get further validated ingredients for their natural products. Indena is proud to announce that two additional extracts, XILOGEL® and MILLET have been recently ECOCERT validated. These ECOCERT validations follow the ones previously received for other products: Olive fruit extract Opextan®, Sichuan pepper extract Zanthalene® and Centella asiatica purified dry extract.
www.indena.com
MOVE IN THE GLOBAL NUTRACEUTICAL AND FUNCTIONAL FOOD MARKET
Frutarom Switzerland Ltd. is making a strategic move in the global nutraceutical and functional food market to better address customers’ needs. The strategy is based on four critical foundations: innovation, natural ingredients, research and responsible sustainability.
Frutarom will publish during 2014 research results for several clinical studies covering the health benefits of: -Neuravena® - patented wild green oat extract for cognitive health; -Pelargonium® - a natural root extract for immune health; -LinumLife® - flax lignan ingredient for men health; -Go-Less®- a proprietary blend of extracts to support bladder wellness.
www.frutaromhealth.com
FRIEND OF THE SEA© CERTIFICATION TO CRODA’S INCROMEGA™
The Friend of the Sea© program certifies sustainable seafood from fisheries and aquaculture. Croda’s Incromega™ range of omega-3 fish oil concentrates has been awarded the Friend of the Sea© certification. Accreditation of the Incromega™ range provides assurance that the fisheries in the Incromega™ supply chain are operating responsibly – including no overfishing, no bycatch of endangered species and no illegal, unreported or unregulated (IUU) fish. Croda’s Nutritional Sales Director, Gerry Purnell said: “Croda is committed to ensuring responsible marine sourcing and raw material traceability throughout the supply chain. We are delighted to have our stance on marine sustainability accredited by the industry-recognised Friend of the Sea© certification program”.
www.croda.com
ADM & RENNOVIA
Archer Daniels Midland Company and Rennovia, Inc. have announced that ADM has committed to a $25 million equity investment in the privately held company, which develops catalysts and processes for the cost-advantaged production of chemical products from renewable feedstocks. “This investment is part of ADM’s ongoing efforts to enhance returns by strengthening our portfolio of higher-margin products” said Kevin Moore, ADM vice president, Renewable Chemicals and continued: “There is significant and growing demand for chemical products made from renewable feedstocks. We are impressed with the technology Rennovia is developing, and look forward to the opportunity for its products to join our current portfolio of renewable chemicals—like propylene glycol and ethylene glycol—as they offer increased access to attractive end markets in nylons and other materials”.
www.adm.com
INGREDION IN FORTUNE 2014 WORLD’S MOST ADMIRED COMPANIES
Ingredion Incorporated has been included on the FORTUNE 2014 World’s Most Admired Companies list. This marks the fifth consecutive year the Company has earned the recognition. Ingredion is ranked first in the food production category. The list of most admired companies is posted on FORTUNE’s website and appeared in the print edition on stands March 3, 2014.
www.ingredion.com
PEA PROTEIN PARTNERSHIP
Roquette America, part of the Roquette Group, is well recognized in the US as a leader in innovative nutritional ingredients. “Our partnership with World Food Processing allows Roquette America to give the US market a local supply of pea protein isolates” said Dominique Taret, CEO of Roquette America and continued: “We have seen a dramatic increase in consumer demand for our pea proteins due to their benefits, including cleaner labelling, elimination of common allergens, and high digestibility”. World Food Processing has unmatched capabilities and advanced technologies that result in ingredients that are pure, secure, and fully traceable. “Food traceability is a growing concern of consumers. Our non-GMO and Organic closed-loop, vertically integrated model allows us complete control from seed to plate” said Jerry Lorenzen, CEO of World Food Processing and added: “Our partnership with Roquette increases the availability of pea protein for world-leading food companies and offers, to consumers, access to a high-quality plant-based protein backed by innovation and complete transparency”.
www.roquette.com
NEW PATENT GUARANTEES ABSENCE OF OFF-FLAVOR IN LACTOSE-FREE DAIRY
This year marks the 50th anniversary of DSM leading the lactase market. DSM’s patent application for Maxilact® lactase, which is free from arylsulfatase, has been granted in Europe. Maxilact® enables dairy producers to formulate lactose-free dairy products without any off-flavours. Merel Roes, Marketing Manager of Maxilact®, comments: “DSM is delighted to have been granted this patent. It rewards our long-standing scientific efforts and investments to improve lactose-free products. Maxilact® is our promise to our customers to develop stable lactose-free dairy products without any off-flavours. The lactose-free dairy market continues to expand globally and we see a rapid growth in overseas exports. This requires a longer shelf life and is thereby putting extra demands on enzyme quality. With Maxilact® our customers are able to deliver on their brand promise, no matter where in the world the consumer is located”.
www.Maxilact.com
TASTE OF BRAZIL
Brazil represents pure vitality, pulsating rhythms, summer and sunshine! The sporting highlights coming up in the next few years, such as the Football World Cup in 2014 and the Olympic Games in 2016, are also attracting international attention to the wide range of exotic and fruity taste sensations this exciting country has to offer. Döhler has captured the taste of Brazil in a unique portfolio of natural ingredients and ingredient systems entitled "Taste of Brazil". With a wide range of natural flavours, juice blends and customised compounds and fruit preparations, Döhler is putting a touch of Brazilian flair into foods and beverages all over the world. The taste nuances range from camu, caja and cupuacu to lime and guaraná and even açaí. This broad spectrum of exotic flavours allows not only the beverage and food industry to develop interesting product positionings for seasonal products and football special editions, but also consumers around the world to enjoy the land of the Sugarloaf in the comfort of their own homes.
www.doehler.com
LOW-CALORIE WATERS TAKEN DIRECTLY FROM PLANTS
The success of coconut water is just the first step in a massive emerging trend: healthy, natural, low-calorie waters taken directly from plants. Extraction and packaging innovations that prolong shelf life mean that consumers can now experience the subtly sweet taste of plant water taken directly from maple trees and birch trees. Like coconut water, maple and birch waters offer benefits that make them perfect options for health-conscious consumers: -Naturally healthy with a positive nutritional profile; -Naturally sweet – no sugar need be added; -Can be sustainably sourced with little constraint on volumes.
www.new-nutrition.com
YEAR OF GREAT PROGRESS
Jonathan Wolfson, CEO of Solazyme has referred: "2013 was a year of great progress for Solazyme as we readied our first major capacity projects, signed new commercial supply agreements, added important joint development partners, and further expanded our portfolio of Tailored™ oils […] In the first half of 2014, we are focused on successfully executing Solazyme's entry into broad commercial operations. We have begun shipping multiple products from the Clinton/Galva, Iowa facilities and are deep into commissioning in Brazil as we complete the first-of-its-kind 100,000 MT Solazyme Bunge Renewable Oils (SB Oils) facility at Moema. In these early days we are focused on generating consistent and reliable production for our partners, ahead of accelerating our production ramp later this year".
www.solazyme.com
RENEWED SPLENDA® ALLIANCE
Tate & Lyle PLC have announced the latest phase of its 30-year Sucralose partnership with McNeil Nutritionals, LLC through the establishment of a renewed SPLENDA® Alliance. The focus for the renewed partnership will be the development and growth of the global market for Sucralose and the SPLENDA® Brand. This is a natural evolution of the long-term partnership that has nurtured the success of Sucralose and the SPLENDA® Brand, following the strategic realignment announced in 2004. At that time, Tate & Lyle took over McNeil Nutritionals’ Sucralose manufacturing assets and responsibility for worldwide food and beverage ingredient sales, while McNeil Nutritionals, LLC retained ownership of the SPLENDA® Brand and the retail and food service business.
www.tateandlyle.com
ROUNDTABLE ON SUSTAINABLE PALM OIL (RSPO) CERTIFICATION FOR CARGILL
Cargill has announced that its oil palm plantation in West Kalimantan, PT Harapan Sawit Lestari, has received the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification, covering all of PT Harapan Sawit Lestari’s operations – Manis Mata and Paku Juang mills, inti (company-owned) and KKPA (Koperasi Kredit Primer Anggota, cooperative credit scheme - smallholder) estates. This is Cargill’s second RSPO certification, after the first received by PT Hindoli in South Sumatra. PT Indo Sawit Kekal, Cargill’s other plantation in West Kalimantan, is in the process of being RSPO certified.
www.cargill.com
SUB4SALT®
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved the use of sub4salt® in whole muscle poultry and meat in order to reduce sodium content of processed meat products. The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has completed its review of data provided in October 2012 and has no objection to the suitability and safety of sub4salt® in whole muscle poultry and meat such as ham, turkey or corned beef. Jungbunzlauer’s sub4salt® is successfully used world-wide, as a salt replacer in processed food such as meat products.
www.jungbunzlauer.com
BASF IN NANJING CHEMICAL INDUSTRY PARK IN CHINA
BASF will build a new world scale production plant to manufacture specialty amines at its existing wholly-owned site in the Nanjing Chemical Industry Park in China. The plant, which is scheduled to come on stream in late 2015, will have dimethylaminopropylamine (DMAPA) and polyetheramines (PEA) as the main products. With this new facility BASF will further strengthen its global production network. The new plant complements existing facilities in Germany and the U.S. for DMAPA and PEA. “BASF is a leading supplier of DMAPA and PEA globally, and this investment reflects our continued commitment to meeting the growing market demand in Asia Pacific” said Sanjeev Gandhi, President of BASF’s Intermediates division and added: “Our ability to produce these products within the region will strengthen our supply reliability and better serve our customers with shorter lead times.”
www.basf.com
A LOOK BELOW THE SURFACE: ANTARCTIC KRILL SUSTAINABILITY
The Antarctic krill fishery has been under considerable scrutiny the last several years, mainly due to misconceptions surrounding sustainability. In an effort to address those concerns with facts, Stephen Nicol, PhD, a respected scientific expert on Antarctic krill, has authored a new white paper, A Look Below the Surface: Antarctic Krill Sustainability. In straightforward language Dr. Nicol sums up decades of research, providing the reader with deeper insight into the krill fishery and its management. Underwritten by Aker BioMarine, an integrated biotechnology company dedicated to the sustainable harvest of krill and development of krill-derived biotech products, A Look Below the Surface: Antarctic Krill Sustainability candidly addresses such topics as what is known about the health of krill, controversies on the size of the krill population and the level of catch limits, warming ocean waters, acidification, commercial harvesting and its impact on predator species, and more.
www.superbakrill.com
VERISOL® VS. EYE WRINKLE
Oral ingestion of VERISOL® collagen peptides lead to a pronounced, statistically significant reduction of eye wrinkle volume. This is the result of a recently published Study by the University of Kiel Germany focusing on the effect of these Bioactive Collagen Peptides® (BCP) on human skin conditions. This study completes the results from a previous VERISOL® study proving the effect of VERISOL® on skin elasticity. Together the results of the two studies provide a sound scientific foundation for the development of innovative nutricosmetics, which are used by a growing consumer group to complement topical applications and follow a more holistic approach to skin care.
www.gelita.com
