A new food guide in Japan: the Japanese food guide Spinning Top

The Dietary Guidelines for Japanese, released in 2000, provides the basics of a healthy diet for the people of Japan. In July 2005, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan jointly released a new pictorial guide, The Japanese Food Guide Spinning Top, to help people implement the Dietary Guidelines for Japanese. It guides people as to what kinds and how much food they should eat each day to promote health. This paper describes the nature of the diet and the theoretical framework applied in the development of the new guidelines.     

Evaluating a new food selection guide

In 2002, The British Meat Nutrition Education Service (BMNES) updated its food selection guide Getting the Balance Right. This was to reflect a wider array of foods now available and bring it in line with the nationally recognised model, the Food Standards Agency's (FSA) Balance of Good Health. Qualitative and quantitative research was conducted to gain insight into the distribution, use, relevance and perceived effectiveness of BMNES’ updated Getting the Balance Right model amongst nutrition educators and specialists in design/communication. The qualitative element was directed towards reaction to the content and execution of the guide. These methods typically involved a small number of participants, who were highly selected. The quantitative part focused on tracking the distribution and evaluating the effectiveness of the release of the tool to the target audience. Overall the sample of users was extremely positive about the updated Getting the Balance Right, because of the model itself (based on the FSA version) and the way it was presented. The research identified key strengths and it was unanimously preferred to the FSA's Balance of Good Health plate model launched in 1994. However, some respondents had concerns over Getting the Balance Right, primarily because of its commercial origins and complexity of visual imagery, which in their view, may impact on its educational effectiveness. Evidence from the first 6 months post‐launch suggests that BMNES’Getting the Balance Right is being widely used, primarily within the health sector specifically by dietitians and nurses. Its use is sometimes interactive (as intended) but also in a ‘stand alone’ manner and the educational context is likely to influence its effectiveness. The design/communication experts commented positively on the visual energy and business of the model though some felt this might distract from the overall central messages of proportion. It is clear from this research that the current presentation of BMNES’Getting the Balance Right provides the basis for an extremely useful resource that seems likely to be an effective educational tool and is desperately needed within the field. The question of its true effectiveness will only be answered by systematic quantitative research to test the ability of consumers to understand and apply the information within the model.     

A new food guide for the Portuguese population: development and technical considerations

The methodological approach used for the development of a new food guide for the Portuguese population is discussed. The new food guide, composed of seven groups, was achieved with the assistance of an expert panel, using existing international recommendations and nutrient composition tables. A range of recommended food portions was established for the groups of fats and oils; milk and dairy products; meat, fish, seafood, and eggs; pulses; potatoes, cereals, and cereal products; vegetables; and fruits. Posters and leaflets were produced and presented to the media with the support of health authorities and the scientific community. The dissemination materials were freely distributed to institutions and professionals responsible for health promotion.     

Vitamin and iron status in new vegetarians

This study assessed the biochemical status of a number of vitamins and iron in a group of new vegetarians. Values were compared with a group of omnivores of similar age. Satisfactory to high levels of serum folate, vitamin E, and riboflavin were found, and all were significantly higher in vegetarians than omnivores. Thiamin status was satisfactory in both groups although a small but statistically significant difference in favor of the omnivores was found. Serum vitamin B-12 was significantly lower in vegetarians, and iron status as measured by serum ferritin was very significantly lower in vegetarians. Pyridoxine status was similar in both groups. A number of sex differences were found in the vegetarian sample. New vegetarian women appear to be at particular risk of developing low iron stores.     

A national food guide for the UK? Background and development

The development of a National Food Guide for the United Kingdom is a priority in the action plans of the Nutrition Task Force. Pictorial food guides to translate nutrient recommendations into guidance for food choice have been in use in other parts of the world for many years. However, there has not, until the present time, been a nationally recognized guide in the United Kingdom. Such a tool would enable those involved in nutrition education programmes to address the public with consistent messages through a variety of different channels, thus reducing the potential for misinformation and misunderstanding. This paper describes a brief history of food guides, gives the background to the development of a guide in the United Kingdom and outlines the research and development process including consultation with a wide range of organizations. The development of dietetic and nutritional characteristics of the Guide format preferences and performance study results are described in accompanying papers in this issue on pages 323–334 and 335–351.     

A new dental approach for reducing food intake

OBJECTIVE: A behavioral recommendation for weight loss is reduction of size of bites of food. This "proof of concept" study tested the efficacy of a new, patented, dental approach, the DDS System, for reducing food intake. This removable tool is inserted into the upper palate of the mouth, reducing the size of the oral cavity, thereby potentially reducing bite size. RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Thirty-two adults (18 to 65 years) with BMI between 27 and 40 were randomly assigned to the control or experimental conditions. Participants ate all meals and stayed between meals at a research center. Day 1 served as baseline for both groups. On Day 2, experimental participants utilized the tool during meals. Changes in subjective ratings of hunger and satiety were measured using visual analog scales before and after each meal. RESULTS: Food intake difference scores were calculated for each participant (Day 2 - Day 1). Analysis of covariance on difference scores, using baseline as a covariate, showed that the experimental group ate significantly less (p < 0.05) on the second day (M = -659.2 kcal/d) compared with the control group (M = -125.9 kcal/d). Analysis of covariance, with ratings on Day 1 as a covariate, revealed that the experimental and control group did not differ on visual analog scale difference scores (premeal - postmeal) from Day 1 to Day 2. DISCUSSION: These findings suggest that use of this tool during meals significantly reduced food intake. This reduction of food intake was not associated with changes in ratings of hunger or satiety.     

A study on Asian Indian and American vegetarians: indications of a racial predisposition to glucose intolerance

Sixty-two Asian Indian and American vegetarians participated in a 3-h glucose tolerance test after an overnight fast to study clinical indices of glucose homeostasis. The Asian Indians had a higher (p less than 0.0035) insulinogenic score than the Americans. The Asian Indians had significantly higher insulin levels than the Americans at every sampling time during the glucose tolerance test except for the 3-h sample. The Indian men had significantly higher (p less than 0.05) plasma glucose than the other three groups at 2 h after the glucose load. American subjects had higher (p less than 0.0008) insulin binding to erythrocytes than the Asian Indian subjects. Scatchard analysis and competition-inhibition plots of the insulin-receptor data indicated that decreased binding in the Indian group results from a lowered number and decreased affinity of erythrocyte receptors. These results suggest that Asian Indians exhibit several clinical indications associated with an increased risk for the development of insulin-independent diabetes.     

食物分配评价指标探讨

在家庭内部食物分配研究中用“偏差分数”和“食物－能量比”来表示食物分配情况，研究表明偏差分数较低者其膳食营养状况也较差，反之亦然，说明用偏差分数表示的家庭食物分配情况与所研究人群膳食营养状况之间密切相关。     

Writing for publication--a guide for new authors.

Health care practitioners who are inexperienced in writing for publication are sometimes daunted by the publication process and fail to submit their work on quality improvement to a journal. New authors can acquire experience in writing a paper by working through a systematic thought process that includes consideration of what journal readers and editors want and if the work is ready for publication. The most important part of writing a paper is to think through the key ideas and messages for readers and then to organize the ideas into a logical structure. Writing clear answers to 10 key questions may be one way to start the process.