Nutrition Labeling to Prevent Obesity: Reviewing the Evidence from Europe

Overweight and obesity are major public health problems in the European Union (EU). Providing nutrition information on foods and menus is considered a relevant means to guide consumers toward more healthful food choices, in part characterized by adequate energy intakes to achieve and maintain a healthy body weight. Various formats of back-of-pack and front-of-pack nutrition […]

Changes in diet and lifestyle and long-term weight gain in women and men

BACKGROUND: Specific dietary and other lifestyle behaviors may affect the success of the straightforward-sounding strategy "eat less and exercise more" for preventing long-term weight gain. METHODS: We performed prospective investigations involving three separate cohorts that included 120;877 U.S. women and men who were free of chronic diseases and not obese at baseline; with follow-up periods […]

Nuts improve diet quality compared to other energy-dense snacks while maintaining body weight

Previous studies have reported that regular nut consumption reduces cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and does not promote weight gain despite the fact that nuts are energy-dense. However; no studies have investigated the body composition of those regularly consuming nuts compared to similar intakes of other snacks of equal energy density. This parallel study (n = […]

The effect of pistachio shells as a visual cue in reducing caloric consumption

It was hypothesized that pistachio shells left in sight as visual cues of consumption will cause individuals to consume less. A convenience sample of faculty and staff at a mid-western university (n=118) were recruited as subjects for the study. The subjects were told they were going to evaluate a variety of brands of pistachios and […]

In-shell pistachio nuts reduce caloric intake compared to shelled nuts

It was hypothesized that consuming in-shell pistachios; compared to shelled pistachios; causes individuals to consume less. A convenience sample of students at a mid-western university (n=140) was recruited; asking them to evaluate a variety of brands of pistachios. A survey at the end of class determined fullness and satisfaction. Subjects entering the classroom were given […]

The risk of child and adolescent overweight is related to types of food consumed

BACKGROUND/AIMS: To investigate the association between the risk of overweight and the consumption of food groups in children and adolescents. METHODS: We studied 1764 healthy children and adolescents (age 6-19y) attending 16 Seventh-Day Adventist schools and 13 public schools using a 106-item non-quantitative food frequency questionnaire from the late 1980 Child-Adolescent Blood Pressure Study. Logistic […]

Changes in diet and lifestyle and long-term weight gain in women and men

BACKGROUND: Specific dietary and other lifestyle behaviors may affect the success of the straightforward-sounding strategy "eat less and exercise more" for preventing long-term weight gain. METHODS: We performed prospective investigations involving three separate cohorts that included 120;877 U.S. women and men who were free of chronic diseases and not obese at baseline; with follow-up periods […]

Prenatal fatty acid status and child adiposity at age 3 y: results from a US pregnancy cohort

BACKGROUND: Exposure to polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in early life may influence adiposity development. OBJECTIVE: We examined the extent to which prenatal n-3 (omega-3) and n-6 (omega-6) PUFA concentrations were associated with childhood adiposity. DESIGN: In mother-child pairs in the Project Viva cohort; we assessed midpregnancy fatty acid intakes (n = 1120); maternal plasma PUFA […]