Using a behavioural intervention to target nutrition during pregnancy may be key in meeting recommendations for healthy eating. The aim was to assess the use of a short-term dietary intake measurement tool (3-day food intake record) to infer long-term habitual dietary intake during pregnancy (using a short-form FFQ). A convenience sample (n 90) between 12- and 18-weeks’ gestation was recruited from a larger randomised controlled trial for cross-sectional analysis. Participants completed a forty-four-item FFQ and 3-day food intake record. Using the participant food intake record, the investigator blindly completed a second frequency questionnaire. The frequency questionnaires were scored using dietary quality scores (DQS) and compared. Aggregate data were evaluated using a Wilcoxon signed rank test, and individual-level data were evaluated using a Bland–Altman plot. No significant difference was observed in the scores (Z = –1·88, P = 0·06), with small effect size (r= 0·19). The Bland–Altman plot showed that comparing the DQS derived from the two different dietary assessments underestimated scores by a mean difference of 0·4 points (95 % limits of agreement: −3·50 to 4·26). The data points were evenly spread suggesting no systematic variation for over- or underestimation of scores. Minimal difference was observed between the functionality of the two assessment instruments. However, the food intake record can be completed by pregnant individuals to estimate short-term nutrient intake and then scored by the investigator to estimate long-term dietary quality. Combining these two instruments may best capture the most accurate representation of dietary habits over time.

This review highlights the importance of dietary fibres (DF) intake and its interconnection with the gut microbiome and psychological well-being, while also exploring the effects of existing DF interventions on these aspects in adults. The gut microbiota is a complex and diverse ecosystem in which microbial species interact, influencing the human host. DF are heterogeneous, requiring different microbial species to degrade the complex DF structures. Emerging evidence suggests that microbial fermentation of DF produces short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), which may play a role in regulating psychological well-being by affecting neurotransmitter levels, including serotonin. The effectiveness of DF interventions depends on factors such as baseline gut microbiota composition, the dosage and the source of DF consumed. Although the gut microbiota of adults is relatively stable, studies have shown that the abundance of the species in the gut microbiota can change within 24 h of an intervention and may return to baseline following the termination of DF intervention. This review underscores the need for larger and well-powered dietary clinical trials incorporating longitudinal biological sample collections, advanced sequencing and omic techniques (including novel dietary biomarkers and microbial metabolites), validated subjective questionnaires and dietary records. Furthermore, mechanistic studies driven by clinical observations are crucial to understanding gut microbiota function and its underlying biological pathways, informing targeted dietary interventions.

The NutriLight system presents a novel dietary approach designed to enhance health communication, promote sustainable eating habits, and address limitations in existing dietary patterns. Using a traffic light scoring system, it simplifies dietary recommendations, making them more accessible and adaptable across diverse populations. Unlike rigid diets, NutriLight categorises foods into green, yellow, and red groups, encouraging balance rather than restriction. This flexibility allows for cultural adaptations, ensuring relevance in different dietary contexts while supporting planetary health. Additionally, NutriLight mitigates the risk of nutrient deficiencies by emphasising whole, minimally processed foods and reducing overconsumption of unhealthy options. While promising, its effectiveness depends on proper implementation, localised adaptation, and long-term evaluation to confirm its health benefits. By bridging the gap between nutritional science and practical application, NutriLight has the potential to serve as an effective tool in public health nutrition, fostering healthier and more sustainable dietary choices worldwide.

In recognition of the impact of current dietary patterns on human and environmental health, dietary shifts towards sustainable diets are considered crucial to adequately feed a growing global population within planetary boundaries. Whilst the composition of sustainable diets varies to account for regional specificity, consensus exists on the need to reduce meat and increase plant protein intakes in sustainable dietary patterns for high-income settings. Due to the high environmental impact resulting from meat production and observational evidence of higher risks of negatives health outcomes associated with excess red and processed meat, a reduction in meat consumption is considered a ‘win-win’ for both people and the planet. However, meat is an important contributor to dietary protein and micronutrient intakes and plays an important sociocultural role, particularly in the UK and Ireland. Whilst a strong evidence-base exists on the environmental and health benefits associated with increased consumption of whole plant foods such as legumes, nuts and seeds, these foods may not address the barriers associated with lower meat diets. Plant-based meat alternatives (PBMAs) are products created to replicate the taste, texture, appearance and functionality of meat and therefore may provide an acceptable means of facilitating the shift to healthy and more sustainable diets. However, less is known about the health and environmental impact of substituting meat with PBMAs. Therefore, this review summarises the literature on the nutritional, health and environmental impact of PBMAs to better understand the role of these products in healthy and sustainable diets for the UK and Ireland.

In individuals with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), eliminating dietary triggers can alleviate symptoms but may lead to nutrient deficiencies and overall health decline. Although various nutritional supplements show promising results in relieving IBS symptoms due to their potential to alter the microbiome, conclusive scientific evidence remains lacking. This exploratory study aims to assess the bifidogenic properties of four nutritional supplement interventions and their impact on IBS-symptoms, faecal microbiota composition, faecal short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) concentrations, stool pattern, and quality of life (QoL), compared to a placebo control. Seventy subjects with IBS, meeting the ROME IV criteria, participated in this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel intervention study. Subjects were assigned to one of the four treatment groups, receiving either resistant starch, pea fibre, chondroitin sulfate, protein hydrolysate, or placebo daily for four weeks. Daily reports on stool pattern and gastrointestinal complaints were collected. Stool samples and questionnaires on dietary intake, symptom severity, QoL, and anxiety and depression were collected at baseline and after the 4-week intervention. The results show no significant increase in Bifidobacterium abundance or faecal SCFA levels after the 4-week intervention with any of the four nutritional supplement interventions. While some improvements in symptom severity and QoL were observed within-groups, these were not significantly different from changes observed with placebo. In conclusion, the tested nutritional supplements did not increase Bifidobacterium abundance in subjects with IBS within four weeks. Furthermore, we conclude that future studies should consider a run-in period and a larger sample size to study improvements in IBS symptoms.

A local food-based approach, including school lunch with multiple-micronutrient fortified biscuits (MMB) as supplementary snacks, may enhance dietary adequacy, although current evidence remains limited. This study assessed nutrient inadequacies and developed food-based dietary recommendations (FBR) incorporating school lunch from the Ghana School Feeding Programme (GSFP) and MMB. Data from 292 girls aged 10–17 years, enrolled in the Ten2Twenty-Ghana study was analysed. Dietary intake was assessed via a quantitative 24-h dietary recall. Usual intakes were estimated using the National Cancer Institute method. Linear programming with Optifood was used to develop FBRs based on commonly consumed foods (≥5% of participants) and their median serving sizes, intake frequency, nutrient content, and cost per 100 g. Constraints included estimated energy needs and harmonised average nutrient requirements. The mean usual energy intake was 2351 (sd 66) kcal/d. Ca (99·8 %), vitamin B12 (99·8 %), riboflavin (96·2 %), vitamin A (91·5 %), vitamin C (87·6 %), Fe (73·7 %), folate (49·3 %) and Zn (8·5 %) inadequacies were prevalent. Optimised diets achieved adequacy for protein and most micronutrients, except Ca and vitamin B12, besides vitamin A for 15–17-year-old girls. School lunch from the GSFP did not enhance micronutrient levels when added to the daily diet. Adding MMB to the daily diet ensured adequacy for vitamin C, riboflavin and Fe, although marginal for Fe. Ca and vitamin A improved substantially with MMB for girls aged 15–17 but remained below the harmonised average requirements. Integrating regular school lunch with specialised fortified foods may be a cost-effective strategy to enhance dietary adequacy for adolescent girls in rural areas.

Impaired glycaemic control is a major risk factor for developing type 2 diabetes (T2D), a worldwide health epidemic intrinsically linked to diet and obesity. Whey proteins (WP) are increasingly popular supplements that are a rich source of branched-chain amino acids (BCAA), essential for muscle protein synthesis and metabolic regulation. In humans, fasting plasma concentrations of BCAA are maintained around 350 µM but become chronically elevated by 10–25% in persons with T2D. Little is known about whether BCAA from WP impacts circulating BCAA concentrations and contributes to this phenomenon. This narrative review used a systematic search approach with relevant keywords to identify evidence from randomised controlled trials in normoglycaemic humans and those with insulin resistance or T2D, on the effects of WP intake on plasma BCAA and glycaemic control. This review is, to the authors’ knowledge, the first to specifically examine the effects of WP intake on plasma BCAA concentrations in relation to glycaemic control. Whilst the majority of acute studies identified (n = 6) reported that WP consumption between 10 and 50 g significantly elevates postprandial BCAA and insulin responses (as evidenced by peak concentration and/or area under the curve), evidence from chronic studies (n = 3) report inconsistent findings on the impact of 9–51 g of WP/d on fasting BCAA and glycaemic control (for example, fasting glucose and insulin, insulin clearance). Findings from this literature review highlight the need for further studies that investigate the relationship between WP consumption with BCAA and glycaemic control, and to determine underlying mechanisms of action.

Persistent malnutrition is associated with poor clinical outcomes in cancer. However, assessing its reversibility can be challenging. The present study aimed to utilise machine learning (ML) to predict reversible malnutrition (RM) in patients with cancer. A multicentre cohort study including hospitalised oncology patients. Malnutrition was diagnosed using an international consensus. RM was defined as a positive diagnosis of malnutrition upon patient admission which turned negative one month later. Time-series data on body weight and skeletal muscle were modelled using a long short-term memory architecture to predict RM. The model was named as WAL-net, and its performance, explainability, clinical relevance and generalisability were evaluated. We investigated 4254 patients with cancer-associated malnutrition (discovery set = 2977, test set = 1277). There were 2783 men and 1471 women (median age = 61 years). RM was identified in 754 (17·7 %) patients. RM/non-RM groups showed distinct patterns of weight and muscle dynamics, and RM was negatively correlated to the progressive stages of cancer cachexia (r = –0·340, P < 0·001). WAL-net was the state-of-the-art model among all ML algorithms evaluated, demonstrating favourable performance to predict RM in the test set (AUC = 0·924, 95 % CI = 0·904, 0·944) and an external validation set (n 798, AUC = 0·909, 95 % CI = 0·876, 0·943). Model-predicted RM using baseline information was associated with lower future risks of underweight, sarcopenia, performance status decline and progression of malnutrition (all P < 0·05). This study presents an explainable deep learning model, the WAL-net, for early identification of RM in patients with cancer. These findings might help the management of cancer-associated malnutrition to optimise patient outcomes in multidisciplinary cancer care.

Kombucha is a fermented beverage rich in bioactive compounds. This beverage has demonstrated high antioxidant capacity in vitro and experimental animal studies. In this sense, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of daily consumption of green tea kombucha on oxidative stress and endothelial health in individuals with excess body weight. This is a randomized controlled clinical trial, lasting 10 weeks, during which the control group followed a healthy −500 kcal/d energy-restricted diet. In contrast, the kombucha group, in addition to the energy-restricted diet, consumed 200 ml of kombucha green tea daily. This study included men and women aged 18–45 years without chronic diseases. At the beginning and end of the study, fasting blood was collected, and colorimetric assays and immunoassay protocols evaluated markers of oxidative stress and endothelial health. Compared to the control group, kombucha consumption significantly reduced hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels (P = 0·007). Initial and final values were as follows: Control group (16·5 v. 15·09 µmol/ml; n 29) and Kombucha group (18·14 v. 14·67 µmol/ml; n 30). The other markers that were evaluated did not change after the kombucha consumption. In conclusion, daily consumption of 200 ml of green tea kombucha for 10 weeks reduces one pro-oxidant marker, without altering other markers of oxidative stress and endothelial health in individuals with excess body weight. Reducing a pro-oxidant marker suggests that kombucha is an antioxidant beverage with promising implications for human health. However, further studies are needed to elucidate other possible beneficial effects on health.

Previous studies on the association between fruit juice consumption and type 2 diabetes remain controversial, which might be due to heterogeneity in the polygenic risk score (PRS) for type 2 diabetes. We examined the association between fruit juice and type 2 diabetes by PRS for type 2 diabetes. We investigated whether fruit juice influences type 2 diabetes risk differently among individuals with varying genetic risks. Data from the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort (J-MICC) study, a cross-sectional study of 13 769 Japanese individuals was used for our analysis. The primary exposure was the frequency of fruit juice, categorised as do not drink, less than 1 cup per day or more than 1 cup per day. We selected PGS002379, a PRS for type 2 diabetes developed using East Asian populations. The primary outcome was physician-diagnosed type 2 diabetes, reported by participants. The consumption of fruit juice was significantly inversely associated with type 2 diabetes in the group with a high PRS for type 2 diabetes (OR: 0·78, 95 % CI: 0·65, 0·93 for < 1 cup/d and OR: 0·54, 95 % CI: 0·30, 0·96 for > 1/d), but this association was not observed in the low PRS group. Fruit juice consumption was inversely associated with type 2 diabetes, especially in genetically high-risk populations for type 2 diabetes.