Summary Retail food environments play a pivotal role in influencing dietary behaviors, and therefore have huge potential as settings for promoting good nutrition and preventing obesity. Conducting research in retail settings can be challenging due to the varied motivations of the parties involved and the complex nature of retail environments. To improve the quality and consistency of research in this field, we have identified 16 thematic topics aimed at guiding researchers and public health practitioners on how to conduct healthy food retail research. A summary for each topic, encompassing existing methodologies, best practice examples, and knowledge gaps, was developed based on available literature and the collective experience and expertise of 32 multidisciplinary researchers from a high‐income perspective engaged in healthy food retail research in a diverse range of retail settings. A summary checklist describing key considerations at each stage of conducting healthy food retail research was also developed.
Despite the abundance of plant-derived fats in our diet, their effects on appetite, and metabolic markers, remain unclear. This single-blinded 3-way cross-over pilot study aimed to investigate the ability of the two most abundant dietary plant-derived fats, oleic (OA) and linoleic (LA) acids, to modulate postprandial appetite and levels of circulating appetite and metabolic regulators in overweight/obese individuals. Meals were a high-carbohydrate control, a high-OA or a high-LA meal, and provided 30% of participants’ estimated energy requirements. Meals were consumed after an overnight fast, with blood samples collected over 3¼ h. Appetite parameters were assessed via a validated visual analogue scale questionnaire. Hormones and other circulating factors were quantified using multiplex immunoassays. Eight participants (age 45.8 ± 3.6 (years), body mass index 32.0 ± 1.3 (kg/m2)) completed the study. All meals significantly increased fullness and reduced desire to eat. The control and high-OA meals significantly decreased prospective food intake. The high-LA meal increased ghrelin levels (p < 0.05), a hormone which encourages food intake. This was coupled with a significant acute increase in resistin levels, which impairs insulin signaling. Taken together, this study indicates that in overweight/obese individuals, high-LA meals may promote excess energy intake and alter glucose handling, though a larger cohort may be required to strengthen results.
High fat diets (HFD) are linked to the development of obesity and type 2 diabetes (T2D), characterized by defects in glycogen storage and increased lipid accumulation in skeletal muscle. Replacement of saturated fatty acids in high fat diets, with unsaturated (mono- and poly-unsaturated) fatty acids has been shown to reduce risks for insulin resistance, obesity and T2D. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of HFD differing in fatty acid composition, on skeletal muscle glycogen, mitochondrial, GLUT4, and lipid contents. METHODS: Male Sprague Dawley rats were fed a Western-style (21% fat by weight; 41% total energy) HFD for 9 weeks to induce obesity and then were divided into one of three HFD groups for an additional 6 weeks; a control chow group followed a 15-week low fat diet. Animals consumed either a) low fat Chow diet (CD) (4.8 % fat; 0.74% saturated; 2% mono; 1.77% poly; n=6), b) mixed fat Western diet (WD) (21% fat; 9.76% saturated; 7.68% mono; 3.48% poly; n=6), c) HFD rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) (21% fat; 2.82% saturated; 16.01% mono; 2.18% poly; n=6), d) HFD rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (21% fat; 2% fat; 2.97% mono; 16% poly; n=7). After 15 weeks, glycogen (periodic acid-schiff staining) mitochondria, GLUT4, and lipid content were measured in extensor digitorum longus muscle using immunohistochemical staining techniques and quantified with imageJ software. RESULTS: Following the 6-week treatment period, body weight (g) in the WD group was significantly greater compared to MUFA (p=0.0006), PUFA (p=0.02), and CD (p<0.0001). Glycogen content was significantly greater (p=0.04) in animals fed a WD compared to CD. (AU±SEM; CD: 4.41±0.04; WD: 4.74±0.13; MUFA: 4.54±0.08; PUFA: 4.54±0.11; one-way ANOVA p=0.11). A HFD rich in PUFA resulted in impaired GLUT4 content (p=0.02) compared to a CD (AU±SEM; CD: 77.38±2.22; WD: 63.46±3.80; MUFA: 61.49±8.46; PUFA: 52.84±5.13; one-way ANOVA p=0.03). There were no significant effects on mitochondrial or lipid content. CONCLUSION: A high fat diet rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids results in significantly lower GLUT4 content without negatively impacting skeletal muscle glycogen storage in high fat diet induced obese rats. A high fat diet rich in saturated fat resulted in greater muscle glycogen content compared to low fat fed rats.
Abstract Objective: To compare the cost and affordability of two fortnightly diets (representing the national guidelines and current consumption) across areas containing Australia’s major supermarkets. Design: The Healthy Diets Australian Standardised Affordability and Pricing protocol was used. Setting: Price data were collected online and via phone calls in fifty-one urban and inner regional locations across Australia. Participants: Not applicable. Results: Healthy diets were consistently less expensive than current (unhealthy) diets. Nonetheless, healthy diets would cost 25–26 % of the disposable income for low-income households and 30–31 % of the poverty line. Differences in gross incomes (the most available income metric which overrepresents disposable income) drove national variations in diet affordability (from 14 % of the median gross household incomes in the Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory to 25 % of the median gross household income in Tasmania). Conclusions: In Australian cities and regional areas with major supermarkets, access to affordable diets remains problematic for families receiving low incomes. These findings are likely to be exacerbated in outer regional and remote areas (not included in this study). To make healthy diets economically appealing, policies that reduce the (absolute and relative) costs of healthy diets and increase the incomes of Australians living in poverty are required.
Summary A scoping review was conducted to identify barriers and enablers to effective weight management in healthcare settings for people living with overweight and obesity in English‐speaking high‐income countries. Peer‐reviewed and gray literature were systematically searched in June 2024. Data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. Of the 15,684 unique articles identified and screened for relevance, 216 studies were included. Healthcare‐related barriers and enablers to weight management were organized under three themes: a) healthcare provider‐related factors, b) provision of care, and c) policy/funding. Prominent barriers included healthcare provider knowledge deficits and low prioritization of obesity management, mainly in the primary care setting. Weight management beyond the primary care setting was found to be especially challenging, with poor referral pathways, service fragmentation, lack of multidisciplinary practice, and restricted eligibility criteria, hindering the accessibility of services. Developing consistent policies and guidelines, improving the education of healthcare providers, and increasing funding to provide low‐cost comprehensive care, were identified as enablers to access and uptake of weight management services. Considerable overlap in the identified barriers existed across healthcare providers and settings. A whole health system approach to minimize barriers and strengthen enablers to weight management services is needed, to address rising obesity rates.
Convenience is a major driver of food choice throughout the world, yet it is often inconsistently conceptualised, defined and measured. This limits the scope for food systems policy and interventions to leverage convenience to improve diet and nutrition outcomes. We conducted a systematic literature review to determine how convenience is both defined and measured in food environment and nutrition research. Six databases were systematically searched and studies were screened by two independent reviewers based on pre-defined eligibility criteria, yielding 243 studies for inclusion in the final review. 77% of studies did not explicitly define convenience. Among those that did, the dimensions and components within definitions varied. 83% of studies used perceived measures of convenience rather than objective measures. Convenience was most commonly measured in high income countries (64%) and in relation to the home food environment (53%), followed by formal retail (40%). Very few studies measured convenience in relation to the informal retail or cultivated food environments, and no studies considered convenience in relation to wild food environments. The vast majority of studies did not consider the validity or reliability of the measures of convenience. Based on our findings we propose a definition of convenience as a characteristic that results in reduced requirement for resources including time, physical effort, mental effort and skills by the consumer in relation to the planning, acquisition, preparation, storage, transport, consumption or clean-up of food. This definition can be used to help guide the development of measurement tools that can be used to assess convenience across different dimensions and contexts in a more comprehensive way. We also propose a framework for considering convenience as an entry point in food systems to improve diets and nutrition outcomes.
Successful research-policy partnerships rely on shared vision, dedicated investment, and mutual benefits. To ensure the ongoing value of chronic disease prevention research, and support research translation and impact, Australia needs funding, university, and policy systems that incentivise and support emerging leaders to drive effective partnerships.
Evidence synthesis is an important tool to inform decision-making in public health policy and practice. Collaborative approaches to evidence synthesis involving researchers and the end-users of their research can enhance the relevance of the evidence for policy and practice and overcome the limitations of traditional evidence synthesis methods. Despite its benefits, collaboration is not consistently integrated into evidence-synthesis methods. Type of program or service: Collaborative evidence synthesis for public health policy and practice.
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