Objective: The British Nutrition Foundation was recently commissioned by the Food Standards Agency to conduct a review of the government's research programme on Antioxidants in Food. Part of this work involved an independent review of the scientific literature on the role of antioxidants in chronic disease prevention, which is presented in this paper. Background: There is consistent evidence that diets rich in fruit and vegetables and other plant foods are associated with moderately lower overall mortality rates and lower death rates from cardiovascular disease and some types of cancer. The 'antioxidant hypothesis' proposes that vitamin C, vitamin E, carotenoids and other antioxidant nutrients afford protection against chronic diseases by decreasing oxidative damage. Results: Although scientific rationale and observational studies have been convincing, randomised primary and secondary intervention trials have failed to show any consistent benefit from the use of antioxidant supplements on cardiovascular disease or cancer risk, with some trials even suggesting possible harm in certain subgroups. These trials have usually involved the administration of single antioxidant nutrients given at relatively high doses. The results of trials investigating the effect of a balanced combination of antioxidants at levels achievable by diet are awaited. Conclusion: The suggestion that antioxidant supplements can prevent chronic diseases has not been proved or consistently supported by the findings of published intervention trials. Further evidence regarding the efficacy, safety and appropriate dosage of antioxidants in relation to chronic disease is needed. The most prudent public health advice remains to increase the consumption of plant foods, as such dietary patterns are associated with reduced risk of chronic disease.

Biocomposites offer a significant non-food market for crop-derived fibres and resins. Considerable growth has been seen in the use of biocomposites in the automotive and decking markets over the past decade or so, but application in other sectors has hitherto been limited. Nevertheless, with suitable development, the potential exists for biocomposites to enter new markets and thus stimulate an increase in demand for non-food crops. This paper reviews some of the technological challenges being faced in bringing these materials to a wider market together with potential solutions, as well as discussing market forces influencing their commercial uptake.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a debilitating disease and is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Poor nutrient status in RA patients has been reported and some drug therapies, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), prescribed to alleviate RA symptoms, may increase the requirement for some nutrients and reduce their absorption. This paper reviews the scientific evidence for the role of diet and nutrient supplementation in the management of RA, by alleviating symptoms, decreasing progression of the disease or by reducing the reliance on, or combating the side-effects of, NSAIDs. Supplementation with long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) consistently demonstrates an improvement in symptoms and a reduction in NSAID usage. Evidence relating to other fatty acids, antioxidants, zinc, iron, folate, other B vitamins, calcium, vitamin D and fluoride are also considered. The present evidence suggests that RA patients should consume a balanced diet rich in long-chain n-3 PUFA and antioxidants. More randomized long-term studies are needed to provide evidence for the benefits of specific nutritional supplementation and to determine optimum intake, particularly for n-3 PUFA and antioxidants.

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Summary The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) recently commissioned the British Nutrition Foundation to review critically its Optimal Nutrition Status programme and identify future research requirements. MAFF describes two main scientific objectives for this programme: (a) to understand the links between optimal nutrition status and the maintenance of good health, and (b) to develop accurate measures of bioavailability of micronutrients from foods. Five projects funded under this programme have been concerned with folates and folic acid. The B vitamin folate/folic acid occurs in food as folic acid (the synthetic form used for fortification and dietary supplements) and a range of naturally occurring folate vitamers (folates). Measurement of folates in foods and biological samples has been difficult because of the different natural forms of folate. Several MAFF‐funded projects have addressed this difficulty and new assays for food folates and folates in biological samples have been developed. There is good evidence that the synthetic form of the vitamin, folic acid, in its free form as in supplements, is stable and more bioavailable than the naturally occurring folates at typical intake levels, but its bioavailability from fortified foods is less well established. Understanding of the bioavailability of endogenous food folates is also incomplete, and it is not possible at this time to predict the bioavailability for a given diet. Stable isotopic methods, as used in some of the MAFF‐funded projects, show great promise for the determination of folate bioavailability in whole diets, fortified foods and dietary supplements. An understanding of the function and metabolism of folates/folic acid is critical in identifying indicators of status. Recent and current research (some funded by MAFF), especially that relating to plasma homocysteine as a functional marker, is described in this paper. Human intervention studies that are being used to determine dose response of both natural food folates, and folic acid in fortified foods and supplements are also described. As yet there is insufficient evidence to determine functional markers of optimal nutrition status of folates/folic acid in population groups and hence to be in a position to review the Dietary Reference Values. Further research requirements were identified in the review and refined at a workshop of experts. These are set out under individual MAFF programme objectives in a table at the end of the paper.