Insects are a sustainable protein source with poor consumer acceptance in developed countries. An Eating Insects Conference and Tasting Demonstration was hosted with a goal of promoting consumption of edible insects. The event consisted of an educational session that provided information about entomophagy followed by a cooking and tasting demonstration of edible insects. Pre- and post-intervention surveys were conducted to assess the effect of the event on participants’ acceptance of entomophagy. Forty-three attendees completed the surveys. After attending the event, participants felt more knowledgeable about entomophagy, which positively correlated with willingness to consume edible insects. Participants who believed that entomophagy is sustainable were more willing to consume edible insects than those who did not. Although all participants consumed insects at the tasting demonstration, those with prior consumption experiences had significantly higher post-intervention willingness scores, indicating repeated exposures may be necessary for improving consumer acceptance of edible insects. The event raised awareness of using insects as food and provided useful information for developing effective interventions to promote insect consumption.

Insects have great potential to serve as a sustainable food source owing to their notable nutritional value, high feed conversion rate, and low environmental footprint. The sharing of well-established recipes in cultures where insect consumption is normalized can facilitate new product development among cultures where consumption is resisted. In the current investigation, we traveled to both rural and urban areas of Oaxaca, Mexico and studied the collection, processing, retailing, and eating practices of edible insects such as chapulines [Sphenarium purpurascens Charpentier (Pyrgomorphidae, Orthoptera) and Melanoplus mexicanus (Saussure) (Acrididae, Orthoptera)], chicatanas [Atta mexicana (F. Smith) (Formicidae, Hymenoptera)], maguey worms [Comadia redtenbacheri (Hammerschmidt) (Cossidae, Lepidoptera)], and cochineal [Dactylopius coccus Costa (Dactylopiidae, Hemiptera)]. In rural communities where access to other animal-based foods has been limited, insects provided important nutritional value that today also translates into important economic value. Community members know the habits of the insects and are skilled at collecting them using sophisticated techniques. After collection, the insects are often toasted with or without seasonings for flavor and preservation. The processed insects are readily available in urban markets, and their importance in Oaxacan cuisine cannot be overestimated. Chapulines, chicatanas, and maguey worms are key ingredients in many spice mixes, salsas, and mole sauces. Cochineal is used as a food colorant. These insects are also found in a variety of foods, both sweet and savory, including omelets, tamales, quesadillas, chocolate truffles, and sorbets. As evidenced by the culinary uses of insects in Oaxaca, there is substantial potential for edible insects to become a delicacy in Western cultures.

Background: Walnuts contain nutrients that are associated with improved cognitive health. To our knowledge, no review has systematically examined the effects of walnuts on cognitive function and risk for cognitive decline. Objective: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis evaluating the effects of walnut intake on cognition-related outcomes and risk-factors for cognitive decline in adults. Methods: Medline V R , Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies published until April 2020 on walnut intake, cognition (e.g. cognitive function, stroke, and mood), and selected risk factors for cognitive decline (e.g. glucose homeostasis and inflammation). Risk-of-bias and strength-of-evidence assessments were conducted using standard validated tools. Random-effects meta-analyses were conducted when !3 studies reported quantitative data for each outcome. Results: 32 RCT and 7 observational study publications were included. Meta-analysis of cognition-related outcomes could not be conducted due to heterogeneity of tests. None of the 5 cognition RCTs found significant effects of walnuts on overall cognition, although 3 studies found improvements on subdomains and/or subgroups. All 7 observational studies found significant associations and a dose-response relationship between walnut intake and cognition-related outcomes. Meta-analyses of 27 RCTs reporting glucose homeostasis and inflammation outcomes, selected risk factors for cognitive decline, did not show significant effects of walnut intake. Conclusions: Due to the non-uniformity of tests for cognition-related outcomes, definitive conclusions regarding the effect of walnut consumption on cognition could not be reached. Additionally, evidence does not show associations between walnut intake and glucose homeostasis or inflammation, cognitive decline risk-factors. High-quality studies with standardized measures are needed to clarify the role of walnuts in cognitive health. KEY MESSAGESThis is a systematic review and meta-analysis of 5 randomized clinical trials and 7 observational study articles of the impact of walnut intake on cognition decline and 27 randomized clinical trials of the effect of walnut intake on risk factors for cognitive decline including glucose homeostasis and inflammation. The non-uniformity of tests performed to measure cognitive function in the various studies did not allow for a meta-analysis of these studies. A definitive conclusion could therefore not be reached regarding the effect of walnut intake on cognitive decline. The evidence available does not show an association between walnut intake and glucose homeostasis or inflammation.

Background A systematic review was commissioned to support an international expert group charged to update the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO)/World Health Organisation (WHO)’s vitamin D intake recommendations for children aged 0–4 years. Materials and methods Multiple electronic databases were searched to capture studies published from database inception to the 2 nd week of June 2020 according to key questions formulated by the FAO/WHO. Relevant studies were summarised and synthesised by key questions and by health outcomes using the Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. Results The 146 included studies examined the effects of different vitamin D intake levels on a variety of health outcomes (e.g. infectious disease, growth, neurodevelopment, rickets, and bone mineral density), and on outcomes for setting vitamin D upper limits (e.g. hypercalcemia, hypercalciuria, and nephrocalcinosis). For most outcomes, the strength of evidence was low or very low . Evidence was rated moderate for the effect of daily vitamin D supplementation on raising serum 25(OH)D concentrations, and a random-effects meta-regression analysis of 28 randomised controlled trials (mostly in infants 0–12 months) showed that each 100 IU/d increase in vitamin D supplementation was associated with an average of 1.92 (95% CI 0.28, 3.56) nmol/L increase in achieved 25-hydroxy-vitaminn D (25[OH]D) concentration ( n = 53 intervention arms; p = .022) with large residual heterogeneity ( I 2 = 99.39%). Evidence was very low on two of the upper limit outcomes – hypercalcemia and hypercalciuria. Conclusions The evidence report provided the expert group with a foundation and core set of data to begin their work to set vitamin D nutrient reference values. To move the field forward, future studies should use standardised 25(OH)D assay measurements and should examine the relationship between long-term vitamin D status and health outcomes. Key Messages Results of a large complex systematic review suggest the current totality of evidence from trials and prospective observational studies do not reach sufficient certainty level to support a causal relationship between vitamin D intake and asthma, wheeze, eczema, infectious diseases, or rickets (most trials reported no rickets) in generally healthy infants and young children. In this systematic review, the only body of evidence that reached a moderate level of certainty was regarding the effect of daily vitamin D supplementation (vitamin D 3 or D ...