Exclusive reductionism, chronic diseases and nutritional confusion: the degree of processing as a lever for improving public health

Fardet, Anthony; Rock, Edmond

doi:10.1080/10408398.2020.1858751

Cited by 22 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 124 publications

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“…FDBs continue evolving, as does the knowledge on the chemical nature of food components and the mechanisms by which they exert influence on health and disease. FDBs remain central in nutritional research and guidance, despite the increasing awareness on the complexity and knowledge gaps of the role of food components and their interactions within food matrix [ 21 ], suggesting that a nutrient does not have the same health effects depending on the matrix in which it is embedded [ 22 ]. Because of that, FDBs are more and more comprehensive and interlinked, providing information on a growing list of features.…”

Section: Main Features and Historical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If FDBs are specifically useful for balancing a diet for nutrient composition and fully addressing nutritional needs in human studies, they, however, reflect a reductionist view of foods, viewed as only the sum of nutrients [ 61 ], not considering the food matrix effect, and hence, the degree of processing [ 22 ]. Therefore, to be a relevant tool regarding human health in the long term, their data should not be used alone, but other parameters should be also considered, such as food form and degree of processing, together with other important food properties.…”

Section: Main Limitations Of Food Databases: Missing Dimensions For Human Health?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…First, the whole food potential is not only reflected by its nutrient composition. Whole foods are first complex matrices, which govern the health effects of nutrients [ 22 ]. Besides, food form matters for human health, be it solid, semi-solid, or liquid.…”

Section: Main Limitations Of Food Databases: Missing Dimensions For Human Health?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Otherwise, within an extruded-cooked breakfast cereal, wheat flour, and/or maize semolina behave close to simple sugars in human organism with a glycaemic index above 80 [ 65 ], and so on for most of nutrients, depending on the food form and on the impact of processing on the food matrix. Such fundamental physiological properties go beyond the simple nutritional composition, which leads to the hypothesis that chronic diseases have more to do with highly degraded and artificialized food matrices than with the food composition itself [ 22 ].…”

Section: Main Limitations Of Food Databases: Missing Dimensions For Human Health?mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Food Composition Databases: Does It Matter to Human Health?

et al. 2021

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Food provides humans with more than just energy and nutrients, addressing both vital needs and pleasure. Food habits are determined by a wide range of factors, from sensorial stimuli to beliefs and, once commanded by local and seasonal availability, are nowadays driven by marketing campaigns promoting unhealthy and non-sustainable foodstuffs. Top-down and bottom-up changes are transforming food systems, driven by policies on SDGs and by consumer’s concerns about environmental and health impacts. Food quality, in terms of taste, safety, and nutritional value, is determined by its composition, described in food composition databases (FDBs). FDBs are then useful resources to agronomists, food and mechanical engineers, nutritionists, marketers, and others in their efforts to address at maximum human nutrient needs. In this work, we analyse some relevant food composition databases (viz., purpose, type of data, ease of access, regularity of updates), inspecting information on the health and environmental nexus, such as food origin, production mode as well as nutritional quality. The usefulness and limitations of food databases are discussed regarding what concerns sustainable diets, the food ‘matrix effect’, missing compounds, safe processing, and in guiding innovation in foods, as well as in shaping consumers’ perceptions and food choices.

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Section: Main Features and Historical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Main Limitations Of Food Databases: Missing Dimensions For Human Health?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Main Limitations Of Food Databases: Missing Dimensions For Human Health?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Main Limitations Of Food Databases: Missing Dimensions For Human Health?mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Food Composition Databases: Does It Matter to Human Health?

et al. 2021

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“…This suggests that, when it comes to assessing the healthfulness of foods and the impact of diet on human health and disease, traditional nutrient-based systems that focus on nutritional content, quality and safety characteristics may perform better than processing-based evaluation systems that focus on industrial formulation [31]. It is, of course, likely that considering both the nutritional content and aspects of food processing in combined food evaluation metrics, within a more holistic approach to food and diet, will be more informative [32]; attempts in this direction are currently under way (see Section 4.2).…”

Section: Relationship Between Food Processing Nutritional Value and Health Effectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Multidisciplinary Perspective of Ultra-Processed Foods and Associated Food Processing Technologies: A View of the Sustainable Road Ahead

et al. 2021

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Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are negatively perceived by part of the scientific community, the public, and policymakers alike, to the extent they are sometimes referred to as not “real food”. Many observational surveys have linked consumption of UPFs to adverse health outcomes. This narrative synthesis and scientific reappraisal of available evidence aims to: (i) critically evaluate UPF-related scientific literature on diet and disease and identify possible research gaps or biases in the interpretation of data; (ii) emphasize the innovative potential of various processing technologies that can lead to modifications of the food matrix with beneficial health effects; (iii) highlight the possible links between processing, sustainability and circular economy through the valorisation of by-products; and (iv) delineate the conceptual parameters of new paradigms in food evaluation and classification systems. Although greater consumption of UPFs has been associated with obesity, unfavorable cardiometabolic risk factor profiles, and increased risk for non-communicable diseases, whether specific food processing techniques leading to ultra-processed formulations are responsible for the observed links between UPFs and various health outcomes remains elusive and far from being understood. Evolving technologies can be used in the context of sustainable valorisation of food processing by-products to create novel, low-cost UPFs with improved nutritional value and health potential. New paradigms of food evaluation and assessment should be funded and developed on several novel pillars—enginomics, signalling, and precision nutrition—taking advantage of available digital technologies and artificial intelligence. Research is needed to generate required scientific knowledge to either expand the current or create new food evaluation and classification systems, incorporating processing aspects that may have a significant impact on health and wellness, together with factors related to the personalization of foods and diets, while not neglecting recycling and sustainability aspects. The complexity and the predicted immense size of these tasks calls for open innovation mentality and a new mindset promoting multidisciplinary collaborations and partnerships between academia and industry.

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How can food processing achieve food and nutrition security?

Fardet,

Gold,

Delgado

et al. 2024

Sustainable Development

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In the agri‐food chain, while the impact of producers and consumers on sustainability has been well studied, food processing has been less explored. This position paper aims to discuss the potential of food processing to address all food and nutrition security (FNS) outcomes in order to achieve improved food system sustainability. First, FNS dimensions and the four pillars of agro‐food industry sustainability are defined, with a focus on ultra‐processed foods. Second, the food matrix concept is developed as a new paradigm to holistically address all FNS. It is concluded that food processing should become more involved in circular food systems and bioeconomy, and that we need to relocate food production, processing, and consumption to be more aligned with regional food production specificities. For this, minimal processing to preserve food matrices should be preferred. Therefore, the strong current tendency to develop reductionist and siloed innovative solutions to improve the sustainability of food systems should be questioned.

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Exclusive reductionism, chronic diseases and nutritional confusion: the degree of processing as a lever for improving public health

Cited by 22 publications

References 124 publications

Food Composition Databases: Does It Matter to Human Health?

Food Composition Databases: Does It Matter to Human Health?

A Multidisciplinary Perspective of Ultra-Processed Foods and Associated Food Processing Technologies: A View of the Sustainable Road Ahead

How can food processing achieve food and nutrition security?

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