Getting the basics right for women going through menopause

Jul 06, 2022 3:23pm

Another jam-packed week of exciting news and developments to share.

In this week's newsletter: Latest research, Zinzino launches HbA1C test, Nutrium launches employee wellness program, Verdify bags another round of investment, New Menopause standards launched, free PN event happening tomorrow.

Yours in health,

Mariette & the Qina team

Down at Qina HQ

We constantly get requests from our subscribers to access our content or the database. We have listened and have created pricing plans to make sure anyone can get access to the platform for as little or as long as they want based on their budget.

Watch out for more details soon!

Research update

Vitamin D status, genetic factors, and risk of cardiovascular disease among individuals with type 2 diabetes: a prospective study

This prospective study concluded that "higher serum 25(OH)D concentrations were significantly associated with lower risks of total CVD and IHD among patients with T2D, regardless of genetic susceptibility and genetic variants in VDR. Risk reductions tended to plateau at serum 25(OH)D levels around 50 nmol/L. These findings suggest that maintaining adequate vitamin D status and avoiding deficiency may help to prevent CVD complications among patients with T2D".

Recreational physical activity before and during pregnancy and placental DNA methylation - an epigenome-wide association study

This study aims to evaluate the association between physical activity before and during pregnancy and placental DNAm. The results have shown that "periconception PA was significantly associated with 1 CpG site. The largest change in methylation occurred at a site in TIMP2, which is known to encode a protein critical for vasodilation, placentation, and uterine expansion during pregnancy. Most significantly enriched pathways include Cardiac Hypertrophy Signaling, B Cell Receptor Signaling, and Netrin Signaling".

Effects of vegan diets on cardiometabolic health: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

The results of this systematic review and meta-analysis have shown that adhering to vegan diets for at least 12 weeks may be effective in individuals with overweight or type 2 diabetes. In comparison with control diets, vegan diets reduced body weight (−4.1 kg), body mass index (BMI) (−1.38 kg/m2), glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) (−0.18% points), total cholesterol (−0.30 mmol/L), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (−0.24 mmol/L). The study identified no effect on blood pressure, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, or triglycerides.

The effectiveness of technology-based interventions for weight loss maintenance: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials with meta-analysis

This review on the effects of technology-based interventions for maintenance of lost weight concluded that "web- and app-based interventions for weight loss maintenance produced similar results with minimum interventions and resulted in greater weight regain compared with in-person interventions. Appropriate interventions for weight loss maintenance provide benefits against weight regain, only when provided in-person".

Study Protocol for Surveying Nutrient Assessment With Photographs of Meals (SNAPMe): A Benchmark Dataset of Food Records and Paired With Meal Photos

Bitesnap is a US-based image meal logging and analysis app, with dietary analysis based on the USDA food database. This study recruited 90 participants to upload their meal photos (at least three meals per day, for a total of three study days) using the Bitesnap app. These data will be transformative for the improvement of artificial intelligence algorithms for the adoption of photo-based dietary assessment in nutrition research, as part of the SNAPMe (Surveying Nutrient Assessment with Photographs of Meals) Study.

Time of day differences in appetite and gut hormone responses to meal and stress challenges in adults with normal-weight and obesity

This study aims to understand behavioural and physiological mechanisms by comparing appetite and gut hormone responses to a series of meal and stress challenges beginning in the morning and the afternoon, in adults with normal weight (n=16) and obesity (n=16). The participants have been subjected to different protocols (AM condition and PM condition) composed of a standardized liquid meal (9:00 am/4:00 pm), a stress test (Socially-Evaluated Cold Pressor Test, 11:10 am/6:10 pm), and an ad libitum buffet meal (11:40 am/6:40 pm). The results have shown that "evening overeating can be a result of differential appetite and gut hormone responses following meal intake and stress exposure", by analyzing ghrelin, PYY, GLP-1, insulin, glucose, cortisol, and leptin levels.

Optimizing an mHealth Intervention to Change Food Purchasing Behaviors for Cancer Prevention: Protocol for a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

This pilot study enrolled adults (N=62) with low adherence to dietary recommendations for cancer prevention in a 20-week program and aims to assess the feasibility and acceptability of intervention components, individually and in combination, on dietary intake, and grocery store food purchases and understand the mechanisms of action (goal salience, motivation, and household support).

Our CEO was recently interviewed on the Foodmatterslive podcast with Personalised nutrition scientist Suzan Wopereis (TNO) on our favourite topic.

Dial in to listen to our discussion on where Personalised nutrition is and where it is heading!

Technology News

Zinzino launches HbA1c Test

The Scandinavia-based company Zinzino, has launched their HbA1c test and Lifestyle Assessment that offers individual directions to a sustainable lifestyle and a healthy future based on in-depth risk analysis and evaluation. The at-home, dried blood test includes a detailed questionnaire about diet, exercise, and lifestyle habits. Then a health score is provided along with individual recommendations to maintain or improve health status.

PNU 33.2021: Zinzino announces launch in South Africa as next step in global expansion

NASA’s idea for making food from thin air just became a reality — it could feed billions

“It’s not like you can make food out of thin air. Well…it turns out you can. A company from Finland, Solar Foods, is planning to bring to market a new protein powder, Solein, made out of CO₂, water, and electricity. It’s a high-protein, flour-like ingredient that contains 50 per cent protein content, 5–10 per cent fat, and 20–25 per cent carbs. It reportedly looks and tastes like wheat flour, and could become an ingredient in a wide variety of food products”.

PNU 07.2019: Solar Foods Will Start Selling Gas-Fermented Protein by 2021

Nutrium launches workplace wellness programs

The Portuguese company, Nutrium, has launched its employee nutrition and wellness program. This new program will consist of nutrition consultations with personalized food plans and exclusive workshops in the health and nutrition area. Primavera BSS, Valuekeep, and YET will be the pioneer companies to try out this new service.

PNU. 32.2020: Nutrium app, which links dietitians and patients, raises $4.9M led by Indico Capital

Verdify increases seed round to €2.1 million for accelerated rollout of personalised recipe platform

“Verdify has raised €800,000 on top of the €1.3 million in funding the company obtained last December. The additional capital will be provided by Brave New Food Investments and existing shareholders Brightlands Venture Partners and Joles. The funding will be used to accelerate the market introduction of Verdify's platform for recipe personalization. Both consumers and companies in the food sector will be enabled to use the software that can adapt online recipes to lifestyle- and nutrient requirements”.

PNU 35.2021: Verdify wind Roche Healthbuilder's challenge

PNU 22.2021: Verdify launches Swapmeals platform and VerdifyID

Bio Farma Collaborates with Google Cloud and ‘ConnectedLife with Fitbit’ to Empower Healthier Living and Chronic Disease Prevention Across Indonesia

The Indonesian company, Biofarma, has announced a collaboration with Google Cloud, Fitbit, and ConnectedLife on a new digital health governmental initiative called “Preventive Care Medwell". Under this initiative, the organizations have developed “ConnectedLife with Fitbit,” a personalized virtual platform to empower Indonesians to take decisive steps toward healthier living and chronic disease prevention. ConnectedLife with Fitbit is built on Google Cloud and allows users to sync their health insights from the Fitbit application with the ConnectedLife web and mobile dashboard for a holistic view of how lifestyle factors like daily activity, nutrition, sleep, and stress levels impact their health and wellness. ConnectedLife with Fitbit creates a wellness score, along with personalized insights, recommendations, and gamified experiences that motivate the user to initiate meaningful and sustained behavioural change.

PNU 12.2022: Innit Unveils Joint Solutions With Google Cloud for Health and Wellness

Food & Consumer Trends

Eco-labels: sexy but no silver bullet for sustainable food sales

“Sustainability labels, whether focused on a single metric like greenhouse gases or a range of them, are popular interventions. A recent review on communicating food sustainability, conducted by Globescan, WWF, and UNEP, found that, while the literature is not unanimous, many survey articles and case studies suggest the presence of an eco-label has a “measurable and positive influence on consumer choices”.

ADM finds five trends driving microbiome category

Based on the Outside Voice (consumer insights) platform, ADM has launched 5 trends that can shape the microbiome sector: (1) Gut-brain connection and the link between microbiome function with mood and cognition. (2) Personalized nutrition solutions designed to support everyday performance (3) Microbiome test kits (4) Probiotics and skin microbiome and (5) Immune health.

Partnerships key for industry to overcome inflationary pressures

The Russia-Ukraine war, the rising inflation, and the spiralling of energy prices are creating difficulties for companies worldwide with multiple crises in several supply chains. To overcome this, companies are seeking alternative options. Finding local suppliers and creating strategic partnerships to maintain synergies to combat ingredient shortages can be a good approach to this new business challenge. On the other hand, due to the COVID-19 pandemic consumers' mindset has changed, and now people are more conscious about their well-being, creating security feeling for all health markets.

Resources

The Promise of Digital Health: Then, Now, and the Future

“This paper aims to provide a comprehensive review of digital health tools and their promise to identify critical priorities for cooperation and collaboration among policymakers and industry leaders”.

Menopause Practice Standards

This document includes 11 new ‘practice standards’ for menopause care, which also includes holistic and individual’ advice on their treatment options: "There should be a holistic and individualized approach in assessing and advising women, with particular reference to lifestyle advice and dietary modification including optimizing weight, stopping smoking, exercising, healthy diet, and reducing alcohol consumption. It should also include advice on risk factors for cardiovascular disease (including raised blood pressure, raised cholesterol, and obesity), advice on bone health and osteoporosis as well as cancer risk reduction, in addition to management options including HRT or non-hormonal and alternative therapies".