Environmental footprints of food consumption and dietary patterns among Lebanese adults: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Following the release of the Sustainable Development Goals, dietary patterns and guidelines are being revised for their effect on the environment in addition to their health implications. The objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the Environmental Footprints (EFPs) of food consumption patterns among Lebanese adults. METHODS: For this study, data for adults aged > 18 years (n = 337) were drawn from a previous national survey conducted in Lebanon (2008-2009), where dietary intake was assessed using a 61-item Food Frequency Questionnaire. Dietary patterns previously derived in the study sample included: Western, Lebanese-Mediterranean and High-Protein. In this study, food consumption and dietary patterns were examined for their EFPs including water use, energy use, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, using review of life cycle analyses. RESULTS: In the study population, the EFPs of food consumption were: water use: 2571.62 ± 1259.45 L/day; energy use: 37.34 ± 19.98 MJ/day and GHGs: 4.06 ± 1.93 kg CO2 eq / day. Among the three dietary patterns prevalent in the study population, the Lebanese-Mediterranean diet had the lowest water use and GHG per 1000 Kcal (Water (L/Kg): 443.61 ± 197.15, 243.35 ± 112.0, 264.72 ± 161.67; GHG (KG CO2 eq/day) 0.58 ± 0.32, 0.38 ± 0.24, 0.57 ± 0.37, for the Western, Lebanese-Mediterranean and High- Protein, respectively). The scores of the High-Protein dietary pattern were associated with higher odds of the three EFPs, whereas the Lebanese-Mediterranean dietary pattern was associated with lower odds of energy use. Furthermore, scores of the Western pattern were associated with higher water use. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study showed that, among Lebanese adults, the Western and High-Protein dietary patterns had high EFPs, whereas the Lebanese-Mediterranean dietary pattern had lower water use and GHG emissions. Coupled to our earlier findings of the Lebanese-Mediterranean pattern's beneficial effects on health, the findings of this study lend evidence for the notion that what is healthy for people may also be healthy for ecosystems and highlight the need for nutrition recommendations to take into consideration the nexus of water, food, energy, in addition to health.

Effect of Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy on taste acuity and sweetness acceptability in postsurgical subjects.

OBJECTIVE: Data on taste acuity after bariatric surgery are scarce, and taste perception after sleeve gastrectomy, to our knowledge, has never been investigated. The objective of this work was to retrospectively compare taste acuity and sweetness acceptability after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy. METHODS: Subjects with a postoperative period ≥6 mo were recruited (between January and June 2012) for a non-randomized, observational study. Subjects completed sensory evaluation sessions consisting of measurement of detection thresholds for bitterness and sweetness (N = 21), saltiness and sourness (N = 19), and sweetness acceptability (N = 19). Significance was established with Tukey's honest significant difference test and analysis of variance using the SAS GLM procedure. RESULTS: Sourness threshold was significantly higher among subjects who had undergone Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (P = 0.0045). No other differences were obtained for the other thresholds or sweetness acceptability (P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Further randomized studies are needed to clarify these differences.

The Effect of Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass and Sleeve Gastrectomy Surgery on Dietary Intake, Food Preferences, and Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Post-Surgical Morbidly Obese Lebanese Subjects: A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: Data on gastrointestinal (GI) and dietary changes following bariatric surgery are scarce in the Middle Eastern region. The objective of this work was to retrospectively compare dietary intake, food preferences, and GI symptoms in subjects with extreme obesity after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) and sleeve gastrectomy (SG). METHODS: Sixty subjects equally divided between RYGB and SG with a postoperative period of ≥6 months were recruited for a retrospective, non-randomized, and observational study. All subjects completed three questionnaires (GI symptoms, food preferences, and quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ)) and three 24-h recalls. RESULTS: At one year postoperatively, both surgical groups showed similar percentage of excess weight loss that exceeded 50%. In addition, percentage of carbohydrate, protein, and sugar intake from total energy, frequency of daily consumption from the eight food categories and daily energy intake were comparable between surgical groups. RYGB subjects consumed significantly more fruits and juices from total energy (P < 0.05) whereas SG subjects tended to consume more sweets and desserts. Heartburn (P < 0.001), regurgitation (P < 0.01), nausea (P < 0.01), vomiting (P < 0.001), and constipation (P < 0.05) were significantly more frequent among SG subjects. Flatulence (P < 0.001) and diarrhea (P < 0.05), as well as dizziness (P < 0.001), and fast heartbeat (P < 0.05) after eating were significantly more frequent after RYGB. CONCLUSIONS: There were no major differences in dietary intake and food preferences between RYGB and SG groups. There was a trend for sweet-eating in SG subjects with less dumping symptoms to suggest different mechanisms of action for each procedure, which might impact eating behavior.