Behavior Change Interventions to Address Unhealthy Food Consumption: A Scoping Review.

High intakes of sodium, sugar, saturated fats, and trans-fats contributed to 187.7 million disability adjusted life years from noncommunicable diseases globally. Understanding of the global evidence on interventions to reduce consumption of various types of unhealthy food across diverse contexts is needed. We conducted a scoping review to examine the existing evidence on behavior change interventions (BCIs) to address unhealthy food consumption. Through a systematic search of 3 databases conducted in December 2022, 2730 records were retrieved, and 145 studies met the eligibility criteria for review. Only 19% of the studies (n = 28) were from low- and middle-income countries. The key target group for most BCIs was adults ≥20 y (n = 79). Interventions were conducted across 7 types of settings: schools (n = 52), digital (n = 30), community (n = 28), home (n = 14), health facility (n = 12), worksite (n = 6), and market (n = 3). There were 4 mutually inclusive intervention types-information, education, and communication (n = 141); food/beverage substitution (n = 10); interactive games (n = 7); and labeling/warnings at point-of-purchase (n = 3). The study outcomes included consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (n = 74), packaged salty snacks/fast food (n = 61), sweets (n = 43), and saturated fat (n = 41). Drivers of food choice behaviors, such as knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs; motivation and expectancies; and self-efficacy were reported in 43% of studies. On the basis of reported impact of BCIs on study outcomes, more interventions targeted at adults had positive impacts compared with those targeted at children; intervention packages, including multiple information, education, and communication components also reported impacts more often than single informational interventions. Interpretation of the findings was complicated by the lack of comparability in interventions, evaluation designs, outcome measures of unhealthy food consumption, duration of interventions, and study contexts. Future studies should invest in critical yet underrepresented regions, examine behavioral determinants of unhealthy food consumption and the sustainability of behavior change, and conduct further analysis of effectiveness from experimental studies.

Are advertising policies affirmative in restricting the marketing of foods high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) in India?: evidence from SWOT Analysis.

The regulatory Indian environment for advertising high fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS) foods and non-alcoholic beverages, on various media was reviewed. Identified national-level policies were categorised as mandatory or self-regulatory based on legal content. For each mandatory regulation, Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis was undertaken to determine how existing policies could be strengthened to safeguard children from unhealthy food advertisements. Thirteen policies (nine mandatory; four self-regulatory) relevant to advertising in India were identified. Of the nine mandatory policies, Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022, is the only policy that restricts HFSS food advertisements to children across all media. There are key shortfalls, including limited scope of 'child-targeted' advertisements and lack of criteria to define HFSS foods. A robust regulatory framework is needed to protect children from HFSS food marketing, not just what is 'directed' at them, with clear evidence-based food classification criteria.

Advancing large-scale production of TEV protease through an innovative NT* tag-based fusion construct.

Tobacco etch virus Protease (TEVp), a cysteine protease, is renowned for its remarkable specific proteolysis, making it an invaluable tool for removing fusion tags from recombinant proteins. However, TEV protease's inherent insolubility limits its broad application. Fusion constructs like an N-terminal MBP fusion, known for its improved solubility, have been employed for TEVp production to address this issue. In this study, we fused the TEVp with the N-terminal domain of the spider silk protein, specifically utilizing a charge-reversed mutant (D40K/K65D) of the N-terminal domain of major ampullate spidroin-1 protein from Euprosthenops australis, referred to as NT*. This fusion construct contains a TEVp cleavage site, enabling intracellular self-processing and the release of a His7-tagged protease. The significant increase in soluble protein expression allowed us to purify approximately 90-100 mg of TEVp from a 1-L E. coli culture, surpassing previous findings by a considerable margin. The enzyme remained stable and catalytically active even after several months of storage in a deep freezer (-80 °C).

Diets, Lifestyles and Metabolic Risk Factors among Corporate Information Technology (IT) Employees in South India.

(1) Information Technology (IT) Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), the largest employment sector of India, contributes to rapid economic growth. However, the work of IT employees is sedentary, and the food environments of their worksites expose them to an obesogenic environment. This study aimed to assess their metabolic and lifestyle risk factors. (2) Methods: To examine the health and nutrition status of IT employees, anthropometric, biochemical and clinical assessments were conducted among 183 employees from three IT organizations of varied operational sizes. Their health-, diet- and physical activity-related practices were assessed using a questionnaire. The prevalence of MetS was assessed. Selected biomarker levels were assessed and associated with their self-perceived stress levels. (3) Results: The median age of the employees was 30 years (26-35 years). While 44.02% of employees were overweight, 16.85% of employees were obese. About 3.89% of employees were found to be diabetic, and HDL-C levels were lower than recommended in 64.93% of employees. In all, 29.87% of the study population were considered to have metabolic syndrome since they had metabolic risk scores ≥ 3. Those with metabolic syndrome were significantly older (p = 0.000), and levels of MDA (p = 0.003), homocysteine (p = 0.001), IL-6 (p = 0.017) and IL-4 (p = 0.000) were significantly higher among them. Although the prevalence of MetS was significantly lower among those aged >30 years, the lifestyle risk factors were significantly higher among them. (4) Conclusions: The assessed parameters indicate a high risk of developing NCDs among employees in the IT industry in India. This shows the need for the modification of lifestyle and workplace food and physical activity environments.

Knowledge, attitude and practices related to pesticide usage among farmers: Findings from a hospital based cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: In India, where agriculture is the prime occupation among the rural population, farmers are extensively using pesticides in crop production without taking adequate precautions. OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to examine pesticide usage patterns, usage of personal protective equipment (PPE), knowledge on pesticide toxicity, and attitude towards occupational safety among farmers diagnosed with leukaemia (n = 60), lymphoma (n = 33), and breast cancer (n = 30) visiting a tertiary cancer care hospital in Hyderabad, India. METHODS: Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a pre-tested questionnaire and the data collected were analysed with statistical software SPSS 23. RESULTS: The survey revealed that the participants had an average of 19.6 years of farming experience and women were predominantly involved in the mixing of pesticides and other agricultural work apart from spraying. All of them were not using any PPE and the majority of them did not have any knowledge on the route of exposure, toxicity symbols, and safe handling of pesticides. Statistical analysis showed no significant association between educational status and knowledge, attitude and practices (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Even though the majority of the farmers were educated, their lack of adequate knowledge on pesticides had enabled them to adopt risky behaviours in handling and storage of pesticides. There is a need for continuous training programs for farmers to promote awareness and minimize the hazards of occupational exposure.

Identifying opportunities and barriers for introducing a workplace nutrition and health program for employees: Findings from formative research.

BACKGROUND: The work style of employees engaged in the Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sectors in India is dominantly sedentary exposing them to detrimental obesogenic environments with unhealthy diets, increasing the risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Workplace health interventions have been reported to have the potential of reducing NCDs and related risk factors among the employees and thus reduce cost of absenteeism and improve productivity. OBJECTIVE: This formative research study aims to explore the opportunities and barriers of the development and implementation of a Workplace Health Programme (WHP). METHODS: In this study, a mixed method including qualitative and quantitative approaches were used. Focus group discussions (FGDs) were conducted with employees and senior managers in employers of IT/BPO companies of different sizes in Hyderabad, India. The food and physical activity environment in the workplaces were explored using a checklist and ground truthing approach. A knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) questionnaire was developed to assess health, nutrition and physical activity of the employees. RESULTS: Through this formative research, the required areas for nutrition, physical activity and health education were identified. The scope of utilising existing facilities for physical activity and modifying the food environment was explored. We noted optimistic bias among the junior employees who did not consider themselves at risk of developing NCDs. CONCLUSIONS: The identified opportunities and barriers will help in developing strategic WHPs suitable to individual workplaces. The qualitative methods, ground truthing approach, checklist and KAP tools used here can assess the company environment and employee health and nutrition status.

The 5 A's Approach for Contextual Assessment of Food Environment.

OBJECTIVE: To develop a context-specific methodology to assess the 5 A's of food environment: availability, accessibility, affordability, acceptability, and accommodation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional mixed-methods study. Availability of foods was assessed by on-site observation and interviewing vendors. To assess accessibility, buffer zones around food stores were created using geographic information systems. Affordability was controlled by selecting participants from the middle-income group. Accommodation and acceptability were assessed by interviewing vendors and caregivers. SETTING: Villages of Ghatkesar subdistrict (n = 4), Telangana, South India. PARTICIPANTS: Caregivers of children aged 6-10 years (n = 160) and food vendors (n = 68). ANALYSIS: The quality of the 5 A's was graded on the basis of concurrence between actual and perceived measures. RESULTS: The actual and perceived 5 A's for semiperishable foods matched, and hence the food environment was graded as good across the villages. However, for perishable foods, the food environment was graded as poor with respect to accommodation and acceptability in all villages; and with respect to availability and affordability in at least 2 villages as the actual and perceived measures did not match. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: This study demonstrated the use of context-specific methods to assess the 5 key dimensions of the food environment, which can be attempted in other contexts with suitable modifications.

Impact of 'infodemic in pandemic' on food and nutrition related perceptions and practices of Indian internet users.

The uncontrolled spread of (mis)information, news and propaganda related to COVID 19 created an 'infodemic' leading to panic and unscientific practices among the mass. With the largest number of internet users in the world, India has witnessed a steep rise in the number of people seeking information on social media related to COVID-19, which reached a staggering 22.3 million by March, 2020. This study aimed to evaluate the trend of COVID-19 associated food and nutrition news search by Indian internet users between 27th January 2020 to 30th June 2021 (time period between the first detected COVID-19 case and the end of the second wave in India) and its impact on their perceptions and practices. The association between the change in Relative Search Volume (RSV) on Google Trends (GT) of 34 popularly searched keywords classified by the researchers under 5 different categories-"Immunity", "Eating behavior", "Food safety", "Food scares and concerns" and "Covid scare" showed a steep rise in search for immunity boosters, vitamin supplement brands "ayush kadha (ayurvedic decoction) during the first wave (April- August 2020). With a brief period of decline in the search trend, it again hiked correspondingly with the growing number of positive cases during the second wave in India. An online survey conducted on adult Indian internet users (n = 572) reported high (71.9%) consumption of Vitamin C rich fruits as well as Vitamin C (68.2%) and Zinc (61.4%) supplements to boost immunity. Traditional Indian spices like ginger and garlic were used by 62.9% and 50.9% respondents respectively. Most respondents reported to rely on social media for gathering COVID-19 associated tips for boosting immunity, however those with history of COVID-19 infection reported to rely more on doctors and health professionals for information. This study highlights the need of media and health literacy to advocate for the use of health information cautiously.

Can foodporn prime healthy eating? Thinking beyond digital gazing and satiety.

The uprise of digital media has bypassed the language and cultural barriers of communicating about food with peers. Sharing exaggeratively glamourized food visuals with fancy hashtags and folksonomy, generally termed as Foodporn, is "trendy". Exposure to Foodporn affects food choices, directly or indirectly, through psychological, physiological and psychosocial means. Though unhealthy connotation is often attributed to foodporn, this perspective article implores that the plausible potential to alluring food pictures to prompt healthy food choices, be explored. Can foodporn be effectively used for e-priming (electronically priming) healthy food choices by glamourizing and idealizing healthy foods?

Pilot study investigating diagnostic utility of serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 in asthma in 'real world' clinical practice in India.

AIMS: At a tissue level, matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) and transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-ß1) contribute to allergic airway inflammation, tissue remodelling and disease severity in asthma via different pathways. Their peripheral blood levels and role in diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring has not been adequately explored. We investigated the association between MMP-1 and TGF-ß in moderate and severe persistent asthma and evaluated their performance characteristics by constructing receiver operating characteristic curves. METHODS: Serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 were measured using ELISA in 75 adults; moderate persistent asthma (n=25), severe persistent asthma (n=25) and healthy community controls (n=25). Severity of asthma was determined as per Global Initiative for Asthma guidelines. Subjects were followed up for 3 months and treatment responsiveness was assessed by spirometry and symptom response. RESULTS: Serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 were significantly elevated in asthmatics compared with controls (p<0.0001 and p<0.01). While serum MMP-1 was elevated in severe asthma compared with moderate asthma (p<0.05), TGF-ß1 was lower in severe asthma compared with moderate asthma (p<0.05). The performance characteristics of serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 were promising in this cohort with sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) of 82%, 100%, 100% and 99% and 62%, 100%, 100% and 97.8%, respectively; sensitivity of MMP-1 being superior. CONCLUSION: This pilot study showed that serum MMP-1 and TGF-ß1 levels are elevated in chronic asthma and may serve as a useful adjunct in differentiating moderate from severe asthma. A large multicentre study in well characterised cohort of asthmatics is warranted to investigate their role in diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring.

Nutritional requirements for the elderly in India: A status paper.

Advances in the medical field and healthcare sector during the last few decades have resulted in increased longevity. Increased lifespans have in turn led to a rapid global rise of the elderly population. However, ensuring the health and quality of life, especially in the context of chronic age-related ailments, among the growing geriatric population is a challenge. Ageing is associated with several changes in body composition including a decline in the lean body mass usually accompanied by an increase in body fat content which have a bearing on the nutrient requirements for the elderly. The nutrient requirements currently recommended for Indian adults are primarily computed using a factorial approach, that considers the cumulative loss of nutrients and is adjusted for optimal body weights and bioavailability. It is logical that physiological and metabolic changes associated with ageing influence several of these factors: body weight, lean mass, energy expenditure, nutrient retention and bioavailability and thus alter nutrient requirements compared to the adult population. Acknowledging these age-related changes, some international organizations have suggested nutrient requirements specific to the elderly. Given the contextual differences in physiology, caution needs to be exercised in adopting these guidelines for the Indian elderly. In addition, in the Indian context, there is sparse information on the diet and nutrient intakes vis-à -vis nutritional status and physiology of the elderly. This status paper highlights some of the pertinent issues related to nutritional requirements for the elderly that advocate a need for deriving nutritional requirements for the elderly in India.

Coaches' perceptions about food, appetite, and nutrition of adolescent Indian athletes - A qualitative study.

Adolescence is a transitional phase of development with the risk of adopting unhealthy behaviours, which is carried on to adulthood. Adolescent athletes tend to resort to unhealthy eating habits resulting in eating disorders and other clinical outcomes. Hence, it forms a crucial age to understand modifiable food habits and provide appropriate counselling. In India, coaches closely monitor the adolescent athletes, even concerning their eating habits due to the lack of multi-disciplinary support staff. Thus, our study aimed to understand the perceptions of coaches towards food, appetite and nutrition of adolescent athletes using In-depth interviews (IDI). Of all 14 coaches at the state-sponsored residential sports centre, 10 consented. The IDI were conducted in a standardized manner and were recorded and transcribed. They were coded manually, using the open and axial coding in the grounded theory approach to determine themes. They considered nutrition as key to performance and consumption of higher animal protein as important. Majority of them considered sprouts, dry fruits, fruits and vegetables as healthy foods, though were unable to define the quantities nor nutrients therein. Coaches considered protein as "important", while fat as "unhealthy". They also observed that athletes were avoiding fruits and vegetables, while consuming more rice. Meal timing, fluid and supplement intake were considered essential for international performance, albeit unaware of the specific requirements. Hygiene practices and peer isolation were considered to affect food intake. This lacunae in the nutrition knowledge and the modifiable nutrition practices explored can be targeted by developing a nutrition education and assessment tool for coaches and junior athletes. Further, a long-term engagement of a nutritionist with every sports academy in India is recommended.

Calorie counting smart phone apps: Effectiveness in nutritional awareness, lifestyle modification and weight management among young Indian adults.

Calorie counting mobile apps claim to assist in weight management by helping users monitor their diets and track activity. This study assessed quality and effectiveness of popular calorie counting apps in weight management and behaviour change. Top 20 apps were selected from Google Play store and their quality was assessed using a 55-point scoring scale on attributes like standards used, content accuracy, user interface and sources of database. The mean (±SD (standard deviation)) quality score was 36.95 (±5.65). The calorie and activity recommendations were compared with standards and over 65 per cent apps over/underestimated calorie intake. To assess effectiveness, 60 young volunteers were recruited and divided into two groups. The intervention group (n = 30) was asked to use one of the top 3 apps for 8 weeks. Pre- and post-comparisons were made with the control group (n = 28). No significant difference was noted in anthropometry or food consumption. There was increasing trend (13.33%) in physical activity in the intervention group.

Nutrition communication - Rhetoric & reality.

Given the context that undernutrition in India co-exists with the problems of overweight/obesity and associated non-communicable diseases as well as micronutrient deficiencies, integrating nutritional concerns in developmental policies and governance is gaining significance. There are many schemes implemented to tackle malnutrition in India, but creating synergy and linking these schemes with each other to achieve a common goal are lacking. Nutrition communication can be an important component to create the synergy required to change malnourished India to malnutrition-free India. Although nutrition education/communication is recognized as a necessary component in various national nutrition programmes, there is not much evidence of distinct evaluation of these components. Only a minor proportion of community nutrition research has been devoted to nutrition education and communication. Although there are scattered efforts in experimenting with newer communication approaches and media for promoting nutrition, there is a dearth of published literature. In this review an attempt was made to critically examine the nutrition education and communication research and practice with special focus on India. This review provides a historical perspective of evolution of nutrition education and communication with an overview of communication approaches, media, methods and technologies used in various research studies and programmes as well as the lessons learnt.

A sequential, exploratory, mixed-methods approach for development and validation of a context-specific knowledge, attitude and practice questionnaire on micronutrients for literate mothers of school-age children.

OBJECTIVE: To develop and validate a context-specific comprehensive knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) questionnaire for literate mothers on factors affecting micronutrient status of 6-10-year-old children. DESIGN: Sequential exploratory mixed-methods study using focus group discussions (FGD) and psychometric validation. SETTING: Seven randomly selected villages with >500 households with three to five family members each, in Ghatkesar sub-district, Medchal district, Telangana state, India.ParticipantsLiterate mothers from middle-income households with at least one child (6-10 years) for FGD (n 44), for testing the internal consistency (n 80) and for test-retest reliability (n 30). RESULTS: The themes for FGD were diet diversity, micronutrients, cooking and eating practices, national programmes and sunlight exposure. Knowledge among caregivers about sources of micronutrients, deficiency symptoms, cooking/eating practices was low, while attitude towards diet diversity and sunlight was good. Non-availability of fruits and vegetables was a barrier to diet diversity. About 72 % of the questions from the item pool were based on FGD. After content validity, 125 items were selected for the questionnaire which, upon psychometric validation, was reduced to an eighty-eight-item questionnaire with difficulty index of 0·10-0·91, discrimination index of 0·09-0·68, Cronbach's α of 0·78 (reliability of knowledge and attitude) and 0·50 (practice). A Bland-Altman plot showed good agreement between test and retest scores. CONCLUSIONS: The questionnaire developed and validated using a sequential exploratory mixed-methods approach can be used for assessing KAP on micronutrients and factors affecting consumption of diverse diets in rural Indian households.