CRN-International publishes two conference reports on nutrition and health policy

Photo © AdobeStock.com/Маргарита Медведева

The Council for Responsible Nutrition-International (CRN-I; Washington, D.C.) published two conference reports: “From Lifespan to Healthspan: The Role of Nutrition in Healthy Ageing” in the Journal of Nutritional Science and “Measuring Health Promotion: Translating Science into Policy” in the European Journal of Nutrition.

Th first report, from CRN-I’s session held at the Federation of European Nutrition Societies (FENS) 2019 meeting, focuses on the impact of nutrition within the World Health Organization Global Strategy and Action Plan on Ageing and Health framework, emphasizing the need to better understand an individual’s intrinsic capacity and their functional abilities at various life stages. While longevity has increased globally, inequality persists, and many people from economically developing and developed societies are plagued by energy excess and under-nutrition—too many empty calories. This has resulted in mental and physical deterioration, increased non-communicable disease rates, lost productivity, increased medical costs, and reduced quality of life.

“Growing evidence demonstrates that access to better nutrition, improved immunity and response to disease, functioning senses—sight, taste, smell—and mobility, as well as the ability to recover physically and mentally, or even maintain wellness, when faced with stressors, may enhance how individuals age,” said James C. Griffiths, PhD, co-author and senior vice president, international and scientific affairs, CRN, in a press release. “This evidence highlights the need for innovative research on dietary interventions to improve healthy ageing, with validated, widely accepted and quantitative biomarkers responsive to lifestyle-based interventions.”

The second report, from CRN-I’s 2019 symposium, held in conjunction with the Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) meeting, complements the FENS report, taking a deeper dive into health promotion and health literacy, appropriate nutritional study design and the role the human microbiome plays in promoting health and alleviating disease.

“The nutrition science community must set credible recommendations and communicate those in a way that the public will adopt,” said Daniel Marsman, DVM, PhD, immediate past chair, CRN-I, and director of global product safety, P&G Health Care, in a press release. “The WHO Global Strategy and Action Plan is a framework for strong progress advancing the benefits of nutrition on healthy ageing. Nutrition messaging must be based on appropriate scientific evidence and communicated in a way that encourages people to adopt healthier dietary habits, balancing calorie intake with nutrient density, and lifestyles with increased physical activity, moderate alcohol consumption, smoking cessation, and stress reduction, to benefit the individual and society.”

Reports from past CRN-I symposia are available on the CRN-I website, with translations in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish. The website will also have details forthcoming regarding a series of webinars CRN-I will be holding in lieu of its annual in-person symposium held in conjunction with the CCNFSDU meeting.