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Weight: It must be January!
PRACTICE APPLICATIONS Editor’s Outlook
Weight: It must be January!
I
N JANUARY, ATTENTION TURNS to scaling back to pre-holiday numbers and resolving to stay the course with a healthy eating and lifestyle plan. As we await the new obesity guidelines currently under development by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), much research attention is devoted to weighty matters. Because the topics of obesity and weight control dominate much of the public health literature, and rightfully so, the contributions of new and evolving research findings can help to fit pieces of the prevention and treatment puzzle together. As many readers of the Journal know, the NHLBI is developing new guidelines for high blood cholesterol, lifestyle, high blood pressure, and also obesity. The first two topics, cholesterol and lifestyle, are closest to release, while the drafts of the obesity and blood pressure guidelines, according to the NHLBI website, are in progress.1 Developing these national guidelines represents an enormous project, and there are many reasons provided on the NHLBI website for the extra time needed to accomplish these tasks. Among the most timeconsuming reasons are the systematic reviews of the extensive evidence base surrounding each of these important topics and the interest in coordinating these new guidelines with the Institute of Medicine’s guidelines2,3 in order to synchronize these messages. As we await the opportunity to provide insights and perspectives on these new national guidelines that are especially relevant to the field of nutrition and dietetics, the Journal is pleased to
© 2013 by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
present some of the following research and further findings for your consideration.
THIS MONTH Starting with an update on trends in dietary intake among very young children, Ford and colleagues (p 35) provide evidence from the Continuing Surveys of Food Intake in Individuals and the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to report changing trends over the past 20 years. While the 2010 US Dietary Guidelines reported that shortfall nutrients include dietary fiber, calcium, and potassium, these authors specify the foods that have increased in this age group and eclipsed sources of nutrient density. While these results may not surprise you, the actual evidence and documentation help to identify and target potential intervention topics. In a similar fashion, Han and Powell (p 43) present results on the consumption distributions of sugarsweetened beverages over time and across racial/ethnic subpopulations and socioeconomic groups. Some of the associations may surprise and challenge you regarding the associations with weight control. Looking at postpartum weight retention, Wiltheiss and colleagues (p 54) report results from a randomized clinical trial of overweight/obese postpartum women in North Carolina. The objective was to assess predictors of diet quality during early postpartum and investigate the impact on energy intake and weight loss. Again, some results are
surprising, but encourage further attention to this vulnerable population. Please be sure to also read the interesting review by Papoutsakis (p 77) who addressed the potential link between pediatric obesity and asthma. The provocative Research and Professional Brief by Park and colleagues (p 106) further addresses the question of whether regular soda intake—independent of weight—is associated with asthma among high school students. Finally, the Commentary by Miller (p 25) considers the use of lorcaserin as a potential weight loss aid and reviews the involvement of the Food and Drug Administration in its approval. These and other topics await your careful consideration as you start this new year armed with current weight control data and emerging science to help you face your colleagues and clients. Best regards.
Linda Van Horn, PhD, RD Editor-in-Chief doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2012.11.021
References 1.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Clinical practice guidelines and reports in development. www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/ indevelop.htm#status. Updated November 2012. Accessed November 26, 2012.
2.
Henney JE, Taylor CL, Boon CS. Strategies to Reduce Sodium Intake in the United States. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2010.
3.
Institute of Medicine. Promoting Cardiovascular Health in the Developing World: A Critical Challenge to Achieve Global Health. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2010.
JOURNAL OF THE ACADEMY OF NUTRITION AND DIETETICS
9
Weight: It must be January!
I
N JANUARY, ATTENTION TURNS to scaling back to pre-holiday numbers and resolving to stay the course with a healthy eating and lifestyle plan. As we await the new obesity guidelines currently under development by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), much research attention is devoted to weighty matters. Because the topics of obesity and weight control dominate much of the public health literature, and rightfully so, the contributions of new and evolving research findings can help to fit pieces of the prevention and treatment puzzle together. As many readers of the Journal know, the NHLBI is developing new guidelines for high blood cholesterol, lifestyle, high blood pressure, and also obesity. The first two topics, cholesterol and lifestyle, are closest to release, while the drafts of the obesity and blood pressure guidelines, according to the NHLBI website, are in progress.1 Developing these national guidelines represents an enormous project, and there are many reasons provided on the NHLBI website for the extra time needed to accomplish these tasks. Among the most timeconsuming reasons are the systematic reviews of the extensive evidence base surrounding each of these important topics and the interest in coordinating these new guidelines with the Institute of Medicine’s guidelines2,3 in order to synchronize these messages. As we await the opportunity to provide insights and perspectives on these new national guidelines that are especially relevant to the field of nutrition and dietetics, the Journal is pleased to
© 2013 by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
present some of the following research and further findings for your consideration.
THIS MONTH Starting with an update on trends in dietary intake among very young children, Ford and colleagues (p 35) provide evidence from the Continuing Surveys of Food Intake in Individuals and the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to report changing trends over the past 20 years. While the 2010 US Dietary Guidelines reported that shortfall nutrients include dietary fiber, calcium, and potassium, these authors specify the foods that have increased in this age group and eclipsed sources of nutrient density. While these results may not surprise you, the actual evidence and documentation help to identify and target potential intervention topics. In a similar fashion, Han and Powell (p 43) present results on the consumption distributions of sugarsweetened beverages over time and across racial/ethnic subpopulations and socioeconomic groups. Some of the associations may surprise and challenge you regarding the associations with weight control. Looking at postpartum weight retention, Wiltheiss and colleagues (p 54) report results from a randomized clinical trial of overweight/obese postpartum women in North Carolina. The objective was to assess predictors of diet quality during early postpartum and investigate the impact on energy intake and weight loss. Again, some results are
surprising, but encourage further attention to this vulnerable population. Please be sure to also read the interesting review by Papoutsakis (p 77) who addressed the potential link between pediatric obesity and asthma. The provocative Research and Professional Brief by Park and colleagues (p 106) further addresses the question of whether regular soda intake—independent of weight—is associated with asthma among high school students. Finally, the Commentary by Miller (p 25) considers the use of lorcaserin as a potential weight loss aid and reviews the involvement of the Food and Drug Administration in its approval. These and other topics await your careful consideration as you start this new year armed with current weight control data and emerging science to help you face your colleagues and clients. Best regards.
Linda Van Horn, PhD, RD Editor-in-Chief doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2012.11.021
References 1.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Clinical practice guidelines and reports in development. www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/ indevelop.htm#status. Updated November 2012. Accessed November 26, 2012.
2.
Henney JE, Taylor CL, Boon CS. Strategies to Reduce Sodium Intake in the United States. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2010.
3.
Institute of Medicine. Promoting Cardiovascular Health in the Developing World: A Critical Challenge to Achieve Global Health. Washington, DC: National Academies Press; 2010.
JOURNAL OF THE ACADEMY OF NUTRITION AND DIETETICS
9