User:Ntal123/Preventive nutrition

History
Preventive nutrition has been known about for a long time. The philosopher Hippocrates (460-377 BC) believed that nutrition had a significant impact on maintaining health and that the best way to prevent diseases was to "let food be your medicine and medicine be your food.” Meyer-Abich (2005) also believed that nutrition was foundational to a healthy life. He took a holistic approach to health and discussed the essential role of nutrition in his paper, "Human health in nature - towards a holistic philosophy of nutrition."

Since the early 1980s, food trends have changed. There was the introduction of processed foods which gained fast popularization. During the commercialization and industrialization of food, the demand for processed, prepackaged, convenient food such as beef in fast food increased (citation needed). Farmers began to industrially farm livestock to produce more meat due to industry demand. As a result, livestock feed is often corn, soy, and grain. Compared to grass-fed beef, grain-fed beef is higher in saturated fatty acids along with a less favorable omega fatty acids profile. Processed, prepackaged, and convenient food options often contain high amounts of sugar, sodium, and fat, and are associated with the development of poor health outcomes.

Disease Prevention
There is a rising prevalence of nutrition related diseases in the world today. Chronic disease epidemics associated with nutrition including obesity, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, and cancers are increasing. According to the World Health Organization, the amount of people with obesity has tripled since 1975. A survey conducted in China among the hypertensive population highlights that obesity contributes to the development of hypertension. Only about half of the participants were aware of their hypertension diagnosis and only 20.3% had their hypertension under control. The article also showed a correlation between poor hypertension control and obesity. Preventive nutrition may be a helpful strategy to help control obesity and chronic non-communicable diseases. In those with obesity, a weight reduction of 10% has been demonstrated to prevent non-communicable diseases and increase life expectancy. The Mediterranean diet has been investigated in many studies as a tool for weight loss. Results show that adhering to a Mediterranean diet initiates weight loss and decreases fat mass which prevents or reduces the risk of non-communicable disease, including type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It is also associated with a reduced risk of mortality in certain populations, including those with obesity, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

The Mediterranean Diet
Although life expectancy has increased over the years, quality of life or “healthy years” have not. In Western countries, approximately 2/3 of adults are obese and diets with low nutrient dense products (e.g. highly processed foods) have increased. The risk of developing a chronic disease such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, cancers, depression, and osteoarthritis is higher in those with obesity (i.e. BMI over 30) and increases healthcare costs. Several diets have been studied to analyze their effect on weight loss and prevention of chronic diseases. These include, the ketogenic diet, low fat diets, low carbohydrate diets, the Mediterranean diet, and many more. The Mediterranean diet was first examined in the 1950s with the Seven Countries Study in Greece and Italy after World War II. Compared to Western countries, a low incidence of heart disease and cancer was observed. It has been studied extensively and has the most available evidence supporting its use to prevent non-communicable diseases and aid with weight loss, but it is not the only diet shown to help with weight loss and improved health outcomes. In general, the Mediterranean diet consists of high intakes of fruit, vegetables, seeds, nuts, whole grains, fish and other seafood, and extra virgin olive oil as the fat source when cooking. It has a moderate intake of legumes, poultry, eggs, dairy products, and red wine, and a low intake of red or processed meat, animal fat, and high sugar foods.

Future of Preventive Nutrition
Although there is evidence that nutrition plays a role in obesity and chronic disease development, there are many other factors to consider to as well. Unmodifiable risk factors or other lifestyle choices may put certain individuals at higher risk. Exercise may have contributed to weight loss observed in studies as well. Outcomes also differ depending on the chronic disease. For example, the effect of a Mediterranean diet on cardiovascular outcomes is uncertain and more research should be carried out to assess its role. Therefore, a holistic approach to weight loss and chronic disease prevention is important, which includes preventive nutrition.