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Welcome
to the September edition of AFICNews.
AFICNews is a free
monthly e-bulletin, providing updates on current food safety, health and
nutrition news trends around the Asia Pacific region. If you are not
already subscribed, but would like your own monthly copy, please send a
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info@afic.org with your request to subscribe or unsubscribe, and we
can do the rest.
DATES
FOR YOUR DIARY
NEW
FROM AFIC
AFIC “Health Lifestyle for Kids: Parents and Children FAQ’s hand out, a
collection of the most frequently asked questions (FAO’s), parents and
their kids have on healthy eating and lifestyle is now available in 3
languages:
For
more information or journalist enquiries, email
info@afic.org.
Most
Frequently Reported Food Safety and Nutrition News in Singapore
Magazines
Note: These figures
are based on simple counting method of topic headings and do not allow
for differences in length or depth of feature articles.
COMMENTS
ON MOST POPULAR TOPICS
Healthy
Eating/Lifestyle
(19%)
This topic which embraces a wide range of issues which impact
development and progression of chronic degenerative diseases such as
stroke, heart disease, hypertension, Type 2 diabetes is always a common
topic for magazine articles. In the coming months, AFIC will be
contributing to awareness of this topic with information releases
intended to support Global Awareness Days, including World Heart Day
(September 25th), World Diabetes Day (October 14th).
You can pick up the latest information releases from AFIC by clicking on
the
Press Centre.You
may also like to visit World Heart Day website by clicking on
www.worldheartday.com
F unctional
Foods (19%)
This topic also tends to be a very popular topic in AFIC’s
magazine surveys. There is no single, universal definition for
functional foods; however, the description of ‘foods for which there is
scientific evidence that their consumption may provide direct health
benefits beyond basic nutrition’ is probably most accurate. One of the
most extensively researched functional foods, which has is a very
common, and traditional food ingredient in Asia is the soybean and
products derived from soy, such as tofu, miso, soy milk and tempeh.
On 7th and 8th of October this year, an
international conference ‘Soy and Health 2004 – Clinical Evidence and
Dietetic Applications’ is being held to examine the latest findings on
potential health benefits of soy consumption, and opportunities to
increase soy content in the diet. In advance of this conference, AFIC
has summarized some of the most well recognized health benefits reported
to date. AFIC’s information release can be accessed by clicking
here.
Further information about the conference can be accessed by clicking on
www.soyconference.com
Supplements
(10%)
Dietary supplements may be described as products which include active
ingredients which may be beneficial to health, but which are consumed in
a non-food presentation; for example, elixir, powder or capsule. Dietary
supplements may be taken to boost dietary intakes of minerals, vitamins,
essential fatty acid or other nutrients, or as a method of consuming
non-essential active ingredients which may be beneficial to health
status beyond a contribution to basic nutrition. Some individuals choose
to consume supplements to boost overall health status or in response to
specific health needs. One example recently featured in an AFIC Food
Facts Asia article was the use of supplements in older people who may
have diminished appetite. This article may be accessed
here.
Children’s
Diet & Health (10%)
This is a topic which receives increasingly greater coverage in
lifestyles magazines surveyed by AFIC. In addition to interest in the
contribution that diet can make in maximizing children’s growth and
development, there is increasing interest in limiting diet and lifestyle
factors which may contribute to long-term health status, extending even
into adulthood. In particular, there is increasing focus on rising rates
of childhood overweight and obesity which are known to increase the risk
of overweight and obesity in adulthood. AFIC recently published a short
article providing advice for parents on how to encourage long-term
healthy diet and lifestyle habits amongst their children. This article
available in English, Thai and Chinese language can be accessed by
clicking
here.
Overweight
/ Obesity / Weight control (6%)
With rising rates of overweight and obesity over much of the
Asia Pacific region including in Singapore, it is hardly surprising that
this topic is so regularly tracked in AFIC’s magazine surveys as one of
the most popular topics. Overweight and obesity present serious health
risks both in the development of chronic degenerative diseases such as
heart disease, abnormal blood lipids, diabetes and hypertension, and
also increase likelihood of onset of illness such as gall stones, and
associated complications.
There is currently a great deal of research and debate into how
overweight and obesity should be defined in Asia, and how such
definitions can be used as health action points. AFIC recently
summarized current expert opinion, and this information can be accessed
by clicking
here.
Cancer
& Diet (6%)
Diet is estimated to be a significant factor in at least 30%
of diagnosed cases of cancer, and some experts believe this figure may
be significantly higher. However, there is a great deal of confusion and
misunderstanding surrounding this topic, with few lay people having any
true understanding of exactly which diet and lifestyles factors have
been confirmed to protect against cancer, and which increase risk.
AFIC has summarized, and provided an information release on some of the
best known diet-related factors and cancer. In addition, AFIC prepared
an article which provides some oversight on food safety risks,
dispelling some common myths on links between diet and cancer, and
providing practical advice on sensible and safe diet choices. Steps to
Beat Cancer Naturally can be accessed by clicking
here. How Safe is our Food?
article can be accessed by clicking
here.
Exercise
& Chronic Disease Related to Diet (5%)
Globally, there is increasing recognition of the essential benefits of
regular physical activity for the promotion of long-term health and
well-being, as well as its protective role against the development of
chronic degenerative diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and
overweight.
The World Health
Organisation has been actively promoting regular physical activity for a
number of years; and in support of WHO’s ‘Move for Health’ World Health
Day in 2002, AFIC prepared a short information release on some of the
many benefits and suggestions on how these might be achieved. This
information remains fully topical and reflects many current
communications on the topic. The original information release can be
accessed by clicking
here.
The
Asian Food information Centre is a not-for profit Singapore-registered
organization Its
mission is to effectively communicate sound science based information on
food safety, health and nutrition to the
media and other key audiences in Asia
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