Francesco Visioli
Francesco Sofi- 1Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Padova, Padua, Italy
- 2IMDEA-Food, Madrid, Spain
- 3Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
Editorial on the Research Topic
Analyzing the Relationship Between Dietary Patterns, Health Outcomes, and Individual Food Choices
Diet is a major contributor to human health and proper food choices can greatly improve prognosis (1). The mechanisms of action underlying the effects of selected food items are still under active investigation. This is why it is important to collect epidemiological, experimental, and biochemical data on individual food choices and health outcomes. One example (but there are many other ones) is that of the Mediterranean diet, where a collection of ample epidemiological evidence (2) coupled with literally hundreds of biochemical studies elucidating the cellular actions of selected components such as olive oil (3) or legumes (4), and at least one large clinical trial, i.e., the PREDIMED (5), built the basis for its election as one of the healthiest diets worldwide.
In this issue of Frontiers in Nutrition, we compiled 22 articles spanning the whole area of human nutrition, from, e.g., restricted time feeding to the metabolic differences between refined and whole grains. Low-grade, chronic inflammation plays an important role in the development or prevention of degenerative diseases such as atherosclerosis, cardiovascular disease, neurodegeneration, and cancer (6). The diet inflammatory index is one way to estimate the link between the pro- or anti-inflammatory potential of the food we eat and the health outcomes associated with it. Future investigations should, indeed, take this and other parameters into account in addition to the mere calorie intake and/or macronutrient profiles.
Thanks to the progresses made by food technology, modern diets are—on average—more nutritious and affordable than the ancient ones. One issue that is gaining traction is that of the so-called ultra-processed foods (7). Even though this notion is highly debated because of the complete lack of biological plausibility (8), data are accumulating that show how (based on current classifications) high consumption of this food category might be associated with poorer prognosis in various areas, including the psychiatric one. This is certainly an issue worth exploring more in depth, leaving ideology aside.
In summary, this Research Topic of Frontiers in Nutrition contributes to increasing our knowledge of how dietary choices affect our health and will help shape informed public health policies. In the future, the use of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and appropriate analysis of big data will further improve our dietary profiles, leading to personalized nutrition based on an individual's genetic background (9). We envision a strong acceleration of nutrigenomics, nutrigenetics, and epigenetics to implement solid guidelines in the developed and developing worlds.
Author Contributions
FV and FS wrote the article. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Publisher's Note
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References
1. Lichtenstein H, Appel LJ, Vadiveloo M, Hu FB, Kris-Etherton PM, Rebholz CM, et al. 2021 dietary guidance to improve cardiovascular health: a scientific statement from the American heart association. Circulation. (2021) 144:e472–7. doi: 10.1161/CIR.0000000000001031
2. Dinu M, Pagliai G, Casini A, Sofi F. Mediterranean diet and multiple health outcomes: an umbrella review of meta-analyses of observational studies and randomised trials. Eur J Clin Nutr. (2018) 72:30–43. doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2017.58
3. Visioli F, Franco M, Toledo E, Luchsinger J, Willett WC, Hu FB, et al. Olive oil and prevention of chronic diseases: summary of an international conference. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. (2018) 28:649–56. doi: 10.1016/j.numecd.2018.04.004
4. Herforth A, Arimond M, Alvarez-Sanchez C, Coates J, Christianson K, Muehlhoff E. A global review of food-based dietary guidelines. Adv Nutr. (2019) 10:590–605. doi: 10.1093/advances/nmy130
5. Estruch R, Ros E, Salas-Salvado J, Covas MI, Corella D, Aros F, et al. Primary prevention of cardiovascular disease with a mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil or nuts. N Engl J Med. (2018) 378:e34. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1800389
6. Calder PC, Bosco N, Bourdet-Sicard R, Capuron L, Delzenne N, Dore J, et al. Health relevance of the modification of low grade inflammation in ageing (inflammageing) and the role of nutrition. Ageing Res Rev. (2017) 40:95–119. doi: 10.1016/j.arr.2017.09.001
7. Martinez-Perez C, San-Cristobal R, Guallar-Castillon P, Martinez-Gonzalez MA, Salas-Salvado J, Corella D, et al. Use of different food classification systems to assess the association between ultra-processed food consumption and cardiometabolic health in an elderly population with metabolic syndrome (PREDIMED-plus cohort). Nutrients. (2021) 13:2471. doi: 10.3390/nu13072471
8. Gibney MJ, Forde CG, Mullally D, Gibney RE. Ultra-processed foods in human health: a critical appraisal. Am J Clin Nutr. (2017) 106:717–24. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.117.160440
Keywords: diet, obesity, Mediterranean diet, inflammation, personalized nutrition
Citation: Visioli F and Sofi F (2022) Editorial: Analyzing the Relationship Between Dietary Patterns, Health Outcomes, and Individual Food Choices. Front. Nutr. 9:840554. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.840554
Received: 21 December 2021; Accepted: 07 January 2022;
Published: 01 February 2022.
Edited and reviewed by: Mauro Serafini, University of Teramo, Italy
Copyright © 2022 Visioli and Sofi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Francesco Visioli, ZnJhbmNlc2NvLnZpc2lvbGlAdW5pcGQuaXQ=