The human consumption of grain legumes and pulses in Europe and the EU is lower than in other regions of the world. However, there is a lot of variation between countries and an overall slight increase has been observed in recent years. The major trends in the EU pulse market are illustrated here with a specific focus on Spain, France and the UK, which account for about 60% of the EU pulse consumption. The ways in which pulses are consumed are very different in the various EU countries, due to different regional food habits and traditions, and to differences in the supplies of grain legumes and the markets. Canned products dominate pulse sales compared with dry pulses sold in packets. Dry beans are the most consumed of the pulses in the EU, but the preference between species varies according to country. The factors limiting the consumption of pulses in the EU are mainly: an inadequate level of innovation for developing products adapted to modern life, a small home supply of pulses and competition from cheaper low-quality imports. Recently, however, consumers are favouring healthy and balanced vegetable diets. Pulses have significant nutritional and health advantages for consumers and their cultivation has a positive impact on agriculture and the environment. Therefore the trend in the consumption of pulses could change, especially if publicity about the benefits of pulses is improved and if the food industry and professional organizations take up the challenge to incorporate grain legumes in novel, convenient and healthy food products.

The challenge for the modern health care system is to fight against the increasing prevalence of atopic disease. The introduction of scientifically composed probiotic functional foods for prophylactic or therapeutic purposes could be one solution. Probiotics are live microbial food supplements or components of bacteria which have beneficial effects on human health. Specific strains have been demonstrated to exert powerful anti-pathogenic, anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic effects. The hygiene hypothesis suggests that atopic disease may arise from a lack of counterbalancing microbial exposure at an early age. The initial compositional development of the gut microflora is considered a key determinant of the development of both the immune responder phenotype and normal gut barrier functions. The regulatory role of probiotics in human allergic disease was first emphasised in the demonstration of a suppressive effect on lymphocyte proliferation and interleukin-4 generation in vitro. Subsequently, a significant improvement in the clinical course of atopic eczema was reported in infants given a probiotic-supplemented diet. The potential of probiotics to reduce the risk of atopic disease has recently been demonstrated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study: probiotics administered pre- and postnatally for 6 months to at-risk subjects reduced the prevalence of atopic eczema to half of that observed in infants receiving placebo. Ongoing research is directed towards the development of novel techniques to characterise the gut microflora. Future research will clarify the mechanisms to control specific physiological processes in the evolution of atopic disease in at-risk populations or in the management of allergic diseases.

Research on food and nutrition has been an important topic in all Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development of the European Commission. From the Second Framework Programme (ECU 2 million for four projects on functional foods) to the Fifth Framework Programme (€51 million for thirty-three projects on functional foods), the investment in research projects on functional foods has been increasing by quite an extent. In the early 1990s, the topics were fibres, pro-, pre- and synbiotics. Nowadays, the range of subjects has been broadened to antioxidative effects, vitamins, phyto-oestrogens and the socio-economic area.

Both intake of whole grain and higher levels of serum enterolactone have been related to reduced risk for CHD and some cancers. Because lignans are prevalent in the outer layers of grains, these findings may be related. We carried out a crossover feeding study in which overweight, hyperinsulinaemic, non-diabetic men (n 5) and women (n 6) ate, in random order, wholegrain foods or refined-grain foods in a diet with 30% energy from fat. The dominant whole grain was wheat, followed by oats and rice. All food was supplied by the investigators and each diet lasted for 6 weeks, with an intervening washout period of 6–9 weeks. Serum enterolactone concentrations were higher when eating the wholegrain than the refined-grain diet by 6·2 (within person SE 1·7) nmol/l (P=0·0008). Most of the increase in serum enterolactone when eating the wholegrain diet occurred within 2 weeks, though the serum enterolactone difference between wholegrain and refined-grain diets continued to increase through 6 weeks. Serum enterolactone concentrations can be raised by eating a diet rich in whole grains.

South-east Asian women have a lower rate of breast cancer compared with their counterparts in western countries and the difference in soyabean consumption has been claimed to be a major contributing factor. Genistein is the most studied phytochemical in the soyabean. An anti-oestrogenic effect is believed to play a crucial part in its chemopreventive mechanism. In the present study, we expressed oestrogen receptor (OR) in an OR-negative cell line, HepG2, to investigate the pro- and anti-oestrogenic effect of genistein on the OR transcriptional activity. Genistein by itself had an estimated concentration that induced 50 % of the maximum response (EC50) of 2·5 μM FOR THE BINDING TO OR-α. IN THESE EXPERIMENTS, GENISTEIN CONCENTRATION AS HIGH AS 50 μM could not reduce the oestrogen response element-driven luciferase activities initiated by oestradiol. Instead, genistein potentiated the OR transactivational activity while cell death was detected. On the other hand, an increased Bak and a reduced Bcl-x(L) was observed at 50 μm-genistein by Western analysis. The combined effect of these two proteins could be important in the apoptotic process. Since plasma genistein >50 μm has never been documented following consuming of soyabean or soyabean products, the present study does not support the notion that dietary soyabean exerts its chemopreventive effect through antagonizing OR.

The present study investigated whether storage under modified-atmosphere packaging (MAP) affected the antioxidant properties of fresh lettuce (Lactuca sativa). Eleven healthy volunteers (six men, five women) consumed 250 g fresh lettuce, and blood was sampled before (0 h) and 2, 3 and 6 h after consumption. The protocol was repeated 3 d later with the same lettuce stored at 5°C under MAP conditions (O2–N2 (5:95, v/v)). Results showed that after ingestion of fresh lettuce, plasma total radical-trapping antioxidant potential (TRAP), measured as area under the curve, was significantly higher (1·3 (SEM 0·3) MMOL/L PER 6 H; P<0·05) THAN THE VALUE OBTAINED WITH MAP-STORED LETTUCE (0·1 (sem 0·2) mmol/l per 6 h). Plasma TRAP, quercetin and p-coumaric acid were significantly different from baseline values (P≤0·05) 2 and 3 h after fresh lettuce ingestion. Caffeic acid increased significantly at 3 h (P<0·05). Plasma β-carotene levels increased significantly at 6 h (P<0·05). Vitamin C concentrations (mg/l) rose from 10·9 (sem 2·0) to 12·7 (sem 3·0) (P<0·001), 12·7 (sem 2·0) (P<0·01) and 12·9 (sem 3·0) (P<0·05) at 0, 2, 3 and 6 h respectively. No changes were observed after ingestion of MAP-stored lettuce for all the measured markers. Our present results showed that ingestion of MAP-stored lettuce does not modify plasma redox status in healthy subjects. Further research is needed to develop post-harvesting techniques able to preserve the bioactive molecule content of plant food.

The effects of dietary saturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) of the n-3 and n-6 series on weight gain, body composition and substrate oxidation were investigated in broiler chickens. At 3 weeks of age three groups of chickens (n 30; ten birds per group) were fed the fat-enriched experimental diets for 5 weeks. These diets were isonitrogenous, isoenergetic and contained 208 g protein/kg and 80 g edible tallow, fish oil or sunflower oil/kg; the dietary fatty acid profiles were thus dominated by saturated fatty acids, n-3 PUFA or n-6 PUFA respectively. Resting RQ was measured in five birds from each treatment group during weeks 4 and 5 of the experiment. There were no significant differences between treatments in total feed intake or final body mass. Birds fed the PUFA diets had lower RQ and significantly reduced abdominal fat pad weights (P<0·01) compared with those fed tallow. The dietary lipid profile changes resulted in significantly greater partitioning of energy into lean tissue than into fat tissue (calculated as breast lean tissue weight:abdominal fat mass) in the PUFA groups compared with the saturated fat group (P<0·01; with no difference between the n-3 and n-6 PUFA groups). In addition, the PUFA-rich diets lowered plasma concentrations of serum triacylglycerols and cholesterol. The findings indicate that dietary fatty acid profile influences nutrient partitioning in broiler chickens.

In Latin America, pulse consumption ranges from 1 kg/capita per year (Argentina) to 25 kg/capita per year (Nicaragua). Common beans account for 87% of the total. The differences between countries, regions or groups of population within the same country can be explained by the following factors: (1) beans are very nutritious; (2) beans and maize are traditional foods and the habit of consuming them is deeply rooted in many people and communities; (3) the rural population eats more pulses than the urban population, due to geographical constraints that limit exchanges and favour consumption of locally produced foods; (4) income level, beans are still the poor man's meat; and (5) other factors, such as consumers' taste, the constraints on cooking beans, etc. The evolution of the consumption level in the future will depend on the urbanization of the population, access to processed foods and income level. Health issues would be an argument for maintaining or increasing the current consumption level.

In the context of this presentation, European means the European scientific community, which, over the last decade, has been working on the concepts for functional foods, producing a number of documents including a consensus paper, guidelines and scientific publications. The Functional Food Science in Europe (FUFOSE) project has been quite a unique attempt to establish a strong scientific framework to justify the functional food concept, to discover and develop new functional foods that are primarily function-driven, and to substantiate claims scientifically. Being clearly positioned as part of nutrition, the functional food concept is, however, quite distinct from other approaches like food supplementation or food fortification, and functional foods are different from nutraceuticals, pharmafoods, vitafoods and ‘alicaments’, all terms that are not defined conceptually. Functional foods are food products to be taken as part of the usual diet in order to have beneficial effects that go beyond what are known as traditional nutritional effects. Moreover, these beneficial effects have to be demonstrated scientifically to justify two specific types of claim: the enhanced function claim or the reduction of disease risk claim.

Functional food is a key concept for the future of nutrition as a science because it results from the implementation in nutrition of all the basic scientific knowledge that has accumulated over the past two or three decades. To the benefit of public health this progress cannot be ignored, it needs to be recognized fully and used. But, today, functional food is still mainly a scientific concept that serves to stimulate research and the development of new products.

Sixteen female cross-bred (Large White × Landrace) pigs (initial weight 65 kg) with venous catheters were randomly allocated to four treatment groups in a 2×2 factorial design. The respective factors were dietary fat (25 or 100 g/kg) and dietary conjugated linoleic acid (CLA; 0 or 10 g CLA-55/kg). Pigs were fed every 3 h (close to ad libitum digestible energy intake) for 8 d and were bled frequently. Plasma glucose and non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) responses to insulin and adrenaline challenges were determined on day 8. Plasma concentrations of NEFA were significantly increased (10·5 and 5·4 % for low- and high-fat diets respectively, P=0·015) throughout the experiment, suggesting that there was a possible increase in fat mobilisation. The increase in lipolysis, an indicator of ß-adrenergic stimulated lipolysis, was also evident in the NEFA response to adrenaline. However, the increase in plasma triacylglycerol (11·0 and 7·1 % for low- and high-fat diets respectively, P=0·008) indicated that CLA could have reduced fat accretion via decreased adipose tissue triacylglycerol synthesis from preformed fatty acids, possibly through reduced lipoprotein lipase activity. Plasma glucose, the primary substrate for de novo lipid synthesis, and plasma insulin levels were unaffected by dietary CLA suggesting that de novo lipid synthesis was largely unaffected (P=0·24 and P=0·30 respectively). In addition, the dietary CLA had no effect upon the ability of insulin to stimulate glucose removal.

The effects of diets high in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA; provided by fish oil), n-6 PUFA (sunflower oil) or in more-saturated fatty acids (tallow) on the distribution of subclasses of choline phospholipids (PC) and ethanolamine phospholipids (PE) from the breast muscle of broiler chickens were examined. Supplementation with the different fatty acids had no effect on the distribution of phospholipid subclasses. Feeding sunflower oil or tallow gave a molecular-species profile similar in both fatty acid subtype and proportion. In the diacyl PC phospholipids, 16: 0–18: 1n-9 and 16: 0–18: 2n-6 accounted for approximately 60 % of the total molecular species, whereas for the alkylenyl PC the predominant species were 16: 0–18: 1n-9 and 16: 0–20: 4n-6. Of the diacyl PE the dominant species was 18: 0–20: 4n-6 which accounted for 50 % of the molecular species, and of the alkylenyl PE the dominant species were 16: 0–18: 1n-9, 16: 0–20: 4n-6 and 18: 0–20: 4n-6. Supplementation with fish oil significantly increased levels of both eicosapentaenoic acid (20: 5n-3) and docosahexaenoic acid (22: 6n-3) in PC and PE when compared with either sunflower oil or tallow supplementation. The increase in the n-3 PUFA incorporation was associated with a corresponding decrease in the proportion of arachidonic acid (20: 4n-6) in both PC and PE. Different dietary fats induce different patterns of fatty acid incorporation and substitution in the sn-2 position of the diacyl and alkylenyl PC and PE of avian breast muscle, and this finding is indicative of selective acyl remodelling in these two phospholipids.

Our knowledge on the absorption of folate is incomplete. The deconjugation process as a possible limiting factor in the absorption of folates was investigated. The study also attempted to validate the use of the area under the serum response curve (AUC) from food compared with folic acid as a proxy variable for food folate bioavailability. Folate absorption was determined in healthy ileostomy volunteers (n 11) using a single-dose short-term protocol. In a randomised crossover design, volunteers received spinach meals and a supplement. Based on analysis of test meals and ileostomy effluents, there was no difference in folate absorption between spinach with a mono-:polyglutamate ratio 40:60 and the same spinach with a 100:0 ratio. The absolute absorption of spinach folate (79 %) calculated from the difference between folate intake and folate content of ileostomy effluents was approximately equal to the relative absorption (81 %) calculated from the AUC after consumption of spinach meals in relation to the AUC after consumption of the folic acid supplement. We conclude that the deconjugation process is not a limiting factor in the absorption of spinach folates. Comparison of AUC of food folate v. folic acid in a short-term protocol may be suitable for assessing food folate bioavailability.

Maternal malnutrition can lead to fetal abnormalities and increase susceptibility to disease in later life. Rat models have been developed to study the physiology and metabolism underlying this phenomenon. One particular model of 50% protein restriction during pregnancy, the low-protein diet (LPD) supplemented with methionine, has been developed to investigate the underlying mechanisms. Recent studies have shown that rats fed a LPD during only the first 4 d of pregnancy produce offspring that develop hypertension. These results suggest that the very earliest stages of embryo development are susceptible to diet-induced heritable changes. We demonstrate a marked elevation of maternal serum homocysteine (hcy) concentrations during the initial phases of pregnancy in both rats and mice fed an LPD. Fetal growth and many of the circulating amino acids are similarly perturbed in both rats and mice fed the LPD during pregnancy, indicating that the response to the LPD diet is similar in rats and mice. These findings allow us to exploit the advantages of the mouse experimental system in future analyses aimed at understanding the molecular basis of fetal programming. Our present findings are discussed with particular reference to mechanisms which may initiate fetal programming, and to the feasibility of dietary interventions aimed at reducing early pregnancy loss and pre-eclampsia in man.

Increasingly, the microbiological scientific community is relying on molecular biology to define the complexity of the gut flora and to distinguish one organism from the next. This is particularly pertinent in the field of probiotics, and probiotic therapy, where identifying probiotics from the commensal flora is often warranted. Current techniques, including genetic fingerprinting, gene sequencing, oligonucleotide probes and specific primer selection, discriminate closely related bacteria with varying degrees of success. Additional molecular methods being employed to determine the constituents of complex microbiota in this area of research are community analysis, denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE)/temperature gradient gel electrophoresis (TGGE), fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH) and probe grids. Certain approaches enable specific aetiological agents to be monitored, whereas others allow the effects of dietary intervention on bacterial populations to be studied. Other approaches demonstrate diversity, but may not always enable quantification of the population. At the heart of current molecular methods is sequence information gathered from culturable organisms. However, the diversity and novelty identified when applying these methods to the gut microflora demonstrates how little is known about this ecosystem. Of greater concern is the inherent bias associated with some molecular methods. As we understand more of the complexity and dynamics of this diverse microbiota we will be in a position to develop more robust molecular-based technologies to examine it. In addition to identification of the microbiota and discrimination of probiotic strains from commensal organisms, the future of molecular biology in the field of probiotics and the gut flora will, no doubt, stretch to investigations of functionality and activity of the microflora, and/or specific fractions. The quest will be to demonstrate the roles of probiotic strains in vivo and not simply their presence or absence.

The aim of the present study was to compare Fe absorption from industrially-manufactured and home-cooked cereal foods. Fe absorption was measured using the radiolabelled Fe extrinsic tag technique in thirty-nine adult human subjects from cereal porridges manufactured by extrusion cooking or roller-drying, and from the same cereal flours after home cooking to produce pancakes, chappattis or bread. One series of cereal porridges was amylase-treated in addition before roller-drying. Fe absorption was relatively low from all products, ranging from 1·8–5·5% for rice, 2·5–3·5% for maize, 4·9–13·6 % for low-extraction wheat, and <1% for high-extraction wheat foods. The phytic acid content remained high after drying of the cereal porridges being about 1·20, 1·70, 3·20, 3·30 mg/g in low-extraction wheat, rice, high-extraction wheat and maize products respectively, and could explain the low Fe absorption. There were little or no differences in Fe absorption between the extruded and roller-dried cereals, although amylase pre-treatment increased Fe absorption from the roller-dried rice cereal 3-fold. This was not due to phytate degradation but possibly because of the more liquid nature of the cereal meal as fed. There were similarly few or no differences in Fe absorption between the industrially-processed cereals and home-cooked cereals made into pancakes or chappattis. Bread-making, however, degraded phytic acid to zero in the low-extraction wheat flour and Fe absorption increased to 13·6%, the greatest from all cereal foods tested. It is concluded that Fe absorption from extruded, roller-dried or home-cooked cereal foods is similarly low and that only those cooking procedures such as bread-making, which extensively degrades phytic acid, or amylase pre-treatment, which substantially liquifies cereal porridges, improve Fe absorption.

The capacity for conversion of α-linolenic acid (ALNA) to n−3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids was investigated in young men. Emulsified [U−13C]ALNA was administered orally with a mixed meal to six subjects consuming their habitual diet. Approximately 33 % of administered [13C]ALNA was recovered as 13CO2 on breath over the first 24 h. [13C]ALNA was mobilised from enterocytes primarily as chylomicron triacylglycerol (TAG), while [13C]ALNA incorporation into plasma phosphatidylcholine (PC) occurred later, probably by the liver. The time scale of conversion of [13C]ALNA to eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) suggested that the liver was the principal site of ALNA desaturation and elongation, although there was some indication of EPA and DPA synthesis by enterocytes. [13C]EPA and [13C]DPA concentrations were greater in plasma PC than TAG, and were present in the circulation for up to 7 and 14 d, respectively. There was no apparent 13C enrichment of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in plasma PC, TAG or non-esterified fatty acids at any time point measured up to 21 d. This pattern of 13C n−3 fatty acid labelling suggests inhibition or restriction of DHA synthesis downstream of DPA. [13C]ALNA, [13C]EPA and [13C]DPA were incorporated into erythrocyte PC, but not phosphatidylethanolamine, suggesting uptake of intact plasma PC molecules from lipoproteins into erythrocyte membranes. Since the capacity of adult males to convert ALNA to DHA was either very low or absent, uptake of pre-formed DHA from the diet may be critical for maintaining adequate membrane DHA concentrations in these individuals.

Probiotic ingestion can be recommended as a preventative approach to maintaining the balance of the intestinal microflora and thereby enhance ‘well-being’. Research into the use of probiotic intervention in specific illnesses and disorders has identified certain patient populations that may benefit from the approach. Undoubtedly, probiotics will vary in their efficacy and it may not be the case that the same results occur with all species. Those that prove most efficient will likely be strains that are robust enough to survive the harsh physico-chemical conditions present in the gastrointestinal tract. This includes gastric acid, bile secretions and competition with the resident microflora. A survey of the literature indicates positive results in over fifty human trials, with prevention/treatment of infections the most frequently reported output. In theory, increased levels of probiotics may induce a ‘barrier’ influence against common pathogens. Mechanisms of effect are likely to include the excretion of acids (lactate, acetate), competition for nutrients and gut receptor sites, immunomodulation and the formation of specific antimicrobial agents. As such, persons susceptible to diarrhoeal infections may benefit greatly from probiotic intake. On a more chronic basis, it has been suggested that some probiotics can help maintain remission in the inflammatory conditions, ulcerative colitis and pouchitis. They have also been suggested to repress enzymes responsible for genotoxin formation. Moreover, studies have suggested that probiotics are as effective as anti-spasmodic drugs in the alleviation of irritable bowel syndrome. The approach of modulating the gut flora for improved health has much relevance for the management of those with acute and chronic gut disorders. Other target groups could include those susceptible to nosocomial infections, as well as the elderly, who have an altered microflora, with a decreased number of beneficial microbial species. For the future, it is imperative that mechanistic interactions involved in probiotic supplementation be identified. Moreover, the survival issues associated with their establishment in the competitive gut ecosytem should be addressed. Here, the use of prebiotics in association with useful probiotics may be a worthwhile approach. A prebiotic is a dietary carbohydrate selectively metabolised by probiotics. Combinations of probiotics and prebiotics are known as synbiotics.

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) refers to a group of positional and geometric isomers of linoleic acid. Studies using animal models have shown that CLA reduces adiposity, improves plasma lipoprotein metabolism and insulin sensitivity and reduces arteriosclerosis. Whilst CLA may have therapeutic potential with regard to coronary artery disease risk factors in human subjects, there has been little investigation into its effects in human subjects. This current study investigated the effects of dietary supplementation using two isomeric blends of CLA on triacylglycerol (TAG)-rich lipoprotein metabolism and reverse cholesterol transport in human subjects and evaluates whether CLA modulated cardiovascular disease risk factors. Fifty-one normolipidaemic subjects participated in this randomised double-blind placebo-controlled intervention trial. Subjects were randomly assigned to receive 3 g cis-9,trans-11–trans-10,cis-12 isomeric blend (50: 50) or a cis-9,trans-11–trans-10,cis-12 isomeric blend (80: 20) CLA or linoleic acid (control)/d for 8 weeks. The 50: 50 CLA isomer blend significantly reduced (P≤0·005) fasting plasma TAG concentrations. The 80: 20 CLA isomer blend significantly reduced (P≤0·05) VLDL-cholesterol concentrations. CLA supplementation had no significant effect on LDL-cholesterol, HDL-lipid-protein composition or reverse cholesterol transport. CLA supplementation had no effect on body weight, plasma glucose and insulin concentrations. Fatty acid analysis revealed that the cis-9,trans-11 CLA isomer was incorporated into total plasma lipids following supplementation with both isomeric blends of CLA. The present study demonstrates that CLA supplementation significantly improves plasma TAG and VLDL metabolism in human subjects. The study confirms that some of the cardio-protective effects of CLA that were shown in animal studies are relevant to man.

There is an old Chinese thought meaning that medicine and food are isogenic. In Japan, a national research project started to endorse the thought scientifically, with the birth of functional foods that are now known to function to reduce the risk of life-style related diseases. The science gave rise to a national policy in which some functional foods were legally approved in terms of Foods for Specified Health Use. China has also constructed a unique system for approving some functional foods. This paper pinpoints a recent trend of functional foods characteristic to Asia, with special reference to relevant topics in Japan.

The present study investigated metabolic responses to fat and carbohydrate ingestion in lean male individuals consuming an habitual diet high or low in fat. Twelve high-fat phenotypes (HF) and twelve low-fat phenotypes (LF) participated in the study. Energy intake and macronutrient intake variables were assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. Resting (RMR) and postprandial metabolic rate and substrate oxidation (respiratory quotient; RQ) were measured by indirect calorimetry. HF had a significantly higher RMR and higher resting heart rate than LF. These variables remained higher in HF following the macronutrient challenge. In all subjects the carbohydrate load increased metabolic rate and heart rate significantly more than the fat load. Fat oxidation (indicated by a low RQ) was significantly higher in HF than in LF following the fat load; the ability to oxidise a high carbohydrate load did not differ between the groups. Lean male subjects consuming a diet high in fat were associated with increased energy expenditure at rest and a relatively higher fat oxidation in response to a high fat load; these observations may be partly responsible for maintaining energy balance on a high-fat (high-energy) diet. In contrast, a low consumer of fat is associated with relatively lower energy expenditure at rest and lower fat oxidation, which has implications for weight gain if high-fat foods or meals are periodically introduced to the diet.