More reasons to promote breast-feeding

Promoting optimal infant nutrition is central to public health nutrition efforts worldwide. In this issue, Camurdan et al.⁽Reference Camurdan, Ilhan, Beyazova, Sahin, Vatandas and Eminoglu¹⁾ present results from a descriptive cross-sectional study of infants in Turkey to assess factors associated with premature discontinuation of breast-feeding. Among the findings it is interesting to note that mothers’ concern about the adequacy of breast milk supply (and/or quality) continues to be a major determinant of breast-feeding cessation. Breast-feeding cessation introduces infants to a range of risks associated with artificial (non-breast) feeding. Paramount among these risks is the exposure to bacterial contamination associated with unhygienic bottles, water supplies and/or formula preparation. Renfrew et al.⁽Reference Renfrew, McLoughlin and McFadden²⁾ contribute a systematic review of studies to assess the clinical and cost-effectiveness of different methods of cleaning and sterilisation of infant feeding equipment used in the home. They report that the striking finding from their study is the lack of good-quality information on clinical and cost-effective ways of cleaning and sterilising infant feeding equipment in the home, especially under conditions relevant to families in developed countries in the 21st century.

Tea with your fish?

Dietary guidance about ubiquitous beverages such as tea and coffee appears to be limited, if not ambiguous. Binns et al.⁽Reference Binns, Lee and Fraser³⁾ present a review of the evidence linking tea and coffee consumption with health outcomes and conclude that, based on current evidence, nutritionists should advocate tea as part of a healthy diet and as a superior choice to coffee, primarily because it appears to reduce the risk of succumbing to a range of diseases.

Studies that assess the risks associated with compliance with dietary guidance are rarely published but very important. Regular fish consumption is widely promoted to enhance intakes of long-chain PUFA. Sioen et al.⁽Reference Sioen, De Henauw, Verbeke, Verdonck, Willems and Van Camp⁴⁾ report on a study in which published nutrient and contaminant data were used in a probabilistic model to calculate the simultaneous nutrient and contaminant intake for different fish consumption scenarios. The conclude that twice weekly consumption of fatty fish does not expose consumers to significant toxicological risks from heavy metal contaminants such as Hg, but may be a concern for organic pollutants such as dioxin.

Beware the Internet

There has been a lot of interest and debate internationally about the impact of media advertising of foods and beverages, particularly that targeting children. Much of the research to date has focused on television advertising, but there is increasing concern about marketing via the Internet. Kelly et al.⁽Reference Kelly, Bochynska, Kornman and Chapman⁵⁾ describe the nature and extent of food marketing on popular children’s websites and food product websites in Australia. They report that Internet food marketing uses a range of techniques to ensure that children are immersed in brand-related information and activities for extended periods, thereby increasing brand familiarity and exposure.

Get friendly with a journalist

The media’s impact on public awareness of food and nutrition issues is not only influenced by the sometimes pernicious effect of advertising, but also by how the media reports on nutrition research. Basu and Hogard⁽Reference Basu and Hogard⁶⁾ present research that explores the quality of tabloid articles reporting on nutrition research, and public attitudes towards it. They use a qualitative multi-method approach consisting of a systematic analysis of tabloid articles and a series of focus groups with members of the public. They report that tabloid reporting on nutrition research is not sufficiently accurate, balanced or contextualised, and public attitudes towards the reporting are not wholly favourable. This may not surprise many who work in this field, but it does point to the need for greater engagement between nutritionists and journalists to ensure that the quality of messages from our research is enhanced.