Agro‐food systems are undergoing rapid innovation in the world and the system's continuum is promoted at different scales with one of the main outcomes to improve nutrition of consumers. Consumer knowledge through educational outreach is important to food and nutrition security and consumer demands guide breeding efforts. Maize is an important part of food systems. It is a staple food and together with rice and wheat, they provide 60% of the world's caloric intake. In addition to being a major contributor to global food and nutrition security, maize forms an important part of the culinary culture in many areas of Africa, the Americas, and Asia. Maize genetics are being exploited to improve human nutrition with the ultimate outcome of improving overall health. By impacting the health of maize consumers, market opportunities will be opened for maize producers with unique genotypes. Although maize is a great source of macronutrients, it is also a source of many micronutrients and phytochemicals purported to confer health benefits. The process of biofortification through traditional plant breeding has increased the protein, provitamin A carotenoid, and zinc contents of maize. The objective of this paper is to review the innovations developed and promoted to improve the nutritional profiles of maize and outcomes of the maize agro‐food system.

Background: Emerging evidence suggests a role for diet in multiple sclerosis (MS) care; however, due to methodological issues and heterogeneity of dietary interventions in preliminary trials, the current state of evidence does not support dietary recommendations for MS. Objective: To assess the efficacy of different dietary approaches on MS-related fatigue and quality of life (QoL) through a systematic review of the literature and network meta-analysis (NMA). Methods: Electronic database searches were performed in May 2021. Inclusion criteria were: 1) randomized trial with a dietary intervention; 2) adults with definitive MS based on McDonald criteria; 3) patient-reported outcomes for fatigue and/or QoL; and 4) minimum intervention period of 4 weeks. For each outcome, standardized mean differences (SMDs) were calculated and included in random effects NMA to determine the pooled effect of each dietary intervention relative to each of the other dietary interventions. The protocol was registered at PROSPERO (CRD42021262648). Results: Twelve trials comparing 8 dietary interventions (low-fat, Mediterranean, ketogenic, anti-inflammatory, Paleolithic, fasting, calorie restriction, and control [usual diet]), enrolling 608 participants, were included in the primary analysis. The Paleolithic (SMD: -1.27; 95% CI: -1.81, -0.74), low-fat (SMD: -0.90; 95% CI: -1.39, -0.42), and Mediterranean (SMD: -0.89; 95% CI: -1.15, -0.64) diets showed greater reductions in fatigue compared to control. The Paleolithic (SMD: 1.01; 95% CI 0.40, 1.63) and Mediterranean (SMD: 0.47; 95% CI 0.08, 0.86) diets showed greater improvements in physical QoL compared to control. For improving mental QoL, the Paleolithic (SMD: 0.81; 95% CI 0.26, 1.37) and Mediterranean (SMD: 0.36; 95% CI 0.06, 0.65) diets were more effective compared to control. However, the NutriGRADE credibility of evidence for all direct comparisons is very low due to most of the included trials having high or moderate risk of bias, small sample sizes, and the limited number of studies included in this NMA. Discussion: Several dietary interventions may reduce MS-related fatigue and improve physical and mental QoL; however, due to the limitations of this NMA, which are driven by the low quality of the included trials, these findings must be confirmed in high quality, randomized, controlled trials.

The prevalence of undernutrition due to insufficient energy intake has been reduced by nearly 50% since 1990. This reduction is largely attributed to improved yields of staple crops, such as wheat, rice, and maize; however, these improvements did little for micronutrient deficiencies that affect an estimated two billion people worldwide. Starchy staple crops are energy dense but are often lacking in one or more B vitamins, making resource‐constrained people who consume monotonous diets comprised predominantly of these staples at risk for developing deficiency. B vitamin deficiencies occur due to a poor overall nondiversified diet and rarely occur alone. Many B vitamins are essential cofactors involved in the metabolism of other nutrients, including other B vitamins, whereby the deficiency of one B vitamin affects the metabolism and status measurements of another. Food fortification efforts have nearly eradicated diseases of extreme B vitamin deficiency, such as beriberi from thiamin deficiency and pellagra from niacin deficiency. However, subclinical deficiency, sometimes referred to as hidden hunger, is still common especially in low‐income countries. Most dietary B vitamins, due to their water‐soluble nature, are not a concern for excessive intakes, but synthetic forms used for fortification and supplements sometimes can have adverse effects when consumed in high amounts. Biofortified crops offer a long‐term sustainable method to increase the amount of dietary B vitamins for people who rely on staple crops for most of their caloric intake. Efforts have been made to improve B vitamin content of crops, especially for thiamin, vitamin B ₆ , and folate, but none have undergone human feeding trials; therefore, more research is needed to provide sustainable and scalable solutions in many parts of the world.

Objective: To investigate the feasibility of a modified MCT-based ketogenic diet and its impact on plasma β-hydroxybutyrate and MS outcomes compared to a modified Paleolithic diet and usual diet in people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Methods: Fifteen individuals with MS were randomized to 3 groups: 1) modified Paleolithic diet (Paleo; n = 6); 2) medium-chain triglyceride (MCT)-based ketogenic diet that included coconut as a fat source (Keto; n = 5); or 3) usual diet (Control; n = 4). Participants had blood drawn every 4 weeks to monitor nutritional ketosis. Participants completed 4-day weighed food records, measures of disability, fatigue, quality of life (QoL), cognitive function, and physical function at baseline and 12-weeks. Results: Macronutrient intake significantly shifted toward a ratio indicative of a ketogenic diet in the Keto group at 12 weeks. Similarly, plasma β-hydroxybutyrate indicated nutritional ketosis in the Keto group, whereas neither macronutrient intake nor plasma β-hydroxybutyrate indicated nutritional ketosis in the Paleo and Control groups. The Paleo group had significant within group reductions in fatigue scores and maintained cognitive function scores compared to the Control group. The Keto group had significant reductions in fasting glucose and insulin compared to baseline values; however, no clinical outcomes significantly changed. Conclusions: Participants consuming the MCT-based ketogenic diet achieved nutritional ketosis; however, it was not associated with significant clinical improvement in this study whereas the modified Paleolithic diet was associated with significant clinical improvements. Larger randomized controlled trials are needed to determine the safety and efficacy of the modified Paleolithic and MCT-based ketogenic diets on MS.

Objective: To compare the effect of the modified Paleolithic elimination (Wahls) and low-saturated fat (Swank) diets in relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS). Methods: Individuals (n = 87) with RRMS were randomized to the Swank or Wahls diets in a parallel group clinical trial consisting of four timepoints: 1) run-in, 2) baseline, 3) 12-weeks, and 4) 24-weeks. Results: 77 participants completed 12 weeks and 72 completed 24 weeks. The 12-week change from baseline in fatigue was -0.94 ± 0.18 (FSS) and -9.87 ± 1.93 (MFIS; both p < 0.0001) for Swank, and -0.71 ± 0.24 (FSS; p = 0.004) and -14.41 ± 2.22 (MFIS; p ≤ 0.0001) for Wahls. Physical MSQoL scores improved by 6.04 ± 2.18 (p = 0.006) for Swank and by 14.5 ± 2.63 (p < 0.0001) for Wahls. Mental MSQoL scores improved by 11.3 ± at 2.79 (p < 0.0001) for Wahls while the Swank did not change (3.85 ± 2.63; p = 0.14). Neither group showed significant changes in 6-minute walking distance at 12 weeks. All outcomes were maintained or further improved at 24 weeks. Conclusions: Both diets were associated with clinically meaningful within-group reductions in fatigue and improvements in QoL. Trial Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT02914964

Yellow and orange egg yolks are good sources of xanthophyll carotenoids, consumption of which is associated with health benefits, such as cancer prev