A flexitarian or semi-vegetarian diet is one that is primarily vegetarian with the occasional inclusion of meat or fish. Of late there appears to be an increasing movement towards this practice. There has not been a recent update on these diets from a health perspective. Using the National Centre for Biotechnology Information PubMed database, a search was made for all studies published between 2000 and 2016 that met defined inclusion criteria. A total of 25 studies were located with 12 focusing on body weight and diet quality. There was emerging evidence suggestive of benefits for body weight, improved markers of metabolic health, blood pressure, and reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. Semi-vegetarian diets may also have a role to play in the treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases such as Crohn’s Disease. Given that there is a higher tendency for females to be flexitarian yet males are more likely to overconsume meat, there is a clear need to communicate the potential health benefits of these diets to males.

The foundations of neurodevelopment across an individual’s lifespan are established in the first 1000 days of life (2 years). During this period an adequate supply of nutrients are essential for proper neurodevelopment and lifelong brain function. Of these, evidence for choline has been building but has not been widely collated using systematic approaches. Therefore, a systematic review was performed to identify the animal and human studies looking at inter-relationships between choline, neurological development, and brain function during the first 1000 days of life. The database PubMed was used, and reference lists were searched. In total, 813 publications were subject to the title/abstract review, and 38 animal and 16 human studies were included after evaluation. Findings suggest that supplementing the maternal or child’s diet with choline over the first 1000 days of life could subsequently: (1) support normal brain development (animal and human evidence), (2) protect against neural and metabolic insults, particularly when the fetus is exposed to alcohol (animal and human evidence), and (3) improve neural and cognitive functioning (animal evidence). Overall, most offspring would benefit from increased choline supply during the first 1000 days of life, particularly in relation to helping facilitate normal brain development. Health policies and guidelines should consider re-evaluation to help communicate and impart potential choline benefits through diet and/or supplementation approaches across this critical life stage.

Mycoprotein is a protein-rich fungal-derived sustainable food source that was first discovered in the early 1960's. Since then, a sizeable body of research has investigated the health benefits of mycelium protein. Given this, the present publication aims to systematically review the effects of mycoprotein on human health. A literature search of human studies was conducted using PubMed Central, ClinicalTrials.Gov, Google Scholar and a manual search. Sixteen controlled trials, totaling 432 participants were included – of these 5 studies reported total cholesterol, 5 reported on energy intake, 7 on insulin levels, 8 on glucose levels and 4 studied protein response. Risk of bias showed that 7 studies were good quality although heterogeneity was apparent between studies. Results showed that acute mycoprotein ingestion was associated with reduced total cholesterol levels, particularly amongst those with hyperlipidemia. Evidence was less conclusive for effects on blood glucose and insulin levels. Mycoprotein also appears to be a promising bioavailable source of essential amino acids that could induce muscle protein synthesis. Overall, given growing interest in sustainable proteins and accruing health evidence for mycoprotein, firmer embedment with food-based dietary guidelines is now worthy of consideration.

In recent years, the gut microbiome has become a focal point of interest with growing recognition that a well-balanced gut microbiota composition is highly relevant to an individual’s health status and well-being. Its profile can be modulated by a number of dietary factors, although few publications have focused on the effects of what we drink. The present review performed a systematic review of trials and mechanistic studies examining the effects of tea consumption, its associated compounds and their effects on the gut microbiome. Registered articles were searched up to 10th September 2019, in the PubMed and Cochrane library databases along with references of original articles. Human trials were graded using the Jadad scale to assess quality. Altogether 24 publications were included in the main review—six were human trials and 18 mechanistic studies. Of these, the largest body of evidence related to green tea with up to 1000 mL daily (4–5 cups) reported to increase proportions of Bifidobacterium. Mechanistic studies also show promise suggesting that black, oolong, Pu-erh and Fuzhuan teas (microbially fermented ‘dark tea’) can modulate microbial diversity and the ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes. These findings appear to support the hypothesis that tea ingestion could favourably regulate the profile of the gut microbiome and help to offset dysbiosis triggered by obesity or high-fat diets. Further well-designed human trials are now required to build on provisional findings.

The brain is the most significant and complex organ of the human body. Increasingly, we are becoming aware that certain nutrients may help to safeguard brain health. An expanse of research has investigated the effects of omega fatty acids in relation to brain health but effects across the lifespan have not been widely evaluated. The present systematic review collated evidence from 25 randomized controlled trials (n = 3633) published since 2013. Compared with control groups, omega-3 supplementation generally correlated with improvements in blood biomarkers. Subsequently, these appear to benefit those with lower baseline fatty acid levels, who are breastfeeding or who have neuropsychiatric conditions. Whilst multiple studies indicate that omega fatty acids can protect against neurodegeneration in older adults, more work is needed in the years preceding the diagnosis of such medical conditions. Bearing in mind the scale of ageing populations and rising healthcare costs linked to poor brain health, omega supplementation could be a useful strategy for helping to augment dietary intakes and support brain health across the lifespan. Ongoing research is now needed using harmonious methodologies, supplement dosages, ratios and intervention periods to help formulate congruent conclusions.

Background: There is a tendency to report micronutrients intakes collectively for adults, with broad age ranges being used. This means that certain sub-population groups such as young adults are often overlooked. The objective of the present article was to derive and evaluate micronutrient intakes across UK adults in their twenties, thirties, forties and fifties. Methods: A secondary analysis of the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey (years 1–6) was undertaken. Data from n = 3,238 adults was analyzed and micronutrient intakes from food sources (excluding supplements) derived as a percentage of the Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) and percentage below the Lower Reference Nutrient Intake (LRNI) for males and females aged 20–29, 30–39, 40–49, and 50–59 years. Mean intakes were used in instances where this data was unavailable (for vitamins D and E). Results: Sizeable gaps were found for magnesium with 19% of young people in their twenties having intakes below the LRNI. Amongst UK females intakes of 9 micronutrients (riboflavin, vitamin B6, B12, folic acid, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, and iodine) were significantly lower than males aged 20–59 years (p < 0.001) expressed as a percentage of the RNI. Young adults in their twenties had significantly lower (p < 0.05) intakes of 8 micronutrients (vitamin A, riboflavin, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, potassium, iodine, and copper) expressed as a percentage of the RNI compared with adults in their thirties, forties and fifties. There were also considerable gaps in dietary selenium intakes with 50.3% females and 25.8% males having total intakes beneath the LRNI. A quarter of women had iron (25.3%) and potassium (24.3%) intakes below the LRNI. Conclusions: UK females and younger adults appear to be particularly vulnerable to micronutrient shortfalls from food sources alone. Clearly, improvements in dietary quality are needed across mid-life. Alongside this, fortification and supplementation strategies may be considered to help adults achieve dietary targets at this life-stage when they should be at their nutritional prime.