Search

The Mediterranean dietary pattern is one of the healthiest dietary patterns. Despite Malta’s central location in the Mediterranean Sea, the Maltese dietary habits may have become more Westernised. The aims of this cross-sectional pilot study are to assess adherence to the Mediterranean diet in students at the University of Malta and investigate the feasibility of such a study and pilot the measurement tool. A structured interview was conducted with n=50 students who were conveniently recruited outside the University premises. The interview addressed lifestyle information and questions on the participants’ consumption of food items typical of a Mediterranean dietary pattern using a literature-based score. A photographic food atlas was used to aid the quantification of food portion sizes. A maximum of 18 points score indicating adherence was generated for each participant. The majority of students were female, Maltese, aged between 18–20 years old and within the normal BMI range. Students were unlikely to consume alcohol or smoke. The majority had a low-moderate intake of fruits, vegetables and legumes, low intake of fish and high intake of meat. The mean (95% CI) adherence score to the Mediterranean dietary pattern was 8.8 (8.1, 9.5) out of 18, classifying 72% of the students as medium adherers. No significant associations were found between overall adherence and all study parameters (p-value = 0.05). This study was the first to investigate the adherence to the Mediterranean dietary pattern in a sample of the Maltese population. A larger sample size is required to highlight associations between adherence levels and lifestyle factors., peer-reviewed

Few prospective cohort studies in the UK have specifically focused on the associations between commonly consumed dietary patterns and colorectal cancer (CRC). The aim of our study was to assess whether red meat, poultry, fish and vegetarian dietary patterns are associated with differences in the incidence of cancers of colon and rectum in the UKWCS. Four common dietary patterns were defined based on a hierarchy of consumption of red meat, poultry and fish for each cohort participant, using a 217‐item food frequency questionnaire. Cox proportional hazards regression was used to provide adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for CRC. A total of 32,147 women recruited and surveyed between 1995 and 1998 were followed up for a mean of 17.2 years (426,798 person‐years). A total of 462 incident CRC cases were documented; 335 colon cancers (172 proximal and 119 distal) and 152 in the rectum. In multivariable‐adjusted models, there was no evidence of a reduction in risk of overall CRC (HR = 0.86, 95% CI: 0.66–1.12), colon cancer (HR = 0.77, 95% CI: 0.56–1.05) or rectal cancer (HR = 1.04, 95% CI: 0.66–1.63) when comparing grouped red meat free diets with diets containing red meat. Exploratory analysis suggested a reduced risk of distal colon cancer in grouped red meat free diets (HR = 0.56, 95% CI: 0.34–0.95), though numbers with this outcome were small. These results indicate that a protective association of red meat free diets specifically on distal colon cancer merits confirmation in a larger study., What's new? Eating red meat may affect one's risk of colon cancer. Here, the authors looked for a relationship between colorectal cancer risk and red meat, poultry, fish, and vegetarian diets. They used data from the UK Womens Cohort study, with dietary information collected by survey. No statistically significant association was found for total CRC risk, but when they looked at specific cancer sub‐sites, a correlation emerged. Although numbers were small, a reduction in distal CRC risk was observed among those who did not eat red meat. A larger study would be desirable to confirm these findings.

Childhood obesity is increasing in most countries worldwide and Malta is no exception. However, local data regarding determinants of obesity is lacking. The aim of this preliminary study was to link some possible determinants of childhood obesity, namely, dietary intake and activity levels with anthropometric data in a sample of 5- to 6-year-old Maltese children and to investigate possible associations with parental body mass index (BMI). Stratified sampling which ensured good gender, geographical and socioeconomic representation and adequate representation from the three school-types (state, church, independent), provided a sample of 66 participants. Anthropometric measurements of children and parents were collected in 2015 and diet and lifestyle factors were assessed through food and activity diaries. The diaries were coded to retrieve energy and macronutrient intake and activity levels of the children. Multiple regression related BMI and waist circumference (WC) with dietary intake, activity levels and parental BMI. Children’s BMI and WC were positively and significantly (rs = 0.71, p < 0.001) correlated. Consumption of Non-Milk Extrinsic Sugars (NMES) were significantly higher for girls than boys (U = 366.0, p = 0.031). Multiple regression analysis yielded a significant positive relationship between NMES with both BMI (t (56) = 3.095, p = 0.003) and WC (t (56) = 3.365, p = 0.002). Paternal and child BMI were positively significantly correlated (rs = 0.372, p = 0.005). NMES intake was one possible contributing factor to obesity and central adiposity with physical activity having a protective effect, whilst sedentary behaviour and fat intake did not appear to be risk factors at this age. Further studies are recommended on larger sample sizes to extensively investigate the effect of different determinants on obesity in this age group and work towards developing nutritional recommendations on a national basis., peer-reviewed

Die Position des 'Industriemeisters' stellt bis heute die klassische Laufbahnperspektive für gewerblich-technische Fachkräfte in der Industrie dar. Tief greifende Veränderungen der Arbeits- und Organisationsstrukturen führten Anfang der 1990er- Jahre in der Metallindustrie zu neuen Anforderungen an die mittlere Führungsebene. Diese Veränderungen der Berufspraxis führte im Dezember 1997 zur Verabschiedung einer neuen Prüfungsverordnung für die Industriemeisterprüfung der Fachrichtung Metall, die bundesweit seit ungefähr 2000 in modernisierter Form durchgeführt wird. Die ersten Absolventen sind nunmehr seit über 10 Jahren in der Praxis und haben unterschiedliche betriebliche Positionen eingenommen. Das Bundesinstitut für Berufsbildung (BIBB) hat vom Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) den Auftrag erhalten, die Fortbildungsprüfung zum Industriemeister Metall zu prüfen. Die Untersuchung soll zudem genutzt werden, um mögliches Verbesserungspotenzial für die Umsetzung der Vorbereitungslehrgänge zu erschließen. (Autorenreferat, BIBB-Doku)