The value of health is more relevant than ever in the pandemic era. Following a healthy lifestyle to ensure overall wellbeing and protection against disease has become a priority for many. A healthy diet, sufficient exercise, good sleep and mental wellness are some key health strategies.

Specifically on a balanced diet and the role nutrition can play in health, the facts are overwhelming.

Chronic diseases like diabetes, cancer, stroke and heart disease are on the rise and account for over 70% of annual deaths in the US alone while in Europe they account for 86% of premature deaths. However, these conditions can be prevented to a great extent through optimum nutrition and other lifestyle changes. When following a healthy diet, children have a reduced risk of chronic diseases when growing up. Adults who adhere to a healthy diet live longer and have a lower risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers.

Optimum nutrition supports health ageing. A recent study in 5 European countries showed that the Mediterranean diet had a positive effect on good bacteria in the gut leading to a wide range of positive effects on healthy ageing like reduced frailty and better cognitive function.

Moreover, a strong immune system can also be achieved through good nutrition in multiple ways. Micronutrients like certain vitamins have anti-bacterial and anti-viral functioning while nutrition also influences the gut microbiome which in turn modulates the immune system just to name a few.

Nutrition also plays a crucial role not only in prevention but also in management of disease. Clinical nutrition can help tackle malnutrition and weight loss in cancer patients, while can support sufficient nutritional intake when normal feeding and swallowing are problematic due to disease. Clinical nutrition alongside medicine is beneficial for a wide array of diseases like kidney and liver, neurological, gastrointestinal, while has been shown to effectively support also Covid-19 patients in intensive care units and at home.

• Mobilise key players such as the food industry, medical societies and policy makers to define a nutrition plan for healthy eating and prevention of disease
• Analyse in the local or regional context the issue and implications of chronic disease and the value of nutrition for prevention
• Develop a communication plan with an evidence-based proposition
• Identify key stakeholders such as governmental decision makers to be targeted for activation
• Partner with Key Opinion Leaders for endorsement and advocacy
• Focus on awareness building & educational programs on healthy nutrition for specific target groups like schools and the workplace
• Ensure sufficient resources in the primary healthcare setting for screening and provision of nutritional counselling
• Use digital tools to facilitate screening and communication
• Define KPIs and monitor progress and effectiveness

References

• CDC Centers for Disease Control and Prevention  https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/nutrition.htm
• Ghosh TS, et al.  Mediterranean diet intervention alters the gut microbiome in older people reducing frailty and improving health status: the NU-AGE 1-year dietary intervention across five European countries. Gut 2020;69:1218–1228.
• Philip C. Calder. Nutrition and immunity: lessons for COVID-19. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2021
• World Heath Organization Regional Office for Europe. European Food and Nutrition Action Plan 2015-2020

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