{"title":"Future Applications of Human Milk Reference Values for Nutrients: A Global Resource for Maternal and Child Nutrition Research.","authors":"Sophie E Moore, Lindsay H Allen, Gilberto Kac","doi":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100429","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100429","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The World Health Organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 mo of life as human milk is considered to be the optimal form of nutrition to support infant health and development. Human milk provides many nutrient and non-nutrient bioactive compounds to young infants, including micronutrients. In contexts where diets are nutritionally poor, the concentration of micronutrients in human milk is lower, impacting infant's supply. However, understanding when lower values indicate the need for interventions and then evaluating the impact of interventions on maternal nutritional status and milk nutrient concentrations has been challenged by the absence of reliable reference values (RVs) for nutrient concentrations in human milk. The multicenter Mothers, Infants, and Lactation Quality (MILQ) and Early-MILQ studies were developed to establish evidence-based RVs for human milk nutrients. This paper presents and discusses the potential utility of these RVs as an international reference for global maternal and child health research.</p>","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":" ","pages":"100429"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145058823","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Silent Weight of Nutrition Data in Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Receptor Agonists Clinical Trials.","authors":"Hassan S Dashti, Lukasz Szczerbinski","doi":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100498","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100498","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":" ","pages":"100498"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144876956","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Demsina Babazadeh, Shawna Wyatt, Francene M Steinberg
{"title":"Examining the Omission of Dietary Quality Data in Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 Clinical Trials: A Scoping Review.","authors":"Demsina Babazadeh, Shawna Wyatt, Francene M Steinberg","doi":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100491","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100491","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Injectable antiobesity medications (AOMs), including liraglutide, semaglutide, and tirzepatide, have demonstrated significant efficacy in promoting weight loss and improving glycemic control. However, the extent to which diet and food intake and related eating behaviors are assessed or reported in clinical trials of these agents remains unclear. This scoping review aimed to evaluate the presence and quality of dietary data, nutritional counseling, and related behavioral measures in randomized controlled trials of subcutaneous AOMs. A systematic literature search was conducted in MEDLINE-PubMed through September 2024, with a gap search completed December 2024. Eligible studies included randomized trials investigating liraglutide, semaglutide, or tirzepatide in humans. Studies were screened and extracted in Covidence, with 129 meeting inclusion criteria. Data extraction included AOM being studied, primary outcome, presence and type of nutritional or physical activity counseling, diet intake assessment and tools used, and eating behavior outcomes. Of 129 included studies, 54 evaluated liraglutide, 43 semaglutide, and 22 tirzepatide. Although 57 trials reported lifestyle modification as part of the intervention, 36 recorded diet quality and food intake. Among the 36 studies that collected dietary data, only 10 reported outcomes and half used single-time point assessments like ad libitum meals or buffets. Seventeen trials assessed food cravings or eating behavior using a variety of assessments. Across trials, there was minimal uniformity in outcome reporting, study duration, or counseling frequency, with most trials lacking detailed reporting on nutritional behavior components. Despite the central role of diet in weight regulation, most clinical trials involving AOMs fail to report meaningful diet quality or food intake data. The heterogeneity and underreporting of lifestyle components limit interpretability and generalizability of outcomes. Greater emphasis on standardizing and reporting dietary and behavioral measures is warranted to understand how AOMs interact with real-world nutrition behaviors and to inform comprehensive obesity care.</p>","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":" ","pages":"100491"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144857164","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sachin Shinde, Cara A Yelverton, Mashavu Yussuf, Lina Nurhussien, Dongqing Wang, Wafaie W Fawzi
{"title":"Effects of vitamin and multiple micronutrient supplementation for pregnant and/or lactating women on maternal and infant nutritional status in low- and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.","authors":"Sachin Shinde, Cara A Yelverton, Mashavu Yussuf, Lina Nurhussien, Dongqing Wang, Wafaie W Fawzi","doi":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100487","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100487","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Globally, over half of women of reproductive age are affected by at least one micronutrient deficiency, often exacerbated during pregnancy and lactation, contributing to adverse maternal and child health outcomes. This systematic review and meta-analysis synthesized impact of vitamin supplementation on maternal, infant and lactational nutritional status in low- and middle-income countries.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, and WHO library databases were searched. Eligible studies included randomized controlled trials of micronutrient supplementation in healthy pregnant/lactating women, assessing maternal/infant micronutrient status or milk composition. Random-effects meta-analysis was performed for outcomes with ≥2 studies, and evidence quality was evaluated using GRADE.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Eighty-seven papers (76 trials, including 65 for meta-analysis) were included. Maternal vitamin B-12 supplementation during pregnancy increased serum cobalamin levels (standard mean difference [SMD] 0.39; 95% CI 0.11, 0.68; P=0.01) and reduced deficiency (OR 0.43; 95% CI 0.19, 0.95; P=0.04), with improved B-12 concentrations in milk, especially when administered postpartum (SMD 0.33; 95% CI 0.02, 0.63; P=0.04), but had no consistent effect on infant or cord serum cobalamin levels. Vitamin A supplementation during pregnancy or postpartum improved maternal serum levels (SMD 0.57; 95% CI 0.12, 1.01; P=0.01) and reduced deficiency at thresholds ≤0.7 μmol/L (OR 0.57; 95% CI 0.45, 0.73; P<0.001); however, its effects on infant and cord serum levels were negligible. Postpartum vitamin A supplementation improved milk vitamin A concentrations (SMD 0.53; 95% CI 0.19, 0.86; P<0.001), particularly with single high-dose regimens. Supplementation with vitamin D during pregnancy increased maternal serum vitamin D levels (SMD 0.89; 95% CI 0.55, 1.24; P<0.001), reduced deficiency at thresholds ≤50 nmol/L (OR 0.30; 95% CI 0.14, 0.64; P<0.001) and increased vitamin D levels in infant and cord serum.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Micronutrient supplementation during pregnancy and lactation improved maternal nutritional status but showed inconsistent effects on infant nutritional status, highlighting the need for further research.</p><p><strong>Prospero registration id: </strong>CRD42022308715; https://tinyurl.com/y33cxekr.</p>","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":" ","pages":"100487"},"PeriodicalIF":9.2,"publicationDate":"2025-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144769423","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Rafael Pérez-Escamilla, Sonia Hernández-Cordero, Tarini Gupta
{"title":"Perspective: Infant Feeding Policies among Women Living with HIV in Latin America and the Caribbean: Should They Be Updated?","authors":"Rafael Pérez-Escamilla, Sonia Hernández-Cordero, Tarini Gupta","doi":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100469","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100469","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Among women living with HIV (WLHIV), adherence to highly active antiretroviral treatment (HAART) combined with undetectable maternal viral loads and exclusive breastfeeding during the first 6 mo of life dramatically reduces the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV. This knowledge has led to updated World Health Organization infant feeding guidelines for WLHIV, calling for governments to support safe breastfeeding practices among WLHIV who want to breastfeed their infants by providing universal access to HAART, viral load tracking, and high-quality breastfeeding counseling and other needed support across settings. These guidelines eventually led several high-income countries, including the United States and Canada, to revise their infant feeding guidelines that previously contraindicated breastfeeding among WLHIV to incorporate safe, evidence-based breastfeeding recommendations for WLHIV. However, in most of the rest of the Americas, breastfeeding contraindication remains in place. We strongly recommend that all countries in Latin America and the Caribbean consider updating their breastfeeding guidance for WLHIV to allow for safe breastfeeding. Implementing the updated evidence-based recommendations poses major implementation challenges as there is no room for error. Systems-driven implementation science research will be needed to understand how best to codesign, implement, scale up, and sustain intersectoral and equitable person and family-centered policies and programs to empower WLHIV to breastfeed safely if they have the choice to do so.</p>","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":" ","pages":"100469"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144509782","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"New Feature: Student and Trainee-Focused Podcast Interviews with Article Authors.","authors":"Steven A Abrams","doi":"10.1016/j.advnut.2024.100234","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.advnut.2024.100234","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":" ","pages":"100234"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140961288","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Corrigendum to \"Machine Learning in Nutrition Research\".","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.advnut.2023.03.012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2023.03.012","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9250409","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hannah D Holscher, Bruno P Chumpitazi, Wendy J Dahl, George C Fahey, DeAnn J Liska, Joanne L Slavin, Kristin Verbeke
{"title":"Perspective: Assessing Tolerance to Nondigestible Carbohydrate Consumption.","authors":"Hannah D Holscher, Bruno P Chumpitazi, Wendy J Dahl, George C Fahey, DeAnn J Liska, Joanne L Slavin, Kristin Verbeke","doi":"10.1093/advances/nmac091","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmac091","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Human intestinal enzymes do not hydrolyze nondigestible carbohydrates (NDCs), and thus, they are not digested and absorbed in the small intestine. Instead, NDCs are partially to completely fermented by the intestinal microbiota. Select NDCs are associated with health benefits such as laxation and lowering of blood cholesterol and glucose. NDCs provide functional attributes to processed foods, including sugar or fat replacers, thickening agents, and bulking agents. Additionally, NDCs are incorporated into processed foods to increase their fiber content. Although consumption of NDCs can benefit health and contribute functional characteristics to foods, they can cause gastrointestinal symptoms, such as flatulence and bloating. As gastrointestinal symptoms negatively affect consumer well-being and their acceptance of foods containing NDC ingredients, it is crucial to consider tolerance when designing food products and testing their physiological health benefits in clinical trials. This perspective provides recommendations for the approach to assess gastrointestinal tolerance to NDCs, with a focus on study design, population criteria, intervention, comparator, and outcome. Special issues related to studies in children and implications for stakeholders are also discussed. It is recommended that the evaluation of gastrointestinal tolerance to NDCs be conducted in randomized, blinded, controlled crossover studies using standard gastrointestinal questionnaires, with attention to study participant background diets, health status, lifestyle, and medications.</p>","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":"13 6","pages":"2084-2097"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9776727/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142302206","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Scoping Review of the Environmental Impacts and Nutrient Composition of Plant-Based Milks.","authors":"Andrew J Berardy, María Rubín-García, Joan Sabaté","doi":"10.1093/advances/nmac098","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmac098","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Dairy milk is a ubiquitous nutrient-dense beverage and ingredient, especially in Western diets. However, consumers are increasingly seeking alternatives to dairy, called plant-based milks (PBMs), to avoid allergens, pursue a plant-based diet, or reduce their environmental impacts. The base ingredients used in PBMs have a wide range of environmental impacts, which may translate to substantial variation across the impacts associated with PBMs themselves. To assess the state of the literature on this topic, we performed a scoping review of the environmental impacts of PBMs, following the guidelines of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for scoping reviews. Recent growth in the variety of PBMs available means that there is unlikely yet enough data for conclusive statements regarding environmental impacts of all PBM types, which makes this topic appropriate for a scoping review. We included all relevant documents found through searching scholarly databases. We found 20 studies covering 6 types of PBMs, but the literature does not examine many other types of PBMs. All studies examined use the life cycle assessment methodology. The most data regarding environmental impacts were available for soy- and almond-based milks, and the most common impact quantified was greenhouse gas emissions. We also examined the nutrient composition of PBMs compared with dairy using data from the USDA. PBMs attempt to replicate the organoleptic properties of dairy but often do not exactly match the nutrient profile of dairy. We identified a need for the application of a standardized methodology to facilitate more comprehensive assessment of environmental impacts of the wide variety of PBMs available, which are presented as environmentally preferable to dairy.</p>","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":"13 6","pages":"2559-2572"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9930689/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143069082","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Marena Ceballos-Rasgado, Nicola M Lowe, Simonette Mallard, Andrew Clegg, Victoria H Moran, Catherine Harris, Jason Montez, Maria Xipsiti
{"title":"Adverse Effects of Excessive Zinc Intake in Infants and Children Aged 0-3 Years: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.","authors":"Marena Ceballos-Rasgado, Nicola M Lowe, Simonette Mallard, Andrew Clegg, Victoria H Moran, Catherine Harris, Jason Montez, Maria Xipsiti","doi":"10.1093/advances/nmac088","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmac088","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Zinc supplementation reduces morbidity, but evidence suggests that excessive intakes can have negative health consequences. Current guidelines of upper limits (ULs) of zinc intake for young children are extrapolated from adult data. This systematic review (PROSPERO; registration no. CRD42020215187) aimed to determine the levels of zinc intake at which adverse effects are observed in young children. Studies reporting potential adverse effects of zinc intake in children aged 0-3 y were identified (from inception to August 2020) in MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Library, with no limits on study design. Adverse clinical and physical effects of zinc intake were synthesized narratively, and meta-analyses of biochemical outcomes were conducted. Random effects models were used to generate forest plots to examine the evidence by age category, dose, dose duration, chemical formula of zinc, and zinc compared with placebo. The Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklist, Cochrane Risk of Bias 2, and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) guideline were employed to assess risk of bias and to appraise the certainty of evidence. Fifty-eight studies assessed possible adverse effects of zinc doses ranging from 3 to 70 mg/d. Data from 39 studies contributed to meta-analyses. Zinc supplementation had an adverse effect on serum ferritin, plasma/serum copper concentration, serum transferrin receptor, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and the odds of anemia in ≥1 of the subgroups investigated. Lactulose:mannitol ratio was improved with zinc supplementation, and no significant effect was observed on C-reactive protein, erythrocyte superoxide dismutase, zinc protoporphyrin, blood cholesterol, and iron deficiency anemia. The certainty of the evidence, as assessed using GRADE, was very low to moderate. Although possible adverse effects of zinc supplementation were observed in some subgroups, it is unclear whether these findings are clinically important. The synthesized data can be used to undertake a dose-response analysis to update current guidelines of ULs of zinc intake for young children.</p>","PeriodicalId":72101,"journal":{"name":"Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)","volume":"13 6","pages":"2488-2518"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-12-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9776731/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144180274","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}