10 important updates for National Nutrition Month

Nutrition can be a complicated topic, as research is constantly emerging about the health effects of diets that come in and out of fashion.

In 1973, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics launched an annual awareness campaign to recognize the importance of making informed choices about food.

As National Nutrition Month comes to a close, Healio compiled a list of 10 recent stories on important nutrition updates. These updates include new data demonstrating the mortality benefits of healthy eating patterns; a reduction in CVD risk among women consuming the Mediterranean diet; and Healio’s new special report on popular dietary approaches.

Read these and more in nutrition below:

Multiple healthy eating patterns reduce mortality risk

A number of healthy eating patterns were linked to a lower mortality risk, supporting the idea that individuals can adapt multiple healthy eating patterns to their preferences, according to experts. Read more.

Women who adhere to Mediterranean diet have 24% lower CVD risk

Women with greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet had a significantly reduced risk for CVD and total mortality, according to the results of a systematic review and meta-analysis published in Heart. Read more.

Keto, paleo diets have low nutritional quality, high carbon footprint

The keto and paleo diets had the lowest scores for overall nutritional quality among popular diets, while having the highest carbon emissions, a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found. Read more.

Adding small handful of walnuts to diet reduces nutrient deficiencies

Adding just 1 oz of walnuts to the diets of children and adults who typically do not eat any nuts was associated with significant improvements in healthy index eating scores, a recent study showed. Read more.

Healio launches easy-to-use guide for nutrition

Healio has announced that it is now offering a special report on nutrition that physicians can use as a resource to guide conversations with patients about healthy diet options. Read more.

MIND, Mediterranean diets linked to fewer signs of Alzheimer’s disease

Individuals who consumed MIND and Mediterranean diets had fewer amyloid plaques and tau tangles in their brain, which are indicators of Alzheimer’s disease, according to researchers. Read more.

Caffeine intake causally associated with lower BMI, type 2 diabetes risk

A high caffeine level in plasma was associated with reduced body fat and a lower risk for type 2 diabetes, according to a two-sample Mendelian randomization study published in BMJ Medicine. Read more.

'Go natural': Common zero-calorie artificial sweetener increases risk for cardiac events

A popular artificial sweetener, erythritol, was linked to worsened risks for heart attack and stroke, according to new research published in Nature Medicine. Read more.

Higher intake of added sugars associated with higher CVD risk

Higher intake of free sugars was linked to a higher risk for CVD, and substituting them with non-free sugars was inversely associated with both total CVD and stroke incidence, a recent study showed. Read more.

Moderate coffee consumption may help maintain low blood pressure

Drinking two to three cups of coffee every day helped maintain low blood BP, according to the results of a study published in Nutrients. Read more.