eBASIS (Bioactive Substances in Food Information Systems), a web-based database that contains compositional and biological effects data for bioactive compounds of plant origin, has been updated with new data on fruits and vegetables, wheat and, due to some evidence of potential beneficial effects, extended to include meat bioactives. eBASIS remains one of only a handful of comprehensive and searchable databases, with up-to-date coherent and validated scientific information on the composition of food bioactives and their putative health benefits. The database has a user-friendly, efficient, and flexible interface facilitating use by both the scientific community and food industry. Overall, eBASIS contains data for 267 foods, covering the composition of 794 bioactive compounds, from 1147 quality-evaluated peer-reviewed publications, together with information from 567 publications describing beneficial bioeffect studies carried out in humans. This paper highlights recent updates and expansion of eBASIS and the newly-developed link to a probabilistic intake model, allowing exposure assessment of dietary bioactive compounds to be estimated and modelled in human populations when used in conjunction with national food consumption data. This new tool could assist small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the development of food product health claim dossiers for submission to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
The Irish Food Portion Sizes Database (available at ) describes typical portion weights for an
extensive range of foods and beverages for Irish children, adolescents and adults. The
present paper describes the methodologies used to develop the database and some key
characteristics of the portion weight data contained therein. The data are derived from
three large, cross-sectional food consumption surveys carried out in Ireland over the last
decade: the National Children's Food Survey (2003–2004), National Teens' Food Survey
(2005–2006) and National Adult Nutrition Survey (2008–2010). Median, 25th and 75th
percentile portion weights are described for a total of 545 items across the three survey
groups, split by age group or sex as appropriate. The typical (median) portion weights
reported for adolescents and adults are similar for many foods, while those reported for
children are notably smaller. Adolescent and adult males generally consume larger portions
than their female counterparts, though similar portion weights may be consumed where foods
are packaged in unit amounts (for example, pots of yoghurt). The inclusion of energy
under-reporters makes little difference to the estimation of typical portion weights in
adults. The data have wide-ranging applications in dietary assessment and food labelling,
and will serve as a useful reference against which to compare future portion size data
from the Irish population. The present paper provides a useful context for researchers and
others wishing to use the Irish Food Portion Sizes Database, and may guide researchers in
other countries in establishing similar databases of their own.
The present analysis aimed to investigate the changes in the reported portion sizes (PS) of foods and beverages commonly consumed by Irish adults (18 -64 years) from the North South Ireland Food Consumption Survey (NSIFCS) (1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001) and the National Adult Nutrition Survey (NANS) . Food PS, which are defined as the weight of food (g) consumed per eating occasion, were calculated for comparable foods and beverages in two nationally representative cross-sectional Irish food consumption surveys and were published in NSIFCS and NANS. Repeated measure mixed model analysis compared reported food PS at the total population level as well as subdivided by sex, age, BMI and social class. A total of thirteen commonly consumed foods were examined. The analysis demonstrated that PS significantly increased for five foods ('white sliced bread', 'brown/wholemeal breads', 'all meat, cooked', 'poultry, roasted' and 'milk'), significantly decreased for three ('potatoes', 'chips/wedges' and 'ham, sliced') and did not significantly change for five foods ('processed potato products', 'bacon/ham', 'cheese', 'yogurt' and 'butter/spreads') between the NSIFCS and the NANS. The present study demonstrates that there was considerable variation in the trends in reported food PS over this period.
The newly developed ePlantLIBRA database is a comprehensive and searchable database, with up-to-date coherent and validated scientific information on plant food supplement (PFS) bioactive compounds, with putative health benefits as well as adverse effects, and contaminants and residues. It is the only web-based database available compiling peer reviewed publications and case studies on PFS. A user-friendly, efficient and flexible interface has been developed for searching, extracting, and exporting the data, including links to the original references. Data from over 570 publications have been quality evaluated and entered covering 70 PFS or their botanical ingredients.
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