Ever wondered why it takes longer to eat some meals instead of others? For years researchers have known that eating faster promotes increased …
Recent advances in science suggest that the speed of eating has a large influence on the extent to which we feel full, which in turn determines how much we eat during a meal. But the exact relation between the texture of food, the speed of eating and how much we eat (energy intake) is not yet completely understood. "RESTRUCTURE: Developing and implementing innovative and evidence-based food design principles to moderate energy intake " will demonstrate some of the causal mechanisms by which these properties may be responsible for overeating. The project results will inform food design rules and tools to guide the development of foods that help limit food intake and prevent overweight and obesity.
Read moreThe objective of the RESTRUCTURE project is to develop evidence-based models based on food properties that
Wageningen University
Wageningen University
Wageningen University
Wageningen University
HAS University
HAS University
EUFIC
TiFN
Wageningen University
Wageningen University
The research will be carried out in two stages:
The hypothesis will be tested by offering two different diets equal in calories (energy density) and liking (palatability) to participants:
ultra-processed foods that are consumed slowly
ultra-processed foods that are fast to eat
By comparing how much food is eaten within each of the diets, the researchers will find out the relations between food processing, how fast the food is eaten, and how much food is eaten.
Eating rate, energy intake rate, energy density… telling them apart is not always self-evident. Click here for more on what’s behind these terms and the other key concepts related to food processing and the RESTRUCTURE study.
Ever wondered why it takes longer to eat some meals instead of others? For years researchers have known that eating faster promotes increased …
On 13-14 April 2023 the British Feeding and Drinking Group (BFDG) 47th Annual Meeting in Leeds took place. The Sensory Science and Eating Behaviour…
The speed of eating (measured in g/min and kcal/min. Studies show that eating slowly can reduce energy intake. Eating rate depends on macronutrient composition and food structure and processing.
The number of kcal (calories) per gram of food. There is sufficient evidence that higher energy densities lead to sustained increases in energy intake and weight gain. Energy density is generally higher in ultra-processed foods and a likely explanation for overconsumption, potentially in addition to texture related causes. RESTRUCTURE aims to control for this and keep energy density levels consistent across the diets, to investigate the influence of texture and eating rate.
The number of kcal (calories) ingested.
The speed at which calories are consumed (measured in kcal/min). This combines the energy density of a food with its eating rate. Energy density (kcal/g) x Eating rate (g/min) = Energy intake rate (kcal/min)
Foods that have a relatively high energy intake rate (the energy provided by foods or drinks is consumed quickly).
Foods that have a relatively low energy intake rate (the energy provided by foods or drinks is consumed slowly).
By shedding light on how the composition and texture-properties influence eating rate, RESTRUCTURE will produce the criteria to define “slow foods” and the principles that can be used to guide their development.
Food processing can be described as the methods used to turn fresh foods into food products, such as heating, drying, fermenting, extraction, extrusion, packaging.
In the context of the project, food reformulation is the re-designing of an existing food product with the objective of making it healthier. Currently reformulation typically focuses on reducing “risk nutrients” including saturated fat, trans fat, sugar, salt, and calories. RESTRUCTURE aims to integrate research findings on texture and eating rate into reformulation goals.
Food texture is defined as “all the mechanical, geometrical and surface attributes of a product perceptible by mechanical, tactile, or visual and auditory receptors” (International Standards Organization, ISO, 1994). Textures include ‘hardness’ or ‘softness’, ‘crunchiness’ or ‘crumbliness’, or 'viscosity'. Texture is multidimensional and dynamic in nature, as it changes during eating.
The NOVA classification seeks to categorise food products based on the extent and purpose of processing, into four groups:
Overweight and obesity are among the most urgent nutrition related problems in the world affecting more than 2 billion people. By helping to reduce energy intake rate of foods, RESTRUCTURE aims to contribute to prevention of overweight and obesity. Obesity is however a complex issue, requiring multiple interventions at different levels.
The degree to which a food is liked. Studies on the effect of eating rate/food processing need to account for the palatability of food. RESTRUCTURE aims to control for this and keep palatability levels consistent across the diets.
Satiation is defined as the processes which occur in the body during eating that lead us to finish eating/end a meal.
While definitions vary, ultra-processed foods are described as “formulations of ingredients, mostly of exclusive industrial use, that result from a series of industrial processes (hence ‘ultra-processed’).” The RESTRUCTURE trial will determine whether the effects of texture on energy intake rate are independent of being classified as ultra-processed foods.
The project’s main
research activities and research design are independently developed by
the research team.
The governance of the project is composed of the Steering Committee and the
Advisory Committee. The research team can only receive input and scientific
support from these bodies following specific modalities.
Wageningen University
Kees de Graaf is emeritus professor of Sensory Science and Eating Behavior at the division of Humane Nutrition and Health of Wageningen University. With RESTRUCTURE he has a strong motivation to provide excellent and conclusive experimental data on to which properties of unprocessed and (ultra-)processed food actually drive overconsumption. For him, RESTRUCTURE is about the discovery of the fundamental biological mechanisms on how the modern food environment stimulates overconsumption.
TiFN
Alwine Kardinaal is the Theme Director for Healthy Nutrition at TiFN. Alwine is a nutrition scientist with a long history of running multidisciplinary projects set up to understand and demonstrate the health benefits of food ingredients. In RESTRUCTURE, she supports the project leader in managing this challenging project.
HAS University
Annet JC Roodenburg (PhD Nutrition) is an associate professor of Nutrition and Health at HAS University of Applied Sciences. She worked for the last 20 years on the scientific approach towards healthier foods and responsible communication in order to help consumers to make healthier choices. RESTRUCTURE brings new insights to this approach.
Wageningen University
Lise Heuven is a PhD candidate at Wageningen University & Research (WUR). Lise has a MSc in Food Technology and Nutrition & Health and is very passionate to combine these research areas. She is highly motivated to apply her skills in the execution of the ultra-processed food trial and modelling of eating rate.
Wageningen University
Markus Stieger is professor for Food Oral Processing at Wageningen University in the divisions of Human Nutrition & Health and the Food Quality and Design. His research interests are to understand how food oral processing transforms food structures into sensory perception, how food products can be designed which modulate oral processing behaviour and regulate energy intake and how food oral processing contributes to food digestion.
Wageningen University
Prof. Ciarán Forde is chair of Sensory Science and Eating Behaviour in the division of Human Nutrition and Health of Wageningen University and Research. Prof. Forde has over 20 years' experience in the public, private and academic sectors, leading research on how the sensory properties of foods influence calorie selection, eating behaviour, energy intake and metabolism in adults and children. His research has been instrumental in linking food processing and sensory cues to energy intake, and the RESTRUCTURE trial offers an opportunity to demonstrate the role of sensory cues in moderating the flow of calories through our diets.
HAS University
Sylvie has a background in biomedical health sciences. During her PhD training she focussed on intestinal calcium absorption. In following research projects, she gained expertise in food digestion and absorption and the effect of nutrition on (gut)health. Currently she investigates the possibilities to design healthy food products and to effectively communicate about a healthy diet to consumers. Participating in the RESTRUCTURE project gives her the opportunity to translate scientific knowledge into healthy food products for the consumer and in this way contribute to overall health.
Wageningen University
Marlou Lasschuijt is an assistant professor in the Sensory Science and Eating Behaviour group at Wageningen University. Marlou received her BSc in Clinical Dietetics from Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences and her MSc in Nutrition Physiology and Health Status from Wageningen University. She completed her PhD at Wageningen university where she studied sensory physiological systems involved in satiation. During her Postdoc she worked with researchers from all technical universities in the Netherlands to develop new technologies to measure food intake and eating behavior. Her current research focuses on the link between eating behavior and physiology in healthy and clinical populations.
EUFIC
Maria Scherbov is a Junior Manager in the EU Collaborative Projects Team at the European Food Information Council (EUFIC) in Belgium, where she is involved in several publicly funded research projects related to food safety, health & nutrition. Prior, she worked for the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in Italy, in the Engagement and Cooperation Unit, supporting areas of communication, coordination and stakeholder engagement related to food safety.
Wageningen University is one of the leading research institutes in the world in the field of Food and Nutrition sciences. The contribution to Restructure is twofold: 1) the empirical development of models that use physical chemical properties of foods to predict eating rate and satiation, 2) the design of a decisive one-week RCT to assess the effects of industrial food processing vs. energy intake on ad libitum energy intake.
The HAS University of Applied Sciences is an expertise centre on food, agriculture and the environment, located in Den Bosch/Venlo, The Netherlands. It contributes to the RESTRUCTURE research on eating rate and consumer communication.
The European Food Information Council (EUFIC) is a non-profit organization that offers accessible, appealing and actionable science-based information on food and health. Through its communication tools and networks, EUFIC will guide the communication and dissemination of the RESTRUCTURE project to share relevant scientific research findings and insights with a broad and varied audience.
TiFN is a public-private partnership for multi- and interdisciplinary research in food and nutrition. We aim to combine scientific excellence with programming led by demands from business and society, and result-oriented project planning, execution and management.
RESTRUCTURE project is co-funded by the Dutch government through the TKI
Top Sector Agri & Food scheme for public-private partnerships.
The Top Sector Agri & Food has the ambition to be a
world leader in successful solutions for global challenges in the fields
of agriculture and food. The Top Sector Agri & Food is one of the 9
top sectors in which The Netherlands excels worldwide. It stimulates
new knowledge and innovations, first and foremost by creating and
financing research and innovation projects.
www.topsectoragrifood.nl
Unilever is one of the world’s largest consumer goods companies with well-known brands operating in three divisions: Beauty & Personal care, Foods & Refreshment and Home Care. We believe that scientific research is crucial to advance our knowledge and understanding of how food and nutrition affect our consumers’ health and, therefore, we contribute to the RESTRUCTURE project.
The Hero Group is an international food company which operates with a clear mission: to delight consumers by conserving the goodness of nature. The company focuses on four main strategic categories: baby and toddler foods, baby and toddler milks, natural spreads and healthy snacks. Hero, under its Nutrition Institute, decided to be part of the RESTRUCTURE project to better understand how food texture relates to eating behaviour, and to integrate the findings to advance the development of natural and healthy products.
The Netherlands Oils & Fats Industry (MVO) represents 95% of the companies in The Netherlands that are active in the production, processing, trade and recycling of vegetable and animal oils and fats. We take part in RESTRUCTURE because we feel it is important to learn more about how changing the structure of products can change eating behaviour in a healthy way.
Royal Cosun is a leading international agricultural cooperative of 8,400 growers. We unlock the full potential of plants in a sustainable way and create smart, plant-based solutions for current and future generations. We create solutions for food, food ingredients, animal feed, biobased products and green energy. By doing so, we can limit climate change and improve lifestyles. We work together with associated supplying growers from Europe, Asia, North and South America and with more than 4,000 employees. The business groups Aviko, Cosun Beet Company, Duynie Group, Sensus and SVZ are part of Cosun.
Royal Cosun’s interest in the Restructure project is to see whether the addition of Cosun ingredients (including sugar beet fiber) to food and food ingredients lowers the eating rate and thus the energy intake of consumers. We also want to identify new possibilities and scientific argumentation for developing plant-based food ingredients that improve product quality and consumer health in collaboration with potential food manufacturers.
NZMP, Fonterra’s ingredient brand, has pioneered dairy innovation from as early as 1927. In Europe we produce a range of premium quality whey protein and specialty ingredients that can be used in a range of consumer products from lifestyle, sports, medical to paediatric nutrition. NZMP has joined the RESTRUCTURE project to support our customers in developing the best products for consumers, by creating different textures using our ingredients and providing communication insight
We are a Trade Organisation for all processed foods, and therefore interested in any research study which looks into how the “level of processing” can be a causal factor in obesity. This is why we are funding RESTRUCTURE project, whatever the outcomes.
Cosun Nutrition Center provides science-based information about plant-based food and food ingredients in relation to nutrition, health and sustainability to health professionals. Cosun Nutrition Center is funding the RESTRUCTURE project because we believe that greater understanding is needed about food processing and health-related outcomes.
General Mills is a company that delivers foods that the world loves. As part of our continued support to science-based research we are participating in the RESTRUCTURE project with the intent of increasing our understanding of how food composition affects eating behaviours and incorporating these findings in the development of our products, to help support our consumers in building healthy dietary patterns.
Tate & Lyle is a global leader in ingredient solutions for healthier food and beverages, operating for over 160 years. We are a purpose led business with a strong desire to make a positive impact on society through our scientific expertise. We have joined RESTUCTURE to better understand how food composition can affect eating behaviors and to help manufacturers who create products enjoyed by millions of people every day, to take sugar, calories and fat out of food and add fibre and protein.
https://www.tateandlyle.com/nutrition-centre
GBFOODS is an international food company founded in 1937 with headquarters in Barcelona, Spain. It is present in more than 50 countries between Europe and Africa, with more than 30 local brands. By joining the RESTRUCTURE project GBFOODS aims to have reliable scientific information about ultra-processed food potential impact on public health, in order to consequently positioning its portfolio.
https://www.thegbfoods.com/
