Mario Mazzocchi, W. Bruce Traill, and Jason F. Shogren
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199213856
- eISBN:
- 9780191695902
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199213856.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Public and Welfare
The obesity epidemic and the growing debate about what, if any, public health policy should be adopted is the subject of endless debates within the media and in governments around the world. Whilst ...
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The obesity epidemic and the growing debate about what, if any, public health policy should be adopted is the subject of endless debates within the media and in governments around the world. Whilst much has been written on the subject, this book takes a unique approach by looking at the obesity epidemic from an economic perspective. Written in a language accessible to non-specialists, the authors provide a timely discussion of evolving nutrition policies in both the developing and developed world, discuss the factors influencing supply and demand of food supply, and review the evidence for various factors which may explain recent trends in diets, weight, and health. The traditional economic model assumes people choose to be overweight as part of a utility maximisation process that involves choices about what to eat and drink, how much time to spend on leisure, food preparation, and exercise, and choices about appearance and health. Market and behavioural failures, however, such as time available to a person, education, costs imposed on the health system and economic productivity provide the economic rationale for government intervention. The authors explore various policy measures designed to deal with the epidemic and examine their effectiveness within a cost-benefit analysis framework. While providing a sound economic basis for analysing policy decisions, the book also aims to show the underlying limits of the economic framework in quantifying changes in public well-being.Less
The obesity epidemic and the growing debate about what, if any, public health policy should be adopted is the subject of endless debates within the media and in governments around the world. Whilst much has been written on the subject, this book takes a unique approach by looking at the obesity epidemic from an economic perspective. Written in a language accessible to non-specialists, the authors provide a timely discussion of evolving nutrition policies in both the developing and developed world, discuss the factors influencing supply and demand of food supply, and review the evidence for various factors which may explain recent trends in diets, weight, and health. The traditional economic model assumes people choose to be overweight as part of a utility maximisation process that involves choices about what to eat and drink, how much time to spend on leisure, food preparation, and exercise, and choices about appearance and health. Market and behavioural failures, however, such as time available to a person, education, costs imposed on the health system and economic productivity provide the economic rationale for government intervention. The authors explore various policy measures designed to deal with the epidemic and examine their effectiveness within a cost-benefit analysis framework. While providing a sound economic basis for analysing policy decisions, the book also aims to show the underlying limits of the economic framework in quantifying changes in public well-being.
Andrew Davies and Ilora Finlay (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- November 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780192632432
- eISBN:
- 9780191730375
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780192632432.001.0001
- Subject:
- Palliative Care, Patient Care and End-of-Life Decision Making, Pain Management and Palliative Pharmacology
Lesions of the oral cavity have an enormous impact on the quality of life of patients with advanced disease. They cause considerable morbidity and diminish a patient's physical and psychological well ...
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Lesions of the oral cavity have an enormous impact on the quality of life of patients with advanced disease. They cause considerable morbidity and diminish a patient's physical and psychological well being. Oral complications impair oral nutrition and can cause a variety of problems including malnutrition, anorexia, and cachexia. Psychological problems relate to the role that the oral cavity plays in communication and social life. This book provides comprehensive, clinically relevant, evidence-based guidelines on oral problems to ensure first-rate care. The scientific foundations and research base for their management underpin the discussion throughout. A multi-disciplinary group of contributors provide authoritative guidelines on clinical features, investigations, and pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment, as well as complementary therapies. Chapters cover oral assessment, hygiene, domiciliary dental care, infections, taste disturbance, pain, HIV infection and AIDS, neurological diseases, and paediatric problems.Less
Lesions of the oral cavity have an enormous impact on the quality of life of patients with advanced disease. They cause considerable morbidity and diminish a patient's physical and psychological well being. Oral complications impair oral nutrition and can cause a variety of problems including malnutrition, anorexia, and cachexia. Psychological problems relate to the role that the oral cavity plays in communication and social life. This book provides comprehensive, clinically relevant, evidence-based guidelines on oral problems to ensure first-rate care. The scientific foundations and research base for their management underpin the discussion throughout. A multi-disciplinary group of contributors provide authoritative guidelines on clinical features, investigations, and pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment, as well as complementary therapies. Chapters cover oral assessment, hygiene, domiciliary dental care, infections, taste disturbance, pain, HIV infection and AIDS, neurological diseases, and paediatric problems.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.003.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
This introductory chapter expands on three important themes that form the backdrop of this book's study: nutrition touches and links all living things; nutrition is complex; and there have been ...
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This introductory chapter expands on three important themes that form the backdrop of this book's study: nutrition touches and links all living things; nutrition is complex; and there have been benefits both from the highly specific and detailed approach of applied nutritional sciences and the simplified, general approaches adopted in the ecological sciences. At the most conspicuous level, nutrition is a primary factor defining the geographic distribution and temporal pattern of activity for many animals. Achieving nutritional homeostasis involves a complex interplay between multiple and changing nutrient needs and variable foods. The detailed studies of human and animal nutritionists have yielded a wealth of information for deriving dietary recommendations for human health, formulating animal feeds, designing dietary regimes for captive animals, supplementing the nutrition of free-ranging animals—and many other important practical applications.Less
This introductory chapter expands on three important themes that form the backdrop of this book's study: nutrition touches and links all living things; nutrition is complex; and there have been benefits both from the highly specific and detailed approach of applied nutritional sciences and the simplified, general approaches adopted in the ecological sciences. At the most conspicuous level, nutrition is a primary factor defining the geographic distribution and temporal pattern of activity for many animals. Achieving nutritional homeostasis involves a complex interplay between multiple and changing nutrient needs and variable foods. The detailed studies of human and animal nutritionists have yielded a wealth of information for deriving dietary recommendations for human health, formulating animal feeds, designing dietary regimes for captive animals, supplementing the nutrition of free-ranging animals—and many other important practical applications.
Thomas Kjeller Johansen
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199658435
- eISBN:
- 9780191742231
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199658435.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy, Philosophy of Mind
Aristotle may be considered the founder of ‘faculty psychology’, the attempt to explain a variety of psychological phenomena by reference to a few inborn capacities. This study investigates his main ...
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Aristotle may be considered the founder of ‘faculty psychology’, the attempt to explain a variety of psychological phenomena by reference to a few inborn capacities. This study investigates his main work on psychology, the De Anima, from this perspective. It is shown how Aristotle conceives of the soul's capacities and how he uses them to account for the souls of living beings. An account is offered of how Aristotle defines the capacities in relation to their activities and proper objects. The relationship of the body to the definition the soul's capacities is also considered. Against the background of his theory of science, it is argued that the capacities of the soul serve as causal principles in the explanation of the various life forms. Detailed readings are developed of Aristotle's treatment of nutrition, perception, and intellect, which show the soul's various roles as formal, final and efficient causes. The so‐called ‘agent’ intellect is interpreted as falling outside the scope of Aristotle's natural scientific approach to the soul. Other psychological activities, various kinds of perception (including ‘perceiving that we perceive’), memory, imagination, are accounted for in their explanatory dependency on the basic capacities. The ability to move spatially is similarly explained as derivative from the perceptual or intellectual capacities. It is argued that these capacities together with the nutritive may, as basic to the definition and explanation of the various kinds of soul, be understood as ‘parts’ of the soul. The book finally considers how the account of the capacities in the De Anima is adopted and adapted in Aristotle's biological and minor psychological works.Less
Aristotle may be considered the founder of ‘faculty psychology’, the attempt to explain a variety of psychological phenomena by reference to a few inborn capacities. This study investigates his main work on psychology, the De Anima, from this perspective. It is shown how Aristotle conceives of the soul's capacities and how he uses them to account for the souls of living beings. An account is offered of how Aristotle defines the capacities in relation to their activities and proper objects. The relationship of the body to the definition the soul's capacities is also considered. Against the background of his theory of science, it is argued that the capacities of the soul serve as causal principles in the explanation of the various life forms. Detailed readings are developed of Aristotle's treatment of nutrition, perception, and intellect, which show the soul's various roles as formal, final and efficient causes. The so‐called ‘agent’ intellect is interpreted as falling outside the scope of Aristotle's natural scientific approach to the soul. Other psychological activities, various kinds of perception (including ‘perceiving that we perceive’), memory, imagination, are accounted for in their explanatory dependency on the basic capacities. The ability to move spatially is similarly explained as derivative from the perceptual or intellectual capacities. It is argued that these capacities together with the nutritive may, as basic to the definition and explanation of the various kinds of soul, be understood as ‘parts’ of the soul. The book finally considers how the account of the capacities in the De Anima is adopted and adapted in Aristotle's biological and minor psychological works.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.001.0001
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
Nutrition has long been considered more the domain of medicine and agriculture than of the biological sciences, yet it touches and shapes all aspects of the natural world. The need for nutrients ...
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Nutrition has long been considered more the domain of medicine and agriculture than of the biological sciences, yet it touches and shapes all aspects of the natural world. The need for nutrients determines whether wild animals thrive, how populations evolve and decline, and how ecological communities are structured. This is the first book to address nutrition's enormously complex role in biology, both at the level of individual organisms and in their broader ecological interactions. The book provides a comprehensive theoretical approach to the analysis of nutrition—the Geometric Framework. The book shows how it can help us to understand the links between nutrition and the biology of individual animals, including the physiological mechanisms that determine the nutritional interactions of the animal with its environment, and the consequences of these interactions in terms of health, immune responses, and lifespan. The book explains how these effects translate into the collective behavior of groups and societies, and in turn influence food webs and the structure of ecosystems. It then demonstrates how the Geometric Framework can be used to tackle issues in applied nutrition, such as the problem of optimizing diets for livestock and endangered species, and how it can also help to address the epidemic of human obesity and metabolic disease.Less
Nutrition has long been considered more the domain of medicine and agriculture than of the biological sciences, yet it touches and shapes all aspects of the natural world. The need for nutrients determines whether wild animals thrive, how populations evolve and decline, and how ecological communities are structured. This is the first book to address nutrition's enormously complex role in biology, both at the level of individual organisms and in their broader ecological interactions. The book provides a comprehensive theoretical approach to the analysis of nutrition—the Geometric Framework. The book shows how it can help us to understand the links between nutrition and the biology of individual animals, including the physiological mechanisms that determine the nutritional interactions of the animal with its environment, and the consequences of these interactions in terms of health, immune responses, and lifespan. The book explains how these effects translate into the collective behavior of groups and societies, and in turn influence food webs and the structure of ecosystems. It then demonstrates how the Geometric Framework can be used to tackle issues in applied nutrition, such as the problem of optimizing diets for livestock and endangered species, and how it can also help to address the epidemic of human obesity and metabolic disease.
Devi Sridhar
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199573547
- eISBN:
- 9780191722677
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199573547.003.0007
- Subject:
- Business and Management, Public Management, Organization Studies
The estimated number of undernourished people around the world has increased to nearly 923 million and is projected to rise with increasing food prices. A large majority of those affected live in ...
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The estimated number of undernourished people around the world has increased to nearly 923 million and is projected to rise with increasing food prices. A large majority of those affected live in India. This chapter examines one of the key efforts to address undernutrition in a targeted and rational manner in India. The resulting project, the Tamil Nadu Integrated Nutrition Project (TINP) was rational in that it was based on a combination of two Western-based scientific and modern disciplines, namely biomedical and health economic models. TINP was funded by the World Bank and has often been referred to as one of the most ‘successful’ nutrition projects in the general nutrition literature, so the way it was designed and implemented is of particular interest. It is argued that there is a mismatch between how malnutrition is defined, measured, and evaluated by the World Bank, and how it is lived and experienced in affected communities. While the biomedical approach to undernutrition might be suitable in the setting of a clinic, it is problematic when exported to stand-alone community nutrition projects such as TINP.Less
The estimated number of undernourished people around the world has increased to nearly 923 million and is projected to rise with increasing food prices. A large majority of those affected live in India. This chapter examines one of the key efforts to address undernutrition in a targeted and rational manner in India. The resulting project, the Tamil Nadu Integrated Nutrition Project (TINP) was rational in that it was based on a combination of two Western-based scientific and modern disciplines, namely biomedical and health economic models. TINP was funded by the World Bank and has often been referred to as one of the most ‘successful’ nutrition projects in the general nutrition literature, so the way it was designed and implemented is of particular interest. It is argued that there is a mismatch between how malnutrition is defined, measured, and evaluated by the World Bank, and how it is lived and experienced in affected communities. While the biomedical approach to undernutrition might be suitable in the setting of a clinic, it is problematic when exported to stand-alone community nutrition projects such as TINP.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.003.0002
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
This chapter discusses the Geometric Framework (GF) for nutrition. GF satisfies the multiple-food-components requirement using a simple device known as a nutrient space. A nutrient space is a ...
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This chapter discusses the Geometric Framework (GF) for nutrition. GF satisfies the multiple-food-components requirement using a simple device known as a nutrient space. A nutrient space is a geometric space built of two or more axes, where each axis represents a food component that is suspected to play a role in influencing the animal's responses to its environment. In most cases, these food components will be nutrients but this is not invariably the case. The nutrient space provides the common context in which to describe the pertinent aspects of the animal, its environment, the interactions between animal and environment, and the consequences of these interactions.Less
This chapter discusses the Geometric Framework (GF) for nutrition. GF satisfies the multiple-food-components requirement using a simple device known as a nutrient space. A nutrient space is a geometric space built of two or more axes, where each axis represents a food component that is suspected to play a role in influencing the animal's responses to its environment. In most cases, these food components will be nutrients but this is not invariably the case. The nutrient space provides the common context in which to describe the pertinent aspects of the animal, its environment, the interactions between animal and environment, and the consequences of these interactions.
J. Eduardo P. W. Bicudo, William A. Buttemer, Mark A. Chappell, James T. Pearson, and Claus Bech
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199228447
- eISBN:
- 9780191711305
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199228447.003.0004
- Subject:
- Biology, Ornithology
This chapter reviews the diversity of feeding habits among birds and the consequences for their nutritional ecology. Different digestion strategies are also emphasized. Food selection is often ...
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This chapter reviews the diversity of feeding habits among birds and the consequences for their nutritional ecology. Different digestion strategies are also emphasized. Food selection is often treated as a challenge of acquisition, but it is also a problem of utilization, processing and digestion of food. What animals eat and excrete shapes their role in ecological communities and determines their contribution to the flux of energy and materials in ecosystems. The balance between energy acquisition and expenditure is critical for survival and reproductive success. Because energy intake and expenditure integrate all aspects of an individual's life, changes in energy management are closely tied to all aspects of its life-history, including diet quality, nutritional requirements, allocation of time, and body plan.Less
This chapter reviews the diversity of feeding habits among birds and the consequences for their nutritional ecology. Different digestion strategies are also emphasized. Food selection is often treated as a challenge of acquisition, but it is also a problem of utilization, processing and digestion of food. What animals eat and excrete shapes their role in ecological communities and determines their contribution to the flux of energy and materials in ecosystems. The balance between energy acquisition and expenditure is critical for survival and reproductive success. Because energy intake and expenditure integrate all aspects of an individual's life, changes in energy management are closely tied to all aspects of its life-history, including diet quality, nutritional requirements, allocation of time, and body plan.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.003.0003
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
This chapter focuses on how animals are able to regulate their intake and use of multiple nutrients. To regulate the balance of nutrients eaten, an animal needs to assess the composition of available ...
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This chapter focuses on how animals are able to regulate their intake and use of multiple nutrients. To regulate the balance of nutrients eaten, an animal needs to assess the composition of available foods in relation to its nutritional requirements. Integration of information about food composition and nutritional state occurs both at the periphery, by nutrient-specific modulation of taste receptors, and more centrally as signals from systemic and peripheral sources converge onto the neural circuits that control feeding behavior. Meanwhile, postingestive regulatory responses can assist in rebalancing an imbalanced nutrient intake. Once digested and absorbed across the gut, nutrient supplies can be further rebalanced by differentially voiding excess nutrients and conserving nutrients that are in limited supply.Less
This chapter focuses on how animals are able to regulate their intake and use of multiple nutrients. To regulate the balance of nutrients eaten, an animal needs to assess the composition of available foods in relation to its nutritional requirements. Integration of information about food composition and nutritional state occurs both at the periphery, by nutrient-specific modulation of taste receptors, and more centrally as signals from systemic and peripheral sources converge onto the neural circuits that control feeding behavior. Meanwhile, postingestive regulatory responses can assist in rebalancing an imbalanced nutrient intake. Once digested and absorbed across the gut, nutrient supplies can be further rebalanced by differentially voiding excess nutrients and conserving nutrients that are in limited supply.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.003.0004
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
This chapter examines the relationships between nutrition, life span, and sex. It considers the view that dietary restriction without severe malnutrition prolongs life. It is generally believed that ...
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This chapter examines the relationships between nutrition, life span, and sex. It considers the view that dietary restriction without severe malnutrition prolongs life. It is generally believed that the benefits of dietary restriction arise from eating fewer calories. However, Geometric Framework experiments on insects in which the effects of macronutrients have been separated indicate that, rather than calories, a key determinant of the relationship between diet and longevity is the balance of protein to nonprotein (fat and/or carbohydrate) energy in the diet. Meanwhile, the presumption in much of life history theory that life span and reproduction trade off against each other for limiting resources is shown to be too simplistic. These two life-history variables certainly have differing nutritional optima, but they can be dissociated and do not inevitably trade off. Reproductive senescence and aging may proceed at different rates in males and females, as predicted by sexual selection theory.Less
This chapter examines the relationships between nutrition, life span, and sex. It considers the view that dietary restriction without severe malnutrition prolongs life. It is generally believed that the benefits of dietary restriction arise from eating fewer calories. However, Geometric Framework experiments on insects in which the effects of macronutrients have been separated indicate that, rather than calories, a key determinant of the relationship between diet and longevity is the balance of protein to nonprotein (fat and/or carbohydrate) energy in the diet. Meanwhile, the presumption in much of life history theory that life span and reproduction trade off against each other for limiting resources is shown to be too simplistic. These two life-history variables certainly have differing nutritional optima, but they can be dissociated and do not inevitably trade off. Reproductive senescence and aging may proceed at different rates in males and females, as predicted by sexual selection theory.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.003.0008
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
This chapter assesses the consequences of individual nutrition for populations and the assemblages of species that comprise ecological communities. However, the ecological consequences of nutrition ...
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This chapter assesses the consequences of individual nutrition for populations and the assemblages of species that comprise ecological communities. However, the ecological consequences of nutrition are not restricted to the effects of diet on individual organisms but include as well the direct and indirect interactions occurring among individuals within populations and between species. Understanding the complex network of interactions that produce food webs and structure ecosystem dynamics requires the understanding of the participants' differing nutritional requirements, priorities, and regulatory capacities. Geometric Framework analyses have shown that these features differ between species and across trophic levels. Nutritional space is one part of the fundamental niche of an organism, and there is a need to integrate nutrition with the biophysical ecology of organisms. Evolutionary processes also need to be taken into account, and agent-based models offer promise toward development of a new understanding of the evolutionary ecology of nutrition.Less
This chapter assesses the consequences of individual nutrition for populations and the assemblages of species that comprise ecological communities. However, the ecological consequences of nutrition are not restricted to the effects of diet on individual organisms but include as well the direct and indirect interactions occurring among individuals within populations and between species. Understanding the complex network of interactions that produce food webs and structure ecosystem dynamics requires the understanding of the participants' differing nutritional requirements, priorities, and regulatory capacities. Geometric Framework analyses have shown that these features differ between species and across trophic levels. Nutritional space is one part of the fundamental niche of an organism, and there is a need to integrate nutrition with the biophysical ecology of organisms. Evolutionary processes also need to be taken into account, and agent-based models offer promise toward development of a new understanding of the evolutionary ecology of nutrition.
Stephen J. Simpson and David Raubenheimer
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145655
- eISBN:
- 9781400842803
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145655.003.0010
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology
This chapter explores the methods of nutritional geometry on the modern human diet, applying the geometric approach to an analysis of a key aspect of human nutrition: the topical subject of human ...
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This chapter explores the methods of nutritional geometry on the modern human diet, applying the geometric approach to an analysis of a key aspect of human nutrition: the topical subject of human obesity. This analysis leads to three conclusions. First, the available evidence suggests that humans can regulate macronutrient intake, but that the intake target contains a built-in component for fat storage. Failure to use this stored fat promotes obesity. Second, when humans are faced with imbalanced diets, protein intake is prioritized. When the ratio of protein to carbohydrate in the diet is lower than optimal, it is easier to gain the required amount of protein—and hence overconsume fat and carbohydrate—when foods are high in energy density, present in great variety, and easily available throughout the day. Lastly, the regulation of nutrient intake in humans has evolved “assuming” a higher level of energetic expenditure than is usual today.Less
This chapter explores the methods of nutritional geometry on the modern human diet, applying the geometric approach to an analysis of a key aspect of human nutrition: the topical subject of human obesity. This analysis leads to three conclusions. First, the available evidence suggests that humans can regulate macronutrient intake, but that the intake target contains a built-in component for fat storage. Failure to use this stored fat promotes obesity. Second, when humans are faced with imbalanced diets, protein intake is prioritized. When the ratio of protein to carbohydrate in the diet is lower than optimal, it is easier to gain the required amount of protein—and hence overconsume fat and carbohydrate—when foods are high in energy density, present in great variety, and easily available throughout the day. Lastly, the regulation of nutrient intake in humans has evolved “assuming” a higher level of energetic expenditure than is usual today.
Denis J. Murphy
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199207145
- eISBN:
- 9780191708893
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199207145.003.0009
- Subject:
- Biology, Plant Sciences and Forestry
Although agriculture acted as a spur to many aspects of social and technological development, increasing reliance on a narrow range of food crops had many downsides that sometimes caused people to ...
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Although agriculture acted as a spur to many aspects of social and technological development, increasing reliance on a narrow range of food crops had many downsides that sometimes caused people to revert to hunter gathering. The restricted nutrient content of some crops, especially cereals, led to a reduction in human stature and an increase in degenerative diseases. People adapted both behaviourally and genetically to their increasing reliance on crops and livestock. Genetic changes in various populations included reduced maxillo-facial structures, lactose tolerance, malarial resistance, and partial resistance to zoonoses. Although many of these changes had an adverse impact on human wellbeing at the individual level, the greater size and techno-social complexity of agrarian based societies enabled them to out-compete hunter-gatherers. Despite their superior individual fitness, hunter-gatherers were fewer in number, less well organized, and lacked access to new technologies developed by their sicklier but formidably equipped agrarian neighbours.Less
Although agriculture acted as a spur to many aspects of social and technological development, increasing reliance on a narrow range of food crops had many downsides that sometimes caused people to revert to hunter gathering. The restricted nutrient content of some crops, especially cereals, led to a reduction in human stature and an increase in degenerative diseases. People adapted both behaviourally and genetically to their increasing reliance on crops and livestock. Genetic changes in various populations included reduced maxillo-facial structures, lactose tolerance, malarial resistance, and partial resistance to zoonoses. Although many of these changes had an adverse impact on human wellbeing at the individual level, the greater size and techno-social complexity of agrarian based societies enabled them to out-compete hunter-gatherers. Despite their superior individual fitness, hunter-gatherers were fewer in number, less well organized, and lacked access to new technologies developed by their sicklier but formidably equipped agrarian neighbours.
Leslie Clarkson and Margaret Crawford
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- January 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780198227519
- eISBN:
- 9780191708374
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198227519.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, British and Irish Modern History
This book traces the history of food and famine in Ireland from the 16th to the early 20th century. It is concerned with what people ate and drank, and how consumption patterns changed over time. It ...
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This book traces the history of food and famine in Ireland from the 16th to the early 20th century. It is concerned with what people ate and drank, and how consumption patterns changed over time. It explores the economic and social forces that lay behind these changes, as well as individual motives affecting taste, preferences, and acceptability. It considers the reasons why potatoes became such a major component of diet of the poor during the 18th century at the same time as the diets of the middling and upper classes became more varied. The book is also concerned with nutrition, paying particular attention to the nutritional components of the foods most commonly consumed. It explores the connections between diets, nutrition, health, and disease. The book looks at the relationship between the food supply and the growth of population, and government policy towards food supply. Finally, it considers the vulnerability of Ireland to famine over the centuries, the reality of famine when it occurred, and the causes of mortality and disease during the Great Famine.Less
This book traces the history of food and famine in Ireland from the 16th to the early 20th century. It is concerned with what people ate and drank, and how consumption patterns changed over time. It explores the economic and social forces that lay behind these changes, as well as individual motives affecting taste, preferences, and acceptability. It considers the reasons why potatoes became such a major component of diet of the poor during the 18th century at the same time as the diets of the middling and upper classes became more varied. The book is also concerned with nutrition, paying particular attention to the nutritional components of the foods most commonly consumed. It explores the connections between diets, nutrition, health, and disease. The book looks at the relationship between the food supply and the growth of population, and government policy towards food supply. Finally, it considers the vulnerability of Ireland to famine over the centuries, the reality of famine when it occurred, and the causes of mortality and disease during the Great Famine.
Charles R. C. Sheppard, Simon K. Davy, and Graham M. Pilling
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780198566359
- eISBN:
- 9780191713934
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198566359.003.0004
- Subject:
- Biology, Biodiversity / Conservation Biology, Aquatic Biology
Symbiosis, where different species live together for prolonged periods, is ubiquitous and extremely important in coral reefs. The most important symbiosis is between corals and the microalgae ...
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Symbiosis, where different species live together for prolonged periods, is ubiquitous and extremely important in coral reefs. The most important symbiosis is between corals and the microalgae (zooxanthellae) that live in their cells, without which coral reefs would not exist. This chapter focusses on the diversity of zooxanthellae, the linkage with coral calcification, the supply of photosynthetically-fixed carbon to the coral, and the conservation and recycling of essential nutrients (especially nitrogen and phosphorus) by this symbiosis. The acquisition and breakdown of the symbiosis, particularly under thermal stress (i.e. coral bleaching), is described. Other important coral-microbe symbioses involve cyanobacteria, heterotrophic bacteria, viruses and protozoans, and endolithic algae and fungi that live in the coral skeleton. Symbioses between sponges and bacteria or algae are also important, as are the iconic associations between fish and various invertebrates (e.g. sea anemones) or other fish species.Less
Symbiosis, where different species live together for prolonged periods, is ubiquitous and extremely important in coral reefs. The most important symbiosis is between corals and the microalgae (zooxanthellae) that live in their cells, without which coral reefs would not exist. This chapter focusses on the diversity of zooxanthellae, the linkage with coral calcification, the supply of photosynthetically-fixed carbon to the coral, and the conservation and recycling of essential nutrients (especially nitrogen and phosphorus) by this symbiosis. The acquisition and breakdown of the symbiosis, particularly under thermal stress (i.e. coral bleaching), is described. Other important coral-microbe symbioses involve cyanobacteria, heterotrophic bacteria, viruses and protozoans, and endolithic algae and fungi that live in the coral skeleton. Symbioses between sponges and bacteria or algae are also important, as are the iconic associations between fish and various invertebrates (e.g. sea anemones) or other fish species.
John Walley and John Wright (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199238934
- eISBN:
- 9780191716621
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199238934.001.0001
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health, Epidemiology
Many of the health problems in the developing world can be tackled or prevented through public health measures such as essential health care, improved living conditions, water, sanitation, nutrition, ...
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Many of the health problems in the developing world can be tackled or prevented through public health measures such as essential health care, improved living conditions, water, sanitation, nutrition, immunization, and the adoption of healthy lifestyles. Public Health is an action guide to improving public/community health, with a particular focus on low- to middle-income countries. It explains public health approaches to developing effective health services and preventive programmes. This Second Edition contains real examples, illustrations and case histories to bring an important subject to life for the reader. The book covers the essential clinical services and preventive programmes — including those for TB, HIV/AIDS, malaria, and diarrhoeal diseases — and the integrated management of childhood and adult illnesses. Practical methods are given for assessing health needs and working with communities to develop health services; and the development of hospital, health centre, and community health services — particularly mother, neonatal, and child health services — are explained. Additionally, gender, social, and economic influences on communities' health are explored.Less
Many of the health problems in the developing world can be tackled or prevented through public health measures such as essential health care, improved living conditions, water, sanitation, nutrition, immunization, and the adoption of healthy lifestyles. Public Health is an action guide to improving public/community health, with a particular focus on low- to middle-income countries. It explains public health approaches to developing effective health services and preventive programmes. This Second Edition contains real examples, illustrations and case histories to bring an important subject to life for the reader. The book covers the essential clinical services and preventive programmes — including those for TB, HIV/AIDS, malaria, and diarrhoeal diseases — and the integrated management of childhood and adult illnesses. Practical methods are given for assessing health needs and working with communities to develop health services; and the development of hospital, health centre, and community health services — particularly mother, neonatal, and child health services — are explained. Additionally, gender, social, and economic influences on communities' health are explored.
Cheryl D. Knott, Melissa Emery Thompson, and Serge A. Wich
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780199213276
- eISBN:
- 9780191707568
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199213276.003.0011
- Subject:
- Biology, Animal Biology, Biodiversity / Conservation Biology
Orangutans have the longest interbirth interval of any mammal, with existing data suggesting that these intervals may be significantly longer in Sumatra than in Borneo. This finding presents a ...
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Orangutans have the longest interbirth interval of any mammal, with existing data suggesting that these intervals may be significantly longer in Sumatra than in Borneo. This finding presents a paradox because our models of reproductive ecology suggest that the higher habitat quality of Sumatra should lead to shorter interbirth intervals. This chapter explores this intriguing difference between Sumatran and Bornean orangutans by detailing the available evidence on how orangutan reproduction is influenced by ecology and life history. Data are evaluated in light of the models, mechanisms and hypotheses by which energetics influence reproduction in apes and humans. The chapter makes recommendations for future research that will lead to a more thorough understanding of orangutan reproductive ecology. New hypotheses about acute vs cumulative effects of energy on ovarian function, the magnitude of the shift in energy intake, and the role of developmental plasticity in orangutan reproductive functioning are also presented.Less
Orangutans have the longest interbirth interval of any mammal, with existing data suggesting that these intervals may be significantly longer in Sumatra than in Borneo. This finding presents a paradox because our models of reproductive ecology suggest that the higher habitat quality of Sumatra should lead to shorter interbirth intervals. This chapter explores this intriguing difference between Sumatran and Bornean orangutans by detailing the available evidence on how orangutan reproduction is influenced by ecology and life history. Data are evaluated in light of the models, mechanisms and hypotheses by which energetics influence reproduction in apes and humans. The chapter makes recommendations for future research that will lead to a more thorough understanding of orangutan reproductive ecology. New hypotheses about acute vs cumulative effects of energy on ovarian function, the magnitude of the shift in energy intake, and the role of developmental plasticity in orangutan reproductive functioning are also presented.
Thomas Johansen
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199289974
- eISBN:
- 9780191711008
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199289974.003.0014
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy
This chapter examines Aristotle's claim that the soul is an inner principle of change, against the background of his account in the Physics of nature as an inner principle of change. That for ...
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This chapter examines Aristotle's claim that the soul is an inner principle of change, against the background of his account in the Physics of nature as an inner principle of change. That for Aristotle, the study of the soul is part of the study of nature is clear already from the opening lines of the De anima, where he announces that ‘knowledge of the soul seems to contribute greatly to all truth but most of all the truth in relation to nature: for the soul is such a thing as a principle of animals’. The study of the soul is valued, then, for its contribution to our knowledge of nature. The reason for that claim is in turn that the soul is such a thing as ‘a principle of animals’. Aristotle thinks that the soul really is a principle of animals. The ‘such as’ here serves rather to put epistemic distance to the claim: we do not yet know what it means for the soul to be a principle, so the vagueness is appropriate. The chapter seeks to overcome some of that vagueness.Less
This chapter examines Aristotle's claim that the soul is an inner principle of change, against the background of his account in the Physics of nature as an inner principle of change. That for Aristotle, the study of the soul is part of the study of nature is clear already from the opening lines of the De anima, where he announces that ‘knowledge of the soul seems to contribute greatly to all truth but most of all the truth in relation to nature: for the soul is such a thing as a principle of animals’. The study of the soul is valued, then, for its contribution to our knowledge of nature. The reason for that claim is in turn that the soul is such a thing as ‘a principle of animals’. Aristotle thinks that the soul really is a principle of animals. The ‘such as’ here serves rather to put epistemic distance to the claim: we do not yet know what it means for the soul to be a principle, so the vagueness is appropriate. The chapter seeks to overcome some of that vagueness.
Alok Bhargava
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199269143
- eISBN:
- 9780191710117
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199269143.001.0001
- Subject:
- Economics and Finance, Development, Growth, and Environmental
This book provides a firm grounding in the concepts and issues across several disciplines including economics, nutrition, psychology and public health in the hope of improving the design of food ...
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This book provides a firm grounding in the concepts and issues across several disciplines including economics, nutrition, psychology and public health in the hope of improving the design of food policies in the developed and developing world. Using longitudinal (panel) data from India, Bangladesh, Kenya, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Pakistan, and extending the analytical framework used in economics and biomedical sciences to include multi-disciplinary analyses, this book shows how rigorous and thoughtful econometric and statistical analysis can improve understanding of the relationships between a number of socioeconomic, nutritional, and behavioural variables on a number of issues like cognitive development in children and labour productivity in the developing world. A chapter on the growing obesity epidemic is also included, highlighting the new set of problems facing not only developed but developing countries. The book also includes a glossary of technical terms.Less
This book provides a firm grounding in the concepts and issues across several disciplines including economics, nutrition, psychology and public health in the hope of improving the design of food policies in the developed and developing world. Using longitudinal (panel) data from India, Bangladesh, Kenya, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Pakistan, and extending the analytical framework used in economics and biomedical sciences to include multi-disciplinary analyses, this book shows how rigorous and thoughtful econometric and statistical analysis can improve understanding of the relationships between a number of socioeconomic, nutritional, and behavioural variables on a number of issues like cognitive development in children and labour productivity in the developing world. A chapter on the growing obesity epidemic is also included, highlighting the new set of problems facing not only developed but developing countries. The book also includes a glossary of technical terms.
Robert Sallares
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199248506
- eISBN:
- 9780191714634
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199248506.003.0005
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, European History: BCE to 500CE
The first section of this chapter focuses on direct and indirect approaches to the demography of malaria. The problems associated with using cause of death statistics to assess mortality due to ...
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The first section of this chapter focuses on direct and indirect approaches to the demography of malaria. The problems associated with using cause of death statistics to assess mortality due to malaria are discussed, with particular emphasis on the towns of Sermoneta and Grosseto. The second section considers the interactions of malaria with other diseases, such as syphilis, smallpox, gastro-intestinal diseases, tuberculosis, and pneumonia. This section also includes a detailed discussion of quartan fever (caused by Plasmodium malariae) in antiquity. The third section studies the relationship between malaria and human nutrition. The fourth section compares the historical mortality patterns in certain parts of two different countries which had endemic malaria, namely central Italy, East Anglia, and southeast England. The demographic effects of the interaction in central Italy between Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax are analysed as well as the role played by Plasmodium vivax on its own in the mortality patterns of the early modern English marshlands.Less
The first section of this chapter focuses on direct and indirect approaches to the demography of malaria. The problems associated with using cause of death statistics to assess mortality due to malaria are discussed, with particular emphasis on the towns of Sermoneta and Grosseto. The second section considers the interactions of malaria with other diseases, such as syphilis, smallpox, gastro-intestinal diseases, tuberculosis, and pneumonia. This section also includes a detailed discussion of quartan fever (caused by Plasmodium malariae) in antiquity. The third section studies the relationship between malaria and human nutrition. The fourth section compares the historical mortality patterns in certain parts of two different countries which had endemic malaria, namely central Italy, East Anglia, and southeast England. The demographic effects of the interaction in central Italy between Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax are analysed as well as the role played by Plasmodium vivax on its own in the mortality patterns of the early modern English marshlands.
