Diet Food & The Nation’s Health

There are several pressing concerns when it comes to public health. Growing problems with obesity, hypertension and cardiovascular and metabolic diseases are just some of the conditions that have severe ramifications for individual health and the associated costs to society.

While we understand more about the genetic and epigenetic causes of these conditions than ever before, we are also increasingly aware that diet and nutrition are crucial components of an individual’s risk for these (and other) health concerns.

The situation is complicated by the recent explosion of nutritional advice, specialised diets and products aimed at ‘healthy’ eating. The sheer volume of information can make it difficult to assess the best approach, particularly when ‘healthy’ can be ambiguous in this discourse. Much advice is either contradictory or based on a misapprehension of scientific evidence.

Diet, Food and the Nation’s Health will explore all of these issues and provide an introduction to, and knowledge of, the nutritional state of the Nation and the role of diet in health and acute and chronic disease.

It will present the scientific evidence underpinning present conceptions of ‘a healthy diet’ and give participants tools and knowledge to assess an individual’s diet in these contexts.

Participants will also understand food composition relative to healthy eating guidelines and explore the scientific rationale for making health claims. Finally, it will discuss the food industry’s role in improving the diet quality and health of the Nation as a whole.

On completion of the course, learners should be able to:
• Understand the present nutritional setting of the United Kingdom
• Discuss the role of diet in chronic disease
• Critically appraise dietary guidelines and the health claims made on foods
• Evaluate their diet and that of others in terms of overall healthfulness
• Critically appraise the composition of food items in relation to healthy eating targets
• Discuss the potential for the food industry to improve diet quality and the Nation’s health

Course Provider: University of Reading
Course Date: This course commences each April
Course Delivery: Distance Learning – 8-week online course
Course Fee: £875.00