[MUSIC] Hi. My name is Charlotte Mithrill and I've been doing a PhD in Human Nutrition at the Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports at the University of Copenhagen. The aim of my PhD has been to develop a new Nordic diet. But before I tell you about this new Nordic diet I will briefly tell you a little about the background for why there's a need for a new Nordic diet in the first place. Many of the diseases today are diet related and recommendations for a healthy diet. Are one of the main challenges for public health today. At the same time, concern for the environment and the planet's health has developed to be an equally important challenge and the circumstances, circumstances call for an update of the food culture in many countries. Dietary recommendations have not yet been successful in reversing the obesity epidemic. And one of the reasons for this could be that palatability, that is tastiness, and gastronomic potential are not taken into account in current dietary recommendations. Therefore, it has been suggested, dietary recommendations should be more tailored to regional conditions which could help to preserve cultural diversity and eating habits and in addition, contribute to more environmentally friendly food consumption. In the development of this new Nordic diet. The following principles have been crucial: health, gastronomic potential, Nordic identity and sustainability. These principles lead to the formulation of the three overall guidelines forming the basis of the new Nordic diet. The first guideline is more calories from plant foods and fewer from meat. Consumption of meat has almost doubled in the Nordic countries over the past 50 years, and meat intake in the Nordic population is among the highest in the world. Meat is among the least environmentally friendly foods, so more environmentally friendly protein sources with greater health benefits are, therefore, to be preferred. A lower intake of meat makes room for more legumes, vegetables, fruits, grains, potatoes, nuts, herbs, and so on, in the daily diet. Most of which have substantially better impacts on health. The second guideline is, more food from the sea and lakes. The Nordic countries are surrounded by water, and high quality fish and shellfish are abundant here. A large proportion of the Nordic, Nordic fishing catch is currently exported, so there's good potential for increasing local consumption. Furthermore, the Nordic countries have vast amounts of seaweed, a source of nutrition that has mostly been overlooked. In the Western world. Fish and shellfish have a significant health promoting potential, as does seaweed. However, there are some safety issues in the use of seaweed in the human diet that still remains to be clarified. Like, the content, content of iodine, seen in some pieces of seaweed. Overall, increasing the proportion of freshwater and seafoods in the diet has a large potential to improve health as well as provide variation in meals. Furthermore, it can contribute as an environmentally friendly protein source in the new Nordic diet, replacing some of the large amount of meat consumed today. The third and last guidelines, more foods from the wild countryside. In the Nordic countries, the population has reasonable access to large quantities of foods from the wild countryside; that is, plants, mushrooms, berries, fruits and meat. Foods foraged from the wild are interesting because of their potential health potenttia, their firm gastrononic potential and their minimal impact on the environment. They can be collected by the individual for free, or systematic gathering and distribution could be established. Making them available for all. In this way, some of the greatest gastronomic experiences could be made accessible for all. Furthermore, foods from the wild countryside differ from country to country. And are an important part of the identity of a regional cuisine. Based on these three guidelines, a list of more specific dietary components characterizing the new Nordic diet was developed, and I will in the following present you for these dietary components. The first is the group of fruit and vegetables. The meal intake of fruit and vegetables in the average Danish diet is just over 400 grams per day, although the recommended intake is 600 grams per day. Studies have shown that with an increase in intake of fruits or vegetables there is a proportional decrease. In the risk of cardiovascular disease, overweight and obesity, and probably of certain cancers. Fruit and vegetables therefore play an important role in the New Nordic Diet. Specific fruit and vegetables were designated as more identifiable with the Nordic regions. And these are berries, cabbages, root vegetables and legumes. These were selected because of their potential health-promoting properties, their clear Nordic identity and environmentall sustainable production. Fresh herbs are another dietary component in the new Nordic diet. Fresh herbs are rich in vitamins and minerals, and traditional Nordic herbs such as, dill, parsley, and chives are rich sources of aromatic turbilites. And of pheto-chemicals that may have health promoting properties. In addition, they have a great gastronomic potential. Potatoes are also part of the new Nordic diet. Consumption of potatoes has fallen steadily since the introduction of rice and pasta to the Nordic countries. But, potatoes are an important source of dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals in the Danish diet, and are, therefore, recommended as part of the daily diet. Furthermore, potatoes are among the foods that have the least negative environmental impact. Another dietary component in the New Nordic Diet is plants and mushrooms from the wild countryside. As mentioned before, these foods have both a health promoting and gastronomic potential, but at present, the Danish population eats practically no plants and mushrooms from the wild countryside. The New Nordic Diet recommend an intake of around five grams per day. Which take into account that some wild plants have a high content of bioactive components. Some of which can be toxic in large quantities and therefore concern should be taken. Whole grain is also a part of the new Nordic diet. There's strong evidence that whole grain have a health-promoting potential and studies have shown a significant inverse association. Between intake of wholegrain and risk of cardiovascular disease, type two diabetes, cancer, and weight gain or risk of obesity. The average intake in the Danish population today, is less than half the recommended amount. Nuts are also part of the new Nordic diet. Nuts have a documented health promoting potential, and consumption of nuts have been associated with a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, and weight gain and obesity. In addition, nuts have a lot of flavor and can be used as an alternative to sweets and to make salads, cereals and bread more appetizing. An intake of 30 grams of nuts per day is recommended. But the average intake of nuts is currently only about one gram per day in the Danish population. Another important dietary component in the new Nordic diet is fish and shellfish. As mentioned earlier, fish and shellfish have a significant health promotiing potential. Fatty fish contain high amount of n-3 fatty acids which have been shown to improve child brain development and help prevent cardiovascular disease and nervous disorders in adults. In addition, fish and shellfish have a high content of valuable vitamins and minerals, including vitamin D, iodine, and selenium, which are difficult to find naturlly in other foods. Seaweed is also, as mentioned earlier, a part of the new Nordic diet. Seaweed is an overlooked source of nutrition in the Western world, and the intake in the Danish population is close to zero, although it was previously part of the poor man's diet all along the Nordic coastline. Seaweed has a high content of essential minerals, protein, dietary fiber, vitamins and essential fatty acids. The composition of seaweeds varies greatly with species and region origin. And these can give rise to some concern including risks from relatively high contents of iodine. The majority of seaweed in the Nordic region however are edible and non-toxic. But still, the New Nordic Diet recommendations, are set at five grams per day because of the high iodine content in certain species. The final dietary component in the New Nordic Diet is regarding meat. Here meat from free range livestock and game is recommended. As mentioned earlier, meat is among the least environmentally-friendly foods and the new Nordic diet therefore seeks to decrease the intake of meat and replace it with more environmentally-friendly protein sources. Such as fish, and shellfish, legumes and nuts. The new Nordic diet focuses on meat from free range animals for reasons of sustainability, and gastronomy, and potentially also for health. Studies have shown that meat from animals that graze, has a healthier fatty acid composition with less saturated fat, and more polyunsaturated fat, than meat from animals reared indoors without access to grass. Game is unique in gastronomy. Because the animals have fed on plants that reflect the specific climate and landscapes of the region and is therefore also an important part of the new Nordic diet. Now you have heard about the principles, guidelines and dietary components forming the basis of the new Nordic diet. For dietary components already included in the existing Danish food-based dietary guidelines, and with substantial evidence for their health-promoting properties, they are naturally included in the new Nordic diet in at least the same amounts. That is for fruits, vegetables, potatoes, whole grain, nuts, fish, and shellfish. The recommended intake of the other dietary components in the New Nordic Diet. That is the fresh herbs, plants and mushrooms from the wild countryside, seaweed, meat and game, is based on the scientific acuments for the health promoting properties, together with considerations for accessibility, safety, availability, and the environmental sustainability. Thank you so much for your attention. [MUSIC]
