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Identifying Future Study Designs for Mental Health and Social Wellbeing Associated with Diets of a Cohort Living in Eco-Regions: Findings from the INSUM Expert Workshop

journal contribution
posted on 2023-02-16, 01:40 authored by F Elsner, LE Matthiessen, D Średnicka-Tober, Wolf MarxWolf Marx, A O’Neil, AA Welch, RP Hayhoe, S Higgs, M van Vliet, E Morphew-Lu, R Kazimierczak, R Góralska-Walczak, K Kopczyńska, T Steenbuch Krabbe Bruun, BP Rosane, S Gjedsted Bügel, C Strassner
Diets influence our mental health and social wellbeing (MHSW) in multiple ways. A rising community concept, Eco-Regions, has gained interest. The research project “Indicators for assessment of health effects of consumption of sustainable, organic school meals in Ecoregions” (INSUM) aims to develop future-oriented research approaches to measure the potential health effects of more sustainable and healthy diets. This first part of the project focuses on MHSW with the goal to identify suitable study designs and indicators. The methodology is based on a 2-day workshop with an interdisciplinary group of experts. This paper describes commonly applied research methods on the nexus between diet and MHSW as presented by the experts and summarises key points from the discussions. The results show that the dominating tool to investigate MSHW is questionnaires. Questionnaires vary largely depending on the research design, such as participants or distribution channels. Cohort studies addressing families and including in-depth interventional and/or experimental studies may be suitable for an Eco-Region investigation. Those MHSW studies can be conducted and combined with measurements of somatic health effects. We conclude that indicators should be seen as complementary rather than independent. Explorative research designs are required to investigate complex Eco-Regions.

History

Journal

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Volume

20

Article number

ARTN 669

Location

Switzerland

ISSN

1661-7827

eISSN

1660-4601

Language

English

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Issue

1

Publisher

MDPI