WORLD CONGRESS ON OSTEOPOROSIS

The Alpro Foundation was present at the IOF WCO-ECCEO10 in Florence. 

On May 5th the Alpro Foundation held a symposium on plant-based nutrition and bone health.

Read the report  

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CHRISTINE SCHüMANN WINNER OF EUROPEAN ALPRO FOUNDATION AWARD

 

 
Christine Schümann, (Christian Albrechts University, Kiel), was awarded the “European Alpro Foundation Award 2009”. The award is a prestigious distinction for a thesis which discusses the effects of plant-based nutrition and the impact on human health. Today, the Award was presented for the second time. Mrs Renate Sommer, Member of the European Parliament, handed over the prize to Mrs. Schümann. With this award, Alpro Foundation aims to stimulate scientific research in Europe in the field of plant-based food and health.
 
 
The Winning Dissertation
The winning dissertation was selected from five European candidates who had already won the national award in their countries. Christine Schümann won the award for her research on the prevention of cancer in relation to the consumption of cabbage vegetables.
 
“Research into cancer and how we can prevent certain cancers by small changes to our diet is of course of the utmost importance. Research such as this helps to draw attention to the importance of a balanced nutrition on our health; by organizing the Alpro Foundation Award, the Alpro Foundation aims to increase nutritional knowledge through research” says Mrs Christine Debeuf of the Alpro Foundation Board.
 
Epidemiological studies indicate that consumption of brassica vegetables such as broccoli may lower the risk for several cancers. Mrs. Schümann’s research thesis investigated which components in broccoli are responsible for this protective effect.
 
Broccoli and other Brassica vegetables are rich in certain components (sulphur-containing glucosinolates), which can be converted by the enzyme myrosinase (which is naturally present in these vegetables) into active components (isothiocyanates and indoles). One of these active components, sulforaphane, stimulates defense mechanisms in the cells in order to protect them against cancer.
 
The defense mechanism is related to increased anti-oxidant activity and Nrf2 activity, both are important in cancer prevention. This thesis shows that the conversion by the enzyme myrosinase, naturally present in brassica vegetables, is essential for the protective effects of brassica vegetables.
 
During the award ceremony, Prof Dr Jaak Jannsens, president of the European Cancer Prevention organization, emphasized the importance of our diet for cancer prevention.

 

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EUROPEAN ALPRO FOUNDATION AWARD FOR MASTERS

The five national winners are known and they automatically qualify for the European Alpro Foundation Award.
This year’s winner of the European Alpro Foundation Award will be presented at a press conference held on Thursday 29 April 2010 at The Stanhope Hotel (Wellington room). MEP Renate Sommer will officially present the prize to the winner.

Programme:

10.45 Registration and reception
11.00 Welcome speech
11.05 Presentation of the Alpro Foundation
11.15 Presentation by Prof.dr.Jaak Janssens (Salvator-St.-Ursula Hospital) and President of the European Cancer Prevention Organisation: "The impact of nutrition on cancer"
11.30 Presentation by the European Award winner
11.45 Presentation of the European Alpro Foundation Award by MEP Renate Sommer
11.50 Q&A
12.00 Drink
 

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CHRISTINE SCHüMANN WINNER OF AWARD MASTERS IN GERMANY

Mrs Christine Schümann (Kiel University) is the winner of the second German Alpro Foundation Award for Masters with the thesis "Influence of phytochemicals on cell viability and on the activation of the transcription factor Nrf2 – studies in murine fibroblasts in culture".

Professor Klaus Eder (member of the Alpro Foundation board) presented the generous award of € 2,500 on March 11 in Jena during the DGE congress.

The programme of the conference can be downloaded here.

 

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CECILIA BOLONDI: WINNER ITALIAN ALPRO FOUNDATION AWARD MSC

Cecilia Bolondi (University of Bologna) is the winner of the second Italian Alpro Foundation Award. She received the generous amount of €2500 from the hands of the Noble Prize Winner Professor Luc Montagnier at the First Neutraceutical congress in Milano, February 11th. Her thesis entitled "Sulforaphane in vitro neuroprotection on neurotoxic effects of the β-amyloid fibrils" was selected as the best from the Italian entries.

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IVONNE SLUIJS WINNER OF AWARD MSC THE NETHERLANDS

Ivonne Sluijs from University Medical Center Utrecht has won the second Dutch Alpro Foundation Award. She received the generous amount of €2500 during the Third Dutch Nutrition Congress in Ede (February 9th, 2010).

Her thesis entitled "Dietary Intake of Total, Animal, and Vegetable Protein and Risk of Type 2
Diabetes in the EPIC-NL Study" was chosen as the best thesis from the Dutch entries.


Objective: Dietary recommendations are mainly focused on relative dietary fat and carbohydrate content in relation to diabetes risk. Meanwhile, high protein diets may contribute to disturbance of glucose metabolism, but evidence from prospective studies is scarce. We examined the association between dietary total, vegetable, and animal protein intake and diabetes incidence and whether consuming 5 energy% from protein at the expense of 5 energy% from either carbohydrates or fat was
associated with diabetes risk.
Research Design and Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted among 38,094 participants of the EPIC-NL study. Dietary protein intake was measured with a validated food frequency questionnaire. Incident diabetes was verified against medical records.
Results: During 10 years follow-up, 918 incident diabetes cases were documented. Diabetes risk increased with higher total protein (HR (95%CI) highest vs. lowest quartile: 2.15 (1.77-2.60)) and animal protein (2.18 (1.80-2.63)) intake. Adjustment for confounders did not materially change these results. Further adjustment for adiposity measures attenuated the associations. Vegetable protein was not related to diabetes. Consuming 5 energy% from total or animal protein at the expense of 5 energy% from carbohydrates or fat increased diabetes risk.
Conclusions: Diets high in animal protein are associated with an increased diabetes risk. Our findings also suggest a similar association for total protein itself instead of only animal sources. Consumption of energy from protein at the expense of energy from either carbohydrates or fat may similarly increase diabetes risk. This indicates that accounting for protein content in dietary recommendations for diabetes prevention may be useful.

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