EL-KOUR JOINS NUTRITION TODAY EDITORIAL BOARD
Nutrition Today welcomes Tatyana El-Kour, PhD, MS, RD, as its newest editorial board member! She is the Health and Nutrition Coordinator for the Syrian Crisis at Action Against Hunger and works at the nexus of humanitarian, nutrition, and food security in conflict-affected and high-risk areas. For over 15 years, El-Kour has delivered progressive nutrition-specific and sensitive strategies with a behavior change focus. More recently, her technical specialty has evolved to address the changing landscape of global health and nutrition, incorporating innovations in media psychology and technology to address roots of hunger and food systems, social relations, and processes that interact with environmental, political, and economic processes within food systems-including impact of policy and trade-while also addressing linkages to health and nutrition outcomes. As a champion for innovative solutions to complex food security challenges, Tatyana brings transformative, cutting-edge approaches to promoting nutrition and health in the Middle East. She has served in technical and leadership roles at national and international levels within the World Health Organization and global humanitarian organizations, including most recently the Syrian crisis, while also strategically supporting the regional refugee nutrition response in the Middle East. She received a PhD in media psychology from Fielding University and received a combined master of science and completed her dietetic internship at Tufts University. Welcome aboard, Tatyana!
"MAKE EVERY BITE COUNT": UPDATES TO DIETARY GUIDELINES FOR AMERICANS, 2020-2025
The new Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025 have arrived! They were issued right before the New Year, and all of those who worked so hard on it, including Regan Bailey, PhD, RD, MPH, and Linda Snetselaar, PhD, RD, of our Nutrition Today Editorial Board, a big shout-out for a fine job on the Dietary Guidelines Scientific Advisory Committee, as well as Joanne Spahn, MS, RD, at the USDA, who helped with evidence reviews. Jointly published by the US Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Health and Human Services every 5 years, this edition expands the guidance, for the first time including the recommended healthy dietary patterns for infants and toddlers younger than 2 years. As always, the new guidelines build on the previous editions and were informed by the scientific report developed by the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, along with many systematic reviews of the evidence and comments from the public and input from federal agencies. The key recommendations look similar to those of the past, suggesting that the elements of healthful diets remain constant. Two topics that garnered much attention throughout the development of the guidelines were added sugars and alcoholic beverages. The final version of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025 carried forward the committee's emphasis on limiting these dietary components, but did not include changes to quantitative recommendations. The rationale for not doing so was that it was judged by decision makers that the law required evidence to support specific changes, and there was only limited evidence in the material the committee reviewed to support quantitative recommendations. However, as in prior editions, limiting intake of these two food components is encouraged, and doing so complements the eater's ability to achieve the four overarching guidelines, which encourage Americans to "Make Every Bite Count." These guidelines are as follows:
* Follow a healthy dietary pattern at every life stage.
* Customize and enjoy nutrient-dense food and beverage choices to reflect personal preferences, cultural traditions, and budgetary considerations.
* Focus on meeting food group needs with nutrient-dense foods and beverages from 5 food groups-vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy and fortified soy alternatives, and proteins-and stay within calorie limits.
* Limit foods and beverages higher in added sugars, saturated fat, and sodium, and limit alcoholic beverages.
For more information and access to the executive summary, go to https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov.
FLEISCHHACKER NAMED USDA NIFA NATIONAL SCIENCE LIAISON
Congratulations to our own Nutrition Today Editorial Board member Shelia Fleischhaker, RD, JD, who joined the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) in February as a National Science Liaison. The NIFA provides leadership and funding for programs that advance agriculture-related sciences. In this role, Sheila works with various stakeholder groups to strengthen the food safety and nutrition agency interactions in the Washington, District of Columbia, offices, as well as providing linkages between stakeholders and appropriate NIFA staff based in Kansas City. Sheila previously served as the senior advisor of nutrition and food safety at USDA's Office of the Chief Scientist (2017-2018), on detail from her original position at the National Institutes of Health (2012-2018). During her federal service, she helped put forth the first-of-its-kind National Nutrition Research Roadmap and chaired a USDA Inter-Departmental Nutrition Workshop Series. She remains on the faculty at Georgetown University Law Center.
Sheila received her BS in 2000 and JD in 2007, with a Certificate in Health Law from Loyola University Chicago and a PhD in Integrative Biosciences/Nutritional Sciences from The Pennsylvania State University in 2004. Her postdoctoral training focused on urban and regional planning and public health nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
ACADEMY OF NUTRITION AND DIETETICS NAMES NEW LEADERS
Congratulations to the winners of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics 2021 national elections! Registered dietitian nutritionist, Kevin L. Sauer, PhD, RDN, LD, FAND, will begin his 1-year term on June 1 as the 2021 President of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Board of Directors
* President-elect: Ellen Shanley, MBA, RDN, CDN, FAND
* Treasurer-elect: Deanne Brandstetter, MBA, RDN, CDN, FAND
* Director-at-large: Egondu Onuoha, MS, RDN, CDN, FAND
* House of Delegates speaker-elect: Zachari Breeding, MS, RDN, CSO, LDN, FAND
* House of Delegates director: Lona Sandon, PhD, MEd, RDN, LD
Nominating Committee
* National Leader Charlene Russell-Tucker, MSM, RDN
* Leader with Board of Directors experience in the past 10 years
Marty Yadrick, MBI, MS, RDN, FAND
-The Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics Technicians-Registerd Practitioner Representative
* Michelle Palumbo, NDTR
Commission on Dietetic Registration-Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
* Rosa Hand, PhD, RDN, LD, FAND
* Teresa Wagner, DrPH, MS, RD, LD
JAND RELEASES FOOD INSECURITY SUPPLEMENT
The Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (JAND) released a new supplement titled Building the Evidence Base by Testing Innovative Strategies to Reduce Food Insecurity in the United States: Findings From the Evaluation of Demonstration Projects to End Childhood Hunger. Food insecurity is a health and nutrition concern for many low-income households in the United States. Of particular concern is when food insecurity occurs in households with children, as it is associated with lower fruit consumption, iron deficiency anemia, lower learning and social development, and mental health disorders. The supplement was edited by Parke Wilde, PhD, professor, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, in an effort to provide information for both policy makers and researchers to use when considering strategies to reduce food insecurity and end childhood hunger. To read the open access supplement, go https://jandonline.org
THE CENTERS FOR MEDICARE & MEDICAID RELEASES THE DATA QUALITY ATLAS
The Data Quality (DQ) Atlas is an interactive, web-based tool that helps policy makers, analysts, researchers, and other stakeholders explore the quality and usability of the Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System Analytic Files (TAF) to determine whether the data can meet their analytic needs. These need analyses of key Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) topics such as enrollment, claims, expenditures, and service use.
The charts, maps, and tables in DQ Atlas show the DQ Assessments and associated measures for each state on topics that are pertinent to Medicaid and CHIP. For each state, the DQ Assessment assigns 1 of 6 values to indicate the extent to which a state's TAF data are usable, reliable, and accurate for analyzing a particular topic. These values are used to begin evaluating whether the TAF meets the analytic needs.
Users can download DQ Snapshots, which summarize all the DQ Assessments for all states and topics. There are 2 types of DQ Snapshots: the DQ Topics Snapshot and the DQ State Snapshot. The DQ Topics Snapshots, available in Explore by Topic displays, are organized by topic area and include DQ Assessments for all topics and states for a given year. To access the DQ Atlas, go to https://www.medicaid.gov/dq-atlas/welcome.