The Food for the Brain Foundation is a non-profit educational campaign, claiming to have been created by a group of nutritionists, doctors, psychiatrists, psychologists, teachers and scientists to promote a purported link between nutrition and mental health. It is an initiative led by the author and entrepreneur Patrick Holford. [1]
The foundation has received publicity with its pilot study in a number of British schools that has attempted to improve children's performance by improving nutrition. The campaign has been both lauded as revealing a massive improvement in pupils' behaviour and performances [2] and criticised as unscientific [3] and encouraging fad diets. [4]
The best known and launching campaign of the Food for the Brain Foundation was a pilot study carried out at Cricket Green special education school in Merton, London. This study lasted seven months and had pupils following "a daily regime of taking the long chain fatty acid supplement "eye q", a combination of omega-3 fish oil and omega-6 evening primrose oil, a balanced nutritious diet, a new exercise regime, and a multivitamin." [5] The study "transformed" the behaviour of children at the school, with a 25% drop in psychosomatic problems reported. [2] A similar study, followed by the ITV current affairs programme Tonight with Trevor MacDonald, is underway at Chineham Park school Basingstoke. [6] This has been described as "phenomenally successful", with children's behaviour notably improving. [6]
However, the studies have also been criticised. Catherine Collins of St George's Hospital in London stated that a pupil in the Merton study had "suffered sleep problems and her weight dropped as a result of the advice [Mr Holford] gave." [4] The study has been criticised as being unscientific, with results "cherry-picked" and the effects merely a "placebo". [3] Holford and the foundation reject some of these allegations. Holford claims that the pupil in the Merton study has since regained the lost weight, which he puts down to a reduction in her gluten intake, after tests revealed she was "gluten sensitive". He states that her overall behaviour and health have improved during the study. [7]
The foundation provides accreditation for catering at some universities. [8]
A gluten-free casein-free diet, also known as a gluten-free dairy-free diet, is a diet that does not include gluten, and casein. Despite an absence of scientific evidence, there have been advocates for the use of this diet as a treatment for autism and related conditions.
A dietitian, medical dietitian, or dietician is an expert in identifying and treating disease-related malnutrition and in conducting medical nutrition therapy, for example designing an enteral tube feeding regimen or mitigating the effects of cancer cachexia. Many dietitians work in hospitals and usually see specific patients where a nutritional assessment and intervention has been requested by a doctor or nurse, for example if a patient has lost their ability to swallow or requires artificial nutrition due to intestinal failure. Dietitians are regulated healthcare professionals licensed to assess, diagnose, and treat such problems. In the United Kingdom, dietitian is a 'protected title', meaning identifying yourself as a dietitian without appropriate education and registration is prohibited by law.
A gluten-free diet (GFD) is a nutritional plan that strictly excludes gluten, which is a mixture of prolamin proteins found in wheat, as well as barley, rye, and oats. The inclusion of oats in a gluten-free diet remains controversial, and may depend on the oat cultivar and the frequent cross-contamination with other gluten-containing cereals.
A nutritionist is a person who advises others on matters of food and nutrition and their impacts on health. Some people specialize in particular areas, such as sports nutrition, public health, or animal nutrition, among other disciplines. In many countries, a person can claim to be a nutritionist even without any training, education, or professional license, in contrast to a dietitian, who has a university degree, professional license, and certification for professional practice.
A healthy diet is a diet that maintains or improves overall health. A healthy diet provides the body with essential nutrition: fluid, macronutrients such as protein, micronutrients such as vitamins, and adequate fibre and food energy.
Adelle Davis was an American writer and nutritionist, considered "the most famous nutritionist in the early to mid-20th century." She was an advocate for improved health through better nutrition. She wrote an early textbook on nutrition in 1942, followed by four best-selling books for consumers which praised the value of natural foods and criticized the diet of the average American. Her books sold over 10 million copies and helped shape America's eating habits.
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics is a multi-unit enterprise that includes a 501(c)(6) trade association in the United States. With over 112,000 members, the association claims to be the largest organization of food and nutrition professionals. It has registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs), nutrition and dietetics technicians registered (NDTRs), and other dietetics professionals as members. Founded in 1917 as the American Dietetic Association, the organization officially changed its name to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in 2012. According to the group's website, about 65% of its members are RDNs, and another 2% are NDTRs. The group's primary activities include providing testimony at hearings, lobbying the United States Congress and other governmental bodies, commenting on proposed regulations, and publishing statements on various topics pertaining to food and nutrition.
Patrick Holford is a British author and entrepreneur who endorses a range of vitamin tablets. As an advocate of alternative nutrition and diet methods, he appears regularly on television and radio in the UK and abroad. He has 36 books in print in 29 languages. His business career promotes a wide variety of alternative medical approaches such as orthomolecular medicine, many of which are considered pseudoscientific by mainstream science and medicine.
Gluten-related disorders is the term for the diseases triggered by gluten, including celiac disease (CD), non-celiac gluten sensitivity (NCGS), gluten ataxia, dermatitis herpetiformis (DH) and wheat allergy. The umbrella category has also been referred to as gluten intolerance, though a multi-disciplinary physician-led study, based in part on the 2011 International Coeliac Disease Symposium, concluded that the use of this term should be avoided due to a lack of specificity.
Judy Mazel was an American weight loss advocate the author of "The Beverly Hills Diet", which became a 1981 best seller and a nationwide diet craze. Judy Mazel was a devout practicing Jew and was raised in a conservative Ashkenazi Jewish home.
The Beverly Hills Diet is a fad diet developed by author Judy Mazel (1943–2007) in her 1981 bestseller, The Beverly Hills Diet.
Joy Bauer is a nutritionist for NBC, seen on the TODAY show and on NBC News Daily. She is also the author of numerous books and articles on nutrition and lifestyle topics.
The Institute for Food, Brain and Behaviour ("IFBB") is a Registered Charity with the primary focus of commissioning research into how food, nutrition and diet can affect brain function and behaviour.
David Perlmutter is an American celebrity doctor, author, low-carbohydrate diet advocate and promoter of functional medicine.
Fred Pescatore is a Manhattan-based author and internist who specializes in nutrition. He is best known as the author of the bestselling children's health book Feed Your Kids Well (1998) and The Hamptons Diet (2004).
The Immune Power Diet is a pseudoscientific elimination diet promoted by physician Stuart M. Berger (1953–1994). The diet was based on the false idea that many people have hidden food allergies and that by eliminating certain foods and taking dietary supplements the body's immune system would be strengthened.
Helen Swift Mitchell was an American biochemist and nutritionist. She was the research director at the Battle Creek Sanitarium, and taught courses in nutrition at Battle Creek College and University of Massachusetts and later became an exchange professor at Hokkaido University in Japan. During World War II, she was part of government committees that did research on nutrition and was critical of fad diets that came about during that time. She did research on and published works about the dietary conditions of rats, and later co-authored the textbook Nutrition in Health and Disease.
The No-Aging Diet is a high-protein fad diet developed by physician Benjamin S. Frank.