ArticleAdvances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.)2018
Perspective: Reductionist Nutrition Research Has Meaning Only within the Framework of Holistic and Ethical Thinking.
Article in Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.), 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 30 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Effect of Isoenergetic Substitution of Cheese with Other Dairy Products on Blood Lipid Markers in the Fasted and Postprandial State: An Updated and Extended Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials in Adults.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2023Pooled it
- The Gut-brain-adipose Axis in Ultra-processed Food and Obesity: A Mechanistic Synthesis and Its Implications for Food Classification.Current obesity reports · 2026Review
- The Ability of Vibrational Spectroscopy to Analyze Holistically the Food Matrix-Moving Away from the Concept of Individual Compounds.Methods and protocols · 2026Review
- Global Research Trends in Dietary Polyphenols for Preventing Non-Communicable Chronic Diseases: A Bibliometric Study.Food science & nutrition · 2026Article
- Shortcomings of food-based dietary guidelines worldwide: a focus on sustainability and food processing issues.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- The role of microRNAs in cardiovascular disease associated with the consumption of ultra-processed foods: a comprehensive review.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Review
- Identifying healthy and sustainable high-impact eating behaviour in French children aged 6-15 years: a combined multidisciplinary and living lab participatory approach.Journal of nutritional science · 2026Article
- Dietary Mapping of Macronutrient Consumption Before Pregnancy Related to Gestational Diabetes Mellitus.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Health and environmental impacts of shifting to plant-based analogues: a risk-benefit assessment.European journal of nutrition · 2025Article
- Understanding the dynamics of malnutrition dichotomy in India: Trends and insights from the National Family Health Surveys.Dialogues in health · 2025Article
- Fifteen Years of NOVA Food-Processing Classification: "Friend or Foe" Among Sustainable Diet Indicators? A Scoping Review.Nutrition reviews · 2025Article
- Diet-Wide Association Study for the Incidence of Type 2 Diabetes in Three Population-Based Cohorts.Nutrients · 2024Article
- Computational gastronomy: capturing culinary creativity by making food computable.NPJ systems biology and applications · 2024Review
- The Need for an Alternative Health Claim Process for Foods Based on Both Nutrient and Contaminant Profiles.Current developments in nutrition · 2024Article
- Cross-Classification Analysis of Food Products Based on Nutritional Quality and Degree of Processing.Nutrients · 2023Article
- Perspective: Plant-Based Meat Alternatives Can Help Facilitate and Maintain a Lower Animal to Plant Protein Intake Ratio.Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) · 2023Article
- Healthy Diet, Polygenic Risk Score, and Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer Risk: A Prospective Study from UK Biobank.Nutrients · 2023Article
- Holistic Framework to Contextualize Dietary Quality Assessment: A Critical Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Review
- Diet and Disease Activity in Patients with Axial Spondyloarthritis: SpondyloArthritis and NUTrition Study (SANUT).Nutrients · 2022Article
- Multidimensional associations between nutrient intake and healthy ageing in humans.BMC biology · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
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Abstract
Today, it seems that nutrition is in a state of great confusion, especially for the general public. For decades, some nutrients (e.g., cholesterol, saturated fats, sugars, gluten, salt) and food groups (e.g., dairy, cereals, meats) have been regularly denigrated. In this position paper, we hypothesize that such a state of confusion is mainly the result of the reductionist paradigm applied to nutrition research for more than a century, and by being pushed to its extreme, this perspective has led to accusations about some nutrients and foods. However, the real issue is about foods taken as a whole and therefore about their degree of processing, which affects both the food matrix and composition. Indeed, we eat whole foods, not nutrients. Therefore, the objectives of this article are to emphasize the need for more holistic approaches in nutrition to preserve our health, animal welfare, and planet. We propose to first redefine the food health potential on a holistic basis and then to show that reductionism and holism are interconnected approaches that should coexist. Then, we try to explain how extreme reductionism has been disconnected from reality and ethical considerations and has ultimately led to environmental degradation and loss of biodiversity, notably through very specific crops, and to an increased prevalence of chronic diseases. Furthermore, to address the confusion of the general public and to simplify nutritional messages, we propose 3 holistic golden rules based on scientific evidence to protect human health, animal welfare, and the environment (climate and biodiversity). Finally, we try to show how these 3 rules can be easily applied worldwide while respecting the environment, cultural traditions, and heritage.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.