Learning objectives
Knowledge and understanding:
Acquisition of:
• The skills to conceive and evaluate nutrition studies.
• The skills to analyse and evaluate nutrition scientific data.
• The skills to evaluate the properties of a functional food and knowledge of the legislation linked to claims on foods and novel foods.
• The skills to understand and apply the concepts of personalized nutrition and inter-individual variability in response to the diet.
• The skills to understand the issues of public health nutrition, including the factors that link human nutrition to the concept sustainability and including nutrition education at population level.
• Knowledge of the different nutritional intervention levels and of the methods of conducting them.
• Knowledge of the nutritional needs of the individual and of various population groups (age-groups and physiological conditions).
• Knowledge of basic principles of diet therapy and of optimal diet creation.
Knowledge and understanding applied:
• Apply the acquired knowledge in the framework of applied human nutrition and of nutrition research.
Judgment autonomy
• Autonomously evaluate a nutrition strategy.
• Autonomously evaluate the validity of nutrition research.
• Autonomously evaluate a nutrition strategy in the framework of public health.
• Skills to apply the adequate instruments to evaluate the nutritional needs of subjects and of population groups.
• Skills to develop optimal dietary strategies for individual subjects as well as for the community.
• Skills to apply the acquired knowledge in dietetics, also using the generic knowledge of applied human nutrition.
Judgment autonomy
• Autonomously evaluating a nutrition survey instrument within the individual and collective framework.
• Autonomously evaluating the validity of a nutrition dietary strategy in the individual and collective framework.
Communication skills
Ability and skills to synthesize information and communicate it effectively to specialist and non-specialist interlocutors.
Learning skills
Developing skills and methodologies that allow to study in a highly autonomous way.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of nutrition physiology and metabolic regulation, applied human nutrition, and anthropometry.
Course unit content
• Principles of Human Nutrition Research
• Principles of personalised nutrition
• Principles of Public Health Nutrition
• Practical workshops:
- Practical evaluation of the nutritional status through main clinical instruments (e.g. basic anthropometric measurements, as body weight, and height, and body circumferences, plicometry, bioimpedance analysis, indirect calorimetry)
- Assessment of food intake and development of personalized diet through professional software.
• Principle of dietetics: Italian Dietary Guidelines and Dietary reference values of Nutrients and Energy for the Italian population (LARN)
• Nutrition surveys, methods for the evaluation of dietary intake, food composition tables and evaluation of nutritional needs of individual subjects as well as of specific population groups
• Dietary formulation for individual subjects and for the collectivity
Full programme
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Bibliography
Lovegrove J et al. “Nutrition Research Methodologies” (Nutrition Society)
Butriss et al. “Public Health Nutrition” (Wiley).
Up to date scientific literature.
Slides of the lessons, relevant materials and books provided/highlighted by the teacher during the classes.
Teaching methods
Lectures and practical workshops organized in order to involve students. The slides used to support lessons, as an integral part of the teaching material, will be provided directly to the students and uploaded on the Elly platform.
Assessment methods and criteria
Oral or written examinations (depending on the module.
Scale of assessment: 0-30
Evaluation criteria:
• Acquired knowledge
• Ability to apply the acquired knowledge and to make connections between the covered topics
• capacity to communicate concepts through the use of the specific language of the discipline.
Case study works and presentations on a topic linked to the course) will also be organised and will allow to increase the score.
For the dietetics moule:
The final examination will be a multiple-choice written questionnaire.
The maximum mark for the written test is 30/30. Success is achieved by values equal or above 18/30.
Question topics are related to the theoretical and applicative contents discussed during the course, including the exercises.
In addition, a voluntary presentation of an assignment on dietary habits evaluation and dietary plan creation, may provide up to 5 additional points to be summed to the written test.
Honours (lode) is granted when reaching a mark of at least 28/30 in the written test, demonstrating a deep knowledge of the topic vocabulary, and presenting an adequate optional assignment, prepared on the basis of the guidelines and time schedule indicated by the Teacher during classes.
Other information
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