SCRC: Review of health benefit research and development relevant to the Australian seafood industry and members of the Australian Seafood CRC
Development of a position on functional foods to support the Seafood CRC workshop and potential rebid for funds for Program 3 (Health benefits of Seafood)
Final report
This project was designed to assist the Australian Seafood CRC identify research gaps and opportunities and ultimately provide the necessary background information and rationale for a potential supplementary bid to DIISR for funding of a new program of health related research.
The Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) website and websites for the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare and the US Food and Drug Administration were the major sources of information regarding health claims for Australia, Japan and the US. Japan and the US were included in this report as they are two key export markets for the Australian Seafood industry. Examples of seafoods, using specific seafoods of interest to the Seafood CRC were modeled for nutrition content and general level health claims. A brief review of the potential mechanisms of some of the observed health effects of fish and omega-3 fatty acids was undertaken.
The research described in this report found that one of the important mechanisms for the observed widespread effect of seafoods on a range of health outcomes (such as coronary heart disease, cancer, arthritis, dementia) is the dampening of the inflammatory response by the 2 key bioactives in seafood, namely the long chain omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acids (DHA). However there are other bioactives in fish worth exploring further. Several research gaps were identified as part of this project and these are outlined in the report.
Potential collaborators or partners beyond the current CRC members and affiliates were identified and have been included in the body of the report, as are some early suggestions for alternative funding and funding models.
SCRC: Seafood CRC: Review to identify capability in functional foods research
Development of a position on functional foods to support the Seafood CRC workshop and potential rebid for funds for Program 3 (Health benefits of Seafood)
Final report
SCRC: Seafood CRC: technical market access review
SCRC: Seafood CRC: review of health benefit research and development relevant to the Australian seafood industry and members of the Australian Seafood CRC
Conduct a critical review of the health benefit research and development relevant to the Australian seafood industry and aprticipants of the CRC
Final report
The purpose of this review was to;
- Undertake an initial assessment of the current status of organisations and institutions providing information regarding seafood consumption
- Detail the work that has been done to document the health benefits of seafood
- Identify current methods and those with future potential for communicating the information to the general population regarding the health benefits from consuming seafood
- Identify opportunities for domestic and international collaboration pertaining to the research and communication of the health benefits of seafood consumption
The identification process realised 120 current resources associated with the health benefits of regular consumption of seafood as part of a healthy diet that could be used by GPs and health professionals. The resource topics included arthritis (seven), cancer (six), dementia (one), dental health (two), diabetes (three), heart health (30), nutrition (40), osteoporosis (six) and preconception, pregnancy and breastfeeding (25).
The critical review of resources revealed information about the format, target group, reference to seafood, credibility and suitability of the identified resources. The majority (88.4%) of identified resource were available electronically as either PDF files or webpages, a preferable, quick and easy mode of access for GPs and health professionals. Just over half (57.5%) of the identified resources were targeted at specific audiences. All of the resources made reference to the health benefits of regular consumption of fish, 22.5% made reference to seafood and 5% made reference to fish oil as part of a healthy diet. Only 15% of the identified resources were suitable for use with the general Australian population at or below the recommended reading level of Year Eight.