May 22, 2024
VEGANScreener, a tool for measuring diet quality of vegans in Europe developed
In a recently published study, our team of scientists from Austria (the Department of Epidemiology at MedUni Vienna’s Center for Public Health is coordinator of the consortium), Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, Switzerland and a collaborator from the USA describe the development of the VEGANScreener as part of a JPI HDHL ERA-NET-funded initiative.
This new tool, consisting of 29 questions on foods and nutrients, aims to provide a quick overview of the dietary quality of vegans in Europe, focusing on the foods and nutrients whose intake should be encouraged or restricted. Twenty-five international nutrition, epidemiology and clinical medicine experts participated in a rigorous, multi-stage Delphi methodology and produced a consolidated set of questions designed to describe relevant aspects of vegan diets.
A balanced diet is necessary
„Plant-based diets are gaining popularity for personal and environmental health reasons. However, these diets are not necessarily healthy as they may contain excessive amounts of sugar, sodium and saturated fats or lack variety, just like omnivorous diets. In addition, vegans may be at risk for inadequate intake of certain vitamins and minerals found in foods they avoid, such as vitamin B12 or certain amino acids,“ says Selma Kronsteiner-Gicevic, the lead author of the publication. The next phase of the study includes the validation of the screening in vegans in Europe and the development of a web/mobile phone app. Epidemiologist Eva Schernhammer from MedUni Vienna, one of the lead authors and coordinator of the VEGANScreener, adds: „This tool aims to be easy to use and interpret for both vegans and healthcare providers. It should assess the overall dietary quality of vegans, identify potential areas for dietary improvement, help vegans and their healthcare providers set dietary goals, and monitor progress over time.“
Publication: Nutrients
Development of the VEGANScreener, a Tool for a Quick Diet Quality Assessment among Vegans in Europe.
Selma Kronsteiner-Gicevic, Leonie H. Bogl, Maria Wakolbinger, Sandra Müller, Joelina Dietrich, Willem De Keyzer, Vanessa Bullón-Vela, Eliska Selinger, Vanessa Keller, Ainara Martínez Tabar, Tooba Asif, Leone Craig, Janet Kyle, Sabrina Schlesinger, Christian Köder, Anna Ouradova, Marina Henikova, Wendy Van Lippevelde, Monika Cahova, Miguel Angel Martínez González, Walter Willett, Maira Bes-Rastrollo †, Jan Gojda †, Stefaan De Henauw †, Markus Keller †, Marek Kuzma †, and Eva Schernhammer†
† These authors contributed equally to this work.
Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643, IF 5.9, CiteScore 9)
https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/16/9/1344
March 7, 2024
5th Project Consortium Meeting
We are pleased to announce the sucessful completion of our 5th Consortium Meeting. During the meeting all PIs provided comprehensive updates. It was inspiring to hear about the exciting developments and achievements across the project.
November 18, 2023
The VEGANScreener showcased at the 14th European Nutrition Conference FENS2023 in Belgrade, Serbia!
Members of the VEGANScreener team from Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany and Switzerland attended the 14th European Nutrition Conference FENS2023 that took place in Belgrade between 14 and 17 November, 2023 to present the VEGANScreener project to the scientific community in Europe, and wider.
Selma Kronsteiner-Gicevic from the Austrian team presented the approach to developing the VEGANScreener and Tooba Asif from the Belgian team presented the data collection protocol for the VEGANScreener primary validation in Europe.
The VEGANScreener team also used this opportunity to hold the 4th VEGANScreener Consortium meeting (hybrid) and to meet with the VEGANScreenener international project collaborator, Walter Willett (Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health).
October 9 , 2023
STAMIFY joint research projects‘ mid-term meeting
On Monday October 9 the STAMIFY joint research projects‘ mid-term meeting, organized under the umbrella of the ERA-Net HDHL-INTIMIC, took place in Brussels (location Graaf de Ferraris building, Auditorium, König Albert II Lan 20).
All project partners, students, institute colleagues and stakeholders attended the meeting physically/online. Eva Schernhammer, the project coordinator presented the overall progress of our project VEGANScreener.
September 20, 2023
Clinical Study – VEGANScreener Belgium
In Belgium, 57 vegans and 2 controls were enrolled from September 4 to September 22. The clinical study will be extended to the month of October and half of November as well. Between 4-6 visits are scheduled per day with a duration of 1 to 1.5 hours per participant. The visits took place in rooms of the Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Campus UZ, Ghent University Belgium. We have a versatile team consisting of a medical student, a nurse, two nutritionists and a PhD student. Some jobs students are recruited for the additional help.
We look forward to meeting the target of 100 vegans and 50 controls!
September 14, 2023
«Dry run» & start of recruitment – VEGANScreener Switzerland
In Switzerland, we secured funding to join the VEGANScreener protocol. We carried out a „dry run“ to test the protocol on September 12th. The testing of the protocol was enjoyable, and we have a few minor questions left to address. Spitting out 5ml of saliva proved to be a bit challenging, but it will certainly be achievable.
Our initial group of vegan participants is scheduled for clinical examinations on September 19th. We plan to begin with one examination day per week, examining three participants each day. However, we anticipate increasing this to four or five participants per day in the near future.
The responsibility for overseeing the scientific project is shared between Dr. Isabelle Herter and Dr. Leonie Bogl. Dr. Herter is in charge of the practical organization at ETH Zurich. Our motivated team also includes study nurses, one MSc student, and two nutritionists.
We are looking forward to this collaboration with the VEGANScreener consortium.
» Click here for more for pictures of clinical examination – Switzerland
May 30, 2023
Recruitment & Clinical examination – VEGANScreener Spain
In Spain, recruitment began on April 3, 2023. Until May 30, the Spain centre recruited 12 vegans and 6 controls.
Between 4-6 visits are scheduled per week with a duration of 1 hour and 15 minutes per participant.
The visits take place in rooms of the School of Health Sciences at the University of Navarra.
Medical history, clinical examination and anthropometric measurements are performed by nurses.
Instructions regarding the dietary intervention (dietary records and FFQ) and the use of MyCap are explained by the nutritionists.
» Click here for more pictures of clinical examination at the University of Navarra
May 3, 2023
3rd Project Consortium Meeting
On 3rd May 2023, the third VEGANScreener Consortium Meeting (virtual meeting) took place at which the breadth of the entire consortium was represented. During the meeting, the progress of the project and the upcoming tasks of each partner were discussed. The project coordinator presented the overall progress of the project and the work package leaders gave an overview of the individual work packages as well as recruitment & clinical examination.
May 3, 2023
1st Advisory Board Meeting
Our 1st Advisory Board Meeting was held on May 3, 2023. The VEGANScreener Advisory Board is an external and independent body of experts invited to, for the duration of the VEGANScreener project, provide expert advice on matters related to the screener development and validation. Three experts in nutrition, epidemiology, plant-based diets and evidence synthesis accepted our invitation to join the VEGANScreener Advisory Board in 2023-2025.
We express our gratitude to the Advisory Board members for dedicating their time and expertise to this project!
Advisory Board
From left to right:
Joan Sabate, MD, DrPH – Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology, Loma Linda University, USA
Dr. oec. troph. Sabrina Schlesinger, MSc – Head of the Research Group “Systematic Reviews” German Diabetes Center (DDZ), Germany
Tilman Kühn, PhD – Professor of Public Health Nutrition, University of Vienna/Medical University of Vienna, Austria
December 16, 2022
2nd Project Consortium Meeting
Our 2nd Consortium Meeting was held on December 16, 2022. The major achievements were presented to the consortium and next steps were discussed and decided. After developing the VeganScreener in Work Package 2, we started the new phase of clinical data acquisition (Work Package 3). We appreciate your kind cooperation!
November 10, 2022
VEGANScreener Evaluation
After an extensive effort in literature compilation/ synthesis, analyses of existing datasets, & the
VEGANScreener draft development, we are now entering the stage of the screener evaluation via Delphi. A team of 31 experts will participate in two rounds of voting to finalize the VEGANScreener. We are so grateful to have such amazing and supportive external experts who dedicated their time to our project!
June 8, 2022
VEGANScreener: Kick-Off-Meeting in Vienna
On June 8, 2022, the Kick-off Meeting for the international project VEGANScreener took place, hosted by the Project Coordinator, Medical University of Vienna, Department of Epidemiology. All participants from Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany and Spain had the chance to get to know each other and lay the foundations for a successful project partnership.
