Nutrition Scienceef olicy
June 7992: 179
Editorial The Changing Face of European Nutrition In contrast to the United States and to several other regions of the world, nutritional science in Europe is poorly organized at present, but all the signs are that things are about to improve. This relative lack of organization arises from the diversity of languages, research funding, and educational structures that characterizes the Europe of the past. With the increasing integration of Europe, largely through the efforts of the European Community (EC), such diversity is beginning to disappear. Over the last decade, a large number of pan-European collaborative projects in nutrition have begun; they involve cardiovascular disease, hypertension, cancer, the elderly, obesity, infant growth, food composition tables, dietary survey methodologies, etc. Most have been EC-funded, which requires transnational collaboration as a prerequisite for consideration. The legacy of this is that we in Europe have gotten to know one another a lot better. However, our problems of diversity, while diminishing in the western side of the continent, are worsening to the east. In 1987 the former USSR became affiliated to the Federation of European Nutrition Societies (FENS). In 1991 the Ukraine sought its own affiliation, and one can only speculate as to how the many emerging new states, not only of the USSR but of Yugoslavia, will enter the community of nutritional science in Europe. Shortage of funds may delay this expansion and, to some extent, that may give existing structures the breathing space needed to develop stronger networks of European nutrition. At the same time, the global nutrition community might look long and hard at the wisdom of such prolonged underdevelopment of structures in the newer states. Perhaps the time is right for a nutritional Marshall Plan! Given the remarkable increase in mobility of nutrition researchers in Europe over the last decade, it
Nutrition Reviews, Vol. 50, No. 6
is not surprising that a groundswell of enthusiasm for a more integrated structure for European nutrition has emerged. Some favor an American Institute of Nutrition-style organization, with individual scientists affiliating both to national nutrition societies and to a new European Institute of Nutrition. Others prefer a consolidation of FENS to fulfill such a need. FENS is formally seeking to become affiliated to the newly created European Union of Societies of Experimental Biology (EUSEB), the European equivalent to the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) in the United States. This may provide a necessary stimulus to FENS to mature into a more active forum for European nutrition, preferably with a permanent secretariat and ideally with its own revenuegenerating journal. It will not be a painless process, for within Europe there are many other nutrition groupings and several nutrition journals. At the end of the day, it matters more that this maturation process takes place than the form it eventually takes. Integration of nutritional science in Europe must not, however, be confined to the scientific community. Government agencies must also seek to harmonize their efforts. For example, nine of the 12 EC states have conducted national diet surveys over the last decade. None has used the same methodology, and they reveal nine different age categories and food-classification systems. Total harmonization of these efforts may not be possible, but some level surely is. A recent directive on sweeteners by the EC requires that member states report on exposure levels to these products. It will be interesting to see how such efforts are harmonized, if at all. One thing is certain, and that is, change. Michael J. Gibney, Ph.D. Corresponding Editor
179
June 7992: 179
Editorial The Changing Face of European Nutrition In contrast to the United States and to several other regions of the world, nutritional science in Europe is poorly organized at present, but all the signs are that things are about to improve. This relative lack of organization arises from the diversity of languages, research funding, and educational structures that characterizes the Europe of the past. With the increasing integration of Europe, largely through the efforts of the European Community (EC), such diversity is beginning to disappear. Over the last decade, a large number of pan-European collaborative projects in nutrition have begun; they involve cardiovascular disease, hypertension, cancer, the elderly, obesity, infant growth, food composition tables, dietary survey methodologies, etc. Most have been EC-funded, which requires transnational collaboration as a prerequisite for consideration. The legacy of this is that we in Europe have gotten to know one another a lot better. However, our problems of diversity, while diminishing in the western side of the continent, are worsening to the east. In 1987 the former USSR became affiliated to the Federation of European Nutrition Societies (FENS). In 1991 the Ukraine sought its own affiliation, and one can only speculate as to how the many emerging new states, not only of the USSR but of Yugoslavia, will enter the community of nutritional science in Europe. Shortage of funds may delay this expansion and, to some extent, that may give existing structures the breathing space needed to develop stronger networks of European nutrition. At the same time, the global nutrition community might look long and hard at the wisdom of such prolonged underdevelopment of structures in the newer states. Perhaps the time is right for a nutritional Marshall Plan! Given the remarkable increase in mobility of nutrition researchers in Europe over the last decade, it
Nutrition Reviews, Vol. 50, No. 6
is not surprising that a groundswell of enthusiasm for a more integrated structure for European nutrition has emerged. Some favor an American Institute of Nutrition-style organization, with individual scientists affiliating both to national nutrition societies and to a new European Institute of Nutrition. Others prefer a consolidation of FENS to fulfill such a need. FENS is formally seeking to become affiliated to the newly created European Union of Societies of Experimental Biology (EUSEB), the European equivalent to the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) in the United States. This may provide a necessary stimulus to FENS to mature into a more active forum for European nutrition, preferably with a permanent secretariat and ideally with its own revenuegenerating journal. It will not be a painless process, for within Europe there are many other nutrition groupings and several nutrition journals. At the end of the day, it matters more that this maturation process takes place than the form it eventually takes. Integration of nutritional science in Europe must not, however, be confined to the scientific community. Government agencies must also seek to harmonize their efforts. For example, nine of the 12 EC states have conducted national diet surveys over the last decade. None has used the same methodology, and they reveal nine different age categories and food-classification systems. Total harmonization of these efforts may not be possible, but some level surely is. A recent directive on sweeteners by the EC requires that member states report on exposure levels to these products. It will be interesting to see how such efforts are harmonized, if at all. One thing is certain, and that is, change. Michael J. Gibney, Ph.D. Corresponding Editor
179
