A QUT research project surrounding healthier food for senior Australians has seen success in round three of the National Industry PhD Program.
The program supports PhD candidates to undertake industry-focused research projects and be equipped with the knowledge and skills to better translate university research into commercial products and services.
Professor Jolieke van der Pols from QUT’s School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences will supervise a PhD researcher who will be partly based at the Sanitarium Health Food Company working on the project, Creating healthier food products for older Australians.
Professor van der Pols said the new National Dietary Guidelines will formulate food intake recommendations for ageing adults.
“This provides an important opportunity for Australia’s food and beverage sector to optimise product formulations that meet the needs of ageing Australians,” said van der Pols.
“Loss of muscle function is a common characteristic of ageing that is influenced by dietary micronutrients and macronutrients and negatively impacts on quality of life for older Australians.
Van der Pols said the project will assess and evaluate nutrients that have been shown the improve muscle function in ageing adults.
“Food fortification is a key mechanism by which muscle health can be supported for people who may not have sufficient intake of essential nutrients,” said van der Pols
“This project will assess the most recent evidence on specific nutrients that have been shown to improve muscle function in ageing adults, and will evaluate these nutrients in new research, to support development of Sanitarium Health Food products.”