Newcastle University

Nutrition, Lifestyle and Oral Health

The overall aim of this theme is to investigate the relationships between nutrition, oral health, the ageing process, and wellbeing in older age. This includes research on nutrition and lifestyle interventions to ameliorate the ageing process and to promote wellbeing in old age, and on understanding the role of nutrition in the development of age-related chronic diseases.

The specific objectives include:

• investigating effective and transferable dietary intervention strategies for older people living in the community and care home settings
• development of lifestyle interventions to promote health and wellbeing in later life
• investigating novel and effective means of preventing malnutrition in older patients in hospital and nursing care
• nutrition, brain ageing and dementia – causation, prevention and management through diet and lifestyle
• investigating the use of innovative technology to develop vehicles for achieving and measuring dietary behaviour change, including participatory design and the application of pervasive technologies in the kitchen
• identification and validation of diet-related biomarkers of the ageing process and of age-related diseases such as colo-rectal cancer
• investigation of epigenomic mechanisms through which nutrition and lifestyle exposures are recorded through the life course and contribute to ageing
• investigation of diet-gene interactions which influence the risk of disease in older people
• study of nutritional modulation of immune function and gut function during ageing
• investigation of the interactions between nutrition and disease of both the soft and hard tissues in ageing
• development of foods that are suitable for the needs of older people
• development of functional foods and food supplements aimed at ageing and vitality
• investigation of the interrelationships between nutrition, oral health and systemic health
• Investigation of the impact of oral health interventions as a means of moderating systemic disease
• investigation of the impact of oral health on enjoyment of food and quality of life throughout the lifespan

This theme works in collaboration with the Human Nutrition Research Centre (www.ncl.ac.uk/hnrc) and the Oral Health Research Group (www.ncl.ac.uk/biomedicine/research/groups/dental.htm)

Nutrition, Lifestyle and Oral Health Theme Leader

Professor Paula Moynihan

Institute for Ageing and Health staff involved: