Mediterranean Diet

Code

Course teacher

Associate teachers

Status of the course

Course objectives

- The role of micro- and macronutrients in food
- The understanding of determination of energy daily intake related to various populations
- The knowledge on the principle of healthy diet regime
- The understanding of relationship between the Mediterranean diet and its role in health balance
- The knowledge on the main characteristics of the Mediterranean diet
- The knowledge on the methods of determination of the nutritive status
- The knowledge on the calculation of daily energy intake

Course enrolment requirements and entry competences required for the course

Learning outcomes expected at the level of the course (4 to 10 learning outcomes)

Learning outcomes are the following:
- To distinguish the main characteristics of the Mediterranean diet
- To know the relationship between nutrients and human health
- To distinguish main factors important for human nutritive status
- To know the role of the Mediterranean diet in prevention of chronic diseases
- To know the influence of the diet on the risk of transgenerational effect of the food components (the role of epigenetics)
- The know the role of the Mediterranean diet in prevention of cancers

Course content broken down in detail by weekly class schedule (syllabus)

1st week: macronutrients (sugars, proteins)
2nd week: macronutrients (lipids)
3th week: micronutrients in food characteristic for Mediterranean diet
4th week. Principles of healthy diet regime: the effect of the Mediterranean diet
5th week: Plant-derived food characteristic for the Mediterranean diet
6th week. Animal-derived food important in the Mediterranean diet
7th week: the principle of the functional food
8th week: the role of aromatic and medicinal plants in the Mediterranean diet
9th week: epigenetic and the diet (scientific proof concerning the Mediterranean diet)
10th week. Mediterranean diet and the aging process
11th week. Mediterranean diet and healthy balance
12th week: Mediterranean diet and obesity
13th week: Mediterranean diet and diabetes type 2
14th week: Mediterranean diet and osteoporosis
15th week: Mediterranean diet and cancers
Seminar work:
Determination of the adipose tissue using caliper and automatic measurement of human subcutaneous fat; to structure 24 hours dietary recall questionnaires and results validation; calculation of the body mass index and the dietary status; to compose daily and weekly dietary regimes according to principles of the Mediterranean diet; calculation of daily energy need requirements for targeted population.

Format of instruction:

Student responsibilities

Active participation in all lectures (70%) and seminars (80%).

Optional literature (at the time of submission of study programme proposal)

R. Živković: Dijetetika, Medicinska naklada, Zagreb, 2002.
J. S. Garrow, W.P.T. James: Human nutrition and dietetics. 10th Edition, Churchill Livingostone, Co. London, 2000.

Quality assurance methods that ensure the acquisition of exit competences

Quality assurance will be performed at three levels:
(1) University Level;
(2) Faculty Level by Quality Control Committee;
(3) Lecturer’s Level.

Other (as the proposer wishes to add)