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Papers by Denise Buttigieg Fiteni

The primary objective of this study is to assess the prevalence of obesity among children aged be... more The primary objective of this study is to assess the prevalence of obesity among children aged between 5 and 18 years living and schooling within Abu Dhabi, and how nutrition level, physical activities, and creating awareness on food education can impact their lives. One thousand students from an international school in Abu Dhabi were selected to participate in the survey. Three different questionnaires, including Body Image Survey, International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and Rate Your Plate, were used to collect data. Cross-tabulated descriptive statistics revealed that out of the students who were found to be obese, 62.8% were Emiratis, which suggests the high degree of obesity prevalence in the United Arab Emirates. By gender, obesity was more prevalent among females than males. In an attempt to provide possible responses to such nutrition-based problems, the study formulated and tested four hypotheses on nutrition, physical activity, and the creation of awareness. Multiva...

The choice of a feeding practice plays a significant role in the growth and development of an inf... more The choice of a feeding practice plays a significant role in the growth and development of an infant. This article assesses the different impacts of breastfeeding and infant formula as feeding practices on the growth and development of an infant to provide an evidence based recommendation to mothers. The article also assesses the necessary nutrients that should be in the recommended infant formula that a mother chooses for her infant. Breast milk is the recommended infant feeding practice because of its immunology properties as well as nutrient components such as arachidonic, DHA, EPA, and important vitamins that are necessary for the growth and development of an infant. The recommendation of breast milk as the best feeding practice was established through a literature review. It is recommended that if a mother chooses to use an infant formula as a feeding practice there are important nutrients that the infant formula should contain. A good infant formula should have iron, nucleotides, prebiotics, probiotics, choline, inositol, and carnitine supplements that are necessary for the growth and development of an infant.

Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is described as the ability of microorganisms such as bacteria or ... more Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is described as the ability of microorganisms such as bacteria or viruses to stop antimicrobials like antibiotics from fighting them thereby rendering the standard treatment measures ineffective, which, in turn, enhance the spread of infections (“Health and Food Safety”, 2018, n.p). AMR has become a major threat to world public health and needs prompt action from all government sectors. This is because the resistant viruses and bacteria are difficult to treat since they require alternative medications or a higher dosage of expensive drugs, which may be toxic to the body. Therefore, AMR is a risk to human health because new resistance mechanisms keep emerging and spreading all over the world thereby threatening the ability of the human immunity and the administered drugs to fight the common infections.

Emulsions are mixtures of immiscible fluids like oil and water that are temporarily stable (Ghase... more Emulsions are mixtures of immiscible fluids like oil and water that are temporarily stable (Ghasemi, Mazloomi, and Hajipour ‎2017, p.1). The mixture is obtained by dividing a single phase finely into droplets that are very small. In the food industry, the making of emulsions is by suspending oil in water (w/o) or liquid suspended in oil (w/o) (Clark 2013, p.2). Complex systems such as oil-in-water in oil are also used in making product emulsions in the food industry. The chemical composition of emulsions is known as colloids. These are mixtures that are heterogeneous and comprising of particles that are tiny and suspended in another material that is immiscible (Brown 2007, p.29). The particles in colloids are more massive than molecules, even though less than one-thousandth of a millimeter. In that case, the size of these particles makes them not able to settle and thereby to pass through the filter paper. The liquid-liquid colloids are what produce a stable and surfactant free oil in water emulsion in small droplets of liquid measuring 10 to 200 μm depending on the mixing conditions of the experiment (de Folter, van Ruijven and Velikov 2012, p.6807). This report entails a discussion of an oil-in-water emulsion type of product using protein as an emulsifier. The aim is to describe the emulsion product type, the method of production and the way of assessing the emulsion stability.

Foodborne outbreak refers to the epidemic resulting from the consumption of foods that have been ... more Foodborne outbreak refers to the epidemic resulting from the consumption of foods that have been spoiled as a result of contamination, the action of some micro-organisms and an improper handling of food that is consumed by human beings. Microorganisms are leading causes of food poisoning resulting in a significant outbreak. A specific category of the bacteria, referred to as the Gram-Negative has been the much associated foodborne outbreak. The features of the outbreaks depend on the extent to which one is infected, and this determines the rage of the incubation period. There are quite a number of the Gram-Negative bacteria whose facts have been an issue of concern up to the global level. This paper considers Pseudomonas aeruginosa which has caused disease outbreaks in the country, Malta as a result of food poisoning. There are specific features of the consequent infection, and some general ones which are common across all the outbreaks caused Gram-Negative bacteria. Besides Malta, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, being an issue of concern at the global level, many other countries experience its negative influence in terms causing illness through food contamination. This paper investigates and reports on foodborne outbreak as a result of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, showing the comparison in Malta and Sicily.

There is a growing interest in the idea of taxing sugar for the purpose of reducing obesity rates... more There is a growing interest in the idea of taxing sugar for the purpose of reducing obesity rates. Obesity along with its chronic illnesses are growing and costly health problem that affects both developing and developed nations. In fact, since 1980, the obesity rates have almost tripled, hence predisposing the population to hypertension and diabetes, which have almost doubled (Gracner, 2015; Johnson et al., 2012). One of the solutions that have been proposed is imposing sugar tax. In effect, taxes will raise the price of the targeted product and lead to a decline in sales. The decline in sales leads to individuals consuming fewer calories, which reduces the prevalence and the health threat of obesity. There is need of controlling obesity primarily because it is a condition that is related to various adverse health conditions. By mitigating obesity, fewer people become ill. Importantly, the economic justification for increasing taxes to curb obesity is that illnesses that are a result of obesity impose a “spillover” costs and externalities on the rest of the society.
Taxing soft drinks and sugary food has proved to be less efficient as dozens of authorities have experimented with such taxes and the results have not been positive, thereby making it hard to control obesity by taxing food and soft drinks. This is because the demand for snacks, sugary drinks, and fatty foods is often inelastic and people tend to be unresponsive to price hikes, which consequently does not have a significant change in the shopping habits (Han & Powell, 2011; Brownell and Frieden, 2009). Besides, consumers look for switching options mainly to cheaper brands, which consequently leads to the consumption of inferior goods instead of lowering the consumption of fewer calories. As such, the purpose of this current paper is to address the issue of obesity through taxing sugar as opposed to sugary foods and soft drinks, which is a better option, as it leads to better results of controlling what people consume based on increased prices of final products, decreased consumption of sugary foods and soft drinks, and ultimately better health, which emanates from decreased obesity in the population.

This essay seeks to consider the importance to establish secure leadership style that reflects th... more This essay seeks to consider the importance to establish secure leadership style that reflects the needs of the education institution within a particular context in the south-east Hillingdon and consequently the implications for academic professionalism. It explores and interrogates how the context of a particular area in Hillingdon can influence the type of leadership and the conditions in which educational leaders are affected. It also discusses in some detail the interrelation between management and leadership and in particular the notion of HOW to make distributive leadership happen in a meaningful way. Distributive leadership is well-known and firmly established in the minds of leaders, but it tends to be more theoretical rather than practical application. While theory is undoubtedly crucial as it can frame, explain and predict, it is also essential that theory connect, in some way, to practice and this is shown in this essay. This essay proposes to make a direct connection between theory and practice. It argues that distributive leadership, not just a robust framework, but it is also a leadership approach that, if properly constructed and enacted well, can result in better learner outcome. It, however, propose that distributive leadership could only work under the right conditions to make a positive influence on an educational institution to change and improve.

In the article “Processed meat: the real villain?” Rohrmann and Linseisen (2016) outline although... more In the article “Processed meat: the real villain?” Rohrmann and Linseisen (2016) outline although meat is a popular diet among many cultures, great care should be taken in its consumption. Meat contains important proteins and vitamins such as zinc, vitamin A, and vitamin B. However, it is also rich in cholesterol and saturated fats (Zhao et al., 2017). A high consumption of processed red meat may lead to increase in the intake of salt, cholesterol, saturated fats, aromatic hydrocarbons and nitrate (Carr et al., 2017). This paper is a critique of the article and will pay particular attention to the strength of the evidence, confounding factors, and the recommendations.