LLEK10249 Evidence, Diet and Health

Details
Responsible DepartmentDepartment of Human Nutrition

Earliest Possible YearMSc. 1 year to MSc. 2 year
DurationOne block
 
Credits7.5 (ECTS)
 
Level of CourseMSc
 
ExaminationFinal Examination

written examination


All aids allowed

Description of Examination: The student will be given two papers and a number of questions that they have to consider in their answer. They will have 48h to do the task in which they are allowed to use all papers from the course, their notes, the internet and also to meet an discuss, but each student have to make an individual answer and they are not allowed to copy writing from other students. The evaluation will consider skills mainly from the strength of the arguments and an overall evaluation of the answer. The final answer of max. 7 A4-pages must be uploaded at Absalon within 48h.

Weight: 100%



7-point scale, internal examiner
 
Requirement for Attending ExamApproval of two written group assignments during the course.

 
Organisation of TeachingLectures, theoretical and practical exercise, group-based assignments and seminars
 
Block PlacementBlock 2
Week Structure: B
 
Language of InstructionEnglish
 
Course Content
The focus of the course is how to assess available evidence for a causal relationship between diet and diseases with a main focus on diet, macronutrients and life-style diseases such as cancer, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The course will provide the students with theoretical teaching in the methodology, several examples and exercises and assignments that gives them opportunity to practise.
 
Teaching and learning Methods
Lectures with exemplification and exercise practice. The objective of two course assignments is to use of the principles in evaluation of scientific evidence.
 
Learning Outcome
Learning outcome:
The main objective of the course is to provide the students with an understanding of basic methods and concepts in nutritional epidemiology, to enable them to assess available evidence for a causal relationship between diet and diseases.

After completion of the course the students should be able to:

Knowledge:
- Define epidemiology and causality
- Describe the epidemiological measures of frequency and association
- Explain the concepts bias, confounding, effect modification, chance, power, validity and generalisability
- List the study designs, and describe their advantages and limitations in relation to nutritional epidemiology
- Describe the structure of a data set, and types of variables

Skills:
- Demonstrate ability to critically assess the validity of studies on the relation between diet and disease
- Assess the biological plausibility of associations between diet and disease, based on knowledge on human physiology and patogenesis
- Demonstrate ability to handle a data set with nutritional variables, and to assess for confounding and effect modification.

Competences:
- Discuss the evidence for causal relationship between diet and disease
- Contribute to the design and planning of studies on the role of diet as determinants of disease
- Evaluate study designs and methology in relation to studies of the role of diet as determinants of disease.
 
Course Literature
A compendium will be for sale at the start of the course.
 
Course Coordinator
Lotte Lauritzen, ll@life.ku.dk, Department of Human Nutrition/Preventive Nutrition, Phone: 353-32508
Mette Kristensen, mekr@life.ku.dk, Department of Human Nutrition/Preventive Nutrition, Phone: 353-33536
 
Study Board
Study Committee LSN
 
Work Load
lectures18
theoretical exercises20
practicals16
preparation36
project work70
examination48

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