From the editor.

It is hard to believe that we have reached the end of another year, but for Nutrition & Dietetics, each year has meant giant steps forward. Last year we went online with Blackwell Publishing; this year we welcomed in the journal of the New Zealand Dietetics Association, with Associate Editors joining us from across the Tasman. We also produced our first set of peer reviewed abstracts from the DAA national conference. These developments have seen increased contributions to the journal, to the extent where we now have a large number of accepted manuscripts at any one time, from which we may formulate themes.

I am very pleased to present this December issue with a focus on vitamin D. This theme provides a suitable base for examining a number of issues that are challenging contemporary nutrition and dietetics practice. While research on vitamins, minerals and macronutrients perhaps provided the 'first wave' of modern day knowledge in food and nutrition, changing circumstances mean that the way in which we work with them will always warrant revision. This issue's Editorial is provided by Professor Caryl Nowson, a long-standing Associate Editor of this journal and expert in the field of nutrition and bone health. She begins with some fundamental principles of nutrition practice: balance and integration. Although current health promotion activities have driven us out of the sun to protect against skin cancer, we now need to balance this with some sun exposure to maintain vitamin D status. Nowson's reference to other factors that may limit sun exposure leads us nicely to the Letters to the Editor section with a timely reminder from Awofeso that we need to integrate knowledge of vitamin D requirements with that of religious and cultural practices.

The increasing knowledge base and changing context of practice also lead us to revision. With respect to vitamin D, Nowson extends the frame of reference from single vitamin deficiency to synergies with other nutrients, broader health-promoting and disease-preventing effects of vitamin D, and then food standards regulating its use and promotion in the food supply. These issues are taken up for New Zealand in the leading article by Green and Skeaff and for Australia in the main viewpoint article by Shrapnel and Truswell. The former note the low vitamin D status observed in their population, comment on seasonal and cultural issues, and discuss mandatory food fortification. Shrapnel and Truswell note that the new Nutrient Reference Values (NRVs) for vitamin D, based on up-to-date knowledge, will be difficult to meet. They also discuss the potential for fortified foods and lead on to the issue of supplements for the elderly.

The idea would seem to have traction given the research from Parnell and colleagues who found that older adults in New Zealand were the most common users of supplements (and adults were more likely to consume them than children). Multivitamins and mineral supplement were the most commonly consumed form, so mixed supplements may well be accepted. The use of nutrition therapies in the mental health area is considered by Volker and colleagues, who argue in a Viewpoint article that nutrition may have an adjunctive role in the management of depression. They outline how n-3 fatty acids in particular might operate in the relevant biological pathways, and list a number of other nutritional inputs that show potential.

In the case of young patients (1-18 years) being treated for cancer, Ikeda and colleagues put forward an Insight paper arguing for dietetic input into the management of nutrition-related side effects of therapy. The insights emerged from survey data on 54 oncology patients from two major metropolitan hospitals. Building capability in nutrient and dietetics practice, whether by insights or formal research is something that Dr Joan Mary Woodhill would have been pleased to see. The articles section of the December issue finishes with the outline of the Lecture in Honour of Dr Woodhill presented at the 24th National Conference in Sydney in May. It is reliability followed by quality Continuing Education and Book Reviews sections managed by Anne McMahon and Peter Williams, respectively.

The final issue of the journal for 2006 also welcomes in three new Associate Editors (Judy Porter, Michelle Miller and Jane Elmslie) who bring a wealth of experience to the task from Australia and New Zealand. We bid farewell to Tim Green and Evangeline Mantzioris and thank them wholeheartedly for the contributions they have made to the journal during their terms of appointment. Deep appreciation is also afforded to the Editorial Board, the Journal Advisory Committee and the numerous people in support from the DAA and NZDA national offices and from Blackwell Publishing. The past is well accomplished and the future continues to look very bright indeed.

Linda C. Tapsell, PhD, FDAA 

Editor