Internship Danone Reseach, Medical Nutrition

Nutrition in neurologically disabled children

Company profile:

Danone is a major business with a worldwide presence focused on products that bring health to our consumers. Danone Research Centre for Specialised Nutrition is a state-of-the-art life sciences innovation centre for the development of new product concepts for Baby Nutrition and Medical Nutrition. We create formulas that provide clinically substantiated health benefits to vulnerable consumers – infants, toddlers, elderly and patients, and aim to identify new nutritional intervention opportunities and develop innovative product forms.

Location:

Wageningen R&D centre, Bosrandweg 20, 6704 PH (until July, afterwards Utrecht Science Park, ‘Uithof’)

Duration:
4 to 6 months, Fulltime

Start internship:

Preferably May 2013 or to be discussed

Aim and Objectives:
To develop a tube feed specially designed for neurologically-disabled (handicapped) children with frequent spit-ups.   

Background:

Faltering growth and malnutrition are common among neurologically disabled (handicapped) children, while growth is a proxy marker for health and social well-being.

An important contributing factor to poor growth is an imbalance between nutritional requirements and actual intake due to oromotor dysfunction. Oromotor dysfunction leads to prolonged and difficult feeding times and has a huge impact on convenience and Quality-of-life of both the child and caregiver.

Depending on the severity of the underlying condition and impairment of the nutritional status these children receive tube feeding. Although current premium tube feedings provide best solutions to these feeding difficulties of these children, the occurrence of spit-ups is still relatively high.

Danone Research therefore aims to reduce spit-ups in these neurologically-disabled children by developing a next generation tube feed which will still ensure the child’s optimal growth and development, but significantly improve the quality of life of child and caregiver. This next generation tube feed will be tested within a gastric simulation.

Core Activities:

•    Topic overview on research project

o    Literature search on target population, digestion and the effects of potential nutritional solutions

•    Develop gastric simulation for next generation tube feed

o    Set up research methods for gastric simulation to test different product concepts

o    Identify and test different scenarios for gastric simulation

o    Describe and propose most optimal product concept

•      Write and present final conclusions

o    Description of the most optimal gastric simulation protocol that mimics tube feeding for handicapped children
o    Presentation of test results
o    Evidence-based description of most optimal product concept

Profile:

•    MSc student Food Technology or similar
•    Good English communication skills, both verbally and written
•    Hands-on mentality
•    Able to develop a research design to test different product concepts and mimic gastric conditions

Offer:
We offer you a challenging internship in an innovative multinational company with an open and dynamic atmosphere. You will get the possibility to develop relevant work field experience and get to know business way of working. During your internship you will receive supervision within the company. A small compensation is provided on a monthly basis.

More information: Paul Venema, Food Physics.