We are now accepting Special Issue proposals for the new Section "Carbohydrates" (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrients/sections/Carbohydrates) of the journal Nutrients (ISSN: 2072-6643). If you are an active researcher in the field and are passionate about publishing cutting-edge research, please do not hesitate to contact the Section Managing Editor Ms. Jessie Guo ([email protected]).

Dietary carbohydrates are a heterogeneous group of molecules derived from plants that include mono- and disaccharides, oligosaccharides, polysaccharides and fiber. It is well documented that the health effects of dietary carbohydrate can be detrimental when high amounts of fructose-containing sugar are consumed, or beneficial when high amounts of fiber are consumed.

Yet more understanding is needed about the mechanisms by which added sugar mediates detrimental health effects, and how these effects differ from those of the other carbohydrates and non-nutritive sweeteners.

Similarly, there is still much to learn about the protective effects of food fibers and fiber supplements, especially those that are mediated via effects on microbiota. The health effects of a diet high in carbohydrate compared to a high-fat diet continue to be debated, and the answer is likely affected by the carbohydrate source (simple versus complex, refined versus unrefined, grain versus legume) and/or dependent on the genotype or phenotype of the individual. Thus, the “Carbohydrates” Section of Nutrients is open to increasing understanding of the heterogeneity of dietary carbohydrates and determining the carbohydrate components of the optimal diet for the promotion of health and prevention of disease.

Topics of interest include but are not limited to:

• Added sugar and the pathology of obesity and chronic disease:
• Added sugar and refined complex carbohydrate;
• Added sugar and naturally occurring sugars;
• Added sugar and non-nutritive sweeteners;
• Added sugar in solid food and sugar-sweetened beverage.
• High complex carbohydrate diet and the pathology of obesity and chronic disease:

• High complex carbohydrate diet and high-fat diet;
• Refined and unrefined complex carbohydrate diet;
• Food-specific sources of carbohydrate (e.g., legume versus grain);
• Effects of genotype or phenotype on metabolic response to high carbohydrate diet.

• Protective effects of fiber:

• Food fiber and fiber supplements;
• Intact fiber and pulverized fiber (e.g., whole bean versus hummus, whole fruit versus smoothie).

Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access journal advancing knowledge in the field of human nutrition. Nutrients is fully covered by the leading indexing services, including PubMed/MEDLINE, Science Citation Index Expanded (Web of Science), Scopus/SciVerse and Google Scholar. Full-text articles are also available in PubMed Central. The newly released Impact Factor of Nutrients is 5.719.

The following information should be provided in a proposal:

• A 150–200-word summary that clearly states the significance, novelty, technical advancement, and adherence to the scope of the journal of the proposed topic;
• A list of 5–10 keywords relating to the topic;
• A proposed submission deadline (a Special Issue will usually be open for submissions for 6–8 months);
• A list of at least 20 potential contributors, or a list of 8 planned papers.

As a Guest Editor, you would be responsible for:

• Inviting your peers to submit papers to be published in your Special Issue;
• Checking the suitability of abstracts/manuscripts submitted to the Special Issue;
• Making pre-check decisions on whether a manuscript can be sent out for peer-review;
• Making decisions on whether a manuscript can be accepted based on the reports we collect;
• Promoting the Special Issue and increasing its visibility at related academic conferences.

As a Guest Editor, you would have the following privileges:

• A certificate of recognition as a Guest Editor of Nutrients;
• Publishing one paper free of charge in your Special Issue;
• Inviting senior authors to submit high-quality papers to be published in your Special Issue with certain discounts;
• If ten or more papers are published in this Special Issue, we can make a Special Issue book and send a hard copy to each Guest Editor.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Editorial Office ([email protected]) for further details and clarifications. We look forward to receiving your proposals.