The purpose of this research is to find a set of markers in the blood and/or urine that can be linked to consumption of specific fruits and vegetables. This will allow for better understanding of the link between diet and health-related outcomes. Furthermore, the results of this study will lead to the development of new methods to evaluate the nutritional status of individuals in both community and clinical settings. Food frequency questionnaires and diaries/recalls can be affected by intentional or unintentional misreporting, and thus can create errors in determining nutritional status. This study will lead to the development of an objective way to assess the consumption of specific fruits and vegetables by the general population.~This study includes 3 aims to identify and then validate urine and plasma biomarkers associated with fruit and vegetable intake. Aim 1 will use a randomized crossover dietary intervention to determine the dose and time response of metabolites in plasma and urine associated with exposure to a mixture of MyPlate fruits and vegetables. Aim 2 will use a parallel design, controlled diet intervention to determine whether the biomarkers of fruit and vegetable intake determined in Aim 1 are predictors of consumption in the context of a defined dietary pattern. Aim 3 will be a cross-sectional validation arm that determines if the biomarkers of food intake developed in Aims 1 and 2 have predictive value reflecting recent and habitual consumption of these foods in a heterogeneous and diverse population.
The purpose of this research is to find a set of markers in the blood and/or urine that can be linked to consumption of specific fruits and vegetables. This will allow for better understanding of the link between diet and health-related outcomes. Furthermore, the results of this study will lead to the development of new methods to evaluate the nutritional status of individuals in both community and clinical settings. Food frequency questionnaires and diaries/recalls can be affected by intentional or unintentional misreporting, and thus can create errors in determining nutritional status. This study will lead to the development of an objective way to assess the consumption of specific fruits and vegetables by the general population.