In recent years, nutritional epidemiology—an area of study that examines possible links between nutrition and various diseases in large populations—has advanced the field of nutrition science and helped inform dietary guidelines and recommendations. But the field has also faced criticisms, including that such studies rely too much on observational designs and self-reported dietary assessment.
In an October 31, 2018 JAMA Viewpoint article, Frank Hu, chair of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and Walter Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition, address these criticisms and point to examples where nutritional epidemiology has resulted in findings that change policies and behaviors, such as in the case of reducing the use of trans fatty acids in certain oils.
Hu and Willett noted that nutritional epidemiology will continue to improve as researchers make increasing use of biomarkers such as blood levels of fatty acids and new digital technologies such as cell phones in their investigations. They added that, in the coming years, nutritional epidemiology will need to address many societal and global challenges, including rising rates of obesity, a rapidly evolving food system, and ongoing undernutrition and nutrition deficiencies in low- and middle-income countries.
Read the JAMA Viewpoint article: Current and Future Landscape of Nutritional Epidemiologic Research