What Your Blood Reveals About Your Eating Habits: The Hidden Signs of Nutrition Through Your Blood Tests
Breakthrough in nutrition science: Junk food intake detectable through blood and urine tests, opening new avenues for monitoring ultraprocessed food consumption.
New research has revealed that simple blood and urine tests can now accurately measure the amount of ultraprocessed foods (UPFs) individuals consume, marking a significant advance for dietary science and public health monitoring. Scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), leveraging machine learning technologies, have identified hundreds of metabolites—molecules produced during metabolism—that reliably correspond to levels of processed food intake.
The research team has developed a novel “biomarker score” based on these metabolites, which allows clinicians and scientists to objectively estimate ultraprocessed food consumption from biological samples. According to Dr. Erikka Loftfield of the National Cancer Institute, this approach moves beyond traditional self-reported food questionnaires, which are often susceptible to errors and bias. Instead, the new test offers an objective and quantifiable measurement, providing a more accurate insight into dietary habits and associated health risks.
Baseline data for the study were collected from 718 older adults who contributed blood and urine samples and logged their dietary habits over the course of a year. To further validate the findings, researchers conducted a controlled clinical trial involving 20 adults who alternated between a diet high in ultraprocessed foods and one completely devoid of UPFs over two-week periods. The results consistently showed clear metabolic signatures linked to each dietary phase, supporting the accuracy of the biomarker score.
“We found that hundreds of serum and urine metabolites were correlated with the percentage of energy intake coming from ultraprocessed foods,” noted Loftfield. This comprehensive analysis, recently published in PLOS Medicine, underscores the complex impact of diet on the human metabolome. The fact that these metabolic markers are involved in numerous biological pathways highlights just how intricately diet and health are intertwined.
Ultraprocessed foods are characterized as ready-to-eat or ready-to-heat products manufactured industrially, typically high in calories but low in essential nutrients. Previous studies have consistently linked such diets to increased risk of chronic illnesses, including obesity, heart disease, and various forms of cancer.
Importantly, while the findings offer a promising new tool for researchers and clinicians, experts caution that further validation is necessary before routine use in broader populations. The current study’s focus on older adults suggests that additional research is needed across diverse age groups and dietary backgrounds to ensure the findings are universally applicable. “Metabolite scores should be evaluated and improved in populations with different diets and a wide range of UPF intake,” Loftfield advised.
This breakthrough could soon enable more rigorous large-scale studies examining the long-term health impacts of ultraprocessed food consumption. In the meantime, experts recommend that consumers concerned about their UPF intake carefully check nutrition labels and opt for foods low in added sugar, saturated fat, and sodium—guidance that aligns with current scientific consensus on healthy eating.
