Precision nutrition to guide US’s multi-billion strategic plan over next decade

28 May 2020 --- Precision nutrition is set to be the guiding force in a new strategic plan from The National Institutes of Health (NIH), part of the US Department of Health and Human Services. The plan aims to accelerate nutrition science discoveries over the next decade, which will reflect a wide range of nutrition research supported across NIH. Last year alone, the research agency invested over US$1.9 billion in the form of grants, contracts and other funding mechanisms. The plan calls for a multidisciplinary approach through expanded collaboration across NIH Institutes and Centers to bolster nutrition science and uncover the role of human nutrition in improving public health and reducing disease.

“The plan aims to fundamentally transform nutrition science through research on nutrition, dietary patterns and involvement of the microbiome, with a focus on precision nutrition as a unifying theme,” Dr. Griffin Rodgers, Director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases and Chair of NIH Nutrition Research Task Force, tells NutritionInsight.

“We hope that the research will answer the question of what, when and how to eat for people of different ages, sizes, food environments and microbiomes. Precision nutrition is an approach to developing more targeted and effective diet interventions to improve and maintain health in an increasingly diverse US population,” he continues. 

The precision nutrition approach will see the next decade attempt to answer: “What if each of us had individualized dietary recommendations that helped us decide what, when, why and how to eat to optimize our health and quality of life?” This will aid the development of targeted and effective diet interventions in a diverse population. According to Dr. Rodgers, researchers and clinicians will be able to refer to this plan to help guide their research efforts. 

Guided by four goals
The 2020-2030 Strategic Plan for National Institutes of Health Nutrition Research is also organized around four goals that answer smaller key questions in nutrition research:

• Spur Discovery and Innovation through Foundational Research: What do we eat and how does it affect us?
• Investigate the Role of Dietary Patterns and Behaviors for Optimal Health: What and when should we eat? 
• Define the Role of Nutrition Across the Lifespan: How does what we eat promote health across our lifespan?
• Reduce the Burden of Disease in Clinical Settings: How can we improve the use of food as medicine?

Additionally, the plan has five cross-cutting areas that are relevant to all the strategic goals. These are minority health and health disparities; health of women; rigor and reproducibility; data science, systems science, and artificial intelligence; and training the scientific nutrition workforce.

“The seemingly simple question of ‘what should I eat to be healthy?’ is not simple at all, nor is it the same for people of different ages or sizes, nor across food environments and microbiomes. We hope that these can be overcome with the precision nutrition approach outlined in the plan to develop more targeted and effective diet interventions that are more specific to individuals,” details Dr. Rodgers. 

This plan comes as personalization continues to reach new heights. Earlier this month, the CEO of Persona Nutrition told NutritionInsight that COVID-19 is creating a “tremendous” growth opportunity in personalized nutrition. This was closely followed by Pharmavite launching a tailored vitamin subscription service. Meanwhile, COVID-19 is also spurring the rapid personalization of sports nutrition, which had already been established as a major trend in the sector, according to Innova Market Insights. 

Last year, NIH saw nearly US$2 billion invested in nutrition research. (Source: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)Seeking input from the nutrition community
While making this plan, NIH was guided by its Nutrition Research Task Force (NRTF) and insights from the nutrition science community, practitioners and the public. “Additionally, there was feedback throughout the process from researchers outside NIH; other federal agencies, including current and past members of the US Department of Agriculture and US Department of Health and Human Services Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee; professional societies; patient advocates; and academic institutions,” says Dr. Rodgers. 

The plan aligns with the National Nutrition Research Roadmap 2016-2021, created by the Interagency Committee on Human Nutrition Research. This is a trans-federal government committee charged with enhancing the coordination and communication among multiple federal agencies conducting nutrition research.

As the plan is put into action, NIH will continue to seek input from the nutrition community. NRTF will track the progress of the plan and post information on its website. Additionally, it will guide the plan’s application through implementation working groups that will pursue opportunities to:

• Advance the priorities identified in each of the strategic goals and cross-cutting research areas.
• Catalyze nutrition research at NIH-funded universities and institutions and in NIH labs.

By Katherine Durrell