Total Diet Studies are a highly useful tool in determining exposure to various chemical substances due to diet. To this end, it is very useful to assess risk from food caused by the presence of contaminants in food. It is also used to evaluate the intake of macro- and micro-nutrients.

A Total Diet Study consists in buying commonly consumed foodstuffs from retailers, processing them as though they were to be consumed and analysing them for any content of harmful chemical substances and/or nutrients. It should also include exposure via drinking and cooking water.

Total Diet Studies ( Pdf, 40.0 Kb )