Christine M Williams · 21 May 2024

Can mechanistic research in nutrition contribute to a better understanding of relationships between diet and non-communicable diseases (NCD)?

Most of the evidence linking diet with complex diseases such as heart disease and cancer (non-communicable diseases (NCD)) is based on findings from epidemiological cohort studies which follow large populations of people to determine whether groups of people who have been diagnosed with or died from the disease, have diets that differ from those who are free from the disease. A limiting factor in these studies is their observational nature which limits the certainty about causal relationships between the exposure (diet) and the outcome (NCDs). Randomised controlled trials (RCTs), where a dietary factor is fed under carefully controlled circumstances, have a greater ability to prove the dietary factor is causing the disease and provide confidence for policymaking.