Total Diet Study
A total diet study - TDS for short - is a method to determine which substances and in which concentrations are on average contained in prepared foods.
background
The methodology of the total diet studies was developed in the middle of the 20th century. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) , the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommend total diet studies as a cost-effective method for determining average concentrations of various substances in ready-to-eat foods.
More than 50 countries have so far carried out their own total diet studies, including the USA, Canada, New Zealand and France. In 2015, the BfR MEAL study started the first total diet study for Germany at the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) .
Goals and Methods
The aim of a total diet study is to make well-founded statements about desirable and undesirable substances in food. Based on the data obtained, possible food risks for the population can be better identified, existing limit values can be checked and consumption recommendations derived. In the event of a crisis, the results are an important basis for comparison in order to be able to quickly and reliably assess the acutely increased levels of undesirable substances.
Total diet studies are defined by three basic principles:
- They represent the consumption habits of a population or population group.
- The food is prepared for typical meals before the analysis.
- Similar foods are grouped into so-called pools, homogenized and analyzed.
BfR MEAL study
The BfR MEAL study is the first total diet study for Germany. MEAL is an abbreviation for " M ahlzeiten for E xpositionsschätzung and A nalytik of L just submit". The Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) is funding the study designed by the BfR with around 13 million euros. It started in 2015 and is set to run for at least seven years. For the first time in Germany, the BfR MEAL study is investigating systematically prepared foods using the methodology of a total diet study in order to be able to make statements about the concentrations of various substance groups in foods. With around 60,000 individual foods from 355 food groups and almost 300 substances to be examined, the BfR MEAL study is the most comprehensive total diet study worldwide to date. The substances are assigned to nine substance groups: substances from the basic module, which includes heavy metals and dioxins, perfluorinated surfactants, mycotoxins, process contaminants, additives, nutrients, pesticide residues, pharmacologically active substances and substances migrating from food packaging.
The BfR MEAL study consists of six work steps:
Choice of food
The study team uses the data already available from consumption studies to create a shopping list that represents German eating habits. This covers 90 percent of the foods most commonly eaten in Germany. In addition, it takes into account seldom consumed foods if they are known to have high levels of undesirable substances.
Germany-wide purchasing
The BfR-MEAL team buys this food partly across Germany in four different regions, taking into account the different shopping habits of the German population as well as regional and seasonal features.
Processing in the BfR study kitchen
The food is prepared in the study kitchen specially set up for the BfR MEAL study, with typical consumer behavior being reproduced in terms of the type of preparation and the kitchen appliances used.
Pooling and homogenizing
The foods are then grouped (pooled) and homogenized so that a total of 60,000 individual foods can be reduced to 4,000 samples (pools).
analysis
With the exception of substances from food contact materials, which are analyzed in BfR's own laboratories, external accredited laboratories carry out the analysis of the samples.
Evaluation and exposure estimation
The BfR is responsible for checking the plausibility of the data from the laboratories. The subsequent exposure assessment serves the BfR as a basis for the assessment of health risks from the consumption of food.
The first results of the BfR MEAL study will be available in the course of 2020. The BfR-MEAL-News newsletter provides regular information on current progress.
Web links
Website for the BfR MEAL study: www.bfr-meal-studie.de
Official newsletter "BfR-MEAL-News": http://www.bfr-meal-studie.de/de/news.html
Lindtner O. (2015): Total Diet Studies: Current Status in Germany . Nutritional Review 62: M474-M475. Retrieved February 11, 2020
Individual evidence
- ^ Moy GG: Total diet studies. Protecting the public from chemical hazards in food. (PDF) In: Ernaehrungs Umschau international. August 14, 2015, accessed February 11, 2020 .
- ↑ a b EFSA - European Food Safety Authority, FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, WHO - World Health Organization: Towards a harmonized Total Diet Study Approach: A Guidance Document. In: EFSA Journal 9: 2450. November 24, 2011, accessed February 11, 2020 .
- ↑ US Food & Drug Administration (FDA): Total Diet Study. Retrieved February 12, 2020 .
- ^ Government of Canada: Canadian Total Diet Study. Retrieved February 12, 2020 .
- ^ New Zealand Food Safety: New Zealand Total Diet Study (NZTDS). Retrieved February 12, 2020 .
- ^ French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES): Total Diet Studies (TDSs). Retrieved February 12, 2020 .
- ^ A b c Sarvan I., Bürgelt M., Lindtner O., Greiner M .: Exposure estimation of substances in food. The BfR MEAL study - the first total diet study in Germany. In: Federal Health Gazette 2017: 689-696. May 17, 2017, accessed February 11, 2020 .
- ^ Stehfest S., Sarvan I., Lindtner O. Greiner M .: Cooking for science - the MEAL study of the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment. (PDF) In: Umwelt Mensch Informationsdienst 2/2019: 17-26. Retrieved February 11, 2020 .
- ↑ Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR): Provisional list of substances for the BfR MEAL study. (PDF) In: Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR). June 8, 2016, accessed February 11, 2020 .