The EPIC nutrient database project (ENDB): a first attempt to standardize nutrient databases across the 10 European...

Area of Science:

• Nutritional Science
• Bioinformatics
• Food Chemistry

Background:

• Lack of a standardized European Nutrient Database (NDB) hinders cross-national nutritional research.
• The European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) required harmonized food composition data.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop methodological concepts and procedures for improving the comparability of NDBs across 10 European countries.
• To create a unified European Nutrient DataBase (ENDB) for the EPIC study.

Main Methods:

• Established a network of national compilers, nutritionists, and experts.
• Matched 550-1500 foods from 37,000 EPIC 24-hour dietary recalls to national NDBs.
• Developed a dedicated DataBase Management System for documenting, standardizing, and evaluating national data sets (NDSs).
• Utilized recipe calculations and algorithms for missing nutrient values, accounting for vitamin/mineral losses.

Main Results:

• The final ENDB includes 550-1500 foods and 26 common components per country.
• Component values were standardized for units, expression, definition, and chemical analysis methods.
• Overall NDS completeness improved to over 99%, notably for beta-carotene and vitamin E.

Conclusions:

• The ENDB represents a significant advancement in harmonizing European nutrient databases.
• This methodological framework provides a valuable tool for nutritional research and future NDB development.