Estimation of the dietary intake of chemicals in food

Methods for estimating the exposure of individuals to chemical substances present in the diet require information to be obtained about the patterns of food consumption in a community as well as the concentration of these chemicals in the diet. Methods of estimating food intakes using food diaries/weighed intake studies, dietary recall studies, food frequency and food disappearance methods are described. Their use, together with calculations derived from the data they provide are described to estimate normal and atypical food consumption patterns. The methods which have been used to estimate the exposure to existing chemicals in food are briefly reviewed and include total diet studies, selective studies on individual foods and duplicate portion studies. These methods are inappropriate for estimating the prospective intake of a chemical in food and the ways in which this issue may be approached, both nationally and internationally, are described with particular reference to the intakes of pesticide residues and food additives.