Lignans as a Potential Metabolomic Biomarker for Nut Consumption and EAT-Lancet Diet Score Adherence

Metabolomic biomarkers may represent reliable objective measurements and can be useful for assessing dietary intake and avoiding biases. The objective of this study is to identify novel metabolomic indicators of dietary patterns. Dietary, anthropometric, blood biomarkers, and urinary (poly)phenols (UPLC-ESI-QqQ-MS/MS) were collected from 138 Spanish adults. Both data- and hypothesis-driven analyses were carried out. This study found associations between the consumption of EAT nuts and total EAT (p < 0.005), as well as between total urinary lignans and total EAT (p ≤ 0.05). Additionally, other associations were identified between urinary lignans and EAT nuts (p < 0.005, adjusted by age, sex, and BMI; p < 0.001, adjusted by total EAT). Urinary lignans have been associated with both a potential predictor of nut consumption and a candidate surrogate for adherence to the EAT-Lancet diet in the Spanish population. These results will translationally contribute to precision dietary intake assessment.