Latest from Food Politics: New terms in nutritional vocabulary: dark matter and foodomics

I wondered what this headline from FoodNavigator-Europe meant: Nutritional dark matter: The next frontier in food science: The discovery of ‘nutritional dark matter’ is unlocking new paths for smarter food innovation, targeted health benefits, and ...

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By Marion Nestle October 16 2025 New terms in nutritional vocabulary: dark matter and foodomics I wondered what this headline from FoodNavigator-Europe meant: Nutritional dark matter: The next frontier in food science: The discovery of ‘nutritional dark matter’ is unlocking new paths for smarter food innovation, targeted health benefits, and precision nutrition… Read more I went right to it: What is Nutritional Dark Matter? A summary of key insights Nutritional databases track only 150 of 26,000+ food compounds Most food chemicals remain unstudied but may impact human health Poor nutrition causes one in five adult deaths worldwide Foodomics links diet to genes, microbes, and disease mechanisms Industry must adapt to new science shaping future food innovation As for foodomics, this term “brings together genomics (the role of genes), proteomics (proteins), metabolomics (cell activity) ad nutrigenomics (the interaction of genes and diet.” Translation “Dark matter” refers to the chemicals in food that have not (yet?) been identified as essential to the human diet but might have physiological functions. “Foodomics” explains how all that might work. Bottom line: While waiting for the scientists to investigate “dark matter,” the implications of the concept for dietary advice are obvious: Eat whole foods, processed as minimally as possible. But we already knew that. The post New terms in nutritional vocabulary: dark matter and foodomics appeared first on Food Politics by Marion Nestle      Related Posts California defines ultra-processed foods and bans them from school meals—by 2035 (!) Weekend reading: UNICEF’s Feeding Profit report California legislature passes bill banning ultra-processed foods from schools—and defining them   Coming Soon: What to Eat Now My new book What to Eat Now is a field guide to food shopping in America, and a treatise on how to eat well and deliciously. Forthcoming November 11, 2025 For more information and pre-orders, click here. You can explore the full archive of this (almost) daily blog at foodpolitics.com, where you'll also find information about my books, articles, media interviews, upcoming lectures, favorite resources, and FAQs. Visit the Site » ​​​​​​​ Marion Nestle Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, Emerita © Marion Nestle. You're receiving this email because you've signed up to receive updates from us. If you'd prefer not to receive updates, you can unsubscribe. Safely Unsubscribe • Archives • Preferences • Contact • Subscribe • Privacy

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