Coronary heart disease (CHD), a leading cause of deaths, is a preventable disease. Largely through smoking cessation promotion and improved control of hypertension and dyslipidemia through medications, we have witnessed a decline of CHD incidence and mortality in the past decades, although such a decline will likely reach a plateau. The role of other effective strategies, such as diet, in the prevention of CHD has become more critical for a further reduction in CHD incidence and mortality. However, further research is necessary to establish the optimal approaches to achieve dietary changes. Furthermore, epidemiological associations regarding major dietary components, such as animal proteins, is not entirely consistently observed across studies that mostly relied on food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) or other traditional instruments to assess diet. The validity of using FFQs to assess diet may be influenced by factors such as recall accuracy and bias. Novel instruments that are not subject to measurement errors are needed to substantiate the link between foods and dietary patterns and the risk of developing CHD. In this regard, metabolomic profiling technique, is instrumental in finding novel molecules that can serve as highly-specific, objective biomarkers of food intake. The present proposal will use these dietary biomarkers in large cohorts to determine the relationships with CHD risk. Furthermore, we will develop strategies for implementation of personalized nutrition approaches to improve CHD risk factors. Results from the present proposal have the potential to impact on the delivery of future healthcare through the provision of evidence based preventive programs.
