Precision nutrition uses health data, such as genetic composition (DNA), blood levels, and metabolism, and lifestyle factors, such as physical fitness, dietary habits, and environment, to create comprehensive targeted nutrition recommendations. We are entering an age where precision nutrition will be the norm rather than the exception. As the importance of nutrition rises equally with its complexity, new solutions that leverage data and recent advances in biomedical and nutrition science look to promote better health outcomes.
Precision nutrition works to understand how various processes in our bodies and environments interact and how we can use this information to optimize diets and make targeted dietary recommendations to improve health and wellbeing.
As advances in technology continue to pour forth, it becomes increasingly important to understand just how these technologies work and how they can be harnessed for health purposes.
Why one-size-fits-all doesn't work
Many health and wellness brands advocate a one-size-fits-all approach. For nutrient brands that use this approach, the doses of nutrients are fixed and the same for each customer - you either get a standard dose in your pack, or you do not. Other health advice for diets or nutritional intake also provides general recommendations to large populations rather than targeting an individual's specific needs.
The problem with one-size-fits-all is just that - it does not address specific needs or habits that are based on personalized data. Many studies have found the benefits of personalized nutrition to be plenty, including the development of healthier eating habits [1].
We are used to seeing personalized aspects of our lives every day – our diets, our exercise regimens, our sleeping preferences, our allergies, and even our work styles. Because everyone is so different in so many different aspects, one-size-fits-all regimens simply do not work effectively. We are all different in many obvious ways, but especially in our genetic codes and biological data that build up our differences from the inside out.
One-size-fits-all ignores not only the varying lifestyle factors that make us all different, but it also fails to acknowledge our unique genetic codes and biological needs that can change the way our bodies intake various nutrients. This is why precision nutrition is important - it takes your individual health data and provides personalized solutions rather than simply assuming that what works for one person will work for someone else.
Precision nutrition is the way forward
Precision nutrition changes how we approach individualized health and recognizes that everybody's nutrient recommendations are different and unique. It is a revolutionary way of studying nutrition science that recognizes individuality rather than trying to fit every person into one category. This method of research and analysis will shape the future of medicine and how we think about personalized health.
The future of nutrition
While nutrition coaching or fitness professionals can help improve behaviors and nutrition education by working with clients, genetic and biological factors must also be considered when it comes to optimizing nutrition. Precision nutrition's approach considers all factors and test results to help you achieve peak performance and reach your personal goals.
Why testing is important
Testing is a key part of developing targeted nutrition plans. It is the only way to obtain this information about your unique genetic code and biological needs. Lifestyle quizzes may help inform nutrition recommendations, but they do not account for the many factors specific to your body and DNA.
Testing has also become more widely-available and improved over the years, making it easier to obtain and take an at-home DNA or blood test that can be done quickly and effectively. This convenient method of collecting data makes precision nutrition a great option to promote better health outcomes by looking at your unique genetics and biology.
The benefits of precision nutrition
Precision nutrition allows for truly personalized dietary recommendations and plans tailored to an individual’s specific requirements. These will help to optimize the quality of life and encourage peak performance starting at the cellular level. Precision nutrition can take into account everyone’s different needs rather than using general population data to make recommendations that might not be useful.
Imagine if you had an individualized dietary plan that used your health data to ensure you had the best nutrient intakes and doses for your body. There would be no need to guess what you need based on lifestyle factors alone. Your data would play a key role in determining what an effective diet would look like for you and how many nutrients your body needs.
You also wouldn't have to try and find credible sources with information on nutrition or be uncertain about if you are receiving the best nutrients for your body. You wouldn't have to wonder what you're missing when you waste hours in the gym and eat right while failing to reach your health goals when the answer is simply an insufficient intake of a key nutrient.
Precision nutrition helps answer many questions about our diets and our bodies – how does what we eat affect us, what should we be eating to reach peak performance, how does food affect our health and lifespan, and how can we use diets as medicine? These questions can be answered with the right approach, and precision nutrition allows for complete customization not reflected in generic nutrient and diet recommendations.
Once an optimal recommendation is determined, precision decision allows for tracking health data and adjusting recommendations based on biological, health, lifestyle, or goal-related changes in the patient. This feedback loop provides health data that is important for the long-term success of any personalized nutrition platform.
The future of medicine
Precision nutrition uses the latest technologies across diagnostics, testing, artificial intelligence, and nutrition research to answer our questions about health and fitness and help each individual reach goals specific to his or her needs.
There are many diet-related chronic diseases, such as diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and cognitive decline. Our bodies each vary in how our genetics, immune systems, and neuropsychosocial factors influence what is best for our individualized intake of nutrients [2].
Precision nutrition's method can be a key factor in helping to prevent diseases and improve overall health. It will also allow us to better understand how diets influence chronic diseases and how we can focus on prevention of such diseases rather than just treatments.
With advances in software tools, technology, and AI rapidly increasing, precision nutrition can use such technologies and advances to create complex algorithms that generate personalized dietary recommendations and plans. Computational approaches and processes can be used to analyze data and interpret various key points into one comprehensive solution tailored to an individual’s precise nutrient requirements.
Precision nutrition is the future of how we think about health and how food can be a medicine in helping to prevent many diseases associated with diets and nutrition. The NIH, guided by the Nutrition Research Task Force, has recently released a plan to accelerate nutrition research in the next decade and better understand how human nutrition can improve public health [3].
Continuing education is important to understanding our biological needs and how precision nutrition can support them and help us learn more about health and fitness.
How Rootine uses precision nutrition
Rootine is built on the pillars of precision nutrition. Rootine recognizes that each person has extremely different requirements and needs a personalized nutrition plan to achieve optimal health and peak performance.
By using lifestyle data, DNA, and blood test results, Rootine creates a truly personalized and custom-tailored nutrition platform that delivers micronutrients in exactly the right doses that your body needs. Rootine is on the cutting edge of the most advanced technology to interpret, analyze, and match health data that can improve health and wellbeing.
Using your lifestyle and biological and health data, Rootine creates daily personalized micronutrient packs, in the form of microbeads, that deliver exactly the right amount of micronutrients dosed to the microgram. A team of clinicians and medical experts built Rootine based on years of research to give you the best supply of precision personalized micronutrients.
Getting started
Precision nutrition is the first step to understanding how your biology, lifestyle, and goals align to determine the best nutrient intake for you. As a Rootine member you get this personalized nutrition at the cellular level—without the guesswork.
To shop, visit rootine.co and subscribe to our newsletter to gain access to product updates and receive resources, links, and content about micronutrients and the latest in precision nutrition. You can also take a free online quiz to gain interesting health insight and learn more.
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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Always consult with your healthcare provider before starting any supplement program.
[1] Newscastle University. "Personalized nutrition is better than a 'one size fits all' approach in improving diets." ScienceDaily. Aug. 16, 2016.
[2] NIH Events. “Precision Nutrition: Research Gaps and Opportunities Workshop.” Jan. 11-12, 2021.
[3] NIDDK Media. “NIH releases strategic plan to accelerate nutrition research over next 10 years.” May 27, 2020.
