 J Am Diet Assoc. Author manuscript; available in PMC Nov 1,
2009. Published in final edited form as: PMCID: PMC2692306
Nutritional Genomics, Polyphenols, Diets, and Their Impact on
Dietetics   Nutritional genomics offers a way to optimize human
health and the quality of life. It is an attractive endeavor,
but one with substantial challenges. It encompasses almost all
known aspects of science, ranging from the genomes of humans,
plants and microorganisms, to the highest levels of food
science, analytical science, computing and statistics of large
systems, as well as human behavior. The underlying biochemistry
that is targeted by the principal issues in nutritional genomics
is described and entails genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics
and metabolomics. A major feature relevant to nutritional
genomics is the single nucleotide polymorphisms in genes that
interact with nutrients and other bioactive food components.
These genetic changes may lead to alterations in absorption,
metabolism and functional responses