Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic review

BackgroundCurrent diet assessment tools, such as food frequency questionnaires, may result in misclassification bias from measurement error and misreporting. These limitations can be mitigated by diet-related biomarkers in urine specimens, an emerging approach to characterize dietary intake.Objectiv...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mariah Kay Jackson, Bing Wang, Heather Rasmussen, Sathish Kumar Natarajan, Laura D. Bilek, Diane K. Ehlers, Laura Graeff-Armas, Christopher D’Angelo, Teresa Cochran, Kimberly Harp, Corrine Hanson
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-05-01
Series:Frontiers in Nutrition
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1596543/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850137413847875584
author Mariah Kay Jackson
Bing Wang
Heather Rasmussen
Sathish Kumar Natarajan
Sathish Kumar Natarajan
Laura D. Bilek
Diane K. Ehlers
Laura Graeff-Armas
Christopher D’Angelo
Teresa Cochran
Kimberly Harp
Corrine Hanson
author_facet Mariah Kay Jackson
Bing Wang
Heather Rasmussen
Sathish Kumar Natarajan
Sathish Kumar Natarajan
Laura D. Bilek
Diane K. Ehlers
Laura Graeff-Armas
Christopher D’Angelo
Teresa Cochran
Kimberly Harp
Corrine Hanson
author_sort Mariah Kay Jackson
collection DOAJ
description BackgroundCurrent diet assessment tools, such as food frequency questionnaires, may result in misclassification bias from measurement error and misreporting. These limitations can be mitigated by diet-related biomarkers in urine specimens, an emerging approach to characterize dietary intake.ObjectiveWe conducted a systematic review to identify urinary biomarkers with utility in accurately assessing dietary intake, including individual foods and food groups.MethodWe retrieved studies from 2000 to 2022 from databases including Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane, and PubMed. Data extraction from included articles was conducted by two independent reviewers for cross validation. Articles identifying urinary biomarkers in relation to food groups/items with adult populations were included and were evaluated for bias using the Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal.ResultsA total of 65 articles were included and categorized as biomarkers of fruit (n = 13), vegetables (n = 5), aromatics (n = 5), fruits and vegetables (n = 3), grains/fiber (n = 5), dairy (n = 3), soy (n = 10), coffee/cocoa/tea (n = 9), alcohol (n = 6), meat and proteins (n = 6), nuts/seeds (n = 3), and sugar and sweeteners (n = 4). Results expanded the context to which metabolites of foods were compared across similar and dissimilar food groupings. Plant-based foods were often represented by polyphenols, while others were distinguishable by innate food composition, such as sulfurous compounds in cruciferous vegetables or galactose derivatives in dairy.ConclusionCurrent evidence suggests urinary biomarkers may have utility in describing intake of broad food groups, such as citrus fruits, cruciferous vegetables, whole grains, and soy foods, but may lack the ability to clearly distinguish individual foods. These findings indicate the potential of urinary biomarkers to monitor changes in dietary patterns. The improvement of diet assessment methodology is a key step toward strengthening research data validity and accurately measuring outcomes in chronic disease management.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42022308255, Prospero CRD42022308255.
format Article
id doaj-art-a99d80b83a8a4b5187b18cb3e47a1fe4
institution OA Journals
issn 2296-861X
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Nutrition
spelling doaj-art-a99d80b83a8a4b5187b18cb3e47a1fe42025-08-20T02:30:50ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Nutrition2296-861X2025-05-011210.3389/fnut.2025.15965431596543Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic reviewMariah Kay Jackson0Bing Wang1Heather Rasmussen2Sathish Kumar Natarajan3Sathish Kumar Natarajan4Laura D. Bilek5Diane K. Ehlers6Laura Graeff-Armas7Christopher D’Angelo8Teresa Cochran9Kimberly Harp10Corrine Hanson11College of Allied Health Professions, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United StatesDepartment of Food Science and Technology, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, United StatesDepartment of Nutrition & Health Sciences, College of Education and Human Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, United StatesCollege of Allied Health Professions, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United StatesDepartment of Nutrition & Health Sciences, College of Education and Human Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, United StatesCollege of Allied Health Professions, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United StatesDepartment of Quantitative Health Sciences, Mayo Clinic-Arizona, Phoenix, AZ, United StatesDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medicine, Omaha, NE, United StatesDepartment of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medicine, Omaha, NE, United StatesDepartment of Health & Rehabilitation Sciences, College of Allied Health Professions, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Kearney, NE, United StatesEducation and Research Services, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United StatesCollege of Allied Health Professions, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United StatesBackgroundCurrent diet assessment tools, such as food frequency questionnaires, may result in misclassification bias from measurement error and misreporting. These limitations can be mitigated by diet-related biomarkers in urine specimens, an emerging approach to characterize dietary intake.ObjectiveWe conducted a systematic review to identify urinary biomarkers with utility in accurately assessing dietary intake, including individual foods and food groups.MethodWe retrieved studies from 2000 to 2022 from databases including Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane, and PubMed. Data extraction from included articles was conducted by two independent reviewers for cross validation. Articles identifying urinary biomarkers in relation to food groups/items with adult populations were included and were evaluated for bias using the Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal.ResultsA total of 65 articles were included and categorized as biomarkers of fruit (n = 13), vegetables (n = 5), aromatics (n = 5), fruits and vegetables (n = 3), grains/fiber (n = 5), dairy (n = 3), soy (n = 10), coffee/cocoa/tea (n = 9), alcohol (n = 6), meat and proteins (n = 6), nuts/seeds (n = 3), and sugar and sweeteners (n = 4). Results expanded the context to which metabolites of foods were compared across similar and dissimilar food groupings. Plant-based foods were often represented by polyphenols, while others were distinguishable by innate food composition, such as sulfurous compounds in cruciferous vegetables or galactose derivatives in dairy.ConclusionCurrent evidence suggests urinary biomarkers may have utility in describing intake of broad food groups, such as citrus fruits, cruciferous vegetables, whole grains, and soy foods, but may lack the ability to clearly distinguish individual foods. These findings indicate the potential of urinary biomarkers to monitor changes in dietary patterns. The improvement of diet assessment methodology is a key step toward strengthening research data validity and accurately measuring outcomes in chronic disease management.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42022308255, Prospero CRD42022308255.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1596543/fullurinary metabolitesdietary intakefood groupsdietary biomarkerspolyphenols
spellingShingle Mariah Kay Jackson
Bing Wang
Heather Rasmussen
Sathish Kumar Natarajan
Sathish Kumar Natarajan
Laura D. Bilek
Diane K. Ehlers
Laura Graeff-Armas
Christopher D’Angelo
Teresa Cochran
Kimberly Harp
Corrine Hanson
Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic review
Frontiers in Nutrition
urinary metabolites
dietary intake
food groups
dietary biomarkers
polyphenols
title Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic review
title_full Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic review
title_fullStr Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic review
title_full_unstemmed Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic review
title_short Urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake: a systematic review
title_sort urinary metabolites as biomarkers of dietary intake a systematic review
topic urinary metabolites
dietary intake
food groups
dietary biomarkers
polyphenols
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1596543/full
work_keys_str_mv AT mariahkayjackson urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT bingwang urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT heatherrasmussen urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT sathishkumarnatarajan urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT sathishkumarnatarajan urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT lauradbilek urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT dianekehlers urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT lauragraeffarmas urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT christopherdangelo urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT teresacochran urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT kimberlyharp urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview
AT corrinehanson urinarymetabolitesasbiomarkersofdietaryintakeasystematicreview