Chemical Complexity of Food and Implications for Therapeutics

Poor nutrition is a leading cause of illness and mortality, contributing to preventable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer. This review explores the vast chemical complexity of food, termed "Nutrition Dark Matter" (NDM), which comprises over 139,000 molecules with largely untapped therapeutic potential. These molecules interact with nearly half of the human proteome, modulating biological processes and offering opportunities for drug discovery and precision nutrition. The article highlights the limitations of current food databases, the pharmaceutical relevance of food derived compounds (e.g., aspirin, quinine), and the need for advanced AI tools and network medicine to decode their health impacts. Mapping NDM could revolutionize dietary science, complementing genomic research and addressing gaps in nutrition focused funding and institutional support.

Poor nutrition is a leading cause of illness and mortality, contributing to preventable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer. This review explores the vast chemical complexity of food, termed "Nutrition Dark Matter" (NDM), which comprises over 139,000 molecules with largely untapped therapeutic potential. These molecules interact with nearly half of the human proteome, modulating biological processes and offering opportunities for drug discovery and precision nutrition. The article highlights the limitations of current food databases, the pharmaceutical relevance of food derived compounds (e.g., aspirin, quinine), and the need for advanced AI tools and network medicine to decode their health impacts. Mapping NDM could revolutionize dietary science, complementing genomic research and addressing gaps in nutrition focused funding and institutional support.