Functional Foods and Healthier Humans

Here’s a disturbing fact: For the first time in two centuries, the current generation of U.S. children may have shorter life expectancies than their parents. Nearly one billion people in the world are undernourished or malnourished, yet obesity is epidemic in the U.S. – leading to serious health issues and escalating costs.

The problem is two fold. On one hand, it’s about ensuring that we can grow enough food and deliver adequate nutrition into the stomachs of

those who need it around the globe. On the other, there is a critical need to understand more about how food is absorbed and utilized at the molecular level within the human body; not to mention the personal choices about what to eat – and how much.

IANR is assembling diverse faculty teams focused on research and education to:
• Produce even more nutritious foods through improved genetics.
• Analyze relationships between the food we eat, intestinal micriobiota and the impact on fat conversion.
• Improve our knowledge of the function and application of probiotics.
• Better understand human behavior regarding eating and exercise.

At IANR, the goal is to provide improved nourishment for the human body – as well as for our overall body of knowledge and understanding.