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Derio, 17 September 2026. Precision nutrition starts from a simple idea: people do not all respond to the same diet in the same way. Understanding the biological differences behind those responses has been a major focus of AZTI’s nutrition and health research in recent years.
Its new report, Omics technologies and precision nutrition, brings together scientific findings, technological tools and practical applications designed to support more personalised and effective approaches to nutrition.
For more than a decade, AZTI has been studying how biological information, diet and lifestyle data can be combined to better understand individual responses to food. Its work includes research carried out with hospitals and sports organisations, more than twenty scientific publications and the coordination of European projects.
One of the areas covered in the report is AZTI’s research into obesity in children and adults, carried out in collaboration with Cruces University Hospital and Biobizkaia.
These studies have identified differences in the fatty acid profile of red blood cell membranes that can reveal aspects of metabolic health not captured by body mass index alone.
This information can provide a fuller picture of an individual’s metabolic profile and help lay the groundwork for nutritional strategies that are better tailored to each person.
To obtain this level of detail, AZTI uses a range of omics technologies. These include lipidomics, which analyses fats; metabolomics, which studies small molecules involved in metabolic processes; and analysis of the gut microbiome.
Combined with clinical information, body measurements, diet and lifestyle data, these technologies can provide a much more complete picture of how each individual responds to food.
In sports nutrition, studies carried out by AZTI with professional footballers have identified changes in the fatty acid profile of red blood cell membranes over the course of a season.
The findings suggest that these biomarkers could help support nutritional monitoring and provide additional information for optimising sports performance.
In its research on healthy ageing, AZTI studies the relationship between diet, metabolism and the gut microbiota. The aim is to identify indicators that can help researchers better understand the changes that occur as people age and support the development of nutritional strategies adapted to their needs.
The report also covers work on nutrition in cancer care, where food and nutrition can play an important role in patients’ quality of life. Among other areas, AZTI is studying changes in taste and smell associated with certain treatments and how these can affect eating habits and food intake.
Despite addressing very different needs, the research has a common goal: to better understand individual responses to diet by combining biological, dietary and lifestyle information, and use that knowledge to move towards increasingly personalised nutritional recommendations.
AZTI is also working to turn research findings into tools that can be used in practice.
Lipiwell is a biomarker-based service built on years of research into the relationship between diet, metabolism and health. It analyses the fatty acid profile of red blood cell membranes alongside information on diet and lifestyle to provide a fuller picture of an individual’s metabolic health.
This information can help healthcare professionals tailor nutritional advice more closely to each person.
AZTI is also developing NutriHealth Corner, a platform that combines biomarkers, dietary information and data collected through biosensors to provide a fuller assessment of nutritional status and support more personalised follow-up over time.
By bringing together biological and lifestyle information, the platform is designed to help adapt nutritional strategies to each individual’s characteristics and needs.
At European level, AZTI coordinates CoDiet, a project involving 17 institutions from ten countries. The project aims to develop predictive models for diet-related non-communicable diseases using artificial intelligence and the analysis of biological, dietary and lifestyle data.
Together, these initiatives connect research into individual variability with the development and evaluation of tools that can support nutritional interventions tailored to specific needs.
Download AZTI INSIGHTS | NUTRITION & HEALTH: Omics technologies and precision nutrition