FAQs

What is the Everyone EATS project?

Everyone Eats is a global citizen science study that collects stool samples to better understand what people are eating around the world. Instead of relying on food diaries or surveys, we use a DNA-based method called FoodSeq to reconstruct diet directly from the gut.

What is FoodSeq?

FoodSeq is a scientific technique that uses DNA metabarcoding to detect dietary DNA in stool samples. It can identify traces of plant and animal DNA, providing a detailed snapshot of what someone has eaten and how their diet interacts with the gut microbiome.

Why study diet this way?

What we eat affects everything from our metabolism and mood to our risk for chronic diseases. But, traditional methods of studying diet often rely on self-reported food intake, which can be incomplete or inaccurate. By analyzing the DNA in stool, we get a more objective, high-resolution picture of actual food consumption—and how it varies across cultures, regions, and health conditions.

Can our technique detect processed vs. whole foods?

While FoodSeq does not directly show food-processing levels, the plants we detect can be used to get an idea of someone’s dietary patterns. For instance, leafy green vegetables like spinach and lettuce do not commonly occur in processed foods, so these would hint at a whole-food diet. On the other hand, plants like corn, soybeans, and wheat are often refined into ingredients like high-fructose corn syrup and flour, which are common in ultra-processed foods, hinting at a more processed diet.

The co-occurrence of certain foods is also a helpful indicator in distinguishing whole foods from ultra-processed foods. For example, soybeans are in whole foods like edamame and tofu, as well as processed foods. If a sample contains high levels of soy plus corn, wheat, and even chocolate, we might suspect that the source is a processed, not whole, food.

How good is our technique at distinguishing similar foods from each other?

Certain foods are grouped together in our analyses because the sequencing technique examines only a small region of DNA—specifically, the trnL gene in plant chloroplasts and the 12SV5 gene in animal mitochondria. These regions provide useful genetic markers, but they don’t capture the full DNA sequence of the whole organism.

For example, dairy and beef both come from cows, so they share the same small piece of DNA that we analyze, making it impossible to distinguish between them. Similarly, some plants—like carrots and parsley—have very similar DNA in the region we sequence, meaning we can detect their presence but can’t always tell them apart. That’s why we list them together in your report.

It can also be helpful to remember that we’re looking at DNA, not composition of food (like macros including carbs, fat, protein).

What is dietary diversity?

Dietary diversity refers to the variety of different foods or food groups consumed over a given period. It is a key indicator of a well-balanced diet, as eating a wide range of foods helps ensure adequate intake of essential nutrients. Greater dietary diversity is associated with better overall health, improved nutrient status, and a lower risk of chronic diseases. It is often measured by counting the number of different food groups consumed daily or weekly, such as fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, dairy, and protein sources.