Research

Research in nutrition focuses on determining the state of nutrition and the links between nutrition and diseases. Nutrition is an applied science, and its research methods range from follow-up population studies to cell models.
Molecular nutrition research group
  • FibreMatch project utilises precision nutrition approach for increasing fibre intake and promoting health using gut microbiota-matched sustainable fibre sources. The main aim of the project is to match dietary fibre types to gut microbiome subtypes to optimise metabolic health and minimize digestive symptoms. .
  • The impact of plant-based protein sources on nutrient intakes, metabolomics, gut microbiome and biomarkers  of chronic diseases have been studied in several projects such as Leg4Life () and ScenoPort and SIMBA (). Multiple data are still available for continued research.
  • FINNUTRI project aims at establishing how a sustainable Finnish diet can be composed using as much as possible food sources that have been produced in Finland. The example diets are composed according to the new national nutrition recommendation and dietary intakes of nutrients are analysed taking nutrient bioavailability into account.  
LoCard: Harnessing the potential of customer loyalty card data

LoCard research group focuses on exploring consumers’ purchase behavior and anticipated health and environmental effects through vast amount of loyalty card data. This interdisciplinary study is carried out together with a team at the Tampere University.  
Family nu­tri­tion and well­being research group projects

Food Step – a sustainable health-promoting model for food services and early childhood education and care  

The aim of the Food Step project is to develop a sustainable operating model that will support children’s healthy diets and reduce the climate impacts of food provision in early childhood education and care.

  • : Ruoka-askel-työryhmä.

DAGIS - Increased Health and Wellbeing in Children, Families and Educational Settings

DAGIS (Increased Health and Wellbeing in Children, Families and Educational Settings) is a research project in Finnish preschool and school-aged children. The project aims are to reduce socioeconomic disparities in health among children and to create a health-promoting environment for children and families. The study is a joint project between Samfundet Folkhälsan, University of Helsinki and University of Eastern Finland. 

TITAN (EU Horizon) - Enabling transparency in food supply chains by implementing innovative solutions to boost health, sustainability, and food safety 

  • TITAN provides an extensive platform for the development of a wide range of innovations that aid transparency and address societal and planetary health to make the food system fair, healthy, and environmentally friendly. 

UKR-CHILD - Well-being of Ukrainian Children  

  • The study examines war-related stress, eating behaviour, food acculturation, and school meal participation among Ukrainian refugee schoolchildren in Finland. 

Breakfast (Aamiainen-study) – Inequality on Children's Plates. 

  • The interdisciplinary study combines qualitative research and documentary filmmaking to explore the economic inequalities affecting children’s diet in Finland. 

SUST-360 - Sustainable Diets for a Healthier Society and Environment: A Multidimensional Approach  

  • The SUST-360 consortium examines how following FNR2024-adhered diets influence health, economy, and environment across population groups compared to current diets, using extensive national data on Finnish dietary habits, health, purchasing, and environmental impacts. The project provides decision-makers with insights and tools to guide society towards sustainability while promoting health equity for all. 

Water-Food futures - Navigating the route to sustainable water-food futures 

  • The project aims to identify solutions that reduce water overuse and pollution while ensuring food security and the economic viability of food production. 

Links to projects

Pregnancy and health

investigates how pregnancy-related disorders, particularly pre-eclampsia affects long-term cardiometabolic health in women, their children and partners. Approaches from metabolomics, genetics, and lifestyle factors are integrated to elucidate the underlying mechanisms of disease progression and to identify opportunities for targeted prevention. 
Diet Quality and Adequacy research group

how plant-based diets, including vegetarian and vegan diets, affect nutrient intake and nutritional status in children and adults. Our research combines detailed dietary assessments with biomarker and metabolomics analyses to understand nutrient adequacy and metabolic profiles. We also examine the role of food fortification and supplementation practices in securing sufficient nutrient intake. 
VALOR - Values and Dependence of Society on Pollinators (EU Horizon)

VALOR aims to demonstrate a systems-based approach to understanding, measuring and responding to changes in the benefits that pollinators provide to society and the economy.  

Interdisciplinary approach is designed to capture the full chain of direct and indirect impacts of pollinator shifts, from flowers, to ecosystems, crops, farm businesses, societies, value chains and human health and well-being.  
Research and capacity building in Sub-Saharan Africa
  • InnoFoodAfrica explores the potential of climate-smart African crops in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda in developing new foods to vulnerable people such as infants, expecting or lactating mothers and urban adults under the risk of obesity.
  • FoodLeader aims to enhance the capacity of University of Helsinki, University of Nairobi, Kenya, and University of Lurio, Mozambique, in educating future experts who provide strategic leadership to enhance food safety and nutrition security. The research part of the project focuses on examining the contribution of local school feeding progammes on children's diet quality and safety.
  • Building Higher Education and Research Capacity to Address the Physical Activity and Nutrition Transition in Kenya (KENFIN-EDURA).

Links to projects

Capacity building, Ukraine

TFK - Nutrition Science and Food Technology Alliance: Building Sustainable Academic Pathways with Ukraine 

  • The project strengthens academic collaboration between the University of Helsinki and the State University of Trade and Economics in Ukraine, focusing on two disciplines: Human Nutrition and Food Technology. The project addresses needs for curriculum modernization, educational resilience, and long-term academic collaboration.  
More about the programme