ALTHOUGH GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS HAVE EXPENDED VAST RESOURCES TO COMPILE DATA ON FOOD COMPOSITION, CONTAMINANTS IN WATER AND FOODS, AND CONSUMPTION, SUCH DATA ARE GENERALLY UNATTAINABLE OR INCOMPLETELY UTILIZED BY SCIENTISTS, REGULATORS, AND

ALTHOUGH GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE INSTITUTIONS HAVE EXPENDED VAST RESOURCES TO COMPILE DATA ON FOOD COMPOSITION, CONTAMINANTS IN WATER AND FOODS, AND CONSUMPTION, SUCH DATA ARE GENERALLY UNATTAINABLE OR INCOMPLETELY UTILIZED BY SCIENTISTS, REGULATORS, AND BUSINESSES NEEDING SOPHISTICATEDINSIGHT INTO THE NATURE AND CONSEQUENCES OF THE STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS AND CHEMICAL CONTAMINANTS IN OUR DIET. THE DIETARY CONSTITUTENT TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT SYSTEM (DCTAS) WILL PROVIDE EASILY OPERATED MICROCOMPUTER-BASED FOOD COMPONENT AND DIETARY CONSUMPTION ANALYSIS CAPABILITIES TO HEALTH PROFESSIONALS, RESEARCH SCIENTISTS, CORPORATE OFFICERS, AND REGULATORS. DCTAS CAN BE USED IN RESEARCH, DIETARY PLANNING, COMMERCIAL PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT, AND GOVERNMENT REGULATORY PROCESSES FOR THE PURPOSE OF TESTING HYPOTHESES, ASSESSING RISKS, AND ESTABLISHING PRIORITIES. IN THIS PROJECT, VALUABLE EXISTING GOVERNMENT AND PRIVATE DATABASES ON NUTRIENTS, CHEMICAL CONTAMINANTS, COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS, FOOD ADDITIVES, AND FOOD CONSUMPTION INFORMATION WILL BE REORGANIZED TO PERMIT INTEGRATION AND ANALYSIS OF THESE DATA. DCTAS ANALYSES WILL ADDRESS DIET DESIGN AND POPULATION EXPOSURE TO SELECTED NUTRIENTS AND CONTAMINANTS. DATA MANAGEMENT DESIGN WILL PROVIDE RISK ANALYSIS CAPABILITIES AND INFORMATION ACCESS APPLICABLE TO TOXICOLOGYEXPERIMENTATION, EPIDEMIOLOGIC SURVEY, FOOD TECHNOLOGY, CHEMICAL DESIGN DECISIONMAKING, AND REGULATORY PERSPECTIVES.DOCUMENTATION OF THE DCTAS DESIGN AND INSTRUCTIONAL AND MARKETING MATERIALS ARE INCLUDED IN THIS PROJECT. CONTINUOUS LIAISON THROUGHOUT THIS PHASE I PROJECT WITH THE EVENTUAL USERS OF DCTAS WILL MAXIMIZE ITS COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL FOR PHASE II.