Health Assessment Measurements Quality Assurance Program (HAMQAP)

Summary

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) established a Health Assessment Measurements Quality Assurance Program (HAMQAP), in part as a collaboration with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS), to support the measurement needs of the food, dietary supplement, and clinical communities in 2017. The HAMQAP conducted 7 exercises before concluding in 2021, and parts of the HAMQAP community will now be served through other programs such as ClinQAP, DSQAP, and FNSQAP.

Description

Credit: Niksa Blonder

Participants in the HAMQAP measured concentrations of nutritional and toxic elements, fat- and water-soluble vitamins, fatty acids, active and/or marker compounds, and contaminants in samples distributed by NIST.   Samples that represent human intake (e.g., foods, dietary supplements, tobacco) were paired with samples that represent human output (e.g., blood, serum, plasma, urine), and analytes were paired where possible to represent the full spectrum of health assessment.  Participant data was compiled at NIST and analyzed for accuracy, precision, and concordance within the community. Reports and certificates of completion were sent to participants.  The HAMQAP, which concluded in 2021, served a wide range of analytical testing communities, previously supported via historical QA programs, such as the Dietary Supplement Laboratory QAP, Micronutrients Measurement QAP, Fatty Acids in Human Serum and Plasma QAP, and Vitamin D Metabolites QAP. New and revitalized programs at NIST will continue to support and serve these measurement communities: ClinQAP, DSQAP, and FNSQAP

Major Accomplishments

The HAMQAP administered 7 interlaboratory comparison exercises for the measurement of nutritional and toxic elements, fat- and water-soluble vitamins, fatty acids, active and/or marker compounds, and contaminants. Specific sample/analyte combinations included in each exercise, as well as links to final reports, are summarized in the tables below.

Exercise 1

Study	Dietary Intake	Human Metabolism
Nutritional Elements	Iron in a multivitamin and cereal	Iron and transferrins in human serum
Toxic Elements	Arsenic in tobacco and kelp	Arsenic species in human urine
Water-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamin B12 in a multivitamin and cereal	Vitamin B12 in human serum
Fat-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamin D and 25(OH)D in bovine liver and cod liver oil	25OHD; 1,25(OH)2D; 24,25(OH)2D in human serum
Fatty Acids	10 fatty acids in a FAs solution, fish oil, and cod liver oil	10 fatty acids in a FAs solution and human plasma
Botanicals	Actein and  27-Deoxyactein in black cohosh matrices	None
Contaminants	Mycotoxins in corn materials	VOC Metabolites in human urine

Crossed out studies were offered but then cancelled due to low enrollment

Exercise 1 Final Report

Exercise 2

Study	Dietary Intake	Human Metabolism
Nutritional Elements	Iodine in a multivitamin and infant formula	Iodine, T3, T4, and TSH in human milk, urine, and serum
Toxic Elements	As, Cd, Pb, Hg, and Se in kudzu and eleuthero extracts	As, Cd, Pb, Hg, and Se in human blood
Water-Soluble Vitamins	Folates in meat homogenate and egg powder	Folates in human serum
Fat-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamins A & E in a multivitamin and infant formula	Vitamins A & E in human serum
Fatty Acids	Fatty acids in egg powder, spirulina, and palm oil powder	Fatty acids in human milk and serum
Natural Products	Eleutherosides inn eleuthero materials	CoQ10 in human serum
Contaminants	Acrylamide in coffee and peanut butter	None

Crossed out studies were offered but then cancelled due to low enrollment

Exercise 2 Final Report

Exercise 3

Study	Dietary Intake	Human Metabolism
Nutritional Elements	Iodine & selenium in table salt, cat food, and a protein drink	Iodine, selenium & thyroid hormones in human milk and serum
Toxic Elements	As, Cd, Pb, and Hg in black cohosh and hemp hearts	As, Cd, Pb, and Hg in human blood
Water-Soluble Vitamins	Folic acid & folates in a multivitamin and infant formula	Folates in human serum
Fat-Soluble Vitamins	Carotenoids in a multivitamin and saw palmetto extract	Carotenoids in human and animal serums
Botanicals	Isoflavones in soy and red clover materials	Equol in human urine
Natural Products	CoQ10 in supplements	CoQ10 in human and animal serums
Contaminants	Furans in coffee, baby food, and cereal	Furan metabolites in human urine
Inflammation Markers	None	Calprotectin and zonulin in human plasma

Crossed out studies were offered but then cancelled due to low enrollment

Exercise 3 Final Report

Exercise 4

Study	Dietary Intake	Human Metabolism
Nutritional Elements	Ca, Na, and K in a multivitamin and sauerkraut	Ca, Na, and K in human serum and animal blood
Toxic Elements	Cd & Pb in peanut butter and baking chocolate	Cd & Pb in animal blood
Water-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamin B12 in a multivitamin and infant formula	Vitamin B12 in human serum
Fat-Soluble Vitamins	Carotenoids in a multivitamin and saw palmetto extract	Vitamin K in human serum
Fatty Acids	Select Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids in fish oils	Select Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids in human serum
Botanicals	Phenolics and Naphthodianthrones in St. John’s Wort materials	None
Contaminants	Nitrate and nitrite in spinach and meat homogenate	Nitrate and nitrite in human urine

Crossed out studies were offered but then cancelled due to low enrollment

Exercise 4 Final Report

Exercise 5

Study	Dietary Intake	Human Metabolism
Nutritional Elements	Ca, Na, Fe, and K in rice and wheat flours	Ca, Na, Fe, and K in human serum
Toxic Elements	As species in shrimp materials	As species in human urine
Water-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, and B6 in a multivitamin and infant formula	Homocysteine and methylmalonic acid in human serum
Fat-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamin D in a multivitamin and infant formula	Vitamin D metabolites in human serum
Fatty Acids	Select omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in salmon and fish oil	Select omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in red blood cells
Botanicals	Catechins and xanthines in green tea materials	None
Natural Products	Caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline in green tea and yerba mate	None
Contaminants	Chlorate and perchlorate in infant formulas	Chlorate and perchlorate in human urine
Proximates	Fat, protein, carbohydrates, moisture, and calories in almond and hazelnut flours	None

Crossed out studies were offered but then cancelled due to low enrollment

Exercise 5 Final Report

Exercise 6

Study	Dietary Intake	Human Metabolism
Nutritional Elements	Chloride, Iodine, Chromium, molybdenum, and selenium in a multivitamin and infant formula	Chloride, Iodine, Chromium, molybdenum, and selenium in human serum and animal plasma
Toxic Elements	As, Cd, Pb, and Hg in rice flour and green tea	As, Cd, Pb, and Hg in animal blood and plasma
Water-Soluble Vitamins	Biotin and vitamin C in a multivitamin and infant formula	Biotin and vitamin C in human serum
Fat-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamins A & E in a multivitamin and infant formula	Vitamins A & E in human serum
Fatty Acids	Select omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in anchovies, sardines, and fish oil	Select omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in red blood cells
Botanicals	Anthocyanidins in cranberry, blueberry, and bilberry materials	None
Natural Products	Caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline in protein supplements	Caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline in human urine
Contaminants I	Chlorate and perchlorate in infant formulas	Chlorate and perchlorate in human urine
Contaminants II	Glyphosate and AMPA in oats	Glyphosate and AMPA in human urine
Proximates	Fat, protein, carbohydrates, moisture, and calories in rice flour and infant formula	None

Crossed out studies were offered but then cancelled due to low enrollment

Exercise 6 Final Report

Exercise 7

Study	Dietary Intake	Human Metabolism
Nutritional Elements	Ca, Mg, and Z in enhanced waters	Ca, Mg, and Z in enhanced waters in human and animal serums
Toxic Elements	As, Cd, Pb, and Hg in black cohosh and ashwagandha materials	As, Cd, Pb, and Hg in animal blood and plasma
Water-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamins B2 & B6 in a multivitamin and protein supplement	Vitamins B2 & B6 and homocysteine in human serum
Fat-Soluble Vitamins	Vitamin K in a multivitamin and kelp	Vitamin K in human serum
Botanicals	Gingerols in ginger containing materials	None
Natural Products	Caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline in protein supplements	None
Protein Source ID	Protein source (casein, pea, rice, soy, whey) in protein supplements	None

All studies were run, even with low enrollment in the human metabolism studies

Exercise 7 Final Report