
Sigma Nutrition Radio
What Are Stable Isotopes? How Are Tracers Used in Nutrition Research? (Preview)
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25 Oct 2022 · 12 min
Nutrition basicsMetabolism & fasting
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Stable isotopes have been used as tracers in human nutritional studies for many years. But what are they? Why do we use 'tracers' in nutrition studies? And what are some practical examples? A chemical element can have different forms or 'isotopes.' These different isotopes have the same atomic number and position in the periodic table but have different atomic masses and physical properties. An isotope that is not radioactive is said to be 'stable'. In physiology and metabolism research, stable