Nutritional Biochemistry takes a scientific approach to nutrition. It covers not just "whats"--nutritional requirements--but why they are required for human health, by describing their function at the cellular and molecular level. Each case study either leads to a subsequent discovery or enables an understanding of the physiological mechanisms of action of various nutrition-related processes. The text is "picture-oriented" and the commentary is directed towards explaining graphs, figures, and tables.

Nutritional Biochemistry includes a discussion of relevant aspects of physiology, food chemistry, toxicology, pediatrics, and public health. Experimental techniques for nutritional science are emphasized, and primary data is included to help give students a feel for the nutrition literature. This "real-world" approach provides students with a realistic view of the basis for much of our understanding of nutritional biochemistry.