From the mainframe to the internet: the evolution of Mooreʹs Extended Nutrient (MENu) database

Mooreʹs Extended Nutrient (MENu) database first had its beginnings at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center as The Extended Table of Nutrient Values (ETNV) in 1990, having originated in the early 1960s as one of the first computerized nutrient databases in the US. The ETNV received its prominence in the scientific community as the database of the long-term Bogalusa Heart Study. In 1993, its movement from a mainframe designed computerized nutrient database system to a PC-based system was initiated. During the early to late 1990s the MENu database supported two NIH-funded clinical applications, DELTA (Dietary Effects on Lipids and Thrombogenic Activity) and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension); it was used for menu design in these feeding trials. This database has undergone many changes over the years to meet the needs of researchers at Pennington and those needs identified by collaborators in federally funded projects. Over the past few years, Pennington has been involved in several different types of military nutrition research projects. One such project involved the need to access the MENu database components from remote locations via the internet. Several security issues needed to be dealt with since we were working with the Department of Defense. The system access was designed to deal with these issues and yet support use from any remote location with internet access. Dietitians and other military nutrition professionals were issued the client software along with individual logon IDs and passwords. They accessed the recipe entry and menu design applications, in addition to the entire nutrient composition files which includes the USDA Standard Reference and Survey Databases and other special user foods, including the special formulations used by the military. The tree design of the MENu database allows for the ease of location of menus and recipes by the military nutrition division personnel and facilitates the revision/entry of other items needed. Efforts are currently underway to address additional internet-based application development, including dietary assessment modules.