A new study suggests that community wastewater can provide a quick and surprisingly accurate picture of local diets. The team collected wastewater samples from 19 communities across North Carolina representing about 2.1 million residents. To check whether the method was reliable, the scientists compared wastewater results with DNA found in stool samples collected in Durham. The patterns closely matched, suggesting that wastewater can provide a realistic picture of what people are eating across an entire community. For more health information, please see recent studies about the connection between potatoes and high blood pressure, and results showing why turmeric is a health game-changer.