The mission of the German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke (DIfE) is to conduct experimental and clinical research in the field of nutrition and health, with the aim of understanding the molecular basis of nutrition-dependent diseases, and of developing new strategies for prevention, treatment, and nutritional recommendations.

Scientists at the DIfE pursue these scientific goals by interdisciplinary cooperation comprising a broad spectrum of experimental and epidemiological methods. A particular focus of the institute is research on the most important diseases at present, i.e., obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer, whose development may involve nutrition-dependent factors.