Diet-Induced Obesity (DIO)

Research Diets, Inc. formulated the “original” high-fat diet for diet induced obesity (DIO) studies in 1996. Today, our high-fat diets are the research standard for DIO mice and rats worldwide. Below are the most widely published diets for these studies. All high-fat diets are not the same. We recommend that you use a matched, purified ingredient diet and not a grain-based (GB) diet. There are many, many differences between purified diets and GB diets and these variables make it difficult to interpret your data from a study in which one group was fed a purified ingredient high-fat and the other a low-fat GB diet. Differences between your groups could be due to the level of fat, but could also be due to differences in fiber type and level, (and subsequent effects on gut microbiota), source of carbohydrate, and the presence or absence of plant chemicals (such as phytoestrogens), just to name a few. We have made hundreds of modifications to these formulas to meet individual researcher needs. Please consult with one of our scientists before choosing a high-fat diet for your next study.

The following is a list of our in-stock purified diets:

All our in-stock diets can be irradiated. To order irradiated diets add the letter "i" to the end of the diet number. For example D12492i.

Product Literature 

Speak with Our BioDAQ Team

Doug Compton

BioDAQ Director and Scientist