Reference Daily Intake

About: Reference Daily Intake is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1564 publications have been published within this topic receiving 52794 citations.

The role of fruit drinks in daily diet of some Osijek inhabitants, Croatia.

Abstract: The aim of the study was to assess the role of fruit drinks in daily diet of Osijek inhabitants. A special questionnaire was administered to 199 patients visiting a family physician’s office during December 2003. The concentration of vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) was determined in 42 commercially available fruit drinks. Only 11% (22/199) of study subjects did not take fruit drinks. The mean concentration of vitamin C in all samples was 150.10±166.83 mg/L. The questionnaire revealed that 89% (177/199) of study subjects using fruit drinks were taking a mean of 0.4 L of fruit drink per day, yielding a mean of 60.04 mg of vitamin C, i.e. 100% of the recommended daily allowance of 60 mg. Study results indicated fruit drinks to be a significant source of vitamin C in daily diet, however, great variation in vitamin C intake according to socioeconomic status of study subjects and type of fruit drink should be noted.

Analysis of food supplements containing iodine: a survey of Italian market.

Abstract: Iodine is an essential nutrient for humans as a critical constituent of thyroid hormones; both iodine deficiency and excess have adverse consequences for the thyroid gland. The aims of this research were to compare claimed concentrations of iodine with measured ones in various iodine-supplemented products, estimate the amount of iodine ingested by Italian consumers who use these products, and compare the calculated intakes to the Recommended Daily Allowance and tolerable Upper Level. A convenience sample of 43 food supplements was analyzed for iodine concentration. Analytical values resembled those declared in the label in fewer than half of the examples; in four cases, the maximal daily dose was higher than the tolerable upper level for iodine of 600 μg/day. Labeling of iodine-rich food supplements appears to be unreliable and caution should be exercised in the consumption of food supplements rich in iodine as there is a risk of exceeding the established safe upper level of daily intake.

Maternal nutrition and breast feeding.

Abstract: This review summarizes current theories relating to maternal nutritional needs during human lactation and considers dietary situations where theory and experimental findings differ. Nutritional requirements for dietary energy during pregnancy and the dietary recommendations of various national and international expert committees are based essentially on the theoretical reasoning of Hytten and Chamberlain (1980). They have calculated that over pregnancy as a whole an additional 80000 kcal of energy is needed primarily to support 2 principal physiological processes: fat deposition (a net 36000 kcal) and an enhanced resting metabolic rate (RMR) (again a total net cost of about 36000 kcal). These 2 components have different time courses. This has led to some difference of opinion as to how energy increments should be accomodated in practical diets. A major factor which influenced the different decisions from the 2 expert committees--the Department of Health and Human Services and the WHO/FAO/UNU--was how much allowance could be made for a reduced activity once a pregnancy was under way. The conclusion is that at least during the 2nd and 3rd trimesters of pregnancy a mothers food energy intake may have to increase by about 10-15%; the proportion increase becomes even greater once a mother begins to lactate. The basis of the theoretical calculations is as follows: over the first 6 months of lactation the average mother produces 850 ml/day of milk. If this milk contains 70 kcal/100 ml and the efficacy of conversion of maternal dietary energy into milk energy is around 80% the average lactation will impose an additional energy need of about 750 kcal/day. A comparison of dietary theory and actual practice reveals major discrepancies. Table 2 presents a selection of intake data for dietary energy of people from a selection of industrialized nations; Table 3 provides corresponding information on the 3rd world nations. Intake values for lactation in the industrialized countries tend to be about 200 kcal/day greater than in pregnancy but few sets of values rise to the total Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for pregnancy of 2400-2500 kcal/day or 2650-2750 kcal/day in the case of lactation. This is particularly the case in studies conducted in the last 10 years. The discrepancy becomes more marked when data from the 3rd world is examined. A study of rural Gambia part of an international collaborative effort is reported. Improving the dietary status of rural Gambian women during pregnancy by the administration of a special dietary biscuit had a clear and significant effect on the time course of the RMR changes. Statistically mothers given the biscuit supplement increased their RMR on average by a net 13000 kcal over pregnancy as a whole. These results may indicate that the more generous the dietary allowance the more closely RMR changes resemble those derived theoretically.

Folate content of various Nigerian foods.

Abstract: Various raw and processed food items commonly consumed in three selected communities around Zaria, in northern Nigeria, have been examined for their folate contents using Lactobacillus casei. The folate levels of most of the foodstuffs were low. The estimated folate intake by individuals consuming these foodstuffs, calculated on a normal three-meals-a-day basis, was less than recommended daily intake levels.