The Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) is a system of
nutrition
Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient ...
recommendations from the
National Academy of Medicine
The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), formerly called the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Eng ...
(NAM) of the
National Academies (United States)
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (also known as NASEM or the National Academies) are the collective scientific national academy of the United States. The name is used interchangeably in two senses: (1) as an umbrell ...
.
It was introduced in 1997 in order to broaden the existing guidelines known as Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs, see below). The DRI values differ from those used in
nutrition labeling on food and
dietary supplement products in the U.S. and Canada, which uses
Reference Daily Intake
The Reference Daily Intake (RDI) used in nutrition labeling on food and dietary supplement products in the U.S. and Canada is the daily intake level of a nutrient that is considered to be sufficient to meet the requirements of 97–98% of healt ...
s (RDIs) and
Daily Value
The Reference Daily Intake (RDI) used in nutrition labeling on food and dietary supplement products in the U.S. and Canada is the daily intake level of a nutrient that is considered to be sufficient to meet the requirements of 97–98% of healthy ...
s (%DV) which were based on outdated RDAs from 1968 but were updated as of 2016.
Parameters
DRI provides several different types of reference values:
* Estimated Average Requirements (EAR), expected to satisfy the needs of 50% of the people in that age group based on a review of the scientific literature.
* Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA), the daily dietary intake level of a nutrient considered sufficient by the
Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine to meet the requirements of 97.5% of healthy individuals in each life-stage and sex group. The definition implies that the intake level would cause a harmful nutrient deficiency in just 2.5%. It is calculated based on the EAR and is usually approximately 20% higher than the EAR (See
Calculating the RDA).
* Adequate Intake (AI), where no RDA has been established, but the amount established is somewhat less firmly believed to be adequate for everyone in the demographic group.
* Tolerable upper intake levels (UL), to caution against excessive intake of nutrients (like
vitamin A
Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin and an essential nutrient for humans. It is a group of organic compounds that includes retinol, retinal (also known as retinaldehyde), retinoic acid, and several provitamin A carotenoids (most notably ...
and
selenium
Selenium is a chemical element with the symbol Se and atomic number 34. It is a nonmetal (more rarely considered a metalloid) with properties that are intermediate between the elements above and below in the periodic table, sulfur and tellurium, ...
) that can be harmful in large amounts. This is the highest level of daily nutrient consumption that is considered to be safe for, and cause no side effects in, 97.5% of healthy individuals in each life-stage and sex group. The definition implies that the intake level would cause a harmful nutrient excess in just 2.5%. The
European Food Safety Authority
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is the agency of the European Union (EU) that provides independent scientific advice and communicates on existing and emerging risks associated with the food chain. EFSA was established in February 2002, ...
(EFSA) has also established ULs which do not always agree with U.S. ULs. For example, adult zinc UL is 40 mg in U.S. and 25 mg in EFSA.
* Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDR), a range of intake specified as a percentage of total energy intake. Used for sources of energy, such as fats and carbohydrates.
DRIs are used by both the United States and Canada, and are intended for the general public and health professionals. Applications include:
* Composition of diets for schools, prisons, hospitals or nursing homes
* Industries developing new foods and dietary supplements
* Healthcare policy makers and public health officials
Other countries
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) refers to the collective set of information as
Dietary Reference Values
Dietary Reference Values (DRV) is the name of the nutritional requirements systems used by the United Kingdom Department of Health and the European Union's European Food Safety Authority.
In 1991, the United Kingdom Department of Health publis ...
, with Population Reference Intake (PRI) instead of RDA, and Average Requirement instead of EAR. AI and UL defined the same as in United States, although numerical values may differ.
Australia and New Zealand refer to the collective set of information as Nutrient Reference Values, with Recommended Dietary Intake (RDI) instead of RDA, but EAR, AI and UL defined the same as in the United States and Canada, although numerical values may differ.
History
The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) was developed during World War II by
Lydia J. Roberts,
Hazel Stiebeling, and
Helen S. Mitchell, all part of a committee established by the
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nati ...
in order to investigate issues of nutrition that might "affect national defense".
The committee was renamed the Food and Nutrition Board in 1941, after which they began to deliberate on a set of recommendations of a standard daily allowance for each type of nutrient. The standards would be used for nutrition recommendations for the armed forces, for civilians, and for overseas population who might need food relief. Roberts, Stiebeling, and Mitchell surveyed all available data, created a tentative set of allowances for "energy and eight nutrients", and submitted them to experts for review (Nestle, 35).
The final set of guidelines, called RDAs for Recommended Dietary Allowances, were accepted in 1941. The allowances were meant to provide superior nutrition for civilians and military personnel, so they included a "margin of safety". Because of food
rationing
Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one's allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular ...
during the war, the food guides created by government agencies to direct citizens' nutritional intake also took food availability into account.
The Food and Nutrition Board subsequently revised the RDAs every five to ten years. In the early 1950s,
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...
nutritionists made a new set of guidelines that also included the number of servings of each food group in order to make it easier for people to receive their RDAs of each nutrient.
The DRI was introduced in 1997 in order to broaden the existing system of RDAs. DRIs were published over the period 1998 to 2001. In 2011, revised DRIs were published for calcium and vitamin D.
None of the other DRIs have been revised since first published 1998 to 2001.
Current recommendations for United States and Canada
Highest EARs and RDA/AIs and lowest ULs for people ages nine years and older, except pregnant or lactating women. ULs for younger children may be lower than RDA/AIs for older people. Females need more iron than males and generally need more nutrients when pregnant or lactating.
Vitamins and choline
Minerals
NE: EARs have not yet been established or not yet evaluated; ND: ULs could not be determined, and it is recommended that intake from these nutrients be from food only, to prevent adverse effects.
It is also recommended that the following substances not be added to food or dietary supplements. Research has been conducted into adverse effects, but was not conclusive in many cases:
Macronutrients
RDA/AI is shown below for males and females aged 19–50 years.
Calculating the RDA
The equations used to calculate the RDA are as follows:
"If the
standard deviation (SD) of the EAR is available and the requirement for the nutrient is
symmetrically distributed, the RDA is set of two SDs above the EAR:
If data about variability in requirements are insufficient to calculate an SD, a
coefficient of variation (CV) for the EAR of 10 percent is assumed, unless available data indicate a greater variation in requirements. If 10 percent is assumed to be the CV, then twice that amount when added to the EAR is defined as equal to the RDA. The resulting equation for the RDA is then
This level of intake statistically represents 97.5 percent of the requirements of the population."
Standard of evidence
In September 2007, the Institute of Medicine held a workshop entitled "The Development of DRIs 1994–2004: Lessons Learned and New Challenges". At that meeting, several speakers stated that the current Dietary Recommended Intakes (DRI's) were largely based upon the very lowest rank in the
quality of evidence pyramid, that is, opinion, rather than the highest level – randomized controlled clinical trials. Speakers called for a higher standard of evidence to be utilized when making dietary recommendations. The only DRIs to have been revised since that meeting until 2011 are vitamin D and calcium.
Adherence
Percent of U.S. population ages 2+ meeting EAR or USDA healthy eating patterns in 2004
See also
*
Acceptable daily intake – upper limit on intake (United Kingdom)
*
Canada's Food Guide
''Canada's Food Guide'' (french: Guide alimentaire canadien) is a nutrition guide produced by Health Canada. In 2007, it was reported to be the second most requested Canadian government publication, behind the Income Tax Forms. The Health Canada ...
*
*
Mineral (nutrient)
In the context of nutrition, a mineral is a chemical element required as an essential nutrient by organisms to perform functions necessary for life. However, the four major structural elements in the human body by weight (oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, ...
*
Essential amino acid
An essential amino acid, or indispensable amino acid, is an amino acid that cannot be synthesized from scratch by the organism fast enough to supply its demand, and must therefore come from the diet. Of the 21 amino acids common to all life form ...
*
Essential fatty acid
Essential fatty acids, or EFAs, are fatty acids that humans and other animals must ingest because the body requires them for good health but cannot synthesize them.
Only two fatty acids are known to be essential for humans: alpha-linolenic ac ...
*
Essential nutrient
*
Food composition
*
Food pyramid (nutrition)
*
Healthy diet
*
Protein quality
Protein quality is the digestibility and quantity of essential amino acids for providing the proteins in correct ratios for human consumption. There are various methods that rank the quality of different types of protein, some of which are outdat ...
*
*
*
Therapeutic food#Composition
*
Hypervitaminosis – vitamin toxicity
Notes
References
{{reflist, 30em
External links
Dietary Reference Intakesat
United States National Agricultural Library
The United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) is one of the world's largest agricultural research libraries, and serves as a national library of the United States and as the library of the United States Department of Agriculture. Located ...
Current USA dietary guidelines 2020–2025
Nutrition
Vitamins