Nutrition Guidelines: Tools for a Healthful Diet

Vocabulary-style flashcards covering key nutrition guidelines, DRIs, labels, and planning tools from the notes.

Adequacy

The foods you choose provide all the essential nutrients, fiber, and energy in amounts sufficient to support growth and maintain health.

Balance

a variety of foods, energy sources, and other nutrients.

Calorie Control

A diet that balances the calories you eat with the amount of calories your body uses.

Nutrient Density

The amount of vitamins and minerals relative to the calories the food provides.

Moderation

Not too much or too little of any nutrient or food.

Variety

Include a lot of different foods in your diet.

Dietary Guidelines for Americans

Cornerstone of federal nutrition policy and education; simple statements about food choices, safety, and physical activity to guide policy and programs.

Limit alcohol consumption

A key recommendation from the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines: limit alcohol intake.

Consume less than 10% of calories from added sugars

A key recommendation from the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines: limit added sugars to under 10% of daily calories.

Eat a variety of vegetables

A key recommendation from the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines: include diverse vegetables in the diet.

Make half of grains be whole grains

A key recommendation from the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines: choose whole grains for about half of grain servings.

Eat a variety of proteins

A key recommendation from the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines: include a variety of protein foods.

Canada’s Food Guide

Health Canada’s guide to healthy eating; uses the Rainbow to group foods into four categories: vegetables and fruits, grain products, milk and alternatives, and meat and alternatives.

Rainbow (Canada’s Food Guide)

A visual grouping that places foods into four groups: vegetables and fruits, grain products, milk and alternatives, and meat and alternatives.

MyPlate

A planning tool to determine daily calories, learn food group types and serving sizes, and plan meals and snacks.

Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs)

Current dietary standards that set recommended intake values for nutrients, guiding how much we should consume.

Estimated Average Requirement (EAR)

Nutrient intake level estimated to meet the needs of 50% of individuals in a life stage and gender group.

Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA)

Nutrient intake level sufficient to meet the needs of 97–98% of individuals in a life stage and gender group.

Adequate Intake (AI)

Based on expert estimates of nutrient intake by a defined healthy group when an RDA cannot be determined.

Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL)

Maximum daily nutrient intake likely to pose little or no risk of adverse health effects for almost all individuals in a group.

Estimated Energy Requirement (EER)

Intake predicted to maintain energy balance in a healthy adult of a defined age, gender, weight, height, and activity level.

Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDRs)

Ranges of macronutrient intakes to provide adequate nutrition while reducing chronic disease risk.

5 mandatory components of a food label

Statement of identity (food name); net weight; manufacturer’s name and address; list of ingredients (by descending weight); nutrition information.

Statement of identity

The name of the food as it is sold.

Net weight

The weight of the food contained in the package, excluding packaging.

Manufacturer name and address

The name and address of the firm responsible for the product.

Ingredient list (descending by weight)

Ingredients listed from most to least weight.

Nutrition information

The Nutrition Facts panel showing nutrient amounts per serving.

Nutrient Facts Panel

The section of the label that states the content of selected nutrients in a standard format.

Daily Values (DVs)

A single set of nutrient standards used on labels, based on a 2,000-calorie diet.

NLEA (Nutrition Labeling and Education Act)

Law regulating nutrition labeling and health-related claims on foods, administered by the FDA.

Nutrient Content Claims

Label statements about nutrient levels that are regulated to be meaningful and not misleading.

Health Claims

Claims linking dietary components to reduced risk of disease, approved by the FDA.

Structure/Function Claims

Claims about the effects of a product on body structure or function, must relate to the food’s nutritive value and may require a disclaimer.

Using Labels to Make Healthful Choices

The practice of interpreting label information to choose healthier foods.