Appendix 2: Glossary

acceptable macronutrient distribution range (AMDR) – In this tool kit, this term refers to the range of intake for a particular energy source that is associated with reduced risk of chronic disease while providing intakes of essential nutrients.

adequate intake (AI) – In this tool kit, this term is used to describe the value estimated when neither an average requirement or recommended dietary allowance are able to be set. It is the observed median intake of a nutrient by a group of healthy people with apparently adequate status of that nutrient. This term is used by the United States and Canada and the European Food Safety Authority.

average nutrient requirement (ANR) – In this tool kit, this refers to a term that was proposed by King and Garza (2007). It is a median value that is estimated from a distribution of requirements based on a specific criterion in healthy individuals.

average requirement (AR) – This term can be defined as the amount of a nutrient estimated to meet the nutrient requirement of 50 percent of the healthy individuals in a population subgroup to meet a specific criterion of adequacy.

Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) – In this tool kit, this term refers to the values produced jointly by the United States and Canada. The values under this umbrella term are the estimated average requirement (EAR), recommended dietary allowance (RDA), adequate intake (AI), and tolerable upper intake level (UL). The EAR and the RDA are not used in the tool kit narrative.

dietary reference value (DRV) – In this tool kit, this term refers to a series of estimates of energy and nutritional requirements of different groups of healthy people. These were set by the United Kingdom Committee on Medical Aspects of Food and Nutrition Policy (COMA) in 1991, and they include the estimated average requirement (EAR), reference nutrient intake (RNI), lower reference nutrient intake (LRNI), safe upper levels (SULs), and the adequate macronutrient distribution range (AMDR). The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) includes the AR, the UL, the AI, the lowest tolerable intake (LTI), and the RNI (EFSA, 2017).

estimated average requirement (EAR) – This term, used by the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, estimates the average requirement of energy or of a nutrient required to meet the physiologic nutrient needs of 50 percent of the population. It is similar in meaning to the European Food Safety Authority’s average requirement (AR).

individual nutrient level (INL) – This harmonized term was proposed by King and Garza (2007). It represents a value that is derived from the average nutrient requirement plus an identified percentile of a calculated mean. It is used for guiding individual intake.

lower reference nutrient intake (LRNI) – The amount of a nutrient that is enough for only a small number of individuals in a group who have low requirements for that

specific nutrient. A majority of the population will require more than this amount. This term is used by the United Kingdom.

nutrient intake value (NIV) – This harmonized term was proposed by King and Garza. (2007) and in this tool kit it refers to the set of values composed of the average nutrient requirement (ANR), individual nutrient level (INLx), and upper nutrient level (UNL).

nutrient reference value (NRV) – In this tool kit, this is used as a broad term to describe nutrient values that are calculated for a generally healthy population. Examples of NRVs are average requirements and tolerable upper intake levels.

population reference intake (PRI) – In this tool kit, this term refers to the amount of an individual nutrient that a majority of people in a population need for good health depending on their age and sex. This term is used by the European Food Safety Authority and it is considered to be similar to the United States and Canada’s recommended dietary allowance (RDA) and the United Kingdom’s reference nutrient intake (RNI).

recommended dietary allowance (RDA) – This is the average daily level of intake sufficient to meet the nutrient requirements of nearly all (97-98 percent) healthy people. This term is used by the United States and Canada.

recommended nutrient intake (RNI) – The level of daily intake for a nutrient that is sufficient to meet the requirements of 97-98 percent of the population.

safe intake – This is an amount of a nutrient deemed sufficient for everyone in a population subgroup, but it is below a level that would produce undesirable effects. This term is used by the United Kingdom.

tolerable upper intake level (UL) – In this tool kit, this term refers to the highest average daily nutrient intake that is likely to pose no risk of adverse health effects for almost all individuals in the general population. This term is used by the European Food Safety Authority, the United States, and Canada.

upper nutrient level (UNL) – This harmonized term was proposed by King et al. (2007). These values represent intakes that, if chronically consumed, will have a very high risk of causing adverse effect.