NUTRIENT SOURCES IN THE AMERICAN DIET: QUANTITATIVE DATA FROM THE NHANES II SURVEY

TLDR

The study analyzed dietary records from 11,658 adults in NHANES II to quantify how 147 specific foods contribute to population intake of 10 key nutrients. The analysis identified the number of adults consuming each food, the percentage contribution of the top 50 foods to each nutrient, highlighted overlooked sources such as spaghetti dishes, and provides data useful for epidemiologists, planners, and educators.

Abstract

Dietary data from 11,658 adult respondents in the second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were used to provide quantitative information regarding the contribution of specific foods to the total population intake of the following 10 nutrients: vitamin A, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin C, iron, phosphorus, calcium, sodium, and potassium. Data are reported in the companion paper regarding the number of adults in the US population consuming each of 147 food items, representing all foods reported by these respondents. The percentage of total nutrient intake which each food provides is presented for the top 50 contributors of each of the nutrients listed above. Foods sometimes overlooked as important sources are found in some instances to be quantitatively important to population intake, such as spaghetti dishes as an independent source of carotenoids. These data should be useful to epidemiologists with a substantive interest in dietary etiologies or a methodological interest in the development of dietary assessment instruments. In addition, they may be useful to health care planners or nutrition educators.