Approaches to Setting Dietary Reference Values for Micronutrients, and Translation into Recommendations
Open accessAbstract
Dietary reference values (DRV) are estimates of the daily amounts of nutrients or food energy that meet the needs of healthy people. In the UK, three terms are used to express these estimates, assuming a normal distribution of requirements in a population. These are the estimated average requirement, the lower reference nutrient intake and the reference nutrient intake. DRV are for use in a variety of settings, including the assessment of adequacy and safety of nutrient or energy intake in a population group, in the design of meal provision in care settings, in food labelling and in considering food fortification strategies. DRV, and other expressions of nutrient requirements, assume a relationship between the intake of a nutrient and some criterion of adequacy, the outcome. Estimates of requirements are based on a diverse range of measures of adequacy, according to available evidence. The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) is the body responsible for reviewing and setting DRV for the UK population. The work of SACN is guided by a framework of evidence that relates food and nutrients to health. There have been calls for the harmonisation of approaches used in the setting of nutrient requirements, globally, and an increased transparency in the decision-making process. Some progress has been made in this regard, but there is a great deal of work to be done.
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Vitamin D is important in bone health and immune function.
“Vitamin D (30-50 ng/mL) Important in bone health and immune function.[25]”
From The Seven Methods for the Evaluation of Nutritional Status—ABCDEFG: Narrative Review (2026) · cites this paper as [25]
In “Considerations when setting dietary reference values” (page unavailable), the paper links vitamin D status to musculoskeletal health, supporting the bone-health part of the claim. It does not establish an immune-function benefit; it says evidence for nonmusculoskeletal outcomes was inadequate for setting dietary reference values. It also does not support the cited sentence’s 30–50 ng/mL range, instead identifying a population-protective threshold of 25 nmol/L. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredSerum iron and ferritin assess iron stores and risk of anemia.
“Serum iron (50-170 mcg/dL) and Ferritin (12-300 ng/mL in men, 12-150 ng/mL in women) They assess iron stores and risk of anemia.[25]”
From The Seven Methods for the Evaluation of Nutritional Status—ABCDEFG: Narrative Review (2026) · cites this paper as [25]
In “Considerations when setting dietary reference values” (page not available), the paper discusses plasma iron concentration in relation to iron intake and biomarkers of status or function. It does not identify ferritin, give the stated reference ranges, or say that serum iron and ferritin assess iron stores and anemia risk. (LLM, conf=0.72)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredFolate is indispensable in DNA synthesis and red blood cell formation.
“Folate (>3 ng/mL) Indispensable in DNA synthesis and red blood cell formation.[25]”
From The Seven Methods for the Evaluation of Nutritional Status—ABCDEFG: Narrative Review (2026) · cites this paper as [25]
The ‘Considerations when setting dietary reference values’ section discusses folate metabolism and its biomarkers, but does not address DNA synthesis or red blood cell formation. Searches for those functions and for the cited >3 ng/mL threshold found no supporting passage in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.72)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredZinc is related to the immune system and healing.
“Zinc (70-120 mcg/dL) Related to the immune system and healing.[25]”
From The Seven Methods for the Evaluation of Nutritional Status—ABCDEFG: Narrative Review (2026) · cites this paper as [25]
The copy’s References section lists a work titled “Zinc and skin: an update,” but does not state that zinc is related to immune function or healing. Searches for zinc, immune function, healing, and the 70–120 mcg/dL range found no passage addressing those claims; page numbers were not available. (LLM, conf=0.73)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredVitamin B12 deficiency is associated with megaloblastic anemia and neuropathies.
“Vitamin B12 (>200 pg/mL) Deficiency associated with megaloblastic anemia and neuropathies.[25]”
From The Seven Methods for the Evaluation of Nutritional Status—ABCDEFG: Narrative Review (2026) · cites this paper as [25]
The 'Criteria of adequacy' section mentions nerve conduction changes and clinical symptoms of micronutrient depletion generally, but does not link them to vitamin B12. The 'Considerations when setting dietary reference values' section discusses a B12 biomarker, not megaloblastic anemia or neuropathies; searches for those conditions found no supporting passage. No page numbers were provided in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.72)
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Cites
Clinical manifestations of ascorbic acid deficiency in man
Hodges, R. E., Hood, J., Canham, J. E., Sauberlich, H. E., & Baker, E. M. (1971) · The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition · doi:10.1093/ajcn/24.4.432 · Cited by 392 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
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- Beaton GH (1994) Criteria of an adequate diet. In Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease, 9th ed., pp. 1705-1725 [
- European Food Safety Authority (2010) Scientific opinion on principles of setting dietary reference values. EFSA J 8, 1458. https://efsa.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10. 2903/j.efsa.2010.1458 · DOI
- Golding PH (2014) Experimental folate deficiency in a human subject -a longitudinal study of biochemical and haematological responses as megaloblastic anaemia devel- ops. Springerplus 3, 442, 10.1186/2193-1801-3-442. · DOI
- Institute of Medicine (2008) IOM/FNB Workshop on Dietary Reference Intakes: The Development of DRIs. pp. 1994-2004; Lessons Learned and New Challenges. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. https://fnic.nal. usda.gov/sites/fnic/nal.usda.gov/filesuploads/Development_ DRIs_199402004_Lessons_Learned.pdf
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
The Seven Methods for the Evaluation of Nutritional Status—ABCDEFG: Narrative Review
Zambrano-Villacres, R., Arteaga-Pazmiño, C., Guevara Castillo, W. D., Herrera-Fontana, M. E., Domínguez Brito, L. D., Becerra Granados, L. M., Recoba-Obregón, P. E., Rodríguez-Veintimilla, D., Bressi, V., Andrade-Molina, D., et al. (2026) · Applied Sciences · doi:10.3390/app16020845 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
- Authors
- Powers, H. J.
- Affiliations
- University of Sheffield (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Powers, Hilary J.
- ORCID
- Powers, Hilary J.
- Venue
- Proceedings of the Nutrition Society
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2021-03-05
- Volume
- 80
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 365-372
- ISSN
- 0029-6651 (ISSN-L)
- 1475-2719
- OpenAlex
- W3133512808
- Cited by
- 7
- References
- 1
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 2
- FWCI
- 0.75
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Proceedings of The Nutrition Society (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Nutrition, Health, and Society Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Nutrition and Health Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Nutritional Studies and Diet
- Keywords
- dietary reference values, micronutrients, nutrient requirements, estimated average requirement, reference nutrient intake, nutritional adequacy, food fortification, food labeling, transparency in decision-making
- MeSH terms
- Energy Intake, Diet, Humans, Nutritional Requirements, Reference Values, Micronutrients
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