Let me be clear about the question I’m trying to answer: Which nutrients—and precisely how much of each nutrient—do I need to be healthy? Because the FDA is in charge of food labeling, they were my first stop. My immediate focus fell upon the DV (Daily Values) and RDIs (Recommended Daily Intakes), both of which have everything to do with the information presented on food labels.

Then I found this statement, attributed to Christine Lewis, director of the division of technical evaluation in the FDA’s Office of Food Labeling: “They’re not recommended intakes. They’re really just reference points to help people get some kind of perspective on what their overall daily dietary needs should be.”

Wow. Okay. This despite the fact that the R in both RDA and RDI stands for—guess what?—”Recommended.” So once I battle my way through the aforementioned DVs, DRIs. RDIs, RDAs, EARs, AIs, ULs, SONAs and what-have-you’s, I’ll know precisely…nothing. Good to know.

Check, please.

Grrr. But, again, I do have to start somewhere, so here goes. I try to keep in mind that this whole system of, I guess I should say suggested nutrient intake levels began during World War II, when the government was trying to figure out how little nutrition people could get away with and not drop dead or exhibit symptoms associated with diseases (rickets, scurvy, etc.) caused by nutrient deficiencies. Food availability was one of the factors considered when the first RDAs were created. The folks who came up with those recommendations apparently did so by adding 20% to the minimums.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t define health as the absence of visible disease. I also have more food available to me than anyone in the 1940s could have dreamed possible. And while it’s true that the government’s non-recommended recommendations have grown more sophisticated over time, even the government disclaims responsibility for recommending them. Perhaps this is why the latest incarnation—the DRI—is referred to as the Daily Reference Intake.

I also keep in mind that, at a 2007 Institute of Medicine workshop on DRIs, a number of presenters pointed out the fact that the RDIs are largely based on low-quality evidence, rather than on clinical trials.

Alrighty then. Here we go…