Modeling Nutrient Intakes for Current and Revised Daily Values of Children and Teens (4–18 Years) in the United States Population

Abstract Objectives In 2016, the United States (US) Food and Drug Administration updated the Daily Values (DVs) on the Nutrition Facts Label for packaged foods and beverages. Implementation of these changes is required by manufacturers in 2020–2021. This study modeled the possible impact of these changes on nutrient intake of children and teens from intrinsic and fortified food sources. Methods We used data from the 2009–2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) with the International Life Sciences Institute, North America Fortification Database, which identifies intrinsic, enriched, and fortified sources of nutrients in foods and beverages. In our sample of 5155 children and teens aged 4–18 yrs, we determined the usual intake (UI), % UI < the Estimated Average Requirement (% <EAR), and % ≥the Tolerable Upper Limit (% ≥ UL) based on the current DVs. We modeled estimated UI, % <EAR and % ≥ UL using the updated DVs for 10 micronutrients with the assumption that fortified food products will be reformatted to maintain current % DV claims. UI was based on two 24-hr recalls. Results Comparison of models of the current versus updated DVs overall, demonstrated increases in the UI for vitamins C, D and calcium; a decrease for vitamins A and B12; slight decreases for niacin, zinc and vitamin B6; and little change for thiamin and riboflavin. Conversely, the % <EAR increased for vitamins A, B6, B12 and zinc; slightly increased for thiamin, riboflavin and niacin; and decreased for calcium, vitamins C and D. The % ≥ UL decreased for zinc (20%), niacin (38%) and vitamin A (65%) and remained unchanged for other nutrients studied. Modeling of the % <EAR indicated that teens 14–18 yrs could be severely deficient in vitamins A, C and D. The updated DV helped mitigate this deficiency for vitamins C and D, but worsened it for vitamin A. Younger children (4–8 yrs) had the greatest impact in UI from the revised DV for vitamin C. Conclusions In 4–18 yr olds, our modeling predicts reductions in overall vitamin A intake, a recognized “shortfall nutrient”, with an especially large increase in % <EAR for teens 14–18 yrs. Teens at greatest risk are those currently dependent upon vitamin A fortified foods. Funding Sources This work was supported by the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) North America Fortification Committee. ILSI North America is a public, nonprofit science foundation.