In its first meeting under the Duterte Administration, chaired by Secretary of Health and Chairperson Paulyn Ubial, the NNC Governing Board approved the adoption of the Philippine Dietary Reference Intakes for use in the Philippines.
The 2015 Philippine Dietary Reference Intake (2015 PDRI) is a set of dietary standards that include 1)Estimated average requirement (EAR), 2) Recommended energy intake/ recommended nutrient intake (REI/ RNI), 3) Adequte intake (AI), 4) Tolerable upper intake/ upper limit (UL), and 5) Acceptable macronutrient distribution range (AMDR), each having its own use.
A working group of nutrition experts spearheaded by FNRI, developed the set of standards based on the best available and recently updated information. Standards development involved a series of consultations with experts and practitioners.
PDRI 2015 updated the 2002 Recommended Energy and Nutrition Intake (RENI) with the following changes:
- The shift from single to multiple reference values
- Adjustment of reference weights for infants and children based on the World Health Organization Child Growth Standards (WHO-CGS) and Growth Reference, and those for adults based on the weight to achieve Body Mass Index (BMI) of 22 using the 2013 National Nutrition Survey (NNS) height data;
- Revision of age groupings to reflect established biological patterns and recent international feeding guidelines;
- Updating of reference values arising from new scientific evidence on human milk volume and on nutrient requirements;
- Inclusion of additional nutrients like polyunsaturated fatty acids and removal of manganese;
- Inclusion of Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges for protein, total fat, and carbohydrates for the reduction of chronic disease risk;
- Recommendation on maximum intake levels of sodium and free sugars for the reduction of risk of cardiovascular disease, obesity and dental caries; and
- Clarification on the appropriate Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI) values for different uses and applications.
The 2015 PDRI shall be used for planning and assessing diets for individuals and groups, developing food-based dietary guidelines, formulating standards and regulations on food fortification, nutrition labelling and claims, and food safety, designing and evaluating food and nutrition assistance programs, determining food bundles, setting food production targets, and other related uses that require consideration of nutrient and dietary intakes.
Click here for a full copy of the PDRI.
