Apple and Cottage Cheese, Bowl

% DV refers to how much a single serving of an individually packaged food or supplement contributes nutritionally to your daily diet, based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet. Generally, having 5% DV or less of a nutrient per serving is considered low, and 20% DV or more of a nutrient per serving is considered high.

The suggested total fat consumption should be limited to 30% of total energy intake or less. The type of fat consumed should primarily be unsaturated fatty acids, with no more than 10% of total energy intake coming from saturated fatty acids (about 200 calories on a 2000-calorie diet) and no more than 1% of total energy intake coming from trans-fatty acids.

There are 13 essential vitamins required for the body to work properly, which are categorised into two categories: fat-soluble and water-soluble vitamins. Vitamins have a Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), provided by the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs), which vary by age and sex. The %DV indicates how much one serving contributes to the average recommended daily intake.

Minerals are micronutrients, of which 13 of them are essential to the human body. The Recommended Dietary Allowance includes Calcium (1,300 mg/d), Phosphorus (1,250 mg/d), Potassium (4,700 mg/d), Sodium (2,300 mg/d), Chloride (1,500 mg/d), Magnesium (420 mg/d), Iron (18 mg/d), Zinc (11 mg/d), Copper (0.9 mg/d), Selenium (55 mcg/d), Molybdenum (45 mcg/d), Manganese (2.3 mg/d) and Iodine (150 mcg/d).

Guidelines recommend a serving of protein with each meal and 1.2-1.6 g of protein per kg of body weight per day.