RDA: The first edition of "Recommended Dietary Allowances" was published in 1943. It was a product of the then newly established (1940) Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council-national Academy of Sciences whose first assignment was to determine dietary standards for people of different ages. At the time, it was recognized that the recommendations were judgments, not final, based on the available scientific knowledge. Since, these recommendations have been updated and revised in 1945, 1948, 1953, 1963, 1968, 1974, 1980, and 1989.

Remember the RDA's are estimates, not standards, to determine nutrient needs to prevent deficiencies such as beriberi, scurvy, and pellagra. These estimates are NOT based on promoting optimal health! The RDA's do not allow for the special needs of inherited metabolic disorders, infections, and chronic diseases. In addition, the RDA's are NOT intended for use to evaluate an individual's nutritional status. RDA's are considered safe and adequate, but adequate for "who?' The most recent edition of Recommended Dietary Allowances was published in1989. The nutrient allowances are categorized by age, weight, height, sex, pregnancy, and lactation. Note: This is a major difference between the RDA and U.S.RDA.

U.S.RDA: These allowances were set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as nutritional standards for labeling purposes in 1973. The U.S. RDA's are based on the 1968 Recommended Dietary Allowances established by the Food and Nutrition Research Council. For practical purposes, the many categories of dietary allowances for males and females of different ages were condensed to as few as nutritionally possible for labeling. Generally, the highest values for the ages combined in a U.S. RDA were used. For example, the U.S. RDA's for adults and children over 4 years are representative, generally, of the dietary allowances recommended for a teenage boy. Should these be relied upon as "optimal" intake or useful information for individual assessment? Absolutely not! These numbers are for labeling purposes only! Unfortunately, these two guidelines, RDA vs. U.S.RDA, have caused a great deal of confusion for many people. Based on the above information, you can see, all of our labels list the % of the U.S.RDA. For individual assessment, one should always seek a professional assessment from a qualified nutritionist.