Revised RDA for Indians

2010
(Report of the Expert Group of ICMR)

Dr. B. Sesikeran, MD, FAMS

Director
National Institute of Nutrition
(Indian Council Medical Research)
Hyderabad – 500 007

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15th November, 2010 – New Delhi

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• The amount of nutrient
considered adequate to
meet the needs of
practically all healthy
people.

• The RDA are based on

scientific knowledge.

• Prepared by the National

Nutrition Advisory
Committee (ICMR).

• The committee revise the

RDA every 10 years.

• Current RDA of Indians was

set up in 2010.

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 RDA - Basis
• Provides a guideline for nutrient intake, adequacy,
preventing deficiency or excess of a population.

• Basis: Nutrient intake is assumed to follow Gaussian

distribution, unless it is known to be otherwise
Gaussian distribution
EAR

RDA
SUL

UL
Def Av Toxicity

Nutrient Intake

Av : Mean
RDA : Mean + 2SD, 97.5%
In case of energy no safe allowances are made, only
average requirement is made.

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 Components required to derive RDA

 Reference body weight

 Intake: Nutrient intake is assumed to
follow Gaussian distribution, unless it is
known to be otherwise
 Bioavailability
 Healthy well being
 Based on the most recent scientific
evidence review

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 Reference body weight for deriving RDAs
Comparison of 95th Centile values of weight, height
by age and gender Rural India (16 States) and
WHO/MGRS median values

Males Females
Age
Weight Height (years) Weight Height
(kg) (cm) (kg) (cm)
WHO Mean
11.2 82.4 10.79 81.6
1+
(10.9) (82.3) (10.2) (80.7) 95%

13.0 90.7 89.8

2+ 12.6 (12.7)
(13.3) (91.9) (90.7)
14.8 99.1 98.2
3+ 14.4 (15.0)
(15.3) (99.9) (99.0)

Values in parenthesis -reference body weight considered

for fixing Indian RDAs for 1-3 y.

ICMR RDA (2010)6

 REFERENCE BODY WEIGHT

The definition for reference Indian adult man and

woman were modified with regard to age (20- 39y to

18-29y of age) with a normal BMI and a body weight

of 60kg and 55kg respectively.

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 Definition-Energy

 Is for a healthy, well nourished and active population.

 Specify energy requirements in terms of energy
output for productive work and leisure activity of
adults and tissue deposition in infants, children and
during pregnancy and milk secretion during
lactation.
 Need to specify an appropriate body weight and
quantum of physical activity “desirable”.
 Intake above the actual requirement-obesity
 Below-under nutrition.
 No safe allowances
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 RDA: Basis for requirements

ENERGY
Requirement = total energy expenditure (TEE) + energy deposition

TEE= - 99.4 + 88.6* kg, FAO/WHO/UNU (2004) DLW method

Energy deposition during growth = weight gain (g/d) x energy deposited

(kcal/d)
1-3 years
Age Body Wt Energy cost TEE Requirement
wt gain kcal/d kcal/d kcal/d (/kg/d)
kg kg/y @2kcal/g wt
gain
1-2 10.9 2.4 13.15 901 910 (85)
2-3 13.3 2.0 10.96 1106 1120 (85)

* Ref. equitation on Table 48

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 ENERGY
 A reduction of 4-8 % of energy (100kcal, 145 for moderate
and 310 kcal for heavy work per day) has been
recommended on account of a lower physical activity
level in men. In women the requirement remains similar
on account of a higher reference body weight.
 Current estimate of energy requirement for infants is
lower by 11- 20% than the 1988 estimate.
 Committee considered the requirement for children at
different physical activity levels at different ages.
 13-17 years there is an increase in requirements based
on a higher physical activity level of Indian children of
that age group.

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BMR of Indians is about 5% lower
compared to the BMR of developed
countries (Shetty et al, 1986)

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 RDA: Basis for requirements

PROTEIN
Safe level of protein intake= Maintenance requirements(from N balance
studies) + growth (equation adapted from FAO/WHO 2007)+ 2 SD.

g protein/kg/day
Safe level Indian
Age Maintenance Growth total Safe level (2SD)
diet*
1 0.66 0.46 1.12 1.31 1.69
2 0.66 0.29 0.95 1.14 1.47

* Cereal-pulse-milk diet having PDCAAS of 77.4%

PDCAAS= protein digestibility corrected amino acid score =protein digestibility x AAS

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 PROTEIN

 Given that surveys such as the NFHS and NNMB have

reported pre-pregnancy weight of 47 kg, and GWG of
only 8 kg, it is worth recording that the additional high
quality protein requirement in such a pregnant woman
gaining 8 kg during pregnancy, is 0.4, 5.5 and 18.2
g/day.

 It is important that the higher intake of protein

recommended during pregnancy should come from a
normal, varied diet, and not from commercial high-
protein supplements.
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 Extra allowances of nutrients
during pregnancy
Group Particulars Net energy Protein Visible Ca Iron Zn
Kcal/d g/d Fat mg/d mg/d mg/d
g/d

Moderate work 2230 55.0 25 600 21 10

Woman Pregnant +350 +23 30 1200 35 12
55 Kg Lactation 0-6 m +600 +19 30
1200 25
6-12 m +520 +13 30

Vit. A Thia Ribo- Niacin Pyri- Ascor-bic Folic Vit.B1

mg/d mine flavin equivale doxine Acid acid 2
mg/d mg/d nt mg/d mg/d mg/d mg/d
Reti- b-caro-
mg/d
nol tene
600 4800 1.1 1.3 14 2.0 40 200 1.0
800 6400 +0.2 +0.3 +2 2.5 60 500 1.2
+0.3 +0.4 +4 2.5
900 7600 80 300 1.5
+0.2 +0.3 +3 2.5

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 FAT
Minimum total fat intakes for adults:
 15%E to ensure adequate consumption of total energy,
essential fatty acids and fat soluble vitamins for most
individuals.
 20% E for women of reproductive age and adults with
BMI <18.5, especially in developing countries in which
dietary fat may be important to achieve adequate energy
intake in malnourished populations.
Maximum
 Total fat intakes for adults: 30-35%E for most individuals.
 Minimal intakes of visible fat in Indian adults range
between 20-40 g/p/day
To ensure optimal fat quality, the use of correct combination of
vegetable oils is recommended.
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Fiber:
40 g/ 2000 kcal

Minerals:
Minerals like zinc, selenium and iodine has been included as
separate chapters in the new document.

Calcium and Phosphorous:

 Current level of calcium consumption is reported to be
providing less than 400 mg Ca/d/Cu. The present
Committee, in view of the evidences, made upward
revision of calcium requirements for adults (600
mg/d).

 During pregnancy and lactation the requirement is further

enhanced to 1200 mg.

 Elemental Ca:P ratio of 1:1 is maintained.

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 Recent studies: The mean fractional absorption in iron-
deficient subjects was 17.5% and in normal women 7.3%

 These values are greater than absorption values (5%)

used earlier for calculating iron RDA of for adult women.

 Considering the fact that iron absorption is inversely

related to body iron stores and that Indians have reduced
iron stores compared to their peers in developed
countries, a realistic estimate of iron absorption would be
5% for adult male and 8% for adult female.

 These figures are in agreement with the

recommendations of WHO/FAO, lists three bio-availability
levels of 5, 10, and 15%.

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IRON-Basis

 International recommendations are 2-3 times lower

than the Indian RDA.

 Higher bioavailability of iron attributable to increased

ascorbic acid content and heme iron consumption.

 This magnitude of difference in RDA in itself is cause

for concern as physiological requirements for the
different age/sex categories do not vary to this extent
across populations.

 This implies that enhancing bioavailability rather than

density or content is of paramount importance for
addressing iron requirement for Indians.
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Magnesium:
Recommended 340 mg of dietary Mg

Zinc:
For adult man and NPNL woman for zinc is set at 12 and 10 mg/day
respectively recommendations for all physiological groups for zinc has been
added.

Selenium:
40 µg/day

Iodine:
150µg/day is retained

Iron:
iron has been reduced significantly among all physiological groups. To
achieve this, the committee recommended that the density of ascorbic acid
should be atleast 20mg/ 1000 kcal.
Absorption earlier 2 - 5%, Now 5 - 8%

Sodium & Potassium:

A safe intake of 2500 mg/day which amounts to 5g/day of salt, desirable
sodium : potassium ratio in the diet was fixed at 1:1 (in mmol).
1 g Nacl contain 39% Na++
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WATER SOLUBLE VITAMINS:

Folate:
• Allowance of folic acid is given in terms of dietary folate
rather than free folic acid.
• Committee retains the 75 ug physiological requirement of
folic acid which can be obtained from 200ug of dietary folate
per day.

Vitamin B12:
The present ICMR Committee retains the earlier recommendation of
1µg/day.

Ascorbic acid (Vitamin C):

Decided to retain the earlier recommendations of RDA for ascorbic
acid for all age groups except for pregnancy where an additional
20mg/day is recommended for meeting extra needs of foetal
growth.
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FAT SOLUBLE VITAMINS:

Vitamin A:
• The present Committee modified the extent of conversion
efficiency of 1:4 to 1:8.
• Upward revision of retinol to 800 µg is recommended during
pregnancy.
• Committee recommends that a minimum of 50% RE be drawn
from animal sources.

Vitamin D:
• Committee retains the earlier recommendations on vitamin D
considering outdoor physical activity as a means of achieving
adequate vitamin D status,

• Under situations of minimal exposure to sunlight, a specific

recommendation of a daily supplement of 400 IU (10 µg) is retained.
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FAT SOLUBLE VITAMINS:

Vitamin E:
• Requirement of alpha tocopherol suggested is 0.8 mg/ g of
dietary essential fatty acids. This roughly works out to
8-10 mg tocopherol /d, depending on the edible oil used.

• 55 μg of vitamin K /d for adults

Antioxidants:
Recommended 400g/day of fruits and vegetables to.

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 Body Weight (Kg) Energy (Kcal/Day) Proteins (g/day)
GROUP CATEGORY
Revised Old Revised Old Revised Old
Sedentary 2320 2425
MAN Moderate 60 60 2730 2875 60 60
Heavy 3490 3800
Sedentary 1900 1875
Moderate 2230 2225 55 50
Heavy 2850 2925
WOMAN 55 50
Pregnant +350 +300 78 65
Lact. <6 mths +600 +550 74 75
Lact. 6-12 mths +520 +400 68 68
0 – 6 mths 5.4 - 92/kg 108/kg 1.16/kg 2.05/kg
INFANTS
6 – 12 mths 8.4 8.6 80/kg 98/kg 1.69/kg 1.65/kg
1 - 3 yrs 12.9 12.2 1060 1240 16.7 22
CHILDREN 4 - 6 yrs 18.0 19.0 1350 1690 20.1 30
7 - 9 yrs 25.1 26.9 1690 1950 29.5 41
BOYS 10 - 12 yrs 34.3 35.4 2190 2190 39.9 54
GIRLS 10 - 12 yrs 35.0 31.5 2010 1970 40.4 57
BOYS 13 - 15 yrs 47.6 47.8 2750 2450 54.3 70
GIRLS 13 - 15 yrs 46.6 46.7 2330 2060 51.9 65
BOYS 16 - 17 yrs 55.4 57.1 3020 2640 61.5 78
GIRLS 16 - 17 yrs 52.1 49.9 2440 2060 55.5 63
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 Visible Fat (g/day) Calcium (mgl/Day) Iron (mg/day)
GROUP CATEGORY
Revised Old Revised Old Revised Old
Sedentary 25
MAN Moderate 30 20 600 400 17 28
Heavy 40
Sedentary 20
Moderate 25 20 600 400 21 30
Heavy 30
WOMAN
Pregnant 30 30 1200 1000 35 38
Lact. <6 mths 30
45 1200 1000 21 30
Lact. 6-12 mths 30
0 – 6 mths - - 46 µg/kg -
INFANTS 500 500
6 – 12 mths 19 - 5 -
1 - 3 yrs 27 9 12
CHILDREN 4 - 6 yrs 25 25 600 400 13 18
7 - 9 yrs 30 16 26
BOYS 10 - 12 yrs 35 21 34
22 800 600
GIRLS 10 - 12 yrs 35 27 19
BOYS 13 - 15 yrs 45 32 41
22 800 600
GIRLS 13 - 15 yrs 40 27 28
BOYS 16 - 17 yrs 50 28 50
22 800 500
GIRLS 16 - 17 yrs 35 26 30
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 Retinol (µg/day) Β Carotene (µg/day) Thiamin (mg/day)
GROUP CATEGORY
Revised Old Revised Old Revised Old
Sedentary 1.2 1.2
MAN Moderate 600 600 4800 2400 1.4 1.4
Heavy 1.7 1.6
Sedentary 1.0 0.9
Moderate 600 600 4800 2400 1.1 1.1
Heavy 1.4 1.2
WOMAN
Pregnant 800 600 6400 2400 +0.2 +0.2
Lact. <6 mths +0.3 +0.3
950 950 7600 3800
Lact. 6-12 mths +0.2 +0.2
0 – 6 mths - - 0.2 55 µg/kg
INFANTS 350 350
6 – 12 mths 2800 1200 0.3 50 µg/kg
1 - 3 yrs 0.5 0.6
400 400 3200 1600
CHILDREN 4 - 6 yrs 0.7 0.9
7 - 9 yrs 600 600 4800 2400 0.8 1.0
BOYS 10 - 12 yrs 1.1 1.1
GIRLS 10 - 12 yrs 1.0 1.0
BOYS 13 - 15 yrs 1.4 1.2
600 600 4800 2400
GIRLS 13 - 15 yrs 1.2 1.0
BOYS 16 - 17 yrs 1.5 1.3
GIRLS 16 - 17 yrs 1.0 1.0
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 Riboflavin (mg/day) Niacin Eq. (mg/day) Vit. B6 (mg/day)
GROUP CATEGORY
Revised Old Revised Old Revised Old
Sedentary 1.4 1.4 16 16
MAN Moderate 1.6 1.6 18 18 2.0 2.0
Heavy 2.1 1.9 21 21
Sedentary 1.1 1.1 12 12
Moderate 1.3 1.3 14 14 2.0 2.0
WOMAN Heavy 1.7 1.5 16 16
Pregnant +0.3 +0.2 +2 +2
Lact. <6 mths +0.4 +0.3 +4 +4 2.5 2.5
Lact. 6-12 mths +0.3 +0.2 +3 +3
0 – 6 mths 0.3 65 µg/kg 710 µg/kg 710 µg/kg 0.1 0.1
INFANTS
6 – 12 mths 0.4 60 µg/kg 650 µg/kg 650 µg/kg 0.4 0.4
1 - 3 yrs 0.6 0.7 8 8
0.9 0.9
CHILDREN 4 - 6 yrs 0.8 1.0 11 11
7 - 9 yrs 1.0 1.2 13 13 1.6 1.6
BOYS 10 - 12 yrs 1.3 1.3 15 15
1.6 1.6
GIRLS 10 - 12 yrs 1.2 1.2 13 13
BOYS 13 - 15 yrs 1.6 1.5 16 16
GIRLS 13 - 15 yrs 1.4 1.2 14 14
2.0 2.0
BOYS 16 - 17 yrs 1.8 1.6 17 17
GIRLS 16 - 17 yrs 1.2 1.2 14 14
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 Vit C (mg/day) Dietary Folate Vit. B12 (µg/Day)
Category (µg/day)
GROUP
Revised Old Revised Old (FF) Revised Old
Sedentary
MAN Moderate 40 40 200 100 1 1
Heavy
Sedentary
Moderate 40 40 200 100 1 1
Heavy
WOMAN
Pregnant 60 40 500 400 1.2 1
Lact. <6 mths
80 80 300 150 1.5 1.5
Lact. 6-12 mths
0 – 6 mths
INFANTS 25 25 25 25 0.2 0.2
6 – 12 mths
1 - 3 yrs 80 30
CHILDREN 4 - 6 yrs 40 40 100 40 0.2 – 1.0 0.2 – 1.0
7 - 9 yrs 120 60
BOYS 10 - 12 yrs
40 40 140 70 0.2 – 1.0 0.2 – 1.0
GIRLS 10 - 12 yrs
BOYS 13 - 15 yrs
40 40 150 100 0.2 – 1.0 0.2 – 1.0
GIRLS 13 - 15 yrs
BOYS 16 - 17 yrs
40 40 200 100 0.2 – 1.0 0.2 – 1.0
GIRLS 16 - 17 yrs
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 GROUP CATEGORY Zinc (mg/Day) Magnesium (mg/Day)
Sedentary
MAN Moderate 12 340
Heavy
Sedentary
Moderate 10 310
Heavy
WOMAN
Pregnant
Lact. <6 mths 12 310
Lact. 6-12 mths
0 – 6 mths - 30
INFANTS
6 – 12 mths - 45
1 - 3 yrs 5 50
CHILDREN 4 - 6 yrs 7 70
7 - 9 yrs 8 100
BOYS 10 - 12 yrs 9 120
GIRLS 10 - 12 yrs 9 160
BOYS 13 - 15 yrs 11 165
GIRLS 13 - 15 yrs 11 210
BOYS 16 - 17 yrs 12 195
GIRLS 16 - 17 yrs 12 235
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