Researchers Develop Index to Evaluate Nutrient-Dense Foods

U.S. researchers have reportedly developed a nutrient-density classification system that offers “a positive, scientific approach to inform people about what to eat rather than what not to eat.” V.L. Fulgoni 3rd, et al., “Development and validation of the nutrient-rich foods index: a tool to measure nutritional quality of foods,” Journal of Nutrition, August 2009. The researchers apparently compared several formulas, or nutrient-rich food (NRF) indices, to the Healthy Eating Index (HEI) set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Committee, which called for “a scientifically valid definition of nutrient density to help with nutrition guidance.” This definition would help consumers choose nutrient-dense foods better suited to fulfill the HEI recommendations.

According to the study, the NRF index most closely aligned with HEI is based on 100 calories and weighed nine “nutrients to encourage” (calcium, fiber, iron, magnesium, potassium, protein, and vitamins A, C and E) against three “nutrients to limit” (added sugars, saturated fats and sodium). “These results confirmed that better diets do not necessarily come from just restricting certain nutrients; the addition of beneficial nutrients is critical for a higher diet quality,” stated the study authors, who concluded that more research is “still necessary to determine how best to present nutrient profiling to consumers in a way that will actually lead to selection of foods that improve the overall diet.” See FoodNavigator-USA.com, August 18, 2009.