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The D-A-CH reference value (D-A-CH arises from the initial letters of the common country identification for the countries Germany (D), Austria (A) and Switzerland (CH)) for folate equivalents had been set at 400 µg/d for adults in the year 2000. By that time, the prevention of cardiovascular diseases through reduction of homocysteine was considered an important target of the reference value. Since that time a number of research papers revealed that in spite of an inverse association between folate-rich diet and chronic diseases, a preventive effect of folic acid intake on cardiovascular events was not supported by randomized controlled trials, and the reduction of plasma homocysteine levels to around 10-12 µmol/l did not reduce the risk for thromboembolic and cardiovascular diseases in persons already affected by these diseases. These results together with the observation that folate intakes below 400 µg/d result in a sufficient folate status justified a review of the current literature and-- consequently--a reduction of the reference value to 300 µg/d for adults. This reference value is expressed as dietary folate equivalents that take into account the difference in bioavailability between folic acid and all types of folates in food. The recommendation to take a daily supplement of 400 µg of synthetic folic acid for women who intend to get pregnant and until the end of the first trimester of pregnancy is maintained. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2014) 68, 719-723; doi:10.1038/ejcn.2014.45; published online 2 April 2014, Recommendations for the intake of folate equivalents show a certain variance over time and over regions. In 2000, the D-A-CH societies recommended a daily intake of 400 µg/d for adults. [...]

Introduction: Adequate nutrition is one of the pillars of public health. Before developing and implementing effective intervention programmes to improve nutrition at the population level, it is important to know the nutritional situation of the target group. Assessment of energy and nutrient intake: The estimation of nutrient intake from food consumption requires reliable data on food composition. These data are also the fundamentals of food-based dietary guidelines for healthy nutrition, containing the necessary information on food sources for different nutrients. Furthermore, food composition tables can provide information on chemical forms of nutrients and the presence and amounts of interacting components, and thus provide information on their bioavailability. For some nutrients such as vitamin A, vitamin E and niacin, the concept of equivalence has been introduced to account for differences in the availability and biological activity of different chemical forms. Non-nutritive food components: Although most food composition tables focus on energy, macro- and micronutrients, interest in non-nutritive components is increasing. Considering the beneficial effects of biologically active secondary plant cell compounds such as polyphenols and carotenoids, more data on these are needed. On the other hand, there are a number of naturally occurring or 'man-made' non-nutritive substances with negative effects, and to control exposure, the main dietary sources must be known. Another aspect is contaminants, which could have detrimental effects on consumers' health. Among these are agrochemicals, industrial pollutants reaching the food chain and substances formed during food preparation. A valid risk assessment requires data on exposure, and thus on the contents of contaminants in foods. However, these data are highly variable and may significantly differ even within narrowly confined regions. Current food composition databases are far from complete: The fact that composition tables generally do not provide information about the origin of substances found in food can also influence their usability. For example, the German Nutrient Data base does not discriminate between naturally occurring and added sucrose impeding the estimation of added sucrose intake that should be limited. Points of focus: Considering the increasing number of persons relying on community nutrition and catering, healthy menu lines can improve the consumers' diets and contribute to nutrient supply. The development and implementation of appropriate guidelines also need food composition databases (FCBs) to compose meals. The ever-increasing number of new food preparations and manufactured products has resulted in a need for procedures for regularly updated data. Moreover, there is a lack of data particularly for essential trace elements such as copper, chromium or molybdenum and also vitamin K, as well as the already mentioned non-nutritive components. Limited comparability between countries is another issue. Regional differences arise especially from the use of local varieties, different soil quality or meteorological aspects. This variability is further increased with composite meals because of variation in recipes. Conclusion: Information about food composition is necessary for the assessment of diet quality and the development and application of food-based dietary guidelines, providing a useful tool for the field of public health nutrition. In this regard, more attention should be paid to the preparation, extension and maintenance of FCBs. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2010) 64, S4-S7; doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2010.202 Keywords: food composition; databases; nutrition; public health; non-nutritive compounds, Introduction: a brief history of food composition databases Food composition databases (FCDBs) are not a recent attainment. With the emergence of chemistry, interest in the components of food also arose [...]

Byline: D. Majchrzak (1), U. Frank (1), I. Elmadfa (1) Keywords: Key wordsaProvitamin A carotenoids; Non-provitamin A carotenoids; Retinol equivalents; Baby food Abstract: aThe contents of provitamin A carotenoids, non-provitamin A carotenoids and retinol were investigated in two types of 65 commercially available baby food products by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. The content of [beta]-carotene in vegetable products for babies from 5 months was 57% of the total amount of carotenoids (7.83mg/100g) the contents of other carotenoids were lycopene 19%, [alpha]-carotene 18%, lutein 4%, cryptoxanthin 1% and zeaxanthin 1%. All together, the content of provitamin A carotenoids was 76% and that of non-provitamin A carotenoids was 24%. A similar carotenoid profile was found in vegetable products for babies from 8 months and from 12 months, although the total carotenoid content was lower (3.07mg/100g). In fruit and cereal products the contents of [beta]-carotene and lycopene were 36% and 39% of the total amount of carotenoids (0.44mg/100g). The contents of [alpha]-carotene, lutein, cryptoxanthin and zeaxanthin ranged from 3% to 9% of the total carotenoids. The contents of provitamin A and non-provitamin A carotenoids were equal for this group (both 50% of all carotenoids). The calculated average content of retinol equivalents (mg RE/100g) was between 0.33 and 0.88 for the vegetable products and 0.03 for the fruit and cereal products. Author Affiliation: (1) Institute of Nutritional Sciences, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, A-1090 Vienna, Austria, AT Article note: Received: 27 May 1999 / Revised version: 2 August 1999