Nutritional Deficiency: Management

Dietary Source of Nutrition to support your health

Dietary calcium is found primarily in dairy foods. Although milk is the most consumed dairy product, the national consumption of milk has decreased drastically over the last century, with detrimental consequences for the nation’s overall calcium level. Besides milk dietary calcium can also be found in Turnip greens, spinach,kale, broccoli and bread.¹

Fruits and vegetables are the best sources of vitamin C. Citrus fruits, tomatoes and tomato juice, and potatoes are major contributors of vitamin C to the American diet. Other good food sources include red and green peppers, kiwifruit, broccoli, strawberries, Brussels sprouts, and cantaloupe. Although vitamin C is not naturally present in grains, it is added to some fortified breakfast cereals. The vitamin C content of food may be reduced by prolonged storage and by cooking because ascorbic acid is water soluble and is destroyed by heat.²

Few foods naturally contain vitamin D. The flesh of fatty fish (such as trout, salmon, tuna, and mackerel) and fish liver oils are among the best sources.³

A nutritious diet that includes recommended servings from all the food groups helps to satisfy macronutrient and micronutrient needs. However, even well-designed eating patterns sometimes may fail to achieve suggested intakes for a variety of vitamins and nutrients.

The nutrients available in foods, naturally or through fortification, are beneficial to the body only when people consume them on a regular basis. Few people can adhere to a nutritious diet plan either by choice or because of poor circumstances, increased nutrient needs, or both.