Nutrition Gap Calculator

Methodology

1. Inputs

   How much you ate (a few bites, one small meal, two small meals, or three meals), add-ons (protein shake, Greek yogurt, fruit, milk), drinks in 8 fl oz glasses, sex, age band (19–50, 51–70, 71+), body weight, and whether you take a GLP-1 medication. The last answer changes only the wording of the note under the result, never a number. Nothing you enter leaves the page.

2. What each answer stands for

   Each answer is an ordinary plate. Nutrient values for every food are from USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy (April 2018 release),^[1] scaled from per-100 g values to the portion; the FDC id is in brackets.

   • A few bites: 5 saltine crackers, 15 g [172746], and 1 tbsp peanut butter, 16 g [174266].
   • One small meal: 3 oz roasted chicken breast, 85 g [171477], ½ cup cooked white rice, 79 g [168878], and ½ cup boiled broccoli, 78 g [169967].
   • Two small meals: the meal above, plus 2 scrambled eggs, 122 g [172187], and 1 slice whole-wheat toast, 32 g [172688].
   • Three meals: both of those, plus a sandwich of 2 slices whole-wheat bread, 64 g [172688], 2 oz sliced turkey breast, 56 g [172941], and 1 oz cheddar, 28 g [173414], with a medium apple, 182 g [171688].
   • Add-ons: 1 scoop whey protein powder, 32 g [173180], in 8 fl oz water; plain nonfat Greek yogurt, 170 g [170894]; a medium banana, 118 g [173944]; 1 cup 2% milk with vitamin D added, 244 g [171267].

3. Intake

   The nutrients in every food on the plate and add-ons, summed. Fluid = the water in that food (1 g = 1 ml) + 240 ml for each glass you count + 240 ml for the water a shake is mixed with.

4. Reference values

   The Dietary Reference Intake for your sex and age band: the Recommended Dietary Allowance where one exists, the Adequate Intake (AI) otherwise. FDA Daily Values, the single numbers on US food labels,^[2] are shown for comparison only.

   Nutrient	Women	Men	Daily Value
   Total water (AI)[3]	2.7 L	3.7 L	–
   Protein[4]	0.8 g/kg	0.8 g/kg	50 g
   Fiber (AI), 19–50 / 51+[4]	25 / 21 g	38 / 30 g	28 g
   Sodium (AI)[5]	1,500 mg	1,500 mg	2,300 mg
   Potassium (AI)[5]	2,600 mg	3,400 mg	4,700 mg
   Calcium, 19–50 / 51–70 / 71+[6]	1,000 / 1,200 / 1,200 mg	1,000 / 1,000 / 1,200 mg	1,300 mg
   Magnesium, 31+[7]	320 mg	420 mg	420 mg
   Vitamin D, to 70 / 71+[6]	15 / 20 mcg	15 / 20 mcg	20 mcg
   Vitamin B12[8]	2.4 mcg	2.4 mcg	2.4 mcg
   Folate[9]	400 mcg DFE	400 mcg DFE	400 mcg DFE

   The sodium note uses 2,300 mg, the level above which the National Academies advise cutting back.^[5]

5. Bars and headline

   Each bar is intake ÷ reference, drawn from 0 to 150% of the reference with a tick at 100%. Its colour marks under half, half or more, and reference reached. The headline names the largest shortfall among fiber, protein, fluid and potassium, in that nutrient’s own units. Sodium is left out of the headline because added salt isn’t counted.

6. Limits

   • It is a rough estimate, not a diet analysis: real meals vary a great deal, and so does what is in them.
   • Salt added in cooking or at the table is not counted, so sodium reads low. Fortified foods, plant milks and supplements are not counted either.
   • Magnesium uses the 31+ value for the whole 19–50 band; at 19–30 the RDA is 310 mg for women and 400 mg for men.^[7]
   • Reference values are set for healthy adults. They are not personal requirements, and they are not set for pregnancy, breastfeeding or medical conditions.