Recommended daily intakes explained

Key points about RDIs

  • Food and drinks are made up of nutrients. Your body uses these nutrients for energy and to grow and keep healthy.
  • In Australia and New Zealand, experts have worked out the average daily amount of each nutrient that is enough to meet the needs of nearly all (97–98%) healthy people.
  • This is amount is called the recommended daily intake (RDI).
  • Different RDIs are set for different age ranges, life stages and genders.
Young mum hands baby over to father sitting on couch
Print this page

You can find the RDI for a particular nutrient in the combined Australian and New Zealand RDI tables(external link). Please note that these estimates are for healthy people and are not suitable for if you have certain health conditions or for pre-term babies or others with specific nutrient needs.

Because we eat foods and not single nutrients, it's usually better to know which foods provide which nutrients. Find out about recommended daily servings of major food types and more about food groups in generalYou can also read more about nutrients and why we need them.  

Estimated average requirement (EAR)

This is a daily nutrient level estimated to meet the requirements of half the healthy people in a particular life stage and gender group. The RDI is the amount needed to meet the requirements for 97–98% of healthy people.

Adequate intake (AI)

Sometimes an RDI for a particular nutrient can’t be worked out, so other ways are used to help guide you on how much to eat. One of those ways is to give an adequate intake (AI) amount, based on what experts have found to be the average nutrient intake within a healthy group of people.

Estimated energy requirement (EER)

This is the average dietary energy intake that is predicted to maintain energy balance in a healthy adult of particular age, gender, weight, height and level of physical activity, consistent with good health.

Upper level (UL)

Nutritional experts have also set upper levels (UL) for nutrients, to make sure you know what the highest level of nutrient intake is that’s likely to pose no risk to our health. As intake rises above the UL, the risk of adverse effects rises.

There is no established benefit for healthy people to eat a nutrient in amounts greater than the RDI or AI. Where there is no UL available, this means there are not enough data to set one. It does not mean that eating a high level of that nutrient is safe.

Both Australia and New Zealand review nutritional reference values from time to time, based on changes in evidence, so it’s wise to adhere to the most up-to-date values.

Eating for healthy babies & toddlers(external link) HealthEd, NZ, 2021
Eating for healthy children aged 2–12 years(external link) HealthEd, NZ, 2023
Eating for healthy older people(external link) HealthEd, NZ, 2021
Eating for healthy vegetarians(external link) HealthEd, NZ, 2012
Safe and Healthy Eating in Pregnancy(external link) Ministry of Health and Health Promotion Agency, NZ, 2023
Eating for healthy breastfeeding women(external link) HealthEd, NZ, 2022

References

  1. Nutrient reference values for Australia and New Zealand(external link) Ministry of Health, NZ, 2006
  2. Nutrients(external link) National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia and Ministry of Health, NZ

Brochures

Eating for healthy pregnant women

Ministry of Health and Health Promotion Agency, NZ, 2023

vegetarians

Eating for healthy vegetarians

HealthEd, NZ, 2012

Need help now?

Healthline logo in supporters block

Need to talk logo

Healthpoint logo

Credits: Healthify Editorial Team. Healthify is brought to you by Health Navigator Charitable Trust.

Reviewed by: Katrina Pace, MSc Human Nutrition

Last reviewed:

Page last updated: