Section 3: Identifying Factors That Affect Nutrient Needs

It is critical to remember that the DRIs and other recommendations for nutrient intake levels are based on data from healthy individuals. A host of factors, including medical conditions, medications, and atypical growth patterns, can influence the needs of an individual.

This section reviews many of the factors that can influence nutrient needs and describes some specific disorders that are associated with altered needs. This section is presented in three parts:

• influence of medical conditions
• influence of medications
• possible influences of specific conditions