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[[File:Dietary Reference Intakes.svg|thumb|For each vitamin or mineral, there's a graph that looks like this. Too little can be a problem. Too much can be a problem. A healthy intake is anything that falls in between. This ''healthy range'' is wider for some nutrients than for others.]]
[[File:Dietary Reference Intakes.svg|thumb|For each vitamin or mineral, there's a graph that looks like this. Too little can be a problem. Too much can be a problem. A healthy intake is anything that falls in between. This ''healthy range'' is wider for some nutrients than for others.]]
===Vitamins & minerals===
===Vitamins & minerals===
It's important to get enough (but not too much) of every vitamin and mineral.
The human body needs all of these:
{|class="wikitable" style="display:inline-block;vertical-align:top;margin-top:0;font-size:75%"
!colspan=2|Minerals
|-
!{{minor|''Electrolytes''}}
!{{minor|''Trace minerals''}}
|-
|style="vertical-align:top;color:#444"|
* Potassium
* Chloride
* Sodium
* Calcium
* Phosphorous
* Magnesium
|style="vertical-align:top;color:#444"|
* Iron
* Zinc
* Manganese
* Copper
* Iodine
* Selenium
* Molybdenum
* Chromium
|}
{|class="wikitable" style="display:inline-block;vertical-align:top;margin-top:0;font-size:75%"
!colspan=2|Vitamins
|-
!{{minor|''Fat-soluble''}}
!{{minor|''Water-soluble''}}
|-
|style="vertical-align:top;color:#444"|
* Vitamin A
* Vitamin D
* Vitamin E
* Vitamin K
|style="vertical-align:top;color:#444"|
* Vitamin C  <small>(ascorbic acid)</small>
* Vitamin B1  <small>(thiamin)</small>
* Vitamin B2  <small>(riboflavin)</small>
* Vitamin B3  <small>(niacin)</small>
* Vitamin B5  <small>(pantothenic acid)</small>
* Vitamin B6  <small>(pyridoxine)</small>
* Vitamin B7  <small>(biotin)</small>
* Vitamin B9  <small>(folic acid)</small>
* Vitamin B12 <small>(cobalamin)</small>
|}
 
A healthy diet provides enough (but not too much) of '''each and every''' one of these.
 
It can be pretty hard to keep track of so many nutrients, but there are a few ways to make it work.
{{talk|TODO: explain how to make it work}}
{{talk|TODO: cover these points:
{{talk|TODO: cover these points:
{{pbr}}~ there are about 30 vitamins/minerals
{{pbr}}~ almost everyone is at least ''somewhat'' lacking in one or more {{x|not outright deficiency, but insufficiency}}
{{pbr}}~ almost everyone is at least ''somewhat'' lacking in one or more {{x|not outright deficiency, but insufficiency}}
{{pbr}}~ essential for metabolism. This is one reason why some people have such a hard time exercising and burning calories {{x|side note: other things that get in the way include bad posture caused by electronics etc. link to page - there are solutions without living in the stone age}}
{{pbr}}~ essential for metabolism. This is one reason why some people have such a hard time exercising and burning calories {{x|side note: other things that get in the way include bad posture caused by electronics etc. link to page - there are solutions without living in the stone age}}
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{{pbr}}~ dispel misconceptions about absorbability
{{pbr}}~ dispel misconceptions about absorbability
{{pbr}}~ why food lacks these nutrients in the first place: long shelf life dry foods are why we don't have famines in the 'first world' - but this comes with tradeoffs, nutrients lost. But this can be made up for
{{pbr}}~ why food lacks these nutrients in the first place: long shelf life dry foods are why we don't have famines in the 'first world' - but this comes with tradeoffs, nutrients lost. But this can be made up for
{{pbr}}~ terminology and why it sucks: RDA should be called "daily requirement". because "recommended daily allowance" is misleading and sounds like "you're allowed to have up to this much, anything more is unhealthy", which is NOT what it means at all. The UL is that upper limit that means that. Whereas the RDA is more of a lower limit, anything below it might be insufficient for some people. Another way to say it: Anything between RDA and UL is safe & healthy for 97% of people. Show the diagram tbh
{{pbr}}~ terminology and why it sucks: RDA should be called "daily requirement". because "recommended dietary allowance" is misleading and sounds like "you're allowed to have up to this much, anything more is unhealthy", which is NOT what it means at all. The UL is that upper limit that means that. Whereas the RDA is more of a lower limit, anything below it might be insufficient for some people. Another way to say it: Anything between RDA and UL is safe & healthy for 97% of people. Show the diagram tbh
{{pbr}}~ what about choline? may not be important overall for most people, or if it is then probably don't need the full 550mg/day {{x|which isn't a true RDA - choline has been less studied so they set the target higher than it may need to be, to be conservative. they set a large burden of proof for establishing that a lower intake won't lead to deficiency}}. Maybe some other nutrients in plants can enable the formation of choline without u getting that large intake? Because choline-deficient vegan diets have never been shown to be an issue as long as they provide all the other nutrients}}
{{pbr}}~ what about choline? may not be important overall for most people, or if it is then probably don't need the full 550mg/day {{x|which isn't a true RDA - choline has been less studied so they set the target higher than it may need to be, to be conservative. they set a large burden of proof for establishing that a lower intake won't lead to deficiency}}. Maybe some other nutrients in plants can enable the formation of choline without u getting that large intake? Because choline-deficient vegan diets have never been shown to be an issue as long as they provide all the other nutrients
{{pbr}}~ how we know these nutrients are essential, and how we know that other stuff isn't}}
 
{{b|#FF04|'''Water''' is also a mineral}} - and a very important one, no matter your diet. It's easy to forget that hydration makes a huge difference. {{talk|maybe worth also mentioning that juice, soda, coffee, tea, fruits etc can also contribute some water to the diet as well}}
 


===Protein===
===Protein===
{{empty}}
====Get enough protein====
{{talk|~ complete vs incomplete proteins: boils down to: essential amino acids and total protein.
The amount needed is surprisingly modest, even for people who are extremely active.
{{pbr}}~ even if u lift, your protein requirements dont increase that much (show maths and why)
{{talk|TODO: add chart for various sized adults and kids, various activity levels}}
{{pbr}}~ digestibility: there are ways to make the proteins in plants as digestible as meat.}}
'''''Most''''' of the protein you need is just to ''maintain nitrogen balance'' - in other words, replace protein that was burned as calories. This is true for everyone - even for kids that are growing quickly.
{{talk|TODO: show maths.
{{pbr}}DRAFT:
The human body is approximately 20% protein.
[https://pressbooks-dev.oer.hawaii.edu/humannutrition/chapter/defining-protein/]
On average, a healthy person grows fastest at age _, where they gain _ kg of body mass in a year.
{{talk|Maybe just show a typical growth chart, and say "At the fastest growth spurt (age _), the average healthy person gains _ lbs of body mass in a year.}}
[https://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/index.htm]
This amounts to just _ grams of protein per day becoming new body mass.
}}
Even in extreme bodybuilding, the amount of protein that actually becomes muscle is relatively small.
{{p2|(''See maths'')|
Human muscle is 20% protein, and 70% water (the rest is mostly sugars and electrolytes).
[https://www.physio-pedia.com/Muscle_Proteins]
[https://parallelcoaching.co.uk/how-much-protein-is-in-skeletal-muscle]
A pound (454g) of muscle therefore contains 91g of protein.
So even in an "absolute best case" scenario of gaining 50 pounds of muscle in a year (extremely rare to achieve this), only '''12 grams''' of protein are becoming muscle every day. And that's a very high estimate.
For most people, the best case is lower: about 20 pounds of muscle in a year{{x|that's in the first year of training. the next years see slower gains}}. This amounts to just '''5 grams''' of protein becoming muscle every day!
So where does all the other protein go? It gets burned just like any other calories.
All this goes to show just how little difference it makes when you're building muscle: Your protein requirements are only slightly higher.
}}
{{talk|TODO: add expandable section: So why do some websites have protein recommendations that are so much higher?}}
 
====Get enough of the 9 essential amino acids====
 
Sometimes this is conceptualized as "complete protein", but that term can be a bit misleading. {{talk|TODO: explain examples of it being misleading}} The more fundamental principle is: You have to get enough of each of these amino acids (which are found in protein):
 
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size:75%"
|style="border-right:none"|
* Histidine
* Isoleucine
* Leucine
|style="border-left:none;border-right:none"|<ul style="margin-top:-0.5em">
<li style="line-height:0.5em">Lysine    </li>
<li style="line-height:0.5em">Threonine </li>
<li style="line-height:0.5em">Tryptophan</li>
<li style="line-height:0.5em">Valine    </li></ul>
|style="border-left:none"|
* Methionine and/or Cysteine {{p|Technically, methionine is the essential amino acid while cysteine can be made ''from'' methionine in the body.}}
* Phenylalanine and/or Tyrosine {{p|Technically, phenylalanine is the essential amino acid while tyrosine can be made ''from'' phenylalanine in the body.}}
* Arginine, in some cases {{talk|This is a "conditionally essential" amino acid. TODO: Research under what conditions it's essential, and how common that is.}}
|}
 
You also still need to get enough total protein, as mentioned in the section above.
{{talk|TODO: explain why, and the meaning of "non-essential amino acids"}}
 
By eating a variety of proteins, you can meet all of those targets. {{talk|TODO: talk about incomplete proteins ''here'' a bit, and that proteins don't need to be combined at the same meal}}


===Essential fats===
===Essential fats===
{{empty}}
* Omega-3 {{talk|TODO: Talk about various forms of omega-3: ALA, DHA, EPA}}
{{talk|~ omega 3 and 6, talk about ALA, DHA, EPA
* Omega-6 {{talk|TODO: Reseach: What about omega-9? Is that also essential?}}
{{pbr}}~ absorbing vitamins A,D,E,K}}
* Vitamins A, D, E and K need to be combined with at least a small amount of fat at the same meal (any type of fat will do) to ensure absorption. {{talk|TODO: more detail about the time window within which they can be combined. Also list examples like carrots}}


===The ''total'' amount of calories===
===The ''total'' amount of calories===
Protein and essential fats, ''on their own'', are only a small percent of the calories you need. {{talk|TODO: show maths}} The rest of the calories must be some combination of '''fats''' and '''carbs'''. The exact ratio doesn't matter as much as some people think - see below.
Protein and essential fats, ''on their own'', are only a small percent of the calories you need. {{talk|TODO: show maths}} The rest of the calories must be some combination of '''fats''' and '''carbs'''. The exact ratio doesn't matter as much as some people think - see below.


==Things that {{b|#FF0|'''''don't'''''}} matter==
==Things that {{b|#FF0|'''''don't'''''}} matter==
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===Fiber===
===Fiber===
{{empty}}
{{empty}}
===Gluten===
Only a problem if you have a gluten intolerance (such as celiac disease). Gluten is a protein found in wheat. {{talk|Maybe mention something about gut flora and how its biodiversity could help in providing the right enzymes to digest gluten?}}




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