ABSTRACT
Nutritional status assessment involves a combination of dietary intake, biochemical and anthropometric measurements, clinical observations, functional status, and if available, genetics. Nutritional status is an inclusive term, and its assessment usually includes anthropometric, biochemical, clinical, and dietary measures as well as food-related quality of life. This chapter provides a background on the concept of nutritional status, an overview of the methods for evaluating it, and the various tools that are available to make inferences about nutritional status from dietary intakes and other data. It focuses on the dimensions of diet and nutritional status. The chapter discusses the nutrient standards for dietary intakes in the United States and Canada, known as the Dietary Reference Intakes. It describes the most well-known guide for healthy eating in the United States, the Dietary Guidelines 2015–2020 and summarizes the nutrition information on food labels. The chapter concludes with some comments on healthy dietary patterns and personalized nutrition.
