Last week I posted a review of Cresson Kearny’s Maintaining Nutritional Adequacy during a
Prolonged Food Crisis.  I strongly
recommend printing a copy if you haven’t done so already. 

As you know, I started writing this blog for my children who
want the essential information but lack the time to do the research
themselves.  Research is something I
enjoy; they are gifted in other areas like engineering and heavy labor. 

Anyway, one of the topics that piqued my curiosity first,
and which I felt the kids really needed to know and which isn’t succinctly
presented in the manual, concerns nutritional deficiencies that will occur when
diets are limited and what can be done to prevent such issues.

Years ago I blogged on the essential vitamins and minerals
and what happens when deficiencies occur. 
(Review those articles for deficiency signs and symptoms as well as rich
sources for these essential nutrients.)  But
I don’t think there were any timelines for how quickly such issues could
arise.  I’m curious about it.

If cells are empty, that information was not provided in the
literature.  And the information
contained herein is sourced only from the above-mentioned manual.  

The recommendations come from the US recommended daily allowance and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN and the World Health Organization.

Nutritional Deficiencies in a
Prolonged Food Crisis

 

How
soon?

US
RDA

FAO/WHO

Infants

Children

Pregnant/lactating
women

Minimum
in a long-term disaster

Vit
A[1]

Several
months in a well-nourished population

3300
IU in men; 2664 IU in women

2475
IU

½
of the emergency dosage

½
of the emergency dosage

50%
more than the emergency dosage

1815
IU for adults

Vit
B1[2]

 

 

1.0
mg/2500 calories

 

 

 

1.0
mg/2500 calories

Vit
B2[3]

 

1.4
mg/2600 calories

0.44
mg/1000 calories

 

 

 

1.4
mg/2600 calories

Vit
B3

5-6
months if person is subsisting on untreated corn

 

17
mg/2600 calories

 

 

 

17
mg/2600 calories

Vit
B6

 

2
mg

 

 

 

 

1.5
mg

Vit
B9

 

400 µg

 

 

 

800 µg pregnancy

600 µg lactation

200 µg

Vit
B12

Over
12 months

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vit
C

1-6
months

45
mg

30
mg

Breast-fed
infants will receive enough from mother’s milk.  Others need supplementation

 

 

15
mg

Vit
D

 

<22
years, 400 IU

>6
years, 100 IU

400
IU

<6
years, 400 IU

400
IU

400
IU for children <7 years and pregnant women

Calcium

Unlikely
to occur in adults within 1 year.

800
mg

400-500
mg

500-600
mg (not breast-fed)

1-9
years, 400-500 mg; 10-15 years, 600-700 mg; 16-19 years, 500-600 mg

 

400
mg

Magnesium

Rare

350
mg men; 300 mg women

200-300
mg

 

 

 

200-300
mg

Iron

Varies
by individual

10-18
mg

10
mg (considered insufficient for vulnerable groups)

 

 

 

10
mg

Zinc

 

15
mg

5.5-22
mg, based on zinc content of diet

 

 

 

11
mg

Iodine

Several
months to 1 year in a well-nourished person

100-150
µg,
>7 years

 

1/8
adult dose

¼
adult dose

 

 

Potassium

Unlikely
to occur

1.5-2.5
g

 

 

 

 

1.5
g

[1]
If the vitamin A source is plant-based, triple the daily dosage.

[2]
According to the authors, thiamin deficiency is not anticipated to be a concern
in the US.

[3]
It will be difficult to consume adequate amounts of riboflavin on a survival
diet of grains and legumes.  The best
source of riboflavin is milk.

 

 

Well, that little exercise of creating the above table took
a couple of hours, but it was time well-spent. 
I think we consume a fairly healthy diet here, so we should be heading
into difficult times with adequate reservoirs of the essential vitamins and minerals.  Basic and expanded food storage and gardens
should fill needs for vitamins A, B9, and C as well as zinc.  Sun will satisfy vitamin D requirements.  I feel reassured about what we’ve got
planned.  But that doesn’t mean I’m not
buying some more vitamins on my next trip to the pharmacy.   

Links to related posts:

Maintaining Nutritional Adequacy during a Prolonged Food
Crisis

Dietary Deficiency and Consequences–Vitamin B1
                     
                     
                    Vitamin B2
                     
                     
                    Vitamin B3
                                                               
Vitamin B5, B6, B7
                                                               
Vitamin B9
                                                               
Vitamin B12
                     
                     
                    Vitamin C
 
                                                               
Vitamin D
                     
                     
                    Calcium
 
                     
                     
                    Iodine  
                                                                Iron
                     
                     
                    Magnesium
                     
                     
                    Potassium
 
                     
                     
                    Zinc