Understanding Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs)

Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs) are provided on many product packages as a guide to help consumers achieve a healthy, balanced diet. GDAs indicate how much the product contributes to the total daily intake of calories, protein, fat, carbohydrates and sodium based on “Reference Values for Nutrition Labeling.”  Thus, check GDAs on products to better control your dietary intake.

“Reference Values for Nutrition Labeling” were developed by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare based on “Dietary Reference Intakes for Japanese (2005)” as reference values for nutrient intakes to be printed on food labels for a wide application among the Japanese public. Essentially, nutrient requirements of individuals vary depending on gender, age and amount of physical activity, and therefore, these reference values cannot necessarily be used as personal nutrition intake targets. GDAs simply provide a guideline to help consumers make better choices about products and understand how much nutrition they are taking in from the products.