Understanding Your Nutrition Diet: What are three nutrients that you should try to get more of each day aiming for 100 of your DV?

October 19, 2025 •

4 min read

Studies show that many adults in the US do not meet the recommended daily intake for several key nutrients, including Vitamin D, Calcium, and Dietary Fiber. Understanding what are three nutrients that you should try to get more of each day aiming for 100 of your DV can be a powerful step toward improving your overall health and well-being, helping to prevent deficiencies and reduce the risk of chronic disease.

Quick Summary

Many adults often fall short of recommended daily intake levels for essential nutrients. This article explains the importance of aiming for 100% of your daily value for dietary fiber, vitamin D, and calcium. It offers practical strategies for reaching these targets through nutrient-dense food choices and provides a clearer understanding of how to use the information on nutrition facts labels.

Key Points

Daily Value (DV): The DV on nutrition labels helps you track your intake of essential nutrients and avoid common deficiencies.
Prioritize Fiber, Vitamin D, and Calcium: These three nutrients are commonly under-consumed by adults and are essential for overall health.
Diverse Food Sources: Incorporate a wide variety of foods from fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and dairy to meet your nutrient needs.
Fortified Foods: For hard-to-find nutrients like Vitamin D, look for fortified milk, yogurt, and cereals to help meet your 100% DV goal.
Holistic Approach: Focus on a balanced, varied diet that emphasizes nutrient-dense whole foods and limits processed items to maximize your health benefits.
Small Changes, Big Impact: Making gradual, manageable changes to your diet is more sustainable and effective than drastic overhauls.
Read Labels: Use the %DV on food labels to make informed comparisons between products and choose those higher in beneficial nutrients.

The Importance of Meeting Your Daily Value

The Daily Value (DV) is a reference number on a food label that indicates how much a nutrient in a single serving contributes to a total daily diet, which is typically based on a 2,000-calorie intake. The percentage of the DV (%DV) helps you quickly assess if a food is high or low in a particular nutrient. By using the label, you can manage your daily dietary intake by choosing foods that are higher in nutrients you need more of, and lower in those you want to limit, such as saturated fat, sodium, and added sugars.

Aiming for 100% of your DV for essential vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber on most days is an effective strategy for preventing long-term health problems. This is because meeting these daily targets ensures your body has the necessary building blocks to function optimally, from supporting your immune system to maintaining bone density.

The Three Essential Nutrients to Prioritize

Based on dietary trends, Americans frequently under-consume several key nutrients. Among these, dietary fiber, vitamin D, and calcium are three of the most crucial to prioritize for achieving your 100% DV goal.

Dietary Fiber: Fueling Your Digestive and Cardiovascular Health

Dietary fiber is a type of carbohydrate that the body cannot digest, playing a vital role in maintaining digestive health and regulating blood sugar and cholesterol levels. There are two types: soluble fiber, which dissolves in water and helps lower blood glucose and cholesterol, and insoluble fiber, which promotes regular bowel movements. Eating enough fiber can also help you feel full, which can aid in weight management.

Food Sources for Dietary Fiber:

Fruits: Raspberries, pears, apples, bananas, and strawberries are excellent choices.
Vegetables: Green leafy vegetables, broccoli, carrots, and sweet potatoes.
Legumes: Lentils, beans, and peas.
Whole Grains: Brown rice, whole-grain bread, oatmeal, and quinoa.
Nuts and Seeds: Almonds, sunflower seeds, and flaxseeds.

Vitamin D: The Sunshine Vitamin for Bone and Immune Health

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin crucial for the absorption of calcium, which is essential for building strong bones and teeth. It also plays a key role in supporting the immune system. Since few foods naturally contain significant amounts of vitamin D, getting enough is challenging, making it a common deficiency. Sunlight is a primary source, but many people have limited exposure, especially during colder months.

Food Sources for Vitamin D:

Fatty Fish: Salmon, mackerel, and tuna.
Fortified Foods: Milk, yogurt, and some breakfast cereals and orange juice.
Egg Yolks: A modest source of vitamin D.
Mushrooms: Some varieties, especially those exposed to UV light, contain vitamin D.

Calcium: Building and Maintaining Strong Bones

Calcium is a vital mineral necessary for bone health, nerve function, and muscle contraction. Meeting the 100% DV for calcium is especially important for women and older adults to reduce the risk of osteoporosis, a condition that weakens bones.

Food Sources for Calcium:

Dairy Products: Milk, yogurt, and cheese are well-known sources.
Leafy Greens: Kale, bok choy, and broccoli.
Fortified Foods: Some plant-based milks, cereals, and orange juice.
Canned Fish: Sardines and salmon with bones.
Legumes: Beans and lentils.

A Practical Approach to Your Nutrition Diet

Making informed food choices is key to consistently achieving your daily nutrient goals. This can be done by incorporating a variety of nutrient-dense foods into your meals throughout the day. Paying attention to the nutrition facts label can be very helpful for comparing products and ensuring you are picking those with higher concentrations of beneficial nutrients.

Tips for Incorporating These Nutrients:

Start your day right: Choose a fortified whole-grain cereal with fortified milk or yogurt, and add some fruit for extra fiber.
Snack wisely: Opt for a handful of nuts, a piece of fruit, or a container of yogurt instead of processed, sugary snacks.
Boost your lunch and dinner: Add a generous portion of leafy greens, beans, or other vegetables to your meals.
Consider fortified options: When food sources are limited, especially for Vitamin D, look for foods that have been fortified.

Nutrient-Dense Food Comparisons


Food Category	High in Dietary Fiber	High in Vitamin D	High in Calcium
Breakfast	Oatmeal	Fortified Milk	Fortified Yogurt
Lunch	Lentil Soup	Canned Tuna	Spinach Salad
Dinner	Whole-grain Pasta with Veggies	Salmon	Sardines with Bones
Snacks	Apple with Almonds	-	Greek Yogurt

Creating a Comprehensive Nutrition Diet

While focusing on these three nutrients is a great starting point, a truly healthy nutrition diet emphasizes variety and balance. The goal is not just to hit the numbers but to build a sustainable eating pattern that promotes overall health and well-being. This involves consuming a wide range of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins while minimizing less-healthy options like excessive sodium, added sugars, and saturated fats. Taking a holistic approach can help reduce your risk of developing chronic illnesses and improve your energy levels.

For more comprehensive dietary guidance, the World Health Organization offers valuable resources on healthy eating for life: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/healthy-diet.

Conclusion: Your Roadmap to Better Nutrient Intake

Making small, consistent changes to your eating habits can lead to significant improvements in your nutrient intake over time. By deliberately incorporating more foods rich in dietary fiber, vitamin D, and calcium, you can more easily reach 100% of your daily values for these crucial nutrients. This proactive approach to your nutrition diet can help build a stronger, healthier body and lay the foundation for long-term health, proving that a little effort in your daily food choices can have a lasting positive impact on your life.

Frequently Asked Questions

Daily Value (DV) is a reference number used on food labels to show how much a nutrient in a single serving contributes to a total daily diet, typically based on a 2,000-calorie intake. A %DV of 20% or more is considered high, while 5% or less is low.

Dietary fiber is important for maintaining digestive health, helping to regulate blood sugar, and lowering cholesterol levels. Easy sources include whole grains like oatmeal and brown rice, fruits like raspberries and apples, and legumes such as beans and lentils.

Since sun exposure can be limited, especially in certain climates, you can increase your vitamin D intake by consuming fortified foods like milk, yogurt, and some cereals. Fatty fish such as salmon and tuna are also good dietary sources.

You can increase calcium intake through non-dairy sources like dark leafy greens (kale, bok choy), fortified plant-based milks and orange juice, canned fish with bones (sardines), and beans.

For most people, a healthy and varied diet provides sufficient vitamins and minerals. However, some individuals with specific deficiencies or dietary restrictions may benefit from supplements. It is best to consult a healthcare professional before starting any supplements.

Vitamin D is crucial for the body to effectively absorb calcium, which is vital for building and maintaining strong bones. Dietary fiber supports overall digestive health, ensuring your body can properly process and utilize the nutrients you consume from a varied diet.

Total Sugars include both naturally occurring sugars (like those in milk and fruit) and any added sugars. Added sugars are added during processing, and are highlighted on the label. While there is no DV for total sugars, a 100% DV is provided for added sugars to encourage limiting intake.