Sources and references
These are the reference materials we use for meal planning and our guides, listed with where to find the originals so you can check them yourself.
Nutrition standards
| Source | Published by | Used here for |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 Dietary Reference Intakes for Koreans | Ministry of Health and Welfare · The Korean Nutrition Society (2025) | Acceptable energy ratios, recommended nutrient intakes |
| Food Nutrient Database | Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (Korea) | Calories and nutrients of individual foods |
Formulas
| Formula | Used for | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Mifflin-St Jeor | Estimating basal metabolic rate | The most widely used standard equation today |
| Activity factor (1.2 ~ 1.725) | Estimating daily energy expenditure | The commonly used range |
Exercise and protein
| Source | Published by | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| ISSN Position Stand: Protein and Exercise | International Society of Sports Nutrition (2017) | Recommended protein range with exercise |
| Dietary Cholesterol and Cardiovascular Risk | American Heart Association (2019) | Advice on dietary cholesterol |
How we choose sources
- Official standards from government bodies or professional societies come first
- Guidelines that pool many studies come before individual papers
- For older sources, we check whether a newer edition exists
- We don’t use sources with a stake in selling products
Limitations
Nutrition information for each food can differ from reality depending on the recipe, ingredients and shop. Figures for restaurant dishes in particular are estimates based on typical ranges. If you need exact values, check the product’s nutrition label.
To reduce this, we keep checking our data against the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety database.