Dietary Reference Intakes: vitamin B6, folic acid and vitamin B12

In 1992, the former Food and Nutrition Council of the Netherlands published dietary reference intakes. These recommendations for the intake of nutrients were primarily aimed at the prevention of clinical symptoms and biochemical signs of deficiencies. In recent years, increasing numbers of studies have shown that certain nutrients can also help to prevent chronic diseases. Partly as a result of this, the Health Council decided to review the dietary reference intakes. The Committee on Dietary Reference Intakes, which is charged with this task, sets out its findings in a series of recommendations. The first report, containing the dietary reference intakes for calcium, vitamin D, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid and biotin, was published in July 2000. A year later, the second report was published, with the dietary reference intakes for energy, proteins, fats and digestible carbohydrates. The present report contains the dietary reference intakes for vitamin B₆, folate and vitamin B₁₂.