DietPower Help
Your Nutrition Quotient™ is a single number reflecting how well your diet matches your Personal Daily Allowances. It takes into account not only your intake of each nutrient, but the nutrient's importance to health. You'll find your NQ in four places:
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You can think of your NQ as either an IQ or a letter grade. Grade ranges and their color-coding are as follows:
Nutrition Quotient |
Letter Grade |
Color |
0 to 59 |
F |
Red |
60 to 69 |
D |
Orange |
70 to 79 |
C |
Yellow |
80 to 89 |
B |
Green |
90 to 99 |
A |
Blue |
100 to 119 |
A+ |
Violet |
120 to 139 |
A++ |
Indigo |
140 and above |
Genius |
Black |
Two Caveats
Your Nutrition Quotient
is not a diagnostic score, but
a rough guide for improving your diet. An "A" this week won't
absolutely prove your diet is first-rate—but
it will suggest you're doing better than last week's "B." If
you worry about the difference between an A and an A+, you're giving the
NQ too much credit. It's not that
smart.
Your NQ is measured against your Personal Daily Allowances (PDAs). If you accepted the default PDAs, then the NQ reflects the most reputable scientific research on each nutrient. If you've edited your PDAs, however, it reflects your own opinions. For best advice, consult your physician or a registered dietitian.
How to Raise Your NQ
While using the Food Log:
Watch the "NQ+-" column, beside the food list. The numbers in that column show how each food will change your Nutrition Quotient (NQ):
In
the Food Log's dictionary (top) window, the number predicts your
NQ change if you log one serving.
In
the Food Log's log window, the number predicts your NQ change if
you log the same amount you've already logged¾in
other words, if you have seconds.
In
both windows, foods are color-coded:
Hurters,
shown in gray, will lower your NQ.
Helpers
will
raise your NQ¾or
at least not hurt it.
Smart Seconds (a single food in the Log window) will raise your NQ more than anything else you've already logged today.
In your Favorites and Recent windows (opened by clicking the radio buttons labeled "Favorites" and "Recent") the number shows your NQ change for logging favorite or recently eaten foods. (The Recent window is especially useful, because it lists foods that you're likely to have on hand.)
Watch the Advice Line, in the Scoreboard under your NQ. The Advice Line tells which nutrients to seek or shun* for easiest improvement. (To find foods that are rich in a particular nutrient, use the Food Coach or PowerFoods.)
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"What good is telling me to shun a nutrient if I've already gotten too much?" you might ask. In fact, the Advice Line doesn't work that way. It's based on your projected intake. "Get less zinc" means you'll get too much if you're not careful for the rest of the day. It doesn't mean you've already had too much. |
Remember: "Eat Your Greens"
Thanks to Diet Power's color-coding, if you simply log green foods and avoid gray foods, you will continually improve your Nutrition Quotient.
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Last Modified: 9/3/08