Abstract
In July 1994, the U.S.D.A. Western Human Nutrition Research Center and the University of California at Davis co-sponsored a symposium on “New Approaches to Define Nutrient Requirements.” A major objective of the symposium was to define functional parameters of human health which could be used in determining future recommended dietary allowances (RDA).
This paper reviews the compelling evidence that certain vitamins and other micronutrients given in levels above the current RDA have critical, beneficial effects on human immune responses. Thus, the argument is made that immune function should be considered in the development of the next national nutrition recommendations.