Glossary

Author: Glossary

  • Net protein value (NPV)

    Away of expressing the amount and quality of the protein in a food; the product of net protein utilisation and protein content per cent.  

  • Net protein utilisation (NPU)

    The proportion of nitrogen intake that is retained, i.e. the product of biological value and digestibility.  

  • Net protein ratio/retention (NPR)

    Weight gain of a test animal plus weight loss of a control animal fed a non-protein diet per gram of protein consumed by the test animal.  

  • Net dietary protein energy ratio (NDpE)

    A way of expressing the protein content of a diet or food taking into account both the amount of protein (relative to total energy intake) and the protein quality. It is protein energy multiplied by net protein utilisation divided by total energy. If energy is expressed in kcal and the result expressed as a percentage,…

  • Nature-identical

    Term applied to food additives that are synthesised in the laboratory and are identical to those that occur in nature.  

  • National health and nutrition examination survey (NHANES)

    Conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, designed to collect information about the health and diet of people in the United States. A comprehensive population survey that included a detailed dietary questionnaire from which intakes were calculated in a sample of over 10,000 adults. Data collected at…

  • National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) standards

    Tables of height and weight for age used as reference values for the assessment of growth and nutritional status of children, based on data collected by the US National Center for Health Statistics in the 1970s. The most comprehensive such set of data, and used in most countries of the world.  

  • Nasogastric tube

    Fine plastic tube inserted through the nose and thence into the stomach for enteral nutrition. A tube passed through the nose into the stomach. The tube inserted through the nose and ending in the stomach that carries liquid nourishment. Tube passed into the stomach through the nose used to aspirate stomach contents and secretions or…

  • Naphthoquinone

    The chemical ring structure of vitamin K; the various vitamers of vitamin K can be referred to as substituted naphthoquinones.  

  • Nano

    Prefix for units of measurement, one thousand-millionth part (i.e. 10¯9), symbol n.