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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Increase calcium consumption by people aged 2 years and over — NWS‑13 Data Methodology and Measurement

On this page:  About the National Data  |  Methodology  |  History

About the National Data

Data

Data Source:  National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), CDC/NCHS

Baseline: 1,077 milligrams (mg) of calcium from foods, dietary supplements, antacids, and drinking water was the mean total daily intake by persons aged 2 years and over in 2013-16

Target: 1,184 mg

Numerator
Sum of daily intake of calcium (in mg) among persons aged 2 years and over.
Denominator
Number of persons aged 2 years and over.
Target-setting method
Percent improvement
Target-setting method details
10 percent improvement from the baseline.
Target-setting method justification
Trend data were not available for this objective. A 10 percent improvement from the baseline was used to calculate a target. This method was used because it was a statistically significant improvement from the baseline. There has been no statistically significant change from the Healthy People 2020 baseline, 1099 mg in 2005-08.

Methodology

Questions used to obtain the national baseline data

(For additional information, please visit the data source page linked above.)

From the 2013-14 and 2015-16 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, Dietary Supplements and Prescription Medication Questionnaire:

Numerator:
{Have you/Has SP} used or taken any vitamins, minerals, herbals or other dietary supplements in the past 30 days? Include prescription and non-prescription supplements.
  1. Yes
  2. No
  3. Refused
  4. Don't Know
{Have you/Has SP} used or taken any nonprescription antacids in the past 30 days?
  1. Yes
  2. No
  3. Refused
  4. Don't Know
In the past 30 days, {have you/has SP} used or taken medication for which a prescription is needed? Include only those products prescribed by a health professional such as a doctor or dentist.
  1. Yes
  2. No
  3. Refused
  4. Don't Know
May I please see the containers for all the {vitamins, minerals, herbals, and other dietary supplements}, {and} {nonprescription antacids} {and} {prescription medicines} that {you/SP} used or took in the past 30 days?
  1. Container seen
  2. Container not seen
  3. Only pharmacy printout seen (for prescription medicines)
For dietary supplements: Enter name from product label and manufacturer/distributor/store brand name and address.

For prescription medication: Name from the label is recorded and also matched to a product in the drug database during data collection.

For antacids: Enter full brand name of antacid.

In the past {30 days/number and unit}, on how many days did {you/SP} take {PRODUCT NAME}?

  1. ______ Days (Number from 1 to 30)
  2. Refused
  3. Don't Know
On the days that {you/SP} took {PRODUCT NAME}, how much did {you/SP} usually take on a single day?
  1. ______ Number of capsules, tablet/pills; teaspoons; tablespoons; fluid ounces/ounces; drops/droppers; packets/packs/packages; ml.; wafers; other
  2. Refused
  3. Don't Know

Methodology notes

To determine total calcium intake, several sources of calcium were considered, including foods, dietary supplements, antacids, and drinking water. The NHANES food consumption data included the collection of 1 day of dietary data for all respondents through in-person 24-hour recalls and collection of a 2nd-day 24-hour recall by telephone. Both dietary recalls are obtained by trained dietary interviewers using USDA's Automated Multiple Pass Method (AMPM). For these analyses, calcium intake from only the first 24-hour recall will be used. Each respondent was asked to recall the kinds and amounts of foods and beverages consumed at home and away from home during the previous day (midnight to midnight). Amounts of foods and beverages reported in household measures were then converted to gram amounts, and calcium intake from foods and beverages was estimated with the use of food composition files. Plain drinking water intakes were collected directly as part of the dietary intake collection of foods and beverages beginning with the 2005-2006 NHANES. Thus, the total daily dietary intake records from NHANES include the calcium provided by drinking water.

If antacids data were missing, it was assumed that no calcium was provided by antacids, but the individual was kept in the calculation.

Breast-feeding children were excluded from the analysis.

Age-adjustment notes

This Indicator uses Age-Adjustment Groups:

  • Total: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Sex: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Race/Ethnicity: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Educational Attainment: 25-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Family Income (percent poverty threshold): 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Health Insurance Status: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-64
  • Marital Status: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Country of Birth: 2-5, 6-11, 12-19, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Veteran Status: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Activity limitation: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+
  • Obesity Status - Adults: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, 80+

History

Comparable HP2020 objective
Retained, which includes core objectives that are continuing from Healthy People 2020 with no change in measurement.