The NourishFix meal planner
Sources
The guidelines behind every target in the planner, and when each was last checked against its publisher. Last checked: 10 October 2026.
Most guidelines give a daily amount, or ask for amounts to be set with your care team. Where the planner turns a daily amount into a guide for one meal, the note says so: those meal figures are the planner’s, not the guideline’s. Your care team’s numbers always come first, and you can enter them in the planner.
Each target and where it comes from
| Target | Source | How the planner sets it |
|---|---|---|
| Carbohydrate per meal and snack | ADA Standards of Care 2026 NDSS carbohydrate counting (2023) | The ADA Standards of Care ask for carbohydrate to be individualized and set no fixed amount per meal. The ranges here are the starting points used in carbohydrate-counting education; NDSS gives 30–45 g per main meal for women and 45–60 g for men. Your care team’s numbers always come first. |
| Plate method | ADA Diabetes Plate Method | Half the plate non-starchy vegetables, a quarter protein, a quarter carbohydrate foods. The planner estimates each meal’s split from its ingredients’ weights. |
| Daily sodium limit | Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025–2030 Dietary Reference Intakes for sodium and potassium (2019) NHS EFSA (2019) NHMRC (2017) Chinese Dietary Guidelines 2022 ICMR-NIN Dietary Guidelines 2024 WHO DASH (NHLBI) | The limit you chose, from the guideline for where you live or from your care team. Recipe sodium counts the ingredients only; salt added in cooking or at the table is not included. |
| Sodium per meal and snack | Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025–2030 Dietary Reference Intakes for sodium and potassium (2019) NHS EFSA (2019) NHMRC (2017) Chinese Dietary Guidelines 2022 ICMR-NIN Dietary Guidelines 2024 WHO DASH (NHLBI) | The planner’s split of your daily limit: about 27% for each meal and 12% for each snack, which leaves room for salt in cooking and other foods. |
| Potassium | Dietary Reference Intakes for sodium and potassium (2019) | The adequate intake: 2,600 mg a day for women and 3,400 mg for men. |
| Calcium and magnesium | DASH studies (NHLBI) | The daily goals used in the DASH studies, for a 2,100-calorie plan: calcium 1,250 mg, magnesium 500 mg. |
| Protein and fibre | Dietary Reference Intakes for protein and fibre (2005) | The daily reference intakes (fibre 25 g for women and 38 g for men; protein 46 g and 56 g), split by the planner across about four meals and snacks. Without a sex on your answers, the guide in between is used. |
| Protein and fibre for PMOS | International PCOS Guideline 2023 Dietary Reference Intakes for protein and fibre (2005) | The 2023 international guideline recommends healthy eating without one specific diet, following general population guidance. The guides of about 20 g protein and 7 g fibre a meal, and 25 g fibre a day, are the planner’s split of the daily reference intakes. |
| Protein, fat and portions for GLP-1 support | GLP-1 nutrition advisory (2025) GLP-1 tolerability recommendations (2022) | The advisory puts protein first and suggests smaller, lower-fat meals while appetite is reduced. The figures used here (about 20 g protein and no more than about 15 g fat a meal) are the planner’s working guides, not numbers from the advisory. |
| Sodium per meal for everyday eating | Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025–2030 | The planner’s split of the 2,300 mg daily limit: about 700 mg for a meal and 400 mg for a snack. |
| Kidney disease | KDIGO 2024 | KDIGO suggests under 2 g of sodium a day for people with chronic kidney disease, with potassium and protein set individually. NourishFix doesn’t set kidney targets: follow your care team’s numbers. |
The daily sodium limit comes from the guideline you choose (shown in the planner); the table lists all of them.
All sources
- The Diabetes Plate Method, American Diabetes Association. Half the plate non-starchy vegetables, a quarter protein, a quarter carbohydrate foods. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Standards of Care in Diabetes—2026, American Diabetes Association. Diabetes Care 49, Supplement 1 (January 2026); nutrition is in section 5. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022), Chinese Nutrition Society. Adults: under 5 g salt (about 2,000 mg sodium) a day. Checked 10 October 2026.
- DASH Eating Plan, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NIH). 2,300 mg sodium a day; 1,500 mg lowers blood pressure further. Page updated February 2026. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Your Guide to Lowering Your Blood Pressure with DASH, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NIH). Daily nutrient goals used in the DASH studies (2,100-calorie plan): calcium 1,250 mg, magnesium 500 mg, potassium 4,700 mg, fibre 30 g. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030, US Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services. Released January 2026: sodium under 2,300 mg a day from age 14. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids (2005), National Academies (US and Canada). Fibre: 25 g a day women, 38 g men. Protein RDA: 46 g women, 56 g men. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Dietary Reference Intakes for Sodium and Potassium (2019), National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (US and Canada). Sodium: reduce intakes above 2,300 mg a day. Potassium adequate intake: 2,600 mg women, 3,400 mg men. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Dietary reference values for sodium (2019), European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). 2,000 mg sodium a day is safe and adequate for adults. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Nutritional priorities to support GLP-1 therapy for obesity: a joint advisory (2025), ACLM, ASN, The Obesity Society and the Obesity Medicine Association. Protein first, nutrient-dense foods, smaller meals while appetite is reduced. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Clinical recommendations to manage gastrointestinal adverse events with GLP-1 receptor agonists (2022), Gorgojo-Martínez et al., Journal of Clinical Medicine. Smaller, lower-fat meals, eaten slowly. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Dietary Guidelines for Indians (2024), ICMR–National Institute of Nutrition. No more than 5 g of added salt (about 2,000 mg sodium) a day. Checked 10 October 2026.
- International Evidence-based Guideline for the Assessment and Management of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (2023), Monash University (MCHRI) with ASRM, ESHRE, the Endocrine Society and the European Society of Endocrinology. Healthy eating for everyone with PCOS, without one specific diet: follow general population guidance. Checked 10 October 2026.
- KDIGO 2024 Clinical Practice Guideline for the Evaluation and Management of Chronic Kidney Disease, Kidney Disease: Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO). Kidney International 105(4S), 2024. Suggests sodium under 2 g a day in CKD; potassium and protein individualized. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Carbohydrate counting fact sheet, NDSS and Diabetes Australia. Version 6, November 2023: 30–45 g per main meal for women, 45–60 g for men. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Nutrient Reference Values for sodium (2017), NHMRC (Australia and New Zealand). Suggested dietary target for adults: 2,000 mg sodium a day. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Salt: the facts, NHS (UK). Adults: no more than 6 g salt (2,400 mg sodium) a day. Checked 10 October 2026.
- Salt reduction (fact sheet), World Health Organization. Adults: under 2,000 mg sodium (under 5 g salt) a day. Checked 10 October 2026.
Food data
Every food’s nutrient values come from USDA FoodData Central (US Department of Agriculture), checked against it entry by entry. In the UK and Australia, some made foods are made differently or follow different rules there (canned beans packed in water, flour with added calcium, saltier olives, lower-salt bran cereals), so the planner uses that country’s own table for them. Plain foods such as fresh vegetables, meat and grains keep their USDA values. You can choose which country’s values to use under “Your data” in the planner. Checked 10 October 2026.
- McCance and Widdowson’s Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset 2021, Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. Used for 17 made foods when UK values are chosen: kidney beans, canned, drained; flour, all-purpose, wheat; whole grain bread; wheat bran cereal; olives, ripe; flour tortilla; cheddar cheese, shredded; cheddar cheese, reduced-fat; butter, salted; parmesan, grated; sardines, canned in oil, drained; hummus; cottage cheese; feta cheese; crispbread, whole-grain rye; heavy cream; soy milk, unsweetened. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (McCance and Widdowson’s Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset 2021).
- Australian Food Composition Database, Release 3, Food Standards Australia New Zealand. Used for 23 made foods when Australian values are chosen: kidney beans, canned, drained; whole grain bread; wheat bran cereal; olives, ripe; flour tortilla; cheddar cheese, shredded; cheddar cheese, reduced-fat; butter, salted; parmesan, grated; hummus; cottage cheese; feta cheese; crispbread, whole-grain rye; chickpeas, canned, drained; breadcrumbs, plain; gluten-free bread; oyster sauce; soy sauce, regular; soy sauce, low-sodium; tuna, canned in water, drained; sour cream; coconut milk, canned; peanut butter, unsalted. Based on the Australian Food Composition Database, Release 3, by Food Standards Australia New Zealand, licensed under CC BY 4.0. FSANZ does not endorse NourishFix.
How sources are kept up to date
Each source is checked against its publisher at least once a year, and whenever a new edition comes out (the American Diabetes Association updates its Standards every January). The planner won’t be published if any source goes more than a year without a check. Spotted something out of date? Email hello@nourishfix.com.