Disclaimer — Note from the Author

About this project

My name is Chris. I’m not a dietitian, doctor, or registered health professional. I’m a researcher who spent hundreds of hours working through the peer-reviewed literature on nutrition science, Australian dietary surveys, and the economics of food.

OptimisedEats grew out of a personal project to understand how to feed a household well — particularly families with children, pregnant women, and people on limited budgets — without overspending or relying on expensive supplements or proprietary diet programs.

The result is what you see here: a free app, a set of evidence-based guides, and a recipe index — all grounded in publicly available research and Australian supermarket pricing.

What this is — and what it isn’t

This site provides general nutrition education based on publicly available Australian and international dietary guidelines. It is intended to:

• Help people understand nutrient reference values and where common gaps occur in Australian diets
• Suggest affordable, nutrient-dense foods and recipes
• Provide context around life-stage nutrition (pregnancy, infancy, ageing)
• Make evidence-based nutrition information accessible to people without a health science background

It is not intended to diagnose deficiencies, treat any medical condition, or replace individualised dietary assessment. Nutrient needs vary significantly between individuals based on genetics, health history, medications, absorption capacity, and many other factors that a general tool cannot account for.

Sources and methodology

All nutrient targets in the app and guides are drawn from authoritative public sources:

• NHMRC Nutrient Reference Values (NRVs) — Australian and New Zealand reference intakes for all nutrients, published by the National Health and Medical Research Council. The primary source for all RDI, AI, UL, and EAR values used in this tool.
• Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) — National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey data on actual dietary intake across Australian demographics.
• USDA FoodData Central — Nutrient composition data for individual foods, used where Australian databases have gaps.
• IOM / NASEM (Institute of Medicine / National Academies) — Dietary Reference Intakes used for cross-referencing, particularly for nutrients where Australian and US guidance aligns.
• Peer-reviewed literature — Studies on absorption rates, nutrient interactions (e.g. tannins and iron, Vit C and iron absorption), and specific life-stage requirements cited throughout the guides.

Food costs are based on current pricing at Coles, Woolworths, and Aldi in Australia. Prices are approximate and vary by store, region, and season. All costs are per-serve unless stated.

Accuracy and updates

I’ve made every effort to ensure the information is accurate and aligned with current Australian dietary guidelines. Nutrition science does evolve, and recommendations are updated periodically — if you notice something that appears outdated or incorrect, please get in touch.

The app’s nutrient tracking is a guide, not a precise measurement. Nutrient content in food varies with preparation method, ripeness, storage, and individual variation. The figures should be treated as useful approximations, not clinical measurements.

Intellectual property

All written content, code, recipe development, and nutritional analysis presented on OptimisedEats is original work. It has been developed independently through personal research and is protected by Australian copyright law.

You are welcome to share links to these guides. You may quote short passages for educational or journalistic purposes with attribution. Please do not republish substantial portions of this content without permission.

The OptimisedEats app code is proprietary. The nutritional guides are free for personal and educational use.