Revision of the Ontario phenylalanine equivalency system and development of a low protein equivalency system.

Abstract

The Phenylalanine Content of Foods, an equivalency system used in the dietary treatment of phenylketonuria, was prepared in 1975. Recently this system was revised to include a total of 372 food items in various raw and processed states. Food lists are available in a simple version for parents listing the serving size per phenylalanine equivalent, and in a more comprehensive version for dietitians providing weights for the serving sizes as well as values for phenylalanine, protein, and energy per equivalent. Subsequently, the system was modified to form a low protein equivalency system for use in designing low protein diets for a number of other inherited metabolic disorders.