2003 W. O. Atwater Memorial Lecture: Defining Nutrient Requirements from a Perspective of Bone-Related Nutrients

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Abstract
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service has a valued tradition of sponsoring an annual lecture in honor of W. O. Atwater. I will always treasure the wonderful experience of sharing my thoughts on nutrient requirements and the lively reception that followed with so many supportive colleagues, students and friends at the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutritional Sciences at Experimental Biology. Atwater studied food composition, nutrient availability from the diet, nutrient intake of American families and nutrient requirements. It is not surprising then that related topics are often the focus of Atwater lectures. Elsie Widdowson claimed in her Atwater lecture that “Atwater contributed more to our knowledge about the energy value of human foods than anyone who has ever lived, either before or since his time” (1). The most recently published Atwater lecture by Vernon Young advanced Atwater's legacy by reflecting on the role that the sequencing of the human genome would have on determining human nutrient requirements (2).