2.6. Using nutrient lists to compare foods to particular nutrient goals
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## 2.6. Using nutrient lists to compare foods to particular nutrient goals

### 2.6.1. What are nutrient lists?

Nutrient lists have two purposes: first, they allow you to select which nutrients appear in `nuts` reports; and second, they allow you to compare your nutrient intake to certain goals.

If you're keeping track of your food intake, you'll probably want to know how your nutrient intake compares against certain goals you've set for yourself. For instance, you might decide you want to take in 65 grams of fat every day, or 2800 calories a day. You can tell Pantry what your goals are and it will help you compare certain foods, or all your food intake if you wish, against those goals.

In addition, the `master` file in Pantry has dozens of nutrients. Some of them, such as `Calories` or `Vitamin A`, are quite familiar. Others, such as `18:0`, probably don't interest you unless you're a scientist. Using nutrient lists, you decide which nutrients appear in your `nuts` reports, and the order in which they appear.

As the name suggests, a nutrient list includes multiple nutrients, in a specific order. Each nutrient is specified using both its name and its units: for example, `Protein` and `g`, or `Calories` and `kcal`. When Pantry prints a `nuts` report, it prints only the nutrients included in the nutrient list.

In addition, each nutrient in the nutrient list optionally has a goal associated with it. For exaample, if you wish to consume 2800 calories a day, you can set the goal for calories to 2800. If you do not specify a goal, but you include a nutrient in a nutrient list, pantry will still print the nutrient in `nuts` reports. If you don't want a nutrient shown in your `nuts` reports, then do not include the nutrient in your nutrient list. We are getting ahead of ourselves a bit, though. Later we will discuss how you can define your own nutrient lists. For now, though, you are stuck with the nutrient lists that are included with Pantry:

Nutrient lists included with Pantry

`facts`

  This nutrient list mimics the USA "Nutrition Facts" panel; that is, it shows nutrients in the same order as they appear on those labels, and the nutrient goals are identical to the FDA Daily Values. One of the nutrients that appears on the "Nutrition Facts" panel, `Sugars`, has no FDA Daily Value, so there is no goal for this nutrient.

`all`

  Shows every possible nutrient. It does not, however, include any nutrient goals.

`short`

  Shows only `Calories`, `Total Fat`, `Total Carbohydrate`, and `Protein`. As with `all`, this nutrient list does not include any nutrient goals.

`dv`

  Includes, in alphabetical order by nutrient name, every nutrient for which there is an FDA Daily Value; the goals are the respective Daily Values.

### 2.6.2. How nutrient lists are displayed in `nuts` reports

As you've seen, the `nuts` report has four columns. The first two columns show the nutrient name and the amount of the nutrient, respectively. The third column shows the nutrient's percentage of the any goal that has been set for this nutrient in the nutrient list. The fourth column shows this nutrient's percentage of the total amount of this nutrient for the buffer.

By default, Pantry uses the `facts` nutrient list. Therefore, in the next example, we see that 100 grams of bananas has 89 calories. The `facts` nutrient list has a goal of 2000 calories, the same amount used for the "Nutrition Facts" labels. Therefore, the report shows four percent in the third column. Other nutrients show similar results, except for `Sugars`. This shows `NG`, for No Goal. This is because although the "Nutrition Facts" panel shows `Sugars`, there is no FDA Daily Value for this nutrient. Accordingly, the `facts` nutrient list has no goal for this nutrient either.

Because there is only one food in the buffer, every value except one in the last column is 100 percent. The value for Cholesterol is `NA` because the buffer has no cholesterol.

Example 2.18. The `facts` nutrient list with 100 grams of bananas

    $ pantry --name "Bananas, raw" --print traits-nuts master
    Bananas, raw
    Group: Fruits and Fruit Juices
    Refuse: 36 percent Skin
    100 g (100g)
    Nutrient                  Amount         %G     %TOT
    -------------------------------------------------------
    Calories                  89   kcal       4      100
    Total Fat                 0    g          1      100
    Saturated Fat             0    g          1      100
    Cholesterol               0    mg         0      0
    Sodium                    1    mg         0      100
    Total Carbohydrate        23   g          8      100
    Dietary Fiber             3    g          10     100
    Sugars                    12   g          NA     100
    Protein                   1    g          2      100
    Vitamin A                 64   IU         1      100
    Vitamin C                 9    mg         14     100
    Calcium                   5    mg         0      100
    Iron                      0    mg         1      100

### 2.6.3. Using a different nutrient list

By default, Pantry uses the `facts` nutrient list when printing reports. You may specify a different nutrient list with the `--nutrient-list` option. In the next example, the third column always shows `NG` because the `short` nutrient list includes no goals.

Example 2.19. Specifying a nutrient list

    $ pantry --name "Bananas, raw" --print traits-nuts --nutrient- \
    > list short master
    Bananas, raw
    Group: Fruits and Fruit Juices
    Refuse: 36 percent Skin
    100 g (100g)
    Nutrient                  Amount         %G     %TOT
    -------------------------------------------------------
    Calories                  89   kcal       NA     100
    Total Fat                 0    g          NA     100
    Total Carbohydrate        23   g          NA     100
    Protein                   1    g          NA     100

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