Daily dietary intake of manganese by several population groups in Belgium: preliminary reports

Atomic absorption spectrometry is used to determine manganese content of several duplicate meals consumed by different population groups in the Antwerp region (Belgium). Daily elemental intake, beverages not included, is calculated and proven to be within the recommended daily allowances (National Academy of Sciences, USA) except for a higher intake by macrobiotics (6.7 +/- 3.8 mg per day). Intake level of vegetarians is similar to that of omnivorous adults, 2.9 +/- 2.0 and 2.5 +/- 0.3 mg per day, respectively. Values obtained in this study are compared with scarce data on intake by similar groups in other countries.