M/s Sri Mookambika Infosystems, a software development firm, have focused on Linear Programming (LP) based optimization. Initial efforts resulted in developing optimization software for a manufacturing unit. Experience gained through these efforts triggered our interest in diet optimization software. Our software with many important features is detailed and flexible, and has a user friendly interface.

Nutrition is a basic human need and a prerequisite to a healthy life. A proper diet is essential from the very early stages of life for proper growth, development and to remain active.

Recent evidences indicate that under Nutrition in utero may set the pace for diet related chronic diseases in later life. Unhealthy dietary practices and physical inactivity result in diet related chronic diseases.

Apart from supplying Nutrients, foods provide host of other components (Non-Nutrient phyto chemicals) which have a positive input on health.

The Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) is Nutrient centered and technical in nature. Since people consume foods it is essential to advocate Nutrition in terms of Foods rather than Nutrients. Emphasis therefore has been shifted from a nutrient orientation to the food based approach for attaining Optimal Nutrition Status.

The USDA Food Pyramid is intended to represent the type and amount of foods based on Pyramid Food Groups that will provide nutrients to meet Institute Of Medicine (IOM) Nutrient recommendation. In simple terms, for a specific calorie requirement if we take foods as per Dietary Guidelines (which recommends the quantity of food from each Pyramid Food Group) the RDA for Nutrients will be met.

The Dietary Guidelines also limit intake of Oil, Solid Fats, Added Sugars.

It is not easy to take food based on Food Groups as per dietary Guidelines because we normally consume foods based on multi-ingredients from a combination of different Food Groups.

To address the above mentioned challenge we have developed a Linear Programming based software product that helps in arriving at a Diet Plan that meets Pyramid Food Groups and Nutrient Recommendation simultaneously having minimal departure from the observed / average diet, thus helping to improve the acceptability of the outcome.

We believe that while developing Nutrioptimizer Software there should be no compromise between user friendliness and a powerful in depth functionality based on Dietary guidelines and Observed / Average Diet.