nutrient

Phosphorus

An essential mineral in bone mineral, ATP, nucleic acids and cell membranes.

Phosphorus is present in foods as phosphate compounds. Absorption varies by food form, and added phosphate compounds can be handled differently from naturally occurring phytate-bound phosphorus.

What it does

Phosphate is part of hydroxyapatite in bone and teeth, ATP energy transfer, DNA and RNA, and cell membranes. It also participates in acid-base buffering and intracellular signalling.

Where it comes from

Dairy, fish, meat, legumes and many grains provide phosphorus; food additives can contribute a separate exposure that is not obvious from the food name alone.

Food sources

Per 100 g

Food amounts and reference percentages, both per 100 g
Food	Per 100 g	Daily reference
Pumpkin seeds	1,150 mg	209.09%
Chia seeds, dry	691 mg	125.64%
Ground flaxseed	556 mg	101.09%
Almonds	503 mg	91.45%
Atlantic sardines, canned in oil (SR Legacy 2018)	490 mg	89.09%

Show 46 more foods

Food amounts and reference percentages, both per 100 g
Food	Per 100 g	Daily reference
Almonds, dry-roasted and salted	456 mg	82.91%
Rolled oats	387 mg	70.36%
Peanuts, raw	380 mg	69.09%
Lentils	374 mg	68%
English walnuts, raw	365 mg	66.36%
Brown rice, long-grain, raw	303 mg	55.09%
Rainbow trout, wild, raw (SR Legacy 2018)	271 mg	49.27%
Roasted beef tenderloin	259 mg	47.09%
Atlantic salmon, farmed, cooked (SR Legacy 2018)	252 mg	45.82%
Braised chicken breast	241 mg	43.82%
Atlantic salmon, farmed, raw (SR Legacy 2018)	240 mg	43.64%
Atlantic salmon, farmed, raw	230 mg	41.82%
Salmon	226 mg	41.09%
Anchovies, canned in olive oil, drained	226 mg	41.09%
Chicken breast, raw	215 mg	39.09%
Whole egg, raw, frozen and pasteurized	189 mg	34.36%
Braised chicken drumstick	184 mg	33.45%
Lentils, cooked and salted (SR Legacy 2018)	180 mg	32.73%
Hummus, commercial	166 mg	30.18%
Beef ribeye, raw	150 mg	27.27%
Cottage cheese, 2% fat	148 mg	26.91%
Ground beef, 90% lean and 10% fat	148 mg	26.91%
Light tuna, canned in water, drained	137 mg	24.91%
Greek yogurt, plain nonfat	136 mg	24.73%
White rice, long-grain, raw	108 mg	19.64%
Low-fat milk, 1% and fortified	103 mg	18.73%
Plain whole-milk yogurt	101 mg	18.36%
Oat milk, unsweetened and refrigerated	89.2 mg	16.22%
Chickpeas, canned and rinsed	86.5 mg	15.73%
Soy milk, unsweetened and shelf-stable	68.6 mg	12.47%
Russet potato, raw	55.2 mg	10.04%
Spinach, raw (SR Legacy 2018)	49 mg	8.91%
Hass avocado, raw	42.4 mg	7.71%
Mature carrots, raw	39.8 mg	7.24%
Spinach	39 mg	7.09%
Orange sweet potato, peeled and raw	36.7 mg	6.67%
Carrots, frozen and unprepared	31 mg	5.64%
Grape tomatoes, raw	28 mg	5.09%
Orange bell pepper, raw	26.6 mg	4.84%
Navel orange, raw	23 mg	4.18%
Strawberries, raw	23 mg	4.18%
Pie pumpkin, raw	22.3 mg	4.05%
Banana, ripe, raw	22 mg	4%
Canned diced tomatoes	18 mg	3.27%
Blueberries, raw	13 mg	2.36%
Red Delicious apple, raw	9.18 mg	1.67%

Compared with EFSA’s adult reference of 550 mg/day.

About these amounts

These values describe the named food and preparation. A 100 g comparison is not a suggested serving. Small amounts are rounded for display; an unreported amount is not zero.

Healthy European adults. Adequate intake: 550 mg/day. These are population references, not individual targets.

Portions recorded by the source

Almonds, dry-roasted and salted: 1 cup (135 g) — 615.6 mg, 111.93% of the daily reference.
Roasted beef tenderloin: 1 roast (462 g) — 1,196.58 mg, 217.56% of the daily reference.
Braised chicken breast: 1 piece (174 g) — 419.34 mg, 76.24% of the daily reference.
Braised chicken drumstick: 1 drumstick (104 g) — 191.36 mg, 34.79% of the daily reference.
Hummus, commercial: 2 tablespoon (33.9 g) — 56.27 mg, 10.23% of the daily reference.
Cottage cheese, 2% fat: 1 cup (220 g) — 325.6 mg, 59.2% of the daily reference.
Light tuna, canned in water, drained: 1 can (142 g) — 194.54 mg, 35.37% of the daily reference.
Greek yogurt, plain nonfat: 1 container (156 g) — 212.16 mg, 38.57% of the daily reference.
Low-fat milk, 1% and fortified: 1 cup (246 g) — 253.38 mg, 46.07% of the daily reference.
Canned diced tomatoes: 1 cup (245 g) — 44.1 mg, 8.02% of the daily reference.

The source records and EFSA guidance are linked in References below.

Roles and processes

Bone
Phosphorus forms mineral with calcium in Bone
Phosphate combines with calcium in the mineral phase of bone and teeth.

Worth knowing

Bone contains both calcium and phosphorus. Calcium and phosphorus together help form bone mineral. They have different functions elsewhere in the body, so an amount of one cannot stand in for the other.
Added phosphates are a separate source. Phosphorus occurs naturally in many protein-rich foods and can also be added as phosphate salts to processed foods. The source form can change how a food record is interpreted.

A closer look

The kidneys handle phosphate

Kidneys regulate phosphate excretion, so kidney disease and medicines can change the meaning and safety of phosphorus intake or concentrated phosphate products.

References

Source-checked local draft.
Human editorial review pending.

NIH Office of Dietary SupplementsPhosphorus: Fact Sheet for Health ProfessionalsChecked 2026-09-05
European Food Safety AuthorityDietary Reference Values for nutrients: Summary reportChecked 2026-09-05
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research ServiceFoodData Central Foundation Foods, April 2026 JSON releaseChecked 2026-09-05
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research ServiceFoodData Central SR Legacy, April 2018 JSON releaseChecked 2026-09-05
European Food Safety AuthorityScientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for magnesiumChecked 2026-09-04
NIH Office of Dietary SupplementsMagnesium: Fact Sheet for Health ProfessionalsChecked 2026-09-04
USDA Agricultural Research ServiceFoodData CentralChecked 2026-09-04
NIH Office of Dietary SupplementsIron: Fact Sheet for Health ProfessionalsChecked 2026-09-05
NIH Office of Dietary SupplementsVitamin D: Fact Sheet for Health ProfessionalsChecked 2026-09-05

Take it into the kitchen

Explore this nutrient in simple meals. Recipe pages show estimated amounts and missing data.

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