"The problem is... people don't usually know the weight of their food
*after* cooking...! 🙂"
The USDA could make it easier! Pick a nutrient that isn't affected by
cooking - total protein in many cases - then use that to relate the
USDA raw weight to their cooked weight of the same thing. Put raw
weights and resulting cooked nutrients into your diet program.
"Ok... would you allow some extra losses for ... freezing, cooking in
too much water, overcooking, reheating, and so on...?"
No, because I don't! (Note that the USDA lists data for frozen
versions of many foods.)
"According to "Linus Pauling" a much higher intake of vit C is
recommendend than in ordinary diets, though... What do you reckon?"
Pauling's main argument was that pure carnivore mammals like cats,
that produce their own vitamin C, produce an amount equivalent to
several grams/day for an adult human. But, I don't eat a carnivore's
diet!
I suspect that someone or other has recommended overdosing on just
about every nutrient there is. Our bodies are mighty complex things,
and I'm not happy with narrow-cast views of it.