diff --git a/src/index.ts b/src/index.ts
index 0509ca2..adf1d0b 100644
--- a/src/index.ts
+++ b/src/index.ts
@@ -2141,16 +2141,24 @@ ${JSON.stringify(schema, null, 2)}`
       const samples = field.samples;
       const nonNullSamples = samples.filter(s => s !== null && s !== undefined);
       
-      // Calculate required percentage
-      const requiredPercentage = nonNullSamples.length / totalRecords;
-      const required = requiredPercentage > 0.8; // 80% threshold for required
+      // Filter out empty/meaningless values for better required field detection
+      const meaningfulSamples = samples.filter(s => 
+        s !== null && 
+        s !== undefined && 
+        s !== "" && 
+        (typeof s === 'string' ? s.trim() !== "" : true)
+      );
+      
+      // Calculate required percentage based on meaningful data
+      const requiredPercentage = meaningfulSamples.length / totalRecords;
+      const required = requiredPercentage > 0.7; // 70% threshold for required (more lenient)
       
       // Detect type
       let type = 'string';
       let size = 255;
       
-      if (nonNullSamples.length > 0) {
-        const firstSample = nonNullSamples[0];
+      if (meaningfulSamples.length > 0) {
+        const firstSample = meaningfulSamples[0];
         
         if (typeof firstSample === 'boolean') {
           type = 'boolean';
@@ -2158,16 +2166,16 @@ ${JSON.stringify(schema, null, 2)}`
           type = 'integer';
         } else if (typeof firstSample === 'string') {
           // Check for email pattern
-          if (nonNullSamples.some(s => /^[^\s@]+@[^\s@]+\.[^\s@]+$/.test(s))) {
+          if (meaningfulSamples.some(s => /^[^\s@]+@[^\s@]+\.[^\s@]+$/.test(s))) {
             type = 'email';
           }
           // Check for datetime pattern
-          else if (nonNullSamples.some(s => !isNaN(Date.parse(s)))) {
+          else if (meaningfulSamples.some(s => !isNaN(Date.parse(s)))) {
             type = 'datetime';
           } else {
             type = 'string';
-            // Calculate max string length
-            const maxLength = Math.max(...nonNullSamples.map(s => String(s).length));
+            // Calculate max string length from meaningful samples
+            const maxLength = Math.max(...meaningfulSamples.map(s => String(s).length));
             size = Math.max(255, Math.ceil(maxLength * 1.2)); // 20% buffer
           }
         }