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A different food pyramid
guide
The suggestions in this healthy food pyramid
guide were made by Dr
Michael Smith prior to the
release of the new food
guide pyramids in February
2005 by the US Government.
There are a few problems
with the outdated guide to
the healthy food pyramid.
Here is my quick list of
problems:
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Not user friendly
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Not a lot of useful
information displayed
-
Not current
However, the basic structure
of the original guide to
food pyramids is reasonable
and there is no need to
create a new "concept" for
educating the public on
nutrition and balanced diet.
If you come across a brand
new "concept" that some
website or nutritional group
is claiming as the new food
pyramid, and it is radically
different...run away, fast!
Yes, the original guide to
food pyramids needs a little
tweaking, but that's it.
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A promotion for a radically new food pyramid is most likely
a marketing
stunt for
another fad
diet!
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What I suggest are simple,
more user friendly changes
with only one significant
change...the percentages of
daily intake of fats,
carbohydrates, and proteins.
The Original Healthy Food
Pyramid
Other than servings per day
for each group, not much
information is provided.
Here are the things I would
change and add:
A. Food Pyramids Guide --
Changes
I would like to see examples (text or pictures) of specific
foods in each group. Second,
the daily recommended intake
of fat, carbohydrates, and
protein should be clearly
stated.
Something like this:
B. Food Pyramid Guide -- Add
1) Types of Fats
a. Healthy Fats (as well as the best food sources for each type)
Monounsaturated fat remains liquid at room temperature but may start to solidify
in the refrigerator. Foods
high in monounsaturated fat
include olive, peanut and
canola oils. Avocados and
most nuts also have high
amounts of monounsaturated
fat.
Polyunsaturated fat is usually liquid at room temperature and in the
refrigerator. Foods high in
polyunsaturated fats include
vegetable oils, such as
safflower, corn, sunflower,
soy and cottonseed oils.
Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fats found mostly in seafood. Good
sources of omega 3 include
fatty, cold-water fish, such
as salmon, mackerel and
herring. Flaxseeds, flax oil
and walnuts also contain
omega-3 fatty acids, and
small amounts are found in
soybean and canola oils.
b. Harmful Fats
Saturated fat. Usually solid or waxy at room temperature, saturated fat is
most often found in animal
products - such as red meat,
poultry, butter and whole
milk. Other foods high in
saturated fat include
coconut, palm and other
tropical oils.
Trans fat. Also referred to as trans-fatty acids, trans fat comes from
adding hydrogen to vegetable
oil through a process called
hydrogenation. This makes
the fat more solid and less
likely to turn rancid.
Hydrogenated fat is a common
ingredient in commercial
baked goods - such as
crackers, cookies and cakes
- and in fried foods such as
doughnuts and french fries.
Shortenings and some
margarines also are high in
trans fat.
Look for the words partially
hydrogenated in the list of
ingredients to see if the
product has trans fat. Some
food labels state if the
product has no trans-fatty
acids. By January 1 of 2006,
food manufacturers will have
to list trans fat content on
nutrition labels.
Dietary cholesterol. Your body naturally manufactures all of the
cholesterol it needs, but
you also get cholesterol
from animal products, such
as meat, poultry, seafood,
eggs, dairy products, lard
and butter.
2) From the http://www.Mayoclinic.com/face-the-fats/
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department
of Health and Human Services
(HHS) recommend that fat
make up no more than 35
percent of your daily
calories. This means that if
you consume 1,800 calories a
day, consume no more than 70
grams of fat a day.
Keep in mind, however,
that this is an upper limit
and that most of these fat
calories should come from
monounsaturated and
polyunsaturated sources.
The New Healthy Food Pyramid
Guide
There is one radical change I would propose for the healthy
food pyramid guide (yes, I
had a radical change to
suggest all this time...but
it has nothing to do with
the message itself only the
"look and feel" of it).
The color coded system was
adapted from the National
Institute of Health's
Website. The change is also
reflected in the food labels
for easy transition from
your home to the grocery
store.
1) The Food Label
2) The Food Groups
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