The latest version of the USDA’s nutrition guidelines, released earlier this month, offers smart advice about good nutrition that’s clearer and more accessible than ever before. Here, we examine the new recommendations and tell you eight ways you can use them to eat better every day. Plus, what’s your eating style? Take our quiz to find out…
The government has been telling Americans how to eat healthy for decades. But now the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), along with First Lady Michelle Obama, is making the message a little easier for Americans to understand and adopt.
This month, the USDA ditched the old food pyramid in favor of a visually simplified illustration, called MyPlate, to show major food groups and recommended portions. In January, it issued the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, offering a more detailed breakdown of the foods we should consume – such as fruits, leafy greens, whole grains, low-fat milk products (including soy milk), and proteins like beans, nuts, eggs, seafood and lean meat.
“The old MyPyramid was cumbersome and difficult for the public to understand,” says Adrienne Youdim, M.D., medical director of the Cedars-Sinai Center for Weight Loss in Los Angeles. “MyPlate is a lot more practical and user-friendly. It’s consistent with the advice we give our patients.”
Fruits and vegetables occupy half of MyPlate, with grains and proteins taking up the remainder. It’s accompanied by a small serving of dairy.
“Having five cups of fruits and vegetables a day, making half your grains whole grains, and eating less sugar and solid fat – these are excellent guidelines,” says Katherine Tallmadge, R.D., spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association and author of Diet Simple: 192 Mental Tricks, Substitutions, Habits & Inspirations (Lifeline Press).
“If people just did those four things – or just one – it would improve their nutrition dramatically,” Tallmadge says.
Here’s how to incorporate the government’s new nutrition guidelines into your life – with expert advice on how to get even more of a healthful boost.
1. Find Your Ideal Food Balance
The new dietary guidelines advise Americans to balance calories to manage weight. This means the number of calories you consume each day depends on your desired weight and activity level.
Generally, people who lead a sedentary lifestyle (little or no exercise) should eat fewer calories than those with a moderately active lifestyle (physical activity equal to walking about 1.5-3 miles every day). And if you’re “active” – meaning you do physical activity equal to walking more than three miles every day – you can eat even more.
For example, a sedentary 35-year-old woman needs only about 1,800 calories per day to maintain her weight, while a 35-year-old woman who’s moderately active can eat about 2,000 calories a day.
What you can do: Figure out your ideal daily calorie intake, based on your activity level and desired weight, by visiting our Calorie/Energy Needs calculator.
2. Get Off the SoFAS
The government’s not talking about the couch here, but rather solid fats and added sugars (SoFAS).
Fats that stay solid at room temperature – such as butter, stick margarine and any kind of lard – make up 19% of the American diet, according to the dietary guidelines. They’re rich in saturated and/or trans fats, the culprits in high cholesterol levels and heart disease.
And added sugars account for 16% of the average American’s diet. Food manufacturers use them to sweeten foods and beverages. Too much sugar intake is linked to obesity, high blood pressure, tooth decay, diabetes and heart disease.
What you can do: Avoid saturated and trans fats. Instead, the dietary guidelines urge us to choose heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, which come from plant sources like olives, seeds and nuts.
Cook with olive, canola or other plant-based unsaturated fats, which stay liquid at room temperature. (But remember, even healthy fats are calorically dense, so enjoy them in moderation. Olive oil may be better for your heart, but it still packs 119 calories per tablespoon.)
Choose low-fat protein, like chicken and turkey, and low-fat or nonfat dairy products.
The guidelines recommend limiting saturated fat to 10% or fewer of your calories. That means a woman on a 2,000-calorie diet should consume fewer than 200 calories in saturated fat. So a quarter cup of shredded cheddar cheese – with 6 grams and 54 calories of saturated fat – equals 27% of what you should enjoy for the day.
But everyone should eat even less than that, says Rachel Johnson, Ph.D., R.D., co-chair of the American Heart Association’s nutrition committee.
“The American Heart Association [AHA] recommends keeping saturated fat down to 7% of calories per day,” she says. On a 2,000-calorie diet, that quarter cup of cheese is almost 40% of what you’re allowed.
Although the nutrition guidelines urge Americans to “reduce the intake of calories from added sugars,” they don’t suggest a specific amount. The AHA advises women to consume no more than 6 teaspoons of added sugars per day.
“We have a long way to go, since Americans consume an average of 22 teaspoons of added sugars per day,” Johnson says.
Many sources of added sugars are obvious: candy, cookies, packaged baked goods. On the ingredients label, watch for words like sugar, high fructose corn syrup, maple syrup, honey, molasses and malt syrup.
But chances are you sip most of your added sugars. Soda, energy, sports and fruit drinks account for more than 46% of added sugars in the American diet, according to the dietary guidelines. Follow the guidelines’ advice to “choose water instead of sugary drinks.”
3. Load Your Plate with Fruits and Vegetables
The new MyPlate fills half the plate with fruits and vegetables because they’re nutrient-dense and low in calories. They’re also the key to any disease-preventing diet.
The guidelines urge Americans to eat at least 2-1/2 cups of vegetables and 2 cups of fruit each day. On average, we’re only eating about 1-1/2 cups of produce total every day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
And though fresh is ideal, the nutrition guidelines promote fruits and vegetables in all forms, whether fresh, frozen, canned or dried, Tallmadge says.
“That makes the recommendation fit any budget,” she says.
What you can do: Devote half your plate to fruits and vegetables at every meal. Eat a colorful array of dark green, red and orange vegetables and fruit.
4. Go for Good Grains
Grains take up only a quarter of MyPlate, and at least half of those should be whole grains, the nutrition guidelines advise.
Whole grains leave intact the bran, germ and endosperm. Refined grains contain only the endosperm, which isn’t as nutritious.
With whole grains, you get nutrients such as iron, magnesium, selenium and B vitamins, as well as dietary fiber, which can reduce your risk of heart disease and diabetes, and help you maintain a healthy weight.
What you can do: Replace as many refined grain items – like white rice, white pasta and white bread – with brown rice, whole wheat pasta and whole wheat or sprouted wheat bread.
When choosing a product, “make sure a whole grain is first on the ingredient list,” Tallmadge says.
Learn to cook with other whole-grain foods such as quinoa, rolled oats and wheat berries with these 6 whole-grain recipes.
5. Make Room for Seafood
Like the old guidelines, the new dietary guidelines advise Americans to eat a variety of proteins, and list beans and legumes, nuts, seeds and soy products (like tofu) alongside lean meat, poultry, and eggs.
But the 2010 nutrition guidelines emphasize seafood, which is rich in heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
What you can do: Eat at least 8 ounces of fish per week, and a variety of other proteins.
Because omega-3s are linked to healthy fetal development and health in early infancy, pregnant and breast-feeding women are encouraged to eat 8-12 ounces of seafood a week.
But watch out for mercury toxicity in certain fish. Eat only 6 ounces of albacore tuna a week, and avoid tilefish, shark, swordfish and king mackerel.
6. Don’t Fall for Salt
The average American consumes more than 3,400 milligrams of sodium daily, according to the CDC. That much boosts your risk of hypertension and stroke.
People who consume more than 4,000 milligrams of sodium daily are twice as likely to have a stroke than those who eat less than 1,500 milligrams, according to 2011 research from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. It’s easy to rack up that much sodium in a day, because the mineral is abundant in processed convenience foods – everything from frozen dinners to canned tomatoes.
The 2010 nutrition guidelines recommend no more than 2,300 milligrams per day (about 1 teaspoon of table salt). But if you’re 51 or older, African-American of any age, or have high blood pressure, diabetes or kidney disease, the guidelines recommend less than 1,500 milligrams daily, or just over a half-teaspoon of salt.
Johnson goes a step further, saying everyone should limit salt intake to just 1,500 milligrams.
“Most Americans either have high blood pressure or are at risk of developing it in their lifetime,” she explains.
What you can do: Avoid processed foods, which are the main salt culprits in our diets. Always choose low-sodium products.
Cook at home with fresh ingredients – which have less sodium to begin with and allow you to control the amount of salt.
What’s Your Eating Style?
Everyone has to eat, but not everyone eats the same way. Some people consider a piece of cheese and a handful of raisins while standing at the sink a meal, while others opt for a sit down dinner complete with napkins. You may think you're eating healthy, but you may not notice everything that passes through your lips.
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