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The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, published every 5 years by the US Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services, offer advice on healthy eating and physical activity to promote good health and reduce the risk of chronic disease. The Food Guide Pyramid translates the Dietary Guidelines and other nutritional standards into the kinds and amounts of food to eat each day. Both the Dietary Guidelines and the Food Guide Pyramid are due for revision in 2005.
The 2000 Dietary Guidelines for Americans
Diets that include carbohydrate-containing foods such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy; moderate amounts of lean or low fat protein, like lean meat, skinless chicken, fish and beans; and moderate amounts of fat, with an emphasis on monounsaturated fats, like olive oil and canola oil, can fit within the Dietary Guidelines. Low carbohydrate, high protein diets appear to meet some of these guidelines, and in the case of sugar, go beyond moderation to elimination of sugar-containing beverages and foods. However, the high total fat and saturated fat content of many low carbohydrate, high protein diets do not meet the Dietary Guideline to choose a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol and moderate in total fat. Further, the limits placed on eating grains and some fruits and vegetables makes it harder to obtain recommended amounts of nutrients and fiber that are naturally found in carbohydrate-containing foods.
To meet the Dietary Guidelines, it’s important to eat a variety of foods in amounts that do not exceed your calorie limits for a healthy weight. That’s where the Food Guide Pyramid can help.
The Food Guide Pyramid (1992)
Some critics of the Pyramid claim that it is too carbohydrate-heavy, doesn’t distinguish between “good” fats” and “bad” fats, and is responsible for America’s obesity epidemic. However, carbohydrate-containing whole grains, fruits and vegetables contain vitamins, minerals, fiber and phytonutrients that are important for good health and reducing the risk of chronic diseases, like heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
Nutrition and weight problems may arise when people eat more than the recommended amounts of servings from the Pyramid food groups, which commonly occurs when they eat portions that are too large. Most people are confused about the size of their portions and how they compare to the USDA standard serving sizes used in the Food Guide Pyramid. For example, if you are served a pasta entrée in a restaurant, you may think of it as one serving, but, in fact, it may contain 4 or more standard servings. That plate of pasta gives you almost enough servings to meet the 6-11 Grain servings recommended by the Food Guide Pyramid each day. Another example is a full-size bagel, which typically weighs 4-5 ounces. One of these bagels equals 4-5 servings from the Grains group. As for muffins, it’s not unusual to get 6 Grain servings, plus additional fat and sugar, by eating just one muffin.
Recent studies have shown that the diets of many Americans fail to meet the food group recommendations and are too high in refined carbohydrates, added sugars and fats.1 While it is true that not all fats are alike—saturated fats and trans fats increase heart disease risk while monounsaturated fats and omega-3 fats are heart-healthy—too much of any fat is not advised.
As for the Pyramid’s role in obesity, since many people do not follow the advice of the Pyramid, it is unreasonable to blame the Pyramid for the current state of obesity in America. Lack of exercise, expanding portion sizes and eating too many calories are the fundamental contributors to our nation’s obesity problem.1