Diet & Nutrition

Article #2 - My Pyramid Steps to a Healthier You

Last month, the USDA introduced their new Food Guide Pyramid and an interactive website to help the public use this new dietary tool. The new design emphasizes physical activity while the food groups are represented by different colors proportional to how much you should be eating. A new idea behind the pyramid is personalization. You can now follow one pyramid, out of twelve that were created, that matches your needs, based on your age, gender and activity level. Gradual improvement is another new theme of this Food Guide Pyramid. The idea is that taking small steps and making small changes to your diet and lifestyle can add up over time.

Here is a quick breakdown of what each color represents and the new USDA recommendations for each food group:

ORANGE is GRAINS: Make half your grains whole and look for the word “whole” before the grain on the ingredient list.

GREEN is VEGETABLES: Eat a variety of veggies, including dark green and orange ones.

RED is FRUITS: Focus on fruits and go easy on the fruit juice. Just like the vegetables, eat a variety of colors.

BLUE is DAIRY: Always have low-fat or fat-free dairy products

Purple is MEAT AND BEANS:Choose lean meats and include more beans, nuts and seeds in your diet. Bake, Broil or Grill your meat.

YELLOW is FATS AND OILS: Make the most of your fats from fish, nuts and vegetable oils. Avoid solid fats.

The new website, www.mypyramid.gov, has a number of tools to help you track and analyze your food and physical activity. Just remember, the calorie and food recommendations are based on maintaining your weight not losing weight. The website is very informative and I would recommend spending some time on it to stay in check with your nutrition needs.