dietary guidelines | Wellness Secrets of a SuperAger

Dietary guidelines are designed to suggest foods and food patterns that provide all the nutrients and bioactive compounds our bodies need, while avoiding those we don’t need (like too much sodium, starch, added sugars, and unwanted additives).

MyPlate, based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, recommends filling half our plates with fruits and vegetables, about a quarter with grains, and about a quarter with lean protein. “When following MyPlate, the Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter recommends meeting the grain component with minimally processed whole grains, and eating plenty of nuts, seeds, fish, and poultry to maximize healthy fats, proteins, and other nutrients,” says Dariush Mozaffarian, MD, DrPH, dean of the Friedman School and editor-in-chief of Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter.

Pages: 1 2

In the ‘news to me’ department, I just ran across this on the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health website and thought I would pass it along in case you also missed it.

We got new dietary guidelines from the government back in January with needed updates on sugar intake and total fat. However, the USDA and HHS didn’t act on all the recommendations of the advisory committee of experts that they appointed.

On the positive side, they recommended:
•   A variety of vegetables from all of the subgroups—dark green, red and orange, legumes (beans and peas), starchy, and other
•   Fruits, especially whole fruits
•   Grains, at least half of which are whole grains
•   Fat-free or low-fat dairy, including milk, yogurt, cheese, and/or fortified soy beverages
•   A variety of protein foods, including seafood, lean meats and poultry, eggs, legumes (beans and peas), and nuts, seeds, and soy products
•   Oils

However, on the negative side, “Clearly these Guidelines bear the hoof prints of the Cattleman’s Association and the sticky fingerprints of Big Soda. They fail to represent the best available scientific evidence and are a disservice to the American public,” according to the School of Public Health at Harvard. Continue reading →