What is the purpose of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans?

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans are to provide healthy dietary recommendations, or eating patterns, for Americans to follow based of accepted scientific research. That is, research that meets the high standards of the scientific community has been reviewed by many health professionals and is recognized as sound evidence-based research. The primary purpose is to provide policymakers, nutritionists, and healthcare providers with food patterns for Americans over 2 years olds that promotes health and lowers the risk of chronic diseases. The guideline are revised every 5 years by an advisory committee appointed by the US Dept. of Health and Human Services and US Dept. of Agriculture. New guidelines were released earlier this year.

How are the Dietary Guidelines for Americans different than the nutrition information that listeners might read in a best selling diet book, hear on a talk show, be told by a vitamin sells-person, or even information from a friend?

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans is the best information – the ultimate, top of the level information. The guidelines are based on thousands of hours of research by thousand of people, then evaluated and distilled down into the best information the medical community has to offer. It is not based on a few peoples’ research. Some of the information published in the diet books has no scientific base, rather it is just someone's concept or theory written in a book which makes it look reliable. Even when medical professionals publish or sell their ideas, it may not be based on mainstream accepted scientific research.

So the Dietary Guidelines is the best information for people to follow and to use to evaluate information they read or hear?

Yes.

How have the guidelines changes in 2005?

Poor diet and physical inactivity has lead to an increase in overweight and obesity in the US. Data from 1999-2002 showed that 65%, or 2 out 3 Americans, were overweight. Thirty percent were obese. It is estimated that Hispanic children born in the year 2000 have a 50% chance of having diabetes in their lifetime. This means that children who have a Hispanic genetic make-up have a 1 in 2 chance of having diabetes. Being overweight or obese severely increases a person’s risk for chronic diseases. The guidelines were changed to encourage Americans to eat fewer calories, to be more active, and to make wiser food choices.

How do you know if you are overweight or obese?

A person can determine their risk factor for chronic disease based of the Body Mass Index. It is a calculation many doctor’s offices are now doing each time you visit. To simplify the process today here are some silhouettes of body shapes as examples to determine your health risk level. If you body shape is similar to that with a BMI of 26 or larger you are at greater risk. The more body weight the greater the risk. We are getting so use to seeing overweight people that sometimes I think we forget that it is unhealthy. However, you cannot apply these BMI body shapes to children. They have their own body shapes and different Body Mass Index risk ratios.

Are there any other methods the viewers could use to determine their risks for chronic disease?

Another method is to measure your waist. A woman with a waist line greater than 35 inches or a man with a waistline great than 40 inches are also considered overweight and a greater risk for chronic diseases. Take a tape measure, string, or belt measure your waist. If you are using a string or belt, then measure the string or belt to see if you are a women you have a waist over 35 or for a man over 40 inches – you need to talk with your doctor and make a plans to eat fewer calories, to be more active, and to make wiser food choices to reduce your risk of chronic disease.

What kind of chronic diseases are associated with being overweight and obese?

Extra body fat increases the risk of premature death, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease, stroke, gall bladder disease, respiratory dysfunction, gout, osteoarthritis, and some cancers.

In what way are the new dietary guidelines addressing American poor diet and low activity level?

The new food guide pyramid encourages Americans to eat fewer calories, to be more active, and to make wiser food choices. The food guide pyramid was developed to provide us with a visual reminder about of the dietary guidelines. The food guide pyramid has been changed to illustrate the current concept is to “to eat fewer calories, to be more active, and to make wiser food choices."

Let’s talk about the new food guide pyramid’s new design (see the new Pyramid).

‘My Pyramid’ suggests that each is person needs to personalize their eating and physical activity pattern to be healthier. ‘Steps to a Healthier You’ was added to remind us to take small steps to gradual change to a healthier lifestyle. mypyramid.gov is a website where you can go to learn more.

The person climbing the stairs is to remind us of the importance of daily physical activity. A variety of food sources in our daily patterns is represented by the 6 colored bands for the 5 food groups and the 6th band is for oils in our food pattern. The food group color bands show us that we can include large portions of foods with little or no solid fats or added sugars. The foods at the top of the food guide pyramid in each group should be eaten less often that the foods at the bottom or base of the pyramid. For example, apple pie should be eaten infrequently, perhaps less than once every few weeks. While apples and other fresh fruit, may be eaten frequently – several serving every day.

The guidelines also give Americans specific recommendations of the amount of food to be eaten from each food group each day based on your estimate caloric need. The average energy need is 2000 calories.

Let’s talk about a food pattern for 2000 calories per day.

The first band to the right is the grain group. It includes all foods made from wheat, rice, oats, cornmeal, barley, such as bread, pasta, oatmeal, breakfast cereals, tortillas, and grits. A serving size is 1 slice of bread, 1 cup of ready to eat cereal, or ½ cup of cooked rice, pasta, or cooked cereal equals 1 ounce. At least half of all grains consumed should be whole grains. Bread can not just say wheat bread, it must say whole wheat or grain for it to be a whole grain food. In a 2000 calorie food pattern, you need to consume about 6 servings of foods in the grain group.

Vegetables are the next band. Vegetable group includes all fresh, frozen, canned, and dried vegetables and vegetable juices. A serving size is usually 1 cup of raw or cooked vegetables or vegetable juice, or 2 cups of raw leafy greens is 1 cup of vegetables. Eating more vegetables is something many people need to work on. I like to encourage my patients to eat a variety of canned, steamed frozen vegetables, and raw. Using a variety of raw and cooked, for example serve ½ cup of cooked and 1 cup raw vegetables at lunch and supper, such as steamed broccoli and carrot sticks, will frequently encourage people to eat more vegetables at a meal. Also, there are more guidelines to the types of vegetables to eat each weeks to get a well balance mix of nutrients. The guidelines recommend using a variety of vegetables during the week to include at least 3 cups of dark green vegetables, such as broccoli, spinach, romaine lettuce; 2 cups of orange vegetables, such as carrots, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and winter squash; 3 cups of dried cooked beans and peas; 3 cups of starchy vegetables, such as corn, green peas; and 6 ½ cups of other vegetables, such as tomatoes, green beans, cabbage, cauliflower. We can increase our vegetable intake by ordering salads instead of fries, add bean to salads, add vegetables to stews and soups.

Fruit is the next band. The recommendation is to eat a variety of fruit, include all fresh, frozen, canned, and dried fruits and fruit juices. In general, 1 cup of fruit or 100% fruit juice or ½ cup of dried usually is considered to equal to 1 cup of fruit. Consume less than half of total fruit intake as juice. It is better to eat the fruit which includes the fiber than to just drink juice. For healthy eating when trying to maintain or reduce weight, consider using water as the beverage of choice with each meal or snack, instead of juice or other drinks. Add fruits as snacks, desserts, to salads, as toppings to replace syrup on pancake.

Milk is the next food group. The milk group provides some important mineral we need to stay healthy - calcium and potassium. When you choose milk products, watch the fat. “Go low-fat or fat-free when you choose milk, yogurt, or cheese. What should people get their calcium if they are lactose intolerant that is they get gas and diarrhea when they eat or drink milk products? If lactose intolerant, choose nondairy foods high in calcium, such as fortified soy beverages, tofu, fortified ready-to-eat cereals, canned salmon or sardine with bones, spinach and other cooked greens, white beans. Other ways to help preserve calcium in your body by not smoking, not eating excess meat, not drinking colas, and do weight-bear exercise using the long, large bones of the body.

Many people in our culture love to eat meat. How much protein is recommend?

5 ½ ounces a day is all a person needs on a 2000 calorie food plan. This is approximately the amount of tuna in a small can. Extra protein is frequently used as energy or stored as fat. Watch your portion size. Share an entrée or save half for later. Many people eat to much meat putting unnecessary stress of their liver and kidney. Also, meats are usually the most expense items you buy at the grocery. When you reduce you meat portion you have more money to buy fruits and vegetables. Go lean with protein, meaning low-fat. Fat is hidden in meat, you can’t always see it. For example, the redder a cut of beef is the lower the fat while the more pink cut are higher in fat. Vary your protein routine by including more fish, bean, peas, nuts, and seeds. In general, 1 ounce of lean meat, poultry, or fish, 1 egg, 1 Tbsp peanut butter, ¼ cup cooked dry bean, or ½ ounce of nuts or seeds will be roughly equivalent to 1 ounce portion. Remember for a 2000 calorie food plan only 5 ½ ounces of meat are recommended each day.

And what's the last band all about?

The last band to the right encourages Americans to ‘know your limits on fats, sugars, and sodium'.

FATS: 6 teaspoons a day
Consume less than 10% of calories from saturated fatty acids and less than 300 mg/day of cholesterol, and keep trans fatty acids consumption as low as possible. Choose most fats from sources of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, such as fish, nuts, seeds, and vegetables oils, such as canola and olive oil. Do not overeat animal products with saturated fatty acids. Limit foods with trans-fatty acids such as shortering, salad dressings, whipped peanut butter, and margarines.

SUGAR: choose foods and beverages with little added sugars or caloric sweeteners.

SODIUM: choose and prepare foods with little salt. Limit to about 1 teaspoon/day (less than 2300 mg/day). Also, consume potassium rich foods, such as fruit and vegetables.

Do people need to take vitamin and mineral supplements?

A healthy food pattern should include all needed nutrients without the need for additional nutrient supplements, such as vitamins, minerals, or protein supplements for most health people. There are some special population groups which have special needs, such as people over age 50 are recommended to take a vitamin B12 supplement or to consume foods with have been fortified with it; women of childbearing age who may become pregnant need to pay attention to their iron and folic acid intakes; older adults, people with dark skin, and people with insufficient exposure to sunlight are recommended to consume food fortified with vitamin D. Check with your doctor.

Can you give us an idea what a healthy meal within the Dietary Guidelines will look like?

Let’s start with the most important nutrient to human life. Without it, we can only live a few days. It is water. Many people do not drink enough water. Inadequate water intake can contribute to tiredness or fatigue. I would like to suggest water as the first beverage for all people over the age of 2 with each meal. Usually our meal beverage is just a ‘wash down’ beverage. You can enjoy other beverages between meals.

Next, please notice the plate (see the plate). It is divided into quarters. The first quarter is meat. Most people eat a meat portion that takes up half of their plate. This is to much protein for most healthy people. People feel better when they do not eat such heavy meals. Foods that go into the protein or meat section of the plate, include baked chicken, baked turkey, baked chicken, and baked fish – use these foods most of the time.

The other quarter of the plate is the grain section. In this section of the plate, goes corn tortillas, whole breads.
Half of the plates is recommended to be vegetables. H ere you can place a large salad or stirred vegetables. Or you could use a quarter of the plate of cooked vegetables, such as steamed broccoli and the other quarter of the plate raw vegetables, such as carrot sticks, sliced cucumbers, and tomato slices.

Use oils and other fats in preparation, such as canola oil in stir-vegetables, ranch dressing on a salad.
You can take a little of ranch dressing, such as a teaspoon and add low-fat milk or another liquid to dilute it to reduce the calories to a low-fat item and make it so it can cover more of your salad.

Fruit can be added to a meal, eaten as a dessert, or my favorite suggest is to eat 3-4 serving of fruit between your meals through the day. Remember to eat a variety of fruits.

For healthy people, what is meant by consuming a ‘variety of nutrient dense food’?

Nutrient dense foods are the one with a good amounts of vitamin, mineral and other nutrients and are lower calories. For example, a fresh apple is more nutrient dense that apple pie – meaning the fresh apple has more vitamins and mineral. Eating a variety means eating an apple is a very good nutrient dense, but it better to eat an apple for morning snack one day and the next day eat an orange. An orange is a good nutrient dense fruit like the apple, but it provides different vitamins and minerals to the body. So, it is better to eat many different fruits and vegetables, instead of your favorite few.