Foods Glorious Foods!
The Food Guide Pyramid - (A good place to start)
The Food Guide Pyramid, which was developed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 1992, has been taking a bum rap in recent times. The
Food Guide Pyramid is not a strict regimen, but is merely a guide for
what to eat each day with the relative portions, hence the name Food
Guide Pyramid.
Critics claim that the food pyramid
doesn't distinguish between items within a group. For example, what the
difference would be between beans and meat in the protein group or
cookies and bread in the grains group. Others contend that the food
pyramid has seduced the public into believing that only fat calories
will make them fat. They also propose that widespread acceptance of the
food pyramid by the public has led to the boom in obesity because in
their view the recommendations set forth by the food pyramid are a
"permit or license to overeat." It's no wonder that the food pyramid
fails in the eyes of various special interest groups, especially those
advocating low-carbohydrate and/or high-protein diets. The list of
critiques goes on and on. Even the USDA has chimed in by agreeing that
the food pyramid isn't detailed enough. The "new" food pyramid arrived in 2005.
For
critics to claim that the food pyramid has led to the recent steep rise
in obesity in America is a bit of a stretch because it remains unclear
if the advice offered by the food guide pyramid has been widely
accepted by the public. Opponents of the food pyramid have likely
exaggerated its importance in the minds of most Americans and therefore
have placed too much of the blame on the food pyramid for an overweight
America. It is more reasonable to suggest that America's obsession with
fast food and packaged meals, which generally contain too many calories
and the fact that so many Americans fail to exercise on a regular basis
have spawned the obesity problem. Too many Americans have been following an "unbalanced" food pyramid.
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__America's Unbalanced Food Pyramid
Since the advent of the Food Guide Pyramid a number of food pyramids have sprung up including those in the following list: African Food Pyramid, Asian Food Pyramid, Healthy Eating Food Pyramid, Latin American Food Pyramid, Mediterranean Food Pyramid, Vegan Food Pyramid and the Vegetarian Food Pyramid.
The debate continues over which food pyramid is better. Some people
swear by the Mediterranean Food Pyramid while others claim that the
Healthy Eating Food Pyramid is the way to go. The fact is that all of
the various food pyramids (including the traditional Food Guide
Pyramid) serve a useful purpose in helping people plan healthy,
well-balanced meals.
I
believe that the most important advice you can take from any one of the
various Food Pyramids is to eat a variety of foods. No single food
gives you all of the nutrients you need and therefore variety is the
key. Whatever food pyramid you choose to adopt, I wish you healthy
eating!
Doc Bones discusses the Food Guide Pyramid
The
Food Guide Pyramid features foods from five major food groups. Although
each food group contributes many of the nutrients we need it is the sum
of these groups that provides us with all of the nutrients we need.
- Bread, Cereal, Rice & Pasta Group
- Protein Group: Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs and Nuts
- Dairy Group: Milk, Cheese, Yogurt and Ice Cream
Let's examine each of these groups:
Bread, Cereal, Rice & Pasta Group_
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______________Plenty of Pasta
Foods
from this group provide complex carbohydrates (starches), which are an
important source of energy. Many of the foods from this group are also
good sources of dietary fiber (roughage).
The Food Guide Pyramid suggests 6 to 11 servings from this group each day.
What counts as a serving?
- 1 ounce of ready-to-eat cereal
- 1/2 cup cooked cereal, rice or pasta
It's
easier to eat 6-11 servings from the bread, cereal, pasta, rice group
than you might think. For example, if you start your day with a small
bowl of cereal and a slice of toast for breakfast you have just eaten
two servings from this group. A sandwich at lunch equal two servings,
since each slice of bread is one serving. Thus far you have had four
servings. A mid-day snack, like a small bagel, is another serving. If
at dinner you have two serving of pasta or rice (each one-half cup of
pasta or rice equals one serving) you are already up to seven servings.
Its likely that you will have more than two servings at dinner, let's
say four servings, which puts you at nine servings. If for dessert you
have another serving from this group you are at ten servings. So as you
can clearly see it all adds up. Let recap:
Bread, Cereal, Pasta, Rice Group
Breakfast - two servings
Lunch - two servings
Snack - one serving
Dinner - two to four servings
Dessert - one serving
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Total - eight to ten servings
How many servings are right for you?
This
depends on how many calories you need each day. If you are very active,
then you will require more calories than if you are less active and you
may need more than the recommended 6-11 servings. For those of you who
are less active or want to lose a few extra pounds, then perhaps six
servings should be your limit for the day.
Nutritional Quality
When choosing items from this group as with any group from the Food Guide Pyramid, it is important to consider the nutritional quality of the foods you select.
For example, whole-grain breads, cereals and pasta are more nutritious
than their refined grain counterparts. Food scientists have found that
whole-grain brown rice, oats, wheat and corn are more nutrient dense
and have much more fiber than those grains that have been refined by
milling.
Whole grains have three basic parts: the bran, germ, and endosperm.
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_____Wheat Kernel
The refining (milling) process strips whole
grains of the bran and germ, stripping away nearly all of the
fiber and much of the nutrients. The refined grain products must then be fortified with vitamins and minerals.
Mr. Whole Grains
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___Mr. Whole Grains says,
"Try Whole Grain products for better nutrition."__
Fruit Group:_
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Fruits
are high in energy, vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and fiber. There
are so many varieties to choose from you can't possibly say that you
don't like fruit! Try fresh fruits over frozen, dried and canned.
Canned fruits generally come in light or heavy syrups that just add
extra calories. Go with 100% fruit juices rather than fruit-punches and -ades, which usually only contain 10% real fruit juice.
The Food Guide Pyramid suggests 2 to 4 servings of fruits a day.
What counts as a serving from this group?
- Whole fruit: a medium apple, banana, or orange
- 1/2 cup of chopped, cooked, or canned fruit
- 3/4 cup of 100% fruit juice
Why are Bananas never lonely?
Because they hang around in bunches!
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___Yes, we have some Bananas! _________Flying Fruit_ _
There is a multitude of delicious fruits to enjoy. Thanks to improved
transport and storage techniques, many fruits are available year-round.
Vegetable Group:___
Vegetables
are a good source of energy, vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and
fiber. With so many wonderful vegetables to choose from you can have a
feast! Try fresh vegetables over frozen and canned.
Canned vegetables generally have added salt and most of us can probably
do without the extra salt. Whole vegetables have more fiber than
vegetable juices.
The Food Guide Pyramid suggests 3 to 5 servings of vegetables each day.
What counts as a serving from the vegetable group?
- 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables
- 1/2 cup of non-leafy, cooked or chopped raw vegetables
- 3/4 cup of vegetable juice
___Why is it unwise to tell
___secrets in a cornfield?
________________________________Skelly Skeleton
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___There are too many ears!________Juggles some Peas
____Who said, "Pumpkins can't fly?"
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_________Doc Bones juggles some Carrots
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_Talking Vegetables
Get your Amino Acids Here!
Protein Group:____
Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs and Nuts
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___Beef_________Ham_________Pork_______Cold Cuts
___________________________________Who tells the best Chicken jokes?
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_ __Comedi-hens !
_____________Chicken__________Turkey
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_________ _________All Kinds of Fish__
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Some of the many different Sea and Freshwater Protein Sources:
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__Crab_________Clams_________Lobster_________Shrimp
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Beans and more beans____________The Incredible Egg!
Go Nuts!! With all kinds of Nuts:
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Nuts are a good source of protein!
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_Peanuts__ ____Almonds_________Cashews_________Pecans____
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__Walnuts________Brazil Nuts_________Hazel Nuts_____
The word Protein comes from the Greek word 'proteios'
meaning "of first importance."
Amino acids are the building blocks of protein molecules.
Humans use about 20 different amino acids in constructing the various
proteins we need.
The Food Guide Pyramid suggests 2 to 4 servings from this group.
What counts as a serving?
- Lean meat, poultry, fish, cooked (3 oz.)
- Ground beef, lean, cooked (3 oz.)
- Dry beans and peas, cooked, 1/2 cup (1 oz.)
- Peanut butter, 2 tablespoons (1 oz.)
How do you like your Eggs?
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________Hard-boiled______or _______Sunny-Side Up!
The American Egg Board has an interesting website http://www.aeb.org/
Check out their Eggcyclopedia!
___________________________________________What key also has legs,
________________________________but still can't open doors?
What is a Hamburger's motto?
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_If at first you don't succeed,____________A Turkey!
______fry, fry again!
Dairy Group: __
Milk, Cheese, Yogurt and Ice Cream
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Dairy products are a delicious way to get protein and bone-building calcium into your diet.
The Food Guide Pyramid suggests 2 to 3 servings of milk, yogurt, and cheese a day.
What counts as a serving?
- 1-1/2 ounces of natural cheese
- 2 ounces of processed cheese
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese 1/4 serving
- 1/2 cup of ice cream or ice milk
Dairy Products are an excellent source of Bone-Building Calcium
Doc Bones juggles some Bones!
Hey, Mrs. Ice Cream, 
_You look Marvelous!
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Doc juggles the Cheese Kids!_____I Scream for Ice Cream!
Skelly Skeleton and the Boney Buddies enjoy a day in the Sun.
Pizza Pie is a great way to enjoy Cheese.
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__Who wants a slice of Pizza?
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Doc Bones Juggles Pizza Pie!
Fats, Oils and Sweets
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Honey___
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Fats, Oils and Sweets (added sugars) are at the top of the Food Guide Pyramid, reminding us to use these items sparingly. There is no question that fats and oils hold an important place in a healthy diet.
For example, we must obtain certain essential fatty acids through our
diet. However, we do not need to take in excess fats and oils in order
to obtain these essential fatty acids. Fats
and oils are the body's most concentrated form of energy, providing 9
kilocalories (kcal) of energy per gram of fat (oil). This is more than
twice the energy per gram provided by carbohydrates (4 kcal/gram) and
proteins (4 kcal/gram). Unused calories from fats and oils are stored
in the body as fat. One pound of fatty tissue contains about 3500 kcal
of energy. It is easy to see how losing weight (fatty tissue) can be
such a struggle.
Added Sugars in Foods
We need to keep track of "added sugars" in the foods that we eat.
Added sugars are found in so many prepared foods, including breakfast
cereals, cakes, cookies, jams and jellies and of course in abundance in
candy and soft drinks. These
sugars, which include white sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, honey and
molasses (to name just a few) supply us with calories, but contribute
little else in terms of nutrition (vitamins and minerals). The
extra calories add up quickly and if we don't use them as fuel we will
store them as fat. Too much sugar in the American diet has greatly
contributed to the obesity problem in America. Most of us really don't need the extra sugar!
Good Fat, Bad Fats?
Critics
contend that the Food Guide Pyramid does not distinguish between
so-called "good fats" (mono-unsaturated and polyunsaturated fats) and
"bad fats" (saturated fats and trans-fats), but instead conveys to the
public the message that all fats are bad. This contention is only
partly true in the sense that the Food Guide Pyramid itself gives no
information concerning the three basic types of fats: saturated,
monounsaturated and polyunsaturated. However, in a booklet that
accompanies the Food Guide Pyramid this information is provided. For
example, it is mentioned in the booklet that all fats found in foods
are mixtures of three types of fatty acids: saturated, monounsaturated,
and polyunsaturated.
This is correct. The truth is that all fats
and oils have a certain percentage of saturated, mono-unsaturated and
polyunsaturated fatty acids. For example, butter (considered to be a
saturated fat) does have a high percentage of saturated fatty acids (~ 62%), but it also has ~ 29%
mono-unsaturated fatty acids and ~ 4% polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Sunflower oil, which is high in polyunsaturated fatty acids (~ 66%) has ~ 20% mono-unsaturated fatty acids and ~ 10% saturated fatty acids.
The
Food Guide Pyramid advises us to avoid too much saturated fat, which
various studies have linked to cardiovascular diseases (heart disease
and stroke). Saturated fats have been shown to raise blood
cholesterol levels. This may subsequently lead to the deposit of
cholesterol and fatty materials as atherosclerotic plaques in arteries,
increasing the risk for coronary artery disease. This is the rationale
for a theory known as the lipid hypothesis (lipid meaning fat).
[It
should be noted that quite a few physicians and scientists simply do
not agree with these findings and therefore challenge the validity of
the lipid hypothesis. Many of them believe that our modern American
diet, high in hydrogenated vegetable oils and trans fatty acids is at
fault for the higher incidence of heart disease and stroke. Still
others contend that the "added sugars" in so many of the foods that we
eat are the real culprit in the obesity epidemic in America.]