In the News: The Food Pyramid Gets a Makeover
June 24, 2011 at 12:11 pm Leave a comment
At the beginning of this month, the US Department of Agriculture unveiled a brand new replacement icon for food pyramid, which has been around since many of us can remember. “My Pyramid” is now “My Plate”, a simple picture depicting the major food groups and how they should appear at your average place setting. Fruits and vegetables are emphasized, taking up ½ of the plate, with protein and grains occupying the other half and a portion of dairy set to the side in a blue circle. The emphasis here is on simplicity. This new image was designed to be more approachable and user friendly to the majority of Americans, many of whom found the pyramid to be confusing, and let’s be honest, just plain useless. The idea is to communicate quickly and legibly the components of a balanced and nutritious meal and to provide a template for modeling after. Critics of My Plate point out that because plate sizes vary, the problem of inflated portion sizes is neglected. Also, fats are left unaddressed and excluded entirely. However, in combination with the new dietary guidelines, the hope is to communicate the importance of eating healthy, balanced meals made up mostly of whole foods, fruits and vegetables. And we are certainly on board with that!
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