USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans & Helpful Nutrition Tips

I was reading through various material on the http://www.mypyramid.gov site and I came across a document, "USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans" published by the USDA and it contains 10 really distinct dietary guidelines that help you plan and maintain a healthy diet for your lifestyle.

USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans

These 10 guidelines are intended for healthy adults and children 2 years of age and older.  Their purpose is to promote good health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and stroke.

-Aim For Fitness.....

        1.  Aim for healthy weight. 

• Reference the BMI Chart below to get a good idea of what your recommended healthy weight should be. (BMI Chart used from http://www.hoptechno.com/bmiadults.htm)

       2.  Be physically active each day.

•  Ensure that you have a well balanced physical fitness regiment, engaging in moderate to vigorous activity, most days of the week.

-Build A Healthy Base.....

       3.  Let the Pyramid guide your food choices.

• The new and improved Food Pyramid - http://www.mypyramid.gov/pyramid/index.html 

       4.  Choose a variety of grains daily, especially whole grains.

• Remember, grains and specifically whole grains provide carbohydrates, which is the primary energy source that fuels our bodies, mentally and physically.  (Your brain uses at least 600 calories per day and carbohydrates are the ONLY source of energy food for the Brain.)
• Helpful link - http://www.mypyramid.gov/pyramid/grains.html

       5.  Choose a variety of fruits and vegetables daily.

• Fruits and vegetables provide a multitude of nutritional benefits which play a vital role in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
• Helpful link - http://www.mypyramid.gov/pyramid/vegetables_amount_table.html

       6.  Keep food safe to eat.

• Make sure you properly store your foods, whether in the cupboard or refrigerator and keep in mind temperature and humidity also have a factor on maintaining freshness  Sometimes using air tight Tupperware containers, helpful keep dry foods, like cereals, fresher for a longer period of time.
• Helpful Link - http://www.mypyramid.gov/tips_resources/foodsafety.html

-Choose Sensibility.....

      7.  Choose a diet that is low in saturated fat and cholesterol and moderate in total fat.

• One way to acheive this is to avoid fried foods, fast food restaurants; fatty meats - cutting back on all these items will help you to maintain a low saturated fat diet.

      8.  Choose beverages and foods to moderate your intake of sugars.

• I recommend for you to carry around a water bottle everywhere you go so you always maintain fluid intake.  Water accounts for over 70% of your total body weight.  Its recommended that most americans should drink at least 100oz of H20 daily. 
• Helpful link - http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/DietaryGuidelines/2010/DGAC/Report/D-6-SodiumPotassiumWater.pdf#xml=http://65.216.150.153/texis/search/pdfhi.txt?query=fluid&pr=MyPyramid&rdepth=0&sufs=2&order=r&cq=&id=4d9cfb4413a

      9.  Choose and prepare foods with less salt.

• The majority of foods we eat naturally contain variable amounts of sodium.  The recommended daily intake for Americans is 1500mg-2500mg.  Try salt-free seasonings instead of sodium packed seasonings.  
• Helpful link - http://www.mypyramid.gov/downloads/TenTips/SodiumTipsheet.pdf

    10.  If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation.

• 1 gram of fat = 9 calories, 1 gram of carbohydrates = 4 calories, 1 gram of protein = 4 calories, 1 gram of alcohol = 7 calories;  Have you ever heard of people getting a "beer belly", yeah, it happens when people drink too much.  I used to have one from a long time ago, and I am still working hard to get it completely gone.  You can do it, just cut back, set your limit to 2 drinks.
• Helpful link -   http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/DietaryGuidelines/2010/Meeting5/AlcoholicBeveragesConsumption.pdf#xml=http://65.216.150.153/texis/search/pdfhi.txt?query=alcohol&pr=MyPyramid&rdepth=0&sufs=2&order=r&cq=&id=4d9cfb947 

Really take some time to look at this stuff and see how you can start to incorporate these healthy eating practices.  I garauntee that you will start to notice a complete change in your physiology once you strive to make changes toward a completely balanced healthy eating plan in place.


If you have any questions or comments at all, you know what to do and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Source:  U.S. Department of Agriculture/U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Comments in blue, are my own comments from my own experiences that have been proven for myself and past and present clients.