5-10-05
New food pyramid

The new federal food pyramid is designed to help Americans live longer, better and healthier lives.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture introduces a new food pyramid to help make Americans aware of the health benefits of making improvements in nutrition, physical activity and lifestyle behavior. Amy Olson, registered dietitian at SIU School of Medicine in Springfield, says the new pyramid is column shaped and very different visually from the old pyramid. She says changes include increases in the recommended amounts of grains, fruits and vegetables.

SOUND BITE: "I would say the milk intake has increased and the meat and beans category has decreased and more significantly and more eye-catching is the amount of oils that they are recommending. It’s all on a width basis and as you are supposed to eat more, the column becomes wider. And as you are supposed to eat less, the column very much narrows down."

Olson says the column for oils is so thin that it is almost not visible on the pyramid. Other changes include the elimination of sugar as part of a necessary diet. Sugar is now considered part of the discretionary calories. A new feature of the pyramid provides very specific portion recommendations for various age groups, based on total daily caloric intake. Olson says people who follow the new pyramid are likely to have adequate nutrition.

SOUND BITE: "You can be over weight and still not have adequate amounts of protein or vitamins, minerals and fiber so that your body does not work at it’s best. If you get too much of all of the nutrients, then you tend to have problems with obesity as a whole, high blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease . . ."

The new food pyramid can be seen on the Internet at www.MyPyramid.gov. People who do not have access to the Internet should ask their primary care physician or health care provider for the latest in dietary information.