2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans

The following is the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and helpful recommendations for meeting those guidelines: The United States Department of Agriculture developed the 2010 Dietary Guidelines because “more than one-third of children and more than two-thirds of adults in the United States are overweight or obese” (USDA, 2011). It is an evidence based outline driven by the hopes that America becomes healthier, and aims to help people attain and maintain better health through a good diet and physical activity. Obesity has become a problem in our nation, and this government backed publication is meant to help curb the crisis.

The key recommendations for behavior modifications and balancing calories to manage weight include:

·      Preventing and/or reducing being overweight or obese through improved eating patterns and increased physical activity

·      Controlling total caloric intake in order to manage body weight. For people who are obese or overweight, this means that they must consume few calories from both foods and beverages

·      Increasing physical activities and reducing time spent participating in sedentary behaviors

·       Maintaining appropriate caloric balance during each stage of life: pregnancy, breastfeeding/infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and geriatric years

·      Select an eating pattern that better meets nutrient needs, and at an appropriate calorie level (which balances with physical activity)

·    Follow safe food handling recommendations when preparing and eating food to reduce the risk of food borne illnesses

·      Factor in ALL foods and beverages consumed throughout the day, and asses how they fit into a total healthy eating pattern

    (Sizer, 2011)

 

Some of its key recommendations for food consumption and nutrients to increase are:

·      Increase consumption of vegetables and fruits

·      Eat a variety of colors, especially dark-green, red and orange vegetables, along with plenty of beans and peas

·      Make sure at least half of your consumed grains are whole grains

·      Increase intake of fat/low-fat, calcium fortified dairy or soy products

·      Choose a variety of healthy protein sources, including lean fish, leans meats and poultry, eggs/egg whites, beans and peas, unsalted nuts and seeds, and soy products.

·      Use oils to replace solid fats where possible

·      Replace protein that are higher in solid fats with healthier choices lower in solid fats and calories (such as lean fish)

·      Choose higher nutrient dense foods, such as in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, milk and milk products, which provide more potassium, dietary fiber, calcium, and vitamin D than other refined and processed options

    (Sizer, 2011)

Its key recommendations for food consumption and food components to reduce are:

·     Make sure you consume less than 10% of your calories from saturated fats, replacing them with monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fats (such as from raw vegetable/food oils, nuts, avocadoes)

·     Consume less than 300 milligrams of dietary cholesterol per day

·     Reduce your daily sodium intake to less than 2,300 milligrams per day and further reduce to 1,500 milligrams for those who are over the age of 51, are African American, or have diabetes, hypertension or kidney disease

·     Keep trans fats as low or non-existent as possible by limiting foods that contain synthetic sources of trans fats, such as in hydrogenated oils or other solid fats

·     Limit you consumption of refined foods, especially refined grain foods that contain solid fats, added sugars, and sodium (such as in breads, pastries, candy bars, snacks, etc.)

·     In conjunction with the previous point, try to limit solid fats and added sugars altogether

·     If alcohol is consumed, it should be limited to one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men (and only by adults of legal drinking age)

    (Sizer, 2011)

Basically, “the new 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans focus on balancing calories with physical activity, and encourage Americans to consume more healthy foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, fat-free and low-fat dairy products, and seafood, and to consume less sodium, saturated and trans fats, added sugars, and refined grains” (USDA, 2011). It encourages being thoughtful and intentional about the way you eat, and to be more mindful as to what you put into your body. As I mentioned in an earlier post: You are (or at least you will become) what you eat. What you put into your body and how you treat it will follow you into the next day, and into the future. Other recommendations by the USDA include replacing sugary drinks with water; enjoying what you eat, but eat less of it; avoid over-sized or super-sized portions; and switch to fat-free or 1% milk. “By adopting the recommendations in the Dietary Guidelines, Americans can live healthier lives and contribute to a lowering of health-care costs, helping to strengthen America’s long-term economic competitiveness and overall productivity” (USDA, 2011).

Resources

Sizer, F., & Whitney, E. (2011). Nutrition concepts and controversies (12^th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth learning.

USDA (2011). USDA and HHS Announce New Dietary Guidelines to Help Americans Make   Healthier Food Choices and Confront Obesity Epidemic. United States Department of griculture. Retrieved fromhttp://www.cnpp.usda.gov/Publications/DietaryGuidelines/2010/PolicyDoc/PressRelease.pdf