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How was the food pyramid changed in 2005?

General Nutrition: How was the food pyramid changed in 2005?

Now, the change that’s occurring in the pyramid is still, unfortunately, ruled by the industry, but it is looking at the challenges we have to day with obesity in our children and obesity in our adult population. So we are looking now at the fact that ‘ok, we have to include lifestyle.’ At least they have incorporated something like fitness ideas into this pyramid and you know a little bit of differentiation between whole foods versus juice foods and they are looking at getting back to the basics a little more in the food department. There still isn’t enough differentiation between unhealthy and healthy fats, or unhealthy and healthy sugars. It’s still allowing, I feel, too much sugar in the program. Kids today are eating three quarters of a pound of sugar a week, or the equivalent to that a week! We need to teach children not to eat such high sugar products.

Being a return visitor it would be helpful if you would leave a thoughtful comment below...Thanks, Jeanne

What is the “food pyramid”?

General Nutrition: What is the “food pyramid”?

The food guide pyramid was originally developed by the food industry. It was not developed necessarily with health in mind. The food pyramid was more a vehicle for selling the food items; the dairy products, the meat products, and the canned processed products, because it was really not set up in a way that was conducive to good health. When you look at the very foundation of the food pyramid, the very base of it was carbohydrates. It was carbohydrates in any form that was baked and so it could be simple carbohydrates or complex carbohydrates. There was no differentiation. It was all grouped into the same bundle. As they moved up in the food pyramid, it was focused on dairy and meat instead of really focusing fully on what we know now to be really healthy foods; fruits, vegetables, and legumes. Actually they even basically overlooked things like beans, peas, lentils, split peas, and nuts, all of which healthy cultures in the world eat. So, the food pyramid was not founded on really nutritious foods. The food pyramid was founded on what the industry was really trying to sell. That was the basis of the food pyramid and it moved up from, you know, the carbohydrates at the bottom right up to the top where it was incorporating oils and things like that. However, it didn’t differentiate even between which oils were healthy and which ones were not. So, again, there was no differentiation between healthy versus unhealthy in the food pyramid.