The good ole Food Pyramid has been replaced by a circle:  Yes, that's right. It's the shape of a plate. Now called My Plate, the USDA figured this is a much easier visual for people to remember.
 
 
You likely learned about the old food pyramid in health class, and you’ve most definitely seen it on your cereal box. But have you ever really taken a hard look at the Food Guide Pyramid (FGP)?  First released in 1992 by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), the FGP replaced the original Four Food groups that had been around since the 1950s, and was designed to demonstrate what healthy eating looks like. The early version of the FGP looked like this,

with the food groups arranged horizontally. The largest area on the bottom half of the Pyramid was taken up by the grains, fruits and vegetables to emphasize the importance of eating mostly plant foods. The rest of the FGP encouraged moderate intake of dairy and protein foods, and to go easy on fats, oils and sweets. It was a bit complicated to remember.

Simplifying the Message for Healthy Eating

New Dietary Guidelines for Americans are published every five years and the powers that be at USDA decided that Americans just weren’t “getting” the Food Guide Pyramid – we continued to get heavier and less healthy. New research also showed there isn’t a “one size fits all” model for healthy eating. What you need, and how much, should be dictated by your age, sex, size, how active you are and what stage of life you’re in. 

Enter www.choosemyplate.gov – the government’s latest recommednations for healthy eating that provides a more individualized approach to improving diet and lifestyle, is a lot more fun and interactive, and is much easier to remember when in the cafeteria lunch line.

How ChooseMyPlate Works

There are several ways to use ChooseMyPlate, depending on how involved you want to get:

  • For those who want to dive in, input your vital statistics into MySuperTracker, an online dietary and physical activity assessment tool. Here you can crunch out your calories; track your food intake and see how it compares to what you really need; and rate the types and intensity of your physical activities according to current recommendations.
  • Interested in an actual eating plan? Input your food and beverage preferences into My Reports tool to create healthful meals and weekly menus that you can then “copy” to family and friends.

Bottom Line? Skim the ChooseMyPlate website. Learn a bit more. Use it to eat a healthier diet and get the right amount of exercise. Just know it’s there when you’re ready. Try messing around with the tools for kids. Eating healthier may be easier than you think!

Food For Thought:

Make half your grains whole, and vary your veggies – these are just two tips to get you started on the road to smart eating.

This article was reviewed by BodiMojo expert Deborah Rohm Young, Ph.D.