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The Food Pyramid: A New Look
In 2005, the USDA released a new edition of the food pyramid, a chart designed to illustrate the appropriate daily intake of food types. First released in 1992, the new version of the food pyramid has been heavily redesigned to reflect new knowledge and recognize the recent obesity epidemic.
As you look at the old food pyramid and compare it to the new, revised pyramid, the first thing that you notice is that the categories are no longer arranged horizontally up the pyramid, but now are listed vertically.
The other main change in the appearance of the pyramid is that there is a stick figure walking up the steps of the pyramid, which is used to represent the physical activity that each person should get in addition to their balanced diet.
As you further delve into the new pyramid, you will see that the categories are represented by different widths. For example, the orange band which represents grains is larger than the purple one which represents meat and poultry. On this revised pyramid the widths of the bands represent the portion control. So, case in point, since the band for grains is about twice the size of the meats, you should eat twice the amount of grains than you do meat. These are approximate portions as you need to actually look at the food pyramid's further information to see what you should exactly be eating.
One helpful revision that was made to the pyramid was the way that the portions are described within the food categories.
Instead of simply stating that you should have two "servings" of meat a day (how much is a serving?), the new food pyramid lists actual measurements such as ounces and cups. This makes it easier for the layman to follow a balanced diet, as few people know exactly what one serving looks like. Having actual measurements spelled out in the pyramid gives better guidelines to what a portion is actually defined as, and will clarify a once-vague description.
The revised pyramid also goes a step further and has a chart that accompanies it to explain what individual demographics should eat.
A woman is ideally going to have different guidelines than a man will, just like a four year old boy is going to have different guidelines for a balanced diet than a twelve year old girl. The chart breaks the categories down by age and sex to determine what the daily recommendations are for a diverse population.
If people were to actually use the new and revised pyramid to follow a balanced diet, there would definitely be a marked decrease in obesity levels in the United States.
The revised food pyramid effectively points out specific foods and portions that a person will need to consume to have a balanced and healthy diet. It does a much better job than its predecessor at actually explaining what is healthy and exactly how much is healthy for one's diet. The revision of the pyramid was long overdue, but it appears the time was well-spent, as the revised food pyramid provides a great deal of information to people that may not know how to develop a balanced diet.
For more information, visit the USDA's food pyramid campaign website.
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