Due to rising obesity rates, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or USDA, created a revised food pyramid in 2005 called "MyPyramid." This new food pyramid encourages individuals to choose foods depending on their specific calorie needs, whether they are a child, an adult or a pregnant or breastfeeding woman.
Pyramid Basics
For all individuals, the pyramid consists of six daily food groups: grains, vegetables, fruits, oils, milk products, and meat and beans. The USDA's pyramid tracker tool allows you to input your age, height, weight and activity level to calculate your specific caloric needs and input your daily food and exercise information to determine your caloric intake versus caloric output.
Pregnancy Pyramid
Your nutritional needs change when you are breastfeeding or pregnant, even from trimester to trimester. The MyPyramid for Moms plan tells you how much food from each group you should consume each trimester, depending on your height, weight, age, activity level and due date.
Pyramid Food Tracker
Once you have your MyPyramid Plan for Moms, you can input your daily food and exercise habits and track your caloric intake using the MyPyramid Tracker. Even better, the USDA provides a MyPyramid Menu Planner for Moms, which allows you to input meals and see how they meet your specific needs each trimester.
Sample Plan
The average height and weight of an American woman in her 20s is 5 feet 4 inches and 157 pounds. According to the MyPyramid Plan for moms, a 28-year-old woman of this stature, who exercises less than 30 minutes per day, needs 2,000 calories per day in her first trimester, and 2,400 per day in her last two. In trimester one, this means consuming 6 oz. of grains, 2 1/2 cups of vegetables, 2 cups of fruit, 2 cups of milk, and 5 1/2 oz. of meat and beans. In trimesters two and three, she must consume 2 oz. more of grains, half a cup more of vegetables, and 1 oz. more of meat and beans.
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