If you were an elementary school student anytime in the 1990s, you probably recognize the food pyramid. Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University, calls the food pyramid "an icon." Many nutritional experts criticized the old food pyramid, so a new version was published in 2005. If your understanding of the food pyramid is still based on what you learned in third grade, it's time for an update.
Step 1
Learn from the mistakes of the past. The old food pyramid lacked nuance. There are healthy and not-so-healthy types of oils, meat and grains. The old food pyramid doesn't distinguish between seafood and red meat, whole grains and refined grains, or olive oil and lard.
Step 2
Learn from the present. Go online to mypyramid.gov and start a personalized pyramid by entering your age, sex, weight, height and physical activity level. The website will create a tailored eating program for you. The website also calculates a daily calorie intake based on the average needs for someone with similar characteristics.
Step 3
Pay attention to portion size, but watch your language. The old food pyramid used serving sizes to talk about daily portion recommendations. The ambiguous "serving size" term confused people. The new food pyramid at MyPyramid.gov represents portion sizes in ounces and cups instead of servings.
Step 4
Explore the MyPyramid.gov website. The website contains lots of hints for jump-starting a healthy diet. One key tip: "vary your veggies" by eating a mix of orange, dark green and starchy vegetables as well as beans and peas. The MyPyramid.gov website also includes meal tracking worksheets for 12 different calorie levels.
Step 5
Get a second opinion. The Harvard School of Public Health has developed its own food pyramid using daily exercise and weight control as its base. It also recommends a daily multivitamin. Calcium and Vitamin D are noted as an option to replace dairy products.
Step 6
Make it culturally appropriate. If your family hails from the Mediterranean, Latin America or Asia, your food habits probably reflect the tastes of those regions. Find the food pyramid that matches your heritage. Use a reputable source such as MayoClinic.org.
Tips and Warnings
- Adults over age 70 have lower energy needs, but still need nutritious food. Tufts University developed a Modified Food Pyramid for senior citizens in 2008.
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