By Mary Lou Block, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist

With seventy percent of the US population overweight or obese, something has gone wrong with the nutrition advice we have handed out for decades. Enter the latest version of USDA nutrition advice, i.e. US Dietary Guidelines.  

Though gladly embraced by many, why did the new guidelines cause a bit of a controversy toothers?   Stated simply, the guidelines diverge from the trajectory of recent years.  Differences may have caused a stir, but many recommendations are the same, e.g. consumption of fruits, vegetables, dairy, whole grain, healthy fat, limits for calories and processed foods.  

Similarities aside, differences are significant enough to cause the USDA to invert the former “food pyramid”, and for once, the emphasis is on real food, not a dietary pattern, such as low fat, low cholesterol or plant-based eating.  To quote:

“We are putting real food back at the center of the American diet.  Real food that nourishes the body.  Real food that restores health.  Real food that fuels energy and encourages movement and exercise.  Real food that builds strength.”

This means prioritizing real, nutrient-dense foods that once grew in or on the ground,  walked on the ground, flew in the air, or swam in the water.  

Next priority is adequate protein at each meal.    Most noteworthy is the permission to includeanimal protein (eggs, poultry, seafood, red meat).  Contrast this to the messaging of recent years that touted mostly plant-based diets.  We were told to emphasize plant-based meals, omitting animal protein and especially meat.  This criminalization of meat bypassed its nutrient density and, in some cases, redirected people to inferior food choices.  New guidelines include bothanimal and plant protein, while emphasizing protein’s importance at each meal.

Woohoo!  Another change is the expanded definition of healthy fat, not only in olives, avocados, seafood, but also in meat, poultry, eggs, whole fat dairy, butter and beef tallow!  Lest you think this endorses French fries, recognize they are talking about whole food, not processed fats used to fry potatoes!  They wiggle out of the fat-hot-seat though, by suggesting a saturated fat limit of 10% of your total calories.  Nevertheless, the inclusion of healthy-whole-food animal fat is a big step forward.

Recognizing healthy fat in whole food, challenges us to recategorize many low-fat foods as “processed”.   This is not written but deduced, when you realize that many low-fat foods removenatural fat, adding sugar and chemicals. By this same token, some “health food” could also be considered “processed” if whole food ingredients are altered, adding sugar and chemicals.  Something to ponder if we should be limiting processed food, isn’t it?

When you think of the new guidelines, think, liberty.   They expand and redefine healthy food choices.  They grant you latitude to  view, previously described taboo foods as healthy, when they are consumed as whole, unprocessed food in the proper balance to promote your health.    

No wonder the new pyramid is inverted, it redirects everyone to stop and digest what is being said!