"dietary guidelines" news and stories

The government has released its new dietary guidelines, and they basically tell us what we already know -- we should be eating less junk. Every five years, these nutritional suggestions are updated to reflect current scientific findings and the current state of our country's health, but this year's big reveal didn't contain any bombshells.

The main advice? Lower meat, sugar, fat and salt consumption; eat more fruits, vegetables and fish (even pregnant women). The message: "Enjoy your food, but eat less."

The USDA did revive an old food villan: salt. According to the new guidelines, no one should consume more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day (that's about one teaspoon), and those at risk of high blood pressure should have even less. On average, Americans consume about twice that, thanks primarily to processed foods. (There's a reason those Cheetos are delicious.)

The most outrageous rebuttal comes from the Salt Institute, who, admittedly, isn't having a good week. According to the Washington Post, reps from the Institute argue that cutting salt levels in foods would actually make the obesity epidemic worse because it would "[drive] people to eat more overall to satisfy their desire for salt." Uh, right.

The full guidelines can be downloaded right here through Health.gov. Will it have any effect on your shopping list?

Last month, as they've done every five years since 1980, the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion (CNPP) released their proposed changes to the USDA Dietary Guidelines, more commonly known as the food pyramid, which will be finalized by the end of the year. The recommendations were open to written public comment until last Thursday -- at a public hearing in D.C. on July 8, nearly 50 industry advocates had their say. The concern remains: How will the public react to the update?

More after the jump...

The recommended daily guidelines for Americans suggest that at least half of all the grains consumed during the day be whole grains, which comes out to be 3 -5 servings daily. Aside from whole grain breads, like those made from whole wheat flour instead of wheat flour, there are quite a few other foods that will let you get those servings in. The ten most popular sources of whole grains are whole wheat (flour), whole oats/oatmeal, whole-grain corn, popcorn, brown rice, whole rye, whole-grain barley, wild rice, buckwheat and triticale, and as they are the most popular, they are also the most readily available.

Oatmeal, corn, popcorn and both brown and wild rice are easy enough to add into your weekly diet, and barley can stand in for rice or potatoes at many meals. Rye and buckwheat can be found in many breads, most of which will make superb sandwiches during the week. To add them in at home, you can try buckwheat pancakes or a blueberry buckwheat bundt cake. Triticale is a hybrid of rye and wheat, found mostly at health food stores, and can also be incorporated into many recipes.

A great source for some whole-grain recipes online is Bob's Red Mill website, which covers recipes for all of the top 10 grains.