"pyramid" news and stories

The center of discourse and industrial endorsements, the good old Food Pyramid created by the FDA in 1984 (now re-created), can be used effectively with children. Because kids don't think abstractly until about age 11, a visual guide is often useful to illustrate a point.

The old pyramid had its deficiencies (check Harvard University's approach to old and new) but there is an interactive exercise that I have tried singularly with a 5, 6, and 9 year old. Each had questions about balance in diet, which led to questions and considerations of balance in day-to-day living. I was impressed, being a detractor of the old pyramid and not head over heals with the newest (here's the kid's page). This useful tool can help a child learn how to eat a balanced diet. It's up to you to put the balance in "balance," though.

Source

A new study published by the USDA's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion says that Americans aren't eating enough servings of fruits and vegetables. The USDA looked at the results of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III from 1999 to 2000 to collect data from over 8,000 people, ages 2 and up and compared them to the new (MyPyramid) and old (5 servings a day) nutritional guidelines.

They found that based on the old guidelines, only 40% of people were getting the recommended amounts. Based on the new recommendations, which are significantly higher, only 10% of people would be eating the suggested amount of fruits and vegetables.

Wait - 1999? The problem with the study is that it is comparing old data to our new standards. Granted, people weren't eating enough vegetables in 1999 and you can be sure that not all people are eating enough now, but dietary trends have changed enough that the comparison might not yield accurate results. In the past 7 years, there has been a tremendous growth in organic and natural foods, heirloom fruits and vegetables and in healthier eating overall. The trends are so much more prevalent now than they were when the data for the survey was collected, that it is likely the numbers are more encouraging, even if we're only up to 15% instead of 10%.

Source

Newsweek recently featured an article about African-American chefs, restaurateurs and nutritionists that are trying to reinvent classic soul food dishes while keeping health in mind. Some shifts are simple: baked chicken instead of fried chicken; collard greens flavored with smoked turkey instead of ham hocks. Others, like the dishes of featured caterer Lindsey Williams (grandson of Sylvia Woods of Sylvia's in Harlem), deviate a little more. Williams' new cookbook Neo Soul was released this month by Penguin. Newsweek focues on dishes like veggie croquettes with tofu sour cream and Thai sesame dressing, but some of Williams' recipes listed by Penguin--trout stuffed with collard greens, okra gumbo, and "neo" sweet potato pie--sound a little more grounded. Another interesting item mentioned in the article was the Soul Food Pyramid, created by Hebni Nutrition Consultants in Orlando, Florida. Unfortunately, the Hebni site doesn't really let on too much about what's contained in the pyramid.

The Japanese have had square watermelons for a while. Due to lack of space, the most pragmatic thing to do to a watermelon is, well, to square it. These edgy melons come at a price of $82 each. I'm not sure on what occasion I would buy a watermelon if it were that expensive, but it sure wouldn't be for a quick snack!

Now, the Japanese have innovated again with pyramid-shaped watermelons. I'm a little confused about the practical applications of this--perhaps one could stack more watermelons in a given space by interleaving them.

Source