Taste Life Blog

Yay! On February 10, 2015, the long awaited Dietary Guidelines for Americans were published. These guidelines affect school lunch programs and congregate living, the way food companies will advertise their products, and the nutrition advice provided by the 73,000 members of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. They also provide guidelines for the nutrition facts label. They affect every aspect of your food life.

Coffee

The report looks at caffeine for the first time. Our local Caribou Coffee will be happy that coffee was given a green light. They concluded that a daily cup or two of coffee may help protect against Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The panel also says that there is strong evidence that 3 to 5 cups a day can be part of a healthy diet. The report recommends pregnant women limit caffeine to two cups of coffee a day, but check with your doctor first. Action: First step, become aware of how many cups of coffee you are actually drinking. Note the word cup as in eight ounces not as in carafe! One little creamer adds 20 calories and if you use two creamers a day that results in five pounds a year!

Added sugar

They should not account for more than “10 percent of total energy.” Here’s the math. The average American diet recommendation is about 2000 calories per day. 10 percent of 2000 equals 200 calories. 200 calories of sugar equals 50 grams. Action: Read your food labels, especially on soft drinks, sports drink, specialty coffee drinks, dessert-type grains (fancy word for donuts and pastries). A can of soda pop has 35 grams of sugar! Think about drinking more water. I am lovin’ sparkling water with a splash of 100% cranberry or cherry juice.

Plant Based Diet

Sustainability was addressed for the first time. The committee concluded that a plant-focused diet promotes health and is more environmentally sustainable. A diet that is plant based includes fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, as well as fish and low-fat dairy. Action: Have a Meatless Monday for your evening meal. Eat 4 ½ cups of fruit and veggies a day. All right, how about a fruit or vegetable for each meal to start. And, eventually eat a fruit and vegetable for each meal.

Cholesterol

The report reversed decades of warnings about dietary cholesterol, it is “not considered a nutrient of concern for overconsumption.” For most healthy people, an egg a day doesn’t raise the amount of unhealthy cholesterol in your blood. It’s very important to point out that the committee is not negating the risks of high levels of LDL in your blood. A high LDL level is associated with risk of heart attack. Maybe we will see the banished high cholesterol foods like shrimp and lobster make a comeback. Action: Enjoy eggs for breakfast. Please be adventurous and add some kale, chia seeds, hemp seeds or quinoa to your eggs.

Saturated fat

It should not exceed 10 percent of total calories. Fat is a calorie giant and provides 9 calories per gram unlike sugar which provides 4 calories per gram. 200 calories of fat equals 22 grams which is the goal for the average American. Action: Read the saturated fat content on your food labels. Track the amount you eat for one week day and one weekend.

Salt

With the average American eating around 3,400 milligrams of sodium daily, the committee recommends trying to reduce sodium intake by 1000 milligrams a day to 2,300 milligrams a day. Action: Eat more foods without wrappers and packages. Shop around the outside of the grocery store. Read labels. A turkey sandwich and cup of soup can average 2200 milligrams.

Protein

Instead of your hunk of meat being the center of attention on your dinner plate, serve your veggies with meat as the side dish. Action: Always serve 2 veggies with your dinner. Put shredded carrots in your spaghetti sauce. Consider doubling the amount of oatmeal in your meatloaf recipe. Or, add wild rice or quinoa to your burgers.

The major focus of this report is not nutrients, rather the whole diet. But none of this really matters. Unless you make a conscious decision to be happy, healthy and extra-ordinary you may be kind of unhappy, unhealthy and just average! Better get busy! Happy Nutrition Month Everyone!

Originally Written For: http://www.swnewsmedia.com/chanhassen_villager/news/opinion/drink-coffee-eat-eggs-but-lay-off-the-added-sugar/article_fd9ad634-34b6-5e40-8ed4-31f7a940dad1.html