On Jan. 12, 2005, the federal government released its most recent version of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These guidelines urge all Americans to rethink their current eating patterns and to make changes toward a healthier lifestyle. With obesity and other major diseases related to a poor diet rising significantly, these guidelines are a more detailed pattern of food choices for Americans to follow.

Published every five years, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans were created jointly by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture. These guidelines provide science-based advice that promotes a healthier lifestyle by reducing the risk for major chronic diseases through diet and physical activity. The intent of these guidelines is to summarize knowledge about specific nutrients and create recommendations that can be adopted by the public.

Below are some of the recommendations related to making healthier food choices. Please note that I have only chosen to highlight a few. If you would like to review the entire publication, including the key recommendations for special populations and physical activity, you can visit www.healthierus.gov/dietaryguidelines.com.

Key recommendations related to healthier food choices include: 

Consume a variety of nutrient dense foods and beverages within and among the basic food groups while choosing foods that limit the intake of saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, added sugars, salt and alcohol. Use the food guide pyramid as a guide to choosing a variety of foods that will provide your body with the most nutrients. All foods can fit into your diet just remember that moderation is the key.

Choose a variety of fruits and vegetables each day. In particular, select from all five vegetable subgroups (dark green, orange, legumes, starchy vegetables and other vegetables) several times per week. Increasing your daily intake of fruits and vegetables will ensure your body receives the fiber and antioxidants that it needs to fight off illness and chronic disease. Plus, eating more fruits and vegetables will leave you with less room to fill up on the high sugar and highly processed foods that we all need to limit.

Consume three or more servings of whole grain products, with the rest of the recommended grains coming from enriched or whole grain products. (The guidelines recommend six servings per day, so try to make a half of them whole grains.) Whole grains are a good source of fiber. Breakfast and lunch are great times to incorporate whole grains. Try old-fashioned oatmeal to replace your ready to eat cereal and whole wheat bread for your sandwiches. Brown rice and whole-wheat pasta are also great choices to try.

Consume less than 10 percent of calories from saturated fatty acids and less than 300 mg per day of cholesterol, and keep trans fatty acid consumption as low as possible. In addition, keep total fat intake between 20 percent to 35 percent of calories, and most fats should come from sources of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids. 

Choose the “good” fats. The verdict is in: Not all fat is bad for you. While saturated and trans fats (usually disguised as partially hydrogenated soybean oil) should be limited, mono and polyunsaturated fats should be consumed - think fish, nuts and vegetable oils such as canola and olive oils. Did you know that for an individual following a 2,000 calorie diet, 24 grams of healthy fats are required daily? That is approximately six teaspoons of oil per day.

When selecting and preparing meat, poultry, dry beans, and milk or milk products, make choices that are lean, low fat or fat-free. Continue to trim the fat before cooking and preparing your meat/poultry products. Remember that the cooking process should include grilling, baking, roasting, steaming or sautéing. Limit all fried foods.

Choose and prepare foods with little salt. Consume less than 2,300 mg (approximately 1 tsp of salt) of sodium per day. Get rid of the saltshaker. The foods that we tend to eat are usually high is salt in order to give them a longer shelf life. Try and choose less processed and fresher food items.

Again, these are just a few recommendations that I chose to highlight. Making small changes to your current diet will lead to eating better and a healthier lifestyle overall. I urge everyone to try and incorporate as many of these recommendations as possible into your daily diets.

For more information, you can contact Julie Schneiderman directly at 610-328-3647 or julie.schneiderman@crozer.org.