The New Food Pyramid

I've been avoiding saying anything about the new USDA food pyramid because, well, no one cares. Only 2-4 percent of the American population makes any effort at all to tailor their diet to the government guidelines. Still, all school lunch programs, prisons, and other government-run facilities must tailor their nutrition plans to the USDA recommendations, which is why our kids have diabetes.

The new pyramid [click header to go to the site] is really 12 pyramids aimed at people with differing nutritional needs. Exercise is now a part of the program, and simple carbohydrates and trans-fats are minimized. Yet the pyramid still fails.

The foundation of any good diet should be lean meats (especially fish) and vegetables. The next level should be whole grains and healthy fats (nuts, flax oil, olive oil, and so on). The third level should be fruits (especially berries), legumes, and milk. Everything else should be at the top (sweets, pizza, and other foods that shorten the life span).

*10 percent of calories (or less) should come from the crap at the top of my pyramid.
*20 percent of calories should come from fruit, legumes, and milk.
*30 percent of calories should come from whole grains and healthy fats.
*40 percent of calories should come from lean meats and vegetables.

If you want to lose weight, eat only from the bottom three levels of my pyramid and replace those junk calories with extra lean protein. Higher protein will help you maintain muscle mass (very important when trying to lose fat), feel more full, and burn more calories during the day.

The USDA plan is low in protein and higher in grains and fruit (which figures, since it is the agriculture department that made this thing). It's not worth a whole lot for anyone who is working with weights and who needs adequate protein (and all of you should be lifting weights 2-3 times a week), but for beginners and the uninformed, it's not a bad start.