Skip to main content

DGA: 2015 New Nutrition Guidelines

Every five years, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans are updated to reflect the latest in nutrition research. With the 2015 guidelines expected later this year, will we see any big changes?

What are the Dietary Guidelines?
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) include advice about nutrition and physical activity for Americans ages 2 years and over. Recommendations from the DGAs are based on a review of the current science and provide the basis for federal food and nutrition policy and education initiatives. The DGAs are updated every five years by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Will we see anything new?
The expert committee selected to review the latest research and make recommendations for this year’s guidelines recently submitted their report. Many of the committee’s recommendations are ones we have heard before – eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low fat dairy, seafood, legumes and nuts; eat less red and processed meat, sugar-sweetened foods and refined grains. Some new areas addressed included topics in food safety, sustainability and individual nutrients. The committee reported potential benefit from moderate coffee drinking for healthy adults. They also expressed safety concerns with consumption of high caffeine food or drinks by children as well as the risks of combining high-caffeine beverages and alcohol. Eating styles that meet both goals of improved health and environmental sustainability were recommended. For heart health, the committee suggested a focus on limiting saturated fat and sodium and not necessarily on the amount of cholesterol in a food.

What’s next?
After the public comments are considered, HHS and USDA will release the official Dietary Guidelines for Americans sometime late in 2015. The new DGAs will be used to update many federal programs including MyPlate, the Nutrition Facts label, school breakfast and lunch as well as other nutrition assistance and public health programs.

REFERENCES:
1. Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Available at http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/.
Written by Jennifer M. Ignacio, MS, RD.
June 2015
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Eat Right Live Well - December 2014

Post a Comment
Read more

Fish For Your Heart?

Cutting back on red meat is a common recommendation for both health and sustainability. What’s less clear is what we should replace the meat with. A recent study looked at this and the results may surprise you. If not red meat, what? Red meat appears on many lists of foods to eat less of due mostly to its saturated fat and cholesterol content, and the fact that we tend to eat too much of it. A recent study looked at what we should consider substituting for red meat when we follow the advice to cut back. Of all of the substitutions the study looked at, one stood out as the best choice – fish high in omega-3s. The fatty fish showed more benefits for heart health than poultry, unprocessed meat and even lean fish. Is fish safe to eat? Fish, especially the kind that gives us omega-3s, has long been considered a healthy choice. Warnings related to contamination by mercury and other toxins has left many people wondering if fish is safe to eat. For most people, the benefits of eating fish far ...
Post a Comment
Read more

National Nutrition Month 2017: Plant Power

If you follow food trends, you’ve surely noticed that plant-based foods, recipes and restaurants have been getting a larger share of the spotlight lately. Does this mean that more of us are becoming vegetarians? Should we be? Why more plants? Fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, peas, nuts and seeds are key features of some of the healthiest diets in the world. Plant based foods are a common theme in the Mediterranean Diet, the DASH Diet and most dietary guidelines. The balance of health promoting nutrients with moderate calories and less of the stuff we should be limiting make plant based foods an easy fit for most people. Looking beyond personal health, to the health of our planet, plant based foods tend to more sustainable and less taxing on the environment. What is a flexitarian? Or a pescatarian? With the expansion of plant foods on our plates has come an expansion of how we refer to the way we eat. Vegetarian still refers to people who don’t eat meat, fish or poultry, but the...
Post a Comment
Read more