The MyPlate Food Guidance System

By Jennifer Turley and Joan Thompson

© 2013 Cengage

MyPlate

• The Original Food Guide Pyramid was released from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 1992.

• It was remodeled and released as MyPyramid in 2005 and as MyPlate in 2011.

• It is a model for healthy eating for children, teenagers, adults, and the elderly.

• If followed, the nutritional content of the diet should met the DRIs and AMDRs. Further, nutritionally-related disease should be reduced.

What is the MyPlate Plan?

See also Appendix C. Determine your personalized MyPlate plan by age, gender, and activity level. • Daily Calorie recommendation which ties to

specific daily equivalent recommendations (ounces or cups or teaspoons depending on the food group or category) for grains, vegetables, fruits, protein foods, and dairy.

• Also for healthy oils and limiting empty calories

Age, gender, activityOptionally weight & height

Grains Make at least ½ whole grain

• Includes: whole grains such as amaranth, barley, brown rice, buckwheat, bulgur (cracked wheat), cornmeal, millet, oatmeal, popcorn, quinoa, rye, sorghum, triticale, whole wheat, wild rice; and whole grain bread, cereal, tortilla, and pasta products. Refined grains may include products such as breads, crackers, cereals, flour tortillas, noodles, processed grains, bakery goods.

• Servings in General: A 1-ounce MyPlate serving equivalent of grain, could be 1 slice of bread, 1 cup of ready-to-eat cereal, or ½ cup of cooked rice, pasta, or cereal (approximately 80 Calories).

• Health Benefits: Grains reduce heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, type 2 diabetes, neural tube defects during fetal development, and both constipation and obesity (useful in weight management) when eaten as whole grains.

• Nutrients: Grains provide many nutrients, including several B vitamins (thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and folate), minerals (iron, magnesium, and selenium), carbohydrate, fiber (as whole grains), and protein.

Patterning• Identify the appropriate food group for the food.• Determine the number of equivalents

consumed using this formula.–The number of equivalents =

amount eaten ÷ amount of an equivalent.

• Go to the food gallery at choosemyplate.gov to see serving equivalents.

• Refer to appendix C for the amount of food that counts as an ounce equivalent.

Patterning Practice

• Nancy ate 1.5 cups of oatmeal for breakfast. How many ounce equivalent servings from the grain group did she eat?

• 1.5 cups eaten ÷ 0.5 cups in per equivalent = 3 ounce equivalents.

Vegetables Make ½ your plate fruits &

vegetables & vary your veggies• Includes: All fresh, frozen, canned, & dried vegetables &

vegetable juices. • Servings in General: 1 cup of raw or cooked vegetables or

vegetable juice, or 2 cups of raw leafy greens can be considered as 1 cup from the vegetable group (approximately 50 Calories or 120 Calories for starchy vegetables).

• Health Benefits: Vegetables reduce heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, kidney stones, obesity, and bone loss. Eating vegetables that are low in Calories instead of higher-Calorie foods may be useful in helping to lower Calorie intake.

• Nutrients: Potassium, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate (folic acid), carbohydrate, fiber, and protein. Most are low in fat and Calories. None have cholesterol.

• Subgroups: Dark green, red-orange, beans and peas, starchy, & other.

Fruit Make ½ your plate fruits & vegetables

Choose a variety of whole fresh fruit• Includes: All fresh, frozen, canned, and dried

fruits and fruit juices. • Servings in General: 1 cup of fruit or 100% fruit

juice, or ½ cup of dried fruit can be considered as 1 cup from the fruit group (approximately 100 Calories).

• Health Benefits: Fruits reduce heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, kidney stones, obesity, and bone loss.

• Nutrients: Potassium, vitamin C, folate (folic acid), carbohydrate and fiber. Most are low in fat, sodium, and Calories. None have cholesterol.

Patterning Practice• Nancy ate a vegetable stir fry (0.25 C green

pepper, 0.25 cup onion, 0.5 C zucchini squash) with 0.25 dried cranberries. Pattern her vegetable and fruit intake.

• Vegetables: 0.25 + 0.25 + 0.5 = 1 C eaten ÷ 1 C in an equivalent = 1 C vegetable equivalents.– Green pepper is a good source of vitamin C.

• 0.25 cup dried cranberries ÷ 0.5 C dried fruit is a 1 cup fruit equivalent = 0.5 C fruit equivalents– Cranberries are a good source of vitamin

Go to the food gallery at choosemyplate.gov to see serving equivalents. Refer to appendix C for the amount of food that counts as a cup equivalent, to see the vegetable subgroups, and fruits and vegetables high in vitamins A and C.

Dairy choose fat-free or low-fat (1%)

• Includes: All fluid milk products and many foods made from milk that retain their calcium. Foods made from milk that have little to no calcium, such as cream cheese, cream, and butter, are not part of this group.

• Servings in General: 1 cup of milk or yogurt, 1 ½ ounces of natural cheese, or 2 ounces of processed cheese can be considered as 1 cup from the milk group (approximately 90 Calories when fat free or low-fat). Refer to appendix C for milk alternatives.

• Health Benefits: Milk products reduce the risk of low bone mass throughout the life cycle and may prevent osteoporosis.

• Nutrients: Milk products provide calcium, potassium, vitamin D, and protein. Low-fat or fat-free forms provide little or no solid fat.

Protein Foods choose lean or low-fat

• Includes: All foods made from meat, poultry, fish, beans or peas, eggs, nuts, and seeds are considered part of this group. Beans and peas can be counted either as vegetables (beans and peas subgroup), or in the protein foods group. Generally, individuals who regularly eat meat, poultry, and fish would count beans and peas in the vegetable group. Individuals who seldom eat meat, poultry, or fish (vegetarians) would count some of the beans and peas they eat in the protein foods group.

• Servings in General: 1 ounce of lean meat, poultry, or fish, 1 egg, 1 Tbsp. peanut butter, ¼ cup cooked beans, or ½ ounce of nuts or seeds can be considered as 1 ounce equivalent from the meat and beans group (approximately 55 Calories when lean).

• Health Implications: Foods in the protein foods group provide nutrients that are vital for health and body maintenance. However, choosing foods from this group that are high in saturated fat and cholesterol may increase the risk for heart disease.

• Nutrients: Many nutrients are provided by protein foods including protein, B vitamins (niacin, thiamin, riboflavin, and B6), vitamin E, iron, zinc, and magnesium.

Oils CategoryConsume the recommended amounts of healthy liquid fats

• Includes: Oils that are liquid at room temperature come from plants (except coconut and palm) and from some fish. Foods that are mainly oil include mayonnaise, certain salad dressings, and soft margarine with no trans fats.

• Servings in General: 1 teaspoon of oil is one serving. Most Americans consume enough oil in the foods they eat, such as nuts, fish, cooking oil, and salad dressing. Since oils are a fat source, the amount should be limited to the MyPlate recommendation to balance total Calorie intake.

• Nutrients: Oils provide vitamin E, MUFAs, and PUFAs, which contain essential fatty acids.

• Health Benefits and Implications: Plant and fish oils promote heart health. Over consuming linoleic acid which is dominate in most plant oils can increase cancer risk.

Empty Calories Limit foods and beverages with solid fat and added sugars

Empty Calorie foods are discretionary food choices that promote malnutrition

• Includes: Solid fats and added sugars. • Solid fats: Solid fats are solid at room temperature,

like butter and shortening. Solid fats come from many animal foods, can be made from vegetable oils through hydrogenation, and are found naturally in coconut and palm plant foods.

• Common solid fats are: Butter, shortening, stick margarine, and beef, chicken, and pork fat.

• Foods high in solid fats include: many cheeses, creams, ice creams, well-marbled cuts of meats, regular ground beef, bacon, sausages, poultry skin, many baked goods (such as cookies, crackers, donuts, pastries, and croissants).

• Added Sugars: Added sugars are sugars and syrups that are added to foods or beverages during processing or preparation. This does not include naturally occurring sugars such as those that occur in milk and fruits.

• Foods that contain added sugars: regular soft drinks, candy, cakes, cookies, pies, fruit drinks, such as fruitades and fruit punch, milk-based desserts and products, such as ice cream, sweetened yogurt and sweetened milk, and grain products such as sweet rolls and cinnamon toast

• Ingredients shown on food labels of processed foods indicate added sugar: brown sugar, corn sweetener, corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, fruit juice concentrates, glucose, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, invert sugar, lactose, maltose, malt syrup, molasses, raw sugar, sucrose, sugar, and syrup

Empty Calories

Empty Calories• Allowance: The remaining amount of Calories in a food

intake pattern after accounting for the Calories needed for all food groups—using forms of foods that are fat-free or low-fat and with no added sugars. The empty Calorie allowance can be used to: – Eat more foods from any food group that the food

guide recommends. – Eat higher Calorie forms of foods—those that contain

solid fats or added sugars.  Examples are whole milk, cheese, sausage, biscuits, sweetened cereal, and sweetened yogurt.

– Add fats or sweeteners to foods.  Examples are sauces, salad dressings, sugar, syrup, and butter.

– Eat or drink items that are mostly fats, caloric sweeteners, and/or alcohol, such as candy, soda, wine, and beer.

Patterning Practice

• Nancy ate a cheeseburger. • 1 bun, 3 ounces regular ground beef patty, 1½

ounces real cheddar cheese, ¼ tomato, 1 tablespoon mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon mustard, 1 tablespoon ketchup. – The bun = 2 ounces of grain equivalents– The meat = 3 ounces meat equivalents & 66 empty Calories– The cheese = 1 cup milk equivalent & 90 empty Calories– The tomato = ¼ cup other vegetables equivalents– The mayo = 2 ½ teaspoons oil equivalents– The ketchup and mustard = 25 empty Calories

Use the choosemyplate.gov food gallery and appendix C.

Physical Activity• Physical Activity: Physical activity simply means movement of the

body that uses energy. Walking, gardening, briskly pushing a baby stroller, climbing the stairs, playing soccer, or dancing the night away are all good examples of being active. For health benefits, physical activity should be moderate or vigorous and add up to at least 30 minutes a day.

• Moderate physical activities include: Walking briskly (about 3 ½ miles per hour), Hiking, Gardening/yard work, Dancing, Golf (walking and carrying clubs), Bicycling (less than 10 miles per hour), Weight training (general light workout).

• Vigorous physical activities include: Running/jogging (5 miles per hour), Bicycling (more than 10 miles per hour), Swimming (freestyle laps), Aerobics, Walking very fast (4 ½ miles per hour), Heavy yard work, such as chopping wood, Weight lifting (vigorous effort), and Basketball (competitive).

• Casual Activities: Some physical activities, like walking at a casual pace, such as while grocery shopping, and doing light household chores are not intense enough to help meet the recommendations. Although the body is moving, these activities do not increase the heart rate, so they are not counted towards the 30 or more minutes a day that should minimally be achieved.

Summary

• The MyPlate is a personalized diet plan based on age, gender, and activity.

• It encourages the consumption of whole grains, vegetables, fruits, fat-free or low-fat milk or milk alternatives, low fat meat and beans, and healthy plant oils.

• It discourages the intake of sugar and solid fats as well as a sedentary lifestyle.

References for this presentation are the same as those for this topic found in module 2 of the textbook