Dietary Guidelines For Americans Essay Research Paper

The 1995 Dietary Guidelines for Americans

Eat a variety of foods.

I’m really bad in this area. I usually eat the same things every day. I eat sandwiches for lunch and pizza for dinner. I need to implement a variety of foods into my diet.

Balance the food you eat with physical activity – maintain or improve your weight.

I’m even worse in this area. Ever since I came to school, my physical activity has been limited to Fit/Well class. I really need to start doing some exercise. My weight right now isn’t too bad, but at this rate I’ll be really fat by the time I graduate.

Choose a diet with plenty of grain products, vegetables, and fruits.

I do fine in the grain products, but my fruits and vegetables are lacking.

Choose a diet low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol.

Fat intake should not exceed 30% of your total kcal intake. I average 36%. So, I need to cut down on my fats. Cholesterol intake should not exceed 300 mg per day. I averaged 283. I’m good with my cholesterol.

Choose a diet moderate in sugars.

I don’t eat any sweets. Actually, besides pop, I don’t eat anything sweet, so I’m alright here.

Choose a diet moderate in salt and sodium.

Sodium intake should not exceed 2400 mg per day. I average 1634 mg per day, so I’m pretty good here.

If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation.

I don’t drink alcohol, so I shouldn’t have any problems here.

Food Guide Pyramid

The bread, cereal, rice, and pasta group recommends 6-11 servings per day. I averaged 11.5 servings. I’d say I’m pretty close in that group. I could eat a little less there. The fruit group recommends 2-4 servings. I averaged 1.8 servings per day. I should definitely eat more fruits. The vegetable group recommends 3-5 servings. I averaged 1.7 servings per day. I need to eat more vegetables. The milk, yogurt, and cheese group recommends 2-3 servings per day. I averaged 6.7 servings per day. I need to cut down on my milk and cheese. The meat, poultry, dry beans, eggs, and nuts group recommends 2-3 servings per day. I averaged 2.4 servings per day. I’m really good in this group. Fats, oils, and sweets are to be used sparingly. I averaged 3.3 servings per day. I, like most Americans, need to cut down in this group.

Strategy to Improve Diet

I eat a lot of sandwiches. My sandwiches have a lot of cheese and fat in them. If I gradually cut down on them, it would decrease my cheese and fat groups, which is good. But it would also decrease my bread and vegetable groups, which will need to be supplemented in other foods. I could eat just plain bread every once in a while instead of always putting cheese and fatty sandwich meats in between. I could also gradually begin to start making salads. This would supplement my decrease in lettuce that I put on my sandwiches. I need more vegetables anyhow, so I could put lots of different vegetables in my salads. As far as my fruit group, I’m pretty close but still need a little more. I could plan to eat an apple or banana for lunch and dinner which would bring me up to the recommended amount in that group. As for my fats, oils, and sweets group, I think I could cut down a little. I think decreasing my sandwiches will help out. Also, I can cut down on my snacks, which are usually Doritos or something like that.

Bibliography

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