The new dietary guidelines were published this week, and the news is good.  With focus on real food, portion control and increased activity, the guidelines reflect what most dietitians have been recommending for years.  People have become so wrapped up in low-fat this, and low carb that, that they’ve reduced their intakes of healthier, whole foods!

Here is a basic breakdown of the new Dietary Guidelines, and don’t worry too much…they aren’t too scary. 

1.  Calories in = Calories out:  In order to maintain weight, you have to eat only the amount of calories you use, to loose weight you must eat less.  ‘Nuff said.

2.  Increase your physical activity – Move More!  Take a walk, dance around the house while you clean, take up yoga…move, move, move!

3.  Reduce the sodium in your diet – this one’s gonna be more tricky.  The recommendation is for those with higher risk for heart disease (such as anyone 51 years old or older, African-Americans, and anyone with hypertension, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease) to reduce sodium to 1500 mg a day or less.  This is the equivalent of 1/2 teaspoon a day of salt.  For everyone else, the recommendation is 2,300 mg sodium.  Here’s the thing – the recommendation for 1500 mg sodium is for about 1/2 the US population…and eventually everyone will be in that group – we aren’t getting any younger!  So really it would benefit most everyone to cut the sodium as much as they can.  We have to start retraining the American palate since we are all so used to high sodium foods.  And most of the sodium we consume is in processed foods.  Check out a frozen TV dinner sometime and look at the sodium content – YIKES!!!  Unless you’re cooking from scratch this is going to take some careful label reading.  Luckily may food manufacturers are starting to try to reduce the sodium in their products.  Be on the lookout. 

4.  Keep saturated fats – those dastardly fats that contribute to high cholesterol and heart disease to 10% of your total caloric intake.  Please don’t replace them with more refined carbs people, choose heart healthy mono and polyunsaturated fats instead. 

5.  Consume less than 300 mg dietary cholesterol – this one has its supporters and opponents.  The link between dietary cholesterol and the cholesterol in your blood is small for those with a history of heart disease, some studies don’t show a link at all.  Evidence does show that most people can consume one egg a day (with its whopping 211mg cholesterol per yolk) safely.

6. Limit your trans fats – there are naturally occurring trans fats in some products like milk and butter…you want to limit the synthetic versions.  Look for words like hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated.  These are found in things like solid vegetable shortening, margarines, pastries, etc.  Trans fats lower your good cholesterol and raise your bad cholesterol…  Bad news for heart disease.

7.  Reduce solid fats, and added sugars.  You don’t need to be freaking out about natural sugars like in a piece of fruit…as long as you are not eating in excess.  It’s much better pick an apple to snack on over something processed with added sugar.  Also, watch your labels.  You’d be surprised what they put sugar in now a days and it’s got a whole bunch of names…dextrose, high fructose corn syrup, pretty much any syrup…

8.  Limit foods made with refined grains – especially those with added fats and sugars…  When a grain is refined, everything good is basically stripped out of it…then they fortify it by adding stuff in… It’s much better to eat the whole grain in the first place.

9.  If you do choose to consume alcohol, remember to do so in moderation.  This is defined as one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men.

10.  Choose more fruits, veggies, dairy and whole grains to increase the amount of calcium, potassium, fiber and vitamin D in your diet.  And no, fruit roll ups don’t count.  Remember, variety is the spice of life!  Eat lots of different colored vegetables – and remember the beans and peas too!

12.  Whole grain, whole grain, whole grain….

14.  Variety again – Chicken isn’t the only protein source out there.  There’s beef, fish, legumes, peas, eggs, soy, nuts and seeds.

15.  Try to choose proteins with less solid fat – example: Sausages, though very yummy, has solid fat at room temperature. 

16.  Use more oils for cooking as opposed to solid fats like shortening.

These recommendations will easily work for a variety of healthy eating patterns, whether based on Cultural practices, Religious beliefs, or Ethical concerns.  Some changes may need to be made to make them work for you – such as replacing dairy products with calcium fortified soy products and leafy greens, but it can be done.  As long as we focus on balance in our diet and lives, remembering that we should eat food, not stuff, we can make them work!  Give it a try!