Health News
- Health Care Professionals Strongly Endorse New Federal Dietary Guidelines, Which Say To Eat Less Red And Processed Meat
A group of 700 physicians and other health care professionals sent a letter of strong endorsement to the secretaries of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services praising the recommended federal dietary guidelines...
- Study Shows If You Make Whole Grains Available, Kids Will Eat Them
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Parents who think their children won't eat or like whole-grain products need to put that notion aside and start putting them on the table, new research suggests. Researchers at the University of Florida Institute...
- Healthy Food Is Less Expensive Than Junk Food, Study Finds
Though it's widely believed that healthy food is more expensive than junk food, a new government analysis shows that does not have to be the case. "In fact, carrots, onions, pinto beans, lettuce, mashed potatoes, bananas and orange juice are all less...
- The Truth About Red Meat
by Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Red meat has long been a food of confusion. Is it truly healthy and a plus for weight loss? If so, how much red meat and what kind of red meat do you really need to eat to reap its benefits? Or is it a high cholesterol, artery...
- New Dietary Guidelines Stress Portion Control, Less Sodium
While the government has issued new dietary guidelines for us to follow, it's worth asking if anyone is listening. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans has been published jointly every 5 years since 1980 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human...
Health News
Federal dietary guidelines recommend cutting back on red and processed meat, sugar and refined grains
The Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services have released proposed 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The guidelines, released every five years, "provide authoritative advice about consuming fewer calories, making informed food choices, and being physically active to attain and maintain a healthy weight, reduce risk of chronic disease, and promote overall health," says USDA.
It shouldn't come as a surprise that the 2015 guidelines recommend eating healthier foods, while cutting back on less healthy alternatives. "The committee basically recommended Americans take up a diet that is higher in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low- or non-fat dairy products, seafood, legumes and nuts," Chris Clayton reports for DTN The Progressive Farmer. "We should cut back on red and processed meats and sugar-sweetened foods, drinks and refined grains. And we should be moderate in our alcohol."
Recommended cutbacks of certain foods have not gone over well with those food producers, who met this week to give feedback on the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee's recommendations, Clayton writes. The North American Meat Institute argued that "lean meat, poultry, red and processed meats should all be part of a healthy dietary pattern because they are nutrient-dense protein."
Shalene McNeill, a nutritionist for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, "told the committee that its recommendation to exclude lean meat ignores decades of nutrition science," Clayton writes. McNeill said Americans should be encouraged to eat more lean meat, along with fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Grain, sugar and milk producers also expressed displeasure with the proposed rules.
Most nutritionists have embraced the proposed rules, but say the key is getting people to adopt them, Andrea McDaniels reports for The Baltimore Sun. Among those rules is limiting sugar intake to 200 or less calories, or 10 percent of total calories, per day. Currently, Americans get about 13 percent of their calories, or 268 calories, from added sugar.
"On the flip side, some foods once shunned are now accepted," McDaniels writes. "Research has found that cholesterol-high foods are no longer believed to contribute to high blood cholesterol, so people can now indulge in shrimp, eggs and other foods that were once off limits, the panel said. Rather than focus on cholesterol, people should curb saturated fat to about 8 percent of the diet."
The panel also said "up to five cups of coffee a day are fine, so long they are not flavored with lots of milk and sugar," McDaniels writes. "The panel also singled out the Mediterranean diet?rich in fish and chicken, fruits and vegetables, nuts, whole grains, olive oil and legumes?for its nutritional value."
It shouldn't come as a surprise that the 2015 guidelines recommend eating healthier foods, while cutting back on less healthy alternatives. "The committee basically recommended Americans take up a diet that is higher in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low- or non-fat dairy products, seafood, legumes and nuts," Chris Clayton reports for DTN The Progressive Farmer. "We should cut back on red and processed meats and sugar-sweetened foods, drinks and refined grains. And we should be moderate in our alcohol."
Recommended cutbacks of certain foods have not gone over well with those food producers, who met this week to give feedback on the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee's recommendations, Clayton writes. The North American Meat Institute argued that "lean meat, poultry, red and processed meats should all be part of a healthy dietary pattern because they are nutrient-dense protein."
Shalene McNeill, a nutritionist for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, "told the committee that its recommendation to exclude lean meat ignores decades of nutrition science," Clayton writes. McNeill said Americans should be encouraged to eat more lean meat, along with fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Grain, sugar and milk producers also expressed displeasure with the proposed rules.
Most nutritionists have embraced the proposed rules, but say the key is getting people to adopt them, Andrea McDaniels reports for The Baltimore Sun. Among those rules is limiting sugar intake to 200 or less calories, or 10 percent of total calories, per day. Currently, Americans get about 13 percent of their calories, or 268 calories, from added sugar.
"On the flip side, some foods once shunned are now accepted," McDaniels writes. "Research has found that cholesterol-high foods are no longer believed to contribute to high blood cholesterol, so people can now indulge in shrimp, eggs and other foods that were once off limits, the panel said. Rather than focus on cholesterol, people should curb saturated fat to about 8 percent of the diet."
The panel also said "up to five cups of coffee a day are fine, so long they are not flavored with lots of milk and sugar," McDaniels writes. "The panel also singled out the Mediterranean diet?rich in fish and chicken, fruits and vegetables, nuts, whole grains, olive oil and legumes?for its nutritional value."
- Health Care Professionals Strongly Endorse New Federal Dietary Guidelines, Which Say To Eat Less Red And Processed Meat
A group of 700 physicians and other health care professionals sent a letter of strong endorsement to the secretaries of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services praising the recommended federal dietary guidelines...
- Study Shows If You Make Whole Grains Available, Kids Will Eat Them
By Melissa Patrick Kentucky Health News Parents who think their children won't eat or like whole-grain products need to put that notion aside and start putting them on the table, new research suggests. Researchers at the University of Florida Institute...
- Healthy Food Is Less Expensive Than Junk Food, Study Finds
Though it's widely believed that healthy food is more expensive than junk food, a new government analysis shows that does not have to be the case. "In fact, carrots, onions, pinto beans, lettuce, mashed potatoes, bananas and orange juice are all less...
- The Truth About Red Meat
by Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Red meat has long been a food of confusion. Is it truly healthy and a plus for weight loss? If so, how much red meat and what kind of red meat do you really need to eat to reap its benefits? Or is it a high cholesterol, artery...
- New Dietary Guidelines Stress Portion Control, Less Sodium
While the government has issued new dietary guidelines for us to follow, it's worth asking if anyone is listening. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans has been published jointly every 5 years since 1980 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human...