FOOD PYRAMID

It really is a useful tool !

The Food Pyramid was designed to display all of the good foods there are to eat. It tries to change the usual "don’t’s" of eating with some "do’s". Eat plenty of the right foods.

Eat 5 to stay alive

Remember a few important numbers about food choices.

The recommendations of the food pyramid boil down to this for each day

• Eat 5 servings of fruits or vegetables
• Eat 6 or more servings of grains
• Include 2-3 servings of low fat or skim dairy products
• Eat no more than 5-7 ounces of meat daily
• Use no more than 6-8 teaspoons of spreadable or pour able fat.
• Eat fewer sweets, desserts, and drink less alcohol
• Eat 25-50 grams of fiber daily (it’s listed on the food label, too)

Some more hints about specific food groups

Also, use the following hints to eat the best diet. Check out some of these

GRAINS

GOOD	OKAY	AVOID
Whole grain breads	Muffins (small & simple)	Frosted cake
Cereals	Cornbread	Cheesecake
English muffins	Cake donuts	Pies
Rice	Animal crackers	Croissants
Pasta		Buttered popcorn
Low-fat crackers (soda, graham, rye, plain)		Big muffins with nuts, etc.
Angel food cake		Chips
Plain popcorn		Egg noodle
Pretzels		High-fat crackers
Vanilla wafers
Fig bars

DAIRY

GOOD	OKAY	AVOID
Skim milk	2% milk	Whole milk
1-2% cottage cheese	Low-fat yogurt Ice cream	Cream
1-2% cheese	Ice milk	Non-dairy coffee creamers
Non-fat yogurt	Part skim cheeses (mozzarella, ricotta)
	Reduced-fat sour cream
	Reduced-fat cream cheese

MEATS

BEST	OKAY	AVOID
Fish	Tuna in oil	"Prime" grades
Poultry without skin	Oysters	Spare ribs
Water-packed tuna	Shrimp	Regular cold cuts
Low fat cold cuts	Lobster	Sausage
"Select" grades	Scallops	Bacon
"Choice" grades	Crab	Fried meats
		Organ meats – liver, kidney, sweetbreads
		Canned meats

FATS

GOOD	OKAY	AVOID
Olive oil	Mayonnaise	Butter
Sesame oil	Creamy salad dressings	Lard
Canola oil		Bacon fat
Safflower oil		Hydrogenated  shortening
Sunflower oil		Coconut oil
Corn oil		Palm oil
Peanut oil		Cocoa butter  (chocolate)
Salad dressings made with unsaturated fats

Let’s look at meats again

Meats are an excellent food source. Protein is an important part of our diet. But, the fat in meats can really add up. Let’s look at a few examples of how much fat is in a 6 ounce serving.

Meat	Fat grams	Cholesterol, mg
BEEF
Filet, broiled	16	150
Pot Roast, braised	18	180
PORK
Tenderloin, roasted	8	160
Pork chop, broiled	18	160
POULTRY
Chicken breast, meat only	6	140
Chicken breast, meat and skin	14	150
FISH
Cod, baked	2	100
Shrimp, steamed	4	320
Tuna, canned in water	4	60
Halibut, broiled	4	60
Salmon, grilled	14	100

©COPY;1997 HeartPoint   Updated September 1997

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