Healthful Food Choices Research Articles

Developing a food guidance system to implement the dietary guidelines

We developed a food guidance system to assist healthy Americans in making food choices for good health. The system differs from commonly used food guides in that it provides guidance for a total rather than a foundation diet. A framework of food groups—illustrated in the Food Wheel—is supplemented by additional information about food energy, total fat, fatty acids, sodium, sweeteners, and cholesterol. Goals for this system were based on the Dietary Guidelines, the 1980 Recommended Dietary Allowances, and usability considerations. These goals were restated as specific objectives based on a review of current concepts in nutrition science, recommendations by various scientific groups, and food consumption practices of the population. The first part of this article presents the rationale for the objectives and development of the food guidance system. The second part details the results of the research conducted to develop and evaluate the system. Expected levels of nutrients provided by diets selected according to system recommendations and expected levels of food energy, fat, fatty acids, cholesterol, sweeteners, and sodium are presented. The food guidance system provides the basis for the food guidance presented in the American Red Cross nutrition course, “Better Eating for Better Health”, and in “Dietary Guidelines and Your Diet”, a series of bulletins developed by USDA to help consumers use the Dietary Guidelines.

Committee Reports

The Food Guide Pyramid is designed to help Americans make healthful food choices. Whereas national data have been collected to examine adherence to the pyramid recommendations in whites, African-Americans, and Latinos, there are virtually no data available for Japanese Americans or Native Hawaiians. Here we present data on intakes of the Food Guide Pyramid food groups (as servings per day) as well as of the components of the pyramid tip (discretionary fat, added sugar, and alcohol) in these ethnic groups and examine adherence to each of the food group recommendations. Degree of adherence to the fruit group recommendation was similar among the ethnic groups and energy-intake categories, but adherence to the other recommendations was greatest for those consuming more than 2,800 kilocalories per day. However, subjects in this energy-intake group also consumed more than three times as much discretionary fat, added sugar, and alcohol.

Food, Nutrition and Diet Therapy

Principles of clinical nutrition and the role of dietetics and nutrition in health care are presented in this text for health professionals. Basics in the science of nutrition are described: nutrient-biochemistry and metabolism; nutritional status and age group; and the geographic and social problems of nutrition. The therapeutic role of nutrition in treatment of disease and metabolic disorders, and the function of diet therapy are discussed. Nutritional care includes education, meal planning, and nursing and the identification and evaluation of the patient's nutritional needs. Information on foods and food choices for nutritional health is given. A detailed appendix includes reference materials, resource aids for nutrition information, tables of nutritive values of foods, food composition tables, and guidelines for nutritional status assessment