1. http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/pyramid-full-story
What Should You Really Eat? 2
Focus on Food Quality
The Healthy Eating Pyramid does not give specific advice about the numbers of
cups or ounces to have each day of specific foods. That’s because it’s not meant to
be a rigid road map, and the amounts can vary depending on your body size and
physical activity. It’s a simple, general, flexible guide to how you should eat when
you eat.
To follow the Healthy Eating Pyramid, there’s just one basic guideline to
remember: A healthy diet includes more foods from the base of the pyramid than
from the higher levels of the pyramid. Within this guideline, however, there’s
plenty of flexibility for different styles of eating and different food choices. A
vegetarian can follow the Healthy Eating Pyramid by emphasizing nuts, beans,
and other plant sources of protein, and choosing non-dairy sources of calcium
and vitamin D; someone who eats animal products can choose fish or chicken for
protein, with occasional red meat.
Choosing a variety of fresh, whole foods from all the food groups below the “Use
Sparingly” category in the Healthy Eating Pyramid will ensure that you get the
nutrients you need. It will also dramatically lower your salt intake, since most of
the salt in the U.S. diet lurks in processed food—canned soups, frozen dinners,
deli meats, snack chips, and the like.
Perhaps the only foods that are truly off-limits are foods that contain trans fat
from partially hydrogenated oils. Luckily, in the U.S. and Canada, trans fats must
be listed on nutrition labels. More and more food manufacturers, restaurants, and
even entire communities are going trans fat–free, making it easier to avoid this
health-damagingtype of fat.
Glossary:
rigid: strict, incapable of flexibility
guideline: a rule or principle that provides guidance to appropriate behavior
lurk: wait in hiding
off-limits: forbidden
2. The Healthy Eating Plate
When it’s time for dinner, most of us eat off of a plate. So think of the Healthy
Eating Plate as a blueprint for a typical meal, for yourself and your family. It has
colorful quadrants reserved for vegetables (green), fruits (red), protein (orange),
and grains (brown). It offers important messages about diet quality, not just
quantity:
Fill half of your plate with vegetables and fruits. The more color,
and the more variety, the better. Most Americans don’t get enough
vegetables, especially the dark green and red-orange types, or fruits. On the
Healthy Eating Plate, potatoes and French fries don’t count as vegetables.
Save a quarter of your plate for whole grains—not just any
grains: Grains are not essential for good health. What’s essential is to
eat whole grains, since these have a gentler effect on blood sugar and
insulin than refined grains. Whole grains include whole wheat, brown rice,
oats, barley, and the like, as well as foods made with them, such as whole
wheat pasta. The less processed the whole grains, the better: Finely ground
grain is more rapidly digested, and in turn, has a greater impact on blood
3. sugar than more coarsely ground or intact grains. So choose steel cut oats
instead of instant, sugared oats or choose whole wheat berries instead of
whole wheat bread.
Pick a healthy source of protein to fill one quarter of your
plate: The Healthy Eating Plate acknowledges that some protein sources
(fish, chicken, beans, nuts) are healthier than others (red meat and
processed meat).
Enjoy healthy fats. The glass bottle near the Healthy Eating Plate is a
reminder to use healthy oils, like olive and canola, in cooking, on salad,
and at the table. Limit butter, andavoid unhealthy trans fats.
Drink water, coffee or tea. On the Healthy Eating Plate, complete your
meal with a glass of water, or if you like, a cup of tea or coffee (which also
are low calorie and have health benefits). Limit milk and dairy products to
one to two servings per day and limit juice to a small glass per day. Skip the
sugary drinks.
Stay active. The figure scampering across the bottom of the Healthy
Eating Plate’s placemat is a reminder that staying active is half of the secret
to weight control. The other half is eating a healthy diet with modest
portions that meet your calorie needs. Since two out of three U.S. adults
and one in three children are overweight or obese, one thing is clear: Many
of us have been choosing plates that are too large.
Glossary:
blueprint: a guide for making something
quadrant: quarter
refined: finely processed
acknowledge: recognize
modest: limited
obese: very overweight, outsize
4. Name____________________________________Group__________Date______________
Before reading
Decide whether each of the following statements is true or false.
1. We must follow the rules strictly about what and how much to eat per day. T / F
2. Vegetarians cannot stay healthy because they don’t get all nutrients they need. T / F
3. We should avoid oils, butter, and trans fat. T / F
4. Grain products (bread, rice, noodles, and pasta) are essential for good health. T / F
5. Fish, poultry, beans are better sources of protein than beef, pork, and cheese. T / F
While reading
Exploring the text
1. What is the basic guideline of the Healthy Eating Pyramid?
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2. How can we ensure that we get the nutrients we need to stay healthy?
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3. What does a healthy eating plate look like? What is on the plate?
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4. What drink should you include in a healthy meal? What drink should you limit or avoid?
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5. 5. What are the principles of healthy eating?
Connecting with the text
1. What do you think of the Healthy Eating Pyramid and the Healthy Eating Plate?
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2. What is your diet like? What do you usually eat and drink?
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3. How do you choose what to eat? Do you focus on the taste or the quality of foods or
anything else?
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4. How did the text make you feel about your diet? Do you have any problems?
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5. How would you change your diet? Be specific about your plan to change.
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6. Generalizing beyond the text
1. If you were asked to do something about the food provided by the cafeteria at your school,
what would you do?
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2. Do you see any prominent problems with the lunches your peers bring to school? What
are the problems?
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3. Do you think schools should play a role to promote healthy eating? What do you think
schools should do?
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4. Do you know any campaign/event promoting healthy eating in your community? What
are they?
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5. What would you suggest the mayor of your city to do to advocate for healthy eating?
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7. Name_____________________________Group_______________Date___________
Reinvesting Task
Message on the Fridge
Now you have read about the Healthy Eating Pyramid and the Healthy Eating Plate.
Imagine that you write messages and put them on the door of the fridge to communicate with
your family. You task is to write a message of 80 words about the supper your mother or
father or anybody in your family prepared for you. Your message needs to tell what was good
or not good about the food on your plate. Use the information from the readings, but in
YOUR OWN WORDS.
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